Media Effects and Cultural Approaches to Research Chapter 15

“Since the emergence of popular music, movies, television, and video games as influential mass media, the relationship between make-believe stories and real-life imitation has drawn a great deal of attention.”

Cause and Effect? Media effects Attempting to understand, explain, and predict the effects of mass media on individuals and society Has a long history of research Does television make you do things? Does it make you not do things? Natural Born Killers Columbine, Colo. Virginia Tech

History of Effects Research De Tocqueville and Lippmann Lippmann created “the founding book in American media studies.” Propaganda studies Harold Lasswell: defined propaganda as “the control of opinion by significant symbols, . . . by stories, rumors, reports, pictures and other forms of social communication.” Public opinion research Is the media too “poll-happy”? Social psychology Payne Fund Marketing research Advertisers and product companies used it to track consumer preference.

Public Opinion Research Public opinion research is especially influential during political elections. It can also adversely affect active political involvement. Journalism is increasingly dependent on political polls. Unreliability of pseudo-polls

Research on Media Effects Hypodermic-needle model Media shoots effects directly into unsuspecting victims. Minimal-effects model Rise of empirical research techniques Selective exposure leads to reinforcement of existing beliefs. Uses and gratifications model Contests notion of audience passivity Why do people use media?

Scientific Method Hypothesis Experimental design Survey research Must be worded so that it is testable Experimental design Tests whether hypothesis is true Survey research Collecting and measuring data Content analysis Studies the messages of print and visual media

Explaining Media Effects Social learning theory Attention Retention Motor reproduction Motivation Agenda-setting Media set the agenda for major topics of discussion. Cultivation effect Heavy viewing of television leads individuals to perceive reality in ways consistent with portrayals on television. Spiral of silence Those whose views are in the minority will keep their views to themselves for fear of social isolation.

Qualitative Approaches Cultural Studies Challenged mainstream media effects theory Attempted to make everyday culture the centerpiece of media studies Textual Analysis Highlights the close reading and interpretation of cultural messages Audience Studies Differs from textual analysis because the subject being researched is the audience for the text Political Economy Examine’s interconnections among economic interests,political power, and how that power is used

Cultural Approaches James Carey: Offers ability to interpret broadly Understand, not explain, human behavior Diagnose meanings, not predict Offers ability to interpret broadly Doesn’t just study the serious, but the entertaining Horace Newcomb Both empirical and cultural studies have weaknesses.

Media Research and Democracy Academics in media studies charged with increased specialization, use of jargon Alienates public Public intellectuals based on campuses must work to help carry on the conversations of society and culture, serving as models for how to participate in public life.