Since the 18th century, the development of media has profoundly shaped the world in which we live. As a society, we are excessively consuming content through new modes of media allowing trending patterns to develop that are impacting society and individuals in many ways. This has given rise to many issues related to the influence of media on audiences
These days, obesity is a growing issue and has been linked to people’s overuse of the media as we are spending unhealthy amounts of time on screen. In regards to this matter, there is a common judgement that the media is to blame for an audience’s state of health. Although, is this really the case? Can we blame the media for an individual’s actions??
This is where media audience research can appear to be misleading in terms of media effects, especially when quantitative data is sourced. Yes, quantitative data shows that there is a correlation between overweight people and their overconsumption of the media, however, this does not mean that a causal relationship exists between the two. A more suited approach can be adopted such as qualitative research methods. Qualitative data is more appropriate as it allows for observation and the analyse of outcomes including emotional responses and impacts upon individuals. These research methods can aid us in our endeavour to learn about the varying effects of media on audiences. However, these research methods do not take into account individual perceptions, social and moral values that may also contribute to their resulting behaviour and actions.
From my knowledge, in attempt to appropriately understand the complexities of media audiences and their effects, media audience research needs to consider an individual’s social and moral values as the effects of media can vary according to the different social and behavioural contexts that an individual may be subjected to.
This leads us back to the question: Is the media at fault for our individual actions??
Media is a powerful influence, however I believe that the power to act on our own thoughts and values originates from within ourselves. So my answer is, no. No the media is not to blame for obesity, or for our own lifestyle choices. The media is available for our use, but it is our choices that dictate how we use it. It is our choices that govern our own actions. It is our habits such as consuming unhealthy foods and a lack of exercise, that lead to complications such as obesity. It is our responsibility to be mindful of how much media content we are consuming and how much screen time we are spending.
KJADET 
Okay, what happened in the 18th century?
And if “the development of media has profoundly shaped the world in which we live”, then doesn’t that include the way we are affected and thus interact with the world? Therefore can we not argue that if the media hadn’t shaped the world into what it is today, via the production and promotion of “negative” lifestyles, then we wouldn’t have the current issues associated with said media. But then again we are the prod-users. The media is made by the people to meet the peoples needs. So then when we look at audiences, as you do, as active users, we see that it is all paradoxical and counteractive and at the end you’re just left with a decision of “Are Audiences Active or Not?”
But what a beautiful blog post! Always a pleasure Kara!
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Good day my fellow blogster
A compelling piece indeed. Your writing is nicely structured and your blog page looks very sophisticated and inviting.
In the first sentence I recommend stating what particularly happened in the 18th century that caused such a profound change that shaped our society. I would also like to read more about the quantitative data component, and also if there is a specific media source that statistically shows a link to obesity and the consumption of media that could support your belief in your last paragraph.
I did enjoy reading into to longing debate ‘if the media is at fault for our own actions’ and how you further discussed your opinion on the subject matter.
Delighted to read more, till then Ciao Bella x
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Hi there!
Just wanted to give you a little feedback, as to how I interpreted your post. Your thesis presents your idea rather well and acts as the basis for the rest of your relative content. I love some of the ideas you put forth such as “Media is a powerful influence, however I believe that the power to act on our own thoughts and values originates from within ourselves.” This really shows your understanding of the media and its influences upon an audience. It also encapsulates and concludes your thesis, allowing a reader to acknowledge that there is a clear issue within society today, where we neglect to take responsibility of certain things, rather blaming media/social media. To make your post a little more engaging, perhaps try out using hyperlinks and images! It just provides more visual/textual aid for readers to coherently grasp what you’re trying to say. Holistically, I enjoyed reading your post, and the manner in which you presented your personal opinion throughout. Extremely well written and intriguing!
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Our society is, undoubtedly, shaped by the media, although I don’t necessarily agree that qualitative data trumps quantitative. Subjective influences often make a clear ‘cause and effect’ relationship hard to prove.
What I find particularly interesting about this discussion is that many (myself included) would argue that new, emergent technologies – the internet and social media platforms – are perhaps the strongest drivers of change we have yet experienced. Funnily enough, this is a big misconception! Type this in the search bar and see what I mean ‘https://youtu.be/Y5M9oIfr2DY’. The video is part of some very interesting quantitative media research, which also provides an insight into issues of media credibility and trust.
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Hi! To me this is a controversial topic to discuss. However, I can see that you made a clear point about whether media should be blamed for individual’s action. I believe that you got the hang of media audience research as your ideas about it written in the post was insightful. I suggest that you should link to some other sources by using images, videos or hyperlinks to improve your post. Still, I really enjoyed your post as your writing was extremely good! Well done!
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Thankyou for your feedback, I will look into it. I really appreciate it.
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