1. CULTIVATING
“HAPPILY-EVER-
AFTER”
GABY BYRD

2. GEORGE GERBNER
• Born in Budapest, Hungary in
1919
• Served in the US Army
• Majored in Journalism for his
undergraduate studies at UC
Berkeley
• Received his teaching credentials
from USC’s School of Education
where he received his master’s
degree with his thesis titled as
“Television and Education”
• Developed cultivation theory
while at the Annenberg School
of Communication at UPenn

3. CULTIVATION THEORY
• A response to a study of whether or not watching
TV influenced the ideas of how life really is
• Called cultivation theory because the cultivation
takes place when “the media cultivate attitudes
and values in a culture” (Fiske)
• Resulted in the belief that the attitudes of the
viewer are affected not the behaviors
• Focuses on heavy viewers of television

4. Cultivated Texts

5. CULTIVATED ATTITUDES
• Physical beauty is of great importance
• Finding your “Prince Charming” should be your #1 goal

6. Video Clip
• Boy Meets World Clip
Topanga (his girlfriend) does end up leaving, but she comes back
because they “don’t deserve that kind of pain” because they “belong
together” as Cory says in this clip.

7. CULTIVATED
ATTITUDES
• TV is the true mirror of our lives
• You cannot have your heart
broken if you are truly in love
• The guy always gets the girl

8. Ideology
The cultivation of new attitudes creates a shift in
ideology