Medium Theory Application in the Professional Communication Practice - Essay Example

? COMMUNICATION THEORIES College: Communication Theories In professional practice, communication strategies are fundamental requirements that will define the effectiveness with which information is relayed or shared in a particular environmental system. Communication refers to the effective passing of information from one speaker to another with high accuracy and information fidelity to elicit the right response from the target subject. In other words, communication is considered to have taken place if only the intended message arrives to the recipient and the feedback obtained from the recipient matches with the expected response. In professional practice, communication is a sensitive tool that defines the relationship between employers, employees and the customers and the attitude that they have for one another. Consequently, the professional environment requires effective communication mechanisms to build a conducive social environment for every person and ensure an effective flow of information. The purpose of this paper is to analyse the extent to which communication theories illuminate areas of professional communication practice. Communication theories have attempted to provide an abstract explanation of the various elements that define an effective communication process as one way of modelling competence in communication. Whether an individual intends to relay information, persuade, trigger a response, or explain a phenomenon, the choice of the mechanisms of information flow and communication techniques will determine the success of the intended purpose of communication. Most scholars have arrived at a concession that the choice of word, media and the channel will be determined by the kind of communication, either social or official, and the audience that receive the information (Emory, 2006, p. 22). These dimensions of communication are all vital if an individual has to pass their information and be understood by their target audience, and this can only be measured by evaluating the response of the audience after the information has been propagated. One of the popular communication theories is the medium Theory of Communications that perceives the communication process as a message oriented process. As opposed to the information theory that perceives communication as a bidirectional linear process, the rhetorical theory provides an abstract of the communication process as a complete messaging loop. According to Sharma (2009, p. 11), the key element in any communication process is the message that is intended to be transmitted over to the audience and the feedback that the audience will provide. Message, may it be in speech or textual form, refers to the information that a professional intends to provide to relay to their audience. Competence in communication has been associated with the formulation of the message in such a manner that it is concrete, precise, clear, free of distortion and well-articulated. The design of a speech or a text message will depend on the choice of words, the intonation, non-verbal expressions and presentation techniques. Optimization of the properties that affect a message is vital as a failure of any of them will have a consequential impact on the entire communication process. For instance, even after the choice of the right words, the speaker may mess up the entire process by presenting in a low tone that the audience may not grasp the intended message. In a nutshell, the message is the central attention of any communication process and hence its organization and presentation is the core of effective communication. Another vital element of the medium theory is the mechanisms of information transmission especially in the journalistic professional practice. A proponent of the medium theory, McLuhan predicted the evolution of the communication process with the proliferation of new technology where messages would need to be transmitted across the entire world. The medium refers to the channel of communication through which message is channelled through so that it may reach the intended destination. According to Croteau, and Hoynes (2003, p. 56), the media revolution brings about a great transition of the social features of the society and brings about a complete new face of the world. The idea of these scholars is that there is a great change in the methods of communications today when televisions, mobile phones and other smart technologies have replaced the traditional systems of communication where oral communication was limited to small distances. McLuhan recognized that these changes in the mass communication will definitely have a great impact in the society. The medium theory recognized the media as not only a language but also a vessel for passing information to the public. As a language, the media defines the difference in which the messaged is expressed in the newspapers, the television, mobile phone or even the internet as all forms of modern communication platforms. For instance, a message on the newspaper may be expressed quite differently by an oral speaker in the mass communication profession. As a channel, the media defines the distance that professionals can pass their message to the people and the limits to which the information remains relevant. In the modern times, information can be transmitted across the entire world and globalization has broken the barriers of distance making information to gain a global demand. The effectiveness of the media channels varies with the type of media and the distance limitations can be defined on this line (Emory, 2006, p. 25). For instance, while a print medium is likely to remain significant within the local country, an online post will receive a global attention from each corner of the world. The idea of this theory is that the medium of communication determines not only the language that will be used for communication, but also the distance through which this information can be propagated. Littlejohn and Foss (2008, p. 254) illustrates the concept of technology driven media as pointed out by McLuhan in his articulation of the medium theory. The advancement in