Know your English
People tend to say, ``the media is''. Shouldn't it be ``the media are''?
The word ``media'' is the plural of ``medium'' and it is generally used to refer to radio, television, newspapers, etc - things generally associated with mass communication. Since the word is considered to be plural, it is only logical that the verb that follows it should be plural too. Careful users of the language frown on those who use a singular verb. These days however, ``media'' can be followed by a singular or a plural verb. In the beginning we thought of the various media as being separate entities. When we use a singular verb after ``media'' we are thinking of the various media as a single entity. Here are a few examples from dictionaries which show that the word ``media'' can be followed by either a singular or a plural verb.* The news media are interested only in bad news.
* The manager feels that the media is biased.
Source:
The Hindu daily, Tuesday, May 08, 2001
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