MEDIA EFFECTS

By Lawrence Sunday Ogwang

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 The applicability of the all-powerful media effect phase

Introduction

Since the inception of communication as disciple of knowledge, scholars have come up with many theories related to its different components. Media as one of its component has been highly discussed and studied. 

Books as the earliest medium has had substantial influential effect upon scholars and readers. With the increment in number of media, their influence too has increased. Based on the observations, academicians have put forward many theories describing the effect of these media. Until now, there are four dominant theories.
All these theories combine up to make different eras of media theories. Media effects represents one of the core ideas of Communication research. It include theories that explain how mass media influence attitudes and perceptions of audience members.

History of media effects

The development of thinking about media effects may be said to have a 'natural his­tory', in the sense of its being strongly shaped by the circumstances of time and place. It has also been influenced by several 'environmental' factors, including the interests of governments and law-makers, changing technology, the events of his­tory, the activities of pressure groups and propagandists, the ongoing concerns of public opinion, and even the findings and the fashions of social science. It is not surprising that no straight path of cumulative development of knowledge can be discerned. Even so, we can distinguish a number of stages in the history of the field which indicate some degree of ordered progression.

The established history of media effects research is characterized by a series of phases marked by fundamental paradigm shifts (McQuail 1977). Each of these phases is associated with particular concepts, researchers, studies, and historical circumstances that influenced ideological development regarding media effects in Communication as a Field and Discipline.

Four different phases of media effects

1. All powerful media Turn of the 19^th-20^th centuries – until 1930s

The first phase starts with origin of mass media, and continue during all 1930s. This period is characterized by passive audiences and powerful media, with strong and direct effects on individuals. Mass communication is mainly aimed at people’s behaviors manipulation. Main theories of this phase are: Propaganda and Hypodermic Needle Theory.

2.     Theory of powerful media put to the test (Early 1930s - early 1960s).

The second phase, which goes from the 1940s to the 1960s, in a more optimistic perspective starts considering the limitations of mass communication. Media are not so powerful, because audiences are resistant to their messages. Resistance is based upon psychological individual traits and a crucial role is played by social context and Opinion Leaders. In this period proliferate many mass communication theories such: Persuasion Theory, Two Steps Flow Model, individual difference and the Limited Effects Theory.

3.     Powerful media rediscovered (1960s )

During the third phase, going from 1970 to 1980, there is a general step backward to the first phase with some relevant differences. Media are again considered very powerful, but their effects are no longer immediate and impacting the short run of an individual; mass communication is seen as a long run influencer able to shape an individual competences, knowledge, values and beliefs. Most important theories of this phase are: Play Theory, Uses and Gratifications Theory, Spiral of Silence, and Agenda Setting Theory.

4. Negotiated media influence Since late 1978s

The fourth phase started in the 1980s, and is characterized by active audiences who are able to moderate media effects on individuals’ behaviors. McQuail defined this last, and current phase, with the term “Negotiated Influence”. Media take the role of a social constructivist tool, meaning that their aim is to raise up consciousness in individuals as media programs are negotiated by individuals themselves with their expressed preferences. Most relevant theories of this period are: Cultivation Theory and Dependence Theory.

All powerful media effects phase explained

This first phase extends from World War I to the end of the 1930s, was characterized by the assumption that the effects of the media on the population would be exceedingly strong. The media were credited with an almost limitless omnipotence in their ability to shape opinion and belief, to change life habits, and to mold audience behavior more or less according to the will of their controllers (McQuail, 2005).

It is credited with considerable power to shape opinion and belief, to change habits of life and to mould behaviour more or less according to the will of their controllers (Bauer and Bauer, 1960). This view was based not on scien­tific investigation but on observation of the enormous popularity of the press and of the new media of film and radio that intruded into many aspects of every­day life as well as public affairs.

This phase is characterized by passive audiences and powerful media, with strong and direct effects on individuals. Mass communication is mainly aimed at people’s behaviors manipulation. Main theories of this phase are: Propaganda and Hypodermic Needle Theory.

Theories under all powerful media effect phase

 Propaganda Model of Communication, was developed by Edward S. Herman and Noam Chomsky explain how propaganda, systematic biases, pressures, and constraints have been influencing mass media. The model explains how economic, social and political policies are manufactured in order to manipulate the populations for the welfare of those groups with power and money.

The hypodermic needle model (known as the hypodermic-syringe model, transmission-belt model, or magic bullet theory) is a model of communication suggesting that an intended message is directly received and wholly accepted by the receiver. The model was originally rooted in 1930s behaviorism and largely considered obsolete for a long time, but big data analytics-based mass customization has led to a modern revival of the basic idea. It was promulgated by Harold Lasswell in 1920s. Under this theory, the media are perceived as all powerful and believe that it exerts tremendous influences on the reception of media messages. The media also hold the idea that they penetrate people’s minds and instantly create effects. Magic bullet theory: Considers the audience to be targets of an injection or bullet of information fired from the pistol of mass media. The audience are unable to avoid or resist the injection or bullets.

Characteristics of all powerful phase of media effect

Ø  All powerful media effect phase holds that media messages are irresistible to the consumers of a given media content of message.

Ø  The phase also believes that media messages shapes public opinion because people depend so much on media messages.

Ø  All powerful media effect phase holds that media messages have direct, strong and immediate effect on its consumers.

Ø  It assumes that media consumers are too weak to resist media messages.

Ø  All powerful media effect phase also holds that media messages can easily penetrate through the defenses of people and influence them instantly.

Ø  It also elevates media messages as more powerful above all other factors like education, culture that causes change immediately among people.

