Effects of Mass Media Worksheet

576 Words3 Pages
What were the major developments in the evolution of mass media during the 20th century? The invention of the following enabled the evolution of mass media during the 20th century: newspaper, radio, television, and the Internet. While newspapers started in the early 1600’s, they have steadily evolved into the newspapers we know now, and with the invention of the Internet, printed newspapers run the risk of becoming extinct in the next decade. Today, although we still have printed newspapers, we can access and read newspapers digitally via the Internet, gaining immediate access to the latest news and stories. In the early 1920’s, networks began broadcasting radio nationwide with programming and advertisements, uniting the United States through its transmissions. Moreover, in spite of the invention of the television in 1927, the radio continues to be one of the most popular methods of mass media communication today. With the invention of the television in 1927, mass media now had a face, and people became even more connected. It was not until the early 1940’s, that FCC set specific television standards and the television became the dominant communication medium. The television continued to be the dominant communication medium, with the invention of color, cable, and satellite television. In, 2002 all television signals were switched from analog to digital. Today, we have access to hundreds of television stations, giving us immediate access to entertainment, news, and live situations throughout the world. The Internet has broadened our communications even more than all the previous mass media communications before its invention. Moreover, while the research began for the internet in the early1960’s, it was not until 1992 when the first web browser was invented that the Internet became navigational. Today, we have constant access to the Internet, giving us access to
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