The Viewing of Audience to the Issue of Information Overload in Media

Abstract

In recent years, the developments in communication and printing technologies have significantly increased the opportunities of media companies to provide information. As the production and distribution of information and entertainment is getting easier in the media with the effect of globalization, the audience are exposed to overload information. As newspapers, magazines, cinema, radio, television, books and the internet constantly are processing the world as a source of news, almostly there are not any place for audience to keep away from information overload. By the increasing of production capability and emerging information overload leads to an audience apathy and neglect against to media content. For example, it is claimed that information overload effects audience resulting the lack of attention, anxiety, timelessness and mental fatigue. Indeed, the information based on diversity and quality is important for the function of democracy. From this perspective, as a developing country with a significant market-driven and a commercialized media model, the tendencies of audience against to information overload were examined by a survey method in Turkey.

Keywords

• Information overload
• audience
• lack of attention
• timelessness
• data smog.