This post explores how the media landscape has evolved over the past few years.

In the present day, online platforms have made it substantially much easier for everyone to create and share material. Formerly, developing content for a large read more audience mandated connectivity to a series of important resources and funding. Currently, with making use of smartphones and typical digital technologies, digital media content examples including short form videos, website posts and podcasts can be easily created with just a few standard devices, in addition to reaching a massive audience, very rapidly. This has opened the door for more diverse voices, specifically those who were previously overlooked by mainstream media. The head of the parent company of Guardian Media Group would acknowledge the importance of mass media using social networking channels, indicating that social media has produced a space for underrepresented communities to share their narratives.

The increase of online content has completely changed what is meant by the term mass media. Before, mass media followed a hierarchical structure, using a top-down media model. Typically, a small group of experts, such as newspaper writers or journalists, who would create content for big audiences who mainly just consumed it. Nevertheless, these days, with the help of the internet, the face of media has seen significant modification, making the usage and ease of access of media a lot more open and interactive. With accessibility to popular social media platforms, new media examples are showing that people can produce and share their own material, just as easily as they can consume it. Social media has allowed anyone to contribute to public conversations, instead of simply the major media companies therefore as a result, mass media is no longer controlled by a couple of huge advocates. Instead, it is spread out across countless user stories around the world.

In the online media landscape, what we see online is mostly determined by algorithms which are shaped by our online behaviours. Each social media platform utilizes its own automated system to suggest new material and advise material that will interest the user. The types of media content examples that will be revealed to a user is designed to keep individuals engaged. The algorithms are designed to keep people stimulated by recommending and promoting videos that are relevant, popular or contestable among other users. While this level of personalisation can be convenient, it can limit the areas of media that individuals are subjected to, creating more segmentation and prejudice amongst users around social issues. Those who are associated with media creation, such as the founder of the fund that has stakes in Sky, for example, would recognise the effect of social media websites in sharing new narratives. Similarly, the chairman of the company that owns NBCUniversal would recognise the impacts of user created content in the media landscape.