This document discusses several audience theories that can be used to understand how audiences interact with media. It describes the uses and gratifications theory, which suggests that audiences actively use media to fulfill needs like entertainment, social interaction, personal identity, and staying informed. The document also discusses audience control theories that see audiences as actively making meaning from media rather than passively accepting messages. Finally, it covers encoding/decoding reception theory and contrasts the effects model, which views audiences as passive, with active audience theories that see audiences critically interpreting media messages.

1. Audience Theories
TO LOOK INTO THE AUDIENCE THEORIES
AND HOW THEY CAN BE USED IN THE
CREATION OF YOUR MAGAZINE

2. Generic Conventions and Audience Theories
There are a few ways that you can describe an audience
for example:
 Age
 Gender
 Culture
 Education
 Class
 Region

3. Uses and Gratifications Theory
This was a term created by Blumler and Katz in the 1970’s. It suggests that the
audience uses the media to fulfil needs and motivations:
 Diversion which is entertainment, relaxation, something to do
 Personal relationships and social interaction which means audiences can
become involved in the social lives of people presented in media texts through
interviews and gossip, audiences can observe a range of relationships with
others and understand the dynamics involved and audiences can learn empathy
 Personal identity means audiences can identify with characters represented in
the media, and they can make comparisons between characters and their own
behaviour.
 Surveillance is that the media provides information and education, helping the
audience to stay informed and know what’s happening in the world.
 The uses and gratifications model is the opposite of the effects model talked
about in a few slides, as the audience is active and they use the text instead of
being used by it. The audience uses the media texts for its own gratification or
pleasure.
 The power therefore lies with the audience and not the producers and far from
being duped by the media, the audience is free to reject, use or play with the
media meanings as they fit.

4. Audience Control
The audience is in control and consumption of the
media and this helps people overcome issues such as:
 Learning
 Emotional satisfaction
 Relaxation
 Help with issues of personal identity
 Help with issues of social identity
 Help with issues of aggression and violence

5. Reception Theory
Encoding and Decoding was first introduced by Stuart Hall in
the 1970’s.
 Texts are encoded with meaning (semiotics)
 Different audiences respond (decode) in different ways
 Both encoded and decoded meaning will be understood in the
context of the social and cultural background of the producer
and audience
When a producer constructs a text it is encoded with a meaning
or message that the producer wishes to convey to the audience.
In some instances audiences will correctly decode the message
or meaning and understand what the producer was trying to say,
in some instances the audience will either reject or fail to
correctly understand the message.

6. Readings
 Dominant reading is where the audience uncritically
accepts the intended meaning of the text.
 Negotiated reading is where the message is partly
accepted and partly rejected – meaning they agree and
accept to a certain extent. People may believe the story if
they have read it elsewhere in a trusted magazine, or they
may be uninterested in the story and find the source
unreliable.
 Oppositional reading is where the audience rejects the
message, this could be because the story is seen as gossip,
the source isn’t trusted or the audience does not value the
celebrity and their viewpoints.

7. The Effects Model and The Hypodermic Model
 The consumption of media texts has influence upon the




audience, and it is normally considered that this effect is
negative.
Audiences are passive and powerless to prevent the influence,
so therefore producers have to think about the message they
are trying to put across
The power lies with the message of the text and is very
important that it is worded correctly so that it will not be seen
as offensive.
The hypodermic model is when messages in media texts are
injected into the audience by the powerful syringe-like media.
The audience is powerless to resist the messages they are
given and therefore the media works and almost captures the
audience.