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

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

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 encourgage 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.communicationsstudies.com/communication-theory/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

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