Online assignment

1. Online Assignment
Topic:- Impact of Democratic challenges in Contemporary Society
Submitted by,
Rincy Daniel

2. Introduction
A democratic government is one run for the people. There are many forms of stability,
justice, fairness and progress that can only be achieved via sensible oversight and a strict rule
of law. National education, health, the prevention of the breaching of human rights and the
ensuring equality of all require a body that monitors and fairly assesses the requirements of
various strata of society. Organized groups of criminals, powerful commercial interests,
monopolies and the short-term thinking of industry all need to be tempered by a powerful
body that looks to the future and not unduly influenced by any particular concern.
Democracy, in other words, is about established governance that represents all people not just
business, not just the rich as powerful, not just trade unions, not just one particular race, one
particular religion are one particular world view: a good governments enables all of those
groups to complete and dispute, side by side, on a predictable and stable platform.
Some of the destabilizing and destructive influences are those that are dealt with
poorly by free-market-capitalism and party-based politics, both of which are popular in
democracies.
Content
The following principles emerge as the characteristics of democracy in its modern sense.
• Democracy emphasizes the worth and dignity of the individual and declares that every
human being is to be considered as an end and not as means.
• Sovereignty of the living individual points out human individual as the ‘unit of
judgment and responsible action’.
• Equal right is guaranteed to all.
• Political and social liabilities are considered as the only dependable, safeguards of
individual worth and equality.
• Democracy resets on individual opportunity and individual responsibility.
Democratic Challenges
• Special interest groups, Ethnic and Single Issue Parties and Organized religion.
• Multinationals versus Nation States.
• Lack of time and Mass Stupidity versus Democracy.
• Voter Apathy and Indifference.
• Government Suppression of the Press.
• The mass media.
• Destroying Politics with sensationalism and Lies.
• Lobby Groups and Public relations.
These are the democratic challenges.

3. Special Interest Groups, Ethnic and Single Issue Parties and Organized Religion
One risk to democracy comes from small but activist groups called special interest
groups. They do serve an important role in democracy (consciousness raising, free speech,
defending human rights, freedom to ……… etc) but they are also potentially subversive.
Single issue parties are the highest-up expression of these movements.
Multinationals Versus Nation-States
Apart from the risk from small elitist groups are discussed above, another risk comes
from the opposite side of the spectrum: Massive multinationals. Globalization has led to the
emergency of commercial companies that have transcended nationality. In the modern global
world, many multinationals choose to move production abroad rather than comply.
Production is normally moved to developing countries that want the revenue and taxes and
are not particularly interested in the high-tech legislations against environmental damage.
Lack of Time and Mass Stupidity Versus Democracy
In these cases, political action, unions and reasons can restore the balance between
enterprise and democracy. But this next issue is the most important difficult and serious
problem but a social one. Mass stupidity has undermined democracy since its inception and
massed several early attempts of democracy in Europe in the 18th
century.
Voter Apathy and Indifference
Most developed, western countries have seen a continual decline in the numbers of
people who vote in elections and referendums. This worries politicians as democracy requires
the input of the masses in choosing the parties that are to be in power. But that is not the only
issue that comes with voter apathy.
Government Suppression of the Press
Scores are calculated according to indicators including pluralism-the degree to which
opinions are represented in the media, media independence of authorities, self-censorship,
legislation, transparency and the infrastructure that support news and information and the
level of violence against journalists which includes length of imprisonments.
The Mass Media
Mass media is an important part of democracy. John Dewey believed that the
emergency of a modern mass media had the potential to improve the conditions and

4. operations of American democracy, if structured with those ends in mind, but he worried that
the particular shape of the American media system, governed primarily by commercial
interests, would have a much more negative influence. The press has long served as an
important part of democracy. Its role is to investigate the truth when politicians try to hide it,
and to uncover government’s failings. It is a protector of the people against those with power.
Without effective mass media the populace cannot cast informed votes.
The Danger of Cheap Journalism
Far from being a reporter on politics, many papers and news outlets become easily
malleable as their busy workers release easy stories rather than accurate ones. Journalism
becomes an easy tool to weild for those who want to spread lies, rather than an investigative
force exposing those who spresd lies. Text on democracy discusses the place of a free press,
plus the danders that it will undermine democracy by misleading the public and therefore
causing policy to have to be produced against the misguided wishes of the populace.
Lobby Groups and Public Relations
Modern journalism work at breakneck speed to process stories as fast as possible.
Much of this news comes from trusted wire agencies, but these also rely on public relations
material as do the news outlets themselves. Most news services rely heavily on PR material in
order to rapidly produce a stream of news. Too many journalists are engaged in an
unthinking, uncritical conveyor-belt of news and old journalistic practices such as fact-
checking and critical thinking have proven to get in the way of corporate efficiency. Powerful
commercial lobbies use this weakness to pervert public opinion.
Relationship between Democracy and Education
In democracy education cannot be considered as a monopoly of only a few well-to-do
or privileged people and it has to be considered as the birth right of all the members of a
democratic society. Just as democracy requires education, education also requires democracy
because it is democracy that supplies the aims of education. The present day society aims of
the production of democratic citizens. Thus education and democracy are functionally related
to each other. By democratic education the child will not only learn about the successful
operation of the democratic machineries but also the creation of democratic personalities. The
schools, in a democratic society are expected to develop worthy interests in the child so that
he is able to enrich his personality and improve his conduct. These worthy interests will make
the child happy well balanced and efficient citizen.

5. Conclusion
Democracy the control of the direction of government and the granting of its authority
by the people needs to be actively watched and defended. Special interest groups and single-
issue lobbies (as well as parties) can through their hearty activism, undermine democracy by
giving certain an out of proportion focus at the expense of general good governance. Large
multinational companies are able to outmaneuver and ignore local governments, which
sometimes places them above-the-law. Mass stupidity and voter apathy means that the people
normally vote on short-sighted, shallow and unimportant issues, which reduces the ability of
government to make required scarifies to overcome long-term problems. If the people vote on
good sounding but shallow policies, only good sounding but shallow parties will be elected.
Democracy includes political, social, cultural and economic democracy. Political democracy
implies the right to vote the majority to power. It thus gives sovereignty to the people.
Reference
Dr. Sivaranjan K, (1998), Social Science Education; Methodology of Teaching and
Pedagogic Analysis, Central Co-operative Stores, Calicut.
Aggarwal, J.C (2003), Teaching of Social Studies; A Practical Approach, Vikas
Publishing House, Mumbai.
Kohli A S, (1996), Teaching of Social Studies, Anmol Publication Pvt Ltd, New
Delhi.