In the era of the 24/7 news channel and social media, "traditional" media consumption is declining.
The term "new media" refers to the vast amount of content accessed online. In one sense, the term itself is outdated. But the technologies behind new media are very much cutting edge.
"As time goes on, the lines between these types of media blur, creating increasingly enchanting experiences," says John Mindiola, an instructor with Rasmussen University's Graphic Design Bachelor’s degree program. The ubiquity and the immediacy of new media technologies has a huge impact on our attention spans and the ways we perceive design.
"Augmented reality, virtual reality and mixed reality allow for increasingly immersive experiences, from playing video games to previewing furniture and new ways to think about brands’ influence on people."
While design has always evolved along with changes in traditional media and new media, the rapid updates in today’s technologies are creating market shifts at an unprecedented rate. Like any rapidly developing field, its implications are far from simple. New media presents considerable challenges and opportunities in how we communicate.
How New Media Shapes Graphic Design: 3 Key Examples
If you consider anything you might access online, you've got the right idea. But consider how each of these new media categories can impact people and their perception of design.
1. Social media platforms
Today, no marketing strategy is complete without a focus on social media.
Although these are the most saturated channels, they also tend to be the most effective at garnering awareness and facilitating communication. Static graphics for this type of media thrive in simplicity. With users quickly scrolling, it's more important for graphic artists to focus on what will stand out most in a clean and digestible way instead of worrying about added design flourish.
Video assets have also become an integral part of social media. Algorithms for social media apps give added importance to video content, increasing opportunities for visibility and engagement.1
Social media sites also present ever-changing marketing opportunities, such as the ability to personalize message based on different professions, personal attributes and geographic location.
2. Streaming platforms
While old media's television and movie posters used to only be seen out in public or in magazines, the promotional art we see for new media has to be transferable across all screen sizes. In addition to traditional media specs, artwork sometimes needs to be high enough resolution to be displayed clearly in places on everything from small screens to highway billboards.
Designers are often also responsible for producing visual elements such as sidebar overlays, lower thirds and scene transitions to enhance the production value of live streams.2
3. Websites
Many industries now rely on various forms of digital marketing to engage their customers. For these projects, graphic designers and marketing managers collaborate to deliver new media that:
- Creates a visually appealing and impactful brand identity
- Captures audience attention
- Drives engagement
- Extends brand reach
- Conveys messages effectively across various digital platforms
As media continues to expand into different platforms and channels, a brand's entire marketing and public relations team needs to stay up-to-date on new media technologies to remain relevant.
Designers must strike a balance between eye-catching creativity and functional clarity, ensuring their work is effective whether it’s seen on a digital signage or as a tiny thumbnail on a mobile device. Other marketing materials like brochures viewable as PDFs or email newsletters are also important aspects of design.
How new media technology empowers graphic designers
As you can see from those media examples, it's hard to imagine something online that graphic designers don't have a hand in. While there are key differences between traditional media and digital work, the changes can really empower designers. Here's how.
Unlike traditional media, new media is interactive
New media technologies have the ability to be more dynamic than traditional media such as print. With new sophisticated algorithms, for example, brands can increase visibility and enhance audience interaction. Aspects of new media such as commenting and sharing give users a chance to have conversations about the content being served to them in real time, allowing designers to shift and tailor their work based on how their audience is receiving it.
The dialogue available in new media also paves the way for new communities and meaningful relationships to form. Social media sites and streaming services also make it easier than ever for digital content to be stored and shared. This rapid sharing of content drives up demand for visually intriguing thumbnails and optimized user interfaces, making way for a new wave of creativity that can grab peoples' attention in a rapidly moving digital age.
New media supports graphic design accessibility
Many new media platforms and technologies have emerged with the purpose of making design experiences accessible to as many people as possible. Accessibility is helpful for the visually impaired, who use screen readers to consume digital content.
New media technology helps us capitalize on the latest trends
The instant nature of social media networks and digital marketing make it possible for brands to react to the moment to keep people engaged. For example, when a KFC® franchise ran out of chicken, their social media manager had the idea of publishing an image of a chicken bucket to social that read "FCK" instead of "KFC". This light-hearted gag simply wouldn't be possible or timely with printed, traditional media. It's this sort of fast and loose content marketing strategy that new media makes possible.
Many savvy brands leverage the rapid-fire elements of social media to capitalize on current events. When people lost power during the 2013 Superbowl, Mondelez International's Oreo® brand swiftly tweeted a picture of an Oreo cookie with the memorable line "You can still dunk in the dark.3” Newsjacking opportunities like these help brands stand out.
Artificial intelligence (AI) reveals new worlds to graphic designers
Software companies are constantly releasing new tools with AI-driven features that can significantly streamline the design process and workload. From automating repetitive tasks to allowing for easier file searching and storing, AI is proving that it can be a valuable tool from a creative process standpoint.
"AI has been slowly creeping its way into Adobe® apps, but you have to learn the basics first," says Mindiola. "It’s only then that you begin to recognize and appreciate what AI can truly mean in terms of productivity and creativity." Whether it’s something seemingly inconsequential like extending the background of an image to fit a certain crop or extending a few seconds of a video clip, these tools can allow designers to focus on more important elements in their work.
