Media Evolution and Impact in 2020

Media Impact in 2020

• 2020 was a significant year, marked by global events leading to information overload and unique coping mechanisms.
• Media evolved significantly, impacting culture throughout history and with technological advancements.

Communication Transitions

• Media evolved from oral to written eras, highlighting power shifts and tensions in ancient societies.
• The print era, starting with Gutenberg, mass-produced books, boosting literacy, individualism, and resistance to authority.
• The electronic era saw a transition from print to electronic media, along with corporate control and shared media experiences.
• The digital era brought about the evolution of digital communication, influencing media, culture, and daily life.

Media Convergence

• The digital transition merged once-distinct media formats into one accessible format.
• This influenced the changing television landscape, shifting from shared viewing to personalized experiences.

Media Fragmentation and Democracy

• Diverse media consumption could hinder shared values, increasing polarization and governance challenges.

Media Environment

• Media serves as a habitat for communication, interaction, data gathering, and surveillance.

Mobile Media Landscape

• Smartphones became versatile tools encompassing communication, organization, entertainment, and surveillance.

Roles in Media Consumption

• Media consumers, producers, and citizens actively analyze media texts.

Media Production and Citizenship

• Media producers, consumers, and citizens actively shape society and values.

Linear Model of Mass Communication

• Mass communication is a linear process involving senders, messages, gatekeepers, channels, and receivers.

Cultural Approach to Media

• Media texts, technologies, industries, users, and cultural context are interconnected.

Media Technologies Impact

• Media technologies profoundly shape communication, culture, and society, but can also be influenced and controlled.

Media Users and Interpretation

• Individuals interpret media texts via their unique identities and experiences (e.g., race, gender).

Media and Culture in Politics

• Media and culture are sites of political struggle, shaping societal values.

The Politics of Media

• Media texts examine power dynamics and representation, challenging fairness and equity.

Media Narratives and Cultural Influences

• Media texts reflect and shape dominant values, with narratives shaping experiences.

Impact of Media Narratives

• Stories shape public understanding and experiences (e.g., during the pandemic).

Impact of COVID-19 on the Meatpacking Industry

• Media highlighted worker issues, resistance, and fatalities in the meatpacking industry during the pandemic. (Contrasting middle-class remote work safety with frontline worker exposure.)

Mass Media History

• Mass communication industries evolved and impacted modern and postmodern eras.

Hierarchy of Culture

• High culture is associated with education and moral uplift, while low culture is linked to mass consumption and commercialism.

Cultural Hierarchy Formation

• Elites promote high culture as superior to maintain social control and authority.

Cultural Transformation in Media

• The shift to a postmodern era is marked by the proliferation of digital media, blurring traditional authority hierarchies.

Media Literacy

• Critical media analysis is crucial for informed consumption and engagement.

Media Literacy: Critical Process

• Critical perspective development involves description, analysis, evaluation, and engagement.

Analysis and Interpretation in Criticism

• Identifying patterns and underlying meanings in media content.

Engagement for Media Literacy

• Active participation in creating media for a democratic society through critical action and involvement.

Media's Dual Role

• Media acts as a catalyst for democracy and social change, alongside advancing commercial interests.

Black Panther

• A superhero movie with an action narrative focusing on responsibility, diverse African-inspired designs, and black representation.
• Disney's corporate culture played a role in this risky decision.