Mass Medias Impact on Our Society in the United States

¶ … Media on the U.S. Society

Some years ago, if someone asked us to name the sources of media present in our society, we would easily be able to do so. However, today media has extended and become much more widespread than it was before. With the process of globalization that has encompassed the entire world, came the concept of media and the need to stay in touch as the infrastructure and mediums of communication grew. We can name a couple of media sources that have come to influence us the most which are firstly the internet and the social networking that has now become an integral part of our society and our lives. It is absolutely essential to be a part of the social media networking (Perse).

Another type of media has been the television which has existed for quite some while now but its implications and its fame is slowly growing and is creeping into our lives to influence us to widespread measures. Although television has been there for a long time, it was not so advanced and diverse. These types of media have influenced us both in good and bad ways which are considerable aspects when it comes down to analyzing whether we benefit more than we lose out by having these complicated technologies and mediums in our society.

This battle, I believe is an ongoing one which might never come to an end because we take full advantage of the new technologies and the ways in which we have eased our methods of communication and keeping knowledge about what goes on in what part of the world. But it is still important to consider how this same media has become kind of a nuisance for us which at all times bothers us and complicates our lives for us in many instances.

Social Media

This is a relatively new form of media which has come about in recent years but has had the most far reaching effects as yet. Social Media Networking refers to the online social networking websites such as Face book, Twitter, LinkedIn, and many more which enables one to stay in touch with their social network at all times. These are various websites that have built interfaces that keep everyone in touch and be updated on what is going on in different parts of the world (Meyrowitz).

The process of globalization brought about an integration of the entire world which also knit the world's community into one whole and transformed it into a global village. The fact that these networks integrate people from all around the world regardless of our location is a very important factor for us considering the media to be an integral part of our world today. It helps us stay in touch with each other and communicate with our loved ones even if we are thousands of miles away. Applications like oovoo and Skype enable one to video chat with other people in different countries and in a way it diminishes the gap that we feel has been built up among people if they are not nearby.

Although, the above mentioned element is an important one, we do need to however realize that this social media has also diminished the use and importance for direct interaction among people. The young generation in our country has become more attached to their computers and their isolated lives which once used to be extremely social and out door. People have started closing in on them and started using the internet for their mediums of communication.

The family and socialization processes have also been deeply affected by these media. The societies previously preferred the extended family system where the relations in the extended family were still strong enough but these have started deteriorating due to our extremely complicated as well as personal lives where everyone has started valuing their space and privacy and do not like the intruding of their further relatives or even their own direct family at some point (Bennett).

We can also noticeably suggest that the ties and the bind between people is slowly deteriorating as the world is become more technologically based. Families are breaking and people are distancing themselves which gives rise to numerous problems. For instance, the children rarely want to discuss the problems they are facing with their parents anymore although this once used to be quite a strong link and bond which could deeply be relied on.

A very crucial aspect that has been brought up through this social media is the threat to one's privacy. It has slowly become something that can be used against a person to bring them down or cause harm in any way which is a serious implication and creates emotional, social and psychological strain on the lives of people. It can affect the lives of people in devastating ways and has already caused major harm to teenagers especially because they greatly come under influence and end up getting involved in acts that can later be held against them.

Another aspect of this social media networking is the use of the cell phone technology which has enhanced our level of communication to a certain extent as well as left us with more hassle. It is justified to suggest that it has caused effective communication to the extent one might not have imagined a few years back and it provides us with steady accessibility and contact with people but it has gotten the younger generations too engrossed in it with the new applications, technology and more intriguing developments in the field. Whereby phones used to be used as a means of communication and to make use of the service, this has now become more of a source of entertainment and status symbol which pushes these blessings into the field of problem generators (Burton).

Television

Although this particular form of media has existed for quite a while now, it has gradually spread its influence in the recent years. A decade ago, there used to be a limited number of channels available with only few TV shows which were not even that popular. Also, the accessibility to a television was not available to everyone because since it was a recent development, it was very costly and not everyone could afford it.

In the recent years and the face of development has caused an increasingly widespread influence of the television with numerous channels to choose from and a variety of TV shows which have come to be quite an impact on the society of the United States. Let's begin with the kinds of cartoons that used to be there some twenty years ago. Those cartoons actually used to reflect the fact that they were targeted towards the young toddlers or the children between the ages of 1 to 10. Drawing a comparison between then and now, we see a noticeable difference between the kind of dresses the cartoon characters might wear or the fact that the story lines have changed and sometimes the media reflects those kinds of subjects that are not appropriate for these age levels (Gruber).

The dresses for instance have increasingly become shorter and more revealing for the female characters which engrains in the children that it is okay to be dressed in these kinds of outfits when in reality, it is surely not. The kind of action and adventure cartoons that are played on TV encourage the children towards using aggression and force as a means to get their point across or even get things done their way. Often these action characters are a source of inspiration for the young children especially amongst the male children where they want to fight crime and be heroes and this may seem okay at one point but in the end, this is one reason why so much aggression is being engrained into the young generation of our country. Instead of being told to resolve matters in a peaceful manner, they subject to violence and force instead (Miller).

