Mass Media And Politics Paper

Mass Media and PoliticsThis paper will be covering mass media and how it has evolved and affected American politics since the birth of the country. Media has always had a big role to play in politics. Since the eighteenth century, Americas free press has given the media huge political power, or at least the potential for it. Todays society is no different, though technology is constantly changing the way the American people few the media and how it affects politics. There are countless forms of mass media; television, radio, cinema, print, social media and the internet. This paper will be covering a brief history of mass media, explain what effects it has on politics, how media today differs from the past, and how technology is changing the

American has always had a diverse culture, that with free press, led to the growth of an open, free flowing mass media. First amendment rights forbid congress from abridging our freedom of speech or press. The government actually encouraged the growth of the mass media with many different policies. The Colonial Press, New England was the first region to develop newspapers. The first newspapers in America all had political ties. The Federalist Papers, urging for ratification of the constitution and the "National Gazette" and "Gazette of the United States" were papers published supporting the Democratic Republicans and the Federalists. Media has always played a very significant part in politics, how we view politicians, getting informed about political issues, whom supports which political parties, these are just a few of the things that sway the people's political view and mass media controls all these aspects. "The United States continued to develop, and the newspaper was the perfect medium for the increasingly urbanized Americans of the 19th century, who could no longer get their local news merely through gossip and word of mouth. These Americans were living in an unfamiliar world, and newspapers and other publications helped them negotiate the rapidly changing world. The Industrial Revolution meant that people had more leisure time and more money, and

Simple as that, it is one of the biggest technological breakthroughs in history. Which is why politics have been making the transition to all things internet related. Social media accounts, new sites, political polls, candidates even have their own apps. This is a very good thing, people have increasing amount of knowledge. There is more information available today than any other time in history. This comes in handy with politics as well, accurate government statistics, live streams, politicians tweeting on twitter, debates on youtube, it may not be the best thing for politics but politics is changing and evolving to the internet and social medias. "Today, with the public looking to smartphones for news and entertainment, we seem to be at the start of the third big technological makeover of modern electioneering. The presidential campaign is becoming just another social media stream, its swift and shallow current intertwining with all the other streams that flow through peoples devices. This shift is changing the way politicians communicate with voters, alter the tone and content of political speech"(Politicio). The Mass media has and always will have a powerful influence on politics, but in todays society the individual has much more power than ever before because of the mass media. "In the new media environment, shaped by social networks and blogs, the general public is no longer a passive observer, but an active player. The communication