The Reality of the Mass Media

"The Reality of the Mass Media" is Niklas Luhmann's application of his social-systems theory to the mass media. Luhmann argues that the media system operates as a self-referential, self-reproducing (autopoietic) communication system, one that processes what counts as "information" versus "non-information" through its own internal code rather than by testing claims against external truth or values. Despite this internally closed operation, Luhmann argues the mass media function as a key cognitive system that lets modern society construct a shared, if partial, picture of reality, and that this helps stabilize social roles and expectations. Credits: Luhmann, N. (2002). The Reality of the Mass Media. Journal of Communication Inquiry (Vol. 26).