Biblical antecedents of modern agenda-setting: religious platforms in lieu of mass media

Abstract

Can a primitive society set a public agenda? Are there some advantages for a religious society in setting an agenda? From a critical study of the communicative perspective of the Bible and hermeneutic reading of its texts, it can be said that certain elements in primitive societies succeeded in influencing the political and social agendas. They did so by exploiting specific public assemblies or appearing in crowded places in attempts to impact local and national agendas. This notion is significant because it suggests that in countries that do not have developed communication infrastructures or established religious institutions (e.g., churches, mosques, and synagogues) that serve as public arenas, indeed even in seemingly closed religious communities, there may well be attempts to use venues other than mass media to influence the public agenda.