Media consumption
It includes activities such as interacting with new media, reading books and magazines, watching television and film, and listening to radio.
Around the 1880s, the development of the motion picture camera allowed individual component images to be captured and stored on a single reel.
This moving camera affected the progression of the world immensely, beginning the American film industry as well as early international movements such as German Expressionism, Surrealism and the Soviet Montage.
[7] Overall media consumption has immensely increased over time, from the era of the introduction of motion pictures, to the age of social networks and the internet.
Harrison Dyar, who sent electrical sparks through chemically treated paper tape to burn dots and dashes, invented the first telegraph in the USA.
A more developed version came from Samuel Morse, whose telegraph printed code on tape and was operated using a keypad and an earpiece.
Shows like Sesame Street teach valuable lessons to children in developmental stages, such as math, the alphabet, kindness, racial equality, and cooperation.
[25] Also, studies show that milk consumption (though controversial) shot up in children fifteen years of age and younger due to print and broadcast advertisements.
Even games rated for mature audiences have been found to be beneficial to the development of children according to a study that was published by the American Psychological Association (APA).
[25] The sheer volume of educational websites, information and services offered are so immense that research has become a far easier task than it was in any previous period in human history.
Social media has provided invaluable benefits for people over the course of its lifetime, and has served as an incredibly effective method of interacting and communicating with others in nearly every part of the world.
In an article about media violence on society it states that extensive TV viewing among adolescents and young adults is associated with subsequent aggressive acts.
[35] Programs that portray violent acts can change an adolescent's view on violence and this may lead them to develop aggressive behavior.
Many adolescents who spend large amounts of time watching television see actors as role models and try to emulate them by trying to be like them this can also have a negative impact on people's body images, mostly women.
Research suggests that young people who spend more than 2 hours per day on social media are more likely to report poor mental health, including psychological distress.
With text messaging and social media, people want instant gratification from their friends and often feel hurt if they do not receive an immediate response.
Research has shown that consuming much media with headlines that depict minorities in negative ways can affect how people think.
[42][1] Media has played a huge role in society for years in selling people on the expectations of how an ideal male and female body should look.
[43] Research has shown that individuals with lower self-esteem may have an easier time expressing themselves on social media rather than in the real world.
Since adolescents typically have greater control over their media choices than over other social situations face-to-face, many develop self-socialization patterns.
Adolescents have the ability to choose media that best suits their personalities and preferences, which in turn create youth that have a skewed view of the world and limited social interaction skills.
With vastly differing views of how to approach various situations, confusion can be apparent and youth may avoid or internalize their social weaknesses.
Anorexia, bulimia and models smoking convey to girls that a feminine person is thin, beautiful, and must do certain things to her body to be attractive.
A code of femininity (see media and gender) implies today that a "true" woman is thin, girlish, frail, passive, and focused on serving others.
On the other hand, the code of masculinity for a young males raised within the past several decades may include the ideals of profusely individualistic and self-sufficient natures, oft personified in film characters such as cowboys and outlaw bikers.
The images, myths, and narratives of these ideas imply that a "true" man is a relentless problem solver, physically strong, emotionally inexpressive, and at times, a daredevil with little regard for societal expectations and the law of the land.
[47] The never ceasing flood of signs, images, narratives, and myths surrounding consumers of media have the capability to influence behavior through the use of codes.
The idea of being judged on femininity or clothing relates to experiences later in life, including job interviews and the emphasis placed on reaching financial success.
[48] Media consumption has become an integral part of modern culture, and has shaped younger generations through socialization and the interpretations provided for the signs and world around them.
A 2003 study by Dowler showed the effects of media consumption influences public attitudes regarding crime and justice.
