Exam 1
Electronic Era and the Telegraph
Featuring dot-dash electronic signals, the telegraph made 4 key contributions to communication
American MEdia
shaping the cultures and identities of other nations Americans styles in fashion and food, as well as media fare, dominate the global market
Plato
sought to banish poets, whom he saw as purveyors of ideas less rigorous than those generated in oral, face-to-face, question and answer discussions
Global Expansion of Disney
Building on the international appeal of its cartoon features, Disney extended its global reach by opening Tokyo Disney resort and Disneyland parks
Applying Antitrust Laws Today
Occasionally, independent voices raise issues that aid the Justice Department and the FTC in their antitrust cases
Digital Era and Digital Communication
Images, texts, sounds are converted (encoded) into electronic signals (represented as varied combinations of binary numbers-ones and zeroes) that are then reassembled (Decoded) as a precise reproduction
Muckrakers
Journalists who exposed corruption, waste, and scandal in business and politics, represented media's significant contribution
Media Business is a Cultural World
Some critics and educators feel that media multitasking means that we often pay closer attention to the media we are using than to people immediately in our presence
(A digital reinvention of oral culture) has assumed some of the functions of the postal service and is outpacing attempts to control communications beyond national borders
Critics have at least 5 areas of concern about low culture
1. Depreciation of fine art 2. Exploitation of high culture 3. Disposability of popular culture 4. Driving out of high culture 5. Deadening of our culture taste buds
National Science Foundation
1. Developed a high-speed communications network designed to link university research computer centers around the country and also encourage private investment in the net a. This innovation led to a dramatic increase in internet use and further opened the door to the widespread
The Defense Department's Advanced Research Projects Agency
1. Developed a solution to enable researchers to share computer processing time starting in the late 1960s a. ARPANet (net) i. Enabled military and an academic researchers to communicate on a distributed network system 2. Packet switching a. Broke messages down into smaller pieces to more easily route them through the multiple paths on the network before reassembling them on the other end 3. E-Mail a. Roy Tomlinson i. Developed software to send electronic mail messages to any computer on ARPANet ii. @ symbol to signify the location of the computer user, thus establishing the email addresses
Effects of Printing
1. First machine duplication replaced the tedious system in which scribes hard-copied texts 2. Second duplication could occur rapidly so large quantities of the same book could be reproduced easily 3. Third the faster production of multiple copies brought down the cost of each unit, which made books more affordable to less-affluent people 4. Print media became key tools that commercial and political leaders used to distribute information and maintain social order (Nationalism and Individualism)
Media Innovations and the 4 Stages
1. First the emergence or novelty stage in which inventors and technicians try to solve a particular problem 2. Second is the entrepreneurial stage in which inventors and investors determine a practical and marketable use for the new device 3. Third phase in a medium's development involves a breakthrough to the mass medium stage 4. Fourth stage and the newest phase in a medium's evolution is the convergence stage (Older media are configured with newer media)
Effects of the Electronic Era
1. First, it separated communication from transportation making media massages instantaneous 2. Second, the telegraph in combination with the rise of mass-marketed newspapers, transformed information into a commodity (a thing that could be bought or sold irrespective of its use or meaning) 3. Third, the telegraph made it easier for military, business, and political leaders, to coordinate commercial and military operations 4. such as wireless telegraphy (radio), the fax, machine, cell phone which ironically resulted in the telegraphs demise
The development of the Internet
1. Became increasingly interactive by the 1900s allowing immediate two-way communication and one-to-many communication 2. By 2000, the internet was a multimedia source for both information and entertainment as it quickly became an integral of our daily lived
Feedback
1. Citizens and consumers, return messages to senders or gatekeepers through phone calls, e-mail, web postings, talk shows, or letters to the editor 2. Source > Message > Receiver > Feedback > Source (Still source dominated model)
How the internet started
1. Military government project 2. Computer time sharing as a goal 3. Defense department developed a solution to enable researchers to share computer processing time (ARPANet) 4. Created a wired network system in which users from multiple locations could log onto a computer system whenever they needed it 5. Used "packet switching" which broke down messages into smaller pieces to more easily route them through multiple paths on the network before reassembling them on the other end.
