Stereotyping and Media Impact Lecture Notes
Stereotyping in the Mass Media
I Am Not Your Negro
Simplified Definition: A documentary film based on James Baldwin's unfinished book about racism in America. It shows how Black people have been seen and treated unfairly.
Scenario/Example: Imagine watching a documentary that uses old movie clips and news to show how Black actors were only ever allowed to play servants or criminals. "I Am Not Your Negro" explores these kinds of harmful portrayals and the real-life struggles behind them.
Social Justice Attainment
Simplified Definition: Working to make sure all people, especially those who have been treated unfairly, get equal rights, opportunities, and respect. Media can help share their stories.
Scenario/Example: A protest march organized by a group advocating for better housing for homeless people, where social media is used to share videos and stories to get wider support and awareness.
Differences Between People
Simplified Definition: Understanding and valuing that people come from many different backgrounds, cultures, and experiences.
Scenario/Example: In a classroom, acknowledging that some students celebrate Eid, some celebrate Christmas, and some celebrate Diwali, and learning about each other's traditions.
The Power of Words
Simplified Definition: The way words are used in news, ads, and shows can really change how people think and what they believe is normal or true.
Scenario/Example: If a news headline always uses words like "violent" or "dangerous" to describe a certain group of people, it can make readers fear or dislike that group, even if individual members are not like that.
Media Racial Representations
Simplified Definition: How different types of media (TV, movies, news) show people from various racial backgrounds, which sometimes makes existing stereotypes stronger.
Scenario/Example: If almost every time you see an Asian character in a movie, they are shown as a brilliant but socially awkward scientist, that's a media racial representation reinforcing a stereotype.
Dixon et al. (2019)
Priming and Cognitive Accessibility
Simplified Definition: When seeing or hearing something (a "stimulus") makes certain thoughts, ideas, or memories easier to access or remember in your mind.
Scenario/Example: If you watch a news report about a car accident, you might suddenly start noticing more car accidents on the road the next day, not because there are more, but because the idea is "primed" in your mind. Or, if an ad shows fast food, you might suddenly feel hungry for it.
Entertainment Images
Simplified Definition: How different groups of people are shown in TV shows, movies, and other fun media, which can change how we think about them.
Scenario/Example: If a popular TV show always portrays teenagers as rebellious and lazy, some viewers might start to believe that all teenagers are like that.
Advertising Images
Simplified Definition: How people are shown in commercials and ads, which can either make stereotypes worse or help people understand each other better.
Scenario/Example: An old ad might show only women cleaning houses, reinforcing a stereotype. A newer ad might show dads cooking with their kids, helping to break gender stereotypes.
Music Images
Simplified Definition: What musicians sing about and what's shown in their music videos can affect how society views different races and identities.
Scenario/Example: A music video depicting a certain racial group always engaged in criminal activities could contribute to negative stereotypes.
News Constructions of Culture, Race, and Ethnicity
Simplified Definition: How news outlets choose to talk about and present different cultures, races, and ethnic groups, which then influences what the public believes about them.
Scenario/Example: If a news channel only covers crime stories involving a specific ethnic group, it can create a distorted perception of that group in the public's mind.
Lecture Content
Images of African Americans, Latinos, & Women
Simplified Definition: How Black people, Latinos, and women have been shown in media and how those portrayals have changed over time.
Scenario/Example: Think about how Black characters in old movies were often servants, then later became common sidekicks, and now are often leading roles with complex stories.
Stages of Portrayal
Simplified Definition: The different phases or steps in how a particular group of people has been shown in movies, TV, and news throughout history.
Scenario/Example: For women in advertising, the stages might go from being shown only as housewives, to career women, to women in diverse roles like athletes or scientists.
Discursive Practices / Typology
Simplified Definition: The specific ways that media talks about things and the patterns it uses to create and spread stereotypes.
Scenario/Example: Using specific phrases or visual cues repeatedly (e.g., always showing a certain character type with a specific accent) can be a discursive practice that builds a stereotype.
Definition and Function of Stereotypes
Simplified Definition: Stereotypes are oversimplified and often negative ideas about entire groups of people. In media, they can make characters easy to understand quickly but often inaccurately.
Scenario/Example: A common stereotype is that all teenagers are glued to their phones and don't care about anything else. In a show, a teenage character might instantly be shown with a phone in hand to quickly convey "teenager."
Dixon (2020)
Prominent Media Stereotypes
Simplified Definition: Very common and well-known stereotypes that are often seen in media and studied by researchers.
Scenario/Example: The "dumb blonde" or "nerdy Asian" are prominent media stereotypes.
Priming, Cultivation, and Social Identity Theories
Simplified Definition: These are three theories that help us understand how media affects our views of different groups:
Priming: (explained above) Like seeing an ad for pizza makes you want pizza.
Cultivation: If you watch a lot of TV where crime is very common, you might start to believe that crime is more common in real life than it actually is.
Social Identity Theory: The idea that our sense of self comes from the groups we belong to (e.g., student, sports fan), and media can influence how we view our own group versus others' groups.
