Communication has always been an integral part of human lives, to the point that society, as it is, would not exist without it. As a fish that does not perceive water, people often forget the meaning and importance of communication. It is a symbolic process whereby the information is transmitted between people based on their perception of it. Carey, with his clear definition of communication, has the best approach to it.
Obviously, the transmission of information is seen as the core of communication. People exchange thoughts, plans, and opinions, which leads to the further spreading of information in society. However, this transmission spreads not only common information but control (Carey 55). In the age of exploration and discovery, people had different motives for gaining control, such as the spread of religion and reasons of trade. It all was done via basic transmission of the information through different communities, conditions, and beliefs. Nowadays, information is being transmitted with the help of newspapers, television, and social media, for the same purposes. It is meant to spread a political agenda, religious beliefs, or modern news as widely as possible. Therefore, communication as a transmission of information affects the global society on a large scale.
Information is perceived by a person through a filter of their culture and the basic understanding of communication. The ritual view of communication has not been dominant in American society because the concept of culture has little to no meaning in American social thought (Carey 55). Nonetheless, when receiving the information, people adjust it to their reality and to the norms and models of understanding, they gained throughout life. Nowadays, people have modern rituals that they use for more efficient communication.
Communication is basically a transmission of information from sender to receiver, adjusted by the standards of society. The transmission of it is used not only in everyday lives but by ones willing to gain control and power. However, it is often forgotten that at the base of communication lies the culture and reality in which the individual or the society lives.
Works Cited
Carey, James. Communication as Culture: Essays on Media and Society. Routledge, 2009.