MIGRAIN: Audience theory 2 - the effects debate

 

Theory questions and your opinion

1) Social learning theory has been criticised for simplifying the causes of violence in society. Do you think the media is responsible for anti-social behaviour and violence?

I partially believe that the media can influence some peoples actions however so does real life so technically yes it does but everything else also influences peoples actions. i think maybe young children can pick up little bit of violence but not dangerous violence that would seriously hurt somebody.

2) How is social learning theory relevant in the digital age? Are young people now learning behaviour from social media and the internet? Give examples.

i believe that younger children and teens are more influenced to pick up trends that they see on social media especially on tiktok as they want to feel influenced and may think that it makes them cool. this is seen as e.g. the trend of vapes went around tiktok which is harming for your  body and vapes were initially made for people who use cigarettes to stop smoking however  it became a trend and now most young people smoke it from ages of 13. this shows how the media can influence people negatively 

4) Read this introduction to an academic paper on technopanics. What examples are given of technopanics that create fear in society? If the link is blocked in school, you can access the text here.

“ In the extreme, they result in regulation or censorship. While cyberspace has its fair share of troubles and troublemakers, there is no evidence that the Internet is leading to greater problems for society than previous technologies did. That has not stopped some from suggesting there are reasons to be particularly fearful of the Internet and new digital technologies. There are various individual and institutional factors at work that perpetuate fear-based reasoning and tactics.”

5) Do you think the internet should be regulated? Should the government try and control what we can access online?

I believe that it should be regulated to an extent as i think that young children should be restricted from knowing about drugs, sex, violence as they are too young to understand what is right and wrong and there minds don’t understand what’s going on, however after primary school high school children are way more exposed to that world so then they should be educated about it while knowing there’s bad things on the internet to influence it. However in primary school they are too young to understand it.

6) Apply Gerbner's cultivation theory to new and digital media. Is the internet creating a fearful population? Are we becoming desensitised to online threats, trolling and abuse? Is heavy internet use something we should be worried about in society? Write a paragraph discussing these ideas.

i believe that when it comes to tv it has become a little less effective than social media due to people spending more time on TikTok then tv but the shows that trend on TikTok can have an effect on the viewers. there’s constantly edits being made of the shows and the characters behaviour online which can cause effect and make people act like that as they admire the character. i believe that the online threats are getting better as on Instagram you can block the users on every account that they can make or have made. on tiktok it bad language is used they take the comment down and people can restrict their comments to only allow certain people to comment or only comment positive things. i think the heavy use of media can be positive e.g maps, bus times , weather can help plan. there’s a lot of other positives like revision courses and ideas for people when they are bored but there is obviously bad aswell. it shouldn’t be a huge worry as the internet is become too big to take back so there should maybe be suggestions to control it.

The effects debate: Media Factsheet

1) Complete the questions in the first activity box (beginning with 'Do you play violent games? Are you violent in real life?')
1. Yes, I have played violent video games and watched a bunch of horror action movies with violence in it. However I am not a violent person and I believe that I’m a nice person. I’ve also watch them play these games while I was younger and I’m still not a violent person or never was a violent person, so I don’t believe that affects you that bad as I was in a position where I grew up with violent video games and violent movies as I had an older brother. Which would influence me to play these kind of games or watch these movies by turned out completely fine and I’m not violent.

2. Sometimes if I see nice clothing that fits people really nicely or shoes that I said that go viral that are really nice I will buy it . Personally I’m a really bad Spender, so I feel like I’m I feel like I get influenced to buy I feel like I get influence to buy things easily. So I have bought a lot. I’ve seen from the Internet mean the things that I’ve seen on that I think or even nice or useful.

3. Personally, I love watching true crime documentaries, and I love talking about it and my opinion on what I think happens, especially unsolved cases. I really enjoy watching them and then discussing it later talking about what happened. growing up my family used to watch it’s a lot so therefore I start enjoy it while I was younger and now that I’m older I love watching it as I don’t find it as scary or boring and I see why they watched it.

2) What are the four categories for different effects theories?
Direct effect theories, diffusion, theories, indirect effects, theories, pluralism

3) What are the examples provided for the hypodermic needle theory - where media texts have been blamed for certain events? 

The most famous incident often cited as an example for the hypodermic needle model was the 1938 broadcast of The War of the Worlds and the subsequent reaction of widespread panic among its American mass audience. However, this incident actually sparked the research movement, led by Paul Lazarsfeld and Herta Herzog, that would disprove the magic bullet or hypodermic needle theory, as Hadley Cantril managed to show that reactions to the broadcast were, in fact, diverse, and were largely determined by situational and attitudinal attributes of the listeners.

4) What was the 1999 Columbine massacre? You may need to research this online in addition to the information on the factsheet.
On April 20, 1999, a school shooting and attempted bombing occurred at Columbine High School in Columbine, Colorado, United States.^[a] The perpetrators, 12th grade students Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, murdered 12 students and one teacher. 10 students were killed in the school library, where Harris and Klebold subsequently committed suicide. 21 additional people were injured by gunshots, and gunfire was also exchanged with the police. Another three people were injured trying to escape. At the time, it was the deadliest high school shooting in U.S. history.^[b] The shooting has inspired dozens of copycat killings, dubbed the Columbine effect, including many deadlier shootings across the world.^[c] The word "Columbine" has become a byword for school shootings.

5) What are the reasons listed on the factsheet to possibly explain the Columbine High School massacre?

(ii) The Columbine High School shootings occurred due

to a complex relationship between:*

o The ease of access to firearms and the social

acceptance of gun ownership

o The alienation felt by teenagers who felt as though

they did not fit in

o The hopelessness caused by living in an area where

unemployment was high and was economically

disadvantaged

o The general desensitisation caused by access to a

range of violent images: film, TV, the news, the

internet

[* This is the argument offered by Michael Moore in

his film Bowling for Columbine]

6) How does the factsheet describe Gerbner's Cultivation theory?

This theory considers the way the media affects attitudes rather

than behaviour. The media is seen as part of our socialisation

process, communicating ‘appropriate’ attitudes and the norms and

values of the culture. According to this theory, while any one

media text does not have too much effect, repeated exposure to

certain ideas and values may make the audience less critical of the

ideas presented as they appear ‘normal’.

7) What does the factsheet suggest about action films and the values and ideologies that are reinforced with regards to violence?

The Hypodermic Syringe Theory can offer quick, simple reasons

for behaviours with apparently simple solutions but does not take

into account that a range of factors may influence audience

behaviour. It is an idea that is popular with the tabloid press and

politicians who attempt to provide solutions to problems to reassure

their audience/constituents. However, there is little to support this

theory when it is considered carefully.

8) What criticisms of direct effect theories are suggested in the factsheet?

This theory is largely discredited as it makes simplified judgements

about the audience. However, it is still used politically as a criticism

of certain media texts.

9) Why might the 1970s sitcom Love Thy Neighbour be considered so controversial today? What does this tell us about Reception theory and how audiences create meanings?

Some texts from the past seem very strange to us. A very popular sit com in the 1970s called Love Thy Neighbour appears to many modern viewers, racist and offensive. Times have changed and so have people’s attitudes and values. What was acceptable as the topic for comedy some decades ago, no longer is.

10) What examples are provided for Hall's theory of preferred, negotiated and oppositional readings?

Potential readings can, therefore, be:

• the dominant reading

o an acceptance of the intended meaning

• a negotiated reading

o a broad acceptance of the intended meaning but with

some personal modification

• an oppositional reading

o an understanding of the intended meaning but a rejection

of it in favour of one created by the individual