Scenario/Example: If a show constantly features a specific type of villain (e.g., a "foreign" terrorist), priming might make you more suspicious of people who look like that. If you watch this show often, cultivation might lead you to believe such threats are everywhere. Social Identity Theory helps explain why you might identify with the "good guys" in the show and feel a sense of shared identity, while feeling different from the depicted villains.
Children As A Special Audience 1
TikTok Boom
Recommendation Algorithms
Simplified Definition: The computer programs that decide what videos you see next on apps like TikTok, based on what you've watched or liked before.
Scenario/Example: If you watch many cooking videos on YouTube, the recommendation algorithm will suggest more cooking videos to you.
Content Moderation
Simplified Definition: The rules and systems platforms use to check and remove videos, comments, or pictures that are not allowed (like hate speech or extreme violence).
Scenario/Example: Facebook having a team of people and AI that remove posts with nudity or harmful content.
Censorship
Simplified Definition: When someone (like a government or a platform) stops certain information or content from being seen because they think it's harmful, offensive, or otherwise unwanted, especially for kids.
Scenario/Example: A country blocking access to certain websites because they contain political content the government doesn't approve of, or a school filter blocking violent video game websites.
Shadow-Ban
Simplified Definition: When a social media platform secretly makes your posts or videos less visible to others, without telling you. It's like your content is put in a "shadow," so fewer people see it.
Scenario/Example: A TikTok user notices their videos aren't getting as many views or likes, and don't appear in "For You" feeds, even though they haven't been directly told their account is restricted.
Duets
Simplified Definition: A TikTok feature where you can record your own video playing side-by-side with another user's video, usually reacting to it or adding to it.
Scenario/Example: Someone posts a funny dance video, and another user creates a "Duet" where they try to copy the dance or react with a shocked expression, appearing next to the original video.
Jordan (2018)
Tweens
Simplified Definition: Kids who are "between" childhood and teenage years, typically around ages 8 to 12. They are spending more and more time online.
Scenario/Example: An 11-year-old who enjoys playing online games and watching YouTube videos, but isn't quite a teenager yet.
Permanently Online
Simplified Definition: Many young people are always using digital devices or seem to be connected to the internet all the time.
Scenario/Example: A teenager who carries their smartphone everywhere, checks social media frequently, and uses apps for school, entertainment, and communication throughout the day.
Permanently Connected (POPC)
Simplified Definition: Very similar to "Permanently Online," meaning you're almost always linked to the internet and others through your digital devices.
Scenario/Example: Someone who always has their phone with them, receives constant notifications, and can instantly message friends or check information online, no matter where they are.
Multitasking
Simplified Definition: Doing several things at the same time, especially with digital tools, like watching a video, texting friends, and doing homework all at once.
Scenario/Example: A student trying to write an essay on their computer while also chatting with friends on their phone and streaming music.
FOMO (Fear of Missing Out)
Simplified Definition: The worried feeling you get when you think other people are having fun or doing cool things without you, especially after seeing it on social media.
Scenario/Example: Seeing friends' photos on Instagram from a party you weren't invited to and feeling sad or anxious about not being there.
Lecture Insights
Cognitive Development Theory
Simplified Definition: A theory about how children learn to think, understand, and know things as they grow up and interact with the world around them.
Scenario/Example: A child learning that if they drop a toy, it falls down, helping them understand gravity through repeated interaction.
Assimilation and Accommodation
Simplified Definition:
Assimilation: Fitting new information into what you already know.
Accommodation: Changing what you know, or creating new ideas, to make sense of new information that doesn't fit existing knowledge.
Scenario/Example: A child sees a dog and learns the word "dog" (existing framework). If they then see a cat and call it a "dog" (assimilation), their parent might correct them. The child then creates a new category for "cat" (accommodation).
Stages of Cognitive Development
Sensorimotor (Birth to 2 years)
Simplified Definition: Babies learn by touching, tasting, seeing, and moving things.
Scenario/Example: A baby shaking a rattle to hear the sound.
Preoperational (2 to 7 years)
Simplified Definition: Kids use words and drawings but can't think logically yet. They often think their toys have feelings (animism) and struggle to see things from other people's points of view (egocentrism).
Scenario/Example: A child believing their teddy bear is sad because it fell.
Concrete Operational (7 to 11 years)
Simplified Definition: Children start to think more logically about real, physical things. They can understand conservation (e.g., that pouring water into a different shaped glass doesn't change the amount).
Scenario/Example: A child understanding that a tall, thin stack of coins has the same number of coins as a short, wide stack if they count them.
Formal Operational (11 years and up)
Simplified Definition: Teenagers and adults can think about ideas that aren't real, like "what if?" scenarios or abstract concepts like justice.
Scenario/Example: A teenager pondering philosophical questions about freedom or imagining different career paths, considering their potential outcomes.
