Medium Theory & Cultivation Theory
Amika OsumiKerry Bretti
Amanda Sterling
Medium Theory“The medium is the message.”
Marshall McLuhan, Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man, 1964
The medium is embedded in the message, meaning that the medium itself influences how people receive the message.
TRANSLATION:
Medium Theory MisinterpretationPeople think that medium= channel and message= content
Reinterpreted to content is the channel
Definition and reinterpretation are too obvious
McLuhan’s definitions:
Medium= any extension of ourselves
Message= change in interpersonal affairs that a new invention brings
Mark Federman, “What is the Meaning of the Medium is the Message?”
McLuhan’s Medium Theory“We can know the nature and characteristics of anything we conceive
or create (medium) by virtue of the changes - often unnoticed and non-obvious changes - that they effect (message.)” (Federman)
Each invention has unintended consequences that affect how influential it is
Content of each medium is in another medium
Example: Facebook posts are just speech
McLuhan, Understanding Media
Examples of Medium Theory In ActionLight bulbs as media?
Non-content medium that creates spaces of light where there normally would be darkness
Increased light= social change (McLuhan)
Newscasts about violent crime
Less about the content
More about change in attitude about crime due to newscasts bringing violent crime into the home (Federman)
Does the Medium Theory apply to today’s social media? SmartPhone/Apps, the new medium Snapchat? LinkedIn?
Snapchathttp://gifsec.com/funny/funny-gif-snapchat/
As a medium, Snapchat provides very personal/embarrassing/funny ways to communicate, thus molding the type of messages sent
LinkedIn as a medium, limits users to very professional options of communication. It therefore shapes the messages and content exchanged through the application/website
Cultivation TheoryAccording to the Merriam Webster Dictionary..
- Cultivate: to grow or raise (something) under conditions you can control
(Source: http://merriam-webster.com/cultivate)
Beginnings- Originally proposed by George Gerbner in the 1960s and expanded
upon with the help of Larry Gross
- Research began as a part of a larger project called Cultural Indicators, to study the causes and prevention of violence
- (Source: http://masscommtheory.com/theory-overviews/cultivation-theory/)
Cultivation Theory- Began to study media effects (television) and whether it influences
the audiences’ idea/perception of reality
- The theory states that high frequency viewers of television are more susceptible to media messages and the belief that they are real and valid(Source: http://masscommtheory.com/theory-overviews/cultivation-theory/)
- People end up unconsciously shaping their thought processes and behavior based on the media they consume(Source: http://communicationtheory.org/cultivation-theory/)
Assumptions1. Because television is mass produced and a central role in American culture, it is more influential than other forms of mass media2. TV does not cause or encourage violent behavior, instead it shapes people’s attitudes and beliefs3. TV cultivates values and attitudes already present in culture4. Viewing more than four hours a day can lead to Mean World Syndrome5. Television does not reflect reality; rather it creates an alternate reality(Soure: http://www.communicationstudies.com/communication-theories/cultivation-theory)
Assumptions II- Distinguish between
- ‘First Order’ Effects: General beliefs of the every day world such as prevalence of violence) - ‘Second Order’ Effects: Specific attitudes such as to law enforcement or personal safetyAnd - Heavy viewers (most influenced) - Light viewers (least influenced)
- Resonance: the intensified effect on the audience when what people see on TV is what they have experienced in life
- (Source: http://masscommtheory.com/theory-overviews/cultivation-theory/)
Mean World SyndromeThe belief that the world is a more dangerous place than it actually isAffects heavy television viewers who are thus exposed to more violence
(Source: http://masscommtheory.com/theory-overviews/cultivation-theory/)
Cultivation applicable to social media today?
“The day-to-day content we encounter on sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube—and the content that we ourselves generate and
upload to these sites—maynot be directly relevant to the traditional model of cultivation, with its
emphasis on fictional narratives” (Morgan, Shanahan, & Signorielli, 2015).
Morgan, M., Shanahan, J., & Signorielli, N. (2015). Yesterday's New Cultivation, Tomorrow. Mass Communication & Society, 18(5), 674-699. doi:10.1080/15205436.2015.1072725
Cultivation Theory & Video Games“The advances in the quality and content of video games has been enormous. But the systems themselves are starting to change the gaming experience. Headsets, voice messages, text messages, invitations....are all ways to connect with friends while gaming. If your system is connected to the internet, you can play with people you know, from all over the world. You can even have "friends" just like on Facebook or MySpace.
Being ‘friends’ with someone on Xbox allows you to see their recent activity, what they are doing while they are online, send them message, see their high scores, and talk to them live” (Brenker, 2011). Brenker, A. (2011) Video games: The newest social media. Examiner.com. Retrieved from http://www.examiner.com/article/video-games-the-newest-social-media
Can Cultivation Theory apply to reality?
Labeled for reuse on Google.com
Retrieved from https://www.facebook.com/nbcnightlynews/?fref=ts
Retrieved from https://www.facebook.com/CBSEveningNews/?fref=ts
SourcesFederman, M. (2004, July 23). What is the Meaning of the Medium is the Message? Retrieved February 17, 2016 from http://individual.utoronto.ca/markfederman/article_mediumisthemessage.htm .
McLuhan, Marshall. Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man. New York, NY: McGraw Hill, 1964: 5-10.
Morgan, M., Shanahan, J., & Signorielli, N. (2015). Yesterday's New Cultivation, Tomorrow. Mass Communication & Society, 18(5), 674-699. doi:10.1080/15205436.2015.1072725
Brenker, A. (2011) Video games: The newest social media. Examiner.com. Retrieved from http://www.examiner.com/article/video-games-the-newest-social-media
Cultivate. (n.d.). Retrieved February 14, 2016, from http://merriam-webster.com/cultivate
Cultivation Theory. (2011). Retrieved February 14, 2016, from http://masscommtheory.com/theory-overviews/cultivation-theory/
Cultivation Theory. (n.d.). Retrieved February 14, 2016, from http://communicationtheory.org/cultivation-theory/
Cultivation Theory. (2012). Retrieved February 14, 2016, from http://www.communicationstudies.com/communication-theories/cultivation-theory