Mass Communication Theory Foundations, Ferment, and Future

by Baran, Stanley J.; Davis, Dennis K.

• ISBN13: 9780534560881
• ISBN10: 0534560881
• Edition: 2nd
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1999-07-07
• Publisher: Cengage Learning

Summary

This new edition of Baran and Davis's successful text provides a comprehensive, historically based, introduction to mass communication theory. Clearly written with examples, graphics, and other materials to illustrate key theories, this editionù-now streamlined to increase accessibilityù-traces the emergence of two main bodies of mass communication theory: social/behavioral and critical/cultural. The authors emphasize that media theories are human creations that typically are intended to address specific problems or issues. The Second Edition includes new coverage of the Internet, as well as many updated examples.

Author Biography

Stanley J. Baran (Ph.D., University of Massachusetts) is professor of Radio/TV at San Jose State University. Dennis K. Davis (Ph.D., University of Minnesota) is professor in the School of Communication at Pennsylvania State University.

Table of Contents

Preface	p. xiii
Introduction to Mass Communication Theory	p. 1
Introduction	p. 2
Three Questions about Media	p. 6
Defining and Redefining Mass Communication	p. 9
Four Eras of Media Theory	p. 10
The Era of Mass Society and Mass Culture	p. 12
Emergence of a Scientific Perspective on Mass Communication	p. 13
The Limited Effects Paradigm Emerges	p. 15
Cultural Criticism: A Challenge to the Limited Effects Paradigm	p. 16
Effects Researchers Strike Back: Emergence of Moderate Effects	p. 17
Ongoing Debate over Issues	p. 19
Exploring Mass Communication Theory	p. 20
Critical Thinking Questions	p. 22
Significant People and Their Writing	p. 22
Mass Communication Theory	p. 23
Overview	p. 24
Science and Human Behavior	p. 24
Schizophrenic Social Science	p. 29
Defining Theory	p. 29
Mass Communication and Theory	p. 32
Summary	p. 33
Exploring Mass Communication Theory	p. 34
Critical Thinking Questions	p. 35
Significant People and Their Writing	p. 35
Era of Mass Society and Mass Culture	p. 36
The Rise of Media Industries and Mass Society Theory	p. 38
Overview	p. 39
The Beginnings	p. 40
The Rise of Yellow Journalism	p. 42
Cycles of Mass Media Development and Decline	p. 42
Mass Society Critics and the Great Debate over Media	p. 45
Mass Society Theory Assumptions	p. 46
Rise of the Great Debate over Media	p. 54
Early Examples of Mass Society Theory	p. 55
Gemeinschaft and Gesellschaft	p. 56
Mechanical and Organic Solidarity	p. 57
Mass Society Theory in Contemporary Times	p. 58
Summary	p. 61
Exploring Mass Communication Theory	p. 62
Critical Thinking Questions	p. 62
Significant People and Their Writing	p. 63
The Rise of Media Theory in the Age of Propaganda	p. 64
Overview	p. 66
The Origin of Propaganda	p. 67
Propaganda Comes to the United States	p. 70
Behaviorism	p. 71
Freudianism	p. 72
Magic Bullet Theories	p. 72
Lasswell's Propaganda Theory	p. 74
Lippmann's Theory of Public Opinion Formation	p. 75
Reaction Against Early Propaganda Theory	p. 77
Modern Propaganda Theory	p. 78
Libertarianism Reborn	p. 81
Summary	p. 82
Exploring Mass Communication Theory	p. 83
Critical Thinking Questions	p. 84
Significant People and Their Writing	p. 84
Normative Theories of Mass Communication	p. 86
Overview	p. 88
The Origin of Normative Theories of Media	p. 89
The Origin of Libertarian Thought	p. 90
The Marketplace of Ideas: A New Form of Radical Libertarianism	p. 93
Government Regulation of Media--The Federal Radio Commission	p. 97
Professionalization of Journalism	p. 98
Limitations of Professionalization	p. 99
Social Responsibility Theory of the Press: A Postwar Compromise	p. 102
The Cold War Tests Social Responsibility Theory	p. 105
Using Social Responsibility Theory to Guide Professional Practice	p. 106
Is There Still a Role for Social Responsibility Theory?	p. 107
Civic Journalism	p. 110
Other Normative Theories	p. 112
Summary	p. 113
Exploring Mass Communication Theory	p. 114
Critical Thinking Questions	p. 116
Significant People and Their Writing	p. 116
The Rise and Fall of Limited Effects	p. 118
Limited Effects Theory Emerges	p. 120
Overview	p. 121
Paradigm Shifts	p. 123
The Paradigm Shift in Mass Communication Theory	p. 123
The Two-Step Flow of Information and Influence	p. 126
Limitations in the Lazarsfeld Model	p. 130
Limited Effects Theory	p. 131
Attitude Change Theories	p. 132
Carl Hovland and the Experimental Section	p. 133
The Communication Research Program	p. 136
Emergence of the Media Effects Focus	p. 137
The Selective Processes	p. 138
The Hovland-Lazarsfeld Legacy	p. 142
Limitations of the Experimental Persuasion Research	p. 144
Summary	p. 146
Exploring Mass Communication Theory	p. 147
Critical Thinking Questions	p. 148
Significant People and Their Writing	p. 148
Middle-Range Theory and the Consolidation of the Limited Effects Paradigm	p. 149
Overview	p. 152
Building a Paradigm	p. 153
Robert Merton: Master Paradigm Maker	p. 155
The Functional Analysis Approach	p. 157
