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For far too long now Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper has thumbed his nose at the public and media.

That disdain was again on stark display last week when Harper came out to Conservative MP David Sweets nomination meeting for the new riding of Glanbrook-Flamborough at the Warplane Heritage Museum.

In complete campaign mode, Harper, a maniac for message and image control, accompanied by his well-stocked security force and jittery communications officials, managed to keep the media well away from what was a campaign-style event. For more than 30 minutes, he talked in general terms about how productive the country has become under the Conservative banner, with the media far enough away to hear but barely see him. He then refused to allow any questions from the media, waiving them off with a flick of his wrist, as they were led back into a holding area.

This type of contempt for the media and by extension to the public is a slap in the face to Canadas democratic traditions. But its become part of Harpers modus operandi when it comes to ignoring criticism and avoiding unseemly questions.

Every time Harper has come to Hamilton the same scenario unfolds. When he does allow a question or two from the media, it has to be vetted by a communications minion to make sure it does not offend Harpers sensibilities.

While Harper and his acolytes dont seem particularly concerned about their deliberate abandonment of accountability, more troubling is that their kingly process could be a model that future leaders will follow.

Recently, Premier Kathleen Wynne during her trip to Northern Ontario demonstrated her lack of accountability by refusing to meet with the media for questions. It was a troubling sign coming from a premier who recently won a resounding majority election.

Most Canadians dont have the time or connections to gather important political information for themselves, so the media asks the questions that matter and holds the government to account on behalf of the people. By shutting the media out, politicians arent punishing journalists, but rather all citizens who have a stake in whats being done in their names. Some politicians think that they can go over the heads of the media and talk directly to voters through social media or TV, radio and direct mail advertising, but most people see that for what it is: propaganda.

It may be embarrassing for a politician to be asked a critical question, but the cost of not having that question asked is catastrophic to all Canadians.

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Governments needs to let the media in

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Using multiple forms of media simultaneously can affect grey matter in the brain. istockphoto

Multitasking with smartphones, laptop computers and other media devices could change the structure of your brain, according to a new study.

Researchers found that people who often use several forms of media simultaneously had lower gray matter density in a specific area of the brain than those who used just one device occasionally.

Scientists found the difference in gray matter density in the anterior cingulate cortex, which plays a major role in a number of thought processes and emotional control.

"Media multitasking is becoming more prevalent in our lives today and there is increasing concern about its impacts on our cognition and social-emotional well-being," Kep Kee Loh, a neuroscientist at the University of Sussex in England, said in a university news release.

Loh said that it's conceivable that individuals with less dense gray matter are more inclined to multitask due to weaker socio-emotional regulation. But it's equally plausible that higher levels of exposure to multitasking situations can lead to structural changes in the brain.

These findings support previous studies that found links between media multitasking and inattention as well as anxiety and depression, according to the release. But the release also noted that other research has found that learning new things can boost gray matter density in certain areas of the brain.

The research team used functional MRI to examine the brain structures of 75 people who had provided information about their use of personal media devices as well as TV and print media. Regardless of personality traits, people who frequently used multiple media devices had lower gray matter density in the anterior cingulate cortex.

"The exact mechanisms of these changes are still unclear," Loh said.

However, the study only revealed a link between multitasking and less-dense gray matter, not a direct cause-and-effect relationship. Further research is need to clarify the link, the researcher said.

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Can media multitasking alter your brain?

MOSCOW, Sept. 24 (UPI) -- Foreign ownership of Russian media outlets will be limited to 20 percent, in a bill passed by Russia's Parliament and supported by the party of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

It targets publications critical of Putin and lengthens the reach of the government's control over the media in Russia. Foreign ownership in radio and television is restricted to 50 percent, but there had been no limits to print media ownership until now.

Russia's leading business newspaper, Vedomosti, is owned in part by Britain's Financial Times and the U.S.' Wall Street Journal, and would be subject to the proposed new rules as would magazines owned by Disney, Forbes and Conde Nast. The bill was passed in Parliament Tuesday by a 434-1 vote, legislators charging the West was using media to attack the Russian government.

"The cold war, namely the information war, which is being unleashed against the Russian Federation, requires us to apply its rules," said the bill's sponsor, Vadim Dengin.

Vedomosti and Forbes Russia have supplied Russia with some of the most critical coverage of the government. Both were successfully sued by Igor Sechin, head of the Russian oil company and a close friend of Putin's, after Forbes Russia named him Russia's highest-paid executive, at $50 million per year, and Vedomosti suggested he held excessive power over government decisions.

"Foreign ownership was the only thing that protected some Russian media outlets' editorial integrity," said Leonid Bershidsky, first editor of Vedomosti and the first publisher of Forbes Russia. "If it's not allowed, that last bit of protection is gone."

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Russian legislation aims to control media