Daniel Lerner
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Daniel Lerner (1917 - 1980) was an American scholar and writer known for his studies on
modernization theory Modernization theory is used to explain the process of modernization within societies. The "classical" theories of modernization of the 1950s and 1960s drew on sociological analyses of Karl Marx, Emile Durkheim and a partial reading of Max Weber, ...
. Lerner's study of Balgat Turkey played a critical role in shaping American ideas about the use of mass media and US cultural products to promote economic and social development in post-colonial nations. In 1958, he wrote the seminal book ''The Passing of Traditional Society: Modernizing the Middle East''. Scholars have argued that the research project that formed the basis of the book emerged from intelligence requirements in the US government, and was a result of the contract between the Office of International Broadcasting and Columbia University. He, along with
Wilbur Schramm Wilbur Lang Schramm (August 5, 1907 – December 27, 1987) was a scholar and "authority on mass communications". He founded the Iowa Writers' Workshop in 1935 and served as its first director until 1941. Schramm was hugely influential in establish ...
and
Everett Rogers Everett M. "Ev" Rogers (March 6, 1931 – October 21, 2004) was an American communication theorist and sociologist, who originated the ''diffusion of innovations'' theory and introduced the term ''early adopter''. He was distinguished professor em ...
, were influential in launching the study and practice of
media development Media development involves capacity building for institutions or individuals related to freedom of expression, pluralism and diversity of media, as well as transparency of media ownership. Media development plays a role in democracy and effect ...
and
development communication Development communication refers to the use of communication to facilitate social development. Development communication engages stakeholders and policy makers, establishes conducive environments, assesses risks and opportunities and promotes i ...
.


Education

Lerner obtained his doctorate from
New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, the ...
in 1948, submitting a dissertation about the conduct of psychological warfare against Germany during the time between D-Day and VE-Day, which was published as Sykewar (1949).


Career

Lerner was Ford Professor of Economics at the
Massachusetts institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...
(MIT). He became a visiting professor of economics and social sciences at MIT for three years starting in 1953, an associate professor of economics in 1956, and a full professor of economics and political science in 1958. He became a Life Fellow of the International Institute of Arts and Letters in 1962, and retired from teaching in 1976.


Criticism

In his book Sykewar, Lerner writes,
"In its 'cold war' with Soviet Union... The United States is offering mainly dollars... to produce more 'good things of life'... Should it turn out that... the 'good things' we offer are not adequate competition against the 'better world' offered by Soviets, we shall need some new policy decisions... Here we shall need to consult the intelligence specialists (the social scientists) and the communication specialist (the propagandist) - rather than or in addition to the diplomat, the economist and the soldier"
Lerner's involvement in the
Bureau of Applied Social Research The Bureau of Applied Social Research was a social research institute at Columbia University which specialised in mass communications research. It grew out of the Radio Research Project at Princeton University, beginning in 1937. The Bureau's fi ...
project that ''Traditional Society'' was based on has been criticized to be violating ethical considerations of research.Samarajiwa, R. (1987). The murky beginnings of the communication and development field: Voice of America and the passing of traditional society. ''Rethinking Development Communication'', 3–19. The research was conducted as a field survey in
Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
,
Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...
,
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
,
Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...
,
Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
,
Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...
,
Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
,
Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
,
Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
&
Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...
, with special focus on Turkey. In all, 1600 interviews were used for the book. Samarajiva writes that even though the original purpose of research had been said to be about empathy and media participation, many of the questions in the survey had to do with foreign radio broadcast and sentiments regarding US, UK and
USSR The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...
. The questionnaire consisted of 9 questions about movies, 17 about newspapers and 49 about radio. Of the 49 questions about radio, 23 were about foreign broadcasting. In fact, Samarajiva writes that,
"A restricted document from the Program Evaluation Branch, International Broadcasting Division, Department of State, titled 'Projected Research Plans' and issued prior to the actual research, lists the questions Voice of America was interested in having asked. These questions had corresponding questions in the BASR project as well."
He, therefore, argues that BASR research formed the basis to find target audiences for
Voice of America Voice of America (VOA or VoA) is the state-owned news network and international radio broadcaster of the United States of America. It is the largest and oldest U.S.-funded international broadcaster. VOA produces digital, TV, and radio content ...
. According to the ethics of research as outlined by
Ithiel de Sola Pool Ithiel de Sola Pool (October 26, 1917 – March 11, 1984) was an American academic who was a widely celebrated and often controversial figure in the field of social sciences and information technology. He did significant research on technology an ...
, the research project did not adequately concern itself with ethics of research. The researchers did not: * fully disclose the sponsors of the research in their host countries, * fully reveal to the native researchers the purposes of the research, * adequately publish the results of the research in the host countries, * ensure the safety of the researchers involved


Works

* Daniel Lerner (1958
The Passing of Traditional Society: Modernizing the Middle East
New York: Free Press. * Daniel Lerner. (1972) ''Communication for Development Administration in Southeast Asia''. Asia Society—SEADAG. * Schramm, Wilbur., & Lerner, David. (Eds.). (1976). ''Communication and change: The last ten years and the next''. Honolulu, HI: University of Hawaii Press. * Lerner, Daniel, Lyle M. Nelson, and Wilbur Lang Schramm. (1977) ''Communication Research: A Half-Century Appraisal''. Published for the East-West Center by University Press of Hawaii. * Lasswell, Harold Dwight, Daniel Lerner, and Hans Speier. The Symbolic Instrument in Early Times. East-West Center, 1979.


References

* Henry Bernstein. (1971) "Modernization Theory and the Sociological Study of Development∗." Journal of Development Studies 7, no. 2: 141–160. . * John Durham Peters and Peter Simonson. (2004) ''Mass Communication and American Social Thought: Key Texts, 1919-1968''. Rowman & Littlefield. {{DEFAULTSORT:Lerner, Daniel 1917 births 1980 deaths University of California, Irvine faculty