We had a discussion about media on monday during lecture. I guess it can be said that many will have mixed feelings about it. I for one believe that there are advantages and disadvantages to media, depending on which aspect of media you talk about.
Advertisements. A widespread media. Advertisements help people to be updated with what is being sold in departmental stalls. It also helps people to know what is the 'in' thing to use nowadays. Like advertisments for laptops allow people to know what model is the latest and its functions.
However, there are disadvantages too. It would make people very materialistic. For example if a teenager were to see their favourite celebrity advertising a product, they would definitely want to get the product that is being advertised. Thus advertisments do make people more materialistic.
TV shows. Many different TV shows are being shown on TV now. And with cable, many are able to watch a huge variety of channels. People are able to get to watch shows from Korea and Taiwan. There are documentaries from Discovery Channel, National Geographic Channel and Discovery and Travel Channel. There are movie channels like Star Movies and HBO. With TV being such a common commodity in every household, I'm sure that many would have access to these shows. TV can educate and allow people to know more about what's happening in other countries without traveling out from the comfort of their homes.
Though there are many advantages, there are still disadvantages. With TV programs, people are more exposed to many different cultures making them think that certain behaviours, that are frowned upon in our society, are acceptable. Youngsters might think that tattoos are "cool" with shows like miami ink. Some might think that plastic surgery is the only solution to get rid of their "ugliness" with shows like extreme makeover.
That's what i think of the media today. People can rely on media for entertainment and education but they have to understand that too much is unhealthy - to anyone regardless of age.
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5 comments:
television media, like most things in life, is a coin.
on one side, we learn about the world and it's different cultures from news programs and documentary shows. on the other, we learn violence or pick up bad language from dramas and movies.
TV media has come a long was since the days of black and white broadcasts. then, programs were simple, rarely punctuated by advertisements. today, a news broadcast has scrolling texts of instant news updates, financial prices shown in the corners, all while the present is speaking. it somehow seems that the human behaviour of watching TV has been shaped to require many different stimuli, or else one would get bored and change the channel.
i guess at the end of the day, TV media is a necessary evil. the important thing is to be aware of what is going on, and not yourself get sucked in to the dark side of The Idiot Box.
hey..
for a kpop lover, i am relly grateful of the internet. even with the cable tv available, there are still not a wide variety of korean shows on cable. thus, i have to reply on the internet like youtube to watch my favourite stars. the media really plays a big part in exposing us to different types of entertainment and cultures..
the media has a great variety of information that keeps showing constantly. i have to agree that people tend to use the media as a platform to be materialistic. its just goes to show how much people learn from the media these days.
Well... i guess this only shows how much of an impact the mass media truly has on everyone of us. I wouldn't say that the media is truly bad, but it does have this mysterious influence on all of us, affecting the choices that we choose to make and manipulating our perceptions and thoughts. Somewhat, we just sort of are being guided along by the mass media.
I wouldn't entirely say that the media has become a platform for us to be materialistic. We just have to be really practical when making our choices, whether we really need the product or are we purchasing the product just for the sake of doing so. True enough, celebrity endorsements may play a part in influencing our choices, but still... it wouldn't really affect the vast number of the public.
I have to agree with soleha that the internet has been truly an affective medium in providing drama serials and variety shows in other languages so that everyone can enjoy. Hence, learning the different cultures of the various countries.
So actually, i wouldn't say that the media is bad. Cause after all, its all up to us to make our choices. We choose to take in information that is truly beneficial and discard those that would be of harm to us.
Media is prevalent in today's society. Almost everyone in this world is in contact with at least one form of media.
Talking about advertisements, i think that although it might be unethical or inaccurate, we should not blame on it as it is necessary in the "economy" perspective. Despite this, there are many that portrays good messages and we should go ahead and pick them up.
All in all, media is essential for us in terms of information and ideas shown.
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