Media Effects Flashcards
Magic Bullet Theory
Same as powerful effects theory - media has immediate direct effect. Media can inject opinions into us, like a hypodermic needle.
Walter Lipmann
Argued that the world we know is pictures inside our heads. The pictures of things that we’ve never seen are shaped by the media.
Lasswell’s mass communication model assumed what?
Powerful effects theory
Lasswell’s mass communication model
Who, did what, in which channel, to whom, with what effect?
Criticism of Powerful Effects theory
People are skeptical, they don’t just absorb information. They interpret things differently. largely discredited theory today
Davison’s Third Person Effect
They can’t handle it but I can. Overestimating media effects on other people.
Davison’s two research conclusions:
Negative impact fears unwarranted
Blocking negative messages unwarranted.
How was powerful effects theory discredited?
Enthusiasm for powerful effects theory died down after Lazarsfeld conducted two studies in which he asked 600 people how they developed their campaign opinions. Instead of saying the media, many said acquaintances and friends. Clearly, powerful effects theory seemed wrong.
What followed powerful effects theory?
Minimalist effects theory
Minimalist Effects theory
Media largely have an indirect effect. Two step flow model of influence
Two step flow model
Media affects us through opinion leaders.
Opinion Leaders
People who we respect. Might not be in positions of authority.
Two step flow model leads to what?
Multistep flow model.
Multistep flow model
People in modern times look to many different sources.
Minimalist scholars acknowledge what?
Status conferral - media attention enhances attention towards people and issues.
Tied to status conferral is what?
Agenda setting
Narcotizing Dysfunction
Some minimalists think that some people are so overwhelmed with media coverage that they refrain from political participation. Some people might also think that they are active, even though they are merely informing themselves.
Elisabeth Noelle-Neumann
Leader of cumulative effects theory - accused of being an anti-semite.
Cumulative effects theory
Media effects, while initially minimal, end up cumulating and becoming powerful. Nobody can avoid the media and its messages due to ubiquity and redundancy. Spiral of silence. Resurrection of an altered Powerful Effects Theory
Spiral of silence
Vocal majority intimidates the minority into silence.
Socialization
learning how to fit into society
In the old days, what socialized children first? Why?
The home. Mass media like books required reading skills that were learned later in schools.
What displaced parents as the dominant socializing force? Why?
Television. Babies could watch it without learning anything.
By definition, socialization is what? What does this mean?
Pro-social. Perpetuates positive values.
What destroyed evening newspapers?
Female shoppers began to work, later job shifts for people due to transition from industrial to service economy.
What destroyed taverns?
TVs allowed people to socialize and entertain themselves at home.
Intergenerational eavesdropping
Mass media, particularly television, have eroded the boundaries between generations, genders, and social institutions. Children not protected from anything.
Lifestyle Effects
Living Patterns, Hypersexualization of social environment, Intergenerational eavesdropping
Attitude effects
Influencing opinion, role models, stereotypes, and agenda setting/status conferral
Are opinions malleable?
People change their minds.
What makes people change their minds?
The media
Does the media immediately change people’s minds?
Only for major events. Usually, effects are gradual.
Role modelling
Imitating someone who you look up to.
Example of bad role modelling
Shooting fellow students with black trench coat in the Basketball Diaries - inspired the Columbine High School massacre
Stereotyping
Using generalizations to facilitate storytelling
Dangers of stereotyping
Media can perpetuate social injustice and perpetuate stereotypes, give certain groups bad role models.
Female TV characters’ most common occupation
Prostitutes
Career women are depicted on TV as
man haters, negatively portrayed.
Two types of transmission in Values
Historical and Contemporary transmission
historical transmission
Communication of cultural values to later generations.
Historical transmission general history
First oral transmission then writing.
What remains the primary repository of our culture?
Books
Contemporary Transmission
Communication of cultural values to different cultures.
Diffusion of innovations
Process through which news, ideas, values and information spreads.
