12

DISCIPLINES AND IDEAS IN THE

APPLIED SOCIAL SCIENCES

Quarter 2

Module 1
Clientele and Audencies in Communication

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At the end of the module, the learner should be able to:
1. describe the clientele and audience of communication; and
2. distinguish the needs of individuals, groups, organizations, and communities.

Code: HUMSS DIASS_12-IIa-37, HUMSS DIASS_12-IIa-38

What’s UP?
Instructions: On the topic, ‘why audiences engage in communication activities’ fill out the
KWL chart below. In the first column (K, for ‘Know’), write what you already know about
the topic. In the second column (W, for ‘Want to know’), indicate what you want to know
about it. After completing this lesson, return to this chart and write what you have
learned about the topic in the third column (L, for what I have Learned).
KWL Chart
What I Know What I Want to Know What I Learned

Let’s Navigate…
AUDIENCES AND THEIR COMMUNICATION NEEDS
WHO IS THE AUDIENCE?

The people who watch television shows, read the news, watch a film, and so on comprise the
audience. What these groups of individuals have in common are their use of a particular medium
and its content. To refer back to the linear model of the mass communication process, ‘audience’
is the collective term for the ‘receivers’.

Audiences are formed from either or both of two factors: social context (people from the same
background leads to shared cultural interests, understanding, and information needs) and a
response to media content (news show, variety show, soap opera, etc.)

The media sociologist Dennis McQuail has noted that an audience can be defined in different
and overlapping ways, namely:
• by place: as in the audience of the case of a community newspaper
• by people: as when media content appeals to a certain age group, gender, political belief,
or income category
• by the particular type of medium or channel involved: the audience of radio may differ
from the audience of television
• by the content of the message of a medium: L talk shows and soap operas may have
different audiences
• by times: as in daytime, primetime, or weekend audiences

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INDIVIDUALS AS AUDIENCE

You and I as individuals engage in communication along with the different levels of
intrapersonal, interpersonal, and mass communication. We do so for a variety of reasons.
The inventory of tasks of communication and media in society can similarly be used to identify
an individual’s need to engage in communication. People communicate, to inform and be
informed, to persuade and obtain guidance for one’s own opinions, to articulate and foster one’s
identity and membership of a cultural or social group (for instance by taking part in community
activities), to entertain and be entertained and for other reasons. McQuail (1972) provided a
typology of media-person interactions as follows:
▪ Diversion: escape from routine or problems, emotional release
▪ Personal relationships: companionship, a social utility
▪ Surveillance: information seeking

Moreover, it has been proposed that media use can be explained by the gratifications which an
individual derives from it. This notion is based on the idea that audiences are formed based on
similarities of individual need, interest, and taste, many of which appear to have a social or
psychological origin. Typical of such needs are for information, relaxation, companionship, as the
uses and gratifications approach. Research findings show that among the gratifications which
audiences have derived from using the media are:
• Information and education
• Guidance and advice
• Diversion and relaxation
• Social contact
• Value reinforcement
• Cultural satisfaction
• Emotional release
• Identity formation and confirmation
• Lifestyle expression
• Security
• Sexual arousal
• Filling time

Mass media are increasingly guided by audience research in making decisions about what
content, what program at a particular hour, whether to cover a story live or not. Similarly,
advertisers make decisions based on information about the audience of a particular medium or
program, at a particular time. Thus research methods have been developed to supply advertisers
with the information they need to sell products and audience research companies have emerged
to conduct the research that provides such data. A.C. Nielsen is the leading audience research
company that researches audiences for print, television, and online media.

GROUPS AND ORGANIZATIONS AS AUDIENCE

Like individuals, organizations communicate with others for a variety of reasons. Experts on
communication planning have identified the communication needs of an organization as follows
(Inett and Shewchuk, 2003):

▪ To inform
▪ To build understanding or change behavior

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 ▪ To resolve conflict or prevent misunderstandings
▪ To present a point of view or project an image
▪ To lower barriers between groups and individuals

Among the wide variety of communication media which organizations can use to fulfill these
communication needs are;
• Paid advertising
o Print
o Radio
o Television
o Outdoor
o Transit ads
o Mall displays
• Print Materials
o Brochures/pamphlets/publications
o Posters
o Newsletters
o Annual report
• Media Relations
o Regular contact with journalists
o Mailing lists
o One-on-one interviews with the media
o Meeting with editorial boards
o News releases
o Electronic releases
o News conferences
o Talk shows
o Information kits
o Letters to the editor
o Issue spokesperson
o Feature articles
o Website postings
• Public Service Announcements (PSAs)
o Cable television
o radio
• Community Relations
o Direct mail
o Public speaking
o AV presentations
o Personal contacts
o Public meetings
o Site tours
o Educational opportunities
o Sponsorship opportunities
• Government Relations
o Regular contact with key officials
o Add government official/offices to your mailing list
o Briefings/briefing documents
• Organization/Corporate Communications

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 o Spokesperson
o Speeches
o Special events
o Displays
o Trade shows
o Annual or other reports
o Annual meetings
• Internal Communications
o Meeting
o Newsletters
o Employee annual report
o Information in pay envelopes
o Letter sent to employees’ homes
o Bulletin boards messages
o Electronic mail messages
o Employee special events

Let’s Knot It!

1. What do individuals comprising an audience have in common?
2. Why communication audiences have different communication needs?

Do It!
Analyze your own communication activities or those of other people as follows:

1. Why do I watch television?

2. Why do my parents listen to the radio?
3. Why do my classmates use Facebook?

Give your answer using the graphic organizer below. Prepare ONE organizer for each item
above, and identify a maximum of four reasons. Expand the organizer by indicating an example
of the communication activity (the title of the TV/radio program), position these activities around
the need circle.

Need

Communication
Need Activity Need

Need

Criteria:
Content (Accuracy of Facts, Relevance/Connection to the Lesson) -40
Writing Mechanics -10
50 points

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Test Yourself!
SHORT ESSAY: Explain your understanding of the questions below. For brevity and clarity,
please limit your answers to five sentences only.

1. What is an ‘audience’?

2. How are audiences in communication constituted?

REFERENCES
Dela Cruz, AR., Fernandez, C., Melegrito, ML., & Valdez, V. (2016). Disciplines and Ideas in the Applied Social Sciences, Padayon Series. Phoenix
Publishing House, Inc.

IMAGES
www.google.com