Mass media

Mass media refers collectively to all media technologies, including the Internet, television, newspapers, and radio, which are used for mass communications, and to the organizations which control these technologies.[1][2]
Since the 1950s, in the countries that have reached a high level of industrialization, the mass media of cinema, radio and TV have a key role in political power.[3]
Contemporary research demonstrates an increasing level of concentration of media ownership, with many media industries already highly concentrated and dominated by a very small number of firms.[4]
History
The phrase "the media" began to be used in the 1920s, but referred to something that had its origins much further in the past.[5] The invention of the printing press in the late 15th century gave rise to some of the first forms of mass communication, by enabling the publication of books and newspapers on a scale much larger than was previously possible.[6][7][8]
Newspapers
Main article: History of newspapers and magazines
The first high-circulation newspapers arose in the eastern United States in the early 1800s, and were made possible by the invention of high-speed rotary steam printing presses, and railroads which allowed large-scale distribution over wide geographical areas. The increase in circulation, however, led to a decline in feedback and interactivity from the readership, making newspapers a more one-way medium.[9][10][11]
Since the beginning, high-circulation newspapers have been a medium for conditioning public opinion.[12]
Electrical telegraph
Main article: Telegraphy
In the 1840s, the first commercial electrical telegraph was developed, allowing to separate communications from transportation, enabling messages to be transmitted instantaneously over large distances.[7]
Cinema began to be a large-scale entertainment industry in 1894, with the first commercial exhibition of film. The first films with a narrative bagan to be distributed in 1987.
Radio
Main article: History of radio
The first commercial broadcasts in the United States began in the 1920s.
Television
Main article: History of television
The first television broadcasts for a mass audience began in 1936 Germany and UK.[13][14] Regular mass TV broadcasts in the United States only began in 1948, with a show hosted by Arturo Toscanini and starring comedian Milton Berle.
Political role in advanced capitalism
Since the '50s, when cinema, radio and TV began to be the primary or the only source of information for a larger and larger percentage of the population, these media began to be considered as central instruments of mass control.[15][16] Up to the point that it emerged the idea that when a country has reached a high level of industrialization, the country itself "belongs to the person who controls communications."[3]
Mass media play a significant role in shaping public perceptions on a variety of important issues, both through the information that is dispensed through them, and through the interpretations they place upon this information.[15] They also play a large role in shaping modern culture, by selecting and portraying a particular set of beliefs, values, and traditions (an entire way of life), as reality. That is, by portraying a certain interpretation of reality, they shape reality to be more in line with that interpretation.[16]
Mass media can be used for various purposes:
• Advocacy, both for business and social concerns. This can include advertising, marketing, propaganda, public relations, and political communication.
• Entertainment, traditionally through performances of acting, music, and sports, along with light reading; since the late 20th century also through video and computer games.
• Public service announcements.
Technologies
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Electronic media and print media include:
• Broadcasting, in the narrow sense, for radio and television.
• Many instances of various types of recorded discs or tapes. In the 20th century, these were mainly used for music. Video and computer uses followed.
• Film, most often used for entertainment, but also for documentaries.
• The Internet – examples include Blogs and broadcasts (such as news, music, pre-recorded speech, and video)
• Mobile phones, which can be used for rapid breaking news and short clips of entertainment like jokes, horoscopes, alerts, games, music, and advertising
• Publishing, including electronic publishing
• Video games, which have developed into a mass form of media[citation needed]