FUNCTIONS OF MASS COMMUNICATION

             The act of carefully attacking a person or place.

In old days, news took months to reach to the people. If there was fight, people usually knew about it much later, but now there is live war reporting.

            To keep track of what is going around us.

1)         SURVEILLANCE:

            The word “surveillance came form the French word for “watching over”.

           

When we will talk about surveillance with respect to mass communication then it will refer to news and information role of the media.

No doubt information reaches to the audience very fast but this speed sometimes create problems. For example: In accuracies, war reporting and President Reagan.

The first function of mass communication is to serve as the eyes and ears for those of us seeking information about our world. When we want to find out the latest news about what’s happening, we can ant to find out the latest news about what’

TYPES OF SURVEILLANCE:

a)         Warning or Beware (be-careful) Surveillance:

Beware surveillance of Warning, occurs when the media inform us about threats from terrorism, natural calamities, like storm, hurricanes, and erupting volcanoes, depressed economic conditions, increasing inflation or military attacks, These can be about immediate threats.

b)         Instrumental Surveillance:

The second type is instrumental surveillance, has to do with the transmission of information that is useful and helpful in everyday life. News about what films are playing at the local theaters, stock market price, new products, fashion ideas, recipes, political/sports information are example of instrumental surveillance.

2)         INTERPRETATION (explanation):

To provide information on the ultimate meaning and significance of the facts and data already provided.

Or

To provide reader with an added perspective (view point).

The audience is exposed to a large number of different points of view. So they can evaluate all sided of an issue. The mass media do not just supply facts and data, media also provide information on the ultimate meaning and significance of events. Like some stories given on first page and second story is given on twelfth page of the paper. In a TV newscast those stories that are given two minutes at the beginning of the show are deemed more newsworthy than the item that gets two minutes toward the end. Stories that ultimately make it into the paper of the newscast have been judged by the various gatekeepers. It also helps in finding different points of views about and issue, news etc.

           

3)         TRANSMISSION OF VALUES:

            Briefs about that what is right, what is wrong, and what is important in life.

The way is which an individual comes to stop

The behaviour and value socialization functional of group.

Sometimes this transmission is conscious, sometimes unconscious.

This transmission may be the on Iran & Afghanistan war, women rights it can both be the, e.g. it in west.

Mass Communication can change the value together but the space of this change differs from community to community. (It may differ from community to community, city to city, village to village)

Media uses role model for this transmission.

4)         LINKAGE:

            To join together different elements of society those are not directly connected)

Advertising attempts to link needs of buyers with the products of sellers.

Legislators come to know about legislators through various mass media’s.

People of different provinces are linkage through mass media. They know about each others culture, social set up. Similarly countries are linked to each others.

Linkage between Pakistanis and Kashmiris, even with Indians.

If we go in Europe, it’s not that strange as it would be in 50s or 60s as we know a lot about Europe through media.

Example of public relation, DSC

Linkage function may bring both the aid the consequences

The  →            As given above

The  →            Person with antisocial interests can be linked.

If a group in Sindh is opposing building of water surveyor’s media may link them other groups in Punjab or NWFP.

5)         ENTERTAINMENT:

           

i)          Entertainment for entertainment

For Example; infotainment programmes, such as “Hasb-e-Hall, 50 Minutes, Tariq Aziz Show etc”

            ii)         Entertainment for persuasion / Propaganda:

For example: India is transmitting musical programmes, but during programmes India makes propaganda against Pakistan or on Kashmir issue.