industrialized production and multiple distribution of messages through technological devices
Mass media outlets: companies that send out messages via mass media
mass media audiences
large
geographically disperse
diverse
anonymous
One-to-many
mass media
newspapers, radio, television, film
produced by gatekeeper
widest possible audiences
industrialization of culture
Peer-to-peer
interact with each other
social media
challenges SMCR model
line between consumers and producers is blurred
create, share, connect
Digitalization
a signal encoded in binary
transmitted over a computerized network
decoded and consumed
has impacted a variety of communications media
Media Convergence: three Cs
Convergence
Contents
Corporations
Computers are digital
Analog
Digital
Multimedia Convergence
graphics
text
video
audio
all in a single device/signal/platform
Digital Media
binary data
less susceptible to interference
compressed
Interactive Media
two-way communication
Turing Test
departs from classical Sender-Message-Channel-Receiver model
Social Media
users contribute content of their own
strip away the middleman
walled gardens
examples
Facebook
YouTube
blogs
Twitter
Asynchronous Media
synchronous: same time
asynchronous: not at the same time
time shifting
examples
DVRs
binge watching
podcasting
Audience Fragmentation
mass media: largest possible audience
narrowcasting: specific audiences
subgroups
market segments
Contemporary Media and Digitalization
Telephone
introduction of digital equipment, 1962
analog - digital - analog
today telephone transmissions are mostly computer data
Print Media
computer code
analog page
proliferation of screens and ereaders
Film
special visual and sonic effects
computer generated visuals
storage on DVD and Blu-ray disks
transmitted via streaming
Video Games
arcade and home consoles
personal computers
handheld devices
less games and more like interactive movies
Sound Recordings
personal computers replacing large recording studios
compact disks, 1982
Napster, 1999
streaming services today
Cable TV
direct-to-home wired connections
direct broadcast satellites, 1995
digital cable, 1998, enabling more channel capacity and interactive services
Broadcasting
HDTV increased visual resolution
HD radio
Internet TV distribution
Material covered in the textbook but not in class
People use media in four ways:
Relationship to what is known as the uses and gratifications theory
Enjoyment
Social currency: the use of “coins” of exchange in everyday personal discussions
Companionship
parasocial interaction: psychological connections that some media users establish with celebrities.
Surveillance
what is happening in the world
Interpretation
why things are happening, what actions we should take
How do Mass Media Influence Culture?
Culture
ways of life that are passed on to members of a society through time and keep the society together
Society
large numbers of individuals, groups, organizations that live in the same general area and consider themselves connected to one another through the sharing of culture
Subculture
groups with habits that many people in a society would consider odd and unusual but not threatening…
Mass Media and Culture:
Identify and discuss the codes of acceptable behavior
Learn what and who counts in our world and why
Determine what others thing of us and what people “like us” thing of others.
Criticisms of Mass Media’s Influence on Culture:
Mass Media Create Stereotypes
predictable depictions that reflect and create cultural prejudices
Mass Media Instill Political ideologies
beliefs about who should hold the greatest power within a culture and why.
Mass media encourage political and economic manipulation of their audiences.
Media Literacy:
Think in an educated manner about the forces that shape the media and your relationship with them so that you better evaluate what you see and hear.
Literacy
the ability to effectively comprehend and use messages that are expressed in written and printed symbols
Media literacy
the ability to apply critical thinking skills to the mass media, thereby becoming a more aware and responsible citizen—parent, voter, worker—in our media-driven society
Six characteristics of a Media Literate Person
knowledgeable about the influences that guide media organizations,
up-to-date on political issues relating to the media,
sensitive to ways of seeing media content as a means of learning about culture,
sensitive to the ethical dimensions of media activities,
knowledgeable about scholarship regarding media effects, and
able to enjoy media materials in a sophisticated manner.
Media Literate Approaches
The Media Construct Our Individual Realities
Cultivation
The Media are Influenced by Industrial Pressures
Political economy
The Media are Influenced by Political Pressures
political economy
governmentality
The Media are Influenced by Format
media specificity
what about the format of this medium influences the content?
Audiences are Active Recipients of the Media
audiences and popular culture
The Media Tell Us about Who We Are as a Society
anthropology
sociology
Media Literacy Tools (graphic):
Consider authorship
Evaluate the audience
Determine the institutional purpose
Analyze the Content
Identify the Creative Techniques
Some Perspectives Gained from Media Literate Approach to How Media Operates:
considerate of effect of media conglomerates
attention to portrayals of sex and violence
influence of audience segmentation in content and on culture
concerned about user privacy
tracks relationship global media and local contexts, laws, customs, and culture