Com105 notes - Summary Media Communication in a Changing World PDF

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Summary

Media Literacy Media literacy refers to the ability to effectively and efficiently understand and use the different forms of mediated communication. The more we are able to comprehend how mass media are creating and maintaining the culture that helps define us and our lives, the greater the level of...

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Media Literacy •

Media literacy refers to the ability to effectively and efficiently understand and use the different forms of mediated communication.

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The more we are able to comprehend how mass media are creating and maintaining the culture that helps define us and our lives, the greater the level of media literacy we possess.

Interpersonal VS Mass Communication

Blurring Lines between Interpersonal (IC) and Mass Communication (MC) •

The Internet appears to have a mix of both interpersonal communication and mass communication characteristics

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Anyone can be a mass communicator due to low entry cost and UGC

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Feedback in MC is traditionally “inferential and delayed”, but is now often instantaneous and direct similar to the nature of feedback in IC

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Mediated vs non-mediated

Media Trends 1. Fragmentation of Audiences: small audiences, niche/targeted marketing (specific needs, lifestyles, psychographics, demographics) 2. Media Convergence: development of different types of media forming together to enhance media experience (e.g. internet) 3. Hypercommercialism: Increasing prevalence of mixing commercial and non-commercial media content

4. Mergers, Acquisitions, Conglomeration (reasons for corporate growth) 

Economies of Scale: Savings from mass production

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Global Competition: Large companies are favored, market share, global reach, globalization, more resources to compete

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Conglomeration & Synergy: horizontal/vertical integrations, increase customer base, diversification of business, gain synergy leading to better performance, core competency

5. Mergers, Acquisitions, Conglomeration (disadvantages to customers) 1. Lack of variety (limit our options as consumers as only few organisations offer such services) 2. Price (increase in price by eliminating competition) 3. Control (puts organisation in control due to lesser competition, able to control what consumers watches) 6. Cultural imperialism: Invasion of an indigenous people’s culture by powerful foreign countries through mass media 1. Impact: 1. Exchange of ideas via social media 2. Accessibility to music, videos 3. Foreign news portal 2. Controversy: 1. Imperialism of American media (propaganda – misleading, biased information) 2. Undesirable influence to the local culture 3. Erosion of indigenous cultures

Controversies of the Internet (1) 1. Freedom of Expression - one really owns the Internet, can control it and create any content, and is subjected to abuse and mischief 2. Morality Issues - hacking, flaming others, cyberbullying, thefts, frauds, scams, cheating, child pornography, children’s access to sexually explicit videos, gambling, hate speech, terrorism 3. Internet Anonymity - users’ identities can be hidden and protected 4. Copyright - material on the Internet is not tangible; it is easily, freely, and privately copied 5. Privacy - individuals' rights to protect their privacy from invasive, intrusive media

6. Loss of Trust - computer cookies are able to remember the sites you visit and cookies can be read by other websites’ spyware

Media Effect Theories •

Magic bullet theory: powerful, immediate and direct flow of information from the sender to receiver from which audiences are passive, does not think, just listens and are influenced by the media

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Limited effects theory: influence of media is based on individual differences such as intelligence and education, and social characteristics leading some people to be influenced and others not

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Uses and gratifications theory: People do not passively allow media to do things to them but they actively do things with media

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The influence of media is limited to what people allow it to be

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E.g. people read news to know what is the latest trend such as zika virus to satisfy safety needs

Cultivation analysis theory: Over time, media will “cultivate” a particular perspective of the world within users (TV MEDIA EFFECT) •

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Attitude change theory: (TV MEDIA EFFECT) •

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E.g. Prolonged viewing of media violence can cause emotional desensitisation towards violence

People pay attention to what they already believe and experience dissonance when new or conflicting information is encountered. To eliminate discomfort, they use selective process to choose information they wish to interpret, remember and process

Social cognitive theory: Media users can learn new behaviours through observational learning (TV MEDIA EFFECT) •

Imitation - direct replication of an observed behaviour through observational learning •

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Identification - viewers do not copy exactly what they have seen but make a more generalised but related response •

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E.g. watching a TV character punished for a particular behaviour makes it unlikely that viewers will behave the same

E.g. child sees tom hitting jerry with a stick, the child dumps a pail of water on his sibling instead of hitting him with a stick

Social cognitive theory: Learnt from three factors (TV MEDIA EFFECT) •

Individual’s self-efficacy

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Response an individual receives after they perform a behaviour

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Aspects of the environment or setting that influence the individuals’ ability to complete a behaviour (e.g. repetition, emphasis)

Newspaper •

One of the oldest media that continue to be culturally relevant and influential

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Newspaper has its roots in 17th-century Europe.

