Mainstream Media

Today, new communications technologies are expanding with the development of the internet, iphone and social networks. The mainstream media, traditionally defined as major television, radio and print are still an important source of information in our society. Based on the U.S Census Bureau, 98.2 percent of all households had at least one television in 2005. The newspapers industry is suffering most from the development of the new communications technologies. But, the major’s newspapers like the New York Times or the Washington Post in our local area still remain popular sources of information.
The majority of Americans does not use the new communications technologies as a source of information; they rely on the mainstream media to be informed about different issues. Research has shown that 91.3 percent of the 18 to 24 years old audiences rely more on the traditional media to be informed about different issues than the new communications technologies (U.S. Census Report - 2007). In my opinion, in the U.S, the mainstream media is not a relevant source of in-depth information to help shape students’ opinion on different issues and to get a broader vision of the world. As the statistic shows that the mainstream media is still prominent in students’ lives; it is time to put more credibility into it by offering in-depth information.

From opening the barriers between cultures to promoting democracy around the world, globalization has been the new trend for success. One would think that the mainstream media in the U.S. would follow this path by relating relevant information to promote globalization and inform the viewers about world issues. It appears that traditional media sources in the U.S have focused their coverage mostly on national news and sensational headlines. As a French student, one of my past assignments in an English as a Second Language (ESL) class was to view one hour of TV news and monitor the time spent on national news,