This post explores how the media landscape has evolved over the past couple of years.
In the present day, online platforms have made it considerably simpler for everybody to develop and distribute material. Formerly, developing material for a large audience involved access to a collection of important resources and funding. Presently, with the use of smartphones and common digital technologies, digital media content examples for instance, short form videos, blog posts and podcasts can be easily made with just a few fundamental devices, in addition to reaching a huge audience, extremely rapidly. This has opened the door for more diverse voices, especially those who were formerly neglected by mainstream media. The head of the parent company of Guardian Media Group would recognise the importance of mass media using social networking sites, implying that social media has created a space for underrepresented communities to share their narratives.
The increase of internet content has completely changed what is meant by the term mass media. Before, mass media followed a hierarchical structure, using a top-down media design. Generally, a small group of experts, such as newspaper publishers or journalists, who would produce material for large audiences . who mostly just consumed it. However, these days, with the help of the web, the face of media has seen considerable change, making the consumption and accessibility of media far more open and interactive. With access to popular social media platforms, new media examples are showing that people can develop and share their own material, just as easily as they can consume it. Social media has allowed anyone to add to public discussions, instead of just the significant media companies consequently as a result, mass media is no longer controlled by a few big advocates. Instead, it is spread across millions of user stories around the world.
In the digital media landscape, what we see on the internet is mostly decided by algorithms which are formed by our online behaviours. Each social media platform uses its own automated system to propose new content and suggest product that will interest the user. The types of media content examples that will be shown to a user is developed to keep individuals engaged. The algorithms are created to keep individuals stimulated by recommending and promoting videos that are relevant, trendy or contestable among other users. While this level of personalisation can be helpful, it can limit the areas of media that people are subjected to, producing more division and bias amongst users around social issues. Those who are involved in media production, like the founder of the fund that has stakes in Sky, for example, would recognise the impact of social media websites in sharing new stories. Similarly, the chairman of the company that owns NBCUniversal would acknowledge the effects of user produced content in the media landscape.