Criticism of Cognitive Development Theory
Simplified Definition: People have found some weaknesses or problems with Piaget's original ideas, suggesting that children might learn things earlier or in different ways than he thought.
Scenario/Example: Some studies have shown that children can understand certain concepts much earlier than Piaget's stages suggest, especially if the task is explained in a simpler way.
Information Processing Theory
Simplified Definition: This theory compares the human mind to a computer, explaining how we take in information, store it, and get it back out when we need it.
Scenario/Example: When you learn a phone number, your brain "encodes" it, "stores" it in short-term memory, and if you repeat it, it might go into long-term memory. When you need to dial it, you "retrieve" it.
Attention Theories
Popular (Passive) Theory of Attention
Simplified Definition: We pay attention because something grabs our eye, like a loud noise or a bright, flashing light.
Scenario/Example: A sudden fire alarm going off in a quiet room grabs everyone's attention.
Theory of Active Attention
Simplified Definition: We intentionally choose to focus on something because we are interested in it, like reading a book you enjoy.
Scenario/Example: You decide to read an article about your favorite hobby because you want to learn more.
Disclaimers and Premium Offers
Simplified Definition: Worries about how companies use small print warnings (disclaimers) or try to get kids to buy extra things within games (premium offers), especially since children might not understand these tricks.
Scenario/Example: A mobile game for kids that is free to download but constantly offers "special power-ups" for 1.99 or "5.99", often without clear disclaimers that it costs real money.
Children As A Special Audience 2
Jordan & Vaala (2020)
Transfer Deficit
Simplified Definition: It's hard for children to use something they learned in one situation (like from a TV show) and apply it correctly to a different, real-life situation.
Scenario/Example: A child might learn about sharing from a cartoon, but still struggle to share their toys with a sibling in real life, because transferring the lesson is difficult.
Fisch’s Capacity Model
Simplified Definition: A model that explains how much information, and what kind, children can actually understand from media, depending on their age and thinking skills. It considers how much "mental effort" they have left after processing the exciting parts.
Scenario/Example: A very young child watching an educational show might only remember the colorful characters and sounds (the "superficial" parts) and miss the actual educational lesson because their brain capacity is used up by the exciting visuals.
Theory of Mind
Simplified Definition: The ability to understand that other people have their own ideas, feelings, and beliefs that might be different from yours.
Scenario/Example: A child understanding that their parent might look for a hidden toy where they last saw it, even if the child moved it, shows developing theory of mind.
Limitations of Agenda Setting
Simplified Definition: Even if media tries to tell children what's important (agenda-setting), it doesn't always work as expected. Children might not learn the intended messages or change their attitudes because of how they process information.
Scenario/Example: A news report might try to highlight the importance of healthy eating, but if children are watching, they might not grasp the "agenda" and their eating habits might not change based on that report alone.
Parental Mediation
Simplified Definition: How parents help their children understand and deal with the media they consume, by watching with them, talking about it, or setting rules.
Scenario/Example: A parent watching a TV show with their child and explaining why certain characters acted the way they did, or setting limits on screen time.
News, Politics, and Media
Lecture Content
Mediality
Simplified Definition: It's about how media itself, in all its forms (news, TV, internet), shapes society and our culture, not just what it shows, but how it exists and operates.
Scenario/Example: Smartphones changing how people communicate, get news, and even walk down the street (looking at screens). The existence of smartphones has changed society significantly.
Mirror Image Theory
Simplified Definition: The idea that media simply shows us what society is already like, acting like a mirror.
Scenario/Example: If a TV show accurately depicts current fashion trends or widely held beliefs, it's acting like a mirror.
Partisan Bias Theory
Simplified Definition: This theory helps explain how news and other media can lean towards one political side or party, showing a preference for certain ideas or groups.
Scenario/Example: A news channel consistently featuring stories that praise one political party's actions while criticizing the other's, or always inviting commentators who support a particular viewpoint.
Diversity
Simplified Definition: Looking at whether media shows a wide range of different viewpoints, people, and topics, or if it always focuses on the same narrow perspective.
Scenario/Example: A news panel that includes commentators from different political parties, various ethnic backgrounds, and both men and women, shows diversity in perspectives.
Agenda Setting
Simplified Definition: The power of the media to tell us what to think about (but not necessarily what to think). If the news covers a topic a lot, people will think it's important.
Scenario/Example: If every major news outlet runs multiple stories about climate change for a week, the public will likely start to see climate change as a very important issue.
Media Campaigns
Simplified Definition: Planned and coordinated efforts to spread a specific message or idea using different types of media, like ads, news stories, and social media posts.
Scenario/Example: A "Don't Text and Drive" campaign that uses TV commercials, billboards, and social media posts to warn people about the dangers of using their phone while driving.
Types of News:
Talk Shows
Simplified Definition: TV or radio shows where people sit together to discuss current events, sometimes sharing strong opinions.
Scenario/Example: A late-night talk show host discussing the day's political headlines with a celebrity guest.
Soft News
Simplified Definition: News that is more about entertainment and human interest stories, rather than serious facts and politics. Think celebrity gossip or feel-good stories.
