"The Mediatization of Religion"- Hjarvard

Stig Hjarvard

“The media as cultural institutions become prominent producers of various religious imaginations“(Hjarvard, 2008: 18).
This qoute from Hjarvard clearly shows the influence of the media on our current life and that the media act as agents of religious change. According to Hjarvard the mediatization is a new main source of religious ideas, where the social functions of institutional religion are taken over by the media, like the sense of community, moral and spiritual guidance.This happened through the development that the media have become an independent institution in society.

But the media is also the “main purveyor of enchanted experiences“ (17) which means a re-enchantment of modern world and it makes us familiar with supernatural themes you have only to think about Lord of the Rings or Harry Potter.
But in fact the media uses elements from religious traditions for their own use, while they change the religious message. Hjarvard calls this fact a “banal religion“. 

The media have always an unconscious influence when it comes to religious and political themes. Because of that the article is pretty important for the unterstanding of the context of religion and media. In our temporary world we are often confronted with this matter for example in the advertising. For this reason we should critically ask affairs from time to time.

Red Bull advertising:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LOVeSlE5ZFo

Reference:
Hjarvard S. 2008. The Mediatization of Religion: A Theory of the Media as Agents of Religious Change. Northern Lights. 6(1).
http://mef.ku.dk/ansatte/beskrivelse/?id=87296