Human race has undergone three great change, each one largely wipe out the earlier cultures or civilizations and replacing them with ways of life inconceivable to those who came before. The first change, the agricultural revolution took thousands of years to play itself out.
The second change is the rise of industrial civilization which took three hundred years and the third change which is the information age is even more accelerative, and it is likely that it will sweep across history and complete itself in a few decades.
For civilization this has been important, it has lent the world many fascinating things about our surroundings and the effect it plays on human beings. As determined human beings, we seek to stretch and apply knowledge gained in all aspects of life to situations and experiences very different from the origin of the knowledge.
The second change is the rise of industrial civilization which took three hundred years and the third change which is the information age is even more accelerative, and it is likely that it will sweep across history and complete itself in a few decades.
For civilization this has been important, it has lent the world many fascinating things about our surroundings and the effect it plays on human beings. As determined human beings, we seek to stretch and apply knowledge gained in all aspects of life to situations and experiences very different from the origin of the knowledge.
Agrarian Age (400 B.C – 1700 A.D)
Agrarian society refers to any form of society especially so traditional societies primarily based on agricultural and craft production rather than industrial production. The Agrarian age was one that was based on agriculture as its prime means for support and sustenance.
The society acknowledged other means of livelihood and work habits but stresses on agriculture and farming, and was the main form of socio-economic organization for most of recorded human history. The invention of plough marked the beginning of agrarian societies 6000 years back. Food was gained through planting large crops using the plough and breeding livestock. There was small scale of manufacturing goods.
The society acknowledged other means of livelihood and work habits but stresses on agriculture and farming, and was the main form of socio-economic organization for most of recorded human history. The invention of plough marked the beginning of agrarian societies 6000 years back. Food was gained through planting large crops using the plough and breeding livestock. There was small scale of manufacturing goods.
In the agricultural economies, most work is found on farm or in resource extraction such as mining, fishing and logging. Early agricultural societies brought written language into being. Communication was a specialized function like medicine or candle making because most people whether peasant or nobles were unable to read or write.
Humans act toward people, things, and events on the basis of the meanings they assign to them. Once people define a situation as real, it has very real consequences. Without language there would be no thought, no sense of self, and no socializing presence of society within the individual (Socio-cultural tradition).
Humans act toward people, things, and events on the basis of the meanings they assign to them. Once people define a situation as real, it has very real consequences. Without language there would be no thought, no sense of self, and no socializing presence of society within the individual (Socio-cultural tradition).
Also, during this age, the first people to specialize in correspondence, record keeping and the coping of manuscripts were usually members of religious orders and merchant classes. With much of the rest of the populace still illiterate, courier skilled at memorizing long oral message were valuable communication specialist. And parchment was first used, making writing common and it was used for keeping records, business transactions, religious documents, and so on.
The primary mass medium in early agriculture societies was the hand- copied book and distribution was by hand but circulation was limited. Hand coping was very laborious and the ruling classes often did not want the masses expose to new ideas through reading. Thus, most books were produced for the literate elites class of scholars and priests.
Besides that the agrarian society used folk media as a medium of communication. Interpersonal Communication theory exists and interpersonal Messages were sent too. The Interpersonal closeness proceeds in a gradual and orderly fashion from superficial to intimate levels of exchange as a function of anticipated present and future outcomes. Lasting intimacy required continual and mutual vulnerability through breadth and depth of self-disclosure.
Besides that the agrarian society used folk media as a medium of communication. Interpersonal Communication theory exists and interpersonal Messages were sent too. The Interpersonal closeness proceeds in a gradual and orderly fashion from superficial to intimate levels of exchange as a function of anticipated present and future outcomes. Lasting intimacy required continual and mutual vulnerability through breadth and depth of self-disclosure.
Industrial Age (1700-1960)
From the 18th to the 19th century the industrial age changed almost every aspect of life in the Western Europe, the United State and part of Asia. In Europe, where it began, economies regulated by guilds and home industries turned to capital investment as free enterprise developed.
By the 20th century, inventions and machines proliferated. Large farms, using machinery, chemistry and mechanical power replaced small, family-tilled plots. Faster communication and transport system, the rise of the middle class and urban centers, increased productivity and purchasing power and the importance of secular and scientific explanation of reality accelerated industrialization. Nations which flourished during industrialization colonized other nations and people to serve as markets and source of raw materials altered the world map.
By the 20th century, inventions and machines proliferated. Large farms, using machinery, chemistry and mechanical power replaced small, family-tilled plots. Faster communication and transport system, the rise of the middle class and urban centers, increased productivity and purchasing power and the importance of secular and scientific explanation of reality accelerated industrialization. Nations which flourished during industrialization colonized other nations and people to serve as markets and source of raw materials altered the world map.
