The issues raised by media ownership and funding in contemporary media practice From the simple print media back in the old days to the online news through the Internet, the advance in technology undoubtedly has brought the spread of media to a whole new level. In today’s society, the media has greatly shaped the way people percept or view their surroundings. This is done through text, pictures, sound presented to us by news, movies, and social media, etc. Without any awareness, the media has already implanted many ideas into our brains which we now consider as norms. For example, if a character in a movie makes an appearance in white clothes with a sweet smile, the audience would most likely believe that it’s a good character. On the other hand, if the character appeared in dark clothing with a gloomy aura around them, then the audience would be likely to expect that character to be on the bad side. This then leads to another question: how does the media manage to make its audience feel this way and why?
Media is where people obtain the most information from, it serves as a linkage between the people and the world. In order for a certain media to deliver their aimed message, the use of sounds, edits, and lighting, etc. can all serve as a weapon for the purpose to manipulate the audience’s mind. For example, the character Joker, was successfully established and perceptive by the audience as a bad guy. Using different elements in hair style, make-up, and clothing, it enabled the audience to acknowledge him as a bad guy. But as the Stuart Hall reception theory also says, the decipher part is all dependent on the audience. As some might find Joker to be a complete bad guy due to his actions, some on the other side might find his actions reasonable based upon his past experiences. So generally speaking, people decode information given in three ways: dominant, negotiate, and oppositional. Regardless of how people decode information given to them, it is unknown whether or not that information is completely accurate. As different sources of information have different backgrounds, the same issue presented by two sources can demonstrate a completely opposite view. Just as how most politicians use the media to gather support for themselves and damage the reputation of their opponents, which is why it is important to understand the purpose behind the information source and look at the issue from a diverse amount of perspectives before fully accepting it. Although diversity was mentioned in the above sentence, yet, how diverse is media? Media today are mostly owned by conglomerates such as Disney, Comcast and News Corporation. If the media is what depicts the majority of the society, then these conglomerates would be the ones controlling the media. They have the right to decide what to release into the media as well the right to reject ones that can damage their own interest. This becomes an issue as it limits the point of view pertaining to certain issues. Without the necessary diversity, it will eventually narrow the overall view of the society when it comes to majority and minority. In conclusion, being able to perceive and understand information given by the media through various perspectives is indispensable. The existence of conglomerates unquestionably does limit the view on issues, however, the quality of media would not have been the same as today without them. Therefore, it would be crucial for the audience itself to decide how they will decode the information displayed to them.
0 Comments
WIth the emergence and advancement in social media over the past decade, people’s urge for print media undoubtedly has been on a decrease. As almost everything is accessible through the Internet these days, the need for hard copies of magazines, newspapers, or novels seems to be quite unnecessary. Although the existence of social media has made print media less favorable by being more convenient, however, a main reason why social media can still coexist with print media is greatly due to the mutual benefits among the two.
As different print media can use social media as a source of advertisement, social media can also profit from print media for advertising. For example, many novels in China these days start off as online novels and gradually published into hard copies as its popularity rises. After its fame reaches a certain point, it will eventually get adapted into anime, drama, or movie, which then gets to be promoted through social media and eventually lead to more release of hard copies as more consumers get to understand the piece of work. Similar scenarios can also be found in Japan with its manga, which are japanese comics. Using social media for advertisement, fans will be gained throughout the course and soon it will as well be adapted into anime or films, and it will then increase the need for hard copies of that manga. Looking at it from another perspective, social media has also provided linkage for people that want to purchase hard copies of print media without stepping out. It made it easier for people to access products that might not be obtainable in their own country. In addition, social media as well introduces products to a broader audience since everyone can have easy access to, which serves as a win-win situation to both print media and social media. Therefore, although the consumers have decreased over the course of the years due to social media, yet, both forms of media share mutual benefits. Marketing is relatively important for print media. First, being able to recognize the target audience would set the overall goals. Figuring out what type of print media would attract the target audience would be the next step in advertising. For example, if the targeted audience are fashion lovers, then the direction of the product would focus on the fashion aspect. Next, being able to identify the right season for publication and whether the product will be sold are as well essential in marketing for print media. For example, if the information on a fashion magazine was mostly regarding winter clothing, then it would probably be more suitable to publish it by the end of fall or in winter. The arrangement of teasers and imagine will also play a key role in attracting the target audience to purchase the item. For example, teasers on the front cover of a fashion magazine should reflect the audience of contents inside the magazine so that the audience will have the urge to purchase it.
|
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. Archives
April 2021
Categories |