Home › Exam notes › UGC NET › Mass Media and Digital Communication

Mass Media and Digital Communication

Teaching Aptitude

Useful for: UGC NET, Central Univ./IIT/NIT Faculty, OPSC Assistant Professor, OPSC PGT, SSB Lecturer / PGT

Overview

Mass media and digital platforms spread information widely; they offer learning opportunities but also misinformation and privacy risks.

Key points

Mass media include newspapers, radio, television and the internet.
Functions: inform, educate, entertain and persuade.
Marshall McLuhan said "the medium is the message".
Digital communication is interactive and fast but spreads misinformation easily.
Media literacy means checking sources, evidence and bias.
The Press Council of India (1966) oversees print media ethics.

Explanation

E-mail etiquette: clear subject, polite tone, concise content.
Social media requires privacy and responsible sharing.
Educational broadcasting (SWAYAM Prabha) supports learning.
Fact-checking reduces the spread of false news.
Digital divide limits access.

Step by step

Identify the concept, method or fact asked.
Recall the definition, thinker, year or rule.
Apply it and eliminate extreme or mismatched options.

Examples

A student checks a viral claim on an official website before sharing → media literacy.
A university streams lectures on TV channels → educational broadcasting.
A teacher writes a clear subject line in an e-mail to parents → etiquette.

Traps and advanced points

Trap: Sharing unverified content.
Trap: Ignoring privacy.
Trap: Treating all media as neutral.

Quick revision

Inform, educate, entertain.
McLuhan.
Media literacy.

Practice MCQs

"The medium is the message" was said by —
1. Noam Chomsky
2. Claude Shannon
3. David Berlo
4. Marshall McLuhan
Read chapter notes · Similar questions
Show answer
Answer: (d) Marshall McLuhan. McLuhan.
Which is NOT a classic function of mass media?
1. legislate
2. inform
3. educate
4. entertain
Read chapter notes · Similar questions
Show answer
Answer: (a) legislate. Media inform, educate, entertain and persuade.
The Press Council of India was set up in —
1. 1966
2. 1978
3. 1991
4. 1947
Read chapter notes · Similar questions
Show answer
Answer: (a) 1966. 1966.
Media literacy mainly means —
1. avoiding news
2. checking sources, evidence and bias
3. owning many devices
4. typing fast
Read chapter notes · Similar questions
Show answer
Answer: (b) checking sources, evidence and bias. Critical use of media.
A major weakness of digital communication is that it —
1. spreads misinformation easily
2. cannot be interactive
3. has no reach
4. is slow
Read chapter notes · Similar questions
Show answer
Answer: (a) spreads misinformation easily. Speed also spreads falsehoods.
Before sharing a viral claim, a student should —
1. share immediately
2. add more claims
3. ignore all news
4. check an official source
Read chapter notes · Similar questions
Show answer
Answer: (d) check an official source. Verification first.
Educational TV channels under SWAYAM Prabha are an example of —
1. print media
2. advertising
3. educational broadcasting
4. social media
Read chapter notes · Similar questions
Show answer
Answer: (c) educational broadcasting. Broadcast for learning.
A clear subject line and polite tone are part of —
1. spam
2. coding
3. e-mail etiquette
4. phishing
Read chapter notes · Similar questions
Show answer
Answer: (c) e-mail etiquette. Professional e-mail practice.
The digital divide limits —
1. access to digital communication
2. printing speed
3. radio waves
4. paper supply
Read chapter notes · Similar questions
Show answer
Answer: (a) access to digital communication. Unequal access to devices and internet.