1. SOCIOLOGY: A Brief Introduction
Richard T. Schaefer
SOCIOLOGY: A Brief Introduction
Sixth Edition
McGraw-Hill
© 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

2. 7 THE MASS MEDIA Sociological Perspectives of the Media The Audience
The Media Industry
Social Policy and Mass Media: Media Violence

3. Sociological Perspectives of the Media
Functionalist View
Agent of Socialization
The media:
Socialize us
Enforce social norms
Confer status
Promote consumption
Keep us informed about our environment
An important dysfunction of mass media is they may act as a narcotic

4. Sociological Perspectives of the Media
Functionalist View
Agent of Socialization
Media increases social cohesion by presenting common view of culture
Provide collective experience for members of a society
Socializing effects can promote religious as well as patriotic exchanges, uniting believers around the world.

5. Sociological Perspectives of the Media
Functionalist View
Agent of Socialization
Because of the socializing effect of the media, programming can easily become controversial

6. Sociological Perspectives of the Media
Functionalist View
Enforcer of Social Norms
Media often reaffirm proper behavior by showing what happens to people who act in a way that violates societal expectations
Plays a critical role in shaping perceptions about the risks of substance use, although not necessarily in a positive fashion

7. Sociological Perspectives of the Media
Functionalist View
Conferral of Status
Mass media confers status on people, organizations, and public issues
Singles out one from thousands of other similarly placed issues or people to become significant

8. Sociological Perspectives of the Media
Functionalist View
Promotion of Consumption
Media advertising
Supports economy
Provides information
Underwrites cost of media

9. Sociological Perspectives of the Media
Functionalist View
Surveillance of the Social Environment
Surveillance Function: collection and distribution of information concerning events in the social environment

10. Sociological Perspectives of the Media
Functionalist View
Dysfunction: The Narcotizing Effect
Narcotizing Dysfunction: phenomenon in which the media provide such massive amounts of information that audience becomes numb and fails to act on the information

11. Sociological Perspectives of the Media
Conflict View
Conflict theorists emphasize that the media reflect and even exacerbate many of the divisions of our society and world, including:
Gender
Race
Ethnicity
Social class

12. Sociological Perspectives of the Media
Conflict View
Gatekeeping: how material must travel through a series of checkpoints before reaching the public
Prevails in all kinds of media
Not as dominant on the Internet

13. Sociological Perspectives of the Media
Conflict View
Dominant Ideology: Constructing Reality
Conflict theorists argue that mass media serve to maintain the privileges of certain groups
While protecting their own interests, powerful groups may limit the representation of others in the media

14. Sociological Perspectives of the Media
Conflict View
Dominant Ideology: Constructing Reality
Dominant Ideology: set of cultural beliefs and practices that help to maintain powerful social, economic, and political interests

15. Sociological Perspectives of the Media
Conflict View
Dominant Ideology: Constructing Reality
Stereotypes: unreliable generalization about all members of a group that do not recognize individual differences within the group
Television distorts the political process.

16. Sociological Perspectives of the Media
Conflict View
Dominant Ideology: Whose Culture?
Globalization projects the dominating reach of the U.S. media into the rest of the world
Media cultural exports undermine the distinctive traditions and art forms of other societies and encourage their cultural and economic dependence on the U.S.
Nations that feel a loss of identity may try to defend against the cultural invasion.

17. Sociological Perspectives of the Media
Feminist View
Feminists share conflict theorists’ view that the mass media stereotype and misrepresent social reality
Women underrepresented
Perpetuate stereotypical views of gender
Emphasize traditional sex roles and normalize violence against women

18. Sociological Perspectives of the Media
Interactionist View
Interactionists especially interested in shared understandings of everyday behavior
Examine media on micro level to see how they shape day-to-day social behavior

19. Sociological Perspectives of the Media
Interactionist View
Scholars increasingly point to mass media as source of major daily activity
Helps us understand more about the audience

20. The Audience Who Is In the Audience?
Mass media distinguished from other social institutions by necessary presence of audience
Identifiable, finite group or a much larger, undefined group

21. The Audience The Segmented Audience
Increasingly, media market themselves to particular audience
Specialization is driven by advertising
Members of these audiences more likely to expect content geared to their own interests
Led some scholars to ponder whether there is still a “mass” in mass media

22. The Audience Audience Behavior
The role of audience members as opinion leaders intrigues social researchers
Opinion leader: someone who, through day-to-day personal contacts and communication, influences opinions and decisions of others

23. The Audience Audience Behavior
Audience members do not all interpret media in the same way
Response often influenced by social characteristics:
Occupation
Race
Education
Income

24. The Media Industry Media Concentration
Handful of multi-national corporations dominate publishing, broadcasting, and film industries
Media outlets likely to become even more concentrated
Internet one significant exception to centralization and concentration of media

25. The Media Industry The Media’s Global Reach
Mass media have begun to create global village in terms of communication
Not all countries are equally connected
The Internet is key to creating a truly global network that reaches into workplaces, schools, and homes

26. The Media Industry
Figure 7.1: Number of Hours Spent with Media,

27. The Media Industry
Figure 7.2: Penetration in Selected Countries

28. Social Policy and Mass Media
Media Violence
The Issue
What effect does movie and TV violence have on audiences?
Does violence in the media lead people, especially youth, to become more violent?

29. Social Policy and Mass Media
Media Violence
The Setting
We spend great deal of time with the media
Does watching hours of mass media with violent images cause one to behave differently?
Some studies linked exposure to media violence to subsequent aggressive behavior
It is important to recognize that other factors besides the media are also related to aggressive behavior.

30. Social Policy and Mass Media
Media Violence
Sociological Insights
If function of media is to entertain, socialize, and enforce social norms, can violence be part of that message?
Even if viewer does not necessarily become more violent from watching violent images, there could be desensitization

31. Social Policy and Mass Media
Media Violence
Sociological Insights
Conflict and feminist theorists are troubled that victims depicted in violent imagery are often:
Women
Children
Poor
Racial minorities
Citizens of foreign countries
Physically disabled

32. Social Policy and Mass Media
Media Violence
Sociological Insights
Interactionists especially interested in finding out if violence in media may then become script for real-life behavior

33. Social Policy and Mass Media
Media Violence
Policy Initiatives
Policymakers responded to links between violence depicted in media and real life aggression:
Public statements of support for family-oriented, less-violent media content
Reluctance to pass laws regarded as censorship