Contributing to the body of knowledge

I think we need to conduct research by having something that interests us in the first place. Then, in order to properly conduct the research we want to, we have to explore what has already been done. I have learned in so many ways that reviewing the literature is the most important part. I have had many ideas (the impact of the Internet, children and advertising, digital cable v. analog), but when I went to explore all of these nifty ideas that I had, I found that someone had already done something close to what I wanted to do. Had I not reviewed the literature, I would have wasted my time and the time of any scholars of whom I had asked to read my work. So, what to do? I come up with different ideas based on what I have read.
I learn that the impact of the Internet is being explored, but what about how news stories and their images are told in the Internet? Or how about the idea that advertising is really trying to reach the younger generation so why not explore the baby boomers or the elderly or even our generations X and Y to a different extent? What about what causes a person to choose the more expensive digital cable over basic or analog cable?
It is very important to aid in developing the field of mass communication because technology is aiding in changing the field, so why not the scholars? The Internet, though a force of great impact to the field, is still evolving and still changing. If we don’t explore the medium, we will be lagging behind in the years to come when the next new medium comes along. We use the Internet to meet so many of our needs, that it can be compared to print, television, video, gaming, etc. The idea of not expanding our research and knowledge would mean remaining antiquated while new technologies expand.