Scenario/Example: A TV segment about a cat that rescued a family from a fire, or an article about a celebrity's vacation.
Sparks – Chapter 9
Need for Cognition
Simplified Definition: How much a person likes to think deeply and analyze things, or solve complicated problems.
Scenario/Example: Someone with a high need for cognition would enjoy reading long, analytical newspaper articles and discussing complex political issues. Someone with a low need might prefer quick summaries or avoid such discussions entirely.
Political Sophistication
Simplified Definition: How much a person knows and understands about politics, government, and current political topics.
Scenario/Example: A person who can explain the differences between different political parties' policies on healthcare, and has a good grasp of world leaders, has high political sophistication.
Spiral of Silence
Simplified Definition: When people with an opinion they think is unpopular or in the minority choose not to speak up, because they're afraid of being judged or isolated. This makes the "majority" opinion seem even stronger.
Scenario/Example: In a classroom, if most students express a strong opinion on a topic, a student with a different view might stay quiet to avoid standing out, even if others in the room secretly share their view.
Fear of Isolation
Simplified Definition: The worry of being left out, disliked, or cut off from a group if you express an opinion that is different from what most people in that group believe.
Scenario/Example: Not speaking up against a popular opinion among your friends, even if you disagree, because you don't want them to think badly of you or exclude you.
Train Test
Simplified Definition: A way to see if people would be willing to express their opinion in public, like on a train, after seeing how the media is portraying public opinion. It tests how comfortable people are speaking out.
Scenario/Example: Researchers might ask people: "If you were on a train and overheard people discussing a political issue, and their views differed from yours, would you join the conversation and share your opinion?"
Selective Exposure
Simplified Definition: People tend to choose media and information that already agrees with what they believe, and avoid information that challenges their views.
Scenario/Example: Someone who deeply believes in a certain political party might only watch news channels and read websites that support that party's views, avoiding those that criticize it.
Dual-Coding Theory
Simplified Definition: You remember things better if you see them (visual) and hear or read about them (verbal) at the same time.
Scenario/Example: Learning a new language is easier if you see the word written down AND hear it spoken AND see a picture of what it represents, rather than just hearing the word alone.
Werther Effect
Simplified Definition: When news or stories about suicide are shown in the media, it can sometimes sadly lead to more people attempting or dying by suicide.
Scenario/Example: If a very famous person dies by suicide and it's heavily reported with graphic details in the news, there might be a noticeable increase in suicide attempts among the public shortly after.
Repositioning or Rescheduling Effect
Simplified Definition: How changing when a news story or message is shown (e.g., daily vs. weekly, or early in an election vs. right before) can change how the public reacts to it or feels about an issue.
Scenario/Example: If a politician's scandal is only reported a week after an election, it likely won't affect the election outcome, whereas reporting it before the election might have changed votes.
Additive Effect
Simplified Definition: When many different media messages all say similar things about a topic, making the message stronger and more likely to be believed.
Scenario/Example: If you see ads for a new movie on TV, then see reviews on social media, then hear friends talking about it, all reinforcing that the movie is good, it creates an additive effect making you more likely to want to see it.
Videogame Audiences & Internet Searching
Lecture Content
Search Engines
Simplified Definition: Websites or apps (like Google) that help you find information on the internet. They decide what to show you first based on:
Recency: How new the information is.
Sales: How well a product is selling (if you're searching for products).
Popularity Indicators: How many other people have clicked on, shared, or liked that content.
Scenario/Example: If you search for "best new smartphone," a search engine might show recent reviews (recency), popular models based on sales data (sales), and articles frequently shared on social media (popularity).
Key Differences Between Videogames and Legacy Media
Interactivity
Simplified Definition: Videogames let you do things and make choices that change what happens, while older media like TV or books usually just let you watch or read without changing the story.
Scenario/Example: In a video game, you control the character's actions. Watching TV, you just watch what the characters do.
Top-Down Approaches
Simplified Definition: When the content (like a movie or game) is entirely planned and created by the makers, and users just receive it. The creators are in charge.
Scenario/Example: A movie director creates a film exactly as they imagined it; the audience just watches it.
Bottom-Up Approaches
Simplified Definition: When the content changes and grows based on what the users say, want, or do. The users' actions influence the creation.
Scenario/Example: An online game that adds new features or characters based on polls and suggestions from its player community.
Social Cognitive Theory
Simplified Definition: This theory says that we learn behaviors by watching others, especially in media. We see what happens to them, and that affects what we decide to do.
Scenario/Example: A child watching a video game character get rewarded for helping others might be more likely to help someone in real life.
General Aggression Model
Simplified Definition: A model that explains how exposure to violent media, among other things, can lead to aggressive thoughts, feelings, and actions.
Scenario/Example: Playing many violent video games might increase someone's aggressive thoughts and make them more likely to react aggressively in a frustrating situation, especially if they are already prone to aggression.
