How Media Affects Society - Research Paper Example

How Media Affects Society The effects of the media on the society have grown exponentially, thanks to advance of technology. The media has undergone transition from books, newspapers, magazines, sound recordings, radio, and television to the new media of the internet and now social media. Today, everyone depends on the media for information and communication in order to keep their lives moving (Curtis 1). Media has influenced almost all spheres of life and the society, as a whole (Gorman & McLean 34). This paper focuses on resultant effects of the interaction between the media and the society. The role the Media in the Society The media serves a critical role in the society including provision of news/ information, entertainment and educating the masses on various issues. Information is important to the society largely because it helps in not only decision-making but also in formulating opinions. Entertainment is equally critical to the society as it helps people relax after the day’s work. Society needs education on various issues. Society can be educated on rights; moral, and social responsibilities and the media provide all these (Gorman & McLean 43). Therefore, the role of the media in the society is so huge that it cannot be ignored. Although the current media is highly saturated, it was not the case in the past. As recently as 1960s and 1970s, TV, for instance, had only three networks (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt 1). Unlike today, the channels tailored their programs to meet needs of middle-class families. It was also the case that some middle-class did not even have a television. Consequently, the content aired by TVs at that time was very limited. Today, TV is quite affordable and can be found in most homes. Programming has also been diversified to serve the needs of different target audiences in terms of ages, incomes, backgrounds and attitudes (Rosengren 67-68). Sociological perspectives on the effects of Media on the Society Three theories have been put forward to explain the effect of the media on the society, and they include the limited effects theory, the class-dominant and the cultural theories. Limited-effects theory This theory posits that media has a negligible effect on the masses. It argues that people’s decision to watch or read is often influenced by what they already believe and, therefore, media poses a negligible effect on the people. A study to test this theory based on people’s voting patterns indicated that well-informed people depended heavily on their personal experience and reasoning during voting. The media only has influence on the few people that are less informed. This theory is largely criticized following its ignorance of the media’s role in framing the discussion and debate issues. In addition, the theory came at a time when media was far less spread (Leach 65). Class-Dominant Theory Class-dominant theory suggests that the media only reflects the views minority elite who exercise control of over it (Ademola and Okunola 179-184). These elites, therefore, control of the stories that come out to the larger public. The proponents of this view concern themselves especially with immense corporate mergers of media organizations, which disrupt competition and but big business at the reigns of the media. The underlying argument in this theory is that the media, through its corporate capitalists affect the society by promoting cultures such as consumerism (Leach 66). Culturalist Theory The theory developed in the 1980s and 1990s. Culturalist perspective integrates limited effects and class-dominant theories and asserts that the perception of the information people receive from the media is largely influenced by their interpretation of the images and messages from the media. Audiences are perceived as being passive instead of being actively involved in the media (Leach 66-68). Consequently, the theory admits that the media has huge impacts on the people in the society following its ability to shape their thinking process (Leach 68). Effects of Media on Society While the media remains critical to the society; its effects, although largely assist in transforming the society, they also bring negative impacts on the people. Positive Effects of the Media on the Society The mass media plays a great role in the transmission of culture. Television usually broadcasts entertainment, which, in many cases, reflects stereotypes of acceptable and unacceptable behaviors and values in the society. Usually, the way such information is transmitted is that it invites the viewers to offer a critical reflection on cultures (Shabir, et al. 480). In the U.S, for instance, The Simpsons’ running joke, which portrays Pakistan immigrants as ignorant convenience-store owners, only serves to belittle Pakistan immigrants’ culture. In other cases, however, the media promotes acceptable behaviors within the society (Shabir, et al. 480). The mass media has a significant influence in modern society. It has brought what is called ‘mediated culture’ whereby the media reflects and creates the culture. People are constantly fed with messages from many media sources such as TV, billboards and magazines among many others (Rosengren 89). These messages more often than not promote products; serve to communicate moods, attitudes, and distinguishing of what is important and what is not important. Mass media contributes immensely towards the creation of the