Mass media means technology that is intended to reach a mass audience. It is the primary means of communication used to reach the vast majority of the general public. The media industry in turn can be defined as a varied collection of organisations that share the production, publication and distribution of information. The way that this information is shared varies massively, with some examples of media including radio, television, books, newspapers, magazines, social media, video games, film and music.

Traditional media is any form of mass communication that occurred before the introduction of the internet, e.g radio, newspapers, television and billboards. Traditional media is often referred to as old media.

Digital media is any form of media introduced after the internet that uses an electronic device for distribution. It is quite a broad term, and encompasses media types such as social media, podcasts, online games, blogs and YouTube. Digital media is often referred to as new media.

Over the years, the impact of mass communication has increased drastically because of the improvements made. Hence, it’s crucial to know the main characteristics of mass media, and they are as follows:

• it can appeal to a wide target audience;
• it communicates a public message;
• there’s a distance between a source of information and people who obtain it;
• it can be transmitted through various channels, such as TV, the internet, radio, and newspapers;
• it has a heterogeneous audience;
• news or information communicated through TV, radio, and print media can’t receive feedback.

In terms of the types of mass media there are four main types, namely:

Print media
It can range from billboards to coupons and is one of the easiest and oldest ways to reach the masses. Originally, print media referred to newspapers, which were the primary sources of information. Subsequently, this type of media expanded to journals, books, and magazines.

Outdoor media
Ambient marketing is an excellent example of modern outdoor media. Brands use unusual locations and items to promote their products. Therefore, places like bus stops, public transport, and buildings can serve creative companies as places for promotion.

Broadcasting media
With the help of an electronic broadcasting medium, audio and video content is distributed to a dispersed audience. Television, radio, video, and games appeal to heterogeneous audiences, people who differ in age, background, views, goals, and interests.

Digital media
There are around 4.66 billion active internet users worldwide in 2021, which means that the world is dependent on digital media. Today, brands promote their goods and services through sites, YouTube, podcasts, and more. Besides, companies often implement Instagram marketing and Facebook advertising to pitch their products.

The Indian Media and Entertainment Industry

The Indian Media and Entertainment (M&E) industry is a sunrise sector for the economy and is making significant strides. Proving its resilience to the world, Indian M&E industry is on the cusp of a strong phase of growth, backed by rising consumer demand and improving advertising revenue. According to an Ernst and Young report, the Indian media and entertainment (M&E) sector stood at Rs. 1.38 trillion (~US$ 19 billion) in 2020 making it the 5th largest media and entertainment market in the world.

With such a market size and growth, there are innumerable career opportunities in the M&E sector. One of the opportunities that is there on the basis of education till class XII is that of a media assistant.

Media assistants are responsible for working closely with a media team on tasks such as obtaining and analyzing media, using media software to keep track of performance, performing administrative duties, and developing and maintaining strong relationships with media outlets.

The responsibilities of a Media Assistant are to:

• Assist media buyers and planners in development٫
• execution and monitoring of media plans.
• Creation and monitoring of media schedules.
• Create and send traffic instructions for out-of-home broadcast, print and online orders.
• Organize media agreements including revision and proofreading of contracts.
• Manage billboard agreements for out-of-home inventory.
• Ensure smooth and accurate billing procedures.
• Conduct research to collect useful media data (e.g. Nielsen ratings).
• Work on building strong relationships with media outlets٫ including resolving any issues that may arise.
• Take on buying tasks as assigned by the media buyer and support them to reach budget goals.
• Support media group with administrative functions and extend internal support.
• Research time periods where station ran wrong tape and act suitably.
• Check with station contacts to purchase more air time.
• Draft booking sheets for new media buyers.
• Develop media suggestions.
• Issue media insertion orders.
• Support post-buy analysis and reconcile media invoices.