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Characteristics of Mass Communication

These are the main characteristics of mass communication explained below:

1. Large Number of Audience
2. Heterogeneity
3. Anonymous
4. Delayed Feedback
5. Geographical Scattering
6. Professionally Competent Team
7. Complex Process
8. Gate-keeping
9. Disorganized and Shapeless
10. Lack of Togetherness

Large Number of Audience

In mass communication, the number of receivers or audience members is relatively large and considerably innumerable.

Heterogeneity

In this type of communication, the audience is relatively heterogeneous. That means much more heterogeneous than public communication and much more heterogeneous than group communication. It includes anyone living anywhere in the world without any consideration for gender, state, zone, religion, country, etc.

Anonymous

In mass communication, the receivers or audience members are not known to each other. They are quite anonymous compared to that group communication. In group communication, there is a very intimate relationship between audiences and are generally known to one another, while in mass communication they are quite unaware and unacquainted.

Delayed Feedback

In this type of communication, feedback is the most delayed: sometimes weekly or fortnightly, or monthly and that is too indirect and very generalized. This is mainly because, unlike group communication, the source and the receiver are quite separated from one another.

Geographical Scattering

In mass communication, the audiences are not together. But they are geographically scattered to different villages, towns, states, and even countries.

Professionally Competent Team

The program of mass media is collected, selected, evaluated, presented, produced, and finally distributed or transmitted by a professionally competent team of staff. Whether it is field work or desk work, whether it is production activity or transmission process, the staffs are well trained and professionally competent.

Complex Process

The activities of mass communication are rather a complex process. It includes many steps from encoding to finally delivering it to the receivers or the audience members.

Gate-keeping

This simply means that out of so many things happening around us and so many messages coming to us from all corners of the globe, extra care must be taken in selecting, rejecting, and spiking before constantly transmitting or distributing to the mass audience.

Disorganized and Shapeless

The audience members of mass communication are disorganized and shapeless as they are geographically scattered, categorically haphazard, and more importantly, they are anonymous and heterogeneous.

Lack of Togetherness

Yet another important trait of mass communication is that the audience is never together, but rather divided and located distantly. They are at far-off places from the source and from one another.

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