5. WHAT IS AN AUDIENCE THEORY?
o It is virtually impossible these days to go through a day without
encountering the media in some form. We are all therefore apart of the
audience for these different kinds of media products.
o Over the course of the past century or so, media analysts have developed
several “effects models”, which are explanations of how humans ingest the
information transmitted by media texts and how this might influence (or not)
their behaviour.
o Some people see media audiences as being easily manipulated masses of
people There have also been fears that the contents of media texts can make
their audiences behave in different ways. On the other hand there have been
other critics who have seen the media as having much less influence and
working in more subtle ways.
6. THE HYPODERMIC NEEDLE
THEORY
o Dating from the 1920s and being one of the most simple theory's to understand the hypodermic
needle theory was the first attempt to explain how mass audiences might react to mass media.
According to the theory the media is like a syringe which injects ideas, attitudes and beliefs into the
audience who as a powerless mass have little choice but to be influenced
o But remember that this theory was developed in an age when the mass media were still fairly new -
radio and cinema were less than two decades old. Governments had just discovered the power of
advertising to communicate a message, and produced propaganda to try and sway people to their
way of thinking.
o So this theory suggests that, as an audience, we are manipulated by the creators of media texts, and
that our behaviour and thinking might be easily changed by media-makers. It assumes that the
audience are passive and heterogenous. It is used to explain why certain groups in society should
not be exposed to certain media texts for fear that they will watch or read sexual or violent behaviour
and will then act them out themselves .
7. EVIDENCE FOR THE
HYPODERMIC NEEDLE THEORY
o The Frankfurt School, a group of German Marxists, who in the 1930s
witnessed first hand how Hitler used propaganda to influence a nation.
oThe Bobo Doll experiment This is a very controversial piece of research that
apparently proved that children copy violent behaviour.
ohttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hHHdovKHDNU
8. USES AND GRATIFICATION
THEORY
o According to uses and gratification theory, we all have different uses for the media and we make
choices over what we want to watch.
oIn this model the individual has the power and they are able to select the media texts that best suits
their needs and their attempts to satisfy those needs. The psychological basis for this model is the
Hierarchy of Needs identified by Maslow.
oThe theory suggests that we as an audience may use the media for the four following purposes:
oDiversion – Escaping from everyday problems and routine. What do you think
Morality,
Self would go under
oPersonal Relationships – Using the media for emotional Actualization
Creativity, each title of
and other interaction (substituting soap operas for family Problem Solving, Maslow’s Hierarchy
Lack of Prejudice, of needs?
Self
life. Acceptance of Facts.
Esteem
oPersonal Identity – Finding yourself reflected in Esteem, Confidence, Achievement,
Respect ofSocial Needs
Others, Respect by Others.
the media, learning behaviour and values.
Friendship, Family, Sexual Intimacy, Love,
oSurveillance – Information which could Belonging.
Safety Needs
be useful for living (weather reports, Safety of Self, Security of Employment, Security of Morality,
Security of your Family, Security of your Health, Security of your
financial news, holiday bargains) Property.
Physical Needs
Breathing, Food, Water, Sex, Sleep.
9. TWO-STEP FLOW THEORY
oThe two-step flow hypothesis was first introduced by Paul
Lazarsfeld, Bernard Berelson, and Hazel Gaudet in a paper called
The People's Choice, a 1944 study focused on the process of
decision-making during a Presidential election campaign.
oThey were surprised to discover that informal, personal contacts
were mentioned far more frequently than exposure to radio or
newspaper as sources of influence on voting behaviour.
oThis theory asserts that information from the media moves in
two distinct stages. First, individuals (opinion leaders) who pay
close attention to the mass media and its messages receive the
information. Opinion leaders then create their own
interpretations of the media content from their reaction to the
message. Second, opinion leaders influence or change the
attitudes and behaviours of individuals that they have social
contact with who take in their opinions and attitudes.
10. RECEPTION THEORY
oThe reception theory was developed by the academic Stuart Hall at Birmingham University in
the 1970s. This considered how texts were encoded with meaning by producers and then decoded
by audiences.
oThe theory suggests that when a producer constructs a text it is encoded with a meaning or
message that the producer wishes to convey to the audience. In some instances audiences will
correctly decode the message or meaning and understand what the producer was trying to say, in
other instances the audience will either reject or fail to correctly understand the message
oStuart Hall identified three types of audience readings of the media: Dominant, Negotiated and
Oppositional.
oDominant - Where the audience decodes the message as the producer wants them to do and
broadly agrees with it. E.g. Watching a political speech and agreeing with it
oNegotiated - Where the audience accepts, rejects or refines elements of the text in light of
previously held views. E.g. Neither agreeing or disagreeing with the political speech or being
disinterested
oOppositional - Where the dominant meaning is recognised but rejected for cultural, political or
ideological reasons. E.g. Total rejection of the political speech and active opposition
11. EXAMPLES OF ENCODED
TEXTS/SUBLIMINAL MESSAGES
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YI_dqSO30Mg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=73fCLx-mFLg
Banita -It is virtually impossible these days to go through a day without encountering the media in some form. You may wake up to the sound of the radio, listen to music on your way to college, pass billboards in the street and watch television or go to a film in the evening. We are all therefore apart of the audience for these different kinds of media products, but what does this rather obvious statement actually mean?Sophie - Over the course of the past century or so, media analysts have developed several “effects models”, which are explanations of how humans ingest the information transmitted by media texts and how this might influence (or not) their behaviour. Banita - Some people see media audiences as being easily manipulated masses of people who can be persuaded to buy products through advertising, or to follow corrupt leaders through propaganda. There have also been fears that the contents of media texts can make their audiences behave in different ways, like become more violent for example. On the other hand there have been other critics who have seen the media as having much less influence and working in more subtle ways.
