The ever-evolving media

It is no longer news that today’s media spectrum is rather complex and changing at a rapid pace. People have more choices and control now over what media they want to use, when and how. Thus, they can be less loyal and are sampling a great number of options available to them today.

According to Lewis and Slade (2000), the media evolves with a pattern. First they start off with the invention of a new technology; second, they become a business; third, government policy and regulations are developed and lastly, theories explaining their social impacts are developed.

The media spectrum's rate of accretion increases over time and it grows thicker and thicker. The existing media is not being displaced, but there are more alternatives out there for people to choose from. The new media tends to be richer and incorporates some elements of the older media.

There are three fundamental shifts in the evolution of the media spectrum. First, there is a shift in power from BIG (corporations, institutions, government agencies etc) to the SMALL (general masses). Then there is a shift in media space from the FEW (big mainstream media) to the MANY (general masses). Lastly, there is a shift in attitudes and behaviours. It seems that there is an erosion of institutional trust as more people tend to trust their peers more. There is a rising trust in social media sources and more sophisticated information needs among people.

One distinct nature of new media is that it gives everyone a voice, and a platform to air their views. This inherently brings opportunities for people to share intelligent and insightful comments, and also for others to post negative or even frivolous remarks.

Traditional media on the other hand, tends to present trusted, unbiased and informed opinions - even if some may feel that information generated by traditional media is rather tame compared to what is out there online.

Even though the media evolves rapidly, I feel that traditional media will continue to stay for a long time as different generations are receptive to different media. Youngsters and the tech-savvys may prefer the new media while the older generation may opt for tradtional media.




Reference : Lewis, G & Slade, C 2000, Critical communication: Media communications, French Forest, NSW