The document discusses applying audience theories to a music campaign. It analyzes how encoding/decoding theory, uses and gratification theory, and concepts of preferred/negotiated/oppositional readings relate to the campaign's music video, website, and packaging. Feedback showed the younger focus group had a negotiated reading initially but a preferred reading after changes. The intended meanings were understood but some symbolism was missed due to the group's age.

1. APPLYING AUDIENCE
THEORIES TO MY MUSIC
CAMPAIGN

2. ENCODING AND DECODING
 Encoding and decoding was proposed by Stuart Hall as a way of
understanding multiple readings of media texts.
 Encoding is delivering an intended meaning to the audience
 Decoding is how the audience reacts to the text depending on their own ideas
of culture and social context
 Hall came up with three examples of decoding:
 Preferred reading- The audience accepts all of the intended meanings
 Negotiated reading- The audience accepts some of the meanings but not all,
may involve contradictions to what they believe
 Oppositional reading- Audience understands the intended meaning but
completely rejects it

3. MUSIC CAMPAIGN
 We encoded the intended message of the music industry (creepy men) sucking the soul and talent out of the
artist (young girl) which was symbolized through the use of the television and her being tied up behind the TV.
 Artists’ would decode this idea as a preferred meaning. This is probably due to them understanding this idea of
the music industry tying to warp their image into something that will sell. This idea was further uncovered by
Negus with his organic and synthetic ideals of artists, suggesting that in order for an artist to become successful
they need to relate to either a down to earth, more about the music than the fame ideal or a highly sculptured
image and striving for fame and fortune. However, some artists’ may have a negotiated reading of our narrative
element, this would mean they might accept part of the intended meaning but not all of it. Artists’ such as Kanye
West, for example who is one of the most famous musicians would have far more control over his work than that
of our band (Cigarettes After Sex) therefore he might disagree with this. Therefore preferred meanings cannot be
generalized to all artists’ due to their level of fame or selling records. It seems that the more records that are sold
by the artist the more control they will have over their future products, if they do not it is likely they will move to a
new record label that will give them the freedom. Yet, smaller artists do not have this luxury.
 It is likely the music industry itself especially record labels would have an oppositional reading of our intended
meaning. This is most likely due to the intended meaning taking a negative view of them. It opens up a huge issue
that most artists are unable to speak about due to the record labels being needed in order for the artist to make
money. Therefore, speaking out on this issue may lead the artist to get dropped by the label.

4. MUSIC CAMPAIGN
 Across all three of our products, we received the
feedback from our target audience that it was clear
“they are a band.” This meant that our encoded
message (the boys being a band) was decoded as a
preferred meaning by our target audience. This is
exactly what we wanted the audience to find when we
created the three products, as I found through my
research into the Indie Rock genre that the bands
tended to have ideals of brotherhood and togetherness
which Negus identified as being of organic ideology.
Therefore we wanted this to come across in our three
products.

5. USES AND GRATIFICATION
THEORY
 This theory was produced by Lazarfeld, Blumler and Katz, it assumes that
audiences aren’t passive and actively select the texts that they wish to consume
to fulfill desires within their lives.
 They came up with four examples of this:
 Diversion- This is the idea of escapism, consuming the text for entertainment
purposes
 Personal identity- This is the idea of identifying with characters and situations to
help clarify ones own sense of life and the views that go with it
 Personal relationships- This is the idea of companionship with the characters or
audience members through shared experience in media texts
 Surveillance- This is the idea of a want of knowledge about what is happening in
the world

6. MUSIC CAMPAIGN
 It could be said that our music video provides the audience members with diversion. However, the
harshness of the intended meaning suggests that it is not entertaining in the way of enjoyment
 I think that artists would share in personal identity with the character (the young girl) of our music video.
The idea that their images are changed and adapted just in order to make money would be a very
relevant idea
 I think that the idea of surveillance would link most with our target audience. I found that our target
audience would be ages 25-30 years old. This is the generation of change, they seek change and
redemption from what the previous generation has done before them. Yet, in order to find this change
they need to know what is wrong first. This is where our music video comes in. The target audience
consume the text and understand the intended meaning due to their level of maturity and views of the
world. They wish to seek out texts with an intended meaning that will make them think and want to
change that specific issue. Therefore this idea partly relates to the idea of personal relationships, the
target audience wish to build a community and a following that will help change what is wrong with the
world (in this case the music industry) this is done through their shared experiences watching the media
text that is our music video.

7. USES AND GRATIFICATION
THEORY RECIEVED
 From the feedback I received, it seemed that the focus group enjoyed
the music video through diversion. They gained enjoyment from the
product, saying they loved the dance and band performance. However,
the focus group was not actually our target audience as they were
ages 16-18 years old rather than 25-30 years old. Therefore, I predict
that if I had interviewed our target audience I think that the audience
would understand the intended meaning more and therefore be more
of a surveillance example rather than diversion. Due to what I found in
my research (next slide). From the interview It was clear that the 16-18
year olds struggled slightly with the metaphor of the narrative element.
This provided further evidence that we were right with our prediction for
the age of the target audience

8. RESEARCH INTO FEATURES
OF TARGET AUDIENCE
As can be seen from my blog. I
predicted that the target
audience would be into
cinematography, editing and
critically acclaimed films.
Therefore our actual target
audience would receive the
gratification of personal
relationships. The 25-30 year old
males would share the
experience of the product and be
able to appreciate it with other
audience members

9. PREFERRED, NEGOTIATE OR
OPPOSITIONAL READINGS FROM THE
FEEDBACK
 From our first feedback session of our first draft of our music video the focus
group seemed to take a negotiated reading of the intended reading. They
understood the element of the young girl (artist) being exploited by the creepy
men (music industry) yet they didn't’t understand that she was tied up rather
than hiding. This therefore took a lot away from the narrative meaning. We
later changed this by adding in shots of the girl being tied up to clear this up
for audience members. The final feedback we received on the music video
the audience took a preferred meaning. They understood the narrative line,
as well as most agreeing with it. However due to the young age of our focus
group, they were unaware of this narrative line being an issue. Therefore
some didn't’t realize the symbolism behind the story line.
 In our final feedback, the audience all took a preferred reading that the group
were definitely a band. They got this idea from our three products (website,
digipak and music video). This meant that we were successful in our
encoding methods of creation.

10. CONCLUSION
 It is clear that our three products can be readily related to
audience theories. Our feedback , has followed these theories
without us even realizing it.
 I think from the use of the audience theories it is clear that the
right message and look of our campaign on the whole has been
interpreted as we wanted.
 I think we could of improved on the findings of the audience
theories by interviewing the actual target audience (male 25-30
years old). This would of given us accurate data.
 However, overall I’m happy that even people that our younger
than our target audience and female rather than male
completely understood the intended meanings.