Microprocessors
1. Miniature circuits that process and store electronic signals 2. Manufacturers were eventually about to introduce the first PC (personal computer) which were smaller, cheaper, and more powerful than the bulky computer system of the 1960s
Gatekeepers
1. News editors, executive producers, other media managers) 2. Make decisions about what messages actually get produced for particular receivers
Although there are many ways to define our postmodern period, we will focus on four major features
1. Populism (Tries to appeal to ordinary people by highlighting or even creating an argument or conflict between the people and elite; Other forms of postmodern style blur modern distinctions not only between art and commerce but also between fact and fiction) 2. Diversity (Includes the wild juxtaposition of old and new cultural styles) 3. Nostalgia (Small communities, traditional religion, and even mystical experiences) 4. Paradox (Stresses integrating or converging of retro beliefs and contemporary culture)
Socrates
1. Socrates made his argument through public conversations and debates a. Socratic Method (The dialogue style of communication and inquiry is still used in college classrooms and university law schools)
Synergy
1. Synergy typically refers to the promotion and sale of different versions of a media product across the various subsidiaries of a media conglomerate 2. Today, synergy is an important goal for large media corporations and is often the reason given for expensive mergers and acquisitions a. Historically half of all mergers and acquisitions are failures, and synergies are never realized
Why does it matter what media audiences are left out?
1. The implications of invisibility a. For the individual b. For the media economy c. For the electorate d. For the identity of the nation
Progressive Era
A period of political and social reform that lasted roughly from 1890s to the 1920s
Hegemony
Acceptance of the dominant values in a culture by those who are subordinate to those who hold economic and political power To argue that a particular view or value is common sense is often an effective strategy for stopping conversation and debate Yet common sense is socially and symbolically constructed and shifts over time
Analyzing the Media Economy
Answers to certain questions span the economic and social spectrums On the one hand, critics express concerns about the increasing power and reach of large media conglomerates On the other hand, many free-market advocates maintain that as long as these structures ensure efficient operation and generous profits, they measure up as quality media organizations
Equating Free Markets with Democracy
Any criticism capitalism became an attack on the free marketplace
Global Audiences Expand Media Markets
As Disney stories show, international expansion has allowed media conglomerates some advantages, including secondary markets in which to earn profits and advance technological innovations First, as media technologies get cheaper and more portable, American media proliferate both inside and outside national boundaries In addition, satellite transmission has made north American and European TV available at the global level
Consumer Choice Versus Consumer Control
As many economists point out, capitalism is not structured democratically but arranged vertically with powerful corporate leaders at the top and hourly wage workers at the bottom
Media Literacy
Attaining an understanding of mass media and how they construct meaning
Senders
Authors, producers, organizations
Specialization, Global Markets, Convergence
Bolstered by the passage of GATT (General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade) in 1947, the signing of NAFTA in 1994, and the formation of WTO in 1995, global cooperation fostered
Media Convergence
Has two different meanings One referring to technology (The merging of content across different media channels) Other refers to business (Both describe changes that have a great impact on how media companies are charting a course for the future)
Downsizing and the Wage Gap
Inequality in the U.S. between the richest and everyone else has been growing since the 1970s This is apparent in the skyrocketing rate of executive compensation and the growing ratio between executive pay and the typical pay of workers in corresponding industries Corporate downsizing, which Is supposed to make companies more flexible and more profitable, has served CEOs well but has not served workers well This trend spurred by government deregulation and a decline in worker protections, means that many employees today scramble for jobs, often working two or three part-time positions Increasingly the available positions have substandard pay
Media Events
Live broadcasts of historic events have become world rituals which have the potential for transforming societies
Commercial Strategies
Media industry executive look to the most advantageous balance in the commercial process, including program or products costs, price setting, marketing strategies, and regulatory practices 1. Price 2. Length, frequency, and tolerance 3. Data Mining and Privacy 4. Regulation Some key expectations of media organizations include 1. Introducing new technologies to the marketplace 2. Making media products and services available to people of all economic classes 3. Facilitating free expression robust political discussion 4. Monitoring society in times of crisis 5. Playing a positive role in education 6. Maintaining the quality of culture
Media Powerhouses: Consolidation, partnerships, and Mergers
Most media companies have skirted monopoly charges by purchasing diverse types of mass media rather than trying to control just one medium
shifting values in postmodern culture
Postmodern period (Music videos, remote controls, etc.; Roughly from the mid-20th century to today)
Social Issues in Media Economics
