Mass Media Final Exam Study Guide

Talent agencies

(WME, CAA): Represent actors, directors, and negotiate contracts for entertainment talent

Movie "treatment"

A detailed summary of a film's plot before writing a full script

Post-production

Editing, sound mixing, visual effects, and final film assembly

Hero's Journey

A narrative pattern where a protagonist goes through transformative adventures and ultimately returns home changed, often involving stages like the call to adventure, trials, and the return.

On spec

Writing a script without guaranteed payment, hoping to sell it

Directors

Responsible for creative vision, guiding actors, making artistic decisions; typically use multiple takes

Hays Code

A set of industry guidelines for film content that enforced moral standards in Hollywood from the 1930s to the 1960s, restricting depictions of sex, violence, and other sensitive topics.

Early TV development slowdown

• Great Depression, World War II, technological limitations

Early TV shows:

Mostly broadcast live

1980s TV industry impacts

Cable TV expansion, rise of specialized networks

TV domains

Broadcast, Cable, Streaming

I Love Lucy

Demonstrated potential of filmed television production

Syndication

Selling TV show reruns to multiple networks

Monopoly

One company controls an entire market; Oligopoly: Few companies dominate a market

Ethical standards levels

Guidelines that determine acceptable behavior in media practices, typically categorized into personal, organizational, and societal levels.

Unprotected First Amendment media content

Obscenity, defamation, incitement to violence

Quiz Show scandal

1950s game shows rigged by producers

Government role

Investigating and exposing TV show manipulation

Advertising vs. PR

Advertising directly promotes products; PR manages public perception

"Tailoring" ads

Customizing advertisements for specific audience demographics

Media Buying/Planning

Selecting optimal channels and times to place advertisements

PR activities

Press releases, media relations, crisis management

Press release

Official statement distributed to media about company news

Traditional vs. Digital advertising

Targeted, interactive, data-driven digital approaches

Internet producers/distributors

Users, platforms, content creators with blurred boundaries

Cookie

Small data file tracking user online behavior

Web 2.0

Interactive, user-generated content compared to Web 1.0's static pages

ISP

• Internet Service Provider, facilitating internet access and data transmission

• Data mining:

• Extracting patterns from large data sets

Clickstream

Record of a user's web browsing history

Online privacy approaches

Opt-in, Opt-out

U.S. government

Developed internet through DARPA research

Net Neutrality

Principle that ISPs should treat all internet traffic equally

Revenue sources

Game sales, in-game purchases, subscriptions

Content rating

ESRB (Entertainment Software Rating Board)

Publisher responsibilities

Marketing, distribution, funding game development

Loot box concerns

Potential gambling-like mechanics, especially affecting younger players