Moving ahead to the teenagers, the case is much more serious with these TV shows because this generation has the most impacts and implications. The TV serials such as Gossip Girl and 90210 depict the kind of life that a person most definitely cannot live and it is a fake fictitious world with a lot of glamour and materialism. The young girls that watch these shows get highly involved in trying to make themselves look good all the time by dressing up and using products that they do not need and that may even be harmful for them. The shows have the element of physical beauty which slowly starts taking control of the female minds. What is increasingly becoming common in the society of United States is the fact that people are more concentrated towards the physical beauty and the cover of things like a gorgeous woman. This ends up diminishing the true essence of life and things. It is not just the external face of things but what really matters is what is inside. A person's looks may mean nothing if the morals, values and beliefs of that person are not intact or if the person is a failure at leading life to benefit others and be sincere in what he or she does.

In the same way, the TV shows are promoting a culture which surrounds the freedom of these younger generations, giving them the power to do what they want and not be questioned for any of their actions. This reckless kind of life is increasingly becoming the subject of the TV commercials, serials and movies and this creates an urge in the young generations especially the teenagers to go ahead leading an adventurous life where everything seems like a mystery to them and they fail to judge what reality is and how this will impact their future (Bell).

Teenagers as we know and acknowledge, is that period of life where the child is entering the age of puberty and demands for his or her freedom and privacy. This however, cannot always be given to them because it is an age where the young adults seem to jump into things and they are not fully aware of the implications of their actions. This stage pushes the individual to think that they have grown up and they may be the best judge of their life and things around them but this is not true. Also the individuals at this age need to be tackled with a lot of care and negotiation because of their rebellious attitude and their urge to break free from all chains. These TV shows sometimes portray the exact same thing where young teenagers emancipate from their parents and go to live on their own or to rebel against their parents and get what they want.

As a result, these things are juts becoming stronger and stronger. The values and attitudes that the parents do not want their child to come across and being instilled into them because this is what they feel like and they think this may be a reasonable outlet for them to try getting things done their way.

The whole drug and alcohol culture is now becoming increasingly common in the United States and one source to blame for that is the television itself where this is being shown so commonly and openly and it ends up attracting the youth to try these things out. The TV shows often show how to cope up with the pressure of studies, parents, relationships and career can become a strain for the adolescents and they find an outlet in the use of alcohol and drugs because that seems like a reasonable way out. At this stage, this may seem very appealing and intriguing but it can severely damage the health and leave serious scars for life. Many young adults end up ruining their future prospects of a career, of a stable life because they do not think rationally and instead ruin things ahead (Gonzenbach).

In the recent years, there has been a growth in the sex culture where the values of children have been weakened and there is growing frustration in the society. The notion of so called love engulfs the youngsters and they jump into this act without thinking. This has caused an increase in the statistics of teenage pregnancies and the number of young mothers who can barely support themselves and get crushed by the added responsibilities. Those who have the support of their parents may find some form of an outlet or support system but those who do not, have to live life with the burden of ruining their youth and early adulthood.

The youth also encompasses the urge to try out new things, be adventurous and indulge in acts like joy riding, pick pocketing, shop lifting, etc. just for the fun and adventure. For them this may seem funny or adventurous but if caught in serious offences, they may become juvenile delinquents like some do if they fall under the wrong influence.

The above outlined were just examples of how the younger generations are changing and being affected by the new media and how they come under these implications. But a noticeable fact is that they are not the only ones being affected in this way. The media is also influencing the older generations and the whole life style of the United States as a whole.

One major change that we can see around us is how the importance of the value system is slowly diminishing. The first real instance where we can see this is the way marriages are now becoming rare and they do not seem as important as they used to be once. Marriage was supposed to be an institution that kept a check on the society and controlled promiscuity as well as legitimized a lot of acts that were considered a taboo outside marriage. Media has started promoting the importance of being independent and fighting for your rights. It is not to say that this is something wrong but this has started making people increasingly selfish and self absorbed and the concept of compromising is long gone now. The children used to be a factor to make the marriage work previously but now individuals put themselves before the children and their future and fail to consider how the broken families would affect their children and their well being (Vihalemm).

This is an important change that we can notice around today. The concept of divorce, co-habitation and remarriage is now becoming increasingly common although it is seriously affecting relationships on various levels.

Women have started paying more and more emphasis on their own liberation without paying any heed towards how their career development and freedom will affect their households. A decade ago, we would find it a common sight to see women giving up their careers, their jobs and their social life in order to pay attention to the upbringing of their children and to be there for them but nowadays this concept is stated as being "old fashioned" and it is considered a right for the women to be allowed to pursue their jobs. Their lack of attention at home creates further problems which might end up in separations and divorces. Most of this has the media to blame for it because the media is increasing affecting our values and belief systems by questing our morals and the way we used to lead life previously. In a nutshell, we can well suggest that media is kind of becoming a threat to the values, traditions, morals and belief system that once used to hold considerable importance for us.