While I sat watching the News rather disinterestedly there seemed to be some unexpected developments on screen. Sat wondering if it was some break in communication at the studio, not for long though.
An interesting article says it all, but takes the fervour out of the action with that doubt …”Was it stage managed?”
Appended below is the article.Read on….
I have a new hero and her name is Mika Brzezinski
Richard Adams in Washington
Saturday June 30, 2007
The Guardian
It was Peter Finch, in the 1976 movie Network, who first played a newsreader suffering an on-air breakdown. Driven to madness by poor ratings, Finch's character snaps and tells viewers to shout: "I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it any more."
It's hard not to think of Finch, who won an Oscar for his performance, when watching a similar implosion by the newsreader Mika Brzezinski on the cable news channel MSNBC on Wednesday morning.
Despite goading from her co-hosts, including the former Republican congressman turned rightwing talkshow host Joe Scarborough, Brzezinski stood her ground and refused to read her segment's lead news item on Paris Hilton.
After a media frenzy that saw even arch-publicist Michael Moore elbowed off CNN's Larry King show to make way for Hilton's first post-jail interview, Brzezinski has become a cyberspace star. Clips of her shredding the script were the lead item on the Technorati search, while the blogosphere was alight with praise. "I have a new hero, and her name is Mika Brzezinski," wrote one.
For many people, the Hilton kerfuffle was the first time they had heard of Brzezinski, an experienced newscaster and journalist.
While she does pop up on the mainstream NBC Nightly News, she is mostly confined to acting as Scarborough's sidekick on MSNBC's morning show, which lags in the ratings well behind the major channels as well as its cable rivals, Fox News and CNN.
Hilton and Brzezinski do have something in common, both being blonde, telegenic and the daughters of influential fathers. But any similarity ends there: while Paris is the scion of a wealthy socialite Rick Hilton, the 39-year-old newsreader is the daughter of Zbigniew Brzezinski, a foreign policy heavyweight in Washington and a former national security adviser to Jimmy Carter.
In 2001 Brzezinski was working in New York as a correspondent for CBS News, and on September 11 was assigned as the network's "Ground Zero" correspondent. She was broadcasting live on CBS in front of the World Trade Centre when the south tower collapsed.
But suspicions remain that Brzezinski's moment of madness was staged, although the worried reactions from her co-hosts when she attempted to set fire to the script on air suggests she wasn't acting.
Brzezinski's dismissal of Paris Hilton is shared by the majority of Americans.
Friday, July 13, 2007
Sunday, July 01, 2007
Al Jazeera -Rewriting the definition of a 'News' Channel
When Osama bin Laden’s spectre loomed large over US all of us waited to get those blurred images of the Taliban or Bin Laden to announce the future intentions of his band of brigands. In the ten years since, all this has changed. Al-Jazeera brings you crisp News from all corners of the Globe, with Newscasts from Washington, London, Doha, Kuala Lumpur and a desk that has the best talent drawn from reputed institutions across the globe.
Any wonder then that watching Al Jazeera’s News is no more a limited vision of the Gulf region, the Muslim world or the channel for developments in the world of Osama and his boys. Interestingly the Al Jazeera News often turned its spotlight on the Asian region, much to the chagrin of the US which has all along wallowed in media glare.
“Under its slogan of “The opinion and the other opinion,” Al-Jazeera gave an Arab world hungry for information and debate the means to talk to itself and shape its future. It spawned imitators across the region and has launched an English channel station that is beginning to challenge the western monopoly of international news as a “voice of the global south”- George Galloway, British MP(The Hindu, June 18, 2007)
We have to remind ourselves that the US decides “What is News?” for us. Therefore they would not be delighted about a recent arrival on the scene altering priorities. Further it has the support of the despotic regimes in the Gulf who would not be too comfortable with the Al-Jazeera kind of journalism.
Neutering that voice must be achieved and what better way than get a pro-US man on the board of the newspaper. Pro-US voices have now found a position on the Board of Directors, what better way could there be to set the agenda for a media house. The US which has held centre-stage as far as ‘Newsmaker’ status is concerned cannot reconcile itself to not featuring among the items in an Al Jazeera newscast which is looking Asia-centric.
