Media Technology

Media technology has changed more rapidly in the 21^st century than ever before and those changes have impacted the way people communicate daily. “The selection of one communication medium over another has been linked to whether the medium has the ability to support immediate feedback, can provide verbal and non-verbal information, uses natural language, and exhibits a personal focus” (Schockley-Zalabak, 2012, Page 165). 

Print Media 
Print Media is the oldest of the media technologies and with the invention of the Gutenberg printing press in approximately 1436, the world experienced the greatest surge in communications till the interactive world of today. The printing press allowed for the first mass communication, in that instance via mass production of the written word. Journalists and writers were the celebrities of the day. Not everyone was literate at that time and to be able to emote for the masses would certainly elevate one’s standing.

Print media includes newspapers, magazines, professional journals, and books. Despite their lack of instant information, there is still an audience, usually older and erudite, as for the New York Times or Wall Street Journal or more pedestrian as for the New York Daily News or the New York Post. Magazine audiences differ greatly depending for example on whether it is a teen magazine like Tiger Beat or Seventeen, a hobby-based magazine such as Outdoor Photographer, or a professional Journal which is more scholarly and varies by profession.

          There has been talk for years about the obsolescence of newspapers due to their inability to deliver news as it happens as compared to online news agencies. “The print industry is obsolete to the point where even calling it the "print" industry will soon seem quaint and obsolete itself. It's important to remember that the "print" aspect of it, the application of ink to paper, is secondary at best. Printing is just a vehicle for the conveyance of information, which for several centuries was the most efficient way of doing so, and now it isn't, any more than ponies are the most efficient way of getting mail from Missouri to San Francisco” (McFarlane, 2012).

Radio media is the next oldest, and has also tried to reinvent itself in order to prevent its demise. Subscription radio allows for listening without commercial interruption for which one pays a fee. However it provides a huge menu of listening choices, and allows for diverse audience demographics. Listeners can vary by age and by location. For entertainment one can seek out music from specific decades, or by genre. There are also stations that inform like those for weather, news or instructional “do it yourself” programing. Similarly, Internet Radio, give a more specialized listening experience but with the added benefit of being free. Applications such as Pandora, allow one to design radio stations of one’s own choosing by literally dictating the playlist.

According to a symposium held in March 2011, by eMarketing Trends, Terry Volkwyn, CEO of Primedia Broadcasting had this to say, “We don’t think radio is a dying medium but it does face challenges from digital media. The most important factor for radio is that the medium is driven by advertising and this is pivotal to its survival” (eMarketing Trends, 2011).

Television media, which is also driven by advertising, also serves to entertain as well as inform. Programming widely varies by intended audience, and again subscription channels allow people to fine-tune their viewing habits. The same differences in age and demographics apply. 

With the advent of subscription television, be it cable or satellite, one element that was permanently changed is children’s programming. Once relegated to Saturday mornings, and the occasional “After School Special” now there is literally 24-hour children’s programming on several different channels. Who is up watching cartoons at all hours of the night? This seems completely at odds with the American Academy of Pediatrics guidelines and recommendations for screen time for children, as opposed to reading or playing outside. A study titled, Digital childhood: Electronic media and technology use among infants, toddlers, and preschoolers, performed in 2007 found that “On a typical day, 75% of children watched television and 32% watched videos/DVDs, for approximately 1 hour and 20 minutes, on average. New media are also making inroads with young children: 27% of 5- to 6-year-olds used a computer (for 50 minutes on average) on a typical day. Many young children (one fifth of 0- to 2-year-olds and more than one third of 3- to 6-year-olds) also have a television in their bedroom. The most common reason given was that it frees up other televisions in the house so that other family members can watch their own shows (54%)” (Vandewater, et al, 2007).

Web media is the most current of all the technologies and following the explosion of the Internet for public consumption in the 1990’s it is the most important invention globally since the Gutenberg printing press. The participants are every age, gender and ethnicity. We use the Internet to get our news or perform research, we email with friends, family and business colleagues, we Facebook our every move to “friends” around the world, and we use Twitter for real time fast up to the minute communication. I am more likely to learn about news on Twitter before it ever gets announced on television or the Internet. I will never forget learning about the assassination of Osama bin Laden via Twitter almost a full two hours before the President made his televised announcement. People are able to rally with others all around the globe on any issue that strikes a chord. The “Occupy” Movement would not have had such long term successes if not for being able to communicate in real time using Twitter. When George Zimmerman killed Trayvon Martin, it took several weeks of protests and outrage on Twitter that “trended” and went global, and ultimately it ended in Zimmerman being charged with murder. 

Another example of web media is text messaging, which has become the most common way to reach people these days, as it is immediate, convenient, and eliminates the need for actual intimate communication.

Media technologies comprise the media uses and gratification theory of communication. “The communicator wants to inform and even persuade; the recipient wants to be entertained, informed or alerted to opportunities that can fulfill individual needs” (Cameron, Wilcox, Reber & Shin, 2008, Page 146). We have a virtual pallet of media technology to choose from. So what are you waiting for? Pick one and join the conversation.

References:

Cameron, G. T., Wilcox, D. L., Reber, B. H., & Shin, J. (2008). Public relations today: Managing competition and conflict. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.

eMarketing Trends. March 31, 2011. Radio: A Good Media Buy? Or Goodbye to the Medium? Retrieved August 19, 2012 via  http://www.emarketingtrends.co.za/2011/03/is-radio-dead-or-a-dying-medium/

McFarlane, G. (January 23, 2012). Technology and the death of print media. Investopedia. Retrieved August 19, 2012 via http://www.investopedia.com/financial-edge/0112/Technology-And-The-Death-Of-Print-Media.aspx#axzz249WhqY34

Schockley-Zalabak, P. S. (2012). Fundamentals of organizational communication: Knowledge, sensitivity, skills, values (8th ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc./Allyn & Bacon.

Vandewater, E. A., Rideout, V. J., Wartella, E. A., Huang, X., & al, e. (2007). Digital childhood: Electronic media and technology use among infants, toddlers, and preschoolers. Pediatrics, 119(5), E1006. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/228318892?accountid=32521