Mass Media
Mass media (that is the press, the radio and television)play unimportant role in the life of soci-ety. They reflect current events & vital problems. They also influence the way people look at the world & make them change their views. Millions of people in their spare time watch TV & read newspapers. On the radio one can hear music, news and various discussions or commentaries of current events. On the TV can see a lot of documentary programs & films Now on Russia TV we have 11channels &you can fined something for race your mood & relax. It is means for schedule knowledge & information about everything the world Every day we knead news. We can certainly see them on TV but you can buy a newspapers often see people sitting in the Metro & reading newspaper or magazine. There are variety sorts of magazines & newspapers They can be about music, politics, sport half & so on Nowadays big cities overfull of great amount of news & information Some people read everything they buy. It's no mater what they read &What about &they only lose their time. But there are people who read only that magazines & newspapers which they interesting or kneaded think that MM help us in education & daily life only when you read only that you choose Than you read something here sow something there everything confuse in your head &you’ll know nothing. Also I think that MM is an inventor because only in XX century we began to understand what role MM plays in our life.
Mass Media
Mass media or mass communications are the press, radio and television.
Every day we read newspapers and magazines, listen to radio and watch TV. Nowadays there are so many newspapers and magazines, radio stations and TV channels that we have to be very -selective and give preference to some of them.
What newspapers and magazines do I prefer to read? I like to read the following newspapers: "Komsomolskaya Pravda" ("Komsomol Truth"), "Nezavisimost" ("Independence"), "Argumenty i Pakty" ("Arguments and Facts"). Several periodicals are available in English. As far as newspapers are concerned they may be daily, or weekly. Magazines may be weekly, monthly and quarterly. The newspapers and magazines I read are the most readable and have a large readership or circulation. For example, "Argumenty i Fakty" has a circulation of more than 23 000 000. It is the largest in the world. The newspapers contain and give coverage of local, home and foreign affairs.
Their publications deal with very burning problems of our. history, latest events and forecasts for future. They also touch upon cultural, sport news. I like the way they present different points of view, approaches to the problems. My parents and I subscribe to some periodicals, so we are subscribers. We buy some of newspapers and magazines in a kiosk.
I often listen to radio, especially in the morning before I leave for school. I prefer to listen to "Mayak" ("Lighthouse") program. They broadcast much news and music. I like to listen to weekend programmes, some of them are very amusing and entertaining.
As to the TV, we have 4 channels. I prefer to watch youth programmes.
In addition I like to see interesting films. They might be feature, adventure, scientific, horror, cartoon and other films.
I enjoy seeing Walt Disney's cartoons. Now and then I like to see the programme "Love at First Sight". It is an enjoyable and entertaining one.
Mass Media
Mass media are one of the most characteristic features of modern civilization. People are united into one global community with the help of mass media. People can learn about what is happening in the world very fast using mass media. The mass media include newspapers, magazines, radio and television.
The earliest kind of mass media was newspaper. The first newspaper was Roman handwritten newssheet called "Acta Diurna" started in 59 B.C. Magazines appeared in 1700's. They developed from newspapers and booksellers' catalogs. Radio and TV appeared only in this century.
The most exciting and entertaining kind of mass media is television. It brings moving pictures and sounds directly to people's homes. So one can see events in faraway places just sitting in his or her chair.
Radio is widespread for its portability. It means that radios can easily be carried around. People like listening to the radio on the beach or picnic, while driving a car or just walking down the street. The main kind of radio entertainment is music.
Newspapers can present and comment on the news in much detail in comparison to radio and TV newscasts. Newspapers can cover much more events and news.
Magazines do not focus on daily, rapidly changing events. They provide more profound analysis of events of proceeding week. Magazines are designed to be kept for a longer time so they have cover and binding and are printed on better paper.
Newspapers
Newspaper is a publication that presents and comments on the news. Newspapers play an important role in shaping public opinion and informing people of current events.
The first newspapers were probably handwritten newssheets posted in public places. The earliest daily newssheet was "Acta Diurna" ("Daily Events") which started in Rome in 59 B.C. The first printed newspaper was Chinese publication called "Dibao" ("Ti - pao") started in A.D.TOO's. It was printed from carved wooden blocks. The first regularly published newspaper in Europe was "Avisa Relation" or "Zeitung", started in Germany in ] 609.