technical knowledge in the telecommunication field has resulted in a paradigm shift in the platforms that are now available for the professionals to pass their information to their target audience. The development of television, internet, print and radio technology have all brought a turning point to the communication field and professional can now pass information from their remote location to their target populations without having to traverse these distances. For instance, with mobile teleconferencing, professional can hold a meeting from their remote location and avoid the expenses of having to converge into a single meeting. In addition, a wide array of information can be passed to the public with the flexibility of the information that can be transmitted over the modern communication channels. Videos, images, texts and prints media and voice can be transmitted even with the smallest gadgets such as mobile phones to any distance in the world within the shortest time possible. All these features of communications that are evident today are the same that McLuhan had predicted while he coined the medium theory and predicted the various effects that should be expected after technology has penetrated in the communication field. The medium theory has also revolutionised to a new medium theory that has extended the ideas of its older version to increase its relevance in the modern professional practice. Just like McLuhan predicted, changes in the media had brought about a new social environment and the social scope has expanded to limitless geographical scope (Holmes, 2005, p. 56). This scholar perceived technology advancement as an expansion of the human capacity to communicate and pass ideas more effectively than in the traditional times when oral information was passed from one generation to the next and information could be lost easily. In the new medium theory, information can be stored and reproduced and the risk of loss has been minimised greatly. On the other hand, the new theory recognizes the sensitivity of the information in the modern times that demands more security from communication professionals to control information in within some predetermined boundaries. For instance, communication officers in a business environment will be required to keep confidential information secure to avoid leakage to unintended group. In other words, the medium theory points out that technological revolution will to a great extent influence the professional practice not only by providing them with efficient communication channels, but also by burdening them with the role of controlling information security. Medium Theory Application in the Professional Communication Practice The medium theory of communications suggested the impact of changes in the communication mechanisms in the social and work environment and the impact that this would have in professional practice. As Haase (2009, P.3) points out, the predictions of McLuhan have come to pass in the modern society and the professionals in the communication sectors such as media broadcasting, public relations and marketing are experiencing are a great change in information handling and dissemination. A good example of an area that has been greatly affected by this communication theory is the field of mass media in providing world-wide information. At the modern time, the scope of information has become a sensitive matter in professional practice as many professionals have to customize their reports depending on the scope in which the information is regarded as relevant. In general, it is possible to consider the world a single entity today with the accessibility of information that exists today and the high degree of information spread within a short time. In the past, printed media were more common and the information in newspapers contained information regarding local countries and the relevance was more inclined to this population. With the proliferation of the internet today, the newspapers are available online and the content can be browsed across the whole world and hence the information has to be customized for this environment. For instance, every person in the world is free to read the New York Times Daily newspaper as long they can access the internet from wherever. This means that the local relevance of a newspaper cannot be maintained and information in this paper must be neutral to the whole society in the world. This means that wrong information is likely to elicit a reaction from all corners of the world and a force of criticism is more likely to be more vicious than when the newspaper remained local information tools. This new face of the media has posed a lot challenge to the communication professionals in their duties of information propagation. Precaution has to be taken to ensure that the information that is relayed meets the international standards and is absolutely in line with the principles of information standards. Many media channels have had to apologize for mis-reporting or providing insensitive information to the world. For instance, the New York Times has had to apologise several times including an incident when they provided inaccurate information regarding the war in Iraq (Rosenberg, 2004, Para. 2). The New Yorks Times had reported that they were aware that the Iraq informants were in possession of the atomic weapons of mass destruction which could have an adverse effect on the greater world if released. At the time of the release of this information, the reporters had inadequate information regarding the matter and they had to apologise to the world for issuing information that was still controversial. This issue was a source of panic not only for the people in the USA but also in the entire world and the release of this information was a sensitive matter. However, it is indisputable that the media professionals have gained new power to express information to the people and to expand their coverage. By having access to more efficient technology driven channels, the media can broadcast internationally and provide all citizens with the information that they intend to communicate to the people. For instance, an advertisement of products has become simpler and the