Unit 6 Assignment 3

Audience Theory

Hypothermic Needle Model

(Also known as the hypodermic-syringe model, transmission-belt model, or magic bullet theory) is a
model of communications suggesting that an intended message is directly received and wholly
accepted by the receiver. The model was originally rooted in 1930s behaviorism and largely considered
obsolete for a long time, while big data analytics based mass customization has led to a modern revival
of the basic idea.

The "Magic Bullet" or "Hypodermic Needle Theory" of direct influence effects was based on early
observations of the effect of mass media, as used by Nazi propaganda and the effects of Hollywood in
the 1930s and 1940s. People were assumed to be "uniformly controlled by their biologically based
'instincts' and that they react more or less uniformly to whatever 'stimuli' came along". The "Magic
Bullet" theory graphically assumes that the media's message is a bullet fired from the "media gun"
into the viewer's "head". Similarly, the "Hypodermic Needle Model" uses the same idea of the
"shooting" paradigm. It suggests that the media injects its messages straight into the passive audience.
This passive audience is immediately affected by these messages. The public essentially cannot escape
from the media's influence, and is therefore considered a "sitting duck". Both models suggest that the
public is vulnerable to the messages shot at them because of the limited communication tools and the
studies of the media's effects on the masses at the time. It means the media explores information in
such a way that it injects in the mind of audiences as bullets

Uses and Gratifications Theory

Uses and gratifications theory is an approach to understanding why and how people actively seek out
specific media to satisfy specific needs. UGT is an audience-centered approach to understanding mass
communication. Diverging from other media effect theories that question "what does media do to
people?", UGT focuses on "what do people do with media?"

This communication theory is positivistic in its approach, based in the socio-psychological

communication tradition, and focuses on communication at the mass media scale. UGT discusses how
users deliberately choose media that will satisfy given needs and allow one to enhance knowledge,
relaxation, social interactions/companionship, diversion, or escape.

It assumes that audience members are not passive consumers of media. Rather, the audience has
power over their media consumption and assumes an active role in interpreting and integrating media
into their own lives. Unlike other theoretical perspectives, UGT holds that audiences are responsible
for choosing media to meet their desires and needs to achieve gratification. This theory would then
imply that the media compete against other information sources for viewers' gratification.

UGT has a heuristic value today because it gives communication scholars a "perspective through which
a number of ideas and theories about media choice, consumption, and even impact can be viewed."

Reception Study

Reception theory is a version of reader response literary theory that emphasizes each particular
reader's reception or interpretation in making meaning from a literary text. Reception theory is
generally referred to as audience reception in the analysis of communications models. In literary
studies, reception theory originated from the work of Hans-Robert Jauss in the late 1960s, and the
most influential work was produced during the 1970s and early 1980s in Germany and the US (Fortier
132), with some notable work done in other Western European countries. A form of reception theory
has also been applied to the study of historiography, as detailed in Reception history (below).

The cultural theorist Stuart Hall has been one of the main proponents of reception theory, having
developed it for media and communication studies from the literary and history-oriented approaches
mentioned above. His approach, called the encoding/decoding model of communication, is a form of
textual analysis that focuses on the scope of "negotiation" and "opposition" by the audience. This
means that a "text" be it a book, movie, or other creative work is not simply passively accepted
by the audience, but that the reader/viewer interprets the meanings of the text based on her or his
individual cultural background and life experiences. In essence, the meaning of a text is not inherent
within the text itself, but is created within the relationship between the text and the reader.

Hall also developed a theory of encoding and decoding, Hall's Theory, which focuses on the
communication processes at play in texts that are in televisual form.

Reception theory has since been extended to the spectators of performative events, focusing
predominantly on the theatre. Susan Bennett is often credited with beginning this discourse.
Reception theory has also been applied to the history and analysis of landscapes, through the work of
the landscape historian John Dixon Hunt, as Hunt recognized that the survival of gardens and
landscapes is largely related to their public reception.

Effects Debates

Effects of Exposure to Explicit Sexual or Violent Content

Sexual Violence. According to some studies, early exposure (by age 14) to pornography and other
explicit material may increase the risk of a child becoming a victim of sexual violence or acting out
sexually against another child. For some people, habitual use of pornography may prompt a desire for
more violent or deviant material, including depictions of rape, torture or humiliation. If people seek
to act out what they see, they may be more likely to commit sexual assault, rape or child molestation.

Effects of Advertising

Advertisements help to increase the sale of goods and so producers can sell goods at reasonable
prices. They raise the standard of living of people by drawing attention to new products and ideas.
They increase the demand for goods and more workers are needed to produce goods so they provide
employment. They pay for many services such as transporters, porters and sellers. Daily newspapers,
television license fees and bus fees remain cheap because of advertisements. They also keep up the
quality of the goods and services we use.