Klimmt & Possler (2020)
Competitive or Cooperative Interaction
Simplified Definition: How players in a game either try to win against each other (competitive) or work together to achieve a goal (cooperative).
Scenario/Example: Playing a racing game against friends is competitive. Playing a game where you and your friends team up to defeat monsters is cooperative.
Meta-Analyses of Videogames
Simplified Definition: Studies that look at and combine the results from many different research papers about video games to get a bigger, more reliable picture of how games affect people.
Scenario/Example: A researcher combining the findings from 50 different studies on "video games and aggression" to see if there's an overall pattern.
Downward Spiral of Media Effects
Simplified Definition: The idea that if someone constantly plays or watches violent media, it can lead to a worsening cycle where they become more aggressive, seek out more violent media, and become even more aggressive over time.
Scenario/Example: A person who frequently consumes extremely violent media might become more desensitized to violence, which then reinforces their desire for more intense violent content, potentially leading to increased aggressive behavior in real life.
Portrayals of Social Reality in Videogames
Simplified Definition: How video games either accurately show what society is like, or how they twist or exaggerate parts of real-life social interactions and problems.
Scenario/Example: A game set in a futuristic city might accurately show diverse populations working together (reflecting some social reality) but might also exaggerate poverty or crime to make the story more dramatic.
Music and Mass Media Audiences 1
Lecture Content
Taste Public
Simplified Definition: A group of people who share similar musical likes and dislikes, and have common ideas about what kind of music is good or what to expect from it.
Scenario/Example: Fans of K-pop music worldwide form a "taste public" with shared appreciation for specific styles, artists, and cultural elements.
Gender
Simplified Definition: How being male, female, or another gender can affect what music people like and how they react to different songs or artists.
Scenario/Example: Studies might show that teenage girls tend to listen to more pop music with romantic themes, while teenage boys might listen to more aggressive rock or rap.
Cultural/Lifestyle Expectations
Simplified Definition: The expectations from your culture or the way you live your life that often guide what kind of music you're supposed to like or listen to, to fit in with your group or identity.
Scenario/Example: A person heavily involved in the punk rock scene might feel an expectation to listen to punk music and reject mainstream pop, as it aligns with their subculture's lifestyle.
Meta-Genre
Simplified Definition: A broader type of musical category that includes many different specific genres, or a way of thinking about music that goes beyond simple labels like "rock" or "pop."
Scenario/Example: "Electronic music" could be a meta-genre, encompassing house, techno, trance, dubstep, etc., which are all distinct but share electronic instrumentation.
Interpretive Community
Simplified Definition: A group of people who listen to the same music and understand its messages and meanings in a similar way, often because they share similar backgrounds or values.
Scenario/Example: Fans of a specific protest singer might form an interpretive community, all agreeing that the songs are about fighting injustice, even if their personal situations are different.
Polysemic
Simplified Definition: When a song, movie, or piece of art can have many different meanings, depending on who is listening to or watching it and their own background.
Scenario/Example: A song with vague lyrics about "freedom" might be interpreted by one listener as political liberation, and by another as personal freedom from a bad relationship.
Inter-textuality
Simplified Definition: When one piece of media (like a song or movie) refers to, borrows from, or is connected to other pieces of media.
Scenario/Example: A new pop song that samples a famous riff from an old rock song, or a movie that makes joke references to other classic films.
Third-Person Effect
Simplified Definition: The common belief that other people are more easily influenced by advertising or media messages than I am. "They might fall for that ad, but not me!"
Scenario/Example: A person might say, "Those violent video games probably make other kids aggressive, but they don't affect my behavior at all."
Dominant Ideology
Simplified Definition: The main, most common ideas and values in a society that often get shown as normal or correct in media.
Scenario/Example: Many romantic comedies promote the idea that true happiness comes from finding a romantic partner and getting married, which is a reflection of a dominant ideology in some cultures.
Oppositional Reading
Simplified Definition: When an audience understands the intended message of a media text (like a song or ad) but chooses to interpret it in a completely different, often critical or resisting, way.
Scenario/Example: An advertisement tries to sell a product by showing a "perfect" family. An audience member might perform an oppositional reading by seeing it as unrealistic and criticizing the ad for promoting unattainable ideals.
Patent Offensiveness
Simplified Definition: Content that is clearly and obviously offensive or shocking to many people, often leading to public complaints or anger.
Scenario/Example: A billboard advertisement displaying extremely crude or graphic imagery that causes widespread public outrage and calls for its removal.
Prurient Appeal
Simplified Definition: Content that is mainly designed to excite sexual curiosity or interest.
Scenario/Example: A magazine cover that shows excessively revealing images of a celebrity solely to attract sexual attention.
Artistic Merit
Simplified Definition: How good a piece of art (like a song, painting, or movie) is thought to be based on its beauty, skill, creativity, and deeper meaning, rather than just its popularity or message.
Scenario/Example: A musical piece might not be very popular, but critics applaud its complex composition and emotional depth, giving it high artistic merit.
