What is another name for media?

Back in the "old days," in the 1700s and 1800s, the media were originally called "the press." This Word was derived from the printing press, without which a newspaper or magazine could not publish. That is why you see that terminology used in the First Amendment, where it guarantees "Freedom of the Press." As for the term "media," it is relatively recent. It began to appear sporadically in the late 1940s, but did not come into common use till the late 1960s, in large part due to the growing influence of television as a source for news and information.