Impact Of Media On My Life

These theories will be useful in determining my underlying motivations behind my choice of media and content and how my experiences help shape the meaning I provide to the former. Although I have a very active lifestyle, media does consume the largest portion of my time. For the sake of this analysis, the table above simply refers to the television shows and movies I watched throughout a week, however it is important to note that in addition, all time spent of the phone, computer, reading and listening to radio also comprise of media consumption.

We live in a time where technology is constantly advancing, and the media is in every aspect of the typical American’s life. Our parents lived during a time without cell phones or televisions in their homes, their connection to the media was through books, magazines, newspapers, and the radio. As a twenty year old in 2016, I've always had a television, computer, and cell phone in my home, so my connection to the media was though what was on television, movies, video games, music, and many different things on the internet. Growing up I spent a lot of time playing outside and technology wasn’t something that had to be limited because it wasn’t a problem until I was a teenager. Now days it’s rare to come across a child who doesn’t have their own iPad, old smartphone, or a cell phone that is in service. Have you ever thought about how the media influences you, what you watch on television, the music you listen to, your views on certain subjects, when you have a question about something you look it up on the internet; then think about why you lean more

Televised news has the ability to influence the lives of the human population. News broadcasts have an impact on communities in a way other media outlets have been unable to accomplish. Major events have been captured by television, which affects individuals, and multiple aspects of society.

Media is all around us and individuals seek gratifications from using it, “In the era of mediatization, the vision of what the media do with audiences and what

As society changes and moves towards a more technological era, media is heavily relied upon. When a person is insecure or vulnerable, media can be a way for people to feel connected with the world and people around them. Children are exposed to media and technology from a very early age, particularly with its use in schools and households. For example, a toddler watching Sesame Street can be taught valuable lessons about racial harmony, cooperation, simple arithmetic and the use and application of literacy, through an educational television format. The use of media continues throughout a person’s life, as society depends more and more on it for relaying information and educating (PMC, 2003).

Through interpreting and understanding my own media habits, I have reached the critical appreciation stage of media literacy. Now, I recognize that much of my time is spent on media, which personally has a negative impact on me. Media will not control me, and I will watch over my everyday media habits as I decrease my media time to hopefully produce a more positive environment for

Growing up in the 90s, my family mainly shaped my cultural life until technological advances, such as the personal computer and colored television arrived. My family purchased a colored TV, and as a child, all I wanted to do was watch cartoons. Early on, my mother would limit the time my brother and I spent in front of the TV, and I never understood the logic behind it until recently. Similar to my family, mass media has altered how we communicate. In fact, there is an over abundance of media in present day life. For example, many households have embraced and welcomed personal computers, Ipad’s, and TV sets into their living rooms. In the American society, an average American spends about 1,600 hours a year watching television (“Characteristics of Culture 51”). As per the U.S. Census conducted last year, for many Americans, access to computers and high-speed Internet connections has never been more important. We use computers and the Internet to complete schoolwork, locate jobs, watch movies, access healthcare information, and find relationships, to name but a few of the ways that we have grown to rely on digital technologies (“Computer and Internet 2013”). In the past, families would read the newspaper or talk to a neighbor to find out about current events and information.

Media literacy can help clear the fog and help illiterate adults understand the media world. Potter stated, “You are able to build the life you want rather than letting the media build the life they want for you.”(Potter 34) Being able to control one’s own thoughts and not fall into trends is something that is not common in the world today. There is always a distraction trying to capture people’s attention. Potter says, “Attention is directed or grabbed without any voluntary choice have taken place even against the strong wishes to the contrary.” (Potter 45) As one is in conservation with a roommate, an image pops up on a computer screen, which shifts their attention away from the roommate. Being self-aware of one’s presence and being attentive to each other is unconsciously being the normal trend; instead of being conscious of one another. Which media had programmed into another of the necessary needs to know what is going on in another’s life instead of engaging in the connection and moment present. When focusing on life’s goals, it takes a person’s memory built with care and precision to understand the media's influence. When not in control of drives and goals one gets weak and default to media control.

It has taken a long time to get to where society is now in 2017, and now more than ever media plays a big role in everyone’s lives. With the invention of the computers came numerous other inventions, such as the Internet and smartphones. An example of the big role computers, the Internet and smartphones play in society is given by Baran in page 30 where he says “ the average American child between the ages 8 and 18 spends more than seven hours a day engaged simultaneously with many different screens.” I understand that in order to invent the computer there other creations that allowed the computer to become what it is now, but putting that aside I consider computers to be the most important technological breakthrough. The World Wide Web, smartphones and gaming consoles, would not have come into existence without computers. Other media sources such as Cable television, CD’s, and newspapers, have began to decline in terms of audience mostly due to the upsurge of the computer related media, Baran talks about the industries in transition and mentions how newspapers have lost 26 billion dollars in the past 10 years, he also talks about the decline in CD sales by 13% in between 2013 and 2014 (30)

Because media is such a regular and consistent part of my life, its impacts did not immediately stand out to me. Media’s influence on important moments of my life was substantial though, a key example being how I met my current best friends. It is first useful to note that being exposed to fictional novels when I was younger, such as Harry Potter and Magic Tree House, led to my love for reading and consequently my joining of the

Donohew, L., Palmgreen, P. and Rayburn II, J. D. (1987). Social and Psychological Origins of Media Use: A Lifestyle Analysis. Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media. 31 (3), 255 – 278. Downloaded from http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/08838158709386663?journalCode=hbem20#preview

To understand why do people use media and what do they use them for, UG was applied to understand gratification from media exposure. In the context of this theory, it posits that (1) the social and psychological origins of (2) needs which generate (3) expectations of (4) the mass media or other sources which lead to (5) differential patterns of media exposure (or engagement in other activities), resulting in (6) need gratifications and (7) other consequences, perhaps mostly unintended ones”. It is assumed that media use is purposive and motivated, which users are active rather than passive consumers of media.

Amid those days I understood precisely what an essential part that media plays in my regular daily existence. From the noteworthy to the insignificant, media massive affects practically every part of my life.

Early research on the uses and gratifications of mass media focuses on the media consumption of audiences, to satisfy their own needs and what motivates them to select the different forms of media.

The Uses and Gratification theory considered one of the great theories in media research is a media theory propounded by Blumer and Katz (1974). It portrays the media as a hypodermic needle which when well directed will convey consistent and carefully crafted messages to an easily swayed mass audience in order to yield uniform effects (Hanson 2008; McQuail 2010). Media were then considered as having dominant effects on its audiences. The principle on which the Uses and Gratification theory was formulated was that, the powerful effects perspective of media theory was challenged and audiences were thought to wield the power to select and filter messages (Ballard, 2011).