Newspapers have certain advantages over other mass media — magazines, TV and radio. Newspaper can cover more news and in much detail than TV or radio newscasts can do.
Magazines focus on major national and international events of the preceding week. But newspaper focuses on local news as well and provides information and comments faster than magazine can do.
There are about 1 700 daily and 7 500 weekly newspapers in the US. The circulation of some weeklies is no more than a few hundred of copies per issue and the circulation of some dailies is over a million of copies.
There are daily newspapers and weekly newspapers. Daily newspapers print world, national and local news. Many dailies are morning papers, others are afternoon papers. Sunday issues of the dailies are usually larger than the weekday ones. They may include special sections on such topics as entertainment, finance and travel or Sunday magazine, a guide to TV programmes, colored comics. The major dailies in the US are "Christian Science Monitor", "New York Times", "USA Today", "Wall Street Journal", "Washington Post".
Weekly newspapers serve usually for smaller areas. They are printed in small communities where people know each other and are interested in activities of their friends and neighbors.
Weeklies report of weddings, births, deaths and news of local business and politics. Most weeklies do not print world or national news.
Magazines
Magazine is one of the major mass media. Magazine is a collection of articles and stories. Usually magazines also contain illustrations.
The earliest magazines developed from newspapers and booksellers catalogs. Such catalogs first appeared during the 1600's in France. In the 1700's pamphlets published at regular
intervals appeared in England and America. They were literary publications. One of the first British magazines "The Gentleman's Magazine" was published from 1731 to 1914.
The first American magazine was called the "American Magazine", or "A Monthly View". Magazines provide information on a wide range of topics such as business, culture, hobbies, medicine, religion, science, and sports. Some magazines entertain their readers with fiction, poetry, photography or articles about TV, or movie stars.
Magazines are designed to be kept for a longer time in comparison to newspapers and that is why they are printed on a better paper and have covers. Magayines, unlike newspapers, do not focus on daily, rapidly changing events.
There are specialized magazines intended for special business, industrial and professional groups, and consumer magazines intended for general public. There are several kinds of consumer magazines.
Children's magazines contain stories, jokes, articles on subjects especially interesting for children and instructions for making games or useful items. Hobby magazines are intended for collectors of coins, stamps, and other items; people interested in certain sports or games; photography enthusiasts.
Intellectual magazines provide analysis of current cultural and political events. Many of them publish fiction and poetry as well.
Men's magazines focus on such topics as adventure, entertainment, men's fashion and sports. Women's magazines deal with child-raising, fashion trends, romance. They offer ideas on cooking and home decorating. Many of the monthlies with big circulations are women's magazines.
Tv
Many people have forgotten what the world was like before TV. But today it has become an integral part of our live. No can compare with TV as a means of information, entertainment & education. TV now plays such an important role in so many people's lives that it is essential for us to try to decide whether it is bad or good. On the first place TV is not only a convenient source of entertainment, but also a comparatively cheap one. For a family it is more convenient as well as cheaper to sit comfortably at home than to go out. They don't have to pay for expensive tickets to the cinema. All they have to do is to turn on TV and they can see political news ,football matches and films. TV, people often say, informs about current events & the latest developments in science and politics. A lot of good films, music programs have appeared recently on TV. We get to like watching TV so much that it begins to dominate our lives. Some-times, than TV set broke people suddenly found that they had much more time to do things. The most important thing which is really critiquing is poor quality of the programs and its harmful effect on children. For example the film " Natural Born Killers" teaches children to kill and there was one accident in France when a group of teenagers kill their parents. There are many arguments for and against TV.I think we must understand that TV in itself is neither good nor bad. TV is as good or as bad as we make it.
Television
Television, also called TV, is one of our most important means of communication. It brings moving pictures and sounds from around the world into millions of homes. The name "Television" comes from Greek word meaning "far", and a Latin word meaning "to see", so the word "tele vision" means "to see far".