Furthermore, the inception of the industrial revolution marked a major turning point in human history; almost every aspect of daily life was eventually influenced in some way. The structure of everyday life changed and the nature of families, governments, cities, farms, language, art and even sense of time changed too. Standardization, concentration, maximization and centralization characterized the industrial age. These principles gave us the kind of social, political, economic and military world into which we were born and we all matured. These traits resulted in the mass production, mass consumption, mass education, mass government, big bureaucracies, “scientific” management and corporate leadership with which we are all familiar.
Also, the industrial revolution started with the mechanization of the textile industries, the development of iron-making techniques and the increased use of refined coal. Trade expansion was made possible by the introduction of canals, improved roads and railways.
The introduction of steam power fuelled primarily by coal, wider utilization of water wheels and powered machinery (mainly in textile manufacturing) underpinned the dramatic increased in production. The development of all-metal machine tools in the first two decades of the 19th century facilitated the manufacture of more production machines for manufacturing in other industries. Mass production using factories created new occupation. The effects spread throughout Western Europe and North America during the 19th century, eventually affecting most of the world.
The introduction of steam power fuelled primarily by coal, wider utilization of water wheels and powered machinery (mainly in textile manufacturing) underpinned the dramatic increased in production. The development of all-metal machine tools in the first two decades of the 19th century facilitated the manufacture of more production machines for manufacturing in other industries. Mass production using factories created new occupation. The effects spread throughout Western Europe and North America during the 19th century, eventually affecting most of the world.
More so, in the 1830s, urbanization, literacy and the need to advertise new manufactured goods on large scale gave rise to the first truly mass medium, the urban newspaper and later Radio and Television were invented. Soon industrial methods were applied to speed up the printing process and to invent newer amusements for the urban masses including film, radio, and television which were the characteristics of the industrial societies. There was mass produced text and communication using the telegraph and later the telephone.
In 1946, the electronic computer was invented. The emergence of mass media made possible the use of propaganda techniques on a societal scale. The orchestration of press, radio and television to create a continuous, lasting and total environment rendered the influence of propaganda virtually unnoticed precisely because it created a constant environment.
In 1946, the electronic computer was invented. The emergence of mass media made possible the use of propaganda techniques on a societal scale. The orchestration of press, radio and television to create a continuous, lasting and total environment rendered the influence of propaganda virtually unnoticed precisely because it created a constant environment.
In the twentieth century, the rise of mass communications media enhanced industry’s ability to address even larger markets. With larger markets came larger rewards, and larger rewards had to be protected. More bureaucracy, more hierarchy, and more command and control meant the customer who looked you in the eye was promptly escorted out of the building by security.
Mass media provided the essential linked between the individual and the demand for a technological society. Mass production methods coupled with the rise of large urban audiences for media during the industrial age led to the rise of print and later mass media.
Mass media provided the essential linked between the individual and the demand for a technological society. Mass production methods coupled with the rise of large urban audiences for media during the industrial age led to the rise of print and later mass media.
The product of mass marketing was the message, delivered in as many forms as there were media and in as many guises as there were marketers to invent them. Delivered locally, shipped globally, repeated inescapably, the business of marketing devoted itself to delivering the message.
At one level, the industrial revolution created a marvelously integrated social system with its own distinctive technologies, its own social institutions, and its own information channels all plugged tightly into each other.
Despite this merit, it negatively ripped apart the underlying unity of society, creating a way of life filled with economic tension, social conflict and psychological malaise. It also changed the situation of essentially self-sufficient people and communities and created for the first time in history a situation in which the overwhelming bulk of all food, goods and services were destined for sale, barter or exchange. Industrialism broke the union of production and consumption, and split the producer from the consumer. The fused economy of the industrial age was transformed into split economy.
At one level, the industrial revolution created a marvelously integrated social system with its own distinctive technologies, its own social institutions, and its own information channels all plugged tightly into each other.
Despite this merit, it negatively ripped apart the underlying unity of society, creating a way of life filled with economic tension, social conflict and psychological malaise. It also changed the situation of essentially self-sufficient people and communities and created for the first time in history a situation in which the overwhelming bulk of all food, goods and services were destined for sale, barter or exchange. Industrialism broke the union of production and consumption, and split the producer from the consumer. The fused economy of the industrial age was transformed into split economy.
In addition, mass communication theory that was relevant in this age was the Magic Bullet Theory or Hypodermic Needle. This theory posited powerful and the direct effects of the media had a powerful influence on the mass audience and deliberately altered peoples’ behavior. One of the most effective techniques was the use of atrocity stories.
Most of these atrocity stories were false but they did a great deal to make World War I propaganda effective because people believed them. For example, the United State seemed driven into war with Spain in 1898 by sensational coverage concocted by news paper publisher William Randolph Heart. His paper trumpeted the sinking of U.S. battleship Main in Havana harbor and alleged atrocities by Spanish soldiers so loudly that the call for war became unquenchable.
This event made the mass media extremely powerful capable of swaying minds with the impact of speed bullet or hypodermic injection, images that led to theoretical models of the same name.
