What is the difference between mass media and mass communication? (2024)

#Media, Mass Communication and Journalism

Minisha 24th Aug, 2017

Hello Minisha,

Both the terms Mass media and mass communication sound synonymous but they are not. People usually have a confusion about this.

In Simple words , Mass Communication refers to the act of disseminating information to the masses/public.

And, Mass Media refers to the medium or the method employed to disseminate this information. news is broadcasted through various mass medium such as television channels or radio channels or a certain film.

Digital media comprises of both internet ans mass mobile communication.

Mass media refers to the collection of big media outlets use to distribute their media content.

Mass media refers to the technologies used as channels for a small group of people to communicate with a larger number of people.

Mass media as an idea was created in the 1920s.

There are three major forms of traditional mass media: print, broadcast, and cinema. New forms are being created constantly.

The internet has changed the nature of mass media by creating consumers who control and even create media of their own, and producers who can more easily track consumer responses.

Mass communication is a process in which a person, group of people, or an organization sends a message through a channel of communication to a large group of anonymous and heterogeneous people and organizations. You can think of a large group of anonymous and heterogeneous people as either the general public or a segment of the general public. Channels of communication include broadcast television, radio, social media, and print. The sender of the message is usually a professional communicator that often represents an organization. Mass communication is an expensive process. Unlike interpersonal communication, feedback for mass communication is usually slow and indirect.

hope this answers you question.

thank you !

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It’s a complex question as both are interlinked.

In the simplest academic terms,

Masscommunicationrefers to theactof disseminating information to the masses/public.

Massmediarefers to themedium/methodemployed to disseminate this information.

For example, broadcasting is a form of mass communication. News is broadcasted via various mass media such as television channels or radio channels or a certain film.

One cannot exist without the other!

However, in every day use, both terms are used interchangeably. Media is often loosely used to refer to the press, even though it encompasses entertainment media as well as news media. Books, newspapers, magazines, television, cinema/film, and the internet are all forms of mass communication, and each particular book, or a particular channel, or a particular website would be the mass media. What the professionals do with the media channel they are a part of, to reach out to their audiences, is engage in mass communication. It is also for this reason that the study of the mass media is usually referred to as study of mass communication

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Mass Media : This includes all the tools of media that are used to communicate with the masses on the whole. For instance, Radio, Television and Newspapers.

Mass communication , on the other hand, is the study on how these types work, basically, thinking about how radio or TV stations communicate their content with the consumer.

Good Luck!

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