Assignment internet and mobile mass communication belongs to

ASSIGNMENTTopic: Role of Media in the Society                       SUBMITTED BY, AFSAL PEETTAYIL16397005Sec BDMS Introduction:                   Media is considered as the4th pillar of the society with the other three being legislative, executive andjudiciary. Media plays an important role in the welfare of the society, workingas an informer, an educator, an entertainer, and influence various aspects ofhuman life in numerous ways.  It plays multiple role in society which includecollection and dissemination of information, transmission of social andcultural values, and a source of education and entertainment. Media alsoprovide the public with information upon which views can be expressed anddecisions can be made about political and social issues.

It also helps inpromoting the right things at a right point of time and can make use of anysituation to create a sensation around the people and the society. Media tellsthe world about what is right or wrong and analyse all the events occurring allaround the world. Thus for the society, publicly accessible media is aprivilege and obligation. There are varioustypes of media which includes broadcasting and narrow casting medium likenewspapers, magazines, TV, radio, billboards, direct mail, telephone, fax, andinternet etc. Broadcastmedia transmit information electronically through several mediumslike film, radio, music and television.

Both Internet and mobilemass communication belongs to digital media. Internet media includes servicesas email, social media sites, websites etc. Outdoor media transmitinformation through AR advertising, billboards, blimps, flyingbillboards, placards or posters placed inside and outside buses and otherpublic transport, commercial buildings, shops, sports stadiums, subway cars, ortrain etc.

Print media transmit information via newspaper, books, comics, magazines, or pamphlets etc. Event organizing and public speaking can alsobe considered as various forms of media. By objectivelycirculating all manner of information and opinions, the media can be a mostuseful building block that joins together the functions in our communities. Atthe same time, the media can be used to subjectively and selectively controlthe distribution of the same, and by distortions of content, become a deadlyweapon to the very civilization that it proposed to serve.  Thus it is up to a society to maintain thehealth of its media, and if adversities occurs, then the consequences are entirelyour own.  The Role of Media in the Society:  Media plays an important rolein shaping the mind and life of people to a great extent. 1 Media provides new and information about events occurringall around the world. 2 Mediahelps in educating people about the issues of the society.

3 Mediahelps in the effective functioning of a democracy. They inform the public aboutgovernment policies and programmes and cons and boons of these policies. Thusit helps the people to voice their feelings and compels the government to makenecessary amendments and changes in their policies or programmes. 4 Mediaalso acts as a trigger and a chance- maker in the development of the society. 5 It is asource of entertainment. 6 Mediahelps to bring closer the different sections of the society and also differentregions.

7 Media helps in the political and democraticfunctions of the government of a country. 8 Mediapromotes the growth of trade and industry through advertisements. 9 Mediahelps to bring about significant changes in the society. The citizens of a country must productively participatein the decisions that shape their lives in order for development to be just andsustainable. Participation of an informed citizenry is crucial. A free andindependent media should supply timely and relevant information to citizens tokeep them informed about the issues occurring in the society and to demandhigher social standards from the society. Fromthe earlier time onwards, media has remained an important and integral part ofhuman civilization.

Media has always taken apivotal and crucial role in shaping our society from the days of Vedas and Upanishadsto edicts of emperors like Chandragupta, Asoka to the medieval Indianhistorical occurrences and gatherings to the modern day’s highly developedaudio, video and print media. During India’s freedom struggle for independencefrom the colonial authorities, newspapers like Bal Gangadhar Tilak’s Maratha, Mahatma Gandhi’s young India, The Socialist etc acted as a platform for thecommon masses to convey their demands and to express solidarity with freedomfighters. The Indian media grewtremendously after the independence and today comprises of more than 50, 000channels, newspapers.

Visual media  has becomesa very potential tool in informing the current news, entertaining the peopleand shaping up of public opinion and expressions since the introduction oftelevision in our country in late 70’s. The social networking sites and WorldWide Web have given rise to electronic media where even a common man canexpress views through blogs, websites, Facebook and Twitter, Instagram etc. Along with print media, all these audio, video and social media constitutes arichly diversified media industry in India. The content that mediaprovide the public with is always closely related to the material and spiritualdevelopment of the society and also at the same time, the way the media operatecan reveal the political, economic and cultural level and freedom of thatsociety. Throughout the history, we have witnessed media producing andagitating against worst possible cases of committed crimes against humanity andhuman race. And their role after the ending of the war has rather significancein terms of searching for the truth and reconciliation and also in giving duerespect to the victims.

Besides that, providing information and facts about thesuffering of the both sides also shows a significant step taken towards thedevelopment of general empathy in the society. Media acts as a link between the government and thecommon man. It is a very powerful tool which has the ability to make and breakthe expressions and opinion of the society. Thus for proper functioning of ademocratic system and the network of the media, transparency and accountabilityare a must.

