Assessing Media Influence Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Assessing Media Influence - Essay Example Readers, viewers and consumers of information should supply the necessary interpretation of stories and symbols to discover the relation of information and of its consumers. This is because a phenomenon unfolded in a television show could not be understood in itself but about how the meanings interacted and impacted to viewers or readers (Berger, 2005, pp. 10-28). Cultural norms, socialization process and ethical concerns have so much regulatory effect to determine the information’s acceptability or non-acceptability to the taste and standard of communication (Berger, 2005, pp. 60-120). It is therefore important for viewers and readers to be positively self-critical in absorbing the information. It should be the goal of every media consumer to combine analysis and creativity to effectively segregate the truth from myth and to free self from the victimization-effect of violent media production (Berger, 2005, pp. 2013-214). This is not just about words or video shoots at work. T his is also about responsible media consumption by unmasking the paradigmatic and syntagmatic meanings evoked differently (Berger, 2005, pp. 2013-214). Most media institution is not truly an independent entity. They are incorporated as either a public, private and rarely in cooperative in nature. As companies, they are also competing in sourcing and presenting information to gather more readers and viewers. The most attractive and those who have certain leverage in the market by possessing wider area of coverage will likely gain more advertisers (Croteau & Hoynes, 2006, p. 15-19). They are also for profit. Thus, consumers of information should be critical too about the kind of commercial products they introduced. Everyone knows that advertisements are used by corporations to leverage in introducing their products to the market (Croteau & Hoynes, 2006, p. 15-19). Media played much on its influencing capacity regardless on what products are introduced. The fees of advertisers are actu ally their most prevent concern and not the quality of products indorsed (Croteau & Hoynes, 2006, p. 20-68). While we agree that media is an avenue of free ideas, but it remained the info-consumers responsibility to ascertain whether goods popularized by the media are truly relevant for public welfare (Croteau & Hoynes, 2006, pp. 17-48; 192.) Lest, everyone should be reminded that nothing can blind an intelligent and responsible consumer to know which products in the market can be bought for healthy consumption. Moreover, while media is required to be impartial and independent in espousing views, but researchers observed evident tendencies for media to slant the reports and information to some interests, depending on what to their purview is the story worth tackling about in a day. Slanting, for some, have serious effects to public perception and such affect the models of social equilibrium where companies are in constant discourse with consumers. They criticized that media is biase d and are perceived to have favored certain groups of consumers than others. True, unbiased reports these days are hard to see, except for investigative reportage where all views and voices of stakeholders are put into serious consideration, thus, widening the relational and contextual meaning of a phenomenon discussed. The media has been also powerfully putting women