Information Flow Theory	p. 159
Diffusion Theory	p. 161
Klapper's Phenomenistic Theory	p. 163
An Apology for Mass Entertainment	p. 166
Elite Pluralism	p. 167
C. Wright Mills and The Power Elite	p. 169
Assumptions of the Limited Effects Paradigm	p. 171
Drawbacks of the Limited Effects Paradigm	p. 172
Contributions of the Limited Effects Paradigm	p. 172
Summary	p. 173
Exploring Mass Communication Theory	p. 174
Critical Thinking Questions	p. 175
Significant People and Their Writing	p. 176
Challenging the Dominant Paradigm: Children, Systems, and Effects	p. 177
Overview	p. 177
Focus on Children and Violence	p. 178
Television Violence Theories	p. 182
Catharsis	p. 182
Social Learning	p. 184
Social Cognition from Mass Media	p. 185
Aggressive Cues	p. 188
The Context of Mediated Violence	p. 189
Active Theory of Television Viewing	p. 190
The Developmental Perspective	p. 191
Media and Children's Socialization	p. 192
Systems Theories of Communication Processes	p. 193
The Rise of Systems Theories	p. 194
Mathematical Theory of Communication	p. 195
Modeling Systems	p. 197
A Simple Systems Model	p. 197
Applying Systems Models to Human Communication	p. 198
Adoption of Systems Models by Mass Communication Theorists	p. 199
Closed versus Open Systems	p. 200
The Utility of Systems Models	p. 201
Estimating Causality	p. 202
A Focus on Structure and Function	p. 203
Summary	p. 206
Exploring Mass Communication Theory	p. 207
Critical Thinking Questions	p. 208
Significant People and Their Writing	p. 208
Contemporary Mass Communication Theory-Searching for Consensus and Confronting Challenges	p. 210
Emergence of Critical and Cultural Theories of Mass Communication	p. 212
Overview	p. 213
Changing Times	p. 214
The Cultural Turn in Media Research	p. 215
Macroscopic versus Microscopic Theories	p. 216
Critical Theory	p. 217
Comparing Cultural Theories with Those Based on Empirical Research	p. 218
Rise of Cultural Theories in Europe	p. 220
Marxist Theory	p. 220
Neomarxism	p. 221
Textual Analysis and Literary Criticism	p. 222
The Frankfurt School	p. 223
Development of Neomarxist Theory in Britain	p. 224
Political Economy Theory	p. 227
The Debate Between Cultural Studies and Political Economy Theorists	p. 228
Cultural Studies: Transmissional versus Ritual Perspectives	p. 229
Symbolic Interaction	p. 230
Social Construction of Reality	p. 235
Research on Popular Culture in the United States	p. 240
Summary	p. 241
Exploring Mass Communication Theory	p. 243
Critical Thinking Questions	p. 243
Significant People and Their Writing	p. 244
Media and Audiences: Theories About the Role of Media in Everyday Life	p. 245
Overview	p. 246
Audience Theories: From Source-Dominated to Active Audience Perspectives	p. 247
Limitations of Early Audience-Centered Research	p. 249
Confusion of Media Functions and Media Uses	p. 250
Revival of the Uses and Gratifications Approach	p. 252
Measuring Uses and Gratifications	p. 254
The Active Audience Revisited	p. 256
Uses and Gratifications and Effects	p. 260
Development of Reception Studies: Decoding and Sensemaking	p. 260
Feminist Reception Studies	p. 263
Framing and Frame Analysis	p. 265
Information Processing Theory	p. 270
An Information Processing Model	p. 273
Processing Television News	p. 274
Some Final Words to Clear the Mist	p. 276
Summary	p. 278
Exploring Mass Communication Theory	p. 279
Critical Thinking Questions	p. 280
Significant People and Their Writing	p. 281
Theories of Media, Culture, and Society	p. 282
Overview	p. 283
Marshall McLuhan: The Medium is the Message and Massage	p. 285
Harold Innis: The Bias of Communication	p. 286
McLuhan: Understanding Media	p. 287
Social Marketing Theory	p. 291
The Knowledge Gap	p. 296
Agenda-Setting	p. 299
The Spiral of Silence	p. 303
Media System Dependency Theory	p. 307
Cultivation Analysis	p. 309
The Controversy	p. 313
The Products of Cultivation Analysis	p. 315
The Mean World Index	p. 316
A Final Note on Cultivation	p. 316
Media as Culture Industries: The Commodification of Culture	p. 318
Advertising: The Ultimate Cultural Commodity	p. 321
News Production Research	p. 322
Media Intrusion Theory	p. 325
Summary	p. 328
Exploring Mass Communication Theory	p. 330
Critical Thinking Questions	p. 331
Significant People and Their Writing	p. 331
Trends in Mass Communication Theory: Seeking Consensus, Facing Challenges	p. 333
Overview	p. 334
Communication Science	p. 335
Two Views of Communication Science	p. 336
An Example of Communication Science	p. 337
Social Semiotics Theory	p. 339
The Communications Revolution	p. 343
Globalization and Media	p. 346
Globalization Problems	p. 348
Role of Media in Globalization	p. 349
Postmodern Criticism of Modernity	p. 350
Avoiding the Dreams of Modernity	p. 352
Challenges from Cognitive Psychology and Biological Science	p. 354
The Media Literacy Movement	p. 358
Two Views on Media Literacy	p. 359
Summary	p. 360
Exploring Mass Communication Theory	p. 364
Critical Thinking Questions	p. 365
Significant People and Their Writing	p. 366
References	p. 367
Index	p. 396
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