“In the last 50 years the media influence has grown exponentially with the advance of technology, first there was the telegraph, then the radio, the newspaper, magazines, television and now the Internet” (Rayuso, 2009, ¶1). As Rayuso supported, our society depends largely on information and communication technologies that help people move in the right direction in their work, entertainment, personal relationships, health care, and education. In modern society, media is everywhere, and it is almost impossible to avoid and in fact, Americans spend an average of twenty-eight hours per week watching television while they also spend an undetermined number of hours reading periodicals, listening to the radio, and going to the movies (Elton, 2008). The media effect on society is often debated, whether it is good or bad, overstated or understated, however, the fact is that there is an effect that is becoming more powerful as media becomes more pervasive, more mobile and more global (Mitchell, 2009).
“The media, especially television, socializes and shapes people’s attitudes, values, and beliefs about the world around them. Program content and commercials both strongly influence the way we think about ourselves and others, as well as sex, food, tobacco, and other life concerns. The Internet also strongly influences our behaviour, especially socially. Further, some individuals are addicted to watching television and using the Internet, and as a consequence, they forget about the world and fail to meet responsibilities” (Medoff & Kaye, 2005, p.313). Many people cannot realize the significant impact that the mass media has on all aspects of society whether that is economic, ideological or political due to the fact that the mass media has become such an ordinary and everyday part of society (Elton, 2008). As Elton noted, the mass media influence the way we vote, the things we buy, the way we act as well as the values we hold.
“Mass media are methods of communicating to a vast amount of people around the world. Mass media means things such as Television, Radio, Newspapers, Internet, Magazines etc; they are a means of communication to people. The mass media have a few main functions, which include informing, educating and entertaining us” (Vish, 2008, ¶2). According to Medoff and Kaye (2005), the effects of media on people individually, socially and culturally can be explained through four perspectives which include the strong-effects model, the limited-effects model; the moderate-effects model; and the powerful-effects model. It is the author’s belief and point of view that media has not a limited or moderated effect on society but a powerful effect. “What we need to be aware is that most of our decisions, beliefs and values are based on what we know for a fact, our assumptions and our own experience. In our work we usually know what we have to do based on our experience and studies; however, on our daily lives we rely on the media to get the current news and facts about what is important and what we should be aware of” (Rayuso, 2009, ¶4).
Television and other media can have positive and negative effects as well but it seems that most of the attention is focused on the negative effects and there is much debate about the degree to which the media influence our attitudes, behaviours, and values (Medoff & Kaye, 2005). As Mitchell (2009) noted, “as the technology powers and empowers the delivery of the media effect in ways not possible before, there are both good and bad outcomes” (¶16). People have trusted the media as an authority to give them news, entertainment and education but however, the influence of mass media on society is so big that people should be aware of how it really works (Rayuso, 2009). The media has a significant impact on society and in public opinion as well and in fact, the media can shape the public opinion in various ways depending of what is the objective (Rayuso, 2009). As Rayuso noted, “Of all the media distribution channels the most influential has been the television, we are constantly exposed to thousands of images of violence, advertising, sex, celebrities and much more, in fact it is known that a child is exposed to about 40,000 ads a year” (¶6). Additionally, the rise of new media such as video games and the Internet has introduced new ways children can be exposed to violence (Anderson, Berkowitz, Donnerstein, Huesmann, Johnson, Linz, Malamuth & Wartella, 2003).
It is the author’s belief and point of view that media has a powerful effect on society. Despite the fact that various kinds of media such as television, radio, advertising and the Internet provide many benefits, they can also have a powerful negative effect on society and people’s lives, especially on children’s lives. For instance, the Internet is blamed for exposing children to unsavoury material and in fact, when children tend to make an extensive use of the Internet, they can be led to social isolation (Medoff & Kaye, 2005). Music videos and music lyrics can also have a powerful effect on society and mostly on children’s lives. “Music videos are also of concern because these videos are sometimes replete with violence. Even those that do not have explicit aggressive content often have antisocial overtones” (Anderson et al., 2003, p.9). In addition, as Anderson et al. supported, watching violent music videos creates attitudes and beliefs that are relatively accepting of violence in young viewers. Furthermore, radio stations get heat for playing songs with racy, violent, and antisocial lyrics and this is an issue of concern because children will do whatever these songs suggest (Medoff & Kaye, 2005).
