Media Influences Society

Christie Porter
Diane Varner
Persuasive Writing
29 October 2008

Media Influenced Society

It is known that in the world we live in today, many of the choices we make come from the basis of things we learn from the media. My question is why do we allow the media to make our choices for us? Dictionary.com describes media as, “the means of communication, as radio and television, newspapers, and magazines, that reach or influence people widely.” To decide what styles are in, we flip the pages of Vogue magazine. To decide what presidential candidate we vote for, we listen to the television and read the newspaper. To decide majority of the choices we make, we turn to the media. The media is the basis of the information that we as a society consume. Everyday, millions of people use the media to help make decisions because it is and will always be the fastest source of any new information, which means that consumers will always turn their direction to discover any new material.
In an article published by EPM Communications, titled “Women read ad inserts, catalogs; men go online,” the author describes how effective each type of media influences different categories within each gender. In a study done which showed the different percentages for how media influences buying decisions, it showed that women are more persuaded by ad inserts and physical printed ads, whereas men are more interested in commercials, radio ads, and internet advertisements. The author writes, “Women age 35-54 are most likely to say they use ad inserts and circulars to help them decide where to shop for a variety of goods, including home electronics, home furnishings, and home improvement items” (EPM Communications). This alone shows how advertisements are proven to influence the places and things that people purchase.
In an article written in the Herald Sun (Australia) titled “Media”, the author writes about how his students worked out the theories of why we as a society are easily influenced by the media. He states that, “Students were able to discuss how some audiences may be more susceptible to influence than others. But there is more to it than that. If the media does have the power to influence us, then there may be implications for society” (Hourigan). He continues on to explain the influence and writes, “If that potential influence is negative, society may wish to impose ways of regulating that influence to perhaps minimize harm, or society may have the expectation that people working in the media must demonstrate some responsibility or control themselves” (Hourigan). He writes about variations of ways audiences are influenced and then focuses in on an example of The Dark Knight. He states how the producers were aware of the expectations from the audience and advertised very strongly to influence those specific expectations. This article is important in understanding that the media can take the publics interest in something, and make it even more desirable which influences us to do what they want the consumers to do.
One of the prime examples of the influence that media has on our society is within the fashion industry. On average, Americans purchases items that are said to be “in style.” How do we know that they are what’s hot that season, because the media tells us what to and what not to wear. In an article written in The Australian titled “Fashion measures up in the mainstream,” the author covers the idea that fashion in the media has skyrocketed in the past few years. She writes, “Project Runway, Australia's Next Top Model, Supermodel, Today Tonight, A Current Affair, Today, Sunrise, Mornings with Kerri-Anne, The Morning Show and even talkback radio, they're all covering a subject that used to be nothing but a 30-second filler that tail-ended our news broadcasts. Yep, fashion is news” (Hoyer). She pries on the idea that there are so many shows which are based on the idea of fashion, which makes the industry that much more accessible to society. Hoyer writes, “The mainstream media and magazines beyond the established fashion titles like Vogue, marie claire and Harper's Bazaar are talking about clothes. It's scrutinizing the girls and boys who model them, the celebrities who endorse them and gossiping about the lives of designers who put them on the racks.” She states how the editors of these fashion magazines, and the managers are large fashion industry stores have commented that the extra publicity in the media coverage has increased the publics interest in fashion, which in turn has added a great amount of business for them. Hoyer quotes the editor of fashion magazine Grazia Alison Veness McGourty and writes, ‘“Fashion isn't just about hemlines and polite fashion. It's about Orlando Bloom, who is dating Miranda Kerr, it's about the crossover of musicians and celebrities who are wearing certain designers and it is more fascinating than it ever was. So of course there the media interest is warranted”’ (Hoyer). This article is important in understanding why fashion has become such a dominant part of our media today. We can see that because there are more fashion based things coming into our homes such as television shows and magazines, we as a society turn to these media sources as a guide in the direction of what is considered fashionably acceptable.
Through the articles read, an understanding can be gained of why exactly we turn to the media. In reality, they are the first to know exactly what is going on in our society. It is almost as if we need to turn to these sources as a guide to keep our economy and culture running accordingly. Its true that at times the media can persuade the public to think and act a particular way, however there is only so far they can go to change an individuals beliefs. The media is important because it gives us an idea of what is going on in our world today, what to expect, and ways in which to go about our everyday lives.