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Roles of mass media in society
The role of mass media in society
The role of mass media in society
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Neal Gabler, in his book Life the Movie: How Entertainment conquered Reality, insinuates that the entertainment industry has the ability to control society, and are capable of bringing about its collapse. He quotes 19th century film critics, who believed entertainment could “overturn all morality,” and “dissolve the ties of our social order.” These assertions vastly miscalculate the power of entertainment and portray the entertainment industry as a grand puppet master, bending society to their will. These claims are based on the assumption that the media controls society, but the truth is, society controls the media. This simple truth is the reason why entertainment can not ruin society. When individuals or groups demonize the media, and blame entertainment …show more content…
This trend can be most recently be heard from the more eccentric of the alt-right political movement. They point to the faceless Hollywood elite or the mainstream media, calling them a corrupting force, brainwashing the masses, failing to take into account that the producers and showrunners are people too. The entertainment industry is just that, an industry, run by people, who want to make money. This description fits every other business since the dawn of man. The producers look for what the public wants, creates a product, and if the people enjoy it they pay for it and more like it. If the project falls flat at the box office, it fails and serves as a warning to future producers. Look at the incredibly controversial movie Cannibal Holocaust. This movie fulfills Gabler's criteria as the worst of entertainment, it was grotesque,
“When a great democracy is destroyed, it will not be because of enemies from without, but rather because of enemies from within.” During the late 1940s and early 1950s, these words of Abraham Lincoln were all on the minds of Americans (McCarthyism). After fighting against Communism for decades, the fear of it taking down the country terrorized people’s thoughts. Even more so, people were extremely frightened of the idea that there could be Communists within the spotlights of American influence that were plotting the destruction of the United States. A fear swept the country for almost a decade, and it transformed every aspect of American culture. This transformation began in the entertainment industry and hit here the hardest. The fear of Communism completely spun the industry upside down and distorted everything that made American showbiz so distinct. Even today, the controversies of the 1940s and 1950s have left an impression on the current entertainment industry.
Many people might say that stars are merely a product of the Hollywood system needing to make a profit; Hollywood manufactures a product and creates the demand for it. A star's image is processed through advertisements and promotions and has little to do with what the audience wants and needs from entertainment. There is a widespread mentality that any Average Joe can become a star with enough resources backing him up. Richard Dyer points out, however, that even movies full of stars fail, and stars can and do fall out of fashion (12). A star's economic worth is not invulnerable to audiences' opinions. The audience isn't so easily controlled.
Indeed, Hollywood has been around for a great amount of time. Since the early 1900s to the present day, it’s managed to survive because of its ability to evolve following the different generations of filmmakers and societal trends. However, there is one constant in the industry’s adapting nature, and that is its poor treatment
In today’s society, everything is a debate and argument over what some see as acceptable and others view as worthless nonsense. The entertainment industry, television to be precise, is no exception. From reality television to documentaries, each viewer has their personal opinion on what they crave to see on the screen.
Postman has valid points when he claims that television and media are destroying the American society. Postman is right to assume that television is manipulating the way Americans think. However, television can provide Americans with both right and wrong morals. Since this book was written in 1985, Postman could not have predicted the influence technology has on the current American population. The theory he applies to television is similar to the theory he probably would have used on modern day media. The dependency we have on media reiterates Postman’s thesis that Americans are losing critical thinking skills and basic human values.
Loss of authority and credibility normally connected to media that are well established have journalistic standards, ethic and accountability can be seen as a problem
Describe some ways in which business values and artistic values in Hollywood contend with one another.
Today the entertainment industry overpowers society, millions of people spend their time watching shows, movies and soap operas. How can the industry keep all the people satisfied? Many people get reeled in by the supernatural, so majority of todays industry revolves around the supernatural such as vampires, werewolves etc. . Taking vampires for example, vampires have become a huge part of teenage fictional literature and the entertainment business takes advantage of it and creates film adaptations of books such as “Twilight”. Since individuals are so hooked they rush to buy movie tickets to see the film, according to Del Toro and Hogan, “ In a society that moves as fast as ours, where every week a new “blockbuster” must be enthroned at the box office…” (323). In the end the entertainment industry uses the supernatural theme to make a great amount of profit and they keep making sequels and new movies rap...
The media, including television programming, cartoons, film, the news, as well as literature and magazines, is a very powerful and pervasive medium for expression. It can reach a large number of people and convey ideas, cultural norms, stereotypic roles, power relationships, ethics, and values. Through these messages, the mass media may have a strong influence on individual behavior, views, and values, as well as in shaping national character and culture. Although there is a great potential for the media to have a positive and affirming effect on the public and society at large, there may be important negative consequences when the messages conveyed are harmful, destructive, or violent.
