McGraw-Hill © 2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.
THE
DYNAMICS
OF MASS
COMMUNCATION
Joseph R. DominickUniversity of Georgia--Athens
McGraw-Hill © 2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.
The
Nature and History
of
Mass Communication
McGraw-Hill © 2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.
Chapter 1
Communication: Mass and Other Forms
Cha
pter
Out
line Case Study – 24/7 Global News Coverage?
The Communication ProcessCommunication Settings
InterpersonalMachine-AssistedDefinition of Mass CommunicationMass Communication
Traditional Mass Media OrganizationsThe Internet and Mass CommunicationFuture of Mass Media Segmentation
McGraw-Hill © 2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.
• July 7, 2005 terrorist bombs exploded in London
• All major broadcast and cable networks reported the story within 25 minutes
• Technical communication breakdown warning of tsunami lead to the death of thousands
• Demonstrates fragility of modern communications
24/7 Global News Coverage?
McGraw-Hill © 2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.
The Communication Process
Figure 1-1: Elements of the Communication Process
McGraw-Hill © 2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.
Eight Elements of the Communication Process
• Source
• Encoding
• Message
• Channel
• Decoding
• Receiver
• Feedback
• Noise
McGraw-Hill © 2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.
Communication Settings
• Interpersonal Communication
• Machine-Assisted Interpersonal
Communication
• Mass Communication
McGraw-Hill © 2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.
Communication Settings
• Interpersonal Communication
– Individual or groups
– Physical presence required
– Encoding is a one-step process
– Variety of channels
– Messages hard for receiver to terminate
McGraw-Hill © 2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.
Communication Settings
• Interpersonal Communication
(cont)
– Little or no expense
– Messages generally private
– Message can pinpoint specific targets
– Immediate feedback
McGraw-Hill © 2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.
Communication Settings
SOURCE
-- machine --
RECEIVER
Machine-Assisted Interpersonal Communication
McGraw-Hill © 2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.
Communication Settings
• Machine-Assisted Communication– Source and receiver
• May be individuals or groups
• May be a machine such as ATM
– Feedback • Immediate or delayed
• May be impossible
– Messages • Customizability varies
• Private or public
• Inexpensive to send
McGraw-Hill © 2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.
Communication Settings
• Machine-Assisted Communication
– Encoding can be simple to complex• Source: thoughts words or symbols• Machines: encode message for transmission
– Channel options restricted
– Decoding similar to encoding• Machines: electrical energy light patterns• Receiver: words or symbols thoughts
McGraw-Hill © 2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.
Mass Communication . . .
… occurs when a complex organization, with machine aid, produces and transmits public messages to large, heterogeneous and scattered audiences.
Communication Settings
McGraw-Hill © 2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.
Communication Settings
• Mass Communication– Pre-Internet: Source is a structured organization
– Internet: Source can be one person
– Sender gets little audience information
– Encoding a multi-stage process
– Channel involves machines
– Messages are public and impersonal
– Effective feedback difficult
McGraw-Hill © 2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.
Communication Settings
• Mass communication audiences– Large
– Heterogeneous
– Geographically diversified
– Individually anonymous
– Self-defined
McGraw-Hill © 2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.
Communication Settings
Table 1-1: Differences in Communication Settings
McGraw-Hill © 2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.
Traditional Mass Media Organizations
• Complex, formal organizations
• Multiple gatekeepers
• Need lots of money to operate
• Exist to make a profit
• Highly competitive
McGraw-Hill © 2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.
Traditional Mass Media Organizations
Table 1-2: Global Media Giants
McGraw-Hill © 2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.
The Internetand Mass Communication
• Websites– Affordable and producible by individual
– Bypass gatekeepers
– Creativity reigns
– Low start-up and maintenance costs
– May or may not exist for profit
– Audience competition not always factor
McGraw-Hill © 2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.
The Internetand Mass Communication
Figure 1-2: Traditional Mass Communication Model
McGraw-Hill © 2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.
The Internetand Mass Communication
Figure 1-3: Internet Mass Communication Model
McGraw-Hill © 2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.
Mass Media Segmentation
• Audience lifestyles more fragmented
• Individual segments can be large
• Emerging trends:– Convergence (coming together)
• Corporate
• Operational
• Device
– Disintermediation (eliminating the middleman)– Increasing audience control– Media mobility
