Introduction
The context of modern communication and life as a whole is impossible to imagine without non-physical means of connecting with others. However, before the middle of the 19th century, one small message could take days and weeks to be delivered to the recipient, impeding efficient communication between people. The principle of communication changed once and for all in 1844, as it was the year Samuel F. B. Morse introduced the telegraph (Rasmussen, 2022). The discovery allowed people to share information with others through code regardless of distance.
The Telegraph Invention
It is reasonable to assume that the invention of the telegraph is the precursor of the existing patterns of quick, virtual, and efficient communication online. According to Flyverbom and Madsen (2019), “as the first technology to detach communication from slow, physical means of transportation, the telegraph ushered in new ways of communicating and organizing” (p.1). However, apart from the evident facilitation of the way people interact, the discovery of the telegraph has impacted the way people perceive information in general. For example, according to Blondheim (2019), the telegraph has contributed to the emergence of a coherent data gathering system, giving rise to the news and media. Moreover, the invention of the telegraph has affected the economic patterns of the countries because financial and commodity markets were consolidated by saving financial assets on delivering information.
Conclusion
Thus, it can be concluded that the telegraph was one of the most significant inventions of the 19th century because it gave rise to the overall reconsideration of society. Nowadays, society is characterized mostly by the rapid development of globalization and reducing any borders between social groups, communities, and countries. The invention of the telegraph, for its turn, was a forerunner of all the global processes taking place in the world.
References
Blondheim, M. (2019). Telegraph: Invention and impact. The International Encyclopedia of Journalism Studies, 1-3.
Flyverbom, M., & Madsen, A. K. (2019). Telegraph. In The Oxford handbook of media, technology, and organization studies. Oxford University Press.
Rasmussen. F. N. (2022). Samuel F.B. Morse gave the first public telegraph demonstration 178 years ago in Baltimore. The federal government was less than impressed. The Baltimore Sun.