Media Effects and Cultural Approaches to Research Chapter 14 Media Effects and Cultural Approaches to Research

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Should Life Imitate Culture? 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.

Media Effects Research Attempts to understand, explain, and predict the effects of mass media on individuals and society Cultural studies focuses on how people make meaning, comprehend reality, articulate values, and arrange experiences through cultural symbols.

Early Media Research Methods Propaganda analysis Public opinion research Social psychology Marketing research

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?

Conducting Media Effects Research Hypotheses Must be worded so that they are testable Experimental design Tests whether hypothesis is true Survey research Collecting and measuring data Longitudinal Studies and Correlations Content analysis Studies the messages of print and visual media

Contemporary Media Effects Theories Social learning theory Attention Retention Motor reproduction Motivation Agenda-setting Media set the agenda for major topics of discussion, neglecting other important topics.

Contemporary Media Effects Theories (cont.) 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.

Cultural Approaches to Media Research Cultural Studies Challenged mainstream media effects theory Attempted to make everyday culture the centerpiece of media studies Textual analysis Close reading and interpretation of cultural messages Audience studies Subject being researched is the audience for the text. Political economy studies Examines interconnections among economic interests, political power, and how that power is used

Cultural Studies’ Theoretical Perspectives The public sphere A space for critical public debate Advanced by German philosopher Jürgen Habermas Society in England and France in late seventeenth century and eighteenth century created spaces (coffeehouses, pubs) for public discourse.

Media Research and Democracy Academics in media studies charged with increased specialization, use of jargon 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.