“Mass Media Influence on Society.” Hub Pages. 1 November 2009. http://hubpages.com/hub/Mass-Media-Influence-on-Society
SUMMARY:
Media Influence has grown drastically in the past fifty years “first there was the telegraph, then the radio, the newspaper, magazines, television and now the internet.” Our society depends on a quick source of information and communication. Television affects all of society; children usually are exposed to 40,000 ads a year solely from television ads. This article claims that five different companies basically control the media: Time Warner, VIACOM, Vivendi Universal, Walt Disney, and News Corp. These companies own 95% of all the media that we consume daily because they own theme parks, radio broadcasting networks, programming, video news, and sports entertainment. These different types of media sources greatly influence the teenagers of our nations, for better or worse. The media can drive young people to eating disorders and various self-image disorders. The media can also shape the public opinion on different ideas. It was proven that the public’s concern with drugs was once down to three percent and then sky rocketed for a short time period and is now down to three percent. This information alone is interesting, but it suddenly becomes more interesting to know that this is directly correlated with the media’s awareness and concern with drug abuse. As the media covered drug issues the public’s concern directly followed.
I think that we need to be careful with the media we consume. It truly does greatly influence us as individuals and a society. I don’t watch that much television, because I rarely have the time or interest, but one aspect of the media I am greatly influenced by is FASHION. I love fashion and am easily intrigued with the new styles, but sometimes realized the ridiculousness of the newest trends. I am usually easily converted though. But, once upon a time I disliked skinny leg jeans and thought that they made girls look “hippy” and overweight. I tried them on for fun and hated them even more. I now love skinny leg jeans and think that they elongate women’s legs; they are so fun to wear. Maybe this is because the media push I felt with the endless advertisements and fashion magazines, or the fact that they weren’t going away. But the media does influence individuals to act or look a certain way as well as buying certain products. Right now there is a great awareness for recycling and the environment in general. This push is once again from the media and because the media is endorsing eco-friendly behavior the public is acting more environment friendly. This almost seems like brainwashing! These five companies mentioned have a great influence on us, and we should be aware of this influence.