Reason for demise of main street
Diffusion of innovations. Small town businesses forced to close after people saw ads for regional shopping malls that had lower prices and greater variety.
5 steps of diffusion of innovations
Awareness, interest, evaluation, trial, choice
Awareness
Individuals and groups learn about new options
Interest
once aware, people need to have their interest further whetted.
Evaluation
By considering other people’s experiences, individuals evaluate whether they want to try out an innovation.
Trial
Innovation is given a try.
Choice
Innovation is either adopted or rejected.
Herbert Schiller
Came up with the theory of cultural imperialism. Stated that cultures needed protecting
Populist response to Schiller
Let the people choose
Elitist response to Schiller
Their fragile cultures need protection
Other countries look towards what for help countering cultural intrusion?
They look towards the CRTC for advice on how to counter cultural intrusion.
WTO adopted what in 1998? Why?
“Canadian Model for Regulation.” Other countries want to know how Canada meets its public interest goals while still encouraging the growth of the private sector.
Does media-depicted violence cause people to mimic violent acts?
Sometimes, but this is very rare and this is an exception. Violence in the media may even reduce real-life violence.
Observational Learning
Theory that people learn behavior by seeing it in real life and in depictions
Fundamental question about media violence
There is no question that people can learn about violent behaviour from the media, but is the media a cause for violence?
Media Violence as a positive scholars believe that in what ancient phenomenon?
Aristotle’s Cathartic Effect
Cathartic Effect
People release their violent inclinations by seeing them portrayed.
Seymour Feshbach’s research on boys
half of 625 high school boys were shown violent TV while the other half were shown non-violent programs. Teachers were asked to evaluate their students’ behavior in class everyday. Found that there was no difference in aggressive behavior frequency between the two groups. Boys who were more inclined to violence according to personality tests showed a decline in violence.
Why Seymour Feshbach’s research was hard to ignore
Huge sample size, done in a realistic environment. Consistency in findings.
Violence in the media prompts what (another argument for the positives of violence in the media)?
Violence in the media prompts socially positive action
Aggressive stimulation theory
People are inspired to be violent by media depictions. Often overstated
When the circumstances are right…
We TEND to imitate what we see others doing. Our inner resistance against being violent WEAKENS.
Bandura’s Bobo doll studies found that
Children seemed more violent after seeing violence in movies.
Bandura’s study criticized for what?
Confusing playfulness with aggression.
Catalytic theory
Media violence is among the factors that sometimes contributes to real-life violence. Media violence is a catalyst - requires other material.
Media violence only stirs violence if other influences are present. These influences include:
Whether media violence is rewarded, whether media exposure is heavy, and whether the violent person fits other profiles.
Screen-triggered aggression increases if the aggression
is realistic and exciting, succeeds in revenge, includes situations or characters that are similar to the viewer’s own experience.
Gerbner’s fears of media violence (Mean world syndrome)
Media violence causes people to irrationally fear for their own safety. They are thus more willing to give up their rights and submit to an authority in return for security. This endangers democracy.
Desensitizing theory
Tolerance of real life violence grows due to media-depicted violence.
Television Violence Monitoring Project
From UCLA. Found that if you discounted comedic and non human violence like hurricanes, there’s not that much violence on television.
William McQuire found what about media violence research?
Found most of it statistically flawed, with the exception of controlled lab studies.
Larivière petition led to what?
The creation of the Action Group on Violence on Television (AGVOT)
Action Group on Violence on Television members
Included CRTC, CAB (Canadian Association of Broadcasters)
AGVOT’s new violence code for programming aimed at under 12 kids mandated that five criteria must be met:
- Only violence essential to the plot is allowed.
- Violence must not be a central theme for cartoons.
- Violence must not be shown as the only solution to a conflict.
- Showing Violence without showing its effects is not allowed.
- Encouraging the imitation of violent acts is not allowed.
watershed hour for 12+ kids
9 PM
