Communication: Mass and other forms - Chapter outline

Communication: Mass and Other Forms Chapter 1© 2009, The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.1CHAPTER OUTLINEThe Communication ProcessCommunication SettingsTraditional Media OrganizationsThe Internet And Mass CommunicationModels For Studying Mass CommunicationModern Mass Media: Emerging Trends2THE COMMUNICATION PROCESS Figure 1-1: Elements of the Communication Process3Transmitting the MessageSourceEncodingMessageChannels4Receiving the Message DecodingReceiverFeedbackNoise5COMMUNICATION SETTINGSWe will consider three different communication settings6Interpersonal CommunicationIndividual or groupsPhysical presence requiredEncoding is a one-step processVariety of channelsMessages hard for receiver to terminateLittle or no expenseMessages generally privateMessages can pinpoint specific targetsImmediate feedback7Machine-Assisted Interpersonal Communication (1 of 3)SOURCE-- machine --RECEIVER8Machine-Assisted Interpersonal Communication (2 of 3)Source and receiverMay be individuals or groups; may be machineFeedbackImmediate or delayed; may be impossibleMessagesCustomizability variesPrivate or publicInexpensive to send9Machine-Assisted Interpersonal Communication (3 of 3)Encoding can be simple to complexSource: thoughts  words or symbolsMachines: encode messages for transmissionChannel options restrictedDecoding similar to encodingMachines: electrical energy  light patternsReceiver: words or symbols  thoughts10Mass Communication (1 of 3)Occurs when a complex organization, with machine aid, produces and transmits public messages to large, heterogeneous, scattered audiences.11Mass Communication (2 of 3)Pre-Internet: Source is structured organizationInternet: Source can be one personSender gets little audience informationEncoding is a multi-stage processMessages are public and impersonalEffective feedback difficult12Mass Communication (3 of 3)Mass Communication AudiencesLargeHeterogeneousGeographically dispersedIndividually anonymousSelf-selected13Defining Mass Media Medium is channel through which message travels from source to receiver“Medium” is singular; “Media” is pluralMass media are channels for mass communication, and the institutions that transmit the messagesMedia vehicle: single component of mass media; newspaper, radio station, magazine14TRADITIONAL MEDIA ORGANIZATIONSTraditional mass communicators share some common characteristics15Formal Organizational StructureMass media typically have well-defined organizational structure.Generally involves specialization and division of labor.Generally a bureaucracyChannels of communication with organization are generally formal.16Many GatekeepersGatekeeper: Any person/group controlling what material eventually reaches the public.More complex organizations = more gatekeepers.17Large Operating ExpensesCosts millions of dollars to buy and maintain a mass media organization.Current trend: consolidation of media ownership.Time Warner, Walt Disney Company, Sony, News Corporation, Vivendi, Comcast, Bertelsmann18Competition for ProfitsMost media organizations in US exist to make a profit.Profit usually made by selling audiences to advertisersMedia organizations compete to attract audiences19THE INTERNET AND MASS COMMUNICATIONWebsites:Affordable, can be produced by individualBypass gatekeepersCreativity reignsLow start-up and maintenance costsAudience competition not always a factor20MODELS FOR STUDYING MASS COMMUNICATIONThe traditional model of mass communication was a “one-to-many” model. Media organizations encoded information from the environment, and reproduced it many times over using the appropriate channel.Little direct interaction between sources and receivers21An Internet Model of Mass Communication (1 of 2)Figure 1-322An Internet Model of Mass Communication (2 of 2)A new arrangement, allowing multiple levels of communicationOne to one (email)One to many (CNN.com)Few to few (chatrooms, blogs)Many to many (eBay)Audience competition not always a factorMessages not linear; content provided by organizations and users.23MODERN MASS MEDIA: EMERGING TRENDSAs media continue to evolve, several trends have become apparent24Audience Segmentation: The End of Mass Communication as We Know it?Mass communication: Less mass, more selective.Audience fractionalization or segmentationReduced audience for any single media vehicleDefinition of mass communication still applies; audiences still large, organizations still complexSpecialization is evident, but potential to reach mass audience still exists25ConvergenceConvergence means coming together or uniting in common theme or focus.Corporate Convergence. Companies acquire assets extending range of activities.Operational Convergence. Owners of several media properties combine operations.Device Convergence. One mechanism contains functions of two or more devices.26Increased Audience ControlAudience members can control what they see and hear, and when.Technological advances (VCR, DVR, VOD) give more power to consumer.More sources of information, including blogsMore flexibility in consuming products (download single track vs. buy full album)27Multiple PlatformsA strategy making content available via a number of different delivery methods to a number of different receiving devices.Example: Music videos started on cable/satellite networks, went to websites, to iPods, to cell phones.Television content, newspaper content, magazine content, all are repackaged for multiple devices.28User-Generated ContentUser-generated content (peer production): people share and collaborate on content.YouTube, MySpace, Flickr, WikipediaReflects Web 2.0Web 2.0 = communities, people, uploadingWeb 1.0 = companies, pages, downloading29Mobile Media Small screen devices allow media to become increasingly mobilePDAsCell phonesLaptop computersiPodsSignificant milestone in development of communication30