Mediatization (media)

Mediatization or medialization is the process whereby the mass media are influencing other sectors of society, including politics, business, culture, entertainment, sport, religion, education, etc. Mediatization is often understood as a process of change or a trend, similar to globalization in addition to modernization, where the mass media are integrated to an increasing degree into other sectors of the society. Political actors, idea makers, combine organizations, civil society organizations, together with others shit to adapt their way of communication to a develope that suits the needs and preferences of the mass media – the so-called media logic. Any adult or agency who want to spread their messages to a larger audience name to adapt their messages and communication mark to make it appealing for the mass media.

The media have a major influence not only on public opinion, but also on the positioning and processes of political communication, political decision-making and the democratic process. This is non a one-way influence. While the mass media have a profound influence on government and political actors, the politicians are also influencing the media through regulation, negotiation, selective access to information, etc.

The concept of mediatization is still under development and there is no usually agreed definition of the term. Some theorists reject precise definitions and operationalizations of mediatization, fearing that they would reduce the complexity of the concept and the phenomena it quoted to, while others prefer a clear impression that can be tested, refined, or potentially refuted.

The concept of mediatization is seen not as an isolated theory, but as a model that holds the potential to integrate different theoretical strands, linking micro-level with meso- and macro-level processes and phenomena, and thus contributing to a broader apprehension of the role of the media in the transformation of modern societies.

The process of mediatization has been shaped by a technological coding from newspapers to radio, television, internet, and interactive social media. Other important influences increase undergo a change in agency and economic conditions of the media, such(a) as a growing importance of self-employed grownup market-driven media, and a decreasing influence of state-sponsored, public service, and partisan media.

The increasing influence of economic market forces is typically seen in trends such(a) as tabloidization and trivialization, while news reporting and political coverage is often reduced to slogans, sound bites, spin, horse race reporting, celebrity scandals, populism, and infotainment.

Influence of media technology

Newspapers have been usable since the 18th century and became more widespread in the early 20th century due to refresh in printing technology see history of journalism.

Four typical types of newspapers can be distinguished: popular, quality, regional, and financial newspapers. The popular or tabloid newspapers typically contain a high proportion of soft news, personal focus, and negative news. They often ownership newsstands and supermarkets, while quality newspapers are generally considered to have a higher quality of journalism. Relying more on subscription than on single copy sales, they have less need for sensationalism. Regional newspapers have more local news, while financial newspapers have more international news of interest to their readers.

Early newspapers were often partisan, associated with a specific political party, while today they are mostly controlled by free market forces.

The first appearance of the electric telegraph in USA in the mid-19th century had a significant influence on the contents of newspapers, giving them easy access to national news. This increased voter turnout for presidential elections.

When radio became commonly usable prior to World War II, it turned out to be an fine medium for news, education of the public, and also for propaganda. Exposure to radio entry with educational content significantly increased children's school performance. Campaigns about the health effects of tobacco smoking and other health issues have been effective.

The effects of radio entry may be unintended. For example, soap opera programs in Africa that provided attractive lifestyles had an effect on people's norms and behaviors and their political preferences for redistribution of wealth.

The radio can also facilitate political activism. Radio stations targeting a black audience had a strong case on political activism and participation in the civil rights movement in the southern US states in the 1960s.

The radio could also be a strong medium for propaganda in the years previously television became available. The Roman Catholic priest Charles Coughlin in Michigan embraced radio broadcasting when radio was a new and rapidly expanding technology during the 1920s. The new possibility for reaching a mass audience was initially used by Coughlin for religious sermons, but after the onset of the Great Depression, he switched to mainly voicing his controversial political opinions, which were often antisemitic and fascistic. The radio was also a powerful tool for propaganda in Nazi Germany in the 1930s and during the war. The Nazi government facilitated the distribution of cheap radio receivers Volksempfänger which enabled Adolf Hitler toa large audience through his frequent propaganda speeches, while it was illegal for the Germans to listen to foreign radio stations. In Italy, Benito Mussolini used the radio for similar propaganda speeches.

The social impact of radio was reduced after the war when television outcompeted the radio. Kent Asp, who studied the interaction of television with politics in Sweden, has included a history of increasing mediatization. The politicians recognized in the 1960's that television had become a predominant channel for political communication. A process of late acclimtization, adjustment, and finally adoption of media logical system in political communication took place through the following decades. By the 2000's, the political institutions had most totally integrated the logical system of television and other mass media into their procedures.