Audience Theory 2- The effects debate

 Theory questions and your opinion

1) Social learning theory has been criticised for simplifying the causes of violence in society. Do you think the media is responsible for anti-social behaviour and violence?

I believe that the media is not responsible for anti-social behaviour as I think that comes down to what people the person is surrounding themselves with and how the child grew up, any other experiences that the person is experiencing life. For example certain people when they're feeling down do not want to talk to anyone as they prefer being alone. However I believe with violence it's the same but sometimes video games can encourage to aggression but I don't believe that it's only the media's fault other factors matter as well. 

2) How is social learning theory relevant in the digital age? Are young people now learning behaviour from social media and the internet? Give examples.

I believe that when we see others doing certain things we copy them for example if your sitting in a room filled with people just sitting on their phones you more likely to copy what they're doing as you don't want to feel like your the odd one out. So I believe for certain situations the social learning theory is still relevant in the digital age. 

3) Research three examples of moral panic from the last 50 years. To what extent was the media responsible for these moral panics? Was the concern in society justified? How have things changed as a result of these moral panics?

1) Disappearing Childhood. In 1983, Neil Postman wrote a book arguing that children are becoming adults too fast, Postman primarily put the blame on visual media such as television which gave children access to adult knowledge before they could even read, Now since then fears about the media corrupting childhood has always occurred. 

2) Immigration. In the 2018 midterm elections in the US, spread a fear of migrant caravans heading north from Central America. The fear then faded after the midterms. The media isn't fully to blame for this however the media is always very quick to jump on issues of migration so possibly the media exaggerated the moral panic too much since it faded after the midterms. 

3) HIV/ Aids rumour. In the 1980s HIV was linked to homosexuality, the media picked up on the idea that gay people were spreading HIV around the world, which obviously quite clearly is not true and the media exaggerated this and later on it was blamed on generally morally deviant behaviour of youth. 

4) Read this introduction to an academic paper on technopanics. What examples are given of technopanics that create fear in society? If the link is blocked in school, you can access the text here.

Public policy debates appeal to fear as a way to sway opinion or bolster the case for action, these are used to convince citizens that threats to individual or social- well being may be avoided only if specific steps are taken. Such fear appeal arguments are frequently on display in the Internet policy arena and take the form of a full blown moral panic or technopanic. 

5) Do you think the internet should be regulated? Should the government try and control what we can access online?

I believe the internet should be regulated depending on age, i believe that a person of age 18 will be able to differentiate what's good for them and what's not whereas with young children and adolescence i believe some regulations have to be placed as exposing young children to certain things on the internet can have a very negative impact on them. However with adults i believe they can do whatever they want as they're old enough to control themselves and how to be safe on the internet. 

6) Apply Gerbner's cultivation theory to new and digital media. Is the internet creating a fearful population? Are we becoming desensitised to online threats, trolling and abuse? Is heavy internet use something we should be worried about in society? Write a paragraph discussing these ideas.

I believe that Gerbner's cultivation theory does apply to new and digital media as most of our life now revolves around the internet and media, no one really buys newspapers or magazines anymore as they can easily access them on the internet, entertainment usually revolves around watching shows and films or playing video games. We are so used to seeing certain things on the internet that sometimes we might not even realise that we are getting online abuse as it could be classified as humour on certain platforms online. Heavy internet use is definitely something that we as a society should be worried about in society as if everyday is consiting of excessive amounts on the internet, people's social life really starts to fade as they're not spending anytime outside of their internet usage as well too much time on the internet or on any device can just make your mental health worse. 

The effects debate: Media Factsheet

1) Complete the questions in the first activity box (beginning with 'Do you play violent games? Are you violent in real life?')

Do you play violent video games? Are you violent in real life? 

No i don't play any violent video games and i would say i'm not violent in real life. 

Do you ever see a product advertised on TV or on the internet and decide you want to buy it? 

Not really i don't like wasting money on silly things that just appeal to me but i would probably get bored of in the long run. 

Have you ever seen a documentary which has drawn your attention to an issue which you now feel strongly about? 

No i don't think i have i will only ever watch a documentary if it's something i am interested about. 

2) What are the four categories for different effects theories?

- Direct effect theories 

- Diffusion theories 

- Indirect effect theories 

- The Pluralist Approach 

3) What are the examples provided for the hypodermic needle theory - where media texts have been blamed for certain events? 

Child's play- The murder of Jamie Bulger.

Marilyn Manson- The Columbine High School shootings.

Natural Born Killers- a number of murders committed by romantically linked couples. 

4) What was the 1999 Columbine massacre? You may need to research this online in addition to the information on the factsheet.

In 1999 a school shooting and attempted bombing occured at Columbine High School. The perpetrators were 12th grade students who murdered 12 students and one teacher.

 

5) What are the reasons listed on the factsheet to possibly explain the Columbine High School massacre?

- Listening to Marilyn Manson caused teenagers to open fire in a high school killing students and teachers.

- The Columbine High School shootings occurred due to a complex relationship between:*

o The ease of access to firearms and the social acceptance of gun ownership

o The alienation felt by teenagers who felt as though they did not fit in

o The hopelessness caused by living in an area where unemployment was high and was economically disadvantaged

o The general desensitisation caused by access to a range of violent images: film, TV, the news, the internet.

6) How does the factsheet describe Gerbner's Cultivation theory?

While any one media text does not have too much effect, repeated exposure to certain ideas and values may make the audience less critical of the ideas presented as they appear ‘normal’.

7) What does the factsheet suggest about action films and the values and ideologies that are reinforced with regards to violence?

The factsheet suggests that in action films violence is supported as a method for the hero to reach his goal, the only difference between the hero and the villian is that we agree with the hero's motivations.

8) What criticisms of direct effect theories are suggested in the factsheet?

Direct effect theories can be discredited as it makes simplified judgements about the audience and are seen as having an elitist element suggesting a judgement is being made about the mass audience as they are assumed to be easily led and are not perceptive or self aware. 

9) Why might the 1970s sitcom Love Thy Neighbour be considered so controversial today? What does this tell us about Reception theory and how audiences create meanings?

The 1970s sitcom Love Thy Neighbour is considered to be controversial today as it appears to many viewers racist and offensive, this tells us that audiences are allowed to have oppositional readings of a media text and go against the preferred reading due to people's change is beliefs and values.

10) What examples are provided for Hall's theory of preferred, negotiated and oppositional readings?

Examples provided for Hall's theory are on The Sun and The Guardian as they report the same facts but very differently where if you interpret from one article may create a preferred reading whereas the other article can create an oppositional reading.