About three-fourths of the 1 500 TV stations in the US are commercial stations. They sell advertising time to pay for their operating costs and to make profit. The rest are public stations, which are nonprofit organizations.
Commercial TV stations broadcast mostly entertainment programs because they must attract larger numbers of viewers in order to sell advertising time at high prices. These programs include light dramas called situation comedies; action-packed dramas about life of detectives, police officers, lawyers and doctors; shows featuring comedians, dancers and singers; movies; quiz shows; soap operas; cartoons.
Commercial TV broadcasts also documentaries and talk shows. Documentary is dramatic, but nonfictional presentation of information. It can be programs about people, animals in faraway places or programs on such issues as alcoholism, drug abuse, racial prejudice. On talk shows a host interviews politicians, TV and movie stars, athletes, authors. There are also sport programs and brief summaries of local, national and international news. Advertising is an important part of commercial TV. Commercials appear between and during most programs. They urge viewers to buy different kinds of products — from dog food to hair spray, and from cars to insurance policies.
Public television focuses mainly on education and culture. There are programs on wide range of subjects — from physics and literature to cooking and yoga. Public TV also broadcasts plays, ballets, symphonies as well as programs about art and history. Public TV attracts less viewer than commercial TV.
Television In Our Life
Television now plays an important role in our life. It is difficult to say if it is good or bad for us. It is clear, that television has advantages and disadvantages.
But are there more advantages than disadvantages? In the first place, television is an entertainment. But it is not only a convenient entertainment. For a family of three, four or five, for example, it is more convenient and less expensive to sit comfortably at home than to go out to find entertainment in other places. They don't have to pay for expensive seats at the theatre or cinema. They turn on the TV-set and can see interesting films, concerts, football matches. But some people think that it's bad to watch TV. Those who watch TV need do nothing. We are passive when we watch TV. Television shows us many interesting programmes. But again there is a disadvantage here: we watch TV every evening, and it begins to dominate our lives.
My friend told me that when his TV-set broke down, he and his family found that they had more time to do things and to talk to each other. There are other arguments for and against television.
Very often the programmes are bad. Sometimes they show too much violence in films and news programmes. There is also too much pop music and ads. Ads on the whole are convenient for grown-ups. But is it good for children to watch all those ads where they show all kinds of underwear and what not?
My Favourite TV Programme
Many people watch TV at leisure. One can choose the programme one likes best.
Those who like music can listen to various concerts. Sport fans can watch football or hockey matches. Television extends our knowledge about the world in which we live. Millions of people can see different lands, new plants, unusual animals and birds, mountains and valleys.
My favourite TV programme is one made by Dmitriy Krylov. It is a weekly programme. It is broadcast on Sunday. This programme is very popular in our country. They show many historical places, tell interesting facts about different countries and cities, broadcast interviews with famous people. I like this programme and try not to miss it.
I prefer to watch youth programmes such as "While Everybody's at Home" on Sunday and "The Morning Star". In addition I like to see interesting films. They might be feature, adventure, scientific, horror, cartoon and other films. I enjoy seeing Walt Disney's cartoons.
Now and then I like to see cognitive programmes: "What? Where? When?", "Brain-ring" They are enjoyable and entertaining programmes.
The British Media
The British Media consists of the press and radio and TV broadcasting. Now a couple of words about papers. First of all there is no subscription. You may buy any on sale. There are two main types of newspapers: the "popular" papers and the "quality" papers. The popular papers are less in size, with many pictures, big headlines and short articles. They are easy to read. They are such papers as "Daily Express", "Daily mail", "Daily Mirror", "Daily Star", "The Sun" and others.
The "quality" papers are for more serious readership. These papers are bigger in size, with larger articles and more detailed information. The "quality" papers are — "The Times", "Daily Telegraph", "The Guardian", "Financial Times", "The Independent". In addition to daily papers we have just mentioned above there are Sunday papers. They have a higher circulation than the dailies. Sunday papers in Great Britain are such "quality" papers as "Observer", "Sunday Times", "Sunday Telegraph" and such "popular" papers as: "News of the World", "Sunday Express", "Sunday Mirror", "Mail on Sunday".