Most of these atrocity stories were false but they did a great deal to make World War I propaganda effective because people believed them. For example, the United State seemed driven into war with Spain in 1898 by sensational coverage concocted by news paper publisher William Randolph Heart. His paper trumpeted the sinking of U.S. battleship Main in Havana harbor and alleged atrocities by Spanish soldiers so loudly that the call for war became unquenchable.
This event made the mass media extremely powerful capable of swaying minds with the impact of speed bullet or hypodermic injection, images that led to theoretical models of the same name.
Information Age (1960 to Present Age)
The Information Age also commonly known as the Computer Age or Information Era is an idea that the current age is characterized by the ability of individuals to transfer information and to have instant access to knowledge that would have been difficult or impossible to find previously.
The idea is linked to the concept of a Digital Age or Digital Revolution and carries the ramifications of a shift from traditional industry that the Industrial Revolution brought through industrialization to an economy based around the manipulation of information. Since the invention of social media in the early 21st century, some have claimed that the Information Age has evolved into the Attention Age.
The idea is linked to the concept of a Digital Age or Digital Revolution and carries the ramifications of a shift from traditional industry that the Industrial Revolution brought through industrialization to an economy based around the manipulation of information. Since the invention of social media in the early 21st century, some have claimed that the Information Age has evolved into the Attention Age.
Eventually, Information and Communication Technology such as computers, computerized machinery, fiber optics, communication satellites, Internet, and other ICT tools have became a significant part of the economy. Microcomputers have been developed and many businesses and industries have greatly change by ICT. Thus, the “Information Age" is applied in relation to the use of cell phones, digital music, high description television, digital cameras, the Internet, computer games, and other relatively new products and services that have come into widespread use.
In the Information Era, the information society is a society in which the creation, distribution, diffusion, uses, integration and manipulation of information is a significant economic, political, and cultural activity. Information Revolution which took place is service-oriented and computer-based occupations. Nuclear Fission power plants are in use in this age.
Also, mass production has become more efficient, giving rise to advances in alloys and plastics thus, "High-tech" industries. For instance, in 2003, the potential for complete recording and summation of daily financial dealings began. A $1,000 personal computer can perform about a trillion calculations per second. For this reason, accelerate returns from the advance of computer technology have resulted in continuous economic expansion.
Price deflation, which had been a reality in the computer field during the twentieth century, is now occurring outside the computer field. The reason for this is that
Also, mass production has become more efficient, giving rise to advances in alloys and plastics thus, "High-tech" industries. For instance, in 2003, the potential for complete recording and summation of daily financial dealings began. A $1,000 personal computer can perform about a trillion calculations per second. For this reason, accelerate returns from the advance of computer technology have resulted in continuous economic expansion.
Price deflation, which had been a reality in the computer field during the twentieth century, is now occurring outside the computer field. The reason for this is that
virtually all economic sectors are deeply affected by the accelerating improvement in the price performance of computing.
Also, cable is disappearing in communication because components uses short-distance wireless technology and high-speed wireless communication provides access to the web. Although traditional classroom organization is still common, intelligent courseware has emerged as a common means of learning. Pocket-sized reading machines for the blind and visually impaired, "listening machines" (speech-to-text conversion) for the deaf, and computer- controlled orthodox devices for paraplegic individuals has been developed. An ever-increasing amount of time is spent with communication media, using information technologies such as telephone and computer.
However, the Dependency theory is related to this age of civilization. This is because the information society has stepped into evolution society from its former bases in agriculture and manufacturing. People and organizations are becoming increasingly dependent on electronic information network and dedicate on increasingly part of their resources to the distribution and exchange of information by way of communication.
Many people make use of the various media for different purposes and greater consultation in the media makes it over reliance on the media for information. For example, this age has produce a lot of informed and active audiences because in one way or the other the masses depend on the media for information to build knowledge especially student now use the computer and the internet with other reports on radio, newspapers and television locally and internationally to put together assignments and reports for utilization.
Many people make use of the various media for different purposes and greater consultation in the media makes it over reliance on the media for information. For example, this age has produce a lot of informed and active audiences because in one way or the other the masses depend on the media for information to build knowledge especially student now use the computer and the internet with other reports on radio, newspapers and television locally and internationally to put together assignments and reports for utilization.
Another theory relevant in the Information age is the Cultural Imperialism Theory. This theory states that Western nations dominate the media around the world which in return has a powerful effect on third world cultures by imposing Western views and therefore destroying their native cultures. For example, several African people believe that anything from the Western country is the best and so they imitate the Western people way of speaking, dressing, food and talking because of media influence in this age. The African culture has been adulterated.
In all, one can say that the transformation is not just economic one. The industrial age like information age affects social, political and corporate structures as well as other public institutions and organizations in the world. The change in the media and the change society seem to be radically new and different in broader historical context.
