18
CHAPTER 2
ESTABLISHING THE TERMS OF THE DEBATE OVER MEDIA: THE FIRST TREND IN MEDIA
THEORY – MASS SOCIETY AND PROPAGANDA THEORIES
Multiple Choice
c) most people learn attitudes that control their actions
d) most people have their own unique way of behaving
2. False information anonymously spread about one’s opponents in an attempt
to discredit them is
a) white propaganda
3. The term propaganda originated with
a) the Germans
4. Theories that assumed that media had all-powerful, direct effects are
sometimes referred to as magic bullet theories because
c) it was thought that media should be licensed, like guns
d) it was thought that only criminals would use propaganda
5. Harold Lasswell and Walter Lippmann agreed that the threat of propaganda
c) better education of the public
d) the breakup of powerful media businesses
c) the Big Lie and a good economy
d) external force
7. John Dewey advocated public education as a means of
a) limiting the disruptive influence of immigrants
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8. The first extensive use of mass media to disseminate propaganda occurred
a) during the Middle Ages
9. Human action is a conditioned response to external, environmental stimuli.
This statement summarizes which theory?
c) Freudianism
d) magic bullet theory
10. Propaganda theorists like Harold Lasswell were generally
a) quite optimistic about average people’s ability to resist manipulation
11. Harold Lasswell’s propaganda theory was
a) a simple, magic bullet theory
b) a complex mass society theory
12. Propaganda theory is enjoying a resurgence of interest primarily due to
c) the apparent power of technocracy
d) all of the above
13. If media were evaluated and controlled by a national board of industry
practitioners, government officials, academicians, and members of the public this
would be an example of
c) educating of the public
d) regulation as it now exists
14. A crusading journalist who challenges the powerful on behalf of the public
is a
c) wire reporter
d) a white propagandist
15. Contemporary propaganda theory comes from
a) European thought on mass publics
b) advertising research
20
Essay
1. How did Freudianism and behaviorism combine to support propaganda theory? What was John
Dewey‘s view of this idea?
2. Describe the interplay of the ego, id, and superego in Freudianism. What was the role of mass media
in this conception of how humans behave?
3. Contrast the era in which the original propaganda research was done with our own time. Identify key
differences, and note similarities. Was it more reasonable to fear direct and powerful effects of media then
as opposed to now?
4. Discuss Harold Lasswell’s theory of propaganda. How did it differ from simple magic bullet theories of
propaganda effects? What were the key concepts in Lasswell’s theory? How optimistic or pessimistic
was he about the ability of average persons to resist the influence of propaganda? What role did he
foresee for propaganda researchers?
5. Explain the different views that Dewey and Lippmann took concerning average persons and their ability
to resist the influence of propaganda. Why was Dewey considered an idealist, whereas Lippmann was
considered a realist? What strategies did each man propose to take to limit the influence of extremist
political propaganda?
Critical Thinking Questions
1. Explain what you think is meant by propaganda. Give some examples from your own experience. Is a
bit of official propaganda necessary to maintain order in a society? If you think it is, how much is enough?
If you think it isn’t, why not?
2. Is the use of propaganda ever justified? If so, should limitations be placed on it? Is deliberate lying or
deception ever justified?
3. Discuss the dilemma that propaganda created during the 1930s. Which was worse—censorship by our
own elites or the threat posed by subversive totalitarian propaganda? Is censorship of communication
always a threat to democracy? Can you envision a contemporary scenario similar to that of the early
propaganda period that would justify official propaganda efforts? For example, the contemporary German
government is working diligently to prevent Nazi material from entering Germany by means of the Internet.
If you do not favor this overt censorship, would you advocate official government propaganda as an
alternative?
4. Recall Lasswell’s view that people can be conditioned to associate strong emotions with master
symbols. Think of a symbol that you find very powerful and consider the emotion that it arouses in you.
How did this symbol come to have this meaning for you? Did media messages or interactions with other
people influence you?
