New media and its accomplice, technology has various forms operating in the new media era. New media as we have got to know is mainly about the two-way communication that it offers. There are various forms of this two-way communication and in this article, we will touch on the various forms of new media and its features as well including its benefits and limitations.
There are many forms of new media which includes the
internet, streaming videos and audios, e-mail and website, online communities –
social networks, virtual reality, augmented reality, artificial intelligence,
digital cameras, DVD/CD ROM, internet devices, mapping devices and digital
animation. The internet is a network of computers that are interconnected and
people are able to interact with loved ones who are very far through the
internet. Africans are able to know the happenings in Asia through the
internet. Streaming videos and audios are the various platforms that have made
it possible for people to get access to varieties of videos and audios. Example
of these platforms include podcast which allows people to upload audio contents
and people are able to access these contents, YouTube, Tiktok are also video
contents platforms that have different kinds of video contents there. Ranging
from entertainment, sports, funny skits, education, tutorials and any kind of
video one might be looking for on these platforms. E-mail and website is also
another form of new media which have made it possible for larger organizations
to get in touch with their heterogeneous customers and audiences. This is why
organizations today have their own website and do not solely depend on the
traditional media anymore, they are able to broadcast their products
information to a large number of people through electronic mails.
There are also online communities thus social networks which
is the basis of the prosumer. These social networks we normally refer to as the
social media have made it possible for people to establish networks with people
who they have not even met in reality. People are now citizen journalists
through the incidences they capture and upload to the various social networking
sites and the traditional media sometimes pick stories from these citizen
journalists. There is also Virtual Reality (VR) which has made it possible for
people to have experiences beyond what nature has provided. The fantasies and
the scenes that are not existing in this world is the handiworks of virtual
reality. Artificial Intelligence (AI) is even dominating now as AI has been
bringing a lot of ideas into life. AI is able to impersonate top figures, and
do what humans are not able to. Media scholars have predicted that in the near
future, humans would have no handiworks since artificial intelligence might be
taking over all tasks.
There are digital cameras that captures magnificent photos
that are extraordinary. Technology have made it possible to add these cameras
to some smartphones like IPhones and people are enjoying it. There are mapping
devices which are able to direct people to wherever they want to go. Mapping
devices like google maps and GPS applications are all used for map indications.
Finally, with the forms of new media, there is also the digital animation which
has made it possible for cartoons and other animated films to be showed on our
screens and mobile devices.
New media has certain characteristics or features which
makes it distinct from the traditional or old media. There are six basic
features of new media; interactivity, hyper-textual, digital, virtual,
networked and simulation. These are the features that exhibits the signs of the
new media era.
The interactivity feature has made it possible for users to
create contents on the internet whiles consuming the contents of others. Thus
consumers have become prosumers. There is also the participatory culture where
users are able to participate in online discussions through the two-way
communication. With this, feedbacks are always taken unlike the era of
traditional media where communication was one-way. The hyper-textual feature of
new media has made it possible for normal texts to be linked to another
information. Have you noticed the texts that are sometimes highlighted and when
followed up, leads the user to another window or content? Those texts are
hyperlinked and therefore are hyper-textual.
The digital feature has made it easier for information to be
processed and transmitted with ease and at a faster rate. Digitalization has
paved way for different media formats to be merged into a single content.
Example is having texts, images and videos in a single content but previously,
texts were for newspapers, images for magazines and videos for television. The
virtual feature of new media has made it easier for people to present
themselves online just like face-to-face interaction. There are platforms that
provides video call functions like Skype, Zoom and some of the social
networking sites. New media is also networked in the sense that; users are now
able to interact globally with ease. An Asian is able to get in touch with an
Arab despite the global distance and that is through the global village
networking has created. The last feature
of new media which is simulation provides an immersive experience which is
beyond virtual. People are able to involve themselves in a virtual world where
they see real creatures as if they are real. That is the simulated function of
new media and technology.
There are lots of benefits of this new media as most of its
features seem helpful and interesting. With the help of new media, everyone
including the uneducated are able to access information on the internet, there
have been more options for communication as well, the various media and content
producers are able to get instant feedback from their audience and news is now
immediate as compared to how news used to be outdated in the era of the
traditional media.
Despite the benefits, there are some limitations ordisadvantages to these benefits. There is so much competition on the internet
today since everyone wants to be seen and become famous in the global village,
people’s privacy is not guaranteed anymore, there are lots of inappropriate
information being carried across on the internet nowadays and many people have
become so much addicted to the internet which poses a health risk especially
mental risk.
Every invention has it pros and cons, we can make good use
of new media and ignore the bad side.
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