Al-Jazeera brings you News in a highly professional manner, and has earned the reputation of being “anti-Us and anti-Arab” which only amply shows how well it holds up the mirror on the region it reports.
Any wonder then that watching Al Jazeera’s News is no more a limited vision of the Gulf region, the Muslim world or the channel for developments in the world of Osama and his boys. Interestingly the Al Jazeera News often turned its spotlight on the Asian region, much to the chagrin of the US which has all along wallowed in media glare.
“Under its slogan of “The opinion and the other opinion,” Al-Jazeera gave an Arab world hungry for information and debate the means to talk to itself and shape its future. It spawned imitators across the region and has launched an English channel station that is beginning to challenge the western monopoly of international news as a “voice of the global south”- George Galloway, British MP(The Hindu, June 18, 2007)
We have to remind ourselves that the US decides “What is News?” for us. Therefore they would not be delighted about a recent arrival on the scene altering priorities. Further it has the support of the despotic regimes in the Gulf who would not be too comfortable with the Al-Jazeera kind of journalism.
Neutering that voice must be achieved and what better way than get a pro-US man on the board of the newspaper. Pro-US voices have now found a position on the Board of Directors, what better way could there be to set the agenda for a media house. The US which has held centre-stage as far as ‘Newsmaker’ status is concerned cannot reconcile itself to not featuring among the items in an Al Jazeera newscast which is looking Asia-centric.
Al-Jazeera brings you News in a highly professional manner, and has earned the reputation of being “anti-Us and anti-Arab” which only amply shows how well it holds up the mirror on the region it reports.
Rajdeep Sardesai on the launching of CNN-IBN
News Channels - does that create a drone in your ears, of a host of signature tunes, and the screen flickering with ‘NEWS FLASH’, ‘BREAKING NEWS’, ‘FLASH’ and the innumerable distractions that take your mind off the genuine NEWS.
Here’s what Rajdeep Sardesai the whizkid of the News Channels who had to answer the question, “Are you sure you want to do this? Where is the space for another channel, and what will make your channel different?” has to say.
–“We were in Amsterdam at a conference organized by the European Broadcasting Union. The host for one of the sessions was a Canadian anchor, and the subject under discussion was the growth in private television across the world, including interestingly enough in Russia where the first private network had just taken off. As questions were raised over whetherthe new Russian channel was being financed by Vladimir Putin, the anchor turned to me indulgenty: ‘So, how many privated news channels do you have in India?’ around 30 and growing was the brief reply. The Canadian anchor was flabbergasted. ‘My God, that’s more than in the whole of North and South America put together.’
The sheer numerical strength of television industry suggests a robustness in the medium, a growth that is unparalleled. The lates viewership datasuggests that there are over 60 million homes, and many news channels claim a ‘connectivity’ or ‘reach’ of around 80 to 90 per cent. The advertising revenue estimates for the industry are in the range of Rs 700 to 750 crore (across channels), up from around Rs 100 to Rs 150 crore five years back. In other words, there has been a 500 per cent expansion in ad revenues. Little wonder then that everyone wants a slice of the pie.
The economics of the business is in a flux. The capital expenditure to start a channel is around Rs 50-75crore. Distribution costs are rising – channels have to spend between Rs 5 to 10 crore annually to ensure they get the right band placement, and salaries are rising exponentially.
The econmics represent only part of the problem. The bigger issue is the crisis of content: is the multiplicity of channels resulting in better journalism? We would like to believe at CNN-IBN for example, without sounding immodest, that we have made a genuine attempt to push the boundaries of news journalism, that we have been much more hard-hitting and energetic in our news coveragethan what English journalism is traditionally associated with. The brief to our journalists has been clear: go beyond the soundbite, beyond the obvious and actually look for stories that need to be told.
Jeremy Paxman, the BBC newsnight anchor who described himself as the ‘endangered panda’ in the age of rolling news, says that the problem with round the clock news is that you have to keep giving the impression to the viewer that the screen is constantly buzzing, that there is always something happening on screen that will prevent the viewer from switching channels.
