Chinwe A. Onuoha
November 25,
2014
Convergence
Professor Doris
Cacoilo
Post Four
The Future of Convergence
The future of convergence will continue to
consist of all “computing, telecommunications and media in a digital
environment,” (Pavlik, 8) because the evolution of technology and mass
communications has transformed into a phenomenon that looks impossible to live
without. Everyone seems to be glued to their iPhones, tablets and other hand
held devices because with just one click, they’re able to get all the
information that they need. The idea of having a fast and convenient
alternative to getting news seems reasonable, but there are a couple of
downfalls that exist due to the convergence of media and how we receive
it.
For 10 decades, Morse code was used
as a form of communication, especially during war, but at the turn of the 20th
century, it officially went silent because it was replaced by other
technologies like the telephone, which was much faster, simpler to use and
practical because you didn't have to wait a long time before you heard a
message from the receiving end. After the telephone was invented, another
fascinating phenomenon that sparked media sound waves all over the U.S. was the
radio because Americans were able to connect with the President Roosevelt on an
intimate level while they sat in the comfort of their own living room. Besides
the fireside chats that helped FDR become such a popular figure in politics and
in the hearts of millions of Americans, the invention of the television changed
the world of media around in ways that have never been imagined because it
allowed people to see what was really happening around them, as opposed to
listening to them.
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| Picture curtesy of "The Daily Twitch" |
Plus, new media powerhouses were
established to the American people to choose from, which didn't spark too much
competition because there were only three of them – American Broadcasting
Company (ABC), Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) and National Broadcasting
Company (NBC). The big three, which is what they are often called, are now in
the midst of a raging war between other media corporations that are on
television and online because everyone wants their daily dose of new as soon as
they press their finger against their hand held devices.
Not only are big news corporations
on television with new emerging ones such as Aljazeera or CNN, but they’ve
developed a new digital world that can only survive by how many people read the
content that’s being published on their page and how many times it’s being
shared amongst friends on social media. This creates more competition amongst
the news corporations that exist now because they’ll have to figure out a way
to keep their readership with material that will keep them engaged, informed
and on their toes. That is one of the reasons why they have integrated an
interactive experience on their sites so that their supporters will be able to
continue to talk about it with each other, which would propel them to make
their own “stories” or assumptions of how current news events, such as how Darren
Wilson’s indictment raises more issues about the war between police brutality
and black men, for example.
As groundbreaking news stories such
as that continue to run through every news media outlet like wild fire, people
are able to create their own “opinion pieces” on blog sites, in interviews, on the comment
sections underneath the articles that they read online and by making videos on
Youtube, Vine, Instagram. When people do this, not only are they creating their
own news for the public to engage in with a touch of one button, but they also
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| Curtesy of "The Business Insider" |
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| Curtesy of "The Business Insider" |
Since GE, News Corp, Disney, Viacom, Time
Warner and CBS serve as the six primary owners of most of the networks that a
lot of people watch, the issue that many people face is that they are being
told the same type of “story” so that they’ll be able to satisfy the political
agenda of the corporation that they are under. The subject of inaccuracy and
bias becomes an issue because journalism is supposed to be objective and fair,
but with this knowledge, people can stand up and try to fight against these
issues so that these issues wont serve as a threat to us in the future.
Works Cited
1. Pavlik, John V., and Shawn McIntosh. Converging Media: A New Introduction to Mass Communication. New York: Oxford UP, 2011. Print.
Works Cited
1. Pavlik, John V., and Shawn McIntosh. Converging Media: A New Introduction to Mass Communication. New York: Oxford UP, 2011. Print.
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