Introduction To Mass Media Trivia Quiz

Answer: It influences them directly and powerfully.

According to this approach, the media is likened to a hypodermic needle that injects its messages directly into the individual's mind without any filtering. The recipient is viewed as passive, helpless, and entirely exposed to the content the media "injects" into them. These are one-sided, unbalanced relationships between the powerful media (and those behind it) and the audience of recipients. Influenced by the behavioral approach and behaviorist research experiments, this theory assumes a simple stimulus-response relationship, in which viewers passively receive media content without the ability to critically engage with or reject it.

The concept emerged in the early 20th century, particularly in the context of propaganda and mass persuasion during wartime. The social climate in the West following World War I contributed to the perception of the media as omnipotent. The economic hardship experienced by citizens in most countries, combined with the horrors of World War I, led to a widespread sense that human beings were weak and vulnerable to powerful external forces. The effects of manipulative political propaganda disseminated through the media were believed to be profound and therefore raised serious concerns among defenders of democracy. The primary fear was that the media could incite the masses, provoking emotional reactions and real-world actions.

Today, this theory - arguably one of the first in the field of mass communication - has been largely rejected by the research community for oversimplifying audience behavior and the dynamics between sender and receiver, while also ignoring the socio-cultural contexts of individual media consumers. Nevertheless, discussions about the powerful influence of the media continue to play a central role in public discourse and even in the shaping of public policy.

Answer: Knowledge gap

This term was coined to describe the inherent differences in levels of information between groups in society. Sometimes, the term information gap is used instead. Most studies show that reading newspapers narrows the knowledge gaps between different groups in society more effectively than watching television. Today, it is estimated that new media will likely widen these gaps rather than narrow them, due to their greater accessibility to those whose level of knowledge is already higher.

Answer: Framing

An easy way to explain framing is through the field of art. Every serious artist knows that the frame placed around their painting can affect how viewers interpret and react to the painting itself. As a result, some artists choose a frame they believe will help audiences see the image in just the right way.

The same applies to journalists and media professionals, who shape content and place it in a particular context to influence how people interpret it. They do this by using familiar ideas or references, which help guide the way the message is understood. This process, called "framing", affects how people perceive an issue by presenting it in a certain light. In the case I described, the conflict between the Transformers is framed as more than just a local war - it's presented as a crisis with the potential to affect everyone, implying the need for urgent action. Additionally, the Decepticons are depicted in a negative light by labeling their leader Megatron as 'the aggressor.'

Answer: Priming

Priming happens when someone is exposed to certain information that subtly shapes how they think, feel, or act afterward. This exposure brings specific ideas or associations to the front of their mind, making them more likely to notice or respond to related things later on.

Framing is about how information is shaped or presented in order to guide the way people understand it or make decisions. Depending on how something is worded or structured, the very same facts can lead people to see the situation very differently.

Framing changes how people understand something by focusing on the way it's explained or described. Priming, on the other hand, works by bringing certain ideas to mind based on what someone saw or heard earlier. Framing is about how the message is told, while priming is about which thoughts are already in your head when you hear it.

In April O'Neill's case, she kept running stories about how pizza was getting too expensive. The key factor in priming is the repeated exposure to a specific issue that shapes how people later respond to new information. That repeated focus primed the audience to care more about food prices. So when a general economic report came out later, many people instantly connected it to food costs, even if it wasn't specifically about that. Priming doesn't tell people how to think about something (like framing does); it just makes certain topics stand out more when new information shows up.

Answer: Famous actor caught on video entering alcohol rehab center

Tabloidization refers to the process of dumbing down or reducing the quality of serious journalism to appeal to the lowest common denominator, a trend observed in many countries. The term has been widely used as a critique of declining journalistic standards since the 1980s. Tabloid newspapers first emerged in Britain in the early twentieth century and in the United States during the 1920s, often criticized for being sensationalist and vulgar.

There is no universal agreement on how tabloidization manifests, but several recurring features have been identified. These include a shift toward shorter, more attention-grabbing sentences, a focus on personal and emotional stories, the extensive use of visual imagery, increased dramatization, and a preference for superficial over in-depth analysis.

However, some scholars argue that tabloidization represents a shift toward clearer, more efficient, and accessible communication, making news more relatable to the general public and potentially fostering greater democratic engagement.

Answer: Cultivation theory

The development of television in the early 1920s sparked a wave of research aimed at understanding its impact on the masses. This new and unfamiliar medium triggered a moral panic about its effects on the public, particularly on youth. The theory that opened the door to research on the relationship between television and fear of crime is called Cultivation Theory. It was developed in the 1970s by Hungarian-Jewish-American media scholar George Gerbner (born in 1919), who was concerned with the long-term influence of television content on viewers' perceptions of reality.

