Media Production and Audience Studies Review

A set of flashcards covering key concepts from the lecture notes on media production, consumption, audience studies, and activism.

Convergence Culture

The blurring of boundaries between media production and consumption that signals a shift in power relations between industry and audiences.

Produsage

The collaborative and continuous building and extending of existing content by internet users, leading to user-generated content (UGC).

Fandom

A highly active type of media reception where audiences produce media to demonstrate their identification with certain media texts.

Uses and Gratifications Theory

The theory that audiences use media to fulfill certain needs or desires, indicating that the audience is powerful and more active.

Encoding and Decoding

The process where media producers encode certain meanings into media texts, and consumers decode those meanings based on their own interpretations.

Cultivation Theory

The theory that suggests media, especially television, cultivates and sustains existing social values and norms that guide human behavior.

Agenda Setting Theory

The theory that the media does not tell people what to think, but rather what to think about.

Hypodermic Needle Model

The theory that media has a direct and negative effect on a highly passive audience.

Gendered Media Reception

The concept that media consumers are often feminized and seen as passive, weak, or impressionable.

Social Media

Platforms that enable users to create and share content or participate in social networking, often with gendered and racialized implications.

Backlash

A broad social and political response to activism, often involving physical violence, psychological intimidation, and counter protests.

Transnational Media

Media that crosses geopolitical borders, which can be interpreted differently based on cultural context.

Media Imperialism

The phenomenon where one region's media dominates and influences the media landscape of another region, potentially erasing local cultures.

Affective Insurgency

The idea that being a Muslim woman in the US is an act of resistance due to the societal perceptions and stereotypes surrounding them.

Activism vs. Advocacy

Activism is typically led by those affected by an issue, while advocacy often involves speaking on behalf of others, usually from a position of privilege.

Shipping

The fan-driven desire for two or more characters (real or fictional) to be in a romantic relationship, often manifested in various media forms.

Slash Fiction

A genre of fan fiction that depicts romantic or sexual relationships between characters of the same gender, often focusing on male characters.

Feminist Backlash

The societal pushback against feminist movements, often portraying feminism negatively as harmful to men and traditional family structures.

Digital Activism

Engaging in activism through digital platforms, often utilizing hashtags and social media to raise awareness about issues.