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Causes And Effects Of Mass Media And Its Effects On Society

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Running head: MASS MEDIA AND ITS EFFECTS ON SOCIETY 1
Mass Media and Its Effects on Society
Alexander Wilson
Kansas State University
MASS MEDIA AND ITS EFFECTS ON SOCIETY 2
Mass Media and Its Effects on Society
Sudden introduction of mass media into society undoubtedly caused a shift in societal views and behaviors, evident from the vast amount of research that started as soon as television and other sources became available in households worldwide. Mass media constitutes anything that helps reach a mass audience such as television, newspaper, radio, social media, and even video games. Merriam-Webster dictionary defines a mass medium as “a medium of communication that is designed to reach the mass of the people – usually used in plural,”. From building a dependency on mass media, to changing the way some children and young adults behave, mass media has played and continues to play a massive role in shaping today’s society.
It is important to first note the exact magnitude of media today. According to the AC
Nielsen company, the 2016-17 television season will consist of 118.4 million TV homes in
America. Those households include 301.7 million people above the age of two years old.
Nielsen (or Nielsen Holdings) is a global information data and measurement company. In
September of 2017, records showed the largest consumption of mass media ever. Those who consume television, on average, consumed 238 minutes a day (Statista, 2017). From those same statistics, on

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