Mass Media: The New Media

1. What does "widening consumer choice" mean?

now a far wider range of news sources and it is no longer just the large media corporations who have the vast opp to communicate with people - online campaigns can influence traditional media content as newspapers find it difficult to ignore campaign
now hundreds of digital, cable and satellite TV channels, websites and online newspapers for people to choose from
interactive digital, TV, blogging, video and photo sharing websites and social networking sites all give consumers more opportunity to participate in the production of media content

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everyone now has access to huge amounts of information and high culture which were formally limited to educational elites
new media opened up new channels for communication and interaction, enhancing/supplementing existing face to face interactions, achieved in following ways: alternative identities, people stay in touch via email when away, social networking lost conn
now hundreds of digital, cable and satellite TV channels, websites and online newspapers for people to choose from

poorer quality media content with dumbing down to attract large audiences, celebrity culture replaces serious programming, endless repeats
not everyone has access to new media - digital divide between those who can and can't afford the infrastructure to support access to pay to view satellite channels, computers and internet
new media particularly satellite TV has led to the westernisation of other cultures

electronic mass media has collapsed space and time barriers in human communication - the way electronic media enables people to interact on a global scale means the world has become like one village or community
interactive digital, TV, blogging, video and photo sharing websites and social networking sites all give consumers more opportunity to participate in the production of media content
everyone now has access to huge amounts of information and high culture which were formally limited to educational elites

electronic mass media has collapsed space and time barriers in human communication - the way electronic media enables people to interact on a global scale means the world has become like one village or community
interactive digital, TV, blogging, video and photo sharing websites and social networking sites all give consumers more opportunity to participate in the production of media content
everyone now has access to huge amounts of information and high culture which were formally limited to educational elites