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Sociology in Modules

Sociology in Modules. The Mass Media. The Mass Media. 6. Module 20: Sociological Perspectives on the Media Module 21: The Audience Module 22: The Media’s Global Reach. A Look Ahead. How does the mass media affect our social institutions and how do they influence our social behavior?.

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Sociology in Modules

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  1. Sociology in Modules The Mass Media

  2. The Mass Media 6 • Module 20: Sociological Perspectives on the Media • Module 21: The Audience • Module 22: The Media’s Global Reach

  3. A Look Ahead • How does the mass media affect our social institutions and how do they influence our social behavior? • Why are the media so influential? • Who benefits from media influence and why? • How do we maintain cultural and ethical standards in the face of negative media images?

  4. Sociological Perspectives on the Media Module 20 • Mass media: Print and electronic means of communication that carry messages to widespread audiences • New forms of mass media changed people’s viewing and listening habits • Cultural convergence: flow of content across multiple media and the accompanying migration of media audiences

  5. Table 20-1: Contours of Communication Module 20

  6. Table 20-1: Contours of Communication (continued) Module 20

  7. Functionalist View Module 20 • The media: • Socialize us • Enforce social norms • Confer status • Promote consumption May act as a desensitizing narcotic

  8. Functionalist View Module 20 • Agent of Socialization • The media increase social cohesion by presenting a common view of culture • Play significant roles in providing a collective experience for members of society Some worry about using television as a babysitter and the impact of violent programming on viewer behavior

  9. Functionalist View Module 20 • Enforcer of Social Norms • Media often reaffirm proper behavior • Media play critical role in human sexuality • Also can glorify disapproved behavior • Conferral of Status • Singles out one from thousands of other people or similarly placed issues, making them significant

  10. Functionalist View Module 20 • Dysfunction: The Narcotizing Effect • Narcotizing dysfunction: Phenomenon in which the media provide such massive amounts of information that audience becomes numb and fails to act on the information

  11. Conflict View Module 20 • Conflict theorists emphasize that media reflect and exacerbate divisions of society and world • Gatekeeping: How material must travel through a series of checkpoints before reaching the public Gatekeeping less dominant on Internet, but Chinese release “Green Wall” software

  12. Conflict View Module 20 • Media monitoring • Expanded to include monitoring individuals’ media usage and choices without theirknowledge

  13. Conflict View Module 20 • Digital divide: Low-income groups, racial and ethnic minorities, rural residents, and citizens of developing countries have less access to latest technology Internet and new media becoming essential to economic progress

  14. Conflict View Module 20 • Dominant ideology: Set of cultural beliefs and practices that help maintain powerful social, economic, and political interests • Stereotypes: Unreliable generalization about all members of a group that do not recognize individual differences within the group

  15. Conflict View Module 20 • Dominant Ideology • U.S. media still widely imitated • U.S. media rely on overseas markets for program ideas and distribution • Television moving away from U.S. domination Nations that feel a loss of identity may try to defend against the cultural invasion

  16. Feminist View Module 20 • Feminists share conflict theorists’ view that mass media stereotype and misrepresent social reality • Women underrepresented • Perpetuate stereotypical views of gender • Emphasis on traditional sex roles and normalize violence against women • Cautiously optimistic about new media

  17. Interactionist View Module 20 • Interactionists especially interested in shared understandings of everyday behavior • Examine media on microlevel to see how they shape day-to-day social behavior • Perpetuate stereotypical views of gender • Rise of Internet facilitated new forms of communication and social interaction

  18. Table 20-2: Status Conferred by Magazines Module 20

  19. Figure 20-1: Branding the Globe Module 20

  20. Figure 20-2: Filtering Information: Blocking YouTube Module 20

  21. Figure 20-3: Network Coverage of Women’s versus Men’s Sports Module 20

  22. Research Today Module 20 • Diversity in Reality Television • Do you watch reality TV? If so, have you noted tension or conflict based on race, social class, or sex? • What does the popularity of reality TV shows tell us about our culture and society?

  23. Figure 20-4: Marketing Online Through Social Networks Module 20

  24. Figure 20-5: Who’s on the Internet? Module 20

  25. Table 20-3: Sociological Perspectives on the Mass Media Module 20

  26. Who is in the Audience? Module 21 • Mass media distinguished from other social institutions by necessary presence of audience • Identifiable, finite group or a much larger, undefined group

  27. The Segmented Audience Module 21 • Increasingly, media market themselves to a particular audience • Livingstone (2004): Media have become so segmented, they have taken on appearance almost of individualization

  28. Audience Behavior Module 21 • Opinionleader: Someone who, through day-to-day personal contacts and communication, influences opinions and decisions of others • Members of an audience do not all interpret media in the same way • Hunt (1997): race caused different reactions to media more than gender and class

  29. The Media’s Global Reach Module 22 • McLuhan predicted a global village • Gitlin considers “global torrent” more apt metaphor • Internet will increasingly reach directly into workplaces, schools, and homes • Reference materials and data banks now accessible across national boundaries

  30. Figure 22-1: Media Penetration in Selected Countries Module 22

  31. Sociology in the Global Community Module 22 • Al Jazeera is on the Air • Do you find news outlets in the United States biased? How would you judge? • What do you think of the new Al Hurra network in the Middle East? Can it win over the hearts and minds of viewers there? Should the U.S. government be using taxpayers’ dollars to fund the effort?

  32. Media Concentration Module 22 • Increasingly, a small number of very large corporations own the media production and distribution process • Causes reduction in information outlets and increase in cross-promotion • Stations on automated programming cannot always serve their listeners

  33. Media Concentration Module 22 • Understanding the Issue • A few multinational corporations dominate publishing, broadcasting, and film industries • Deserve special attention because they filter how we view reality • Internet significant exception • Accessible to millions of producers of media content

  34. Media Concentration Module 22 • Applying Sociology • Functionalists: consolidation a step toward greater economic efficiency • Conflict theorists: concentration stifles opportunities for minority ownership • Interactionists: changes way people obtain news

  35. Media Concentration Module 22 • Initiating Policy • For many, the Telecommunications Act of 1996 is obsolete • Eliminated most restrictions on media ownership • Lack of governmental restraint of media concentration ascribed to unique relationship between politicians and media industry

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