5. After the terrorist attack on America on September 11, 2001, images of the World Trade Center’s Twin
Towers—both in flames and intact—were ubiquitous. Can you make an argument that the Twin Towers
became a master symbol? If so, what meanings did they convey? To what end was this master symbol
used? By whom?
6. Both independent investigations and the military’s own analyses have conclusively demonstrated that
military press briefings in both the Vietnam and Gulf wars were often composed of intentional lies and
obfuscations. And as in those conflicts, Pentagon spokespeople for the invasion of Iraq continued to see
their jobs as spinning the conflict for maximum benefit of the military. Are you troubled by this
“manufacturing of consent”? Should government employees intentionally lie to the press and public? Don’t
21
we have the right to know precisely how the war is being conducted so we can make a reasoned judgment
to support or not support the government’s actions? Doesn’t this smack of old-fashioned elitist notions that
the people don’t know what’s good for them?
7. In early 2002, during the war on terrorism, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld announced that a
new division was to be set up in the Pentagon, the purpose of which was to provide information to foreign
governments and journalists. In a moment of candor, he admitted that intentional lying—disinformation—
would be a significant tool in the arsenal of this office. Reaction, both at home and abroad, was instant
and negative. The greatest democracy in the world, one that has enshrined in its Constitution the
importance of a free press to its people, the argument went, should not be lying to that press. It’s war,
countered the office’s supporters, disinformation has important strategic and propaganda value. Still,
plans for the new office were quickly scrapped in the face of the controversy. What do you think? Is lying
to the press ever proper? If so, how much? Where do you draw the line?
8. Dewey argued that public education was the best means of resisting propaganda. Why did so many
propaganda experts reject his views as idealistic and impractical? Do you think that average people can
be educated to resist the influence of propaganda? Why or why not? How about yourself, are you able to
resist propaganda?
Discussion Aids
Several Nazi propaganda films, like Leni Riefenstahl’s frightening 1936 Triumph of the Will are
easily available. So, too, is the episode from Bill Moyers’ Our Century series entitled “WWII The
Propaganda Battle,” in which the Germans’ chief propaganda filmmaker and America’s Frank Capra are
interviewed. Also available on video are all of Capra’s Why We Fight films. The Battle of Britain is
especially interesting because it is mentioned later in the text as one of the films used by persuasion
researchers.
Noam Chomsky is the subject of the film Manufacturing Consent, an examination of not only this
important thinker, but of his contemporary propaganda theory. If you find modern propaganda theory a
good avenue, the Media Education Foundation (www.igc.org/mef) has Slim Hopes: Advertising and the
Obsession With Thinness, Managing Democracy: The Rise in Public Relations, and Toxic Sludge is Good
for You: The Selling of Corporate Propaganda, and First Run/Icarus Films (www.echonyc.com/~frif/) offers
The Truth About Lies: The Tube is Reality.
Two relatively recent feature films also provide grist for student discussion on the manufacturing
of consent. Wag the Dog (1997) and Flags of Our Fathers (2006) are interesting big-budget Hollywood
movies that make students think. The latter is more subtle in its position on the topic.