The result is a completebreakdown in the concept of “ Breaking News’, or for that matter, an ‘exclusive’. For example,you could have an interview with a leader across more than one channel, with every channel flashing it as ‘ only on this channel’. It’s almost as if the exclusive bug is necessary to convince the viewer to stick to the channel.
The competition has also led to what some believe is the growing ‘tabloidisation’ of the medium. I have often chosen to take refuge in what Sir Robin Day, the venerable BBC broadcaster once said, ‘Television is a tabloid medium, at its best when there is war, violence and disaster.’The most powerful images are often those that have a touch of drama: a stone thrown at a bus will always be a more dramatic visual image than an empty street during a bandh.
The rise of crime reportage on television is a reflection of television’s penchant for titillating the viewer. It also reflects how television rating points have come to govern editorial decisions in the television newsrooms, especially in Hindi news channels, where the competition is even more maddening…..
Talk to the viewers, I say. CNN-IBN is by far the fastest growing news channel in the country, so we must be doing something right. The journey, I might add, has only just begun."
*The latest score of News channels stands at 40 and still growing.
Here’s what Rajdeep Sardesai the whizkid of the News Channels who had to answer the question, “Are you sure you want to do this? Where is the space for another channel, and what will make your channel different?” has to say.
–“We were in Amsterdam at a conference organized by the European Broadcasting Union. The host for one of the sessions was a Canadian anchor, and the subject under discussion was the growth in private television across the world, including interestingly enough in Russia where the first private network had just taken off. As questions were raised over whetherthe new Russian channel was being financed by Vladimir Putin, the anchor turned to me indulgenty: ‘So, how many privated news channels do you have in India?’ around 30 and growing was the brief reply. The Canadian anchor was flabbergasted. ‘My God, that’s more than in the whole of North and South America put together.’
The sheer numerical strength of television industry suggests a robustness in the medium, a growth that is unparalleled. The lates viewership datasuggests that there are over 60 million homes, and many news channels claim a ‘connectivity’ or ‘reach’ of around 80 to 90 per cent. The advertising revenue estimates for the industry are in the range of Rs 700 to 750 crore (across channels), up from around Rs 100 to Rs 150 crore five years back. In other words, there has been a 500 per cent expansion in ad revenues. Little wonder then that everyone wants a slice of the pie.
The economics of the business is in a flux. The capital expenditure to start a channel is around Rs 50-75crore. Distribution costs are rising – channels have to spend between Rs 5 to 10 crore annually to ensure they get the right band placement, and salaries are rising exponentially.
The econmics represent only part of the problem. The bigger issue is the crisis of content: is the multiplicity of channels resulting in better journalism? We would like to believe at CNN-IBN for example, without sounding immodest, that we have made a genuine attempt to push the boundaries of news journalism, that we have been much more hard-hitting and energetic in our news coveragethan what English journalism is traditionally associated with. The brief to our journalists has been clear: go beyond the soundbite, beyond the obvious and actually look for stories that need to be told.
Jeremy Paxman, the BBC newsnight anchor who described himself as the ‘endangered panda’ in the age of rolling news, says that the problem with round the clock news is that you have to keep giving the impression to the viewer that the screen is constantly buzzing, that there is always something happening on screen that will prevent the viewer from switching channels.
The result is a completebreakdown in the concept of “ Breaking News’, or for that matter, an ‘exclusive’. For example,you could have an interview with a leader across more than one channel, with every channel flashing it as ‘ only on this channel’. It’s almost as if the exclusive bug is necessary to convince the viewer to stick to the channel.
The competition has also led to what some believe is the growing ‘tabloidisation’ of the medium. I have often chosen to take refuge in what Sir Robin Day, the venerable BBC broadcaster once said, ‘Television is a tabloid medium, at its best when there is war, violence and disaster.’The most powerful images are often those that have a touch of drama: a stone thrown at a bus will always be a more dramatic visual image than an empty street during a bandh.
The rise of crime reportage on television is a reflection of television’s penchant for titillating the viewer. It also reflects how television rating points have come to govern editorial decisions in the television newsrooms, especially in Hindi news channels, where the competition is even more maddening…..
