SPIRAL OF SILENCE

Teori Komunikasi
PM Dr. Ali Salman

Bios on Noelle-Neumann
Born in Berlin on December 19, 1916
Studied newspaper science, history
and philosophy in Berlin, Konigsberg
and Munich
Studied journalism at University of
Missouri
Earned her Ph.D. at the University of
Berlin

BACKGROUND: Expressing
Opinions
Societal norms can be intimidating
Public opinion as a tangible force
Intense social pressure can be brought to bear
on the person who dares to test the boundaries

BACKGROUND: Expressing
Opinions
Perception of distribution of opinion shapes
willingness to express opinions
People express opinions more confidently when
they see they are in the majority or gaining
ground
People are unwilling to express opinions that
run counter to their perception of majority view

BACKGROUND: Expressing
Opinions
What opinions can be expressed?
Opinions that do not risk fear of social
isolation
Opinions that are publicly visible
Can be a minority opinion, but minority must
speak out and act as if it is majority opinion

BACKGROUND: Expressing
Opinions
People have a quasi-statistical
organ
A sixth sense that provides information
about what society is thinking and
feeling
Constantly scan the environment to
gauge the climate of opinion and future
trends.

Noelle-Neumanns empirical
study
Conducted extensive survey research in January
1971
Studies confirmed
the ability of people to perceive about majority and minority
opinions
Frequency of distribution of pro and con viewpoints

Assumption that people have an ability to

determine
which opinions and modes of behavior are approved and
disapproved of in their environment and;
which opinions and forms of behavior are gaining or
losing strength

What is Spiral of Silence?

A theory that explains the growth and
spread of public opinion
The term refers to the increasing
pressure people feel to conceal their
views when they think they are in the
minority

Peoples hesitancy to express

minority views
Noelle-Neumann predicts:
Individuals who notice that their own
personal opinion is spreading and is
taken over by others, will voice this
opinion self confidently in public. On
the other hand, individuals who notice
that their own opinions are losing
ground, will be inclined to adopt a
more reserved attitude.

Fear of Isolation
Fear of social isolation is the key
force that drives the spiral of silence
Group pressure has tremendous
influence
We dont like to be excluded for our
views

Fear of Isolation
Theory about obedience to authority
in World War II - citizens in Nazi
Germany
Noelle-Neumann was Nazi Party
member
She worked for Goebbels, head of Nazi
Propaganda
Wrote for Das Reich, but later
withdrew/recanted

Fear of Isolation
People will ignore the plain evidence
of their senses and yield to perceived
group pressure. (Solomon Asch, psychologist)
The worst sickness is not leprosy or tuberculosis,
but the feeling of being respected by no one, of
being unloved, deserted by everyone. -Mother
Teresa

Fear of Isolation
Noelle-Neumann rejects the
possibility that people conform
more out of a desire to identify with
a winner.
Rather it is more to avoid

isolation.

When to Speak or Keep Silent

Conformity and compliance have
great social power over individuals
Those in minority positions tend to keep
quite if they do not sense support
Not that they change their minds
Duck their heads and keep their own
council

The Accelerating Spiral of

Silence
Because the one (predominant)
group express themselves with
self-confidence whereas the others
remain silent, the former appear to
be strong in public, the latter
weaker than their number suggest.
This encourages others to express
themselves or to fall silent, and a
spiral process comes into play.

Silencing as a process
The process will gather steam on
certain minority views
The less we hear opposing views, the
more we tend to believe that most
people agree with the majority viewpoint

The media role is dramatic in terms of

news in the media
The media highlight a particular
viewpoint or opinion

Potential of effective public

opinion
Public opinion as powerful force of
resolving conflicts and toppling
governments
If we understand the force of public
opinion, we shall not fool ourselves in
thinking that we can be good citizens,
completely independent of the
pressure of public opinionNoelleNeumann

Framing of peoples memory

When people are carried away with an
interpretation of a message
Thoughts are framed in a particular way
Framing refers to memory

How well do the people remember the

information that they are being exposed
to
One time story
Continuous coverage such as the Gulf War

In a Nutshell
People have the ability to measure
trends of public sentiment
People justifiably fear social isolation
People are hesitant to express
minority viewpoints, especially if
losing ground
But where do they get their perceptions?

Media Influence
Mass media work jointly with majority
opinion to silence minority views
Mass media, particularly TV, suggest
what others are thinking through
portrayals
People look to the media to see if there
is support and legitimization for views
Index the media to gauge current climate
Provide the words and phrases that people
can use to defend a certain point of view

Media Influence
Direct observation gives us only a
small proportion of the information we
use; the print and electronic media
provide most of our knowledge about
the world around us.
Media do not only tell us what to think
about but also provide the sanctioned
view of what everyone else is
thinking.

The hard core and avant-garde: holdouts

who can change the world.
Early critics pointed out that there are people
who will never be silenced.
Hard core nonconformists - have been overpowered and
relegated to a completely defensive position in public.
a. They have nothing to lose by speaking out.
b. They cling to the past and regard isolation
as
the price to pay.

The hard core and avant-garde: holdouts

who can change the world.
The avant-garde
forms the vanguard of new
ideas.
They seek public response, even though it
may be negative.
Their conviction is ahead of the times.

The hard core and avant-garde: holdouts

who can change the world.
The reality of the hard-core and avant-garde
minorities are acknowledged by NoelleNeumann, but not predicted by her spiral of
silence.
Serge Moscovici does not believe she adequately
considers the pervasive impact of committed
deviants on public opinion.

Critique to the spiral of silence

Spiral of silence is most likely the cause
for peoples fear in voicing dissent during
Nazi Germany
Opted to remain silent because they choose
to live and not to die

Theory has little value elsewhere,

especially in the United States
First Amendment freedoms of speech and
press, and enjoy the right to peaceably
assemble and petition the Government for a
redress of grievances

Critique
Hardcores - the minority that remains vocal
in defiance of threats of isolation
Bill Maher, Dixie Chicks, War Protesters, Tun
Mahathir

Pluralistic ignorance and Projection - we

tend to misestimate the prevalence of our
views
Quasi-statistical organ doesnt work so well

Weak support outside of WW II Germany

Maybe only operates in totalitarian regimes
The ability to find like-minded views online

Critique
Critics question the assumption that
fear of isolation is the cause of
peoples silence.
The theory relies on the hypothetical
train/plane test to measure
willingness to speak rather than use
the observation of actual behavior.

Critique
While the spiral of silence focuses on national
climate of public opinion, other studies have
indicated that the opinion of ones own reference
group or microclimate of family and friends is most
closely linked to ones willingness to speak out.

At present.
With the advent of the new
media, is the theory still
relevant?