Health Communication and the Internet

Abstract

The functions of modern mass media to give → information, to provide orientation, and to promote health‐related behaviors are widely recognized within the field of → health communication. The media of → television, → radio, → newspapers, and → magazines influence intentionally or unintentionally, and mass media health campaigns are used purposively and effectively to change health practices (→ Health Campaigns, Communication in). Nevertheless, the existing empirical research evidence is mixed. Content analyses (Will et al. 2005) and → cultivation effects research (Brown & Walsh‐Childers 2002), e.g., on media images of thinness and eating disorders, seem to prove many dysfunctional health effects, especially by television (→ Content Analysis, Qualitative; Content Analysis, Quantitative). Even though there is some controversy on the effects of mass media in health promotion, there is a large body of work that documents the effectiveness of mass media public health campaigns. So the → Internet as a new platform gave rise to many new hopes, especially because of its unique features like convergence, interactivity, information capacity, and global reach (→ Interactivity, Concept of).