Media in our lives

Group No.5 Muhammad Khurram (SP14-BME-

031) Hafiz Muhammad Khalid (SP14-

BME-057) Muhammad Usman (SP13-BME-

073) Ahad Hameed (FA13-BME-021) Ihsan Hameed (FA13-BME-003)

Effects Of Media

Laswell’s Model of Mass Communication Who Says What In Which Channel To Whom With What Effect

Effects Theories

Walter Lippmann: Public Opinion (1922)

We see the world as "pictures in our heads"

Media shape perception of things we have not experienced personally

Powerful Effects Theory

Media have immediate, direct influence

Assumes people are passive and absorb media content uncritically & unconditionally

“Hypodermic Needle” model

“Magic Bullet” model

Minimalist Effects

Paul Lazarsfeld Erie County study (1940)

Mass media had hardly any direct effect

Personal contact more important than media contact

Media effects mostly indirect

Two-step Flow model Media affect individuals through

opinion leaders

Opinion leaders are those who influence others Clergy, teachers, neighborhood

leaders, etc.

Status Conferral Media coverage can create

prominence for issues & people

Agenda Setting Maxwell McCombs & Don Shaw Media tell people what to think about

– but not what to think

Media can:

Create awareness

Establish priorities

Perpetuate issues

Intramedia effect as well

Narcoticizing dysfunction

Media do not energize people into taking action

Media lull people into passivity by overwhelming them with information

People deceive selves into believing they’re involved when they’re actually only informed

Cumulative Effects Theory Media influence is gradual over time Effect is often powerful

Spiral of Silence (Noelle-Neumann) Vocal majority intimidates others

into silence

Focus on the audience

1940s challenge to audience passivity

Uses & Gratifications People choose media that meet

their needs & interests

Needs such as: Surveillance Diversion Socialization

Surveillance

Media provide info about what’s going on

Both news & entertainment

DiversionMedia as entertainment Stimulate Relax Release

Socialization Mass media can help initiate

people into society

And help them fit in Demonstrate dominant behaviors

and norms “Observational learning”

Role modeling

Imitative behavior

Impact can be negative or

positive ("prosocial”)

Socialization via eavesdropping

Children learn about adult topics by seeing them depicted in media

Parasocial interaction False sense of participating in

dialogue Communication is actually one-

way

Consistency theory Individuals exercise control over

media’s effects on them People choose media & messages

consistent with their existing views & values

Selective: Exposure Perception Retention & Recall

Selective Exposure

People choose some media messages over others

People ignore messages that contradict their beliefs

Selective Perception People tend to hear what they want or

expect to hear

Selective retention & recall People retain & recollect some media

messages and not others

Bottom line:

Individuals have a large degree of control over how the mass media affect them

War of the Worlds Revisited

Why did the Orson Welles broadcast have such a powerful effect on its audience?

EarthStation1.com's Radio Sounds Showcase: The 1938 "War of the Worlds" Radio Broadcast Wavs

“Reverence” for radio as a reliable medium

Predisposition to expect bad news Selective perception Gullibility fueled by awe of science WWI memories – gas warfare Failure of common sense

Determining Causality Correlation means that 2 or more

variables coexist

Causality means that one variable causes another

Beware of bad science (studies purporting causality)