Evolution of Media

Media fulfills several basic roles in our society. One obvious role is entertainment. Media can act as a springboard for our
imaginations, a source of fantasy, and an outlet for escapism. It can also provide information and education. Information
can come in many forms, and it may sometimes be difficult to separate from entertainment. Today, newspapers and news-
oriented television and radio programs make available stories from across the globe, allowing readers or viewers in London
to access voices and videos from our country or neighboring nations.

• Pre-Industrial Age (Before 1700s) - People discovered fire, developed paper from plants, and forged weapons and
tools with stone, bronze, copper and iron.

• Industrial Age (1700s-1930s) - People used the power of steam, developed machine tools, established iron
production, and the manufacturing of various products (including books through the printing press).

• Electronic Age (1930s-1980s) - The invention of the transistor ushered in the electronic age. People harnessed the
power of transistors that led to the transistor radio, electronic circuits, and the early computers. In this age, long
distance communication became more efficient.

• Information Age (1900s-2000s) - The Internet paved the way for faster communication and the creation of the
social network. People advanced the use of microelectronics with the invention of personal computers, mobile
devices, and wearable technology. Moreover, voice, image, sound and data are digitalized. We are now living in
the information age.

• As Briggs and Burke note, these advances meant that “hundreds of thousands of components could be carried on
a microprocessor.” The reduction of many different kinds of content to digitally stored information meant that
“print, film, recording, radio and television and all forms of telecommunications [were] now being thought of
increasingly as part of one complex.”

ROLES OF MEDIA IN A DEMOCRATIC SOCIETY

• Transitions from one technology to another have greatly affected the media, although it is difficult to say whether
technology caused a cultural shift or resulted from it.

Media fulfills several roles in our democratic society, including the following:

1. Channel. It provides opportunities for people to communicate, share ideas, speculate, tell stories and give
information.

2. Watchdog. It exposes corrupt practices of the government and the private sector. Creating a space wherein
governance is challenged or scrutinized by the governed. It also guarantees free and fair elections. 

3. Resource center. It acts as a gateway of information for the society’s consumption. Also, it becomes a keeper of
memories of the community, preserver of heritage and source of academic knowledge.

4. Advocate. Through its diverse sources or formats, it bridges the gap of digital divide.

Media act as a catalyst for democracy and development, helping to make public participation meaningful. If media
is honest and committed in its job, democracy is bound to function more efficiently and the loopholes present in
any democratic system can certainly be plugged to the fullest satisfaction of the people. 

• Mobile networks already deliver connectivity to a broad range of devices, enabling the development of innovative
new services and applications. This new wave of connectivity is going beyond tablets and laptops; to connected
cars and buildings; TVs and game consoles; smart meters and traffic control; with the prospect of intelligently
connecting almost anything and anyone.

• The Internet of Things (IoT) refers to the use of intelligently connected devices and systems to leverage data
gathered by embedded sensors and actuators in machines and other physical objects.

By which mobile operators have identified the following key distinctive features:

1. The Internet of Things can enable the next wave of life-enhancing services across several fundamental sectors of
the economy.

2. Meeting the needs of customers may require global distribution models and consistent global services.

3. The Internet of Things presents an opportunity for new commercial models to support mass global deployments.

4. The majority of revenue will arise from the provision of value-added services and mobile operators are building
new capabilities to enable these new service areas.

5. Device and application behaviour will place new and varying demands on mobile networks.

The Internet of Things promises to deliver a step change in individuals’ quality of life and enterprises’ productivity.