Alenezi 1

Talal Alenezi

Mrs. Shelby Starnard

ENG 1201.5B4

8 August 2021

Literature Review.

The advancement of mass media has its advantages and disadvantages. The platform has not

only affected our day-to-day activities because it is now embedded in the fabric of society and is

even influencing the decisions we make. Mass media influence has, directly and indirectly,

influenced our thought processes and emotions about essentially every aspect of our lives. We

have all witnessed one time or another, politicians gracing our screens to campaign and because

our favorite TV or radio station is supporting them, we end up voting for them. Mass media

influencers have also changed the way we culturally do things. In fact, some communities have

experienced an erosion of some of their cultural practice due to influence from social media. The

current generation is now striving to look more like their social media idols, forgetting their

personalities and culture. It is important to remind our young generation and everyone else that

we have lives to lead past social media and should not let the media take away our right to make

sound decisions concerning our lives. This review was conducted through the use of online

academic sources from reliable websites basing it on my research question; how does mass

media influence the political, economic, and cultural aspects in the world today?

The influence of mass media on every aspect of our lives started years ago when radio and

television were the main forms of mass communication. In America, politicians used the

platform to sway voters to their side. This form of the campaign was quite effective especially if

the radio channel had a large database of fans. People were easily convinced by media
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personalities they looked up to or enjoyed listening to, to support a particular candidate. This

clearly shows the effect of mass media started a long time ago. As years go by, the influence of

mass media has grown stronger and is now embedded in the fabric of society. With the invention

of the internet, mass media has only become stronger. Now more than ever before, people are

more connected by the internet, with a lot of communication taking place through various social

media platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, and YouTube among others.

According to Calderaro, the internet has caused significant influences on the political sphere

since the 1990s. Calderaro, explains that scholars in the 1990s have been interested in figuring

the potential of the internet in influencing politics, and most hailed the internet as an opportunity

for the birth of direct politics. In his article, Calderaro states that many scholars agree that the

internet has created a new space for politics, which has strengthened democracies across the

world. This article goes on to confirm that influence of mass media has been there since its

inception.

Firstly, mass media has influenced politics along with every other aspect of society by

indirectly showing people another way of lifestyle in, either communication, dressing, culture, or

the economy. According to Calderaro, the effect of the internet on politics has been felt for years

and its potential has been recorded by many scholars, who have witnessed the birth of direct

democracies as well as a shift in many democracies in the world. The author explains that due to

the various social media platforms being created, communication across the world has become

very effective. This has allowed supporters of various parties to influence others by sparking

debates in the social platforms that allow everyone to contribute to why one party is better than

the other. According to Calderaro, the internet has allowed people to personalize the kind of

information they receive and allow them to spread their information to other people. In another
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source, the author explains that mass media became very effective in the past years due to the

mediated messages of individuals or parties (Hjarvard). Hjarvard explained that as a result of

seeing these mediated messages on the front page of popular newspapers, people’s beliefs of

these parties or politicians were gradually changed to their liking.

Secondly, mass media has changed the cultural practices and beliefs of many allowing things

that were not allowed to be accepted in various parts of the world. It is no question that mass

media is embedded in the fabric of society. According to Hjarvard, years ago, the people

believed that the media is a separate entity from society and culture but as the industry grew over

the years, the influence of mass media grew. The author states that some of the ways in which

mass media is by; advertising, which affects a customer’s shopping preference. Cultural erosion

has been caused by media houses airing film content that compromises the viewer’s morals.

Some cultural practices especially those that violated the rights of humans have been pushed

aside as a result of the media. The author goes on to say that the influence of mass media has

been permeated contemporary society to a point that one cannot separate media from cultural and

social institutions.

Consequently, according to Gripsrud, mass media has opened people’s lives to the world

such that they are central to economic, cultural, and political operations via words, music, and

images. The author goes on to say the media has influenced some societies such that an entire

way of life is created (Gripsrud). Mass media has become a home to so many people that

societies have begun to grow within the web. Both authors are discussing the same topic but in

different ways. While Hjarvard talks about media influence permeating society, Gripsrud talks

about the societies created within the web due to mass media influence. The sources address an
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audience of people from all generations and their purpose is to shed light on the impacts of mass

media on society and culture.

Thirdly, mass media has shown its influence in the economic sector by affecting how

customers behave in the market. In recent years, mass media has been very influential in the

growth of a business especially by advertisements. People tend to buy something that they are

familiar with or a friend has referred them to. In another source, the author indicates that a

comparison between companies that invest less in advertisements with those that advertisements

a lot was done, and the results showed that people bought the products they see every day on tv

(Sorin 254). According to the author, mass media has proven to have a strong impact on the

economy of the United States of America due to the high budgets set aside for technological

advancements (Sorin 254).

Another source agrees with Sorin, by indicating that mass media has increased its influence

on American society due to its role in initiating and promoting various social media campaigns

that address the American people (Hjarvard). Hjarvard also indicates that communication was

once bound to a physical interaction but has now been succeeded by mediated communication

that gives even small-scale businesses a large platform to advertise their products. Both authors

have concurred that mass media has the potential to grow or bring down a business. The purpose

of these sources is to show their readers who are an audience of all ages the importance of mass

media and how they can take advantage of the platform.

In addition, mass media has influenced the lifestyle of people, for instance, the dress code,

eating habits, and other basic lifestyles. In the current world, celebrities are fashion setters. It is

no wonder that most business has resulted to using them as their brand ambassadors. A celebrity

is in a position of influence because of the huge number of followers they have on their social
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pages. According to an article, companies are now hiring even individuals who have the potential

of influencing a large number of people as product endorsers or influencers on social media

(Gräve). According to Gräve, these influencers have now taken up the role of traditional

celebrities in corporate advertising, which is a step in the right direction for business. This article

was written for readers of all ages, but especially the younger generation. The purpose of this

article is to show how the influence of social media has changed various aspects of people's daily

lives and created jobs for many other individuals.

This review answers the question; how does mass media influence the political, economic,

and cultural aspects of the world today? By explaining the various ways in which communication

is circulated in the media. There is a discussion about why the media has been able to easily

permeate society and have serious impacts on the lifestyle of people. Other questions including,

how media is changing the business world have also been answered. The sources used have

covered various sectors of this topic and even introduce some new subtopics under the topic of

the influence of mass media on the various aspects of the society. Some of the topics that will be

interesting to explore include; how can mass media influence be controlled and the negative

effects of mass media influence.

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Work Cites.

Calderaro, Andrea. "Social media and politics." (2018).

Gräve, Jan-Frederik. "Exploring the perception of influencers vs. traditional celebrities: are

social media stars a new type of endorser?." Proceedings of the 8th international

conference on Social Media & Society. 2017.

Hjarvard, Stig. "The mediatization of society: A theory of the Media as Agents of Social and

Cultural Change." Nordicom review 29.2 (2008).

Jostein Gripsrud. Understanding Media Culture. Bloomsbury Academic, 2010. EBSCOhost,

search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=1580387&site=eds-live

Sorin TERCHILA. “The Activity of Mass Media Companies from the United States of America.

The Impact Generated in Economic, Social and Political Systems.” ‘Management

Intercultural, no. 30, (2014), p. 254.’EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?

direct=true&db=edsrep&AN=edsrep.a.cmj.interc.y2014i30p254.262&site=eds-live.