But the nexus between corruption and democrats along with the dirtypolitics seems to have snatched away the peace and harmony of our country. Thisdangerous politics played by the democrats including the politicians, thebureaucrats, the notorious criminals is far away from the heights of disastrouspolitics played by the media. They throw the whole society into an inferno forachieving their vested interests. To protect public interest against corruption, malpracticeand create public awareness, media acts as watchdog. Today when politicians aretaking full advantage of their positions and are engaged with corruption and makingthe life of the common man miserable and when taxpayer’s money is snatched awayfor the personal gain of the rich and powerful, the ordinary people become amere spectator and in this scenario, the media has a greater responsibility asthe fourth pillar of democracy. Media has a very important and crucial role toact against the inequality, injustice, oppression and discrimination of oursociety.

By carrying out relentless campaign against the oppressors and corrupts, media helps in fighting against corruption and discrimination of the institutionalmachinery. It is important that the media should adhere strictly to itscode of ethics while performing its role of watchdog. The media, because of itsprofessional responsibilities has free access to all sources of information andit must hold this right only for the pursuit of truth and the affirmation ofthe ideals of communication and must stand for the unity of the society. Theresponsibility of the media must disseminate to the public only the trueinformation and must avoid all distortions and manipulations of facts andinformation. When gathering news, the journalists must not resort to illicit andwrong ways to obtain information or omit essential information or falselyrepresent information.

But just like the twosides of a coin, media has negative impacts too. Manipulation of the psyche ofthe audience by the media is a dangerous act and should be discouraged entirely. The juggernaut of media is a double edged sword because if used properly it canprove to be good for the society but if not, when it falls into the hands ofwrongdoers, it could result in the total destruction of a peaceful society. Thevarious negative sides of media are: 1.     Manipulation of information: The biggest drawback of media isthe manipulation of information and the lack of authenticity.

Unfortunately, there is no definite way of checking the genuineness or accuracy of theinformation and often the final version is manipulated or distorted which canresults in biases and wrong messages. 2.     Lack of focus: The media often resort to sensitize the informationfor TRP ratings and to secure a wide audience, and this creates a lot ofconfusions and dilemma and most of the time, completely lose focus on verycrucial piece of information. This leads to conflicts and chaos and the wrong channellingof news and facts. 3.

Health hazards: Spending too much time in the social mediawebsites, continuous use of networking sites and longs hours spend on internetsurfing idly is a big threat to the health. Health issues like obesity, eyesight problems, headaches, migraine, back pains, disturbed sleep and lack offocus and concentration are some major issues the society is dealing with. 4.     Cyber bullying: Cyberbullying and stalking has become common due to the easy availability of socialnetworking sites and other websites. It is a great danger to the privacy ofindividuals. It is essential that the respect for the private life ofpersons and human dignity and various rights concerning the protection ofindividuals against bullying, defamation, calumny, stalking, slander andmalicious insinuations must form the most important ethics of the media norm. The negative psychological effects of media can adversely change people’s outlookon life. Media holds a very influential role on the cultural and moral valuesof society.

The audiences tend to believe in what is depicted by the media, especially the youngsters and children, who are prone to mix together the reeland the real life under the negative influence of the media. Also long hours ofexposure to media can add to the sedentary nature of one’s lifestyle andhealth. Conclusion:                         Over the past 500 years from itsbeginning, the influence of media in the society has grown exponentiallysignificant with the advance of technology. Initially, there were thetraditional mediums of books, newspapers, magazines, photography, soundrecordings and later on films, radio, television and then there emerged theso-called new media, the Internet, and the social media networks.  To keep their lives moving through dailyactivities like work, education, healthcare, leisure activities, entertainment, travelling, personal relationships etc, now everyone depends upon informationand communication facilities rendered by various Medias. It covers a widevariety of people’s interests and acts as a huge consortium of people workingtogether.

It has a tremendous impact on every aspect of our lives.  By providing a line of communication betweenthe government and the common people, mediaplays the role of a common carrier. In a developing country like India, themedia have a great responsibility to fight against discriminations andoppressions suffered by backward and minority classes, communalism and alsoagainst the ongoing emergence of fascism.  It also has a significant role in helpingpeople in their struggle against poverty and various social evils such ascasteism, superstitions etc. Even now, a large section of the Indian society isbackward and ignorant and thus, it is also the responsibility of the media tobring about significant change and improvement in their lives.

Thus, the mediado not merely perform an instrumental function in the society. They also shapenorms, beliefs and fields of interest in various matters such as identity building, regionalization etc and also play a very crucial role in the maintenance of aharmonious multicultural society.    .