Communication Theories and Models

Study Notes

Theories are developed after testing and used to explain phenomena & make future predictions.
Genre Theory: Repeating elements across stories helps identify how stories are told.
Culture Industries: Powerful corporations control media to minimise risk.
Social Model of Disability: Society is disabling and non-inclusive; issues of production & casting reflect this.
Critical Race Theory: Popular culture often reflects majority culture, and race is socially constructed.
Feminist Theory: Studies gender inequality and discrimination, emphasizing gender equality.
Gender Performativity: Gender is a performance through repeated acts.
Regulation Theory: Media convergence, transnational corporations, and digital platforms challenge conventions.

Key questions: What are existing models/definitions of communication and media? What are the assumptions about the purpose and function of communication?
John Durham Peters: Communication lacks inherent meaning & better wiring won't solve the problem.
Common Models: Transmission model (sender-receiver) & Cultural/Ritual model (shared meaning).
The "Problem" of Communication: Communication involves noise, misunderstanding, and persuasion.
The Dream of Communication: Raymond Williams (1983): Communication is about making common and involves exchange.

Phaedrus: An encounter between Socrates.
Hypodermic Needle/Magic Bullet Theory (1930s): Deterministic view; powerful media, passive audience, direct effects; no individual differences.
Propaganda Theory (Harold Lasswell, 1920s): Originated from WW propaganda; 'Propaganda is the management of collective attitudes by manipulating symbols'; aims to influence society based on fears of totalitarianism with 'master symbols' evoking strong emotions.

Colonialism/Settler Colonialism: Colonialism: Foreign powers exploiting indigenous land and resources. Settler colonialism: Settlers stay, Indigenous people face elimination or assimilation.
Key Historical Events: Confederation (1867), Gradual Enfranchisement Act (1869), Indian Act (1876) (defines 'Indian' legal status), 1939 Supreme Court (Inuit are legally 'Indian'), 1982 Constitution (Recognizes Inuit and Métis).
Residential Schools (1883-1996).
Cultural Appropriation: Settler societies seek to destroy and use Indigenous symbols for nation-building.
Decolonization: Gaining independence and Indigenous assertion of sovereignty.
Barry Barclay on "Fourth Cinema"/Indigenous Film: features silence, long takes, Indigenous languages, & community focus.
Contested Remediation: Reworking old media to denaturalize content.

Main Concern: The power (and effect) of media.
Behaviorism: All human actions are conditioned responses to external stimuli (Czitrom, p.139).
B.F. Skinner: Studied behavior change through reinforcement; variable rewards create addictive habits.
Influences of Behaviorism on Media Studies: Propaganda Theory, Payne Fund Studies (effects of movies on youth), Market Research (public opinion & persuasion).
Lazarsfeld's Contribution: Emphasized limited effects paradigm, focusing on how people use media.
Frankfurt School Critique: Empirical approaches fail to examine culture comprehensively.
Uses and Gratifications: Focuses on why people use media and what they get out of it.
Modern Implications: Social Media Models (profit-driven, user engagement & data commodification), Media Effects on Children.