new media/role in contemporary society

• Characteristics of The New Media


  • Newspapers - online
  • Radio - DAB
  • TV - Iplayer/ITV Hub/All 4
  • Streaming - music (Spotify, Apple) - film (Netflix, Disney, Amazon Prime)
  • Social Media (Instagram, Facebook/Snapchat, TikTok)
  • Apps
• Characteristics of The Old Media


  • Newspaper/Magazine - Printed word
  • Cinema & Film
  • Radio
  • TV
• Differences between New and Old Media


  • How information is stored. New Media is digital and Old Media is analogue.
  • Speed of access
  • Choice/Availability
  • People/consumers can CREATE THEIR OWN MEDIA
• The New Media


  • DIGITALISATION
  • Allows new forms of communication: Social networking, Blogs, vlogs, texting, Online gaming
  • Last 30 years
  • Many forms of old media are now digitalised (e.g. newspapers, music + film streaming)
  • Allows huge quantities of information to be stored
• The New Media


  • CONVERGENCE
  • Technology used for different purposes
  • Use of smartphones: Texting, Phoning, Emails, watching/listening, cameras/videos, Diaries
• The New Media


  • DIVERSITY
  • More choices than ever: 100s TV channels, Film streaming
  • Watching/using media is now DEMAND LED (e.g. you can choose when/what)
• The New Media


  • INTERACTIVITY
  • MEDIA is more individualised because you can choose
• The New Media


  • DEMAND LED - MORE DEMOCRATIC
  • Consumers/individuals can create media for a large audience (INFLUENCERS: + Kardashians - fashion/makeup, - Andrew Tate. There is a spread of [political ideas/protests) ANDREW TATE
• The Digital Divide


  • Generation Divide
  • Gender Divide
  • Digital Class Divide
  • Global Digital Divide (wealth)
• Generation Divide


  • New media is associated with young people, old people are less likely to use the media that young.
  • Young people are more advanced at using the media.
  • OFCOM - 16-24 Year olds (99% use mobile phones), 75+ = 33%.
  • 16-24 = 1% do not use the internet , compared to 48% 75+
  • Boyle (2007) - young people's access to a greater range of new media gadgets has amplified traditional concern - access to porn, cyber bullying.
• Gender Divide


  • Li & Kirkup (2007) - there is a significant difference between men and women in the UK in their use of media technology.
  • OFCOM (2014) - males were more likely than females to access the internet (23.3 hours per week compared to 17.8)
  • Women are more likely than men to go online and look at social media sites (67% vs 60%)
  • Women are more likely to use email and chat rooms, and men also play more computer games such as XBOX.
• Digital Class Divide


  • The poor are excluded from the new media usage because they are a digital underclass. Richer areas tend to have a greater use of internet.
  • OFCOM (2015) - 95% of the wealthier (AB) socio-economic group use a range of new media devices to go online in any location compared with only 75% of the poorer economic group (DE)
  • ¾ of the wealthier class own a smartphone compared to only 54% of the lower class.
  • Helpser (2011) - despite narrowing of the class divide, a digital underclass does exist in the UK.
• Global Digital Divide (wealth)


  • There is a digital divide between developed and developing nations.
  • The developed world has greater access to mobile broadband and the internet than the less developed world.
  • World Bank - by 2012 about ¾ of the world's population had access to a mobile phone - there were 6 billion mobile phones in use worldwide - 5 billion were in developed countries.
  • However, 2014 GSMA - Estimated that 72% of Africans use mobile phones but this creates a false impression of a digital revolution.
  • Masks the fact that mobile connectivity is very limited.
  • Only 18% of these phones are smartphones. Only 7% of African inhabitants are online
• Cultural Pessimist Vs Neophiliac Perspective


  • Neophiliac Perspective
  • Cultural Pessimist Perspective
• Neophiliac Perspective


  • Increased Consumer Choice
  • Increased Engagement
  • Revitalising Democracy
  • Greater individual freedom and choice
  • Growth of E-Commerce
• Cultural Pessimist Perspective


  • Not so-new Media
  • Domination by Media Conglomerates
  • Increased Commercialisation & Consumption
  • Reinforcing Elite Power
  • The Digital Divide