Media and the Economy Findings

IMAGE COURTESY OF RFi GROUP

Our blog, Media and the Economy, is a collaborative space where we explore different parts of media industries and their relationships to both domestic and foreign economies. Through each of our writings and research, we discovered that all of our subtopics were greatly impacted by the continuous evolution of technology. This evolution began to explain themes like media convergence, media globalization, demassification of media, and more which each of us connected to our blog posts and subtopics.

Convergence

Convergence is an overarching theme that has been discussed throughout the subtopics of this blog. Media convergence is the merging of virtually all forms of mass communication including print, television, film, radio, the Internet through various digital media platforms. With the emergence of mobile devices and the Internet, media has a new delivery vehicle of choice. Rather than having to go to the library or movie theater or purchase newspapers, DVDs, books, or magazines, convergence allows users to access all forms of media on their mobile devices through Netflix, Hulu, or Spotify subscriptions. Convergence has positively impacted the economy by reducing production costs, reducing waste, and having users spend less money; however, convergence has also negatively impacted the economy by causing businesses to go under, paying artists less, and hurting legacy industries.

Public Relations

The theme of public relations is seen throughout the sub-topics of our blog posts. Public relations and advertising go hand in hand and allow companies and influential people to market themselves and their products through mass media outlets. The introduction of advertising to mass media has allowed for companies to make serious profit off of their product. Many companies rely on their revenue from advertising, whether it is commercials in the television medium, sponsored content on social media platforms, or advertising columns in the print industry. Public relations and advertising shape public opinion of brands and people which therefore effects that brand or person’s business which effects the economy as a whole.

Demassification

The demassification of media has impacted the way that legacy and new media industries are designed and produced. Demassification is this notion that media is individualized and that is representational of specific cultures, with various services or products. By diversifying mass media, the media markets are able to have regular “subscribers” and advertise specific goods towards their audiences. On the downside, it can create barriers for these industries because they may be localized to a particular region or language. This economic trend, of “catering towards the individual” allows mass media industries to create more content and explore new avenues.

Globalization

Globalization, the increase of international influence throughout the world, has been one of the main factors of the change in relationship between mass media and the economy. K-Pop’s rise in popularity internationally exemplifies this change in the relationship by creating opportunities to earn an income through social media as a global influencer and the use of globally appealing storylines by filmmakers. Mass media mediums can utilize globalization to market to an international audience and economy.

To Conclude

Overall, we, the contributors of Media and the Economy, hope that through each of our subtopics and their connections to overarching themes like technology evolution, media convergence, etc. gave you a deeper understanding of the factors that impact the economies of different mass media industries. The industries of print, music, television, film, and social media are all very different, yet they are all impacted by technology, they all impact one another, and they all attribute to domestic and global economies alike.