Understanding Mass Communication Introduction

Fall 2000COMM 360 Course Introduction  4000 B.C. writing  1450print  1865photography  1910film  1920radio  1950TV  1984Mac  1991World Wide Web About...

Fall 2000COMM Social Epochs  Agricultural Society –specialization –handwriting  Industrial Society –mass production –printing press  Information Society –communication –computer

Fall 2000COMM 360 Theorizing Communication  Where do messages come from?  Where are they aimed?  How do they get there?  What is the impact of the message?  What happens next?

Fall 2000COMM 360 “Mass” Idea  One to many  Audience is passive  Intended message = received message

Fall 2000COMM 360 Contemporary View  One to one; many to many  Interactivity  Audience is powerful  Messages interpreted through cultural screen

Fall 2000COMM 360 Information Age Quiz

Fall 2000COMM 360 Information Age Quiz What percentage of people on Earth are still waiting to make their first phone call? A) 10 % B) 20% C) 45% D) 60%

Fall 2000COMM 360 F True or False: In most cases, computers increase the productivity of those firms or organizations that use them. –True –False

Fall 2000COMM 360 Why can it cost you 10 cents a minute to call across the country and 25 cents a minute to call the next town? A) Local calls use more expensive lines. B) Local phone companies are greedy. C) Long distance is sold below cost. D) Wacky regulations.

Fall 2000COMM 360 How many corporations worldwide produce about 90% of all commercial music? A) 4 B) 6 C) 10 D) 14

Fall 2000COMM 360 Chances that an ear of corn grown in the U.S. is genetically engineered? a) 1 in 10 b) 3 in 10 c) 5 in 10 d) 9 in 10

Fall 2000COMM 360 Which of the following groups watches the fewest hours of television each week? A) pre-school children B) high school students C) young adults (18-35) D) elderly adults

Fall 2000COMM 360 When was the Internet “born?” A) 1964 B) 1969 C) 1991 D) 1998

Fall 2000COMM 360 Which region leads the world in wireless phone use? A) North America B) Southeast Asia C) Northern Europe D) Africa

Fall 2000COMM 360 Which of the following is least likely to be restricted by a government? A) newspapers B) radio C) television D) Internet

Fall 2000COMM 360 What percentage of people on Earth are connected to the Internet? A) 2 % B) 5% C) 20% D) 50%

Fall 2000COMM 360 SMCR Model SourceMessageChannelReceiver EncoderDecoder Feedback

Fall 2000COMM 360 SMCR  Fox TV’s “Child Geniuses” quiz show  Greenpeace webpage about WTO protests  Phone call from your mother  “Battlestar T101” videogame, from Hasbro  Independent classified ad seeking “possible LTR”

Fall 2000COMM 360 Convergence  Integration of mass media, computers and telecommunications into a common technological and institutional base.  Digitization  Industrial Convergence  Globalization  Identity

Fall 2000COMM 360 Conceptual Frameworks  Mass Media Theory –strong effects u direct and immediate impact –weak effects u not much impact, everything is negotiable –mitigated effects u can have a strong impact when mediated through other people or institutions

Fall 2000COMM 360 Media & Society  New challenges for culture new ideas, new icons  New ways of communicating rapid, rich, but reliable?  Acceleration can humans keep up?

Fall 2000COMM 360 Media & Individuals  New & multiple identities  Privacy  Mobility  Access and ability

Fall 2000COMM 360 Law & Policy  Telecommunications law and policy  Copyright  Intellectual property  International issues

Fall 2000COMM 360 Globalization  Trade in media products  Multinational corporations in new arenas  Pop culture & English as lingua franca  E-commerce as pop culture?  New problems for cultures & governments

Fall 2000COMM 360 Work & Career  Information Work  Shrinking corporations  Dispersed and Virtual corporations  The end of work?

Fall 2000COMM 360 Media & Institutions  Education  Government  Religion  Community Groups  International Organizations