Purpose of Print & Electronic Media
Whether done on ink and paper or with electrons, media helps keep the citizens informed and the leaders honest. Electronic and print media are used to disseminate news, provide a forum for opinion, entertain, and provide a vehicle for commerce. Although the Internet is forcing changes to the medium, the message always remains the same.
Other People Are Reading
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Inform
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Before media, news spread by word of mouth and the message often became distorted with each transfer. While the news media is not immune to this distortion, the public does receive a clearer picture of what is happening in the world than if the message arrived via the rumor mill. Whether it's an upcoming election or city council action, a war on the other side of the world or a house that burns down across town, people want to know the details.
Entertain
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But print and electronic media are not just built for hard news. Readers and listeners also want to know about the new hot singing sensation, the people they see on the silver screen and the football players slamming into each other every week. Sports and entertainment news are huge aspects of the media package, and often take first billing in the public eye.
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Message Board
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Sometimes the news gets controversial, and people have opinions to express. Newspapers in particular set aside a forum for these opinions, where you can write a letter to the editor. The new Internet-based media opens this aspect up even more. Now, anyone with an opinion can go online and post a blog or say something in a Facebook or Twitter status message. Classified advertising also fills this role. Whether it's a business needing to hire someone, a person looking to buy or sell something, or even someone looking for a lost dog, the classified ads serve as the community's big bulletin board.
Advertising
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News brought into the hands of many creates a natural attraction for advertising. Rather than create a whole new delivery system, companies and government entities find it more feasible to use the news conduit for their own messages, and pay for the use. As a result, the message gets out and the news business, built on a scarcely-workable business model on its own, is subsidized. The news brings the readers, but the mix of display and classified ads pay for the process.
Transitions
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As more people receive their news through the Internet in real time, the iron grip newspapers, TV and radio had on the flow of information is loosening. Radio stations are being consolidated and newspapers losing business, but the public is still hungry for news. But even the Internet is evolving. Platforms such as the Twitter microblogging service bring news while it is happening, 140 characters at a time.
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References
- Photo Credit man reading newspaper image by jimcox40 from Fotolia.com