22
CHAPTER 3
NORMATIVE THEORIES OF MASS COMMUNICATION
Multiple Choice
1. Journalism codes of ethics do not include standards for
a) balanced coverage of news events
2. Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst were known for
c) their devotion to detail in the recounting of news events
d) their radio networks
3. A form of journalism noted for scathing coverage of political and business
corruption is labeled
a) public journalism
b) investigative reporting
4. Which of the following is an example of a normative theory?
a) limited effects theory
b) socialization theory
5. If you believe that “no law means no law” where restriction of expression is
c) a technocrat
d) an autocrat
6. Libertarianism depends on two factors to produce “truth.” One is a rational,
involved public, and the other is
a) a large number of successful mass media
7. A normative theory describes the way media systems
a) are structured currently
b) will be structured in the near future
23
8. One reason that media industries adopt professional standards and codes of
c) screen out bad job applicants
d) meet the mandates of mass society theory
9. Joseph McCarthy became widely known in the 1950s for
c) a new television program
d) innovative media research
10. The Hutchins Commission
a) conducted a “witch hunt” looking for communists in the media
b) recommended government censorship of media to stop communism
11. The mixed success of public access channels on cable television
demonstrates that
a) people really don’t want to be informed about pluralistic groups
b) we are becoming an increasingly homogeneous society
12. Many observers do not consider bloggers journalists because they do not
c) yellow journalism
d) cyberjournalism
13. The first 10 amendments to the U.S. Constitution are known as the
a) Imperial Ten
b) Absolute Rights
14. The Fourth Estate refers to
a) Congress
b) the various state legislatures
15. The idea that government allows business to operate freely and without
official intrusion is called
c) media intrusion theory
d) deregulation
24
Essay
1. What is social responsibility theory? Is it consistent with Libertarian notions? Why or why not?
2. What is the self-righting principle of the Marketplace of Ideas? Do you think it works in modern times?
Why or why not?
3. What are the most important limitations of professionalization as an alternative to government
regulation? How can they be overcome?
4. Do you think that social responsibility theory is a reasonable alternative to Libertarianism? Why or why
not?
5. Explain what is meant by media professionalization. Why did the media industries choose to adopt
codes of ethics and establish certain standards for public service? Discuss the advantages and limitations
of professionalization.
6. Discuss the Chicago School theory of Great Communities. How did this theory view media and the role
of media in large, pluralistic cities? To what extent were Chicago School ideas reflected in the report of
the Hutchins Commission? Contrast Chicago School notions about social responsibility with those of
media practitioners.
7. Are you optimistic or pessimistic about the potential of the Internet to provide news coverage of events
and issues? Can Internet news providers be trusted to be socially responsible?
8. What do you think about nonprofit journalism or community-funded journalism? Do they provide an
answer to declining profits of newspaper publishers?
Critical Thinking Questions
1. What are the most important services that media provide for you? How would you react if one or more
of these services were stopped? For example, it might soon be possible for media entrepreneurs to make
more money selling National Football League games using a pay–per-view system than they already do
using regular network and cable television. How would you react to that?
2. Should minority groups be protected from hate propaganda? Imagine that you are the manager of a
local cable television access channel and the Ku Klux Klan approaches you. The group wants you to run
its 30-minute video “proving” the inferiority of people of color. It contains no profanity. Do you deny this
group its time? Why? Then the Rainbow Coalition approaches you. It wants its video on pluralism aired.
Will you air it? If you denied the KKK and allowed the Rainbow Coalition, how would you justify your
decisions? Isn’t this just a case of you favoring groups you like?
3. How well do you think major media outlets serve minority groups? Do you agree or disagree with the
media critics who charge that most news coverage harms rather than helps minority groups or social
movements?
4. Develop a new normative theory of media. State at least three important services that media should
offer even though little or no profit can be earned by providing them. The theory should justify providing
these services. Do you think there should be government subsidies so that the media can afford to
provide these services? How would you monitor and compel media outlets to provide mandated services?
5. If you were to develop standards that would qualify someone to be a journalist, what elements would
they include? Are bloggers ever journalists? Is WikiLeaks a news organization? Defend your standards.
25
Discussion Aids
Two of the boxes in this chapter were expressly chosen to be provocative. The first offers one of
the most stirring and well articulated defenses of freedom of expression. Ask students if they agree with
the Brandeis opinion offered in the box entitled A Stirring Defense of Free Expression. Of course, they all
will. But then ask them to defend a common form of censorship (for example, the bleeping of cuss words
on the radio, the electronic masking of body parts on television, your campus’ ban on hate speech) and
reconcile it with their just-stated support of free expression.
The box entitled Which Model of the Marketplace presents three models of the marketplace, the
first is theoretical, the second pertains to the manufacture and sale of a product, and the third refers to a
media situation. Have your students debate the questions asked at the top of the box.