According to this theory, heavy viewers who consume violent content intensively may suffer from Mean World Syndrome - a condition in which people come to believe that others are untrustworthy and that crime is rampant in every neighborhood. Mean World Syndrome spreads gradually, but as Gerbner noted, "It takes but a few degrees shift in the average temperature to have an ice age." The syndrome makes it difficult for individuals to distinguish between the fictional world seen on screen and the real world, which they begin to perceive as darker and more dangerous than it actually is. Evidence for this was found in early research by Gerbner and his colleagues, which showed that heavy television exposure leads to misconceptions about the prevalence of crime and consequently, an increased fear of it.

Answer: All of these were cited.

The story was originally intended to focus on European cities, but in order to generate interest, the creators decided to "destroy" the city of New Jersey. The new adaptation included several changes: the language was updated to the present day, real-time news reports were added, American names were used for all the sites and characters, and agitated messages like, "Ladies and gentlemen, I have just been handed a message that came in from Grovers Mill by telephone... At least forty people, including six state troopers, lie dead in a field east of the village of Grovers Mill, their bodies burned and distorted beyond all possible recognition" were incorporated.

The public reaction was remarkable, with newspapers reporting a wave of horror sweeping the country. For instance, "The New York Times" reported receiving 875 calls from concerned listeners. This response sparked interest within the psychological community. American researcher Hadley Cantril, in his 1940 work "The Invasion from Mars: A Study in the Psychology of Panic", identified five reasons through an analysis of interviews, all of which point to the high level of realism with which the radio broadcast was received by listeners. First, radio was widely trusted as a reliable source of news and important announcements. Second, the broadcast featured authoritative-sounding individuals, including professors, policymakers, generals, and interior ministers. Third, all the speakers, despite their expertise, expressed shock at the events. Fourth, the events were described in vivid, realistic detail, using real locations such as smoke in Times Square. Lastly, the overall context of listening to the broadcast heightened the tension caused by its content.

Cantril also explored various personality traits that could make individuals more susceptible to the influence of radio. These included social insecurity, such as economic depression, unemployment, and political oppression, as well as anxieties like fear of insects, war, or even Martians. Additionally, people with excessive worrying, a lack of self-confidence, or a fatalistic worldview - believing in mysterious forces that control their fate - were more likely to be affected. Other traits included religiosity, or a strong belief in a particular religion, and the frequency of church attendance, which also played a role in how susceptible individuals were to the broadcast's influence.

Answer: Spiral of silence

The phrase "self-fulfilling prophecy" effectively captures the media's influence as described by the spiral of silence theory. This theory was first introduced in the 1970s by German sociologist Elisabeth Noelle-Neumann. According to her, the media do not merely reflect reality - they help construct a perceived reality, which can ultimately become actual reality.

The spiral of silence theory, rooted in social psychology, assumes that individuals seek social affirmation and fear ideological isolation. To avoid social rejection, people tend to conform - at least outwardly - to what they perceive as the dominant opinion. Since mass media are a primary source for gauging public sentiment, they play a crucial role in shaping this perceived consensus.

The spiral unfolds in two stages. First, the media present a distorted picture of public opinion by amplifying certain views while marginalizing others. This constructed consensus then influences individuals' willingness to express their own views. Over time, as more people silence themselves, the perceived majority becomes a real one. Paradoxically, minority opinions expressed confidently and repeatedly in the media can come to dominate, while the actual majority grows silent - allowing media narratives to reshape social reality.

Elisabeth Noelle-Neumann used the 1965 German federal election as an example to show how media can influence public opinion. Despite polls showing a close race between the Social Democratic Party (SPD) and the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), the media heavily favored the SPD, projecting it as the likely winner. The CDU, believing the media's portrayal, scaled back its efforts, contributing to a shift in public perception. This dynamic illustrates how media coverage can create a perceived consensus, silencing opposing views and ultimately shaping reality.

Answer: Parasocial interaction

If you've ever wondered why you cry during the opening of "Bambi" or tried to understand what motivates Annie Wilkes in "Misery", this concept might offer some insight. Originating in the 1950s through television research and media psychology, it suggests that viewers form emotional responses to characters and media personalities similar to those they experience in real-life relationships. Viewers evaluate these figures' traits and intentions despite having no real interaction with them. Two key dimensions of identification are often linked to this connection: wishful identification, in which the viewer desire to be like the character or emulate their behavior; and similarity identification, where the viewer relates to the character's perspective, values, or personality.

Mediated authenticity refers to the phenomenon where media content is crafted to appear genuine or real, leading audiences to perceive it as authentic despite its constructed nature.

Answer: People tend to believe media affects others more than themselves

The term was coined by sociologist W. Phillips Davison in 1983. Since then, numerous studies have explored the concept, confirming its relevance across different forms of media, from violent TV shows to pornography and music. Researchers have found that the effect is most pronounced when media messages are perceived as negative or potentially harmful. This mindset can lead to underestimating the influence of advertising on one's own behavior, while simultaneously supporting censorship due to the belief that some content negatively impacts others.

In addition, several researchers have identified a complementary phenomenon called the first-person effect, where individuals believe that positive media messages have a greater impact on themselves than on others.