"Tools like Adobe Firefly®, Adobe Project Neo and those built into Photoshop®, Illustrator® and Express allow designers to imagine extremely specific, fantastical imagery and video footage," Mindiola says.
"However, in-depth understanding of art and design is still needed to craft effective prompts and extract the most meaningful content."
There are plenty of free AI tools, but people who want to make a career in graphic design still do need a formal education. Graphic designers usually need an undergraduate degree, such as a bachelor’s degree in graphic design or a related field, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics ( BLS).4
How new media technology challenges graphic designers
It's not all sunshine and rainbows on the internet, of course.
Platform-specific design requirements
In traditional media, designers only had to be concerned with a few select file types. New media has changed that drastically. Different social media and streaming platforms require unique design formats. File types, asset sizes, color palettes and other capabilities vary from platform to platform, often creating additional work for design professionals.
For example, a YouTube® video thumbnail will require different specifications from an Instagram® post or a digital banner for Apple Music®. Designers must constantly advance their knowledge and adapt their work to meet the technical demands of different platforms, ensuring their content is optimized for diverse media channels.
Common new media design tools
Designers working in online media must stay up to date on the latest technology. "Adobe Creative Cloud software is always changing, which is exciting for seasoned designers, faculty, and students alike," says Mindiola, who shared insights about many popular tools.
Dreamweaver®
This tool allows designers to create simple and complex websites. While it’s not currently as popular as web builders like Framer® and Webflow®, it’s still a helpful tool for learning HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and other languages.
Premiere Pro® and After Effects®
These have also been around for years, allowing designers to edit videos and add high-quality visual effects and motion graphics, respectively.
Adobe Premiere Rush
This tool is a more recent addition to the suite. It’s intentionally simpler than Premiere Pro, so that users can edit videos on mobile and share them on social media in just a few taps.
Express® (formerly known as Spark)
Express was released a couple years prior to Premiere Rush. It’s a robust web platform. Designers can quickly create all sorts of content, from traditional media like flyers, posters, and brochures, to new media like videos, simple webpages, and social media graphics.
Misconceptions about how graphic design works
Today, the market is now saturated with people who know how to use digital design tools to some extent.
This can appear to devalue the expertise of professional designers who've spent years honing their craft. Many people carry false assumptions about the use and power of poorly-designed media.
Design experts are well served to educate their clients about design. The craft involves much more than simply using design tools. It requires the acumen to help clients convey a message visually.
This work isn't just about making something look attractive. It's about helping to achieve business goals in a compelling and persuasive way.
There is a great deal of art, subtlety and skill that goes into this work. Everything from the color to the composition of visual elements impacts the mood and motivations of the target audience. That's why having a solid education in the underlying principles of design is just as important as learning the technical tools of the trade.
Graphic design work in the era of new media
Design professionals put their creativity to work every day in tasks such as...
- Meeting with clients to understand goals and pain points
- Considering aspects of visual work that can inspire and inform the target market
- Executing on these ideas by carefully applying colors, typefaces, imagery and other elements
- Presenting design options to clients
- Revising designs based on client feedback
- Ensuring designs align with and help to elevate the client's brand identity
- Partnering with disciplines such as web developers and designers to deliver graphics that meet the right specifications
- Soliciting feedback as the designs go into use to continually hone their craft
For more on that, check out What Do Graphic Designers Do? A Closer Look at this Creative Career.
What is new media going to do next?
According to current trends, new media is expected to continue evolving beyond traditional media, embracing highly-personalized, AI-driven media content that enhances user engagement.
With advancements in new media technologies, we are seeing a shift toward augmented reality and virtual reality experiences, creating immersive and interactive environments that redefine marketing, design and communication.
As technology continues to shape the digital age, brands are increasingly using social media platforms, streaming services and mobile devices to reach their customers. Unlike old media, where static print media and newspaper press releases dominated marketing strategies, today’s marketing managers and public relations specialists rely on data-driven insights to tailor content to individual users across different platforms.
This change has made it necessary for graphic designers to develop new media skills, adapting their work to fit a world where AI-generated visuals, social media networks and real-time engagement play a critical role in branding.
As new technologies continue to evolve, the future of new media will emphasize niche audience targeting, seamless integration with the physical world and a more personalized user experience.
Brands will need to deliver interactive content across various forms of media, blending AI-powered automation with human creativity to communicate effectively in the modern public sphere.
To hear what actual designers think about these changes, check out Graphic Design and Artificial Intelligence: What Designers Think About The AI Wave.
1 Dawn DeGuzman, The power of video in news media: how increased audience engagement drives success, Sept. 23, 2024),The power of video in news media: how increased audience engagement drives success | The Associated Press
2 5 graphics essential to every live stream, (May.30, 2024), https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/5-graphics-essential-every-live-stream-tagboard-com-qg49c/
3 Newsjacking: 4 Best Examples of Brands Capitalizing on Viral Moments, (Aug.15, 2023), Newsjacking: 4 Best Examples of Brands Capitalizing on Viral Moments
4 Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, Graphic Designers, (date accessed), Graphic Designers : Occupational Outlook Handbook: : U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
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YouTube® is a registered trademark of GOOGLE LLC
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