Sociology

Socialization is a big factor in shaping people to become who they are. Our social relations help us in forming our individuality and sense of self towards others. Socialization is the process whereby we learn and internalize the values, beliefs, and norms of our culture and, in so doing develop a sense of self. There are many agents of socialization, such as our families, the friends we gain, and the institution we belong to. M ass media had become one of the most powerful forces that connect people to other people. Because of this, mass media can already be considered a significant agent of socialization. And since mass media had already developed into a powerful and influential agent, then mass media serve as a powerful socializing agent and has indeed become a large influence of who we become.

Mass media helps people in forming their own kinds of beliefs and what realities they shall choose to promote because the impact of media, both in content and in process, on all areas of society is undeniable. Every sector of life is touched and influenced by the power of mass media. People relate to what they see or hear. Mass media dictates what is relevant or important to someone life and what deserves more attention. Mass media entice people to certain social beliefs by persuasion and selectively appropriating their messages. Because people spend more time with mass media, they are easily shaped by whatever they are exposed to.

One of the initial factors considered by any form of mass media, may it be on the broadcast or print, is its audience. These are the group of consumers for whom the media text was constructed as well as anyone else who is exposed to the text or message of the mass media. Every mass media has a certain intended audience that they want to penetrate. A television show that has a high school setting or an article published on the newspaper that is focused on the problems that teenagers usually encounter that lead many of them to commit crimes are usually examples of mass media addressed to the youth and the people concern on how the youth shall grow such as parents and teachers. This could be attributed to the fact that the main characters focused in the television show or article is teenagers. The publication of such article or the release of such show also emphasized that there are people who wants to understand the youth in the most complicated stage of their lives. Aside from the main characters, the setting and problems discussed on the article or television show could also determine who the intended audience of the mass media is.

It is a fact that the role of mass media as agents of socialization has been both strengthened and changed by the modernization of the world. Technology had increased the spread of mass medias reach. People spend most of their time in touch with the world through the different forms of mass media. Sometimes, the time allotted to other agents of socialization is even sacrificed just to give time to the usage of mass media. Television shows and movies today dominate culture as the kind of life they portray easily dictates what will be reality. The number of people who depend on what they watch in the television, hear from the radio, or read from the internet, is increasing rapidly because of the help of modern advancements.More time is given to mass media use, and greater proportions of that time is dedicated to entertainment. To keep people entertained means that the form of mass media is successful in gathering supporters, and hence, profit also. Mass media, after all, has also a business side.

Some of the most popular topics that highly discussed in the public and popularized by mass media are the different form so social deviance. Stories on this topic is heavily explored and promoted in broadcast and print forms of mass media. Deviance is an especially hot topic in the mass media because it had an entertaining factor that is highly sellable to the public. Rule breaking is the first criteria of a deviance. If it does not conform to the realities of everyday life or it does not follow the dictates and restrictions of the society, then it is considered a material of social deviance. Crimes and unacceptable practices of society are some form of deviant stories. Many forms of mass media, especially on investigative journalism for print and broadcast, explore crime stories on different angles or perspectives in order to gain more audience and produce more materials that could be made into news. They use ample amount in exposing and investigating crimes and acts that are violations of everyday life. Stories of May-December affairs or same sex relationships are favored issues explored in many popular television shows. These stories do not adhere to conformities of normal practices and are therefore social deviance. These are all acts of deviance that are highly popularized already by mass media. Deviance is atypical, pleasurably rewarding, and eventually results in the nonconformist suffering extraordinarily painful consequences and is one of the basic tools of mass media to gain more audience.

Media messages are ideological constructs used by members of the audience to identify, interpret, and devise solutions for deviance and the other social problems which are the dominant focus of media attention. These social deviances help in reaching out for the attention of people because they are issues that people would want to have a say about even if they are directly concerned on them. A break in the rules is an interesting topic, whatever rule was broken.

Social deviance is packaged in different ways in mass media. For many, social deviance is always portrayed negatively. Crimes and addiction will always be included to the list of things to not follow. Relationships of people with the same sexes will always be against the reality of people. But for others, social deviance has been packaged as something rewarding, even if it has a difficult consequence in the end. People who commit crimes are portrayed as smart, cunning individuals who get what they want and enjoy what they get. Relationships that are unacceptable to the society are fought for and would appear more honest compared to normal relationships of opposite sexes. But one reality is always evident, audience sees these materials as reflective of reality. The audience is vulnerable when exposed heavily to mass media and stories of social deviance are factors that are really influential in the formation of peoples beliefs and cultural acceptance.

Mass media is one of the most significant agents of socialization that help people in their formation of beliefs and norms. The power of mass media had allowed it to penetrate the lives of more people and therefore influence how they act and think. Mass media had redefined our social role and the realities of our lives are also dependent on what we gain from the different forms of media. It is through mass media that we learn more about our world and what are its realities. It is also through mass media that we form our own opinions and stands. Social deviance is also a result of the different agents of socialization because these deviances are formed by the beliefs of the people. Social deviance is also given more exposure by mass media because of the way deviance mainstream to popular culture.