The chapter’s description of nonprofit journalism has the benefit of dealing with a contemporary
issue being debated in real time in the traditional media and in the blogosphere. Have your students check
in to the debate and weigh in with their own views.
Several famous motion pictures directly address normative theories. The 1981 Absence of Malice
and the two versions (1931 and 1974) Front Page come immediately to mind, as do All the President’s
Men (1976) and The Paper (1994). These can be used as a “laboratory” for testing the limits of
professionalization. Another Hollywood feature, the 1996 The People vs. Larry Flynt, is also a logical
choice. But the language and some of the visual are pretty rough stuff. And of course, Good Night, and
Good Luck serves this chapter as well.
Media ethics are the focus of several videos from Insight Media (www.insight-media.com). Ethical
Considerations in Journalism, features the codes of the Radio and Television News Directors Association
and the Society of Professional Journalists. Media Ethics uses the Janet Cooke manufactured stories
affair to examine ethics. Media Ethics: Ethical Issues in Professional Life centers on privacy issues, as
does Eye on the Media: Private Lives, Public Press. The Ethics of Journalism spotlights several ethical
problems, from conflict of interest to honesty. Cultural and Media Messages (Response and Responsibility
presents a panel discussion that looks at non-journalistic ethical issues, for example stereotyping and
coverage of hate groups. Media Rights and Responsibilities examines challenges to the First Amendment
posed by new technologies. Media Law offers an overview of issues ranging from libel to shield laws.
Legal Considerations of Broadcast News takes a close look at the regulatory obligations specific to
broadcasting.
Case-studies of media ethics in practice are at the heart of two videos from First Run/Icarus Films
(www.echonyc.com). Merchandising Murder looks at the media’s handling of the O.J. Simpson murder
trial and Paparazzi follows real paparazzi as they stalk luminaries like Princess Diana, Warren Beatty, and
Elton John.
26
CHAPTER 4
THE MEDIA EFFECTS TREND
Multiple Choice
1. The Payne Fund research on the effects of movies on children
a) led to increased regulation of movies by government
2. The Lazarsfeld approach to theory construction, because it assumed that
research should begin with empirical observation, is said to be
a) deductive
b) phenomenistic
3. In Lazarsfeld’s voter research, people who decided on one candidate and
stayed with that choice throughout the campaign were called
c) converts
d) crystallizers
4. In two-step flow, opinion leaders, because they consume media messages,
reinterpret them, and then pass them on, can be viewed as
a) opinion followers
5. Efforts to understand media influence have been made difficult because of
confusion between different levels of effects. Effects that occur for
individuals are said to be ________ level. Those that occur on a larger,
societal level are said to be __________ level.
a) macro/micro
b) informational/symbolic
6. According to The People’s Choice, the most powerful source of information
about candidates were
a) radio and newspapers
b) political party communications
27
7. When they began their research in the 1940s, Lazarsfeld and Hovland were
determined to use empirical research methods in order to
c) create limited effects theory
d) serve the interests of the media industries
8. Compared to previous forms of social research, the empirical research
advocated by Lazarsfeld and Hovland was
c) more highly structured and less expensive
d) less well structured and more expensive
9. Which of the following is NOT a generalization found in limited effects theory?
a) there is a two-step flow of media influence
b) media rarely have a direct influence
10. World War II provided the impetus for Hovland’s attitude change research
because the success of Nazi propaganda challenged American notions
of Libertarianism, many “subjects” were conveniently assembled in the
c) America needed to protect itself against the threat of Communism
d) as an immigrant nation, America was open to propaganda
11. According to Klapper’s phenoministic theory, if the media have any effect at
all, it is
c) delayed and inferential
d) part of the two-step flow
12. The Yale Group attitude change research
a) found the magic keys to persuasion
b) was a complete failure
13. When the Yale Group studied the power of “counternorm communications,”
they found that committed, highly involved group members (such as fans
of a sports team) are
a) easily persuaded that another group is better than theirs
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14. Research on persuasion has
