Technology has changed the way news is communicated throughout the world . The development of the television has led to vast improvements on how quickly local, national and world news reaches the general public. The widespread use of the television as a quick way to stay in touch with current affairs, has influenced many people world wide. Influence is the capacity of an object or person to produce an effect on the opinions, actions and behaviours of individuals. One of the main reasons why television is so influential is because the image alone has the power to captivate the viewer and leave he or she in awe. There are various national news broadcasting companies throughout the country. Some of these broadcasting companies have television channels devoted to updating the nation on breaking news. CNN is an American broadcasting company that calls itself the most trusted name in news. Its slogan is compelling and the majority of American people trust that the news reported by CNN is accurate. CNN has been reporting intensively on the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq over the past several years. CNN displays captivating images of the circumstances faced by soldiers, civillians and the leaders in these countries. These images are so compelling viewers opinions on the wars in these countries are easily influenced. Usually the reporter commentating on the footage is not on the television screen while these images are being shown, but rather their voices in the background. The viewer is captivated by the image and is easily influenced by the reporters comments regarding the footage.

Literature, novels, textbooks or any form of written work, where an individual can acquire knowledge on specific subject matter can be more influential than television. When an individual would like to learn about the circumstances faced by individuals in the past, a book will be better suited than a television program. A popular novel called, The Diary of Anne Frank, has been very influential on the perceptions pertaining to the circumstances faced by Jewish people living in Europe during the Second World War. The novel is a collection of diary entries from the perspective of a young Jewish girl living throughout the Holocaust. Her descriptive accounts of her and her family's daily lives are so compelling that is has produced a dramatic effect on society's opinions of the Nazi regime and the Holocaust. A book of this nature is much more influential when pertaining to a historical event ,such as the Second World War, because you get an individuals first hand account of the conditions faced by he or she. A modern day television news report chronicalling the holocaust sixty years later would not leave the same impression.

Television is more influential on society when keeping up to date with currrent affairs. This is examplified with national news channels, such as CNN, displaying vivid images of the current wars going on in the world. These images have the capacity to produce effects on the opinions of viewers when dealing with current affairs. However, books are more influential when learning about historical events because they provide first hand accounts about the life of indivuals during these era's. The Diary of Anne Frank does an excellent job at not only giving the reader a first hand account on the lifestyle of a young Jewish girl during this crucial time in our history, but also leave the reader with strong opinions about the Nazi regime.

"Video killed the Radio Star"
is a classic lyric from MTV's first music video. The accurancy of this statement is uncanny considering that performers and muscians reach the pinnacle of their popularity by having their music broadcast on television. It illustrates that one form of media can indeed make another form of media obsolete. Television has greater influence on our society than written forms of media such as books and newsprint. Influence on people or society should be defined as the ability of a communcation media's content to alter the genral public's thinking and its ability to grab the public's attention. According to the stated defintion, televisions would have a greater influence than books because the genral public can quickly recount the plot of the best selling movie of all time, Titanic; whereas it is much more difficult to find a person who can provide an accurate summary of the greatest selling book of all time, the Bible.

It is incorrect to suggest that television completely overshadowed and replaced the influence of books on people. There are instances which books are a preferred form of communication medium over the television set. In academic fields, television can not deliver the preciseness and accuracy of a printed scienctific journal. Printed media such as books tend to have greater influence on people when preciseness and accurancy is required.

The increased influence of the television over books can be attributed to the acessibility and ease of use of a television set. To understand the cotent delivered by televisions, simply turn on the power and pay attention; whereas understanding a novel's content requires literacy and critical anlysis of the material being read. A wider demographic can access the television's content. The increased accessiblity allows television to have a greater influence than books.However, if our population increased its literacy rate, printed media's influence on people should increase.