The mergermania has accompanied stripped down regulation, which has virtually suspended most ownership limited on media industries (As a result, a number of consumer advocates and citizen groups have raised questions about deregulation and ownership consolidation)
Disney: A Postmodern Media Conglomerate
The Walt Disney Company is one of the most successful companies in leveraging its many properties to create synergies
Disney Today
The cartoon pioneer experienced the multiple shocks of a recession, failed films and internet ventures, and declining theme park attendance
The Dual Roles of Media Convergence
The eras of communication are themselves reinvented in this "age of convergence" Cross platform (Describes a business model that involves consolidating various media holdings; The goal is to offer consumers a better way to manage resources and maximize profits)
Flexible Markets and the Decline of Labor Unions
The new elastic economy features the expansion of the service sector and the need to serve individual consumer preferences (This type of economy has relied on cheap labor-sometimes exploiting poor workers in a sweatshops-and on quick, high-volume sales to offset the costs of making so many niche products for specialized markets) The era of flexible markets coincided with the decline in the number of workers who belong to labor unions
Media Business is a Converged World
The next challenge ahead in the new, converged world is to resolve who will pain for quality content and how that system will emerge
Messages
Transmitted (programs, texts, images, sounds, internet)
Innovation and the attraction of "What's New"
We like cultural adventure (We seek new stories and new places to go those aspects of culture that demonstrate originality and complexity)
The Linear Model (Tranmissional View)
Who? Says what? Through which channel? To whom? With what effect? 1. Source > Message > Receiver 2. Problem: no guarantee the receiver will receive the message, singularity, interpretation of message, noise, feedback
Words and Images and Meaning
Words and images are more likely to spill into another crisscrossing in the daily media of ads, shows, news reports, social media, smartphone apps, conversations
a. Algorithmic search engine-controls 90% of the global search market b. google maps, Gmail, chrome, play
Different Definitions of Communication
a. An act (expressing ideas, thoughts, feelings to someone) b. A message (letter, text) c. A system (for transmitting or exchanging information d. Communication in Latin means to share
Apple
a. Computers, iPod, iPad, iPhone, apple watch, getting into content
Amazon
a. E-commerce, kindle, Alexa, now making shows
4 aspects that resonate best with changes across media
a. Efficiency b. Individualism c. Rationalism d. Progress
How can one "dominate" or control the web?
a. Provide access to it b. Control the search engines c. Sell the essential devices
a. Social media is its biggest resource b. Data processor-collecting every tidbit of information about its users and selling it to advertisers for exceptionally tailored ads c. Own: Instagram, WhatsApp, oculus VR
Microsoft
a. Software for computes and mobile devices, search engine, videogame platforms
Culture encompasses a society's modes of communication
a. The creation and use of symbol systems that convey information and meaning b. It is a process of mutual creation of meaning c. It is dynamic d. It is interdependent e. It is transactional (Each new message, decoded into meaning by an interpreter, changes the interpreter;The constitutive view sees communication as creating (constituting) something that did not exist before) f. Complex g. May be unintentional h. Message may be shaped (Diminished, enhanced) by the medium i. Received meaning may be different from intended meaning j. Process is in no way linear
Social Media
allow people from all over the world to have ongoing online conversations, share stories, and interests, and generate their own media content (This turn in the digital media form has fundamentally overturned traditional media business models, the ways we engage with and consume media products, and the ways we organize our daily lives around various media choices)
Telecommunications Act of 1996
brought unprecedented deregulation to a broadcast industry that had been closely regulated for more than sixty years 1. A single company could now own an almost unlimited number of radio and TV stations 2. Telephone companies could now own TV and radio stations 3. Cable companies could now compete in the local telephone business 4. Cable companies could freely raise rates
New Technologies
can isolate people or encourage them to chase their personal agendas (Can also draw people together to advance causes, to solve community problems)
2 Ways of Collecting Revenue
direct payments and indirect payments
Celler-Kefauver Act
further strengthened antitrust laws by limiting any corporate mergers and joint ventures that reduced competition
Bechdel Test
i. A measure of the representation of women in fiction ii. It asks whether a work 1. Features at least two women with names 2. Who talk to each other about something other than a man iii. Fewer than half of the 89 films that have won academy awards for the best picture have passed the Bechdel test
The Digital Age Favors Small, Flexible Start-Up Companies
i. All the leading digital companies of today were once small start-ups that emerged at important junctures of the digital age ii. Today, the juncture in the digital era is the growing importance of social media and mobile devices (Like I the earliest periods, the strategy for start-up companies is to find a niche market, connect with consumers, and get big fast, swallowing up or overwhelming competitors)
Cultural Imperialism and Americans
i. American styles in fashion food, as well as media fare, dominate the global market b. Perhaps the greatest concern regarding a global village is the cultural disconnection for people whose standards of living are not routinely portrayed in contemporary media
What media audiences are left out?