Advertising constitutes also an important means of media that has a powerful effect on society and that can significantly impact and influence people’s attitudes and beliefs. As Rayuso (2009) stated, “The media makes billions of dollars with the advertising they sell and that we are exposed to. We buy what we are told to be good, after seeing thousands of advertisings we make our buying decisions based on what we saw on TV, newspapers or magazines to be a product we can trust and also based on what everyone else that we know is buying and their decision are also based on the media”(¶11). Apart from these, teenagers are influenced and consequently buy what their favourite celebrity advertise and what is acceptable by society based on fashion that the media has imposed them (Rayuso, 2009). In addition, “According to the Journal of Advertising, studies show that America’s obsession with physical beauty is strongly created and reinforced by advertising” (Fihn, n.d, ¶3).
Comparing the various kinds of media it can be denoted that television constitutes the one that has the most powerful effect on society and can greatly influence people’s opinions, attitudes, behaviour, and beliefs. When we watch TV we usually see many images of violence and people hurting others and this is something that can become traumatic especially in children who are starting to grow and are shaping their personality values and beliefs and hence, this can result in making them become aggressive or losing the sense of reality and fiction (Rayuso, 2009). As Medoff and Kaye (2005) noted, “Television content is blamed for many social ills, such as violent behaviour, increased crime rated, a lower literacy level, and the breakdown of the family” (p.291).
Psychologists have proven that the minds of children develop cognitively and when they are young, they are not in a position to understand things such as violence on television and therefore, violence on television give children the sense that violence is a part of ordinary life, thus reducing their ability not to be violent (Fihn, n.d). Additionally, it is worth mentioning the results of a research conducted in 1969 by the U.S. Surgeon General’s Scientific Advisory Committee on Television and Social Behaviour regarding the influence of television on children’s behaviour, that revealed that there was a strong link between viewing violence on television and performing antisocial behaviour and in fact, the link was not limited only to children who were predisposed to aggressive behaviour (Medoff & Kaye, 2005).
Also, the results of another study revealed that the majority of programs on television include violence and this is something that can greatly influence people’s behaviour and attitudes. In specific, “according to the national Television Violence study (NTVS), which, during the period of three years, investigated ten thousand hours of violent programs, discovered that about 60% of all TV programs have violent content. And only fifteen percent of these programs revealed the long-term effects of the violence they depicted. Forty percent of them even ended with the criminals going completely free without being punished” (Fihn, n.d, ¶2).
Additionally, in the 1980, many violence studies indicated that viewing violence is strongly related to aggressive behaviour and in fact, viewing media violence may affect people behaviourally, cognitively, and emotionally since viewers and mostly children, may imitate aggressive behaviours, identify with unsavoury characters and may become desensitized to violence in real life (Medoff & Kaye, 2005). Moreover, as Medoff and Kaye noted, “Repeated exposure to mediated violence breaks down social barriers and may influence antisocial behaviours” (p.313).
As research has revealed, a significant proportion of aggressive children are likely to grow up to be aggressive adults and in fact, the best single predictor of violent behaviour in older adolescents and young adults is aggressive behaviour when they were younger (Anderson et al., 2003). As Anderson et al., “Thus influences that promote aggressive behaviour in young children can contribute to increasingly aggressive and ultimately violent behaviour many years later” (p.3).
Undoubtedly, media has a powerful effect on society and this is a fact that the author strongly supports. If we take a look at every aspect in every field of society, we will see and realize various examples that indicate the powerful effect that media have on society. For instance, ways that media influence people are with polls and trends, especially in political campaigns, where candidates that can pay for more TV and media exposure have more influence on public opinion and hence, they can receive more votes (Rayuso, 2009). Also the media effect was one of the biggest factors in the recent US presidential elections and in fact, rampant sexism in old media hurt Hillary’s campaign and a newly engaged media constituency helped put Obama in the White House (Mitchell, 2009).