Ø  It further assumes that people always trust and depend on media as their source of information.

Significance and Applicability of all powerful media effects theory

Although media scholars have argued against the magic bullet theory assumption on powerful effects of the media, it however, its significance cannot be denied.

First, it provided the platform for subsequent improvements in the study of media effects. Prior to the all-powerful effect studies, the prevalent media theories were associated with the political environment operating in a given atmosphere. For example, the normative theories (Authoritarian, Libertarian, Social responsibility and Soviet theories) of the press enchanted out the place of the mass media in a political system prevalent in a given society.

 However, the introduction of media study on all-powerful media effect provided the first paradigm shift in understanding media effect outside the realm of political environment.

Paradigm Shift in the Media Effects: From All-Powerful Effects to Limited Effects

A paradigm is an organized theoretical perspective that involves the various stages of theory formulation where hypotheses are put forth, tested and proven or rejected. (Kuhn 2009) sees a paradigm shift as a fundamental, even radical rethinking of what we believe to be true. It means a transformation from one organizing theoretical perspective to another.  (Example, a shift from All-powerful to limited effects)

McQuail, (2005) identifies two paradigms in relation to the study of media effects:

·       The dominant paradigm combines a view of powerful mass media (all-powerful media effect) in a mass society with the typical research practices of the merging social sciences especially social surveys, socio-psychological experiments and statistical analysis. Major theories under the dominant paradigm may include magic bullet theory and Lasswell’s propaganda theory

·        The alternative paradigm (limited media effects) is based on a more complete view of communication as sharing and ritual rather than as just ‘transmission.’ Major theories under the limited effects may include two-step flow theory, attitude-change theory, individual differences theory, cognitive consistency/dissonance theory, selective perceptions etc.

Theoretical criticism

This phase is considered too cumbersome to test and offers inaccurate results. Modern researchers wanted more empirical explanations for the relationship between media and audience. Since media obviously did not turn the audience into unthinking drones, those studying the field sought a more definable reaction. 

The theory is based on assumption of human nature and it was not based on any empirical findings from research. Few media scholars do not accept this model because it’s based on assumption rather than any scientific evidence. In 1938, Lazarsfeld and Herta Herzog testified the hypodermic needle theory in a radio broadcast “The War of the Worlds” (a famous comic program) by inserting a news bulletin which made a widespread reaction and panic among the American Mass audience. Through this investigation he found the media messages may affect or may not affect audience. Again, “People’s Choice” was a study conducted by Lazarsfeld in 1940 about Franklin D.

Example, The results of the People’s Choice Study challenged this model. Conducted in 1940, the study attempted to gauge the effects of political campaigns on voter choice. Researchers found that voters who consumed the most media had generally already decided for which candidate to vote, while undecided voters generally turned to family and community members to help them decide. The study thus discredited the direct effects model and influenced a host of other media

The theory was deterministic and this did not allow for freedom of choice. The audiences were ‘injected’ with a one way propaganda. From this light, one can confidently say that the theory undermines the right of individuals to freely choose what media material they consume. The theory is also noted for its passivity and evidenced by the fact that audience were not allowed to contribute. This undermines the core aim of media studies which is the audience. From the latter, one can argue that the audience could not use their experience, intelligence and opinion to analyze messages. It will be very difficult to operate this theory in this new world where the audiences have become sophisticated.  

Furthermore, the Magic Bullet or Hypodermic Needle theory was not based on empirical findings. It rather employed assumptions of the time about human nature. People were assumed to be uniformly controlled by their biological instincts and that they react more or less uniformly to whatever ‘stimuli’ came along (Baran and Davis, 2006).

All powerful media effect phase also underestimates the power of other factors like, education, religion, culture which influences change among people.

People are created differently in this world and so they also react differently to different situations. All powerful media phase however does not consider and appreciate this difference. It only assumes that people are the same.

It also undermines the fact that people are selective in what they want from the media. Whereas people have selective consumption of media content.

It over emphasizes that people trust media messages. Some people are very skeptical about media content and they question every little detail of it.

Conclusion

Although media scholars have argued against the magic bullet theory assumption on powerful effects of the media, it however, it is important to appreciate foundation it has set in media and communication studies. It has laid stepping stones for other researchers in the same field of mass communication.

References

Lazersfeld, P.I., B. Berelson, and H. Gaudet., 1994. The People’s Choice: How the Voter Makes Up His Mind in a Presidential Campaign. New York: Duell, Sloan & Pearce. Available at https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/UNDERSTANDING-MEDIA-EFFECT%3A-A-STUDY-OF-HOW-STUDIES Accessed on 20th Feb 2020.

McQuail, D., 2005. Mass Communication Theory, 5th Edition. London: Sage Publications.  Available: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/UNDERSTANDING-MEDIA-EFFECT%3A-A-STUDY-OF-HOW-STUDIES Accessed on 20th Feb 2020.

Baran, S. and Davis, D. (2006). Mass Communication Theories: Foundations, Ferment and Future. New Delhi: Wads-Worth Cengage Learning India Private Limited.

Media effect theories. Available at https://saylordotorg.github.io/text_understanding-media-and-culture-an-introduction-to-mass-communication/s05-02-media-effects-theories.html Accessed on 16th Feb 2020.

Folarin, B., 2006. Theories of Mass Communication: An Introductory Text (3rd edition). Ibadan: Bakinfol Publications, in association with E-Watch Print Media.

Lazarsfeld, P. F., Berelson, B., & Gaudet, H., 1944. The People’s Choice: How the Voter Makes Up His Mind in a Presidential Campaign. New York: Duell, Sloan and Pearce