This has been a more global approach to health, based on health promotion principles. Mass media exerts a tremendous influence on our society. It constructs particular frameworks of interpretation and shapes our perspective of the world. The media can play a major role in defining what health is. If we want to move away from the old concept of health as an absence of disease, media reporting may have to move away from 'illness news' towards 'health news'.
Media can be a tool for health promotion campaigns.
However, for a media campaign to be effective, certain guidelines must be followed. We are now a long, sophisticated distance away from the first time radio was used for health education. Presently, there are also interactive Web sites that help people make behavioural and emotional changes to improve their diet. This type of direct interaction between an individual and the media has only been possible since the mid-1990s with the advent of the Internet. It remains important for the educator to remember that media is only one tool for health promotion and not an end in itself.