Communicate with Carissa

Societal Expectations for Mass Media –

With the advent of the Internet and social media, our society has come to anticipate a higher level of expectation regarding mass media. Long gone are the days where journalists had time to gather pertinent facts, verify information, qualify whether a source is credible, etc. Social media has become rather instant gratification regarding news media. Obviously, this leads to more margin for error since journalists are trying to be the first new organization with the late breaking story.

An article by Northern Illinois University Department of Communication professor, William P. Cassidy, gives interesting information regarding the journalists’ view of online news credibility. Cassidy’s main research consists of online journalism and influences on news media content. His article reveals that the journalists’ view feels that online news sites do not meet the same standards as traditional sources. Furthermore, they tend to rate the credibility of online news sites lower than the general public. Their skepticism of credibility stems from valid concern over the speed at which stories are posted online, which makes mistakes more common in reporting. The results of this research provide key insights into the evolving role of journalists as “gatekeepers” in the online environment. Additionally, the results prove that traditional journalists are beginning to incorporate the validity of online journalism into their professional principles.

As mentioned in a previous post, some journalists see their function in mass media as evolving into a role of “interpreter” as opposed to a “gatherer” or “disseminator” (Singer, 1998). However, some journalists use interactive media to gather information in addition to disseminating it. Perhaps the journalist’s role is to be interpreter since our society is inundated with information from all types of mediums – newspapers, magazines, television, the Internet, mobile devices, etc. After all, being saturated with so much information leaves the audience in a constant state of stimulation.

As a result, our society constantly feels the need to be entertained – even in death. Yes, that’s right. Pause Ljud & Bild, a Swedish company that sells audio equipment, has developed a product called the CataCombo Sound System. This contraption features a two-way speaker that pipes your pre-selected, post-death music into the coffin. In fact, if you want to keep your “playlist fresh and up-to-date with the latest hits, you can set it up as a collaborative playlist so that your friends and loved ones can keep adding tracks even after you’re gone” (Kotenko, 2013). If jamming to my playlist in the afterlife isn’t a high expectation, I don’t know what is.