Bobbie

​ FIINAL PRESENTATION:

I chose my final presentation on the role of television media today and what effects does it have because I thought it would be interesting to compare television then and now. I must say the end result was not at all what I anticipated.
 * The Role of television media today and what effects does it have.

First I compared "The Big Three" networks in regards to news media. I began my research in the 1960's through the present. I can remember as a child if you did not get to see the breaking news there were no other alternatives, no recording devices, no second chances until the newspapers were printed. I also chose this topic because I tought it would be interesting to compare the different networks, see what was making news and how it was presented, as well as evaluate how much bias and truth occured then vs. now.

THE BIG THREE: NBC, ABC, AND CBS

The 1960's were a time of political, social, culteral and psychological change. In 1962, with Telstar satellite 1 in space, as well as other satellites, news reports from around the world could be transmitted in "real-time". In 1963, CBS added Walter Cronkite, who ended each evenings news with "And that's the way it is", bringing a feel of truth and honesty to it's viewers. Walter was the only anchor covering the assascination of JFK. In that announcement viewers seen an obviously emotional anchor, thus rendering him as a icon of anchors. Walter was once referred to as "The most trusted man in America". I thought it was interesting that during the 1960's television and newspaper seperated, with television news promoting "hi-lites and headlines", and the newspapers reporting and in-depth look at the worlds news. By 1970, color Televisions were replacing black and white and with color came logo's which drew in another audience. Viewers felt the logo's also promoted truth and felt comfortable with their source of reliability. The 80's and 90's brought field cameras and recording devices that sent journalist out into the fields to get "fast-breaking coverage". And we all know what the present has brought. We have the capability to have media on our laptops/computers, cell phones, and hand-held devices, within minutes. Demanding what we want, when we want it. I use 9/11 as an example. Within seconds every network was broadcasting live coverage.

WHATS HAPPENING WITH THE BIG THREE TODAY?

Today, viewership in regards to television news media has declined significantly contributing most of the decline to other means of media delivery, particularly the internet. Most viewers today feel as though the television media is selling whatever viewers want to hear and could care less about the entire turth. Reports have indicated that the ever-shrinking television media must be "spoon-fed" with gossip, hot topics and entertainment news, catchy phrases and "magnified" approaches which is something you hear and you assume it is about one thing, but ends up being only a partial portion but it kept your curiosity to stay-tuned. Broadcasting networks today rely on the gain of significant events such as The Olympics, Super Bowl and political debates for financial support. Ads as well play a huge part of the networks financial support and continue to fight for top spots. The average cost of an advertisement during a Super Bowl game is 2.7 million dollars for a 30 second air space. That's crazy. People in America are losing their homes!

I think one of the major differences I was able to conclude with television media was THEN, main stream news was delivered at a slower pace, as many details that could be obtained were presented, Today, news media has to be quick, all about getting the good to the public fast, sometimes I wonder if it's not so fast that we don't worry about the truth, just get it there.

SUMMARY In summary, I was surprised to find that my assumptions would be that television media THEN would be of truth and honesty, informative matters. The ads would be of things we need, not wanted or desired. What I found is that as technology advances, we as a viewer demand more and more. The voices of the broadcasters then were doing a job delivering "what sells", just as they are doing today, the only difference is they delivered with less competitioon.

In invesigating information for this final project, as well as the knowledge gained from this class, I have come to the conclusion that the media is going to be biased, depending on who is providing information and who is receiving information. We all have different viewpoints and interpelate it differently. The networks will continue to strive for viewers, fight for our attention through whatever means is available. As long as we as viewers continue to demand a wide variety of information, the broadcasters will continue to "get creative and deliver".

MEDIA: Finally, since I sort of fell off the correct path for this project and discussed a topic I didn't speak about on my blog, I included Josh's image of the media. I felt this best exhibited my brain while rsearching the media:

JUST FOR FUN I have added a web-link which contains media statistics. I found this quite interesting and hope you will as well. []

Relevant links:

Big 3 network media declines: [] Museum of Broadcast News: [] Media in the 1960's: [] Television, How has Media changed: []**