Theoretical and Methodological Problems Associated With Viewing Media in Terms of Effects

Today’s media (news) plays an enormous role in the lives of people in directing a specific perception of the world around them. Most often media conduct's a subconscious effect upon its spectators in which the upshots are deliberately or illdeliberatly towards a particular topic.

However, the essay achieves its effectiveness and credibility by including real life examples given by the writer to support media theory and by using the work of scientists and psychologists to persuade the readers.

The influence of media is ubiquitous as we are all exposed to it, and influenced by the messages they attempt to sell. For example, the trope of science gone wrong is a classic plotline of science fiction that is present enough in media to give anyone a sense of paranoia. Media is indeed a force to reckon with. In a world in which the success of media is based off of its audience, the question arises to: to what extent may media alter truth to gain attention, and how may media influence society’s values?

The mass media has become a big part of our society and its counterparts. In a time span of 50 years this medium has influenced society to an extent where it has created wonders. This immaculate tool can control almost every action we perform, from speaking to the actions that every human being performs in society. The mass media has brought upon a new era of idea's and changes in the world we live in. As we analysis media in depth we will find many aspects of media which overlap and some of the smallest factors and aspects of media, which create the biggest impact on society.

Once Jim Morrison said that whoever controls the media controls the mind. This shows that he had recognized the immense power and influence that the media has in our day to day lives. The media plays a very important role in the society as the source of information for every person. Hence, it is very hard for the modern society to live without the media. As a result of the media being the major source of information in our society, it is an undeniable fact the media shapes people’s opinions, attitudes and actions on particular issues (Czopp & Monteith, 2006).

Media has dramatically changed over time from black white to coloured screens, from newspaper to having information on fingertips. Media has also become more violet in comparison to what it was over the past generations, as now video games and movies are action packed. The studies conducted by research scientist show various results from harmful to neutral effects of media, all these studies were children and teenage based it was not highly focused on adults.

The media has been able to manipulate people by making them believe what they say. One example that satirizes the media is a movie called The Truman show. Throughout the Truman show, the main character, Truman Burbank, is trapped in a stage set which he perceives as the real world. As he has lived there for around 30 years he starts to get the perception of being in a false environment. The media plays a big role in our lives as Truman is exposed to the corrupt side of them.

The media is a well-known platform for viewers and largely impacts the people that watch or see certain programs. Therefore, it is safe assume that the media often represents realistic or unrealistic views

Radio, television, film, and the other products of media culture provide materials out of which we forge our very identities; our sense of selfhood; our notion of what it means to be male or female; our sense of class, of ethnicity and race, of nationality, of sexuality; and of "us" and "them." These products of media help shape our view of the world and our deepest values: what we consider good or bad, positive or negative, moral or evil. They contribute to educating us how to behave and what to think, feel, believe, fear, and desire -- and what not too. The media teach us how to be men and women, how to dress,

“The Culture Industry: Enlightenment as Mass Deception” by Theodor Adorno and Max Horkheimer is a pivotal article in history that changed the way in which many communications scholars viewed media. Both authors were members of the Frankfurt School, a school of thought which looked further into Karl Marx’s theories about capitalism and the issues of mass production. Published in 1944, Adorno and Horkheimer revealed their beliefs that the media, much like the economy, is becoming mass produced, and is therefore turning people in society into media-consuming robots. Industrialization created work lives for people in which they would work on only one part of a larger machine. As a result, they felt less involved in the completion of the project as a whole, and therefore felt less pride in their jobs and their lives in general. Instead, these people turned to media and pop culture so that they would feel more fulfillment within their lives. Adorno and Horkheimer believed that these people had a reduced capacity for original thought because media is now force feeding them the ideas of what they can think and feel. This essay will prove that although Adorno and Horkeimer’s points were justified through the eyes of authors George Lipsitz, Lev Manovich, and Susan J. Douglas, there are still exceptions to their theories that they do not account for.

Postman (1987) claims that television is an evil that destroys the purpose and complexities of public discourse. He argues that important issues are oversimplified and drowned in a sea of irrelevance. Chaffee and Metzger (2001) confirm this assumption by remarking the evolution of print and radio into television and television into new media. Establishing the similarities between Postman’s chief complaints about the television medium and the new media then rearing its ugly head. Chaffee and Metzger indicate the shift in the denotations of mass, media, and communication. With technological advancements, it is impossible to ignore the new media and its impact on modern culture.

The media, a powerful source of information but what are the affects? While the media is seen by many as a vital source of information offered through a variety of different outlets, the theoretical underlining affects of the media demonstrates how stories from within it can influence society. The imprtance of not only recongnizing but understanding the media’s affects remains a vital priority in all forms of information today in how it is received and interpretated by different audiences. The level of effect of the media however, has been disputed heavingly, as with different forms of media such as online have developed a different affect for the mass media consumer. When regarding the level of effect the media holds, the 2016 Presidential campaign presents a prominent case study that shows a limiting affect of the mass media that

Media holds a tight grip on society; it influences daily living, and its contents alter a nation's values and opinions. Possessing the power to control how an entire population thinks, can be a blessing and a curse. But it is in that persuasive nature, that we can shape an informed and well-rounded society.

During the early 1900’s audiences were considered to be passive, an audience that merely observed events rather than actively responding to the event in the media. During this time, several theories were developed on the media’s ability to provide information to a group of people that did not think about the information just simply receive the information. Hypodermic Needle Model by Katz &

Media influence is the force by which ideas are injected into people’s lives shaping the very culture of society. This influence is masqueraded through hidden media message, resulting in a change in its audience which can be positive or negative, abrupt or gradual, short term or long term. Although mass media’s influential effect can reach a wide ranged audience as an agent of socialization the responsibility to contain what it releases has not been of importance. “The media’s socially significant obligations are formally ignored.” (A.S. Zapesotskii, 2011, p 9). Media messages can be exerted through many different outlets such as TV shows, music, movies, commercials, news, magazines, games which are all gravitated to entertain audiences ultimately offering personal gratification that can sometimes blur the lines between reality and