Television is a vital source from which most Americans receive information. News and media delegates on television have abused theirs powers over society through the airing of appealing news shows that misinform the public. Through literary research and experimentation, it has been proven that people's perception of reality has been altered by the information they receive from such programs. Manipulation, misinterpretation, word arrangement, picture placement and timing are all factors and tricks that play a major role in the case. Research, experimentation, and actual media coverage has pinpointed actual methods used for deceptive advertising. Television influences society in many ways. People are easily swayed to accept a belief that they may not normally have unless expressed on television, since many people think that everything they hear on television is true. This, however, is not always the case. It has been observed that over the past twenty to thirty years, normal social behavior, even actual life roles of men and women and media, regulatory policies have all been altered (Browne 1998). Media has changed with time, along with quality and respectability. Many Americans receive and accept false information that is merely used as an attention grabber that better the show's ratings and popularity. Many magazines and Journal reviews have periodically discussed the "muckraking" that many tabloid shows rely on to draw in their viewers. This involves sensationalizing a story to make it more interesting, therefore increasing the interest of the audience. "Along the way, all sorts of scandalous substance and goofy tricks appear, but not much mystery in the logic," (Garnson 1997). People often know that these shows aim to deceive them, but still accept the information as truth. Many times, people have strong opinions on certain topics. Yet, when they are exposed to the other side of the argument, they may be likely to agree with the opposite view. As Leon Festinger said, "If I chose to do it (or say it), I must believe in it," (Myers 1997). This is an example of Festinger's cognitive dissonance theory, which pertains to acting contrary to our beliefs. Television influences many people to change their original beliefs. It has the viewers think that the majority of other people hold the contrary idea. Once these views are presented, people have the option to hol...
Our entertainment has changed because of the media. Nowadays, tabloid magazines and gossip websites are among the top forms of entertainment. People love to read the next new article about their favorite celebrity or their favorite celebrity meltdown to watch. Before all the gossip, a lot of people actually read the newspaper to read about important things going on in our society. Now, a lot of the news is just information about celebrities instead of important information such as politics. For example, right now it would not be uncommon for the front page headline to be about Miley Cyrus’s newest antic instead of the crucial government shutdown. We are slowly losing our old ways of sincere and important information.
I agree that entertainment has the capacity to ruin society. Entertainment is everywhere, and there are millions of people around the world every day who are influenced by entertainment. There are commercials and shows on TV, lots of music, radio commercials, comedians and actors, and video games, as well as many more forms of entertainment that reach millions of people daily. Wherever you look, there are bound to be people immersed in some form on entertainment, whether that be games on their cell phone, radio, or music. Since we are so reliant on entertainment to distract and captivate us, it is a reasonable statement to say that entertainment could run, and possibly ruin, society. There are multiple reasons for this to happen, such as having
Reading and writing. Painting and drawing. Dancing and singing. Just a few of the many forms of entertainment that shape American culture. Many people seek various outlets in their leisure time, both active and passive; and whether it be sports, TV, music, etc. most can agree that entertainment is a fundamental aspect of today’s society. Although its influence is undeniable, some people (like those that Neal Gabler writes about in his book Life the Movie: How Entertainment Conquered Reality) may argue that this is bad for our society, only leading to corruption. While history can support Gabler’s idea that entertainment has the potential to negatively affect our morals and social order, it has also been beneficial to our society and can be used in constructive ways. Whether entertainment is good or bad is dependent on the person and how they chose to utilize what is around them.
Pop culture is a reflection of social change, not a cause of social change” (John Podhoretz). It encompasses the advertisements we see on T.V, the clothes we wear, the music we listen to, and it’s the reason Leonardo DiCaprio has not won an Oscar yet. It defines and dictates the desires and fears of the mainstream members of society and it is so ingrained into our lives that it has become as natural as breathing. Moreover, adults never even bat an eyelash at all the pop culture and advertising that surrounds them since it has become just another part of everyday life. Pop culture is still somewhat seen as entertainment enjoyed by the lower class members of society but pop culture standards change over time.
Every morning along with my alarm, I am greeted by notifications from the news, social media, and celebrities. Throughout my day I continue to experience literature, news, and social media. Before bed, like countless other teenagers, I like to relax by watching a TV show on the ever-popular streaming website, Netflix. Needless to say, entertainment is always present in today 's society. Entertainment has the capacity to be informative and enjoyable: a source of relaxation and mindless fun. However, it is what we, as members of society, do with entertainment that determines the impact it will have on our society. While it can be beneficial, entertainment does indeed have the capacity to “ruin.” Not only does the broader entertainment industry