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Media Effects

The document discusses media effects, defining them as the influence media has on individuals, societies, and institutions. It examines different types of media effects in terms of their timing, duration, valence, level of impact, and whether they result in observable changes. Key theories of media effects are also outlined, such as cultivation theory, agenda-setting, and the spiral of silence.

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Korie Arsie
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68 views35 pages

Media Effects

The document discusses media effects, defining them as the influence media has on individuals, societies, and institutions. It examines different types of media effects in terms of their timing, duration, valence, level of impact, and whether they result in observable changes. Key theories of media effects are also outlined, such as cultivation theory, agenda-setting, and the spiral of silence.

Uploaded by

Korie Arsie
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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MEDIA EFFECT

KSH, OBN
Exercise
• What is the definition of media effects?
• Tell your group members if you have experienced any media
effect in your life time.
• What impacts/effects do media have on us?
• What is the effect of mob justice in Ethiopia?
• Reports about high school exam takers’ giving birth to babies;
do you think they have some sort of effect on the audience?
Definition
• media incredibly exerts wide range of influence
• after watching too much “bad” content people would start to
think negatively immediately
• people believe that exposure to media violence causes
aggression;
• media stories with sexual depictions lead to risky sexual
behaviors
• bad language leads to coarse expression in the population.
Continued…

• “Media influenced effects are those things that occur


as a result-either in part or in whole-from media
influence.”
Continued…

• research are so prevalent that many people have come


to think of media effects as primarily being negative
behaviors that show up immediately after exposure to
particular media messages.
Media effect: Key Concerns
• There are eight issues that concern researchers in the field:
• timing (immediate vs. long term),
• duration (temporary vs. permanent),
• valence (negative or positive),
• change (difference vs. no difference),
• intention (or non-intention),
• the level of effect (micro vs. macro),
• direct (or indirect), and
• manifestation (observable vs. latent).
Timing

• people think that media effects are things that show


up during a media exposure or immediately
afterward.
• watching cartoon films-aggressively wrestling-
parents’ concern-connection between TV show and
children’s aggressive behavior
Continued….

• the media exert immediate effects, but they also exert


influences on people over the long term, when it takes
a long time before we can see any evidence of an
effect.
Duration

• Some effects last a short time, then go away, while


other effects are permanent.
• the effect lasts for over a period of time or go away
shortly
Valence

• In everyday life, people typically think of media


effects as being negative, such as exposure to
violence leading to antisocial behavior.
• media also exert positive effects. Ex. entertainment,
knowledge,
• Desensitization –either –ve or +ve effect
Change.

• Change in behavior or in attitude


• If there is no change, some people argue that there is
no effect.
• But some effects-perhaps the most important and
powerful media effects-show up as no change.
• If there is no change there is change!
Intention

• when the media industries are criticized for negative


effects, one of their defense strategies is to point out
that they did not intend to create a negative effect.
• However, there are many effects that occur even
though the producers of those media messages, as
well as the consumers of those messages, did not
intend them to occur.
Level

• Most of the research on media effects looks at


individuals as the targets of the effects.
• Scholars have produced a very large literature
documenting a wide array of effects on individuals.
• But the media also exert influences on more macro-
level entities such as the public, society, and
institutions. Micro–meso-macro level
Direct and Indirect.

• sometimes the media exert a direct effect on


individuals, while other times the effect is more
indirect, such as through institutions.
• Direct=political ad-then-casting ballot.
• Indirect=rising political ad price-effect on the
organizations that sponsored individuals-influenes
policies and government services
Manifestation

• Some effects are easy to observe, such as when


someone changes her behavior soon after being
exposed to a particular media message. Ex. Help for
people in problem, product ads, etc.
• But other effects are very difficult to observe; this
does not necessarily mean they are not occurring or
that the media are not exerting an influence.
Types of ME
Individual level ME
Macro level ME
Theories of Media Effects
• The Cultivation Effect: Heavy TV viewing leads
individuals to perceive reality in ways that are more
consistent with TV’s version of reality.

– “mean world syndrome”


– Italian TV: Berlusconi
Theories of Media Effects
• Agenda-Setting: The more the news media
covers a subject, the more importance
audiences attach to that subject.

e.g., Earth Day, Jaws, child abduction


Theories of Media Effects
• Spiral of Silence: People are generally scared
to voice their opinions if they differ greatly
from the opinions presented in the media as
“majority” opinions

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