Knowledge of Black Culture
Simplified Definition: Knowing about the unique ways Black culture expresses itself, especially through art, music, or stories that question or criticize the main ideas of society.
Scenario/Example: Understanding the historical and social messages embedded in gospel music or the political commentary often found in hip-hop lyrics.
Dixon et al. (2009)
Dixon et al. Findings
Simplified Definition: The main conclusions or discoveries from Dixon and his team's research about how race is shown in the media.
Scenario/Example: Their findings might show that Black characters are often underrepresented in leadership roles in TV dramas.
Afrocentric Features
Simplified Definition: Parts of media (like music, clothing, language) that highlight or celebrate African culture and heritage.
Scenario/Example: A music video featuring traditional African drumming, vibrant patterns in clothing, and hairstyles like dreadlocks.
Collective Self-Esteem
Simplified Definition: How good a group of people (like a racial or ethnic group) feels about themselves as a whole. This feeling can affect how they interpret what they see in the media.
Scenario/Example: If a media report criticizes a specific group, and members of that group have high collective self-esteem, they might dismiss the criticism as unfair or biased.
Cultural Lens
Simplified Definition: The way your own culture and background shape how you understand and react to what you see in the media.
Scenario/Example: Someone from a collectivist culture might interpret a movie about individualism very differently from someone from an individualistic culture.
Ethnic Identity and Interpretation of Music Videos
Simplified Definition: How your background (your ethnic identity) influences how you understand and feel about the things you see and hear in music videos.
Scenario/Example: A person with a strong Latino ethnic identity might find more meaning or cultural connection in a reggaeton music video than someone without that background.
Music and Mass Media Audiences 2
Lecture Content
Uses and Gratifications
Simplified Definition: This theory looks at why people choose to use certain media (like watching a specific show or listening to music) and what they get out of it, whether it's entertainment, information, or feeling connected.
Scenario/Example: Someone might watch the news to stay informed (information gratification), or listen to music to relax (emotional gratification), or use social media to feel connected to friends (social gratification).
Social Learning Theory
Simplified Definition: We learn how to behave by watching other people, especially characters in movies, TV shows, or video games, and seeing the consequences of their actions.
Scenario/Example: A child watches a cartoon character share their toys and get praised for it, so the child learns that sharing is a good behavior.
Desensitization
Simplified Definition: When you see or hear something (like violence or sad events) in media so often that you start to feel less emotional or shocked by it over time.
Scenario/Example: After watching many violent movies, a person might become less disturbed by realistic violence on screen, whereas someone who rarely watches such content would be very disturbed.
Schema Theory
Simplified Definition: Our brains have "mental shortcuts" or frameworks (schemas) based on past experiences and knowledge. When we get new information, we try to fit it into these existing schemas, which affects how we understand it.
Scenario/Example: If you have a schema for "dog" (furry, barks, wags tail), when you see a poodle for the first time, you fit it into your "dog" schema even if it looks different from dogs you've seen before.
Fried Findings
Simplified Definition: The important discoveries and conclusions from Fried's research about how listening to music affects people and society.
Scenario/Example: Fried's findings might suggest that listening to music with aggressive lyrics can correlate with aggressive thoughts in some adolescents.
Epps and Dixon
Anti-Social Themes
Simplified Definition: Messages or ideas in media (like music lyrics or TV plots) that encourage bad behavior, disrespect for rules, or negative attitudes towards others.
Scenario/Example: A song that glorifies violence against a specific group or encourages illegal activities.
Pro-Social Themes
Simplified Definition: Messages or ideas in media that encourage good behavior, helping others, kindness, and positive actions in society.
Scenario/Example: A song that promotes environmental awareness and encourages recycling or helping the less fortunate.
Selective Exposure
Simplified Definition: People choose to watch or listen to media that already agrees with their own opinions and avoids media that challenges them.
Scenario/Example: A person who loves rock music might only listen to rock radio stations and avoid country music.
Billboard Charts More Anti-Social
Simplified Definition: Research showing that songs that are very popular and appear high on music charts (like the Billboard Hot 100) often have themes that are negative or encourage bad social behavior.
Scenario/Example: A study finding that a large percentage of songs topping the charts contain lyrics about violence, drug use, or disrespect for authority.
Facebook Songs More Pro-Social
Simplified Definition: The observation that songs people share on social media platforms like Facebook often have positive messages, encourage good deeds, or promote togetherness.
Scenario/Example: People frequently sharing songs with lyrics about love, friendship, or overcoming challenges on their Facebook feeds.
Evolving Audiences and New Technology
Lecture Content
Demassification
Simplified Definition: Mass media used to be one-size-fits-all (like everyone watching the same TV channels). "Demassification" is when media breaks into many smaller, specialized parts that cater to different groups or individuals.
Scenario/Example: Instead of everyone watching one of three major TV networks, people now choose from thousands of streaming shows, YouTube channels, and podcasts based on their specific interests.
Asynchronicity
Simplified Definition: Media content that you can access and watch/listen to whenever you want, not just when it's being broadcast live.