a) influenced media research to focus on message sources
b) been converted into uses and gratifications research
15. Which of the following is NOT one of the selective processes?
a) selective exposure
b) selective perception
16. According to functionalists, practices that are disruptive to the group, society,
or system are
c) manifest
d) latent
17. According to functionalists, consequences of practices that are unintended
and difficult to observe are
a) functional
b) dysfunctional
18. Functional analysis was appealing to Merton and his followers because of its
c) macro-micro integration of effects
d) similarity to grand theory
19. A latent function is
c) unintended and easier to observe than manifest effects
d) intended and more difficult to observe than manifest effects
20. Mass entertainment theory argues that:
a) TV entertainment has mostly negative effects on mass audiences
b) TV entertainment has no important effects on mass audiences
Essay
1. Briefly comment on some of the key concepts in Paul Lazarsfeld’s research. Identify those ideas that
you think were/are useful, and point out their merits.
2. How and why did the research on the “War of the Worlds” radio broadcast signal the beginning of a
paradigm shift in mass communication theory? According to this research, what actually caused people to
panic?
29
3. Discuss the shift in perspective from mass society theory to limited effects theory. Explain some of the
fundamental differences between the two theories. For example, how does each theory view average
people and their ability to resist propaganda? How does each view the role of media?
4. Hovland and Lazarsfeld believed that social science should emulate physical science and seek to
control the social world. Discuss this objective. Is control over the social world by social scientists
possible or desirable? Why or why not? Should social science seek understanding rather than control?
7. How did Lazarsfeld explain the role of media in the 1940 election campaign? Were media a powerful
influence on the way that people voted? Why or why not? Why were these findings considered to be
unexpected and important?
8. Discuss some of the advantages and limitations of empirical studies on the role of media. Why do
empirical studies tend to be more cautious and conservative in making assertions about media effects?
To what extent has it proved difficult to observe media effects and why?
9. Explain cognitive dissonance theory and its three component selective processes.
10. What are the limitations of Hovland’s experimental research? Do they invalidate the findings of the
attitude change researchers? Why or why not?
11. Discuss the Yale Group attitude change research. What were its goals, and how was the research
conducted? Give some examples of the research questions that were studied. What were some of the
key findings? What were the key limitations of this research?
12. What is functional analysis? What does it have to say about media effects in our society? Why does
it fit in the limited-effects paradigm?
13. What is the central premise of Mendelsohn’s mass entertainment theory? This theory shares
common views about the media and the audience with Klapper’s reinforcement theory. What were these?
14. Define the term system and explain its relevance to the study of mass communication
15. Why is it hard to assign causality in complex systems models? To what extent is it necessary to
assign causality in order to have a useful systems model? Give an example that illustrates the difficulty of
assigning causality.
Critical Thinking Questions
1. How are you trying to envision your personal future in uncertain times? To what extent are you relying
on media to help you assess job prospects in various careers? Are media helping you decide what lifestyle
is appropriate or how to form relationships with other people?
2. Is there anything wrong with a political system in which many people rely on others to help them decide
how to vote? Should everyone assume the responsibility of becoming well informed about every candidate
in every election or is it acceptable if they depend on others and on political parties to decide how to vote.
Is democracy in danger if most people are politically apathetic?
3. When it comes to media effects, do you think that you personally are more or less likely to be
influenced by media? Were you more influenced by news about the terrorist attacks than your friends?
Why or why not? How about advertising? Can you think of a recent advertising campaign that convinced
you to buy a product? What was so persuasive about the ad?
30
4. Do you agree with Joseph Klapper that media mostly serve to reinforce social trends rather than create
them? Can you think of an important trend that might have been started by media?
5. Briefly list and explain the essential elements of a systems model. Now describe your peer group as a
system. What are its interrelated elements? What are its goals? How does the system help insure the
meeting of those goals?
