American viewers watch TV about six hours a day, usually tuned to one of the national commercial networks: ABC (the American Broadcasting Corporation), NBC (the National Broadcasting Company), CBS (Columbia Broadcasting System) or Fox Broadcasting Company. These stations attract about 98 per cent of TV audiences.
Mass communication has revolutionized the modern world. In the United States it has given rise to what social observers sometimes call a media state, a society in which access to power is through the media. The term media, understood broadly, includes any channel of information through which information can pass. Since a democracy largely depends on public opinion, all those involved in communicating information inevitably have an important role to play. The print and broadcasting media not only convey information to the public, but also influence public opinion. Television, with access to virtually every American household, is a powerful influence.On average, American viewers watch TV about six hours a day, usually tuned to one of the national commercial networks: ABC (the American Broadcasting Corporation), NBC (the National Broadcasting Company), CBS (Columbia Broadcasting System) or Fox Broadcasting Company. These stations attract about 98 per cent of TV audiences.Theoretically, anyone in the United States can start a newspaper or a magazine, but to become a radio or television broadcaster one must be granted a portion of the limited radio-television spectrum by the government’s licensing board, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). For the most part, the American broadcasting system has always been a commercial system. It is supported by money from businesses that pay to advertise goods or services to the audience. Advertising messages are usually presented as 15, 30 or 60-second commercial announcements before, during and after programs. During a sixty-minute TV program you can expect to see about twelve minutes of commercials.