i. Audiences who are small, unprofitable, hard to measure ii. Racial/ethnic minority groups iii. Children and adults with disability iv. Those who live in hard to access places 1. Homeless 2. Foster care
Culture as a Map
i. Culture is an ongoing and complicated process that allows us to be better account for our diverse and individual tastes (We judge forms of culture as good or bas based on a combination of personal taste and the aesthetic judgements a society makes at particular historical times)
Benefits of a critical perspective
i. Developing an informed critical perspective and becoming media literate allow us to participate in a debate about media culture as a force for both democracy and consumerism ii. Competing against these democratic tendencies is a powerful commercial culture that reinforces a world economic order controlled by relatively few multinational corporations iii. Changes challenge us to reassess and rebuild the standards by which we judge our culture (The search for answers lies recognizing the links between cultural expression and daily life)
The Fallout from a Free Market
i. Economists and media critics have traced the causes and history of this void to two major issues 1. A reluctance to criticize capitalism 2. the debate over how much control consumers have in the marketplace
Cultural Model for Understanding Mass Communication
i. Focuses on behavior of persons rather than things ii. Study of the processes of media and that which influences them iii. Consider different outcomes that result from media creation and exposure iv. Selective exposure (People typically seek messages and produce meanings that correspond to their own cultural beliefs, values, and interests) v. Media (Intervening substance through which something is conveyed or transmitted)
The Early Years
i. For much of the 20th century, the Disney company set the standard for popular cartoons and children's culture ii. In 1953, Disney started Buena vista, a distribution company 1. This was the first step in making the studio into major player 2. The economy also began exploiting the power of its early cartoon features
The internet and Convergence Change the Game
i. For much of their history, media companies have been part of usually discrete or separate industries ii. Today, newspapers, magazines, book publishers, etc., all have websites that offer online versions of their product of web services that enhance their original media form
Netflix
i. Founded in 1997 as an online movie rental company ii. Developed streaming in 2007 iii. Expanded into global market in 2013 iv. 2018 1. Generated 6.8 billion in annual revenue with over 130 million streaming members in over 190 countries enjoying more than 140 million hours of TV shows and movies per day
The Rise of Specialization and Synergy
i. Globalism coincided with the rise of specialization ii. Beyond specialization, what really distinguishes current media economics is the extension of synergy to international levels
Culture as a Skyscraper
i. High culture (wealthy) (Ballet, the arts) ii. Low Culture (Soap operas, rock music, radio shock jocks)
The Media Marketplace and Democracy
i. In the midst of today's major global transformations of economies, cultures, societies, the best way to monitor the impact of transnational economies is through vigorous new attention and lively public discussion ii. We live in a society in which often superficial or surface consumer concerns, stock market quotes, and profit aspirations, rather than broader social issues, increasingly dominate the media agenda
The Internet
i. Information superhighway 1. Description implied that the goal of the internet is to build new media network, a new superhighway to replace traditional media ii. The vast network of telephone and cable lines, wireless connections, and satellite systems designed to link and carry digital information worldwide 1. Initially described as an information superhighway iii. Ownership vs. Control
The Effects of Media Consolidation on Democracy
i. Merged and multinational media corporations will continue to control more aspects of production and distribution ii. Because of the growing consolidation of mass media, it has become increasingly difficult to sustain a public debate on economic issues 1. From a democratic perspective, the relationship of our mass media system to politics has been highly dysfunctional iii. As unfettered corporate political contributions count as "political speech" some corporations are experiencing backlash or praise once their customers discover their political positions iv. Politicians have often turned to local television stations, spending record amounts during each election period to get their political ads on air
Diversification
i. Most media companies diversify among media product, never fully dominating a particular media industry ii. Promotes oligopolies in which few behemoth companies control most media production and distribution 1. This kind of economic arrangement makes it difficult for products offered outside an oligopoly to compete in the marketplace
The Media Reform Movement
i. One key paradox of the information age is that for such economic discussions to be meaningful and democratic, they must be carried out in the popular media as well as in educational settings ii. Yet public debates and disclosures about the structure and ownership of the media are often not in the best economic interests of media owners iii. Still in some places, local groups and consumer movements are trying to address media that affect individual and community life
What do scholars know about audiences?
