Audience Theory

Institution produces
Audience consumes
Key theories.

The Effects Model

A theory that says consumption of media has an effect of influence
which is assumed to be negative upon the audience.
Assumes audience are passive and powerless
Also called the hypodermic needle media is drugging people
Injects its message into a passive audience

Reception theory
Media texts are encoded by producers and decoded by audience
Audience are active
Decoded by audience in 1 of 3 ways; dominant, negotiation,
oppositional.

Uses and gratifications theory

Audience uses the text and isnt used by it
Power within the audience and not the producers
Audience free to reject, use or play with media meanings.
Why? To learn, to relax, relate, fit in and help process negative feeling.
Information/education, entertainment, personal identity,
integration/social integration, escapism