Impact of Media

Impact of Media

By: Jeana Garrison


Impact of Media A good indicator of human advancement is their ability to communicate. Thanks to technology, each year it gets easier to convey a message to another person. With this convenience comes not just communication of basic needs but more and more advertising for everything else. Needless to say, media is everywhere. It influences people in nearly every decision they make. Some say that this isn=t true and that people decide for themselves. It may all depend on the point of view. First of all, let it be said that media is everywhere. Newspapers, magazines, television, billboards, telemarketing, and the Internet. Example: John Doe leads a fairly normal life. Each morning he reads the paper to begin the day. The newspaper is filled with ads and also opinions. Each article may seem to be from an objective point of view but some personal views may come through. John Doe may or may not choose to be affected by it. Either way, it is still there and Mr. Doe may be subconsciously influenced. There is no way to avoid it. Even in TV programs or movies there is Ahidden@ advertising. A carefully angled shot shows the hero is drinking Coke and has been planned to catch the consumer=s eye. 1993 By the start of the year, 98% of U.S. households own at least one TV set, 64% have two or more sets. Companies will use innumerous ways to coerce the customer to consume their product. Association is a major one. Matching a song with a product can influence a consumer after the commercial is long over. Every time they hear the song, they will think of that product. Even colors in decorating can be planned to produce a response. Fast food places such as Burger King use warm colors like orange and brown. Coincidently, looking at those colors tends to increase appetite. People are influenced. In 1990, the Children=s Television Act took effect Alimiting the amount of commercialization in children's TV programming (including cable) and requiring operators to carry at least some programming designed to meet children's educational and informational needs.@ http://www.adage.com/news_and_features/special_reports/tv/1990s.html. This Act was put into effect because children were being influenced. In October of 1993, the deliberately tasteless "Beavis and Butt-head" MTV animated...

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