Talk to the viewers, I say. CNN-IBN is by far the fastest growing news channel in the country, so we must be doing something right. The journey, I might add, has only just begun."
*The latest score of News channels stands at 40 and still growing.
Monday, May 28, 2007
Electronic Media:Right to information, transparency, and all that By Y।P. Chhibbar
All of a sudden there are a number of new news channels on the T।V। This has set the trend of a revamping exercise in the existing news channels also. This is not all. One of them the Sahara Group has, alongwith the National Sahara Samay, a number of regional channels. Zee News, English Headlines Today, Star News, NDTV 24 x 7, and NDTV India are all eating into each other's viewer-ship and also creating new viewers. There are some news channels in other languages like Malayalam, Telugu, Tamil. Of course there is DD.There is a growing feeling that this is the right time to put into place some sort of structure and organisation in the working and content of TV journalism. Just as there is a Press Council for the print media, there should be an Electronic Media Council, or alternatively, the Press Council of India should be converted into a Media Council covering the print and electronic media both.
It is necessary to prescribe and enforce some terms for recruitment practices, work ethics, and all that. A large number of institutions have introduced various types of journalism courses churning out young women and men with degrees and diplomas in their hands looking for job openings. True to the spirit of free enterprise, the channels have started exploiting the aspiring and unemployed youth.
It seems time now to make the viewers a partner in the give and take of news. Every channel should have a regular programme every day responding to comments and views of the viewers. This is very necessary since the comment or the view of an anchor is not final. It may even be out of context. It is very interesting that though there are a number of Hindi news channels, most of them are dominated by anchors and reporters who do not seem to be at home with Hindi. Sometimes they don't even understand a response given in Hindi!Much has been made of "the look of the channel". What should be given greater importance are probably the reports, the look of the studio, the mannerism of the anchors and news reporters, the rapport that they establish with the viewers. A sleek studio and smartly dressed anchors looking as if they were coming straight from a dry cleaner look like space station characters. The common people of India feel a sort of relationship with them if their dress, mannerism, and presentation is relaxed. "Designer clothes from Rohit Bal", "hair styled by Javed Habeeb", and "dress code of Birla corporates" can divorce the channel from the common people.
It is interesting to know that no channel, Hindi and/or English, seems to have paid any attention to language and pronunciation. One was amused to note that when the President of Iran was visiting and was the Chief Guest at Republic Day Parade, different anchors and reporters of the same channel were pronouncing his name differently.
Similarly no editors of a Channel seem to notice that "Sushri Mayawati" has become "Susri Mayawati" that "Kshetra" has become "Chhetra". The most interesting is the case of the nuktaa. The purists in Hindi Literature always abhor the use of nuktaa, since it is used in Urdu. The average 'Hindi, Hindu, Hindustan' patriot has a mindset that identifies Urdu with Pakistan. One does not know whether their patriotism blinds them or they are ignorant of the fact that Urdu was born and brought up in the streets of Delhi and Lucknow.
Secondly, spoken Hindi cannot ignore the nuktaa otherwise, they end up writing 'nyuuz' as 'nyuuj' in Hindi. One is waiting for an anchor or a reporter to pronounce 'Zee News' as 'G News' in Hindi. Spoken language and literary language are two different things.Anchors on some channels indulge in tête-à-tête as if they were conversing in a drawing room. Where the opinion of a specialist or an expert is needed, undergraduate tête-à-tête is ridiculous. Further, we have to remember that TV is a very powerful and sensitive medium. Millions of youngsters who watch the programmes, news or entertainment, on the small screen, pick up attitudes, facts, mannerism, and even pronunciation from there. They even have their screen icons amongst anchors and newsreaders. It is, therefore, necessary to pay attention to what is said on the screen and how it is said. It is noticed that while conversing with experts or talking to experts or officials on the phone, anchors address them by their first name. This is not always desirable. Addressing a DIG or a minister by his/her first name is not appropriate. Apart from this, there is the strange practice of using the suffix "Ji" as a prefix in conversation. This was probably started by some channel and is spreading everywhere. Even when anchors talk to their reporters they prefix and suffix "Ji" to their name!
