Media Industries And Their Impact On Culture

PART ONE As a local television Director, my main focus is on the local news and the issues that affect the community in which I live. I would choose to make the closing of the parks for three days my lead story and leave the celebrity death to the bigger networks. My first priority is to report news that affects the citizens of the community that I serve, even with the prospect of bigger ratings; I would feel an obligation to my audience to report issues that are more closely related to them.

I would have an intense investigation on the money issues that has caused the city council to start looking at ways to save money. I would send a reporter to talk to each council person to obtain any information into the current expenditures that the city has invoked. There would be a run of the initial story set up on our local news website, which would include a blog box to obtain audience’s feedback and comments. Prior to the city council meeting, I would have run a couple of the stories that the investigating reporters had found and announced the time and place of the city council’s meeting.

This way those that are interested in attending will be well informed and those that did not know will know have the ability to participate. One reporter and crew would be assigned to give onsite coverage of the meeting, which could report breaking news on the vote and how it might affect the community. One reporter will man the website giving updated information on the voting and answering any questions that may arise from bloggers. Once the vote has been tallied, we connect with the on-scene reporter with the results.

Now, the reporter on-scene will also be responsible for the follow-up story. Getting information from the city council persons on why they voted the way they did, what comments do the elected officials have in response to how they voted and why, and are there alternative ways to save money other than closing the parks? Some key questions that need to be asked are: how will this affect the community, are there more budgets cuts coming to save money, and what are the long term effects that the community might need to be aware of?

These questions play an important role for the audience and how their lives will be affected for the months to come. Giving resident’s the ability to post their comments, good or bad, on the website is also extremely important, the feedback can be used to gauge the community’s reaction to what was reported and it can serve as a forum for people’s voices being heard by the city council. The follow –up is just as important as how it all began, following other stories that are related to the park’s closing and money saving ideas by the city council need to be investigated.

Any important shut downs or closures must have priority over no community based issues. We must focus on the goal of serving our community and understand that, yes, there are ratings to be made airing the popular stories, but if one issue slips by our attention the community will turn on our station. PART TWO For years our society has transformed from one era to another. These changes were made because of our cultures demand of better products; it also was changed with the creation of advance technology.

Inventions such as the radio, television, electricity, transportation, and computers have shaped our culture into what it is today. When culture changes, so do the things our cultures like such as movies, television programs, and games. These changes are seen as an evolution for the better. Our culture has played a major role in movies and television shows along the years. War of the Worlds, which was originally broadcasted on radio in 1938; showed a time when the reports of UFO’s and aliens were on everyone’s mind.

Orson Welles created it as an entertainment broadcast, which caused a panic across the country. Later, it was made into a movie and depicted the events that happened when people thought that the broadcast was true. Movies such as Men in Black, Signs, Predator and Aliens have played on the Orson Welles saga and shows our culture’s interest in life on other planets, which still persists today. Era movies such as Platoon, Apocalypse Now, Thin Red Line, and We Were Soldiers Once show our cultural involvement in many wars and conflicts.

Television shows followed the same type of evolution. Hogan’s Heroes, X-Files, Brady Bunch, The Walton’s, and the multiple reality shows that air today all reflect the things that people have going on in their lives and how they can relate to the programs they watch. You take shows from 20 years ago and compare them to the shows today; you will find a vast difference in language, violence, sexually explicit content and gore. This is due to the change in our culture which has directed the television shows and movies to evolve to where they are today.

Gaming has really evolved of the last ten years, originally created as entertainment for children, it has actually captivated all ages. Starting with simple graphics and controls, as our culture evolved, so too did the demand for better graphics, controls and more games. The first games systems I can remember was Atari and know we have Xbox, PS3 and Wii to name the top few. Going from table tennis to interactive games which can be controlled by a person’s body shows how our culture’s advancements have played a role in the gaming industry.

Due to the War in Iraq, games such as Modern Warfare and Call of Duty have emerged to be some of the top games released as of late. Along with the encouragement of a healthy society Wii Fit and the Xbox Kinect have hit the spot in giving all ages the ability to play and exercise at the same time. The Wii gaming system is even being used in medical treatment to help people learn to walk again. Many people would say that games have become more violent and gruesome, thus having a negative effect on the youth of today. They blame gaming systems for encouraging laziness and obesity.

On the other side, studies have shown that gaming systems have enhanced children’s hand-eye coordination, critical thinking skills and problem solving skills. Our culture creates a demand on better quality and new technology. Movies, television and the gaming industry will be ever changing in the hopes of creating something that our culture wants. Since the people behind producing and creating these media platforms are from our culture, it is safe to say that our culture and these media platforms will forever be linked and intertwined for years to come.