The Role of Media in Society Today

We live in a society that is completely dependent on the flow of information to gather and create opinions, handle business and function properly. The only way any information can be vastly disseminated is through media. Whether that be through the television, radio, billboards, intrapersonal connection etc. that is how we do it.

Seeing as how most people are connected to at least one medium at all times during the day, we have to examine the impact it is truly having in our society. Especially in America, where we are constantly soaking up messages with and without our consent, the question has to be asked. What is the role of media in society today? Its role is something of a super power in our culture. The media controls how we think, act, and make decisions. The force at which it is driven into our minds can be alarming and is evident.

We can trace media back to China in the 1400’s, where the first printing press was created and spread to Europe. Newspapers were the first form of mass communication and from its infantile stage, it has been used to influence others with the happenings of the community and mold the public opinion. Since then, media has developed. Through photography, television, the internet and other sources, we can communicate across the world without putting much effort into it. Over time, people saw the impact that the media could have and used it for good and bad reasons. Today, we can see that the power it has over our everyday actions is enormous.

From the toothbrushes and toothpastes we buy, to the shoes we wear, the media has influenced our decisions. Especially with the younger generation we see that our minds are still impressionable and our choices are not firm. That is why we have ‘trends’ and ‘fads’. Information is easily given and easily forgotten. But we can’t limit the media to ruling the smaller aspects of our lives; it can control our larger and less concrete decisions as well.

Subliminal influence, as I believe it is so, is the main role that the media has on society today. For example, in the 2008 presidential race, the media was supportive of Barack Obama in an underlying fashion. They spoke highly of him and when others came to attack him, most media outlets went against those people. If the media decided to go against or make a mockery of Obama, the outcome of that election surely would not have been the same.

Due to the desire of people to change, evolve and learn we are constantly seeing affirmation from the media regarding our choices in life. Even when we think we are being different, that decision is often times based off of something we have seen or heard and seeped into our subconscious making us desire that product or lifestyle. We are naturally consumed by the media and are subjected to its influence over our lives daily.

The media superpower cannot be avoided but can be controlled. It is up to the individual to create a barrier against things that they do not want to be exposed to or to allow it in their lives. Simple things like turning off the TV or limiting the amount of time you spend on the internet can help lessen the role that the media plays in our lives. If the people of our society decided to go against the media’s constraints on our personal integrity, we could create a self superpower instead of one that is controlled by outside sources. If we did more that make a splash in the ocean for change, we could in fact re-define the media in its entirety. But that can only come once everyone is on one accord.

Don’t get me wrong. The media is necessary and if used correctly can influence others to positively affect their world. We have to work within the beast in order to effectively change it. Our start to that change must come from personal thought and a change of mindset. After we have mastered ourselves, then we can go out and create a new ‘role of media in society’, TODAY.

AC