For almost ten decades ago, people have learned the art of communicating to each other through various ways, this kind of communication have gradually evolved with time to what today is being termed as mass media. Mass media started with printed documents, such as magazine, newspapers, flyers, brochures graduated to audio messages through radio stations, moved to words accompanied with pictures that are through the television programmes and now the era of the internet. This paper discusses the overview of the mass media and its impacts on the popular audience.
Virtually almost everyone the first thing he gets to do in the morning he wakes up or at least at the course of the day will pass by the pages of a newspaper, watch a show in the television, view headlines of the news in the magazines or see what is trending on the twitter handle. All these sums up to form what mass media means. In the United States, for instance, almost everyone depends on the mass media, developments to understand the world and bring order to ones live (Gitlin, 58). A day can never pass successfully without one knowing what is happening around and in the world at large. With the advent of computers and its soft wares, much has been achieved regarding getting whatever kind of information you were looking at, just at a click of a button. The era we are in today what we are what we think, and the media shape the values we harbor.
The impacts of the media industry are far and wide felt by almost every sector, ranging from the economic area, political field, social and cultural setup. In regards to the financial industry, the media industries have made an impact on many lives on a personal level and the state economy at large (Krugman, 350). This contribution is felt through the opportunities it has created such as the hiring of a journalist, writers, editors managers, reporters all across the country.
In regards to the cultural setup, media today has had the immense influence on perception and attitudes of people towards what they once believed. For example, through the frequent advertisements, they make on certain commodities people are changing their mindsets', they find themselves buying the same shoes, eating the same types of foods and developing the likeness to specific kind of sports etcetera. All these changes and adoption is slowly changing the inherent and the native cultures it once existed.
As a robust industry of information, where the daily happening and political makeups in the country is staged at. The opinions of the electorates when electing their leaders is based on the information they get from the media. It is apparent then that for one to get chosen, he must possess the qualities that the electorates see fit for representatives. For instance the previous elections in the United States. The leadership elections were based much on the information from the internet showing the personality of the candidates. For example, the New York Times, of 3rd March 2015 shows a leaked email of then u.s presidential candidate to have used a personal mail on state functions contrary to the federal law. Something which compromised her elections.
The technological advancement has seen these significant houses converging with only one aim to provide the one time, credible and real information to their clients depending on the way they need it, whether as a print document, online or on-screen display. The United States as a democratic nation has a free press which gives uncompromised information thus in combination with convergence they give credible and accurate happenings thus shaping the perception and attitudes of the citizens.
In conclusion, mass media has influenced almost all aspects of humanity, since it touches on the very core of the basis to which decision is made, and that is the attitude.
Works Cited
Gitlin, Todd. The whole world is watching: Mass media in the making and unmaking of the new left. Univ of California Press, 2003.
Krugman, Herbert E. "The impact of television advertising: Learning without involvement." Public opinion quarterly 29.3 (1965): 349-356.
