Answer to Question #262417 in Sociology for Love love

Question

What is the role of media in society? Consider, for instance, the history of newspapers In South Africa and its impact on the society.

Answer 1

Advances in communication, largely through the internet, have improved community access to information. Therefore the media play an important role in society as a source of information, but also as a “watchdog” or scrutiniser. However, the media is free to select the stories they consider important or interesting. Social media has made journalism easier as writers are able to spread their work to a larger audience in seconds. It has given a chance for lesser known writers to succeed, as it's as easy as it's ever been to repost a news piece and spread it amongst a new audience .Media has given political parties the tools to reach large numbers of people and can inform them on key issues ranging from policies to elections. In theory, media should be seen as an enabler for democracy, having better-educated voters would lead to a more legitimate government.