Scenario/Example: Watching a show on Netflix at 3 AM because it's available on demand, instead of having to wait for it to air on live TV at a specific time.
Interactivity
Simplified Definition: How much you can actively participate with media, like clicking buttons, making choices, or typing comments, instead of just passively watching. It makes you more involved.
Scenario/Example: A news website where you can click on links to learn more, leave comments, and share articles, compared to a printed newspaper where you can only read.
Multimedia
Simplified Definition: Media that combines different types of content like text, pictures, audio, and video all together.
Scenario/Example: A news article on a website that includes written text, embedded videos, interactive graphs, and photo galleries.
Steps to Adoption
Simplified Definition: The different stages people go through when they start using a new technology, from first hearing about it to regularly using it. (Often involves stages like Awareness, Interest, Evaluation, Trial, Adoption).
Scenario/Example: First, you hear about a new app (Awareness). Then you look up reviews (Interest/Evaluation). You download it and try it for a week (Trial). If you like it, you keep using it regularly (Adoption).
Internet as Medium
Simplified Definition: Understanding that the internet is now one of the main ways we get almost all our information and entertainment, like news, movies, and music.
Scenario/Example: Getting all your news from online articles or social media feeds, instead of buying a newspaper.
Internet Audiences
Simplified Definition: Who are the people using the internet for media, and how do they act differently from traditional audiences? (e.g., more active, global, fragmented).
Scenario/Example: Internet audiences often expect immediate access to content, enjoy interacting with creators, and switch between many different sources.
Fragmentation
Simplified Definition: Instead of everyone watching the same few TV channels, audiences are now split into many smaller groups, each watching different shows, on different platforms (YouTube, Netflix, TikTok, etc.), at different times.
Scenario/Example: In the past, millions watched the same evening news. Now, those millions are watching hundreds of different shows on dozens of streaming services, YouTube channels, or social media.
Segmentation
Simplified Definition: Dividing a large group of people into smaller groups based on things they have in common, like age, interests, location, or what they like to buy. This helps media target specific groups better.
Scenario/Example: A streaming service might group its audience by "genre preference" (e.g., horror fans, rom-com watchers) to recommend shows specifically to those segments.
Bargh (2004)
CMC Defined
Simplified Definition: Communicating with others through computers or digital devices (like texting, email, social media) is often less expressive than talking in person, because you can't see facial expressions, body language, or hear tone of voice as easily.
Scenario/Example: Sending a text message where your intention might be misunderstood because there's no tone of voice or facial expression to clarify it, unlike a face-to-face conversation.
Deaux’s Model of Social Identity
Simplified Definition: A model that explains how our sense of who we are based on the groups we belong to (e.g., student, fan of a sports team, member of a cultural group) influences how we act and communicate with others.
Scenario/Example: A person might behave differently in an online forum dedicated to their favorite video game (where they identify as a "gamer") compared to a professional networking site (where they identify as an "engineer").
Cloak of Anonymity
Simplified Definition: When people feel hidden or unknown online (anonymous), they might act differently than they would in real life, because they feel less responsible for their actions or words.
Scenario/Example: Leaving harsh or mean comments on social media using a fake name, something a person might never say to someone's face.
Internet Addiction
Lecture Content
Internet Addiction Defined / Symptoms
Simplified Definition: When someone uses the internet so much that it starts to harm their daily life, relationships, school, or job.
Symptoms: They might spend most of their time online, lie about internet use, get irritable when they can't use it, or neglect responsibilities.
Scenario/Example: A student who stays up all night gaming online, missing classes, failing exams, and feeling anxious or depressed when disconnected.
Predictors of Internet Addiction
Simplified Definition: Things that make it more likely for someone to develop an internet addiction, like feeling lonely, having social anxiety, or finding comfort only online.
Scenario/Example: Someone who is shy and struggles to make friends in real life might be more likely to develop an internet addiction by seeking all their social interaction online.
Model on General Internet Addiction
Simplified Definition: Different theories or frameworks that try to explain why internet addiction happens and what its consequences are.
Scenario/Example: Such a model might suggest that certain personality traits combined with easy access to the internet and stressful life events can lead to internet addiction.
ACE Model
Simplified Definition: A specific model that explains how Accessibility (how easy it is to use the internet), Compulsivity (feeling a strong urge to use it), and Excitement (getting a thrill from online activities) all contribute to internet use and potential addiction.
Scenario/Example: Having a smartphone constantly available (accessibility) combined with an urge to check social media every few minutes (compulsivity) and the occasional rush from getting many likes (excitement) can contribute to an unhealthy pattern of internet use according to the ACE model.
Klimmt & Brand (2018)
FOMO (Fear of Missing Out)
Simplified Definition: The worried feeling you get when you think other people are having fun or doing cool things without you, especially after seeing it on social media.
Scenario/Example: Seeing friends' photos on Instagram from a party you weren't invited to and feeling sad or anxious about not being there.