Perhaps a brief comment on the contents of entertainment channels in Hindi would not be out of the place. Critics have all noticed that Indian women get up in the morning with mascara on, that all the stories concern families living in palaces, so on and so forth. We would like to mention two different issues. One is, and this is partly applicable to the news channels also, that the channels fight shy of even mentioning the phrase human rights. Some channels have programmes depicting cases of Human Rights but they are afraid of labeling them so. Sahara Manoranjan is the only exception. This channel is going to complete 100 episodes of a programme wherein a well known film director gives an introduction and uses the HR word without any hesitation.
The second thing is that all the serials are based on the stories of Hindu families. There are perhaps only two exceptions, one serial on 'Z TV' and the other on Sahara Manoranjan. Both of these have themes of a minority culture. Apart from these two serials there is, in Hindi, no serial based on the lives and travails of the families belonging to minority communities. This is not all. Very few producers imagine friends, neighbours, etc., of the characters, belonging to minority communities
FROM PUCL BULLETIN
It is necessary to prescribe and enforce some terms for recruitment practices, work ethics, and all that. A large number of institutions have introduced various types of journalism courses churning out young women and men with degrees and diplomas in their hands looking for job openings. True to the spirit of free enterprise, the channels have started exploiting the aspiring and unemployed youth.
It seems time now to make the viewers a partner in the give and take of news. Every channel should have a regular programme every day responding to comments and views of the viewers. This is very necessary since the comment or the view of an anchor is not final. It may even be out of context. It is very interesting that though there are a number of Hindi news channels, most of them are dominated by anchors and reporters who do not seem to be at home with Hindi. Sometimes they don't even understand a response given in Hindi!Much has been made of "the look of the channel". What should be given greater importance are probably the reports, the look of the studio, the mannerism of the anchors and news reporters, the rapport that they establish with the viewers. A sleek studio and smartly dressed anchors looking as if they were coming straight from a dry cleaner look like space station characters. The common people of India feel a sort of relationship with them if their dress, mannerism, and presentation is relaxed. "Designer clothes from Rohit Bal", "hair styled by Javed Habeeb", and "dress code of Birla corporates" can divorce the channel from the common people.
It is interesting to know that no channel, Hindi and/or English, seems to have paid any attention to language and pronunciation. One was amused to note that when the President of Iran was visiting and was the Chief Guest at Republic Day Parade, different anchors and reporters of the same channel were pronouncing his name differently.
Similarly no editors of a Channel seem to notice that "Sushri Mayawati" has become "Susri Mayawati" that "Kshetra" has become "Chhetra". The most interesting is the case of the nuktaa. The purists in Hindi Literature always abhor the use of nuktaa, since it is used in Urdu. The average 'Hindi, Hindu, Hindustan' patriot has a mindset that identifies Urdu with Pakistan. One does not know whether their patriotism blinds them or they are ignorant of the fact that Urdu was born and brought up in the streets of Delhi and Lucknow.
Secondly, spoken Hindi cannot ignore the nuktaa otherwise, they end up writing 'nyuuz' as 'nyuuj' in Hindi. One is waiting for an anchor or a reporter to pronounce 'Zee News' as 'G News' in Hindi. Spoken language and literary language are two different things.Anchors on some channels indulge in tête-à-tête as if they were conversing in a drawing room. Where the opinion of a specialist or an expert is needed, undergraduate tête-à-tête is ridiculous. Further, we have to remember that TV is a very powerful and sensitive medium. Millions of youngsters who watch the programmes, news or entertainment, on the small screen, pick up attitudes, facts, mannerism, and even pronunciation from there. They even have their screen icons amongst anchors and newsreaders. It is, therefore, necessary to pay attention to what is said on the screen and how it is said. It is noticed that while conversing with experts or talking to experts or officials on the phone, anchors address them by their first name. This is not always desirable. Addressing a DIG or a minister by his/her first name is not appropriate. Apart from this, there is the strange practice of using the suffix "Ji" as a prefix in conversation. This was probably started by some channel and is spreading everywhere. Even when anchors talk to their reporters they prefix and suffix "Ji" to their name!
Perhaps a brief comment