The idea that Mass Media remains a “One -way access ‘street’, with major network broadcasting companies as traffic agents and crossing guards controlling pedestrian (audience) access” has come to an end. The creation of interactive media, including the Internet, Cable and Satellite TV, Satellite/HD Radio, i-Pads, Smartphones and the numerous venues summarily made available from these outlets have forced the Major Media companies to redirect its traffic pattern.
This idea that all media is now open to everyone is not exactly a novel approach. Take newspapers as an example. We all know of The Daily News, The New York Post, Newsday, The New York Times, and in finance, The Wall Street Journal. Yet at every midtown newsstand there are a multitude of print media, including, locally, The New York Amsterdam News, The Final Call (Nation of Islam paper), The Queens Courier as well as many small, foreign print publications vying for the attention of commuters. I have read The Queens Courier before and, while most of its articles cover issues central to Queens residents, they write about the major happenings in NYC. Not only do they relate stories that are not covered by the major publications, they attempt to keep the personal biases out of reporting.
On an individual level, the ability of the ordinary citizen consumer to make public his/her information has grown by leaps and bounds. The internet allows foreign correspondents to record live reports from dangerous locations like Iraq and Afghanistan during the gulf war, civil uprisings in Libya, Egypt and Syria as well as first hand comments from locals caught in the battle. A good example is Sohaib Athar. Better recognized by the twitter handle @ReallyVirtual, he is world famous for, unknowingly, tweeting live the raid on Osama Bin Laden’s compound. For “An IT consultant taking a break from the rat race by hiding in the mountains with his laptops”, he now has over 73,000 followers. Instant media messaging at its best! I can’t help but wonder how many were following before he text messaged history.
On the personal level, I have the ability to broadcast this blog through creative commons. Looking at the amount of topics circulating around the world wide web and the correspondance generated between parties, there is a fanbase with my name (presumably, somewhere out there) just waiting to be “loaded up and driven towards ‘Infotainment’.” I have not employed it yet, but the important idea is that I have the ability. We all do. This means that we now have access to what was ‘Formerly the Road Less Traveled.’