Quality of Thai Media: Empirical Proposals on “Prime Minister’s Eggs” Discourse

Chayongkan Pamornmast,Thanaporn Sriyakul,Kittisak Jermsittiparsert

doi:10.5539/ass.v9n17p218

Abstract

This study aims to point out the issue of media “quality”, another flaw that has scarcely been acknowledged or discussed while “freedom” of the press is repeatedly debated, through the “prime minister’s eggs” discourse that the media have created and reproduced extensively from remote past to present days in Thai society to justify the government’s competency in economic management when egg price rises or drops, by means of advanced quantitative methodology. Hence, time series data on the egg price, minimum wage, and core consumer price index have been employed in the advanced statistical analyses, regression analysis and Johansen’s cointegration test, for that purpose.The regression analysis show that the two pairs-egg price and minimum wage, and egg price and core consumer price index-both have positive correlations at statistical significance of .01, but Johansen’s cointegration test indicates no cointegrating relationship between the pairs either at .05 or .01 level. This implies that bringing the egg price issue to justify the government’s competency in economic management is the media’s major misconception, which in reality may be a more pressing concern to be reformed than freedom.

Highlights

IntroductionIn practice, the media have been severely criticised contrariwise as being organisations without actual freedom (Phongpaichit, 2006) and full of conflicts of interest while conducting public administration duties and businesses with the government party, which has mass communication business groups as a bridge to political power
This study aims to point out the issue of media “quality”, another flaw that has scarcely been acknowledged or discussed while “freedom” of the press is repeatedly debated, through the “prime minister’s eggs” discourse that the media have created and reproduced extensively from remote past to present days in Thai society to justify the government’s competency in economic management when egg price rises or drops, by means of advanced quantitative methodology
The researchers selected a time series data gathered from relevant organisations and authorities, covering a period of 148 months from January of 1999 to April of 2011, on the following variables: 1) Egg price (EGGS), based on the retail price of #3 eggs, as they have the highest amount of consumption and their price tend to be used as base price in studies, from Department of Internal Trade, Ministry of Commerce (2011), defined as an independent variable of the minimum wage and core consumer price index

Summary

Introduction

In practice, the media have been severely criticised contrariwise as being organisations without actual freedom (Phongpaichit, 2006) and full of conflicts of interest while conducting public administration duties and businesses with the government party, which has mass communication business groups as a bridge to political power. It has been so since Pheu Thai Party was elected in early 2001, but become apparent in 2003

Methods

Results

Conclusion