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Modern newspaper emerged at the turn of the 19th century.

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There is a marked decline in newspaper readership amongst the young people who tend to gravitate to digital resources.

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To counter this trend, some newspapers have resorted to slipping in more soft news and colourful and sensational photographs (e.g. celebrity scandals and bloody police reports) that appeal to the interest of younger readers.

Newspaper: Audience •

Relationship between the text and audience is always changing

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Audience is complex and sophisticated in their responses; they are not a single mass

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Audience interpret messages according to their cultural backgrounds

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Audience are active interpreters; they are not an unquestioning mass

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Audience are capable of a high degree of self-determination in the nature of the of the responses that they make

Soft News VS Hard News Soft News

Hard News

Human-interest stories that often use exaggeration and lurid elements to produce sensational effects. They do not serve the democratic function of journalism.

Stories that help citizens to make intelligent decisions and keep up with important issues of the day.

E.g. human interest, entertainment, sport, celebrity news, gossips

E.g. politics, economy, foreign affairs, home affairs, disasters

Yardsticks to News Worthiness 1. Proximity - Any event that concerns people directly because it happens in an area where they live.

2. Conflict - Political and economic conflicts such as military takeover, land disputes, civil war, economic sanctions, trade wars and high inflation all constitute news worthiness. 3. Human interest - These stories document the experiences of individuals and personalise their successes and challenges (e.g. first human on Moon) 4. Impact – News that affects a large number of people (e.g. natural disasters, air disasters and terrorism) 5. Prominence - News concerning famous people, politicians, business tycoons and celebrities (e.g. superstar caught for drunk-driving) 6. Novelty - Unusual events and stories that surprise people and get their attention (e.g. oldest living human, a new world swimming record) 7. Timeliness - Events that are so relevant to people that they should know right away (e.g. results of a general election in the country, court verdict of a prominent criminal case) 8. Currency - News and issues that will be relevant to readers and hold their attention for some time (e.g. outbreak of a pandemic influenza virus that is troubling the people)

Controversies of Newspaper 1. Advertising & advertorial as a source of revenue 

Newspaper advertising is sold on the basis of the size of the space.

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The charges are published on rate cards, which are lists of the charges for advertising space and the discounts given to local advertisers and to advertisers who make volume buys.

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National advertisers are quoted a different, and higher, rate.

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Distinguished by the labels "advertorials" “advertisement”, or "special sponsored sections“

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Sponsored content in newspapers and magazines is also labelled as branded content, brand journalism, content marketing and advertorial.

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The write-up can either be provided by the journalists or the sponsor/advertiser, but the content is all created like regular editorial content so that readers would not be able to easily tell the difference between real news content and commercial information.

2. Editorial integrity 

Editorial is an article that presents the newspaper's opinion on an issue

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It reflects the opinion of the editor on a social issue

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It is a persuasive piece of influence the readers to think the same way as the editors do

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It is meant to influence public opinion, promote critical thinking, and sometimes cause people to take action on an issue

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It is an opinionated news story

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Editorial independence is the freedom of the editor to make decisions and write stories without the interference from those it writes about and those who supply it with information.

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A lack of editorial independence, especially in terms of pressure from advertisers is a potential threat to the publication’s credibility.

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Advertisers typically expect their ads to be placed adjacent to relevant articles and away from content that may be uncomfortable for their businesses.

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For example, automobile ads are never placed near stories about car accidents. Travel ads are moved away from air accidents.

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Ensuring News Objectivity and Editorial Integrity 1. Present more convincing verifiable facts and conflicting possibilities by gathering views and comparative feedback amongst brands of the same product. 2. Supply supporting evidence, provide name sources, and quote the opinions of consumers, celebrities, and experts. 3. Gather facts in a detached and unbiased manner by categorising and separating “news” from “opinions”. 4. Interview neutral parties and publish product findings by independent survey companies to help present more convincing stories.

3. Journalism: ethical standards and news truthfulness (Yellow Journalism) 

Yellow journalism is news with a populist slant

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Coverage on minor news - news that we want to see

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Grabs our attention with drastic pictures

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Angle: Light, sensationalistic news coverage

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Extensive use of illustrations

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Ethical standards (readers interest vs advertisers interests) 1. Journalism issues revolve round the ethical standards of newspapers and magazines and the question of how to prioritise the interests of readers and the advertisers 2. They mainly involve the debates on truth/accuracy versus entertainment and editorial versus advertorial.

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News Truthfulness (Objectivity versus Sensationalism) 1. Truth and accuracy are traditional goals of journalism. 2. Journalism that stresses human interest stories over hard news tends to brush the emphasis on accurate reporting to the side.

