chapter 6

A medium is a means of communication such as print, radio, or television. Mass media is defined as many large-scale organizations which use one or more technologies to communicate with large numbers of people.
I became aware of Herbert Irving Schiller from my reading. He was an American media critic, sociologist, author, and scholar. Schiller also wrote eight books and many articles regarding communication, research and was heavily involved in the public debate over the role of the media in modern society.
There are many different forms of media, from television news to motion pictures. They all leave us feeling very different after our viewing them. There are also diverse messages that we, as the audience, take away as we experience each of these various media forms.
In this chapter, after examining the media today; I have realized that it is clearly very different then how it was presented years ago. Today the media is no longer just playing to a large audience, via broadcasting to many venues. It also encompasses a narrowcast market, which is targeted to specific audiences using cable and other various media outlets.
Schiller’s basic critique of the media has been continued by some contemporary media critics. In 2006, television studies scholar Timothy Havens noted the surprising statistic that only a few thousand professionals are responsible for the acquisition and distribution decisions of television markets around the world. He also mentioned that these professionals base their decisions not on audience tastes’, but also on institutional incentives. His argument is that the market drives decisions about the program choices available to view globally.
The rise of independent media has challenged the hegemonic control of the media, yet it is not simply a site of resistant culture. It is the source of a broad range of ideological positions and productions.
Keeping all this in mind, the media is constantly negotiating power. It is the media who is in control of the government and many powerful businesses because they actually influence all thinking throughout the world. Ironically, looking at the big picture, the audiences do try to resist.
Today, the internet and digital media have brought about a huge change and discussion throughout the world. These technologies have a tremendous influence over today’s society. Therefore, they and “we,” consistently have to adapt to co-exist within today’s cultural trends.