Media Monitoring Assignment

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Media Monitoring Assignment

Introduction

As it can be seen from the survey, my personal media usage altered with the course of time. It mainly happened because of the enormous development in the technological sphere, the influence of media, and individual changes.

Even in 2005, I spent the majority of my free time watching something on television. Cartoons and films made me laugh a lot that is why I liked them very much. As a result, I tried to watch them as often as possible. Those of them that were funny and depicted pleasant things attracted me the most, identifying my preferences. However, soon I started to consider television to be rather limited, as I could not find something to my liking with its help. The Internet, on the other hand, provided and provides me with the opportunity to reach any information I want. It makes me feel enthusiastic and powerful when I refer to some creative activities, as I can easily find inspiring words, pictures, and videos. The Internet allows me to do numerous tasks that previously required much time and various tools; that is why it is my favorite form of media.

I cannot ignore the fact that the media is constantly affecting people, making them do the things they are not intended to do. The greatest example is purchasing. The Internet, television, newspapers, and other forms of media are full of different advertisements including those that are obvious and those that tend to be hidden. Even though I tried to avoid their influence, I admit yielding to some. For example, I saw a new chocolate bar advertised in the commercial recently. Even though I am not one of those people who cannot live without chocolate, I could not stand the temptation and after watching that product several times bought it when found it in a shop. I was not going to purchase it that day, and I was looking only for milk, but then I realized that I should try it. I believe that the media were hoping to attract children, adolescents, and young adults who like sweets and are willing to try something new and extraordinary, and I fit into this target market.

Once I had nothing to do and was surfing the Internet without any purpose; I was looking through different book reviews and photos of cover pages. Then I found one picture that appealed to me and started to look for a book. I found a video with a trailer to it. It was rather short (just a few minutes) but resembled a part of a movie. The main character was played by the actresses I knew. I was very impressed and decided to buy the book as soon as possible. The media wanted to attract people who prefer stories of that kind. The thing is that it affected not only me but also those who do not even like to read; they start doing it because of the trailer.

Daily Use of Media

I have tracked my use of media for a week and found out that my experience is not varied because I mainly refer to the same websites over and over.

Monday: weather forecast; Facebook (2016); television while eating (did not pay much attention to the film, as it served mainly as a background); listened to music while going to the college; sent several messages; billboards with smartphones; watched Friends in the café; Twitter (2016); ProQuest (2016); e-book.
Tuesday: television (cornflakes commercial, news); Facebook; Twitter; the Economist (2016); YouTube (2016); e-book; Google Books.
Wednesday: YouTube (film trailers); television (music channel); various commercials (including laptop, hair color, tea, etc.); Facebook, Twitter, smartphone; ProQuest.
Thursday: e-book; weather forecast; television (music channel); Facebook; Twitter; Allrecipes (2016); ProQuest; the age of Adaline (2015); smartphone.
Friday: Facebook; Twitter, YouTube, smartphone, commercials (different technical devices, food, etc.); Google Books; Houzz (2016).
Saturday: smartphone; weather forecast; YouTube; e-book; Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest (2016), commercials (medicine).
Sunday: BookPage (2016); Facebook, YouTube; commercials (food, technical devices, medicine); smartphone.

I spend much time every day interacting with the media which is why it has a great impact on me. Very often, its usage is rather helpful. For example, when I get to know the weather forecast for a day with the help of radio, television, or the Internet, I receive an opportunity to dress up decently and feel comfortable outside. While chatting with my friends on Facebook and Twitter, I improve my communication skills and get to know new information. Television allows me to broaden my mind and be up-to-date (as well as printed commercials) even though it often serves me as a background. With the help of my smartphone, I can listen to music not to get bored, communicate with friends and family, and search the Internet if I need to find something out. Various websites help me with my homework and enhance my creativity.

Still, it cannot be denied that the mentioned forms of media make me dependent. I cannot imagine my life without the things that are not really vital, such as online communication and Internet search. Even though such things seem to be rather advantageous in todays world, they make me lazier and limit the time I could spend interacting face to face with other people. I have never thought about the media as a thing that makes people isolated, but now I believe that it is really so. Except for that, I see that people lose control of their lives. Even though I realize that commercials are made to affect me, I cannot resist them. It is not so crucial when I buy some sweets, but the issue becomes serious when it comes to health-related products and services. I also think that the media can spoil peoples relations. The message one sends as well as the pictures and texts one repost can lead to argues and quarrels. I also realized that the life of the individual in the digital and real-world can be tracked with the help of social media. The received information can be used to conduct illegal actions or to get to know more about the person. In the last case, one can have problems when applying for a job, for example.

Taking everything mentioned into consideration, it can be claimed that just like many other representatives of the general public I am affected by the media and with the course of time its influence increased. I started to spend more time using it instead of communicating face to face. Still, media usage has both positive and negative effects on my life, which means that it is critical to find balance.