There are many advantages of print advertisements. Newspaper readers are more likely to consider
information in advertisements seriously. Print advertisements are concrete, and therefore, readers
are able to pick the paper back up and read it a second time, or whenever is convenient for them. All
of the information will always be right in front of them. But radio and television give impermanent
information and if you miss it, you don't have a choice when you can hear it again. Newspaper readers
are usually older, better educated, and higher earning than television and radio audiences. Magazines
have all of the same advantages of newspapers including a longer shelf life, which means that it stays
in use longer. Also, people share magazines so more people are exposed to the ad, and the ads in
magazines have the potential to be more glamorous than newspapers.
Advertising can lower subscription costs, but again, it can become a circular argument. Mad magazine
publisher William F. Gaines explained this in 1972, arguing that if he accepted advertising in his
already-successful magazine he'd have to change the magazine's appearance, and he wasn't sure that
would gain him any ground: "We'd have to improve our package. Most advertisers want to appear in
a magazine that's loaded with color and has super-slick paper. So you find yourself being pushed into
producing a more expensive package. You get bigger and fancier and attract more advertisers.

Advertisements try to influence our emotions by making us buy things we do not need or want. They
make us believe that our dreams will come true if we use their products. This is why advertisements
for home cleaning products often try to convince ladies that they become perfect wives and mothers
only if they use those products. They imply that money can make our dreams come true. But this is
obviously not so. We cannot buy personal good looks, intelligence, good friendships or a happy family.
A lot of advertisements are, therefore, a form of lying. They can also make people feel depressed and
discontented with their ordinary lives, especially those people who have only a small amount of
money to spend on luxuries.

The majority of mainstream commercial publications accept paid advertising, generally to help cover
production costs and to provide their readers access to related resources and information. Non-
commercial publications, such as those published for organizations, often do not include advertising,
preferring to maintain a neutrality in the commercial marketplace and to keep production costs to a
minimum.

A publication that accepts ads brings consumers and vendors together, and this creates a vested
interest in maintaining the happiness of both parties. If the consumers remain happy they'll continue
to subscribe, and if the vendors remain pleased they'll continue to advertise. Thus the publisher strives
to support a good climate for commerce within the market, which often strengthens and supports the
entire community, organization, or other target audience.

Health Concerns

Watching television is the most common daily activity apart from work and sleep in many parts of the
world, but it is time for people to change their viewing habits. According to a new study from Harvard
School of Public Health (HSPH) researchers, prolonged TV viewing was associated with increased risk
of type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and premature death.

Many people around the world divide their days largely between working, sleeping, and watching
television, according to the researchers. Europeans spend an average of 40 percent of their daily free
time in front of the television set; Australians, 50 percent. This corresponds to three to four hours of
daily viewing still less than a reported average of five hours in the U.S. The negative health effects
of TV viewing have been documented in prior studies, including associations with reduced physical
activity levels and unhealthy diets.

Hu and first author Anders Grontved, a doctoral student and visiting researcher in the HSPH
Department of Nutrition, conducted a meta-analysis, a systematic assessment of all published studies
from 1970 to 2011 that linked TV viewing with increased risk of type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular
disease, and premature death. Eight large prospective cohort studies from the United States, Europe,
and Australia met the researchers criteria and were included in the meta-analysis.

Censorship Debates

For the proponents of censorship, restricting the access of information is something that can provide
benefits to society. By censoring pornography on the internet, children are less likely to encounter it.
By censoring certain types of images and videos, society can prevent offensive or vulgar material
from offending those that it targets. For example, some would argue that society should censor
material that is insulting to a particular religion in order to maintain societal harmony. In this way,
censorship is viewed as a way to protect society as a whole or certain segments of society from
material that is seen as offensive or damaging.

Some argue that censorship is necessary to preserve national security. Without using any kind of
censorship, they argue that it is impossible to maintain the secrecy of information necessary for
protecting the nation. For this purpose, censorship protects a state's military or security secrets from
its enemies who can use that information against the state.

Those who are against censorship argue that the practice limits the freedoms of speech, the press
and expression and that these limitations are ultimately a detriment to society. By preventing free
access to information, it is argued that society is fostering ignorance in its citizens. Through this
ignorance, citizens are more easily controlled by special interest groups, and groups that are able to
take power are able to use censorship to maintain themselves. Additionally, they argue that
censorship limits a society's ability to advance in its understanding of the world.

Another main issue for those who are against censorship is a history of censorship abuse. Those who
argue against censorship can point to a number of examples of dictators who used censorship to
create flattering yet untrue images of themselves for the purpose of maintaining control over a
society. They argue that people should control the government instead of the government
controlling its people.