Media World and Its Power Term Paper

Social Influence

Media and the role it plays in shaping society

The media plays an essential role in shaping socially-acceptable behaviors in U.S. society, taking into account the way it succeeds in making people consider that it would be important for them to take on certain attitudes. TV media in particular tends to be biased in presenting the masses with information. By concentrating on sensational stories and on concepts like violence and sexuality, the media has the tendency to put across a false portrayal of society and thus influences people to believe that they need to uphold particular ideas.

In many areas violence rates remain constant, but the media has been seen to introduce more stories related to violence in these respective territories. This is largely because ideas like violence and sex make the masses more interested in wanting to become acquainted with the news. There is a relationship of interdependence between the media and people, as they influence each-other's thinking.People's attitudes are shaped by the media while the media tries to come up with stories that it knows are going to have a wide audience.

In order to be able to have a complex understanding of the media and of how it affects people, one would have to consider the big picture. "That is, the power of the media to influence, sustain, and change society and its citizens' way of thinking through socialization and by means of ideological manipulation." (Fourie, 2008, p. 228) Ranging from the way it persuades people to buy particular products to the way it gets them to appreciate certain political candidates, the media is largely a tool for propaganda and it can be used in a series of ways, both beneficial….....