Order 1088118: Media
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68378_01p.pptxMedia and the Social World
Chapter 1
© SAGE Publications, Inc., 2014
1
Overview
Importance of Media in Contemporary Society
The Rise of Mass Media
Mass Media in Socialization and in Social Relations
Sociology of Media
Structural Constraint and Human Agency
A Model of Media and the Social World
Key Questions
What are the key characteristics of media? How did they develop historically, and how are they evolving today?
How does the presence of media affect our life?
What is a sociological approach to the study of media?
© SAGE Publications, Inc., 2014
Importance of Media
Pervasiveness of Media in Contemporary Society
Radios in 99% and TVs in 96% of U.S. homes
Adults spend more than 5 hours a day watching TV
Cell-phone adoption, 2013—91%
Broadband Internet access at home, 2013—65%
Young people’s media use is even more extensive
More than 7.5 hours of entertainment media use per day
Media have become the dominant social institution today
© SAGE Publications, Inc., 2014
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Rise of Mass Media
Social Construction of Reality
While reality exists, media users negotiate the meaning of that reality.
The same media product may mean very different things to different people.
Example: A music video may elicit different responses from a 15-year-old fan of the band and a parent concerned about stereotypically sexist images that may be present in the video.
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Rise of Mass Media: Print
Milestones in Print Media
Printing technology began in the 15th century
Cast metal type, Korea, early 15th century
Movable type, Johannes Gutenberg, 1450
Early printing reflected the power of the Church in Europe
Print as only means of reaching wide audiences from a distance for centuries
Invention of the telegraph and telephone in the 19th century allowed instantaneous communication over long distances
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The Rise of Mass Media: Sound and Film
Milestones in Sound Recording and Film
1877—Phonograph developed by Thomas Edison
1895—Cinematograph developed Lumiére brothers
1948—LP record launched by Columbia Records
1920s—Magnetic tape introduced
1960s—Personal cassette tapes become popular
1970s—VCRs become popular, allow movie purchase and rental and home recording
1980s—CDs make music digital
1990s—MP3, DVD, and other digital formats emerge
1990s-present—Websites and streaming services emerge
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Rise of Mass Media: Broadcast Media
Milestones in Broadcast Media
Radio became the first broadcast medium in the early 20 century.
For the first time in history
Communicators could cast a media message broadly.
Producers did not have to make physical products.
Audiences did not have to travel.
First television sets introduced in the 1940s; TVs in 65% of U.S. households by 1955
1998—Digital TV broadcast began
Broadcasting fundamentally created the possibility of a largely privatized and individualized media experience.
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Rise of Mass Media: Digitization, the Internet and Mobile Technologies
Media converge in digital form; distinctions between media are blurred.
Changes in media production
Internet provides global platform for media distribution and consumption
Greater interactivity between media users and contents
Technologies become smaller and more mobile
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Media and Society
Mass Media in Socialization
“Socialization”—The process whereby we learn and internalize the values, beliefs, and norms of our culture and, in so doing, develop a sense of self
Today, mass media serve as a powerful socializing agent
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Media in Social Relations
Media are bound up with the process of social relations
Media affect how we learn about our world and interact with one another
Media can create moral panics
Mass-mediated politics
Most of our political knowledge is based on mass media
Participate in politics through media
Mass-mediated social interactions
“Electronic hearth”
Media products are connected to the ways we interact with other people on a daily basis
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Sociology of Media
Importance of Social Relations
“Sociological imagination” (C. Wright Mills)
“Looking-glass self”
Our activities take place within larger groups and institutions
Relationships between institutions
Interactions between media industry and government
Relationships within an institution
Relationships between media producers and studios
Relationship between institutions and individuals
Relationships between media products and audiences
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Structural Constraint and Human Agency
“Structure” and “Agency” are core concepts of sociology
Structure
Any recurring pattern of social behavior
Examples: family structure, educational system
Structure limits the human agency
Agency
Intentional and undetermined human action
Example: students under an educational system
Structure limits the agency, but agency reproduces and changes social structure
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Structure and Agency in Media
Relationships Between Media and Other Institutions
Social, economic, and political institutions set certain limits on the media
Researchers need to look at how social structures external to media affect the media industry and how the media affect other social institutions
Relationships Within the Media Industry
Internal workings of mass media and processes of professional socialization
Researchers need to investigate the structure of media institutions, roles and practices in media production, professional norms, and how much autonomy media personnel have
Relationships Between the Media and the Public
How readers or users interact with media products
Researchers need to investigate how media contents are actively interpreted by readers and users.
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A Model of Media and the Social World
© SAGE Publications, Inc., 2014
Social
World
Readers / Audiences
Technology
Media Industry
Media Message / Product
Applying the Model: The Civil Rights Movement
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Media messages about the movement affect audience
Audience interprets the meaning and significance of the message
Audiences use new technology to access media messages
Specific formats of technology influence audience’s media use
Technology affects industry practices
Industry makes use of new technology to cover the event
Industry creates messages about the event
Norms of news influence media personnel
Civil Rights Movement
Readers / Audiences
Technology
Media Industry
Media Message / Product
