Mass Media

In your opinion, are people really interested in what is going on around them?
How do different media meet people´s need or desire to be well informed?
What do you expect from a good journalist?
What is your source of everyday news?
Talk briefly about the most important British and American media

Everybody needs to be in touch with the outside world. To get information, we use mass media. It is not difficult to use them, mostly the ability to read or listen is enough. Mass media are everywhere around us and it is no problem to get access to them. There are various types of media, different people prefer different ones. But in any case is better to be informed a little than not at all. Moreover in toadys world happens so many events and every minute are these news increasing. In my opinion people are interseted in news because in common czech family the evening belongs to watching TV channels about “What’s new in out country?”

We have different types of mass media:
1)    Newspapers
Is a traditional and still widely used source of information. Many people buy a copy of them regularly, some newspapers are distributed free. The newspaper consists of articles. Some are serious (news, reviews, sports page), some not (feature articles, gossip column). Every article needs a headline and the name of the journalist (reporter) or correspondent from abroad who wrote it. The newspaper usually contains other things, like crosswords, horoscopes, weather forecasts, comic strips, letters pages, obituaries or classified ads.
2)    Radio
Since the invention of radio waves, there have been radio stations. Some are only regional; some are national or even international. To listen to the radio, we need only a receiver (we should pay a fee for it) and to know the frequency – number at which the station broadcasts.
3)    Television
The television combines both picture and sound. It is used for showing different types of channels; it depends on the TV station. There are stations which broadcast general information – it contains news, political debates, documentaries, movies, shows, competitions, entertainment, sport and also some programs only for the adults. Of course, advertisement is everywhere now.
The benefit of TV is that we get a realistic picture of an event very easily, for many people it is also a means of entertainment. However, compared with the newspaper, where you can choose what to read and what not, on TV you don’t have this choice. Watching TV could be also harmful – children behave violently after they watch an action movie, and some people (especially women who watch American soap operas) became unable to live in the real life, because they love the fiction too much.
4)    Internet
The most modern type of mass media is called the Internet. It is a system of computers connected with each other, where can you find whatever are you looking for anytime anywhere in the world. There is an uncountable amount of pages of various types. You need a computer and a connection to the Internet. People use the Internet for sending e-mails, discussing topics, finding information, reading Internet news, buying and selling products, or for entertainment. Today, many companies are connected to it to get customers, to advertise, or just to keep in touch with the others.

A good journalist should know about actual situation in mass media in general. He should be able to adapt himself/herself to unexpected moments for example in live broadcast (přímý přenos). Of course he/she could be also rich of original ideas how to get the new what he/she wants. A good journalist should have to have contacts between people - it is always useful way to get fresh echo and he/she can’ know when he /she will need help. Moreover to make new relations could help this little news-gatherer to reach better position in his/her career.

When I come home I usually turn on computer and check what’s new. Usually I look this news on seznam.cz but then I enter to the bbc.co.uk, history.com or recently one of my favourite pages is nationalgeographic.com. When the evening is closer and closer I sometimes go and watch TV in which I prefer watching news on Czech television one channel. And again - it is not a much time ago I discovered (for me) unknown Czech channel called Retro which is full of music from 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s.

United Kingdom
The media in United Kingdom are fully overruled by BBC. There are channels: BBC One , BBC Two, BBC Three, BBC Four, BBC Parliament, BBC News, CBBC Channel and CBeebies. In my opinion this BBC Company has really good information cover all over the world. If would have to compare it with our medias it’s difficult... They are just better in all ways: in speed bringing new sorts of information to their web, they don’t need to be as commercial as our TV stations do, they are just more sympathic to me. From the other media I would like to choose: The Sunday Times, The Guardian, The independent, Daily Mail.