1) Surveillance - This isn't snooping but refers to the news and information role of the media

2) Interpretation

3) Linkage

4) Establishing Values

5) Entertainment

2) Interpretation

What do events mean?
The amount of space (or time) given to a story influences our perception of its importance. As in the "New York Post" headline on the previous page and the cartoon to the right, the media can draw our focus away from important issues to less important ones.

A perfect example of this is the media obsession with celebrities.

As I mentioned in the discussion on "decoding," increasingly, people rely on "media pundits" such as commentators and columnists to tell us what things mean. Social and political critics fear this loss of independent thinking leads to poor decisions in politics and in life.

As the Doonesbury cartoon to the right shows, even "entertainment" can contain interpretation.

Positive Consequences of Interpretation

1) Diversity of Opinion

2) Access to Experts

Unless you suffer from Selective Exposure. Then, you only see one side of an issue, and you limit your access to experts.

Negative Consequences of Interpretation

1) To the organization - Loss of revenue if audiences reject your product due to Selective Exposure.

2) To the individual - Loss of ability to form personal decisions.

Look at the schedule of any cable news channel. You'll find almost no news. It's all commentary on news. People who rely heavily on cable for news are actually getting a heavy dose of interpretation.

The internet has greatly increased our ability to receive news but also greatly increased the channels of interpretation. Social media is the newest source of endless interpretation. For each "news posting" you have dozens, hundreds of posts interpreting that information.

"As of August 2017, two-thirds (67%) of Americans report that they get at least some of their news on social media – with two-in-ten doing so often." Click here to read "News Use Across Social Media Platforms".