Impact of Media

People all over the world have been known to be affected by the media. People are known to react differently to various types of media available around the world. This is because people prefer some types of media to others; thus, if a particular type of media can transmit a specific type of information, it is possible that those who listen to it will be influenced in some way. As a result, this paper will address some of the impact that media can have on its audiences, including both positive and negative effects. The paper shall also put into focus the music and music video sector and use it to generate the facts in the documents below.

Music has been part of the human culture for a long time. From the moment we are born, a parent usually sings to their children songs (lullabies) to help them sleep. In addition to this, songs were also used to help children learn some of the basic concepts from a young age (Pandey & Joshi, n.d). The content in the music was what most children used to drive themselves and how they carried themselves through their younger lives. Songs such as “twinkle twinkle little star” were used greatly to encourage children to have a character like a star that would allow them to be distinct from the society. However, as an individual grows older, they tend to get exposed to new things that would end up changing their character and making the song that they mentioned above to be irrelevant in their part of life.

The creation of the music videos had allowed many musicians to be able to express themselves more visually with the help of the music. However, unknown to the musician, the songs have great influence on the final listeners. Many people tend to be carried away by the songs to the point that they choose to live and enact what they have seen on the television. In recent times, it has been reported that there has been an increase in the use of narcotic drugs within several countries. The main reason being that most people tend to see these activities being filmed in music videos thus they pass out as a norm to the audience. The audience’s mentally then perceives this as something normal, and they would go out and try to do what they see in their favorite artist’s music video. Currently, it is quite evident that no music video, especially those who are being produced under the ‘trap-hip hop’ music, will be played without drugs being shown within it. An example of such a video is the ‘Gucci Gang’ video where the artist walks around amongst his friends in a high school facility smoking marijuana and drinking other types of drugs (YouTube, 2017). For a typical high school student who is a fan of such music, they will take the idea of doing drugs as a norm, and thus they will carry out this illegal act having in mind that they say it is done on the television. This is well explained through the cultivation theory of media communication that states “along persistent exposure to TV is capable of cultivating common beliefs about the world” (Mehraj, Bhat & Mehraj, 2014)

However, through some music videos, people have managed to preach the goodwill that is needed within the society. They have also managed to help people express themselves to expose some of their longest hard kept secrets. An example of such a music video is that of an American rap artist called logic where he used this platform to be able to address the recent rise in suicides. The song has been noted to have managed to help people understand what suicide is and how people, regardless of their sex, can be part of the society. If more music videos can be used to express some of the social problems that we are facing as a people, then it is likely that very many individuals can know the problems that are being faced in the society and will thus find a way of solving them. Music videos that contain such positive messages can be able to cultivate a culture where change can easily be conducted by individuals all over the world without the need of being supervised or monitored. The act of change may just start coming on naturally for an individual. The greatest effect that this form of media has to the current society is the power of change. It is quite notable to say that the music that an individual listens to defines them. Thus, for an individual to be able to change in a certain way, it would be made easier through the songs and music videos that they are glued to and listen to during the day. The media can change an individual from good to bad or from bad to good. It may only depend on what they listen. Music videos can also be used to encourage individuals to change or behave in a certain culture. This is quite evident where visual aid has been used to help children in their mental development by integrating songs within it. The music videos that are created for child development are usually made to be fun and persuasive that will make the child glued to the screen for hours on end. Over time, the kid will have managed to change part of their character.

The main reason why this might be happening is that of the power that popular culture. Popular culture is known to control and direct the mental mindset of an individual towards a given trend that is common within a given society. Popular culture is easily shared through the media because most of the artist who makes the videos are paid to do so. Thus, as the music video is released to the public, the people tend to pick it up and share it amongst their peers. The popular culture that is usually shared the music and music videos is what might be affecting the perspective of the viewers. Thus, to control the effect that the music videos might have on the viewers, it would be advisable to have the popular culture that is being shared within each music monitoring. This can greatly be used in controlling the vices within the popular culture. Thus, this can then lead to the cultivation of a health culture amongst the various type of societies. This can also lead to a positive change amongst people because the type of message that is being shared can now be limited to positive ones only.

References

Erin, O. (2017). Fear: The Emotional Outcome Of Mass Media In America | IPCE. Ipce.info. Retrieved 11 December 2017, from https://www.ipce.info/library/journal-article/fear-emotional-outcome-mass-media

Lil Pump – “Gucci Gang” (Official Music Video). (2017). YouTube. Retrieved 11 December 2017, from https://youtu.be/4LfJnj66HVQ

Lule, J. (2016). Understanding media and culture: An introduction to mass communication. University of Minnesota Libraries Publishing.

Mehraj, H. K., Bhat, A. N., & Mehraj, H. R. (2014). Impacts of media on society: A sociological perspective. Inter J Humanity Soc Sci Invent, 3(6), 56-64.

Pandey, R., & Joshi, P. Impact of Media on Youngsters of Jaipur.

Weiss, W. (1966). Effects of the mass media of communication (No. TR-8). HUNTER COLL OF THE CITY UNIV OF NEW YORK.