3. The journalistic ideal of truthfulness and objectivity can also be abandoned in the midst of striving for sensationalistic write-ups to excite public opinion and boost readership. 4. Agenda-setting 

Media tell us what to think about

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The media set the agenda by deciding the amount of space and information to be given to each issue and event

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The more the media report on a news story, the more important the news story would be perceived by the readers

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This theory can powerfully shape our views of the world and lead us to think what are the most important events/issues to think about and worry about

Localism: Value of Local News •

Local newspapers play a unique social role that cannot be replaced by many other media competitors or online resources.

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Some of the most common reasons for subscribing to their local papers are: –

Local news and information

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Community reports

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Obituaries

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Local advertisements

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Coupons

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Local news strength lies in presenting the in-depth local news, information and advertising.

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E.g. news on crime, housing, neighbourhood politics, school, education policies and local industries all have a special national function in the local civic life and are important in helping people to identify with their immediate environment

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Local ads and classifieds offer greater relevance for consumers, especially when making specific day-to-day purchasing decisions for necessities and groceries

Evolving Journalism •

The shift in readership to online has affected the structure of the journalism industry.

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People are consuming news and magazines more than ever, but on smartphones, laptops and tablets.

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Today’s increasingly distracted and time-pressed readers no longer read newspapers for indepth analysis of news which traditional newspapers do best, so publishers are now finding ways to connect with them, design and create content that appeals to them.

Changing Face of Newspapers: Print to Web •

Convergence with the Internet and new digital technologies and hypercommercialism have altered the nature of newspapers and their relationship with their audiences.

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The Internet and World Wide Web not only provide readers with more information at a greater speed than traditional newspapers and magazines, they also allow readers to interact with the news through message boards and chat groups, generate, publish and share their own content via blogs and social networking sites.

Mobile News Consumption •

More than half of all smartphone and tablet users access online newspapers via apps, social media, user-generated content and the internet

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The potential of mobile news consumption is evident.

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Online news users spend more time, visit more pages, and return more frequently than when reading on conventional computers.

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Mobile technologies are especially appealing to young readers.

Online News Outlets: Features •

Immediacy

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Frequency of Updates

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Currency

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Availability of Bite-size News

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Interactivity

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Layout

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Subscribers

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Advertisements

Investigating Reporting •

Own initiative - journalists/editors makes the final decision as to whether the news is significant enough to be covered.

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Own research - the reporters gathers information on their own accord

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Own analysis - the information gathered are analysed either on their own, or with the assistance of experts from the relevant fields

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Exclusivity - the public learns about a situation that would otherwise not been make known

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Important subject – impinges on the welfare of the public

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Critical approach - focus is on what is socially controversial

Magazine •

One of the oldest media that continue to be culturally relevant and influential

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Magazine has its beginnings in the Colonies.

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Magazine found the secret of success - specialisation and a lifestyle orientation and centre on specific interests and niches so as to cater to an increasingly fragmented audience.

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Magazine readers are the most affluent; most educated of all media users.

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Magazine has a much higher readers’ engagement level than other medias

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American adults trust magazine advertising more than they do television or Internet advertising

Controversies of Magazine 1. Advertising as Source of Revenue: Magazine Advertising 

Magazine specialisation allows advertisers to target their ads for their products and services to specific demographic and regional groups of consumers.

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Magazines price advertising space in their pages based on circulation — the total number of issues of a magazine that are sold.

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Magazines sell their subscription lists — readers' names and addresses to their advertisers and other direct-mail marketers.

2. Editorial integrity 3. Sensationalism vs objectivity

Changing Face of Magazines: Print to Web •

Convergence of the Internet has also shaped the magazine industry.

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The word “magazine” today is ambiguous as it can refer to the print form or the digital form.

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Most hard copy magazines have a digital version that offers additional content as well as their interactive and instant feedback features not available to their hard-copy readers.

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Magazine Apps are now available

From Print to Web using QR Codes and NFC Tags •

An increasing number of consumer magazines are using QR codes, quick response codes to engage their readers with media brands and their advertising messages.

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Readers capture the image of the codes using their mobile phones and are immediately directed to the publisher’s website

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NFC (near-field communication) chips embedded in magazines are even more advanced.

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Readers simply hold their smartphones near an ad to get connected to more digital content by the advertisers with the need for QR Codes

Types of Newspapers and Magazines

Radio •

Radio was the first electronic mass medium and the first national broadcast medium

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Today, it remains to be a ubiquitous medium and people’s primary means of consuming audio content.

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Contemporary radio is specialised, personal, and mobile, dominated by recognisable formats or sound characteristics of a local station.

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The availability of massive online music sources and audio on digital devices such as smartphones and tablets were attributed as key reasons for radio...