Media influence Flashcards
what is moral panic
- An intense feeling expressed in a population about an issue that appears to threaten the social order.
Harm
A long lasting negative physical, psychological or emotional effect that can be measured.
offence
A short term negative affect not lasting past the moment that cannot necessarily be measured.
Susceptible audience
A group of people that are potentially open to negative effects of the media
Active audience
An audience that plays a role in, and makes choices about, the meanings they derive from the media
Passive audience
An audience that absorbs the message of the media without any interpretation
Open text
- A text that can be interpreted by the media
Closed text
A text that has only one possible message
Cultural effects theories
Explore what the media does to us
Reception theories
Explore what we as an audience do with the media
claim
A suggestion that the media has a particular effect on us
Negative effect
That the media can influence us in a way that harms society
Positive effect
That the media can influence us in a way that benefits society
theories and models 9
Hypodermic Needle Theory Agenda Setting Function Theory Cultivation Theory Reinforcement Theory Two-Step Flow theory Uses and Gratification Theory Semiotic Constructivist Theory Encoding/Decoding Political Economy Model
overview of hypodermic needle theory
1920s-1940s
A linear communication theory which suggests that the media has a direct and powerful influence on audiences, like being injected with a hypodermic needle.
audience of the hypodermic needle theory
Audiences are passive and homogenous, this theory does not account for individual differences.
evidence of the hypodermic needle theory
In 2011, Anders Breivek murdered 77 people in Norway and his defence counsel blamed Call of Duty for his actions
strengths/weaknesses of hypodermic needle theory
Although many people still talk about the media in this way, this theory is disregarded as an outdated way of thinking about media influence. Audiences are more active than this theory suggests.
year of Agenda setting function theory
1972
Agenda setting function theory creator
Maxwell McCombs Donald Shaw
overview of the Agenda setting function theory
This theory suggests that the media can’t tell you what to think but it can tell you what to think about. Through a process of selection, omission and framing, the media focuses public discus- sion on particular issues.
audience of Agenda setting function theory
Audiences are active but, when it comes to making important decisions like who to vote for, they draw on information that is particularly salient at the time.
Evidence of the Agenda setting function theory
The ‘Kylie Effect’ was a finding from research conducted by the University of Sydney revealing that the media saturation of Kylie Minogue’s breast cancer scare actually raised the number of breast screenings significantly. Researchers saw a marked increase in appointments during the saturation and for a prolonged period after.
Strengths/weaknesses of the Agenda setting function theory
The way people receive media is changing, instead of mainstream media like newspapers and television, people now get information from the internet. Does this affect the media’s ability to set agendas?