Written by Lindsay Wang 2022 Cohort
In the 21st century, we live in a “digital world,” and we can see it branching everywhere: politics, economy, culture and education. Dr. Richard Smith proposed that digital media has two essential elements: interactivity and group forming. It means that, compared to traditional mass media, users can interact with content creators and are more likely to meet like-minded users or access more exciting content. Also, with the rise of social media, everyone with access to the internet and electronic devices can be independent content creators. In this blog post, I will discuss the positive effects of those mentioned above and explain why it affects content creators.
When it comes to positive influences, the first thing that comes to people’s minds is that digital media lowers the cost of content creation. This means that more people from different backgrounds and fields can make their voices heard and turn their inspiration and creativity into benefit or profit. In 2021, the global influencer market was valued at a record 13.8 billion U.S. dollars, doubling between 2019 and 2021. This has undoubtedly stimulated the global economy and brought many people a chance to make money.
At the same time, the mainstream media no longer controls public opinion on its own, which is an excellent development for the democratization of media. Multimedia would allow marginalized groups to develop a sense of identity and help them open up about their opinions and lifestyle. It also gives them a space to engage in different political and social dialogues, consensus and contentious debates. This diversity in content and points of view would encourage them to produce more high-quality and professional content.
In addition, digital media has also facilitated the development of new types of content. For instance, blogs, vlogs, digital posts, memes, indie games and video essays are commonly used for content creation and information sharing today. In 2021, HostingTribunal estimated that there are more than 600 million blogs out of 1.9 billion websites worldwide, and over 12 million authors are taking advantage of it. Moreover, new forms of content also lead to the revolution of many industries. Distance education is a good example, as well as web-only news. In the 1990s, more than ten million students, most of them adults, studied remotely, and many of those who were either employed full-time, homemakers or unable to access other forms of education could finally get educational resources without having to resign, move or loan money. Such a revolution will undoubtedly bring challenges to these industries, motivating and extending their potential.
I firmly believe that digital media can be a strong positive incentive for content creators, especially individual creators, and it is likely to bring about more cultural and industrial revolutions.
Resources:
https://thecdm.ca/news/what-is-digital-media
https://webtribunal.net/blog/how-many-blogs/#gref
https://www2.psych.ubc.ca/%7Eschaller/528Readings/Festinger1954.pdf