How Senior Citizens Are Influenced by Newspapers

Running head: HOW SENIOR CITIZENS ARE INFLUENCED BY NEWS PAPERS 0

Abstract

Essentially, this research paper looks at how people, 55 years old and above, are influenced by the newspapers. The people in this age bracket (called baby boomers) grew up with the habit of reading the dailies, which is hard to shake. In this digital age, most of the print newspaper businesses are almost disappearing due to the far-reaching effects of the social media platform. The majority of the generation X and the Millennials get their information from the Internet, leaving the print business barely afloat. The paper looks at how the newspaper depicts the baby boomers and how this perception influences the public view. Finally, how these older adults access basic amenities such as good healthcare is also covered.

How Senior Citizens Are Influenced by Newspapers

Introduction

Currently, digital technologies have changed the way people think and behave. The way the media portrays older people informs and influences the attitudes, beliefs, and actions of younger generation towards the Senior Citizens (Fealy, McNamara, Treacey & Lyons, 2012). The baby boomer generation is predicted to increase in the coming years, which has led to a growing number of studies on how these people are portrayed by the media. Today, the majority of the societal values, perspectives, and beliefs of what is right or wrong for the older people is impacted by the way the media portrays them. The newspapers are a very influential part of the media and are an important means for the public to shape its perception, which in turn is a major factor on how the old people are influenced by the newspapers (Zhang et al., 2006; Fealy et al., 2012).

It is evident that the media provides the vision of Senior Citizens in different ways. Research into how Senior Citizens are portrayed by the media has been covered extensively in the fields of social and communication sciences (Utoila et al., 2001). Advertisements in various magazines tend to portray such people in a positive manner. The images and photographs are standardized, and they are depicted as people who are happy, active, affluent and influential (Ylanne, Willims, & Wadleigh, 2009). In such a way, from one side, Senior Citizens are portrayed in rather positive light.

Still, the negative depiction is also present. Senior Citizens are seen as physically weak and vulnerable (Zhang et al., 2006). However, Rozovan (2006) argues that the newspapers’ portrayal of old people remains more negative than in any other form of media. Newspapers depict them as lonely, frail, fragile, and very dependent (Fealy et al., 2012). Moreover, they are seen as a burden to their families, as inactive people and non-contributors to the society in general (Blakeborough, 2008). Given that, it is quite controversial to establish that both messages are delivered to the public.

The media depiction, especially the negative one by the newspapers, leads people to form adverse attitudes towards Senior Citizens. Mostly, this negative portrayal affects the society’s attitudes, which in turn influences people’s attitudes and finally forms a negative influence on the old people’s welfare (Raman, Harwood, Weis, Anderson, & Miller, 2008). Organizations, such as nursing homes pay little attention to the quality of the care products and packages for the aged since it is not very beneficial to invest in this age group. The quality of care given to these people is not satisfactory. Many researchers in the medical field feel that the population, in general, is not ready to provide the necessary services that come with an increase in the aging population (Utoila et al., 2001). Sadly, it is very alarming to see that many ordinary citizens are not willing to put any investment in the care of the elderly.

The other negative influence caused by newspapers is the downgrading and the insulting view of the older people. The equality of old people and how they relate to other members of society and their peers is alarming (Whitefield, 2001). All seniors are entitled to fair treatment and special services just like other groups, such as children, women, prisoners, people with disabilities, and the mentally challenged. A good allusion to this situation is that children are not left alone in day care with the assumption that their parents would come to take them outdoors for lunch. The call for help here is to ensure that the aged have the same quality of services at the same cost as all the other age groups countrywide.

Importance of the Topic

Essentially, this topic is important as it highlights the troubles that the older generation face as a result of how it is portrayed by the media and the newspapers in general. The topic further discusses how the attitudes influence the lives of Senior Citizens since they are left with limited resources on their access to medical supplies. The topic also highlights a major difference and shifts from the traditional print business to a more digital one (Blodget, 2001). Statistics show a majority of people who read newspapers daily are mostly in their 50s and above (Meyer, 2009). `There are significantly fewer people that read the newspaper than there used to be. This can be easily seen because of the amount of people that are still in the habit of reading the newspaper every day. Because there are so few people reading the newspapers, it leaves little room for advertisements as they would not apply to that generation.