Discussion Aids
Several audiotape preservations of the Orson Welles broadcast are available that not only provide
background for the opening of this chapter, but that also introduce contemporary students to the power of
radio drama. In addition, there is a 1953 film War of the Worlds that more or less holds to the original
story and a more recent movie, The Night that Panicked America, starring John Ritter, that follows several
characters as they live out that night. This latter film is particularly useful because the people could have
come directly out of the Cantril research (dysfunctional families, tuned in late, and so on). It helps make
clear the levels of analysis idea.
As mentioned earlier, the Why We Fight series is easily available, and it served as the basis of
much of the early Information Division research. The Moyers propaganda tape is also good since it
describes the first contact between the military and Frank Capra. The box entitled Drug Users: Allport and
Postman Revisited, can be used by asking students what has/hasn’t changed in the 60 or so years from
Allport and Postman to today.
To help illustrate the arguments of mass entertainment theory you could show segments from
some of the popular programs of the 1950s – I Love Lucy, Father Knows Best, Leave it to Beaver and
discuss the possible prosocial effects of these shows.
31
CHAPTER 5
THE EMERGENCE OF THE CRITICAL CULTURAL TREND IN NORTH AMERICA
Multiple Choice
1. Harold Innis’ idea that communication technology makes the centralization of
power inevitable is called
c) commodification of power
d) neoproduction
2. McLuhan said that media were __________ because they literally extend our
___________.
c) ideologically biased/power over others
d) hot/reach into the global village
3. McLuhan branded television a________ medium because it presented us
with vague, shadowy images, and we had to do the work of filling in
meaning.
c) global
d) massaging
4. The view of the media that sees them as central to the construction and
maintenance of the culture, something of a forum where we negotiate
our shared meanings, is the ____________ Perspective.
c) Libertarian
d) Transmissional
5. The critical cultural studies perspective argues that social elites work to
maintain the status quo by
c) spreading a political ideology
d) encouraging conservative social movements
6. One of the key differences between cultural analysis and critical cultural
studies is that
a) cultural analysis is more concerned about macroscopic processes
b) cultural analysis has a more explicit commitment to values
32
7. Cultural analysis researchers and critical, cultural studies scholars favor
c) empirical research methods
d) communication science methods
8. Stuart Hall sees media as ___________ where various forces struggle to
shape popular notions about social reality.
a) a ritual base
b) an ideological court
9. The Frankfurt School was known for its
c) development of empirical social research methods in Germany
d) optimism about radio as a means of “civilizing the masses”
10. Stuart Hall views mass media in Western, pluralistic democracies as a
c) a hegemonic ideology is promoted to the exclusion of all else
d) counterelites enjoy important advantages over elites
11. Culture can be defined as
c) the rules and regulations promulgated by a society’s official power
d) all of the above
12. Culture imposed from above or outside that serves the interests of those in
power is called _________ culture.
a) elite dominated
13. Horace Newcomb argues that
a) media have significant power over individuals’ construction of their realities
b) media texts tend to be read as their creators intended
14. Highly ambitious, macroscopic, speculative theories that attempt to
c) elite dominated theories
d) hegemonic theories
33
15. Harold Innis argued that as communication media become more powerful
and able to more effectively span time and space
a) society will become increasingly democratic
Essay
1. Do critical theorists assert that most people are easily manipulated by elites? For example, do they
think that it is easy to use propaganda to persuade people to accept ideas that go against their personal
interests, or do people have a capacity to resist such messages? If they do, explain how they think this
happens. If they do not, explain this situation.
2. Culture-centered communication theory has developed as an alternative to limited-effects
perspectives. What do these two perspectives have to say about the role of media in politics generally or
in transmitting propaganda? Which perspective raises larger questions and concerns about the role of
media? Summarize some of these.
3. What are the differences and similarities between cultural theory and critical cultural theory?
4. List some of the strong points and some of the limitations of McLuhan’s ideas. Indicate if you find any
of his ideas especially useful or misleading.
