Theories Of Mass Communication Theory

The mass media has become a big part of our society and its counterparts. In a time span of 50 years this medium has influenced society to an extent where it has created wonders. This immaculate tool can control almost every action we perform, from speaking to the actions that every human being performs in society. The mass media has brought upon a new era of idea's and changes in the world we live in. As we analysis media in depth we will find many aspects of media which overlap and some of the smallest factors and aspects of media, which create the biggest impact on society.

Mass media has experienced many major developments over the past hundred years. As the manner in which media is communicated to the world evolves a definite shift to American culture has occurred in the process. Mass media has undergone numerous changes in the way it is distributed to the general public, going from newspapers, to radio, to television, and now to the World Wide Web. American culture is so ingrained in technology, that distributing mass media in this format seems like a natural step in the evolutionary process of distribution.

The article “Framing Class, Vicarious Living, and Conspicuous Consumptions” by Diana Kendall sparks the idea that social inequality may be a product of our media-driven society, but is media really to blame or is it a scapegoat in order to leave any personable responsibility out of the picture? Kendall writes “the media do not simply mirror society; rather, they help to shape it and to create cultural perceptions” (315). Although this statement holds validity, one could argue that it may be the other way around. Maybe it’s society that influences media, which in turn causes media to market for us in a more relatable fashion, for the main goal of media is to advertise to a relatable audience. There is no denying that media holds the high ground

In order to understand the current issue involving certain groups being incorrectly portrayed in media, it is important to first understand exactly what mass media is. There are a variety of technical definitions for the term “mass media.” According to Britannica, “Media is used to pass on information to many people in a society” (“Media”). Merriam-Wenster claims media is a “mean of communication that is designed to reach the mass of the people” (“Mass Medium”). Recently, a spike of innovations has led to an increase of possible methods of communication that can be inducted into the field of mass media. Tomi Ahonen, an author on telecommunications and technology, popularized the term “Seventh of the Mass Media” to prove that cellphones are a new form of mass media. This has made the world more familiar with the different categories of media. The seven designated forms include print, recordings, movies, radio, television, internet, and cellphones (Duarte). If more people in the world contained this knowledge of media, it might be more easily understood the effect it can have on so many. In addition to knowing what media is in today’s age, it is also important to fully understand misrepresentation.

The media is a well-known platform for viewers and largely impacts the people that watch or see certain programs. Therefore, it is safe assume that the media often represents realistic or unrealistic views

There is no doubt that the media has a huge role in American culture. The media is prevalent on every medium, from newspapers, to television, the Internet, and mobile applications. However, the controversial argument of whether American culture is more influenced or more informed by the media still stands. “American culture” is what I consider to be the social norms, fashion, topics of discussion, current events, and mindsets that are popular within the general American population. The “media” to me refers to all forms of news and popular culture from sources such as television news sources, online news websites, online blogs, and social media networks - basically any public medium with a large audience (in this case, the American

2. Croteau, D & Hoynes, W (2003). Media Society: Industries, Images and Audiences ((third edition) ed.). Thousand Oaks: Pine Forge Press. pp. 305–307.

Media is defined as any form of communication; however, the term is mainly used for television, radio, and the Internet. “Regardless of the form it takes, media holds the power to construct and reflect our own sense of identity, in both affirmative and detrimental ways” (199). In American society, the media makes many assumptions based on gender, race, and religion that directly affects how people in a society view each other.

Radio, television, film, and the other products of media culture provide materials out of which we forge our very identities; our sense of selfhood; our notion of what it means to be male or female; our sense of class, of ethnicity and race, of nationality, of sexuality; and of "us" and "them." These products of media help shape our view of the world and our deepest values: what we consider good or bad, positive or negative, moral or evil. They contribute to educating us how to behave and what to think, feel, believe, fear, and desire -- and what not too. The media teach us how to be men and women, how to dress,

Pop culture is defined as a product of a culture that has a mass audience (Zeisler 2008:1). Pop culture is considered dependent on advertising, depicting women and people of colour in a problematic way and discriminating manner (Ziesler, 2008:2). Popular culture has become our common knowledge, and to understand it is a key part in understanding society as a whole. According to Beamish (2016), popular culture is a form of symbolic communication between humans. Symbols can be anything that can be recognized by a culture and often presented in the forms of language, values, norms, and material culture. The use of language is a powerful tool that allows for the media to relay particular messages to the rest of society. The imposition of certain concepts as a result can be argued as having a direct affect on the daily lives of those who are exposed. Whereas material culture allows the population to see these messages visually through advertisements, film, and television. Some basic forms of pop culture include television, film, music, news, and advertising. Popular culture is rooted in mass culture, and deemed for those who could not afford the means to participate in high culture activities. Those who subjected to the popular culture were assumed to be uneducated and unworthy of “real art” (Ziesler, 2008:1). The mass media

3. How does the critical/cultural perspective on mass communication view the media? How does it view the audience?

Mass media plays an important role in the society by providing entertainment, information and acting as the government’s overseer. Several scholars have developed philosophies that help people understand how mass media fulfills its roles in the society. For example, Horkheimer and Adorno have constructed theories that explain the functions and impacts of mass media in the society across the globe (Mosco, 2008). The central theme in all mass communication models entails the meaning of media contents, which include the images and texts and their influence on the target audience. The perception of the target audience concerning the text and images in the media are what form the basis of these theories. This essay discusses two hypothetical frameworks: the political economy and cultural studies theories, including their similarities and differences, and how they help in understanding the relationship between the media and society.

Media influence is the force by which ideas are injected into people’s lives shaping the very culture of society. This influence is masqueraded through hidden media message, resulting in a change in its audience which can be positive or negative, abrupt or gradual, short term or long term. Although mass media’s influential effect can reach a wide ranged audience as an agent of socialization the responsibility to contain what it releases has not been of importance. “The media’s socially significant obligations are formally ignored.” (A.S. Zapesotskii, 2011, p 9). Media messages can be exerted through many different outlets such as TV shows, music, movies, commercials, news, magazines, games which are all gravitated to entertain audiences ultimately offering personal gratification that can sometimes blur the lines between reality and

A prominent critique of Gerbner’s research was the use of telephone surveys to acquire data, which while efficient is questionable due to the reliability of subjects’ memory of media viewed, a concern that persists with the increase of media content availability (Ibid.). The cultural indicators he commonly employed to operationalized various measures were later found to be uncorrelated, a major flaw in the research body (Gerbner, 1970; Gerbner et al., 1978; Potter, 1994). The largest gaps in the literature is the lack of research of message system analysis and the lack of synthesizing existing analysis, which has been equated to limitations in research practices (Potter, 2014). Empirical evidence has only partially supported the theory, with cultivation analysis being persistently an issue presented by early critics (Hirsch, 1980; Hughes, 1980). Despite it’s status as a “critical” theory of mass communication Gerbner’s cultivation has been only weakly or moderately and supported, with several unaddressed weaknesses (Reber & Chang, 2000; Shanahan & Morgan, 2004; Potter, 2014).

Mass society theory is an idea that media has strong influence towards people, it plays a role of shaping people’s mind and perception of the social world and it is also to manipulate people’s action with delicate, subtle and effective ways (Baran and Davis 2006, p.43). Mass society theory has first introduced in the nineteenth century when there are disruptive consequences caused by modernization (Baran and Davis 2006, p.52). At that time, mass media considered as a cause of social problems (Baran and Davis 2006, p.52). That was the yellow journalism era for mass newspapers (Baran and Davis 2006, p.52). For instance, newspapers irresponsibly give out information, probably some sensational information which directly