Learning Intention:
- Identify the basic theories of media effects.
- Explain the uses of various media effects theories.
Initial Discussion:
- What are the core assumptions of the ‘passive audience’ effects theories?
- Are these fundamentally assumptions essentially patronising?
An alternative set of assumptions is that the audience are more cognizant and discerning. Furthermore, we need to consider a whole range of factors working on the individual which might shape their response to media texts.
The active vs passive audience
“An active audience engages, interprets and responds to a media text in different ways and is capable of challenging the ideas encoded in it. A passive audience is more likely to accept the messages encoded in a media text without challenge and are therefore more likely to be directly affected by the messages.” BBC Bitesize
Theories of The Active Audience
Uses and Gratification
Blumler and Katz, suggest that audiences are more active in seeking out function and pleasure from media texts and that we should think about what they are seeking from any given text and how they use the media in other aspects of their lives:
- Social Relationships
- Personal Identity
- Entertainment
- Information
Reception Theory
Stuart Hall, says, the relationship between the messages and connotation of a text and ideology of the audience are essential in understanding the ways in which an audience might respond to a text. He suggests that this can be described as:
- A preferred reading
- A negotiated reading
- An oppositional reading
Identity Theory
David Gauntlett argued our heavy exposure to the media could, “hardly fail to affect our own way of conducting ourselves and our expectations of other people’s behaviour.”
So, in many ways Gauntlett is suggesting that the effect of Media is even more profound than changing our behaviour or attitudes. That the media in many ways has a huge impact on our out sense of who we are and how we operate in the world (our identity).
He, like Jenkins, suggests that audiences now have the digital tools to, ‘express and connect and create in ways we didn’t have before and which can help people shape creative identities.’ Moreover, that, ‘social media is part of conversation which can help us, ‘think about ourselves and how we are in the world…that’s what identity is‘
“… identity is this thing you construct for yourself but at the same time there’s all of these ‘representations’ [sic] coming at you. There’s all the stuff that you can create and make and share as well. So identity has opportunities to be very creative and connecting.”