What are some mass media effects and their impact on society?

The mass media effects people in a number of different ways. One of which is defined by the Bullet Theory. The bullet effect theory is the idea that “the mass media had a profound, direct effect on people.” (Vivian 351) This idea implies that we see the media as “pictures in our heads” that are shaped not by our personal experiences in the real world but by our viewing of the mass media. So in essence, this theory implies that we do not draw on knowledge from our own experiences however form the media outlets we view. In a way this is very true in our modern times. Many people rely heavily on mass media outlets in order to formulate their ideas and opinions on what is going on in the world.
A more recently developed theory and more widely accepted on is the cumulative effects theory. It is stated that “Nobody can escape either the media, which are ubiquitous, or the medias messages, which are driven home with redundancy.” (Vivian 353) This theory makes much more sense because media is literally everywhere in our lives today. As the media is everywhere, we are bound to be effected by it, no matter how hard we try. This theory makes more sense because it combines all the other theories into one that implies that the media effects us no matter how hard we try to avoid it.