Sophie - Dating from the 1920s and being one of the most simple theory's to understand the hypodermic needle theory was the first attempt to explain how mass audiences might react to mass media. According to the theory the media is like a syringe which injects ideas, attitudes and beliefs into the audience who as a powerless mass have little choice but to be influenced. In other words, you watch something violent, you may go and do something violent, you see someone underage drinking and you too may go and drink while underage. Banta - But remember that this theory was developed in an age when the mass media were still fairly new - radio and cinema were less than two decades old. Governments had just discovered the power of advertising to communicate a message, and produced propaganda to try and sway people to their way of thinking. Sophie – So this theory suggests that, as an audience, we are manipulated by the creators of media texts, and that our behaviour and thinking might be easily changed by media-makers. It assumes that the audience are passive and heterogenous. This theory is still quoted during moral panics by parents, politicians and pressure groups, and is used to explain why certain groups in society should not be exposed to certain media texts (like comics in the 1950s and rap music in the 2000s), for fear that they will watch or read sexual or violent behaviour and will then act them out themselves.
Banita - The Frankfurt School, a group of German Marxists, who in the 1930s witnessed first hand how Hitler used propaganda to influence a nation.Sophie - The Bobo Doll experiment This is a very controversial piece of research that apparently proved that children copy violent behaviour.Banita – In the experiment children watched a video where an adult violently attacked a clown toy called a Bobo Doll. Thechildren were then led to another room with a Bobo Doll and toys in.Sophie - 88% of the children imitated the violent behaviour that they had earlier viewed. 8 months later 40% of the children reproduced the same violent behaviour
Banita - According to uses and gratification theory, we all have different uses for the media and we make choices over what we want to watch. In other words, when we encounter a media text, it is not just some kind of mindless entertainment – we are expecting to get something from it,some kind of gratification. Sophie - In this model the individual has the power and they are able to select the media texts that best suits their needs and their attempts to satisfy those needs. The psychological basis for this model is the Hierarchy of Needs identified by Maslow. At the top of the hierarchy is self actualization, then self esteem, then social needs, then safety needs and finally physical needs. Banita – (ask class) So what do you think would go under each title of Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs?Sophie – (read answers of what goes under each heading)Banita - This theory suggests that we as an audience may use the media for the four following purposes:Diversion - escape from everyday problems and routine.Personal Relationships - using the media for emotional and other interaction, for example, substituting soap operas for family lifePersonal Identity - finding yourself reflected in texts, learning behaviour and values from textsSurveillance - Information which could be useful for living, for example, weather reports, financial news, holiday bargains
Sophie - The two-step flow hypothesis was first introduced by Paul Lazarsfeld, Bernard Berelson, and Hazel Gaudet in a paper calledThe People's Choice, a 1944 study focused on the process of decision-making during a Presidential election campaign.Banita - They were surprised to discover that informal, personal contacts were mentioned far more frequently than exposure to radio or newspaper as sources of influence on voting behaviour. Sophie - This theory asserts that information from the media moves in two distinct stages. First, individuals (opinion leaders) who pay close attention to the mass media and its messages receive the information. Opinion leaders then create their own interpretations of the media content from their reaction to the message. Second, opinion leaders influence or change the attitudes and behaviours of individuals that they have social contact with who take in their opinions and attitudes.
Banita - The reception theory was developed by the academic Stuart Hall at Birmingham University in the 1970s. This considered how texts were encoded with meaning by producers and then decoded by audiences.Sophie - The theory suggests that when a producer constructs a text it is encoded with a meaning or message that the producer wishes to convey to the audience. In some instances audiences will correctly decode the message or meaning and understand what the producer was trying to say, in other instances the audience will either reject or fail to correctly understand the messageBanita - Stuart Hall identified three types of audience readings of the media: Dominant, Negotiated and Oppositional.Sophie – Dominant is where the audience decodes the message as the producer wants them to do and broadly agrees with it. For example, Watching a political speech and agreeing with itBanita - Negotiated is where the audience accepts, rejects or refines elements of the text in light of previously held views. For example, Neither agreeing or disagreeing with the political speech or being disinterestedSophie Oppositional is where the dominant meaning is recognised but rejected for cultural, political or ideological reasons. For example,Total rejection of the political speech and active opposition
Mass mediaAudience theoryHypodermic needle theoryUses and gratification theoryTwo-step flow theoryReception theoryBobo doll