celebrity concept. The ability of the media such as movies, magazines, and the news media to reach millions of people across the globe enables people to become famous and thus celebrities. In the past, only influential political leaders and business people and some notorious outlaws were known. The media has since changed that and now actors; singers and other influential social elites are part of the celebrities, commonly referred to as ‘stars’ (Rosengren 91). The new programmers tailor the content of the mass media according to the interests of the major power groups, in most cases, large corporations and the wealthy. Media’s main clients are large corporate advertisers. They often sponsor their programs, it is often the case that TV commercials promote a materialistic mentality on the part of consumers, without regard of necessity, safety or effectiveness of the products. Such advertising encourage a consumer culture since it defines people’s needs and then lure them to fulfil them by buying goods and services and, as such, contributing to capitalism (Shabir, et al. 481). Mass media has led to modernization and globalization of culture, and this has in turn had a significant effect on the society. Modernization, for example, has had an effect on the people living contemporary state societies. All over the developing countries such as in Africa and Asia, modernization has brought about radical political and economic change and overhaul of cultural transformation. The mass media facilitates access of information about new inventions and advances in various areas spheres of life and thus leads to transformation of societies (Shabir, et al. 482). Negative Effects of the Media on the Society While the effects of the media on the society are seen as largely positive, there are exceptions to this mentality. The media is partly responsible for the growing cases of obesity especially in the united states. Millions of adolescents presumably are fighting the consequences of obesity, the media remains oblivion of such facts and; instead, continues exposing the same adolescents to countless advertisements for fattening junk food. The media also encourages sedentary lifestyle where the youth sit around their screens with little body exercise (Rosengren 98). This too contributes to not only obesity but other fatal health conditions. The media is also responsible for bad influences on the youth. For instance, the media is often responsible for creating idealized images of successful people appearing thin. Such creations have influenced many young girls and women of average proportions to want to look like the images of the successful super-thin models often shown by the media. As a result, they allow themselves to acquire eating disorders in their quest to like those models; unfortunately, that leads to health issues and sometimes death (Rosengren 102). The media is also seen as playing a critical role in promoting high-risk behaviors such as gun violence. The exposure of the teenagers to movies displaying movie celebrities using guns and ammunitions affects their psychology and may end up replicating the same behavior in real-life. In addition, movies portray images of violence and people hurting others may cause traumatic experiences in children if they continually watch them. Such movies may shape the personality and values of the kids to become aggressive when they grow up; alternatively, such kids may lose the sense distinction between reality and fiction (Gorman and McLean 104) The media also leads to degradation of moral values. The media is seen as being responsible for the proliferation of uncouth behaviors such as premarital sex and even rape. The rampant and uncensored sex scenes in movies shown on various media platforms increase the curiosity of teenagers into wanting to practice the same and, as such, encourage premarital sex. In addition, some youth may copy the almost-nude mode of dressing often exhibited in movies and this lead to rape cases (Drabman and Thomas 203). Conclusion The media play quite a significant role in the society. It has brought about modernization and globalization, which have had a positive impact on the society. However, the media are not without flaws as they are responsible for instilling some of the negative behaviors seen in teenagers. Works Cited Ademola, E and Okunola, R. “People, Culture and Mass Media as Agent of Cultural Imperialism.” Journal of Politics and International Affairs 1.2 (2013): 179-191. Print. Curtis, Anthony. “Mass Media Influence on Society.” Uncp.edu. Web. 04 December 2014. Drabman, R. S and Thomas, M. H. “Childrens imitation of aggressive and prosocial behavior when viewing alone and in pairs.” Journal of Communication 27 (1977): 199-205. Print Gorman, L. and McLean, D. “Media and Society into the 21st Century: A Historical Introduction (2nd ed.).” West Sussex: Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Inc, 2009. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. “The role and influence of media”. Cliffsnotes.com. Web. 04 December 2014. Leach, E. “Social Anthropology.” Glasgow: Fontana Paperbacks, 1982. Print. Rosengren K.E. “Media Effects and Beyond: Culture, Socialization and Lifestyles.” New York, NY: Routledge, 2005. Print. Shabir. G., Farooq U., Amin R., Chaudhry W.A. “Mass Media, Culture & Society with the Perspective of Globalization, Modernization and Global Culture,” Asian Journal of Social Sciences & Humanities 2.3(2003): 479-483. Print Read More