The document discusses several theories of media audiences: 1) The hypodermic syringe theory views audiences as a passive mass that will be directly influenced by media messages like injections from a syringe. 2) The cultivation theory argues that repeated exposure to media over time can shape audiences' views, making them less sensitive to issues frequently depicted. 3) The two-step flow theory proposes that opinions spread from opinion leaders in social circles after first being exposed via media. 4) Uses and gratifications theory argues that audiences are active, selecting media to fulfill needs and desires like entertainment or information. However, audiences may not have complete choice and can be exposed to unwanted messages. 5) Re

1. HAYES AS Media Studies – Audience Theory
Media Audiences Definition:
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The Audience as Mass
The media are often experienced by people alone. (Some critics have talked about media audiences as
atomised- cut off from other people like separate atoms)
Wherever they are in the world, the audience for a media text are all receiving exactly the same thing.
RESEARCH
In order to target the most appropriate audience, producers research:
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History
Since the early days of the media this question has been
discussed widely throughout the world. Some people have
seen media audiences as being
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2. HAYES AS Media Studies – Audience Theory
________________________________________________________ or to follow corrupt leaders
through propaganda.
There have also been fears that the contents of media texts can ______________
_____________________________________________, become more violent for example.
Life without Media
Within less than a hundred years
photography, Film, radio and
television were all invented.
THE ARRIVAL OF MEDIA
The arrival of “the media” changed a lot of this. While films are often watched in
theatre sized audiences. The vast majority of our times with the media are spent
_____________________________ or in ___________________, so in one sense
the media can seem to __________________. You have probably heard the worry
from parents that since the arrival of video games and portable televisions,
children _______________________________ as they used to.
There is an opposite sense in which the media can be seen to bring us closer together.
How?
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3. HAYES AS Media Studies – Audience Theory
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What are the problems with everyone potentially seeing the same media?
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GOOD AND BAD
• What are the possible good and bad points about these conflicting ideas?
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• Which do you think is right (or just slightly more right)?
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Good Bad
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4. HAYES AS Media Studies – Audience Theory
KEY POINTS SUMMARY
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Some History
During the war and before it, Hitler in Germany and Stalin in Russia had attempted to use the media as
propaganda- through films, radio and poster art they had attempted to ________________________
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to the critics of the time it is not surprising that the media must have seemed like a
__________________________ in the wrong hands, capable of ________________________________
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5. HAYES AS Media Studies – Audience Theory
Audience Theory
Audience theory is the starting point for many Media Studies tasks. Whether you are constructing a
text or analysing one, you will need to consider the destination of that text, ie its target audience
and how that audience (or any other) will respond to that text.
It is virtually impossible these days to go through a day without encountering the media in some form.
How do you encounter media in your daily life?
Some audience theories are seen as a call for more censorship, others for less
control. Whatever your personal stance on the subject, you must understand the following theories
and how they may be used to deconstruct the relationship between audience and text.
Key Theory 1: The hypodermic syringe
Dating from the 1920s, this theory was the first attempt to explain how
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According to the theory the media is like a _______________________________,
______________________________________________ into the audience who as a_____________
mass have little choice but to be influenced- in other words, you watch something violent, you may
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6. HAYES AS Media Studies – Audience Theory
go and do something violent, you see a woman washing up on T.V. and you will want to do the same
yourself if you are a woman and if you are a man you will expect women to do the washing up for
you.
In Summary:
Where do you find this theory?
What’s wrong with this theory?
Worth thinking about
It is obviously easy to find reasons why the hypodermic syringe theory could never apply to everyone
equally.
But do you think it could work sometimes?
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7. HAYES AS Media Studies – Audience Theory
What about you- can you think of any media texts which you feel have had a big effect on you and made
you behave in any way differently?
Key Theory 2: The Culmination Theory
According to this, while any one media text does not have too much effect, years
and years of watching more violence will make you less sensitive to violence, years
and years of watching women being mistreated in soaps will make you less
bothered about it in real life.
What do you think?
Difficulties
Think about this for yourself:
Are there any forms of media that you think society gives greater status to. For example
which do people see as "better": films or television, soaps or detective dramas, opera or
garage?
Do you have any feelings about the kinds of audience these different forms of media attract- are some
likely to be more thoughtful and more intelligent than others?
Why do parents watch programs with their children?
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8. HAYES AS Media Studies – Audience Theory
Should the same protection be offered to adults?
Key Theory 3: The two step
flow
A theory that springs from this idea is called the two step flow. The idea of this is that whatever our
experience of the media we will be likely to discuss it with others and if we respect their opinion, the
chances are that we will be more likely to be affected by it. (The theory calls these people opinion
leaders.)
Think about this honestly- are your opinions about television, films or groups ever influenced by other
people?
Do you think a friend's ideas about a media text could ever affect your behaviour in any way?
Key Theory 4: Uses and Gratifications
This is probably the most important theory for you to know. According to uses and
gratification theory, we all have ___________________________________________ and
we make choices over what we ________________________________. In other words,
when we ____________________________________, it is not just some kind of mindless
entertainment- we are expecting to ______________________________________: some
kind of _____________________________.
What kinds of gratification can we be getting?
1
2
3
4
Criticisms of theory:
First of all, it ignores the fact that we do not always have _________________________
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9. HAYES AS Media Studies – Audience Theory
_________________________________. Think, for example, about your family who may
end up having to listen to the same music as you sometimes. Similarly, you don't have that
much choice about the posters that you see on your way to college however objectionable
you may find some of them.
A second problem relates to this last example. The poster that you see
on a billboard, may be extremely sexist. However, you
_________________________________ different poster that you
want to see that you might find more pleasant. If you think about it,
this problem also affects us in our other encounters with the media- we
are generally having to
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___. This undermines the idea of uses and gratifications- we may not all have the same
potential to use and enjoy the media products that we want. In society there are in fact
plenty of ________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________ that they want to
use.
Key Theory 5: Reception analysis
Reception analysis is based on the idea that _____________________________________.
Instead, reception analysis suggests that the audience themselves ____________________
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How do we do this?
We all decode the texts that we encounter in individual ways which may be a result of our
______________________________, the _________________________ that we are in,
the _________________________________________ at the time or in fact any
combination of these and all kinds of other factors. So viewer 1 may watch a television
programme and enjoy every minute of it and viewer 2 may hate the same show. But of
course, it goes way beyond just how much we enjoy the text. We will actually create a
different meaning for it as well.
What factors influence the way we read a text?
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10. HAYES AS Media Studies – Audience Theory
What you have been reading about up to now are very much the classic ideas
about audiences. You need to be familiar with these theories if you are to
answer questions in the media studies exam successfully
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