media have been utilized to market for multinational corporations on the television broadcast programs. The existence of telecommunication service facilitators such as DSTV it is possible for individuals in any country to watch any television channel that is broadcasted from any country in the world. This means that advertisements can reach more customers and the benefits of this kind of has far reaching effects in the industry. Also, the social scope has been expanded by the availability of new communication media platforms that bring people together despite the difference in their locations. Social cites such as Facebook and Twitter are online based and they have no distance limitations. These sites have formed new avenues to discuss, share and disseminate ideas that affect the world as a whole which is different from the traditional set-up where people could only socialize within a specific locality. As Haase (2009, p. 7) points out, the social sites have become a major weapon of criticism not only for mass media but also for political ideologies in the society today. These social sites allow individuals to come up together and spearhead sensitive matters that are within the society and provide opinions on the same. This sends out a great warning for communication professionals as they have to exercise accuracy in every information that they release to avoid criticism in such sites that are more sensitive than any other group in the society. In other words, social sites has formed a new check measure that weighs the words of professionals to check the accuracy of any information that they give. Advancement of mobile telephony today has provided a new medium for communication to the people and their capacity to communicate has been enhanced. With a mobile phone remote communication either by speech or by text messages, online or offline has become a whole new dominant trend in the world. Bell (2006, p. 4) points out to mobile as the most effective communication tool in the world today that has transformed the communication industry. According to this scholar, the establishment of the mobile technology has had a great effect to communication efficiency by introducing cheap gadget and cheaper communication services that have pushed away the barrier of distance. For instance, communication officers in a company do not have to beat the physical distance in order to pass their messages to the employees under them. They are able to pass messages by broadcasting customized text messages to their employees or even call them without having to reach them physically. In essence, communication has become faster, less expensive and more convenient for most professionals and the challenges that were evident in the past a now a history. Hjorth (2005, Para. 6) points conducted a research on the extent to which mobile technology has changed the social sphere in Melbourne among all the age groups. In his findings, he expresses the great impact that this technology has had on Australia both in the professional practice and the social spheres. The mobile phone is used in this state for real time video conferencing supported by 3G technologies that allow high speed internet connection and call establishment. Youths have bridged the boundaries to engage in long distance relationships including online dating that can be perceived as a new height of globalisation. With mobile cameras and multimedia message capabilities installed in mobile phones, it is possible for individuals to send and receive video and images across any distance. The SMS traffic continues to increase over time in Melbourne and with technology advancement the trend is expected to be exponential in the future. In countries such as china, communication has become a priority in the media and most of the country’s population can access television programmes on their mobile phones. This information accessibility is conformant with the medium theory of communications. Analysis of Application of Medium Theory of Communications The changes that have surfaced in the communication sector have had a great influence on the professional communication practice in all environments. The availability of a wide array of information and its accessibility with ease has transformed this profession demanding the practitioners have a better understanding of the available channels, the modes of data transmission and the environmental sensitivity of the available information. From a critical point of view, it is possible to agree that the prediction of the medium theory has come to pass with the advent of the new technology. The transition from a distance constrained environment to global village has come along with significant changes in communication and the need flexibility in career practice. The wide coverage of the media today was one of the anticipations of the medium theory that was put forward by the proponents of this theory. The suggestion of this theory is that with a wide coverage of the media, it is likely that professional practice in the media industry will have to prepare reports that are synchronised to a greater population. At the same time, media criticism is expected to rise since there would be more people to receive the information, which at times may only be palatable to a portion of the audience. The example of the apology that the New York Times had to make after realising unqualified information is one of the anticipated changes that would come along with the establishment of a wide audience. The information that this paper put forward regarding the Iraq government became a subject of discussion in the entire world and the channel had to disqualify their unproven information (Rosenberg, 2004 Para. 4). McLuhan had acknowledged the possibility of erroneous reporting and this prediction has come to pass. In his concept of the media, McLuhan expresses the effect that the media would have on the social environment after information has become an abundant resource for every human being (Holmes, 2005, P. 131). McLuhan states that the media is a channel to communicate new perceptions to the people and change their lives in a great way, to forget the historical past and to exist in a completely