Media and Society:

What is communication?

The syllabus:

• There are three, non-cumulative exams.• There are two shorter assignments.• There are three papers (5, 3 and 3

pages respectively).• We will have at least three current

events quizzes. Subscribe to NYTimes.com, Philly.com and poynter.org to know what’s going on.

More than three absences = failure for the

course.

Attendance will be taken on random days.

College is about time management.

good grades + fun = happiness

Media is a business.

So what?

Advertising dollars and quality journalism are directly

connected.

Media is changing.

“I really don’t know whether we’ll be printing The Times in

five years, and you know what? I don’t care.”

-Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Jr,

chairman of the New York Times Company.

The way that we communicate has evolved.

The way that we communicate has evolved.

The business end of the deal is struggling

to adapt.

What is the Mass Media?

A medium is a vehicle through which something is

communicated.

The mass media includes newspapers, magazines, television, radio, Internet,

movies, books, etc.

The process of getting messages to the audience is called mass communication.

Do you know how much the mass media influences your life?

Why do you recognize Conan O’Brien and Jay Leno?

Do they impact your life at all?

Why do we know what we know?

The Media Use Log.

Think about the media you have used today.

Did you read a newspaper today?

People, they are free on campus.

Take a damn newspaper.

Did you watch television?

Did you listen to the radio?

Did you listen to your iPod?

Video games?

Did you send a text message? Or receive one?

Texting is not a form of mass communication.

Did you read your e-mail or check the Internet for

anything else?

Have you spoken to someone on the phone?

Who influenced you today?

So what?

Who controls the media?

Media, including journalism, is a business.

Is Allen Iverson on the cover

because he’s the biggest

news story or because he

will sell papers?

Do the TV news shows lead with Eagles coverage

because the Eagles are the biggest story of

the day?

Why do we need the media?

We live in a society.

We have common experiences, similar struggles, parallel achievements and a

culture that binds us all together.

How we communicate:

• Intrapersonal: just me (i.e. thinking)

• Interpersonal: you and me.

• Group communication: me and the class.

• Mass communication: reaching the largest possible audience.

Mass communication grew when Gutenberg

developed the movable type press in the 1440’s.

• Gutenberg began printing books in the 1450’s.• Newspapers arrived in the late 1600’s.• Magazines in the 1740’s.• Recorded Sound in 1877.• Moving pictures in 1888.• Radio in 1895.• Television in 1927.• The world wide web was founded in

1969.

Today?

Media diaspora.

Mass communication barely exists anymore.

More than 37.8 million people in America watched Barack Obama sworn into office in last January.

It was the one of the most watched television programs

of the year.

The 2009 Super Bowl actually drew

98.7 million viewers in the US.

Only 12.6 percent of the country watched the first

African-American president inaugurated.

Meaning nearly 90 percent did not.

What’s the big deal?

Who pays for mass media?

• Advertisers pay to reach potential customers.

• Circulation and subscriber fees.

• Donations.

• Private support: foundations, corporations, etc.

• The government.

The bulk of media is paid for through advertisers.

That gives advertisers influence.

What about the free press?

Reaching a larger audience means outlets can charge more for the space/ time.

Reaching a larger audience means outlets can charge more for the space/ time.

Media is a business.

Journalism isn’t cheap.

Do you provide valuable information that will educate

people or do you provide information that

people want?

What is the role of journalism in society?

What does it mean to be a journalist?

Who makes the decisions?

• Gatekeepers: anchors, reporters, editors, etc.

• Regulators: the government (FCC, FTC), pressure groups like Parents Music Resource Center.

• Industry groups: Society of Professional Journalists, National Association of Broadcasters.

Journalists set the agenda for the citizens.

We shed light on commonalities.

As consumers have more and more options, our commonalities become fewer and fewer.

As mass media disintegrates, conglomerates buy more and

more outlets.

Putting more and more influence into fewer hands.

This guy owns newspapers, magazines, television networks and major Internet sites.

So?

He controls the agenda.

For Tuesday: Read the intro and chapter 1 of Elements of Journalism.

Don’t forget: media use logs are due on 1/28.

Let me know if you are interested in books from past

students.

Come on down.