Activity 2: Introduction to mass communication: media literacy and culture

The greater achievement we have for human race, the better communication media we required. This is evident on how we evolved from a print media to radio and television where the audience or the consumer can be farther than we have ever known. But we did not stop there; rather we digitized videos for better delivery of information to the public. However, despite this great connectivity that the world has achieved more than any era know, there are still some positives and negatives that we can derive from this evolution.

The printing press was invented in the so called “Gutenberg revolution.” It changed the platform of media forever. As it was accessible in every corner of the street and everything can be put into paper and disseminate to the public. Funny how people tells how mobile phones made us distant from one another yet when it was during this era is that when people prioritized reading newspapers rather than communicating in public., Funny how people sees the past as interactive and full of friendships when it was pretty much the same from today. Another thing that the printing press did is that it made written communication available to all. Reading was only a luxury but became a necessity when printing press emerged. Suddenly, the world that did not feel the need to read became a literate one. Butcher’s needed to understand the king’s list and many more. 

One economic factor that helped the evolution of media from print to audio is the industrial revolution.  Printing was responsible for building things and disseminating knowledge but as the machines grew and the farmers, agriculturists and fishermen became industrialist workers. They had more leisure time. Therefore, printing media became not only as a source of information but also a source of entertainment. Then enter the radio, where the media did not only become entertaining or informational but it was available for every household there is. The media that was only available at stores became convenient at homes. But it did not stop there as the moving pictures available only at the theaters became the television at home. People started earning more as well as having more time that they demanded what to do with those things. The world was also becoming more interconnected then meaning that people have to be updated in the ever changing world. Print media would take days or weeks to produce sell or update but at the convenience of televisions they could distribute information faster than ever before.

Digitization of videos made vast differences for the producers and consumers. For the producers’ part, they did not need to spend vast amount of money to produce information available to the public. Most were convenient and can be done by amateurs as well as distributing them would not be difficult as the medium to present them were presented already and is at the hands of the consumers.  For the consumers part they can access whatever information or entertainment they require faster and more efficient.  The platform of media today has also contributed to that efficiency where everything is in the click of a button.  One more benefit is that information is easier to preserve access and also share.  The things that were once out of reach are now at you mobile phones of computers.

All things have been said as media being more accessible but one cannot deny that despite connecting the human society today, there are repercussions to it. One thing foremost is the widespread of “fake news” especially nowadays. Since media is accessible to everyone, everyone can make their own content therefore the information uploaded today are not as much as reliable. Anyone can mold the information into their own liking and distribute them as if it is the absolute truth. Another thing is that people can be humiliated or glorified in a matter of minutes. Imagine having your reputation ruined by a stranger who does not know a single thing about you but since they took a video or photo of you in your most vulnerable moment, the whole world will judge you for that.  As the information uploaded is there forever, they can make or break someone’s reputation.

Going back on the good bits, media accessibility connected the world like never before the friends we have are extended to overseas as well as our love ones. The world that seemed so wide became smaller as media accessibility grew, everything was at the point of our fingers and information was easier to access. Everything grew and became convenient.

In conclusion, media has changed over time and shaped the world as we know today.it will always have its pros and cons but there is no denying how useful and how our world revolved around it now.