Interpretation of a media message by the potential audience is the most simplified definition of media consumption. According to Katz and Foulkes (1962), media give people what they want and they will choose what to read, hear or watch. But it is a greater requirement to understand the gratification that people seek through media. In this assignment we are considering the traditional mass media such as the television, Radio and the print and the audience interpretation of this powerful trio.

 

Traditional medias have been an integral part of everyday life. The media is providing the opportunity for people to acquire information or entertainment and this prospect intensifies the importance of understanding media consumption and the gratifications from it. According to Mcquail (1994) The uses and gratifications that audience pursue is categorized into four namely need for knowledge, personal identity, social relationships and  entertainment. We can consider three traditional mass media to understand more on the methods people use for media consumption and also the uses and gratification attain from it.

 

Newspaper: It is the most traditional and powerful media and the it surpasses the fact of just ‘knowing’ to perceiving the particular information. The information that is perceived through reading and unlike any it is one of the oldest and effective methods. Through newspaper various needs are satisfied  such as

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• People satisfy the need for knowledge and information. 

• Newspaper have various information and the choices made creates an identity.

• The information can lead to interaction or feel of belonging to a group 

• It provides various entertainment such as puzzles, crosswords and even entertainment news (Payne, Dozier, Nomai & Yagade, 2003).

 

Radio: Though the media developed devices for multitasking, radio never lost its credibility. It is an environment where people listen to both entertainment and information (Whitehouse,2006). Through radio various needs are satisfied such as

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• Need for information through listening to news and other awareness programs

• Personal identity through the choice of program.

• Entertainment needs are satisfied through the variety of programs broadcasted (Whitehouse,2006). 

 

Television: One of the most innovative medias and It is the most effective methods of media consumption as it provides gratification for both visual and listening needs. The television provides the audience with information live from around the world and people have numerous choices of what to watch. The needs that are satisfied through television are

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• The need of information through news programs

• Acquiring self identity through watching programs like soap operas where they tend to make close connections with the characters

• Social relationships are built on the common themes that are shown in the television

• Entertainment needs is satisfied through various programs such as movies, music etc (Agyekewna,2006)

 

People's perception on the media contents

 

Television is one of the most powerful medias as it surpasses the internet in its reach. This traditional media have witnessed change over the era regarding its contents as well as in its technology. Due to Its reach and the ability to persuade ,it largely effects the social development of the potential audience (Rushton, 1982). With the increase in commercial programs, television ethics have largely been ignored and the question arises whether the audience have the capability to distinguish between the positive and negative contents. 

 

The development of the television programs were focused on delivering the good message to the people through its various educational and awareness programs. But over the years with the commercialization and to increase the viewership, the contents of the television is mainly focused on sensationalism. For instance the increasing reality shows in the television can be considered an opportunity for people to bring out their talents but on the other side there are increasing genres of insensible shows which depict drama and materialistic satisfaction (Mcquail 1992). 

 

Each person has different viewpoints but the contents broadcasted is mostly favored to the majority. This creates a dilemma for the people with different views. for instance tobacco products advertisements may endorse the habit of smoking and due to cognitive dissonance people might look at the glamorous side of smoking rather than its harmful effects (Brown & Shingal, 1990). 

 

Everything has a good and a bad side and distinguishing the content of the television is dependent upon the viewer and the increased exposure can alter their perspectives. So it is crucial to evaluate the contents disseminated through the television due to its unpredicted dilemma caused upon the viewers. 

 

The ways people consume media is determined by the medium and its reach. In this electronic age of constant media exposure the perception of information by the audience is in lightning speeds(McLuhan & Bruce 1992). And for this reason the freedom of broadcasting must be utilized and should be balanced with more prosocial contents due to its increased impacts among the audience (Brown & Shingal, 1990). 

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Works Cited

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• Katz, E., & Foulkes, D. (1962). On the use of the mass media as an “escape:” Clarification of a concept.

• McQuail, D. (1994). The rise of media of mass communication. In D. McQuail (Ed.), Mass communication theory: An introduction (pp. 1–29). London: Sage.

• McQuail, D. (1992). Media performance. London: Sage Publications.

• McLuhan, Marshall & Power, Bruce R. (1992). The global village: Transformations in world life and media in the 21st century. Los Angeles, CA: Oxford University Press.

• Whitehouse, J. (2006). Radio uses and gratifications. University of central Florida.

• Rushton, J. (1982). Altruism and Society: A Social Learning Perspective. Ethics, 92(3), 425-446. http://dx.doi.org/10.1086/292353

• Brown, W., & Shingal, A. (1990). Ethical dilemmas of prosocial television (1st ed.). Retrieved from http://utminers.utep.edu/asinghal/Articles%20and%20Chapters/ethical-dilemmas-of-parasocial-television.pdf 

• Agyekewna, B. (2006).Television and its uses and gratifications . University of Georgia.

• Payne, G., Dozier, D., Nomai, A., & Yagade, A. (2003). Newspapers and the Internet: A uses and gratifications perspective. Ecquid Novi: African Journalism Studies, 24(1), 115-126. http://dx.doi.org/10.3368/ajs.24.1.115