We are in the 21st century and the role that media play in the life of a person that is living in this era is very big. We live in an era where the use of media is considered a necessity. The media plays an essential role in the life of human beings and I can personally testify this. When communicating about media, in this case, we mean the various communication tools or outlets that are used to store and deliver data or information. The media are the main means of mass communication and may be made up of different components of mass media communication such as broadcasting, publishing, print media, cinema, photography, news media, advertising, and digital media ( Croteau, & Hoynes, 2019) . Now with all these mentioned, is there any person who can testify that they do not depend on media? The answer is so obvious. Even though the different forms of media such as advertising may have few disadvantages in the life of some people, the benefits outweigh these few challenges. The persuasive messages that we obtain through the media such as advertising messages have impacted my life positively in almost every step that I make ( Armstrong, 2018) . The different types of mass media, for example, persuasive advertising impacts the lives of people positively as they allow information to be passed quickly, educate, and are informative in nature.
To fully understand the benefit of media in the life of human beings, one needs to get to know that media is ever-changing. How communication was passed 20 years ago is very different from how it is done today ( Alhabash, et al., 2017 ). I am just in love with media not because of how it passes information, but how it is ever-evolving and taking shape as more technologies are invented. Twenty years ago, radio and newspapers were some of the best ways that could be used to pass information and were the primary sources of news. Today, things have changed so much and printed newspapers are about dead in society. Most people around the world get information courtesy of social media and websites. Digital migration has taken place and major outlets have shifted from analog to digital ways of communications ( Croteau, & Hoynes, 2019) . I find it very relevant to challenge myself with the news way of communication and do not want to be left backward. Therefore, I love media because of how it has been evolving and keeping in pace with the latest of communication which is more fun and can be used at comfort. For example, I can easily streamline news or browse through Facebook and get information about products.
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Through the media, we keep connected and this is very important. A long time ago, a person could live his or her entire life without knowing much about the world outside their village. What about today? We are all connected through mass media, and this is beneficial in many ways. For instance, in my case, I simply learned more about my dream university through an advertisement on social media. I just signed up for a Facebook account and came to learn about my current institution through ads as I browsed. The following day, I saw an advertisement on television about enrollment, a course offered, and admission. This was the turn of my life. I researched more about the institution after getting it and decided that it was the best institution that could offer the course that I needed. In this manner, persuasive messages through advertisement played an important role in changing my life ( Armstrong, 2018) . Persuasive messages through the media play an important role as they inform and educate people about existing opportunities.
Moreover, where could businesses be without marketing and advertising? Mass media can sup businesses and offer more benefits. Mass media makes it possible to carry out business communication. This is a type of communication that takes place between the companies and the potential customers and consumers. Mass media such as business websites, television, online news outlets, social media platforms such as Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, and many more allow a business to advertise and reach customers ( Alhabash, et al., 2017 ). Advertising on these media platforms allows a business to reach new markets as the persuasive messages reach millions of people within a short time ( Croteau, & Hoynes, 2019) . For example, I have personally created a business website for our family business and it reached and convinced more people leading to a significant increase in sales impacting my life positively. Therefore, through the media, a business can reach more potential customers easier and faster keeping the economy going.
On the flip of the coin, some people claim that mass media can be used for disinformation and hate. This is where it cannot be easy to know whether what you are hearing or seeing from the media is true. it is also said that mass media or rather the persuasive messages passed through the media are vulnerable to lies and propaganda ( Croteau, & Hoynes, 2019) . In some cases, this may be true and ads may be misleading. However, one needs to be very cautious especially when using online platforms. For example, only information from official company websites should be trusted. Those from other unknown people or clone websites should not be trusted.
In conclusion, media plays a great role in society and is very helpful in life. Although media may come with a few drawbacks such as the risk of inaccurate advertising or reporting and loss of privacy in some cases, the benefits of media still outweigh the few challenges. Media informs us about things that we may not know and exposes us to art, culture, and ways of life that we could have never known. One major advantage that has positively impacted my life is advertising. The media provides a platform for businesses and institutions to reach new markets, and keep the economy going. Through media, we can also obtain and share news and information widely, for example on basic stuff like weather, upcoming events, the situation of COVID-19, and many more. Therefore, this is the time that people should strongly embrace persuasive information and mass media.
References
Alhabash, S., Mundel, J., & Hussain, S. A. (2017). Social media advertising. Digital advertising: Theory and research , 285 . https://books.google.co.ke/books?hl=en&lr=&id=6CslDwAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PA285&dq=media+and+persuasive+advertising&ots=w1Z5a0rOFV&sig=KE8_HE7txFpn6fXauroacmeZyhs&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=media%20and%20persuasive%20advertising&f=false
Armstrong, J. S. (2018). Persuasive advertising: Evidence-based principles . Palgrave Macmillan. https://books.google.co.ke/books?hl=en&lr=&id=-czrPbGn6SEC&oi=fnd&pg=PP2&dq=persuasive+advertising&ots=zuNCEriNwG&sig=Q63gVO6JS0zqsAWC1mZB2Agd9y0&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=persuasive%20advertising&f=false
Croteau, D., & Hoynes, W. (2019). Media/society: Industries, images, and audiences . Sage Publications. https://books.google.co.ke/books?hl=en&lr=&id=y0sXBAAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PR1&dq=influence+of+media+in+society+today&ots=r8Sl1LC8BR&sig=hT57AwrgxU_Q7seZMxlRADLb6ak&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=influence%20of%20media%20in%20society%20today&f=false