Critical Thinking Questions
1. Do you ever make judgments about people based solely on how they look? What kinds of evaluations
do you make? Why do you do this? What are the advantages and disadvantages of this very human
ability?
2. To what extent do you think media content fosters support for the status quo? Do you agree or disagree
with critical cultural studies arguments that this tendency limits the growth of richer, more pluralistic
cultures?
3. Discuss Frankfurt School assertions about mass culture and high culture. Can or should mass media
be used to promote high culture? What about the notion of high culture itself? Is this concept inherently
elitist? Why, for example, should a city fund symphonies, opera, and ballet companies and not jazz, rock
’n roll, and rap music?
4. Popular culture researchers assert the value of popular culture texts like television shows, movies, and
popular music. Their argument seems valid when we talk about examples such as television series
Modern Family and The Simpsons, movies like Hurt Locker and A Serious Man, and the music of a rocker
like U2 and a rapper like Eminem. What about other texts, things like television’s Gossip Girl,Jersey
Shore, and Sabrina the Teenage Witch, or movies like the Die Hard series or The Nutty Professor, or
Barry Manilow music? Can you still make the popular culture argument using these texts?
Discussion Aids
Video options abound here. McGraw-Hill Films offers This is Marshall McLuhan: The Medium is the
Message and there is the 1969 Haskell Wexler movie, Medium Cool, which attempts to dramatically
portray McLuhan’s notions of an uninvolving medium. Bill Moyers and PBS again provide Consuming
Images, Illusions of News, The Truth About Lies, and Image and Reality in America, all dealing with news
intrusion. There is the 1976 feature film Network as well. The Smithsonian and PBS teamed to make
34
Selling the Dream, a detailed look at advertising, and several Saturday Night Live collections of
commercials that test the distinction between absurdity and real commercials.
The 1980 film Brave New World shows a population smiling itself into subordination and the 1989
Roger and Me and 1997 The Big One can be used to support the neomarxist argument that industrial and
media elites control workers. There is a fascinating WKRP in Cincinnati episode entitled “Real Families”
that is presented totally from the point of view of a reality-based TV show, and any episode of The Larry
Sanders Show from HBO will show the blurring of reality and fantasy.
A good discussion starter on the power of culture to shape meaning is “Darmock,” an episode
from Star Trek: The Next Generation. It tells the story of the Tamarians, a race of sophisticated people
that speaks only in metaphors based on their history. The point is the interaction between culture,
experience, language, and meaning. It can be obtained from Amazon Books (www. amazon.com) and it
even has its own Web site, www.chaparraltree.com/sflang/whatis.shtml.
The critical view of media is well articulated by George Gerbner in the Media Education
Foundation’s (www.igc.org/mef) The Crisis of the Cultural Environment. This video serves the additional
value of introducing student to Dr. Gerbner, a man they’ll meet in detail in Chapter 9. Another good video
in the critical theories tradition is Tell the Truth and Run: George Seldes and the American Press from
New Day Films (www.newday.com), in which the respected media critic examines media practitioners’
willingness to accept outside control in exchange for profits.
Numerous cultural effects videos are available, including the 1992 documentary Color Adjustment,
which examines media portrayals of African-Americans. In the same vein is Hollywood Shuffle which
makes the symbolic interaction point that the symbol mediates responses very humorously as African–
American actors are denied movie roles because they are not sufficiently black. Spike Lee’s Bamboozled
is useful here, too. If you want to focus on the culture’s changing understanding of women, two good
videos from Turner Home Entertainment’s A Century of Women series are available from Amazon.com:
Sexuality and Social Justice and Image and Popular Culture.
Finally, contemporary critical theory sits at the heart of many documentaries produced in response
to the war in Iraq and the subsequent occupation. From 2003 to 2006 there was Why We Fight,
Fahrenheit 9/11, Uncovered: The Whole Truth about the Iraq War, and several more. Most are also useful
for Chapter 3’s discussion of normative theories.
