Active audience 1

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  • Created by: ecotts
  • Created on: 01-04-18 15:09
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  • Active Audience
    • they argue that they media context doesn't lead to imitation or desensitisation so are critical of the hypodermic needle theory
    • They believe that audiences aren't passive, they have a great deal of choice
    • Two Step Flow Theory
      • Katz and Lazarfeld
      • Personal relationships and social networks are dominated by 'opinion leaders'
        • opinion leaders are people with influence because other look up and listen to them
          • They have strong opinions and ideas of a range of matters that are exposed to them
      • They say the media content goes through 2 steps
        • The opinion leader is exposed to the media content
        • The opinion leader distributes their interpretation to which others are then influenced by
      • Criticisms
        • there is no grantee that the opinion leader has not been subject to an imitative or desensitising effect
          • For example, a leader of a street gang might convince other members that violence is acceptable
            • This is because they have been exposed to screen violence that strongly transmits the message that violence is an apportiate problem solving method
        • Those that are socially excluded have no access to an opinion leader
          • so they are at risk of being influenced by the maids rather than those who help to interpret the media content in a healthy way
    • The selective Filter model
      • Klapper
      • For any media message to have an effect it must pass through 3 filters
        • 1. Selective Exposure
          • The audience much select/ choose the media content that they want to consume
        • 2. Selective Perception
          • The audience may view the media but decide it doesn't fit their perception of the social world, so they reject it
            • a heavy smoker won't engage in media content that focus on the effects of smoking e.g lung cancer
          • They usually seek media that confirm their existing attitudes
        • 3. Selective Retention
          • They audience then need to remember the content for it to have an effect on the individual
      • It involves a degree of choice for the audience
    • Gratifications model
      • McQuail and Katz
      • Individuals choose and use text in order to satisfy particular need
        • Diversion
          • We may use the media to escape from routines, to get out away from problems and to ease worries/ tensions
        • Personal Relationships
          • we know more about characters in soaps then our own neighbours
          • The media compensate for the decline of community in our lives
            • e.g socially excluded people my see soap characters as companions that they can relate to
        • Personal Identity
          • people may use the media to make over or modify their identity
            • teenager who think they may be gay use the experiences of people on telly such as in soaps
          • Social media sites also allow people to present their particular identities to the wider world
        • Information
          • They use the media to obtain information and news about social world in order for them to make their own judgements
            • e.g when the general election takes place
      • Criticisms
        • it doesn't recognise different groups may interpret the same text differently
          • This means the media may gratify them in different ways
        • Marxist
          • they exaggerate the audiences freedom to interpret media content in the way they choose

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