Discussion Questions
Chapter 11: Mass Communication
1. Discuss the social mediated path of influence as proposed by social cognitive
theory of mass communication. For what programs have you interacted on social
media with other fans? In hindsight, what kind of influence did the media have
on you?
2. According to encoding/decoding theory, decoding is the more important part.
This is from the audience perspective, but what about from the perspective of
someone working in/for the media? How much thought should be put into
thinking about the encoding of messages and the ideology presented?
3. Since the public is now able to interact and report news, does this change agenda
setting theory? Does anything need to be added to the theory presently to make it
stronger?
4. How would agenda setting theory explain the concept of “fake news”? How
does one determine what is and what is not “fake news”?
5. McQuail has identified five key characteristics of the mass media that have stood
the test of time despite advances in technology. The fifth assumption is that the
media is a source of enormous power and influence. Is mass media now too
powerful? Is there a way to harness its influence?