Apr. 19 , 2007

Convergence at Marietta College
By Chuck Turberville and Sean Trench
turbervc@marietta.edu and trenchs@marietta.edu

With the convergence of the mass media that has been taking place over the past several years, the future of the industry seems to be laying itself out as we speak.

For those of you who do not know what convergence of the media is, to put it simply, it is the blending of all the traditional media, such as newspapers, television, and radio, into one single source, such as a website.

The groundwork for convergence was laid by the Telecommunications Act of 1996, which practically eliminated the limit on the number of media outlets one company could own.
This act would lead to the emergence of media giants like Clear Channel Communications, which owns thousands of radio stations across America, as well as a great many television stations.

This combination of radio and television stations allows a company to cut back on its staff to eliminate costs.

Critics of convergence claim that it limits the perspectives on certain events and situations because there can be one reporter working for several stations and giving the exact same point of view.

In addition to convergence, technology is evolving so rapidly that jobs that were previously held by people can now be done by machines. For example, the cameras that are operated for many news stations are now fully automated, and are programmed by one, maybe two engineers.

This is the dilemma facing college students in the media today. There are fewer jobs and more students looking for them.So what has Marietta College done to help its students become competitive in these situations? It has made its students more diverse.

The Department of Communications and Media Studies has responded to this situation by allowing students to work in each of these fields if they so choose, as well as provided them the opportunity to learn how to design a Web site.

It also offers internet streaming of select radio programming on WMRT-FM, which allows anyone, anywhere to listen to radio shows or sporting events live online.

Assistant Professor in the department Marilee Morrow says, “ We're doing more than most schools, with the internet streaming, and allowing students to work firsthand with the radio and television stations.”

When asked what the most significant improvements would be over the next few years in the media at Marietta College, Morrow responded, “ I hope that we can have an interactive website as well as a brand new digital TV studio.”

With the future of the mass media changing so rapidly, Marietta College looks to keep up with the trends of the industries to ensure that students get the best preparation for the world that faces them upon graduation.