Raymond William's quickly points out the bizarre nature of the statement that a certain technology has "altered our world" (291).  He argues that, "we have got so used to statements of this general kind, in our most ordinary discussions, that we can fail to realise their specific meanings" (291). It is the quest of the anthropologist to dig beneath the surface of this anomaly in order to unearth what Williams calls, "some of the most unresolved historical and philosophical questions" that arise from relationships between a technology and a society, culture, or psychology (291). Media the method through which technology interacts with these larger topics. Williams says that there are two classes of opinion that dominate in relation to what the causes and effects of media in society are. However, Williams offers a third view in which he combines aspects of the first two. His belief is that there is "intention" to the process of research and development. Technology is seen as being looked for and developed with certain purposes already in mind. However, these purposes would be seen as direct, "known social needs", to which the technology is central (293). In actual practice, the development of technology to satisfy "known social needs" is largely driven by what Williams refers to as, "the real decision-making groups". If these groups determine that there is a need, it is much more likely for resources to be allocated to discover a solution.  

Williams uses the example of the invention and subsequent usage of the television to illustrate this interaction of technology and media with the rest of the world. He sees the development of telegraphy, telephony, and radio as, "directly serving the needs of an established and developing military and commercial system" (296). A secondary factor of their development was their usage as conductors of media. However, the development of these devices was not nearly as complex as the development of the television. Many different inventions had to occur to allow the TV to become a reality. These inventions include things as simple as the discovery of electricity to the complex invention of photography. The TV was then integrated into society through media. As we often see, media forms the connective tissue between the technology (the TV in this case) and the society. Williams goes on to make a larger point. Once the TV became integrated in society and became a means for "social communications", it resulted in the emergence of a, "social complex of a new and central kind" (300). This is the effect of the television and Williams reasoning behind why people are saying that, "the television has altered our world" (292). 

Raymond Williams larger point has to do with society and ideologies interacting with time and space. In thinking about media in terms of space, we have to question what mechanism is controlling who can come in and when. For example, online worlds are more inclusive than real worlds, where people can be segregated based on race, gender, ethnicity, etc. This is seen in Brian Larkin's piece on Kano, where different theater entrances existed for blacks, whites, and women. In thinking about how media works in time, we must ask questions such as when a certain media is available for certain people. For example, in the real world there are times when movie theaters will be closed down. However, a movie can be accessed online at any point. In theaters in Kano, cinema was only shown at certain times to certain groups of people. Groups were based again on class, gender, and race.