The 2008 Presidential election is a representative example of the powerful effect that media has on society. Particularly, “The mass media decided to give the most coverage to candidates who stand for preserving the status quo, while writing off candidates who challenge the status quo (such as Ron Paul, Dennis Kucinich, and Mike Gravel) as long-shots –even if polls, straw polls, primaries, and the breaking of world records say otherwise” (Elton, 2008, p.2).
According to Martin N. Marger, “the media are closely interwoven with government, particularly at the national level. Put simply, the relationship between government and media is symbiotic, neither can function effectively without the other […] Moreover, much of the news transmitted by the mass media is prepared by government agencies” (Elton, 2008, p.2).
The media has also a powerful effect in public opinion. For instance, after the attacks of 911 the media gave a huge coverage of the event and exposed Osama guilty for the attack as they were told by the authorities and this was something that shaped the public opinion to support the war on terrorism as it happened with the war on Iraq (Rayuso, 2009). Another example of the powerful effect of the media on society is the use of cigars by celebrity movies stars, the constant exposure of sex images, the exposure to thousands of junk food ads as well as the excessive images of violence (Rayuso, 2009).
“Media also affects the way Americans view their own appearance, what with super thin models and other beautiful people on TV, on magazines, and in advertisements, giving Americans something new to be insecure about” (Fihn, n.d, ¶3). Many women want to look like the super models and thin celebrities so they become obsessive with losing weight even they are not obese and hence, they engage in eating disorders such as anorexia that may lead to severe health problems and even death (Rayuso, 2009). But not only kinds of eating disorders such as anorexia are influenced by the media but also obesity. As Rayuso noted, “There are millions of adolescents fighting obesity, but at the same time they are exposed to thousands of advertisements of junk food, while the ideas image of a successful person is to be thin and wealthy” (¶17).
As Elton (2008) outlined, “The influence of mass media on society extends far beyond politics. The media doesn’t just influence who we vote for, but also what we entertain ourselves with, what we buy, and what we believe. Most people have been affected by the mass media since childhood. It starts with children’s movies which serve a primary purpose of corporate marketing, and a secondary purpose of entertainment” (p.2).
Closing up, “Some worry that our fascination with television and the Internet is turning us into media junkies, who live in darkened rooms, transfixed to our screens. These concerns will not likely be settled in the near future and, in fact, are more likely to grow as television screens get larger and more involving and our dependence on computers and the Internet deepens” (Medoff & Kaye, 2005, p.313).
Undoubtedly, as Medoff and Kaye (2005) supported, the media has a powerful effect on society but it can be denoted that not all people respond to the same message in the same way and in fact, the circumstances must be right in order for certain effects to occur and for instance, some viewers may be influenced and may become more aggressive than others under some circumstances
References
Anderson, C.A., Berkowitz, L., Donnerstein, E., Huesmann, L.R., Johnson, J.D., Linz, D., Malamuth, N.M.,Wartella, E. (2003) The Influence of Media Violence on Youth. Retrieved December 10, 2009, from http://www.psychologicalscience.org/pdf/pspi/pspi43.pdf
Elton, M. (2008) The Effects of Mass Media on Society. Retrieved December 11, 2009, from http://www.scribd.com/doc/22036108/The-Effects-of-Mass-Media-on-Society
Fihn, J. (n.d) The Effects of Media on American Society. Retrieved December 8, 2009,
from http://www.helium.com/items/464058-the-effects-of-media-on-american-society
Medoff, N. & Kaye, B. (2005) Electronic media: Then, now, and later. Pearson
Education, Inc.
Mitchell, P. (2009) The Media Effect: Pat Mitchell’s Remarks at TED. Retrieved December 8, 2009, from http://www.paleycenter.org/the-media-effect-pat-mitchell-remarks-at-ted
Rayuso (2009) Mass Media Influence on Society. Retrieved December 9, 2009,
from http://hubpages.com/hub/Mass-Media-Influence-on-Society
Vish, F. (2008) Mass Media. Retrieved December 9, 2009, from http://www.allfreeessays.com/essays/Mass-Media/2939.html
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