35
CHAPTER 6
THEORIES OF MEDIA AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT: CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS
Multiple Choice
1. Using imitation to argue significant media effects is doomed to failure because
a) imitation is difficult to observe
b) the modeling effects are often masked in imitation
2. Aggressive behavior related to the observation of rewarded media violence is
c) behavioral hierarchies
d) environmental incentive
3. Inhibitory effects are likely to occur when
c) observer is rewarded sufficiently in the environment
d) observer is a young child
4. Wilbur Schramm and his Stanford colleagues studied what happened when
television was introduced into communities. They recommended that
c) punish children who watched too much TV
d) start protest groups to lobby against TV violence
5. Viewers learn novel responses through simple observation of those
responses. Whether the response is inhibited or disinhibited however, is
c) amount of peer pressure
d) degree of social learning
6. The idea that the simple viewing of televised violence can reduce our
aggressive drive is called
a) reductionism
b) desensitization
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7. A simple summary of the limited-effects findings on the effects of TV violence
is that viewing of violent programming normally
c) has a uniform and moderately bad influence on most children
d) has a random influence on some types of children
8. The person most associated with the development of social cognitive theory is
a) Leonard Berkowitz
9. Big Bird on Sesame Street is given a prize because he was able to count to
ten. This is an example of an effort to teach children to count by using
a) delayed gratification
b) conditioned response
10. Clearly implicit in the Westley-MacLean model is the idea that although
mass communication _____________ it does have __________.
c) is for everyone/effects
d) is all around us/constraints
11. Early communication theories of media effects were based on
c) simple, linear models with feedback
d) complex, nonlinear models with no feedback
12. What has revived interest in studying the effects of media violence?
a) the surge of interest in graphic comic books
b) the development of Facebook
13. A recently developed theory of media violence effects tries to integrate
several mini-theories of aggression. This theory is
a) Cognitive development model
b) Catharsis model
14. Research indicates that regularly viewing of television portrayals of highly
attractive persons can lead to:
a) greater satisfaction with one’s self
b) a clearer and more accurate view of one’s body
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15. It is likely that regular viewing of advertising by children will
c) decrease their weight
d) all of the above
16. Critical researchers have argued that media encourage girls to objectify
themselves. This means that they:
a) have a clearer, more objective understanding of themselves
Essay
1. Make the distinction between imitation and identification. Why is this an important distinction in mass
communication theory? Combine both into modeling, and describe the three ways observers model.
2. What are vicarious reinforcement, environmental incentives, and behavioral hierarchy? What
significance do they have for how people model from the media?
5. What are the three modeling processes? Describe and give an example of each.
6. Discuss the long-standing controversy over the links between violent media content and rising levels of
violence in society. Present some arguments on both sides of this issue. How do media practitioners
defend violent movies or television programs?
7. What is catharsis theory, and why was it controversial? Briefly explain the theory, and discuss the
research that was guided by it. Why is this theory no longer considered valid?
8. Which of the perspectives on the influence of television violence do you find most interesting or useful?
Briefly explain the theory, and then discuss why you find it noteworthy. If possible, give an example of
research done to develop the theory.
Critical Thinking Questions
1. What was your family’s attitude toward television when you were growing up? Were there viewing rules
for the children in your home?
2. Think back to when you were in your pre- and early-teen years. Which lessons from those days are still
with you? Those from school, church, and family or those from media and friends? What are they?
3. Can you think of an example of social cognition from the media in your own life? Examples of imitation?
Of identification?
4. To what extent do you use media to develop your thinking about how you should look and dress? Do
you regularly read fashion or fitness magazines? Do you pay attention to the body images of attractive
characters on TV? What about your friends?
5. What do you think of advertising aimed at children? Does it encourage children to develop bad eating
habits? Are children encouraged to want things that they don’t need? Can advertising develop positive
views of alcohol that lead to drinking when children get older?