Biographical Information about the Authors

Philip Meyer and Henry Blodget have extensively studied the older generation. Philip Meyer is a Professor of Emeritus of Journalism at the University of Chapel Hill. Being born on October 27, 1930, he is a former holder of the Knight Chair in Journalism at the University of North Carolina. He conducts research in the areas of journalism quality, precision, and civic journalism. He further covers newspapers and the communication technology industry. He has accomplished many goals in his life for example he has written the book the Vanishing Newspaper: Saving Journalism in the Information Age, which was a very good source.

Another major source that was used was that of Henry Blodget. He is a successful businessman, as well as a journalist, and an author. He was born in 1966 and is a former equity research analysis who was a senior analyst for CIBC, or the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, which is a business building. He is as well as host of Yahoo Daily. He is also the founder of Business Insider Inc. and has written the book the Wall Street Defence Manual.

Darren Blake Borough is an assistant professor of media and communication studies at the University of Fraser Valley. Nicole Dahmen is a co-writer and also an assistant professor of visual communication at the faculty of journalism and mass media studies at the University of Oregon. The paper looks at the work of Greg Fealy who is a senior lecturer and fellow in Indonesian politics at the College of Asia. He is also the senior professor of Indonesian politics and social change at the Bell School of Asia Pacific Affairs ANU. Rama P is a member of the Biophysics program at Ohio State University, Columbus, while Rozovona is a member of the department of sociology at Yale University in New Haven. Whitefield is a member of the University of Hull faculty of health and social care department. Lastly, Virpi Ylanne is a lecturer and researcher at Cardiff University in the UK at the Centre for Language and Communication Research/ ENCAP. “Zhang is a researcher at the State Key Laboratory in Wuhan Centre for Development Biology, (Zhang, 2006)”.

References

Blodget, H. (2014). If newspapers and magazines think life is tough now, they won’t want to see what happens next. Business Insider Magazines. Retrieved from http://www.businessinsider.com/media-usage-by-age-2014-5

Blakeborough, D. (2008). “Old people are useless” Representations of aging on the Simpsons. Canadian Journal of Aging, 27 (1), 57-67.

Dahmen N., S., & Cozman, R. (2009). Media takes: On aging, style guide for journalism, entertainment and advertising Sacramento. California: International Longevity Centre- USA.

Fealy G., McNamara, M., Treacy M., P, & Lyons, I. (2012). Constructing aging and aging identities; A case study of newspapers discourses. Aging and Society, 32 (1), 85-102.

Raman, P., Harwood, J., Weis., D, Anderson, J. L., & Miller, G. (2008). The portray of older adults in the U.S and Indian magazines advertisements. A cross-cultural comparison. Howard Journal of Communication, 19 (3), 203-213.

Rozanova, J. (2010). Discourse of successfully aging in the Globe & Mail: Insights from the critical gerontology. Canadian Journal of Aging Studies, 24(3), 213-222.

Meyer, P. (2009). The vanishing newspaper; saving journalism in the information age. (2nd ed.). Missouri: University of Missouri.

Uotilla, H., Lumme- Sandt, K.,& Saarenheimo, M. (2001). Lonely older people as a problem in society. International Journal of Aging and Later in Life, 5(2), 103-130.

Whitefield, C. (2001). Benign or malign? Media stereotyping. Nursing Older People, 13(6), 10-13.

Ylanne, V., Willims, A., & Wadleigh, P. M (2009). Aging well? Older people’s health and well-being as portrayed by UK magazines and advertisements. International Journal of Aging and Later in Life, 4(2), 33-62.

Zhang, Y.B., Harwood, J., Williams, A., Ylanne V, Wadleigh, P.M., & Thimm, C. (2006). The portrayal of older adults in advertising. Journal of Language and Social Psychology, 25 (3), 264-283.