UNIT 1: CULTURE AND SOCIETY

Media and communication

Communication is central to the lives of almost everyone. Much of it takes place on a daytoday
basis through conversation. Often we use an intermediary form of communication through a
medium (perhaps television) or, more commonly, several different intermediaries, which help to…

Broadsheets/compacts are ostensibly more 'upmarket' -- perhaps aimed at people who have
remained for longer in the education system. Pictures and banner headlines are less common and
the focus is on longer, more serious, and more balanced news reporting. The danger is that
readers and markets become stereotyped. Broadsheets become…

and listeners. There are also many local radio stations, some run by the BBC and some by
commercial interests.

The 1TV company Thames Television was the first to introduce 24hour broadcasting, in 1987, but
Rupert Murdoch's company, Sky, has been a major innovator in recent years. In 1989 it launched…

It is digitalisation, mobile phone technology and iPods that, far from leading to its demise, have
created new opportunities for radio. Digital technology has also given opportunities to a number of
BBC and commercial stations, although GCap's The Jazz was shortlived after initial optimism.
Numbers listening to digitalonly stations rose…

Compliance with the Press Code is the responsibility of an independent Press Complaints
Commission with 17 members. In 2006 the Commission dealt with 3,325 complaints, mostly
concerning allegations of inaccurate reporting.
Viewpoints: Do we need newspapers?
No
Tabloids are biased.
They try to persuade us to vote in a particular…

initial success in 1981 with his DOS (Disk Operating System). Microsoft Mouse was released in
1983 and in 1985 the first retail version of Microsoft Windows appeared, marking the start of the
transition from DOS. Microsoft Office was introduced in 1989 and, in 1995, Windows 95 became a
new version…

information about the uprising led by Burmese monks in 2007 came from bloggers before the
internet was disabled by the Burmese government.

Supporters of blogging praise its openness and the fact that entry is unrestricted. It offers scope for
the personal voice that is rarely available elsewhere. Politicians are unable…

of radiophones existed in ships, planes and police cars, but handheld cellular mobiles have been
available only since 1983, following pioneering work by Martin Cooper of Motorola a decade earlier.

The Finnish firm Nokia is the main manufacturer of mobiles -- one of the top five (Motorola,
Samsung, Sony Ericsson…

They allow speedy notification of emergency situations.
Bad
Calls can be expensive.
Parents are often pressurised to keep up with the latest fashions.
Mobiles are an easy target for petty criminals.
Health fears have been raised.
There is potential for improper use, e.g. by terrorists to detonate bombs.
They are…

Despite accusations of phone rigging on certain television game shows, the broadcasting media
tend to be trusted more than the press. Yet broadcasters have considerable advantages. Thanks to
the modern technology that global satellites represent, broadcasters have immediate access to
stories -- hence the increasing use of the phrase 'breaking…