I-Pace
Simplified Definition: This model helps understand problem behaviors linked to internet use by looking at specific reasons why someone is motivated to use the internet, like escaping problems, seeking social connection, or feeling good.
Scenario/Example: Someone using online games to escape stress from school (escape motivation). If this becomes their only coping mechanism, it can lead to problematic internet use according to I-Pace.
Internet-Related Expectancies
Simplified Definition: What people expect to happen or how they expect to feel when they use the internet. These expectations influence whether they use the internet more or less.
Scenario/Example: If someone expects that going online will make them feel happier or less lonely, they are more likely to spend more time on the internet, even if it doesn't always deliver those feelings.
POPC as Amplifier of IA
Simplified Definition: The idea that being always connected to the internet (Permanently Online, Permanently Connected) makes internet addiction problems much worse or more likely to happen.
Scenario/Example: If you're always connected via your smartphone (POPC), it provides constant opportunities for internet use, making it harder to break away and amplifying the potential for internet addiction.
New Conceptualizations of Audience
Lecture Content
AI Challenges
Simplified Definition: The difficulties or problems that artificial intelligence (AI) brings when it comes to creating content (like AI-generated news) and how people consume or interact with that content.
Scenario/Example: A challenge could be distinguishing between news written by a human and news written by AI, raising questions about authenticity and bias.
Deepfakes
Simplified Definition: Videos or images that use AI to create hyper-realistic but fake content, often showing people saying or doing things they never did. This brings up ethical and trust issues.
Scenario/Example: A fake video appearing to show a politician making a controversial statement, which was actually created by AI.
Degree of Activity or Passivity
Simplified Definition: Describes how much audiences actively engage with media (like commenting or creating) versus just passively receiving it (like just watching TV).
Scenario/Example: Actively participating in an online forum about a TV show versus passively watching the show without any interaction.
Degree of Interactivity or Interchangeability
Simplified Definition: How much users can influence, change, or become part of the very content they consume, blurring the lines between consumer and creator. "Interchangeability" refers to the ease of switching roles.
Scenario/Example: Playing a video game where your choices directly affect the storyline (interactivity) and then creating your own mods for the game (interchangeability as a 'produser').
Size and Duration
Simplified Definition: Refers to how much media content audiences consume (size) and for how long they engage with it (duration).
Scenario/Example: Binge-watching an entire season of a show in one weekend illustrates both large size (lots of content) and long duration (many hours).
Locatedness in Space
Simplified Definition: The importance of where an audience physically is when they consume media, and how that location might affect their experience.
Scenario/Example: Watching a live concert stream from your living room versus being at the actual concert venue provides different experiences and levels of immersion.
Group Character (Social/Cultural Identity)
Simplified Definition: How the groups people belong to (based on culture, social interests, etc.) influence how they interact with and understand media.
Scenario/Example: A fan club for a specific musical artist might interpret their new album differently and discuss it more intensely than someone who simply casually listens to the artist.
Simultaneity of Contact with Source
Simplified Definition: How audiences can engage with content creators and their messages either in real-time (simultaneously) or at different times.
Scenario/Example: Interacting with a streamer during a live Twitch broadcast (simultaneous) versus watching a recorded YouTube video and leaving comments later (non-simultaneous).
Heterogeneity of Composition
Simplified Definition: The diverse and varied makeup of audience groups, meaning audiences are not uniform but consist of many different types of people with various backgrounds.
Scenario/Example: The audience for a popular video game might include players from different countries, age groups, and social backgrounds, making it a heterogeneous group.
Sociability of Context of Use
Simplified Definition: The social aspect of where and how media consumption takes place, whether it's a shared experience or a solitary one.
Scenario/Example: Watching a sporting event with friends at a sports bar (high sociability) versus listening to a podcast alone on your commute (low sociability).
Social Relations Between Sender and Receiver
Simplified Definition: Examining the power dynamics and influence between the person/entity creating and sending the media message and the audience receiving it.
Scenario/Example: A traditional news organization (sender) often has a more authoritative relationship with its audience (receiver) than a casual blogger with their followers.
Degree of “Social Presence”
Simplified Definition: How much a medium makes you feel like you are actually interacting with other people or the content creator in a real, personal way.
Scenario/Example: A video call with a friend provides a higher degree of social presence than sending a typed email.
Sullivan Ch. 9
Produsers
Simplified Definition: Individuals who act as both producers and users of content, creating and sharing their own media rather than just consuming it.
Scenario/Example: A YouTuber who creates their own videos and also watches and comments on other users' content.
User-Generated Content
Simplified Definition: Media content (like videos, blogs, photos) that is created by everyday people (users), not by professional media companies.
Scenario/Example: A TikTok user posting a homemade dance video or a blogger writing about their personal travel experiences.
Crowdsourcing
Simplified Definition: Getting information, ideas, or help for a project from a large number of people, usually via online platforms.
Scenario/Example: A charity campaign that asks people to submit their own ideas for community improvement projects through social media to gather diverse input.