new environment. In this context, this scholar foresees the extension of human ability to listen, obtain information and share it more people in an efficient manner that had not been experienced before. The formulation of social sites as a basis for information sharing and discussions can be perceived as part of the prediction of the medium theory. A professional communication practice now has to integrate all forms of the media to effectively communicate to their target audience and share information. For instance, the public is capable of providing real time opinions as news is broadcasted within a television station. The marketing personnel as part of the communications professional fraternity seems also to have come into terms with the medium theory of communications. To marketing officers, the mediums of transmissions and communications have provided them with an avenue to organize and pass their information to broader geographical scopes without many hardships at the comfort of their homes. Their main role to roll out products and services has become more efficient and reaching out the customers has become an easy task to accomplish (Holmes, 2005, p. 43). Local television programs can be viewed from any part of the world and so do multinational corporations sell out to their customers. This context of the media advertisement is part of the understanding of the media as the extension of human capacity that is a core element of the medium communication theory that has been put forward. By extension of the human race, McLuhan states that the technological advancement of communication channels will break local social cocoons and in turn push human beings and their business to larger geographical scopes (Kong and Cheng, 2009, p. 45). The fluorishment of business with the expansion of media services can be perceived as part of this human progress stated in this theory. A major concern of communication professional practice is the strict adherence to ethical standards that govern the media in the communication industry (Kong, and Cheng, 2009, p. 110). Professionals are expected to provide authentic information that is proven and validated without engaging in propaganda and unqualified information delivery. The proponents of the medium theory predicted that the abuse of the media to influence the minds of the people in their reasoning and eliciting their reaction would be more profound in an environment that has advanced communication channels. Apart from the New York Times newspaper, it is common that many media companies apologize for having released unqualified information. The medium theory seems to have foreseen the effect that the encroaching technology would have on the information standards. In this view, it is possible to say that to a great extent the medium theory provided an illumination for the professional practice in the communication sector. Mobile telephony has become the most accessible yet very powerful tool of communication in the world today. Apart from enabling individuals to communicate across large distances, it is possible to access television and radio channels, internet information and also to propagate personal opinions. Although this makes professional duties easier and cheaper in communicating employee responsibilities, it is also a major concern for ethical practice due to the perception of mobile unofficial communication gadget (Jimenez and Guillem, 2009, p. 14). For instance, employees should avoid unofficial messaging with their bosses, due to the dangers associated with burying professional gaps. This transition has raised issues in the professional communication practice just like McLuhan had expressed the dangers of the new technology in the communication profession. Conclusion In conclusion, the theories of communication have a great influence to professional communication practice as far as efficiency, ethics and information standards are concerned. The medium theory is one of the prominent communication theories that express the impact the technology would have on the traditional communication methods and how this in turn would affect the social environment. In the traditional setup, the social scopes did not go beyond the community boundaries and media information was more relevant within a given country or even locally. With the proliferation of new technology, the barriers of distance and time have been completely eroded and the world can communicate in the most efficient manner. This in turn means that the mass media have to provide news that are relevant in the global scope and that have wider society coverage. Media advertisement has made the work of public relations professionals and marketers easier and the business has taken off to international scope. In this context, in tally with prediction of supporters of the medium theory, the establishment of new communication channels has formed an extension of the human capabilities. However, this has come along with a greater responsibility of the communication professionals in filtering and validating information before releasing it to the public. Any inauthentic information is today likely to arouse a greater criticism than ever before, with the public being equipped with information-receptive objects such as mobile phones that are empowering them not only to access news, but also to react to them. In brief, the communication professionals have to take advantage of the media power while still taking precaution to avoid the dangers that come along with it. References Bell, G., 2006. The Age of the Thumb: A Cultural Reading of Mobile Technologies in Asia. Knoweldge, Technology, and Policy, 19(2), Pp. 41-57. Croteau, D. and Hoynes, W., 2003. 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New York; Open University Press. Littlejohn, W., and Foss, A., 2008. Theories of Human Communication. California: Thomson Wadsworth. Rosenberg, J., 2004. New York Times Criticizes its Iraq Coverage. Available through: < http://www.wnd.com/2004/05/24797/ > [Accessed on 7th, Oct, 2013] Sharma, M., 2009. Basic Theories of Communication. Available through: < http://www.slideshare.net/manishmabm/business-communication-1848485> [Accessed on 7th, Oct, 2013] Read More