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The Publics: Meaning and Nature of Public in Society!
Meaning of Public:
In common speech the term ‘public’ is often confused with the people.
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But in reality public is a part of the people. Generally speaking, fairly large sections of the people who share some common opinion, desire or interest, but who are not organised and are scattered all over are called the public. Thus there are various publics among the people. For example, we speak of reading public, the sport-loving public etc.
Some of the definitions of the term ‘public’ are as follows:
(i) ‘The public is an integration of many people not based on personal interaction but on reaction to the same stimuli, a reaction arising without the members of the public necessarily being physically near to one another.” J. S. Eros
(ii) “Publics are inclusive interest groups, usually with divergent opinions concerning social issues.” Ogburn
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(iii) “The term public is used to refer to a group of people who are confronted by an issue, who are divided in their ideas as to how to meet the issue and who engage in discussion over the issue.” Herbert Blitmer
(iv) ‘The public is a group of individuals who are united together by a common interest or objective.” Schettler
(v) “Public is a group of people interested in and divided about an issue, engaged in discussion of the issue, with a view to registering a collective opinion which is expected to affect the course of action of some group or individual.” Killian
(vi) “A public is a scattered group of people who share an interest in a particular topic.” Horton and Hunt
Thus, public is a group of people who have common interest in an issue. It need not be organised. It may be a dispersed group. Physical proximity is not necessary. The members of the public may not know each other.
Nature of Publics:
(I) A Dispersed Group:
Unlike the crowd, the public is a dispersed group. It never meets together. Its interaction takes place through the media of mass communication. The mass communication enables the public to have far flung membership. There can be a world public on a particular issue.
(II) A Deliberative Group:
Secondly, public is a deliberative collectivity. The characteristic interaction process within a public is discussion. It is not marked by emotional intensity. There is interchange of ideas between the members of public. It is characterized by deliberation, discussion, exchange of ideas and quest for new facts. The members debate the issue and try to reach a consensus.
(III) A Definite Issue:
There is a definite issue before the public. The only thing that members of a public need to have in common are interest in an issue. It may be any issue, economic or political, local, national or international. A public comes into existence only when an issue arises.
(IV) Lack of Organization:
A public does not have any form or organization. In it the people do not have fixed status roles. It does not have any ‘we-feeling’. The public is a kind of shapeless group whose size and membership varies with the issue.
(V) Disagreement:
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The public is marked by disagreement and discussion. The public enters into a discussion. Arguments are advanced, are criticized and are met by counter-arguments. It is characterized by controversy.
(VI) Self-awareness:
The member of a public is aware of himself and his own interests. He is not carried away by the stimulating presence of other. He takes interest in the issue, discusses it and is concerned with a decision over it. Of course, some members may be more interested than others in the issue.
The following other points may also be noted in regard to the nature of publics:
(i) A public has core members and fringe members. The core members are those who exert the most influence on the decision that is made.
(ii) The composition of a public is constantly changing as people’s interests become aroused on the one hand, or retreat to dormancy on the other.
(iii) An individual may be a member of many publics at the same Ume.
(iv) A public always includes factions.
(v) In modern society much social change is decided upon within democracy.