i. Pew Research Center 1. Wording of question 2. Demographic of people 3. Age ranges
Linear Model
i. Sender > message > medium > receiver > sender > etc. ii. Beaumont ("Communication is this mutual creation of meaning"; Constantly, Automatically, Tirelessly)
Power of Media Stories
i. Socrates believed art should uplift us from the ordinary routines in our lives ii. Shows exploit personal problems for commercial gain, reality shows often glamorize outlandish behavior and dangerous stunts, and television research continues to document a connection between aggression in children and violent entertainment programs or video games iii. To increase their revenues, media outlets try to influence everything from how people to shop to how they vote
The Rise of the New Digital Media Conglomerates
i. The digital turn marks a shift in the media environment, from the legacy media powerhouses like Time Warner and Disney to the new digital conglomerates ii. Given how technologically adept certain corporations have proven to be, they still need to provide compelling narratives to attract people
Cultural Imperialism
i. The influence of American popular culture has created considerable debate in international circles 1. On the one hand the notion of freedom that is associated with innovation and rebellion in American culture has been embraced internationally 2. On the other hand, American media are shaping the cultures and identities of other nations a. Cultural imperialism
So, What Exactly are the responsibilities of newspapers and media in general?
i. The media tries to help us understand the events that affect us. ii. Media's appetite for telling and selling stories leads them not only to document tragedy but also to misrepresent or exploit it
Critiquing Media and Culture
i. We are witnessing media convergence (For a fee everything from magazine to movies is channeled into homes through the internet and cable or satellite TV) ii. Considering the diversity of mass media, to paint them all with the same broad brush would be inaccurate and unfair (To deal with these shifts in how we experience media and culture and their impact, we need to develop a profound understanding of the mass media focused on what they offer or produce and what they downplay or ignore)
Scholars and the internet
ii. As scholars, we are now studying topics that didn't exist prior to the widespread use of certain platforms and devices
Structure of the Media Industry
monopoly, oligopoly, limited competition
Monopoly
one company dominates production and distribution
Sherman Antitrust Act
outlawed monopoly practices and corporate trusts that often fixed prices to force competitors out of business
Clayton Antitrust Act
prohibits manufacturers from selling only to dealers and contractors who agree to reject the products of business rivals
Receivers
readers, viewers, and consumers
Job of FTC and antitrust divisions
responsible for enforcing these laws
What does the industry know about audiences?
television, netflix, internet users
The Boom of the Electronic Phase
the electronic phase of the Information Age really boomed in the 1950s-1960s with the arrival of television and its dramatic impact on daily life
Oligopoly
the most common structure A few firms dominate an industry
Limits of Antitrust Laws
the resulting consolidation of media owners has limited the number of independent voices in the market and reduced the number of owners who might be able to innovate and challenge established economic powers, leading to renewed interest in enforcing antitrust laws
technological affordances of social media
what audiences know about audiences likes and engagment