Unit 3-4 Audience

Audience theory

wether you are constructing text or analyzing one, you will need to consider the destination of that text (i.e its target audience) how the audience will respond to the text.

Media analysis development:

Effect models i.e theoretical explanations of how humans ingest information transmitted by media text and how this might influence (or not) their behaviour.

1. The hypodermic needle models (1950) - Audience passively receive the information.

2. User & gratifications (1970) - far from being passive mass, audience were made up of individuals

Who actively consume text for different reasons and in different ways

• Diversion - Escape from everyday problems and routines

• Personal relationship - Using media for emotional and other interaction, eg (substituting soap opera for family life)

• Personal identity - finding yourself reflecting in texts, learning behaviour and values from text

• Surveillance - information on which could be useful for living (e.g weather reports, financial news, holiday bargins)

receptionist theory (1982-90s)

A lot of work on the way individuals received and interrupted a text, and how their indaviduals cercumstances (gender, age, ethnicity) affect their reading

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