1. Concepts and Models for Mass Communication

2. Early Perspectives: Power
BELIEF based on reach and impact
Advertising and sensational news
Entertainment and propaganda
At present: advertising, public relations, political campaigning all rely on MEDIA

4. Early Perspectives: Social Integration
Negative: more crime and immorality
Individualistic: loneliness, loss of collective beliefs
Positive: cohesion, entertainment
At present: the Internet’s individualizing effects are of concern

5. Early Perspectives: Education
MEDIA as a potent force for enlightenment
Spreading of information, exposing political corruption
GOALS: Cultural, educational and informative
At present: highly competitive market; entertainment over education, culture and information

7. Early Perspectives: Problem
Scapegoat: Blame the media!
Moral panics!
At present: Internet is suspect to encouraging pedophilia, violence, hate, and international crime

8. MASS COMMUNICATION: THE PROCESS
Large-scale distribution and reception of content
One-directional flow
Asymmetrical relation between sender and receiver
Impersonal and anonymous relationship with audience
Calculative or market relationship with audience
Standardization/commodification of content

10. MASS COMMUNICATION: THE AUDIENCE
Large numbers of readers, viewers, etc
Widely dispersed
Non-interactive and anonymous relationship with each other
Heterogeneous composition
Not self-acting/organized
An object of management/manipulation by media

11. MASS MEDIA AS INSTITUTION
Refers to: set of media organizations and activities and their (in)formal rules of operation and sometimes legal and policy requirements.
Core activity is the production and distribution of information and culture
Responsibilities and functions are acquired in the “public sphere” and overseen by institution
Control is via self-regulation with limits set by society

13. MASS MEDIA AND POPULAR CULTURE
Mass Culture
… non- traditional form and content
… intended for mass consumption
… mass produced and formulaic
… pejorative image
… commercial
… homogenized

14. MASS MEDIA AND POPULAR CULTURE
MASS CULTURE= passé, use POPULAR CULTURE instead
How does it differ from CULTURE and TRADITIONAL CULTURE?
Maybe MASS CULTURE is really just universal, standardized culture and MASS MEDIA served as a tool for its development.

15. MEDIA IS TRICKY

17. Positivist Paradigm Assumes … a NORMATIVE society
… MEDIA has functions in society
… primacy of behaviorist, quantitative and scientific methods
… MEDIA is powerful

19. However Messages do not SIMPLY reach receivers
Messages are not UNDERSTOOD as they are sent
NOISE is not just NOISE

20. Critical Paradigm
Does not ASSUME

21. Features of the Critical Paradigm
Critical view of society and rejection of value neutrality
Rejection of the transmission model
Non- deterministic view
Qualitative
Preference for cultural or political-economic theories
Wide concern with inequality and sources of opposition in society

23. Four Models of Communication

24. 1: Transmission Process of transmitting a fixed quantity of information as determined by the sender

26. 2: Ritual/ Expressive Sharing/ participation/ association of shared beliefs.

28. Under a ritual view, then, news is not information but drama
...Under a ritual view, then, news is not information but drama. It does not describe the world but portrays an arena of dramatic focus and action; it exists solely in historical time; and it invites our participation on the basis of our assuming, often vicariously, social roles within it. - CAREY, JAMES

29. 3: Publicity Attention-seeking , often to gain audience revenue

32. 4: Reception From the position of many different receivers who do not perceive the messages “as sent/expressed”