As far as broadcasting and telecasting are concerned there are two radio and TV stations. The first one — well-known BBC — British Broadcasting Corporation, and the second — IBA — Independent Broadcasting Authorities.
The newspapers in Britain are proud of the fact that they are different from each other — each tries to have a definite profile.
Newspapers In Britain
If you get on a bus or catch a train in Britain, especially during the morning and evening "rush hour", you'll see a lot of people reading newspapers. The press tells us about various political views, interest and levels of education. Papers are usually divided into "quality" papers which are serious with long, informative articles and "popular" which have smaller size. They are less serious and contain more human interest stories than news.
More daily newspapers, national and regional are sold in Great Britain than in most other developed countries. There are about 135 daily papers and Sunday papers, 2000 weekly papers and about 100 papers produced by members of ethnic groups. A lot of people buy a morning paper, an evening paper and a couple of Sunday papers. On an average day two out of three people over the age of 15 read a national morning paper, about three out of four read a Sunday paper. So it's not surprising to learn that national newspapers have a circulation of 15.8 million copies on weekdays and 19 million on Sundays.
Newspapers are almost always financially independent of any political party. However, during general election campaigns many papers recommend their readers to vote for a particular political party. Ownership of the national London and regional daily newspapers is concentrated in the hands of large press publishing groups.
Radio And Television
British broadcasting has traditionally been based on the principle that it is a public service accountable to the people through Parliament. Following 1990 legislation, it is also embracing the principles of competition and choice. Three public bodies are responsible for television and radio services throughout Britain. They are:
the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) broadcasts television and radio services; the Independent Television Commission (ITC) licenses and regulates non-BBC televisionservices, including cable and satellite services; the Radio Authority licenses and regulates all non-BBC radio services.
Since the 1970s 98% of British households have had television sets able to receive four channels, two put out by the BBC, two by commercial companies. Commercial satellite and cable TV began to grow significantly in 1989 - 1990, and by 1991 the two main companies operating in Britain had joined together as British Sky Broadcasting. By 1991 about one household in ten had the equipment to receive this material.
Every household with TV must by law pay for a license, which costs about the same for a year as a popular newspaper every day.
Unlike the press, mass broadcasting has been subject to some state control from its early days. One agreed purpose has been to ensure that news, comment and discussion should be balanced and impartial, free of influence by government or advertisers. From 1926 first radio, then TV as well, were entrusted to the BBC, which still has a board of governors appointed by the government. The BBC's monopoly was ended in 1954, when an independent board was appointed by the Home Secretary to give licenses to broadcast ("franchises") to commercial TV companies financed by advertising, and called in general independent television (ITV). These franchises have been given only for a few years at a time, then renewed subject to various conditions.
In 1990 Parliament passed a long and complex new Broadcasting Act which made big changes in the arrangements for commercial TV and radio. The old Independent Broadcasting Authority, which had given franchises to the existing TV and radio companies, was abolished. In its place, for TV alone, a new Independent Television Commission was set up in 1991, with the task of awarding future franchises, early in the 1990s, either to the existing companies or to new rivals which were prepared to pay a higher price. The Commission also took over responsibility for licensing cable programme services, including those satellite TV channels which are carried on cable networks. The new law did not change the status of the BBC, but it did have the purpose of increasing competition, both among broadcasters and among producers. It envisaged that a new commercial TV channel, TV5, would start in the early 1990s.
The general nature of the four TV channels functioning in 1991, seems likely to continue, with BBC1 and ITV producing a broadly similar mixture of programmes in competition with each other. ITV has a complex structure. Its main news is run by one company, Independent Television News, its early morning TV — a.m. by another. There are about a dozen regional companies which broadcast in their regions for most each day, with up to ten minutes of advertisements in each hour, between programmes or as interruptions at intervals of twenty or thirty minutes. These regional companies produce some programmes of local interest and some which they sell to other regions, so that for much of each day the same material is put out all through the country. Its regional stations similarly produce some of BBCl's programmes. BBC2 and the independent Channel 4 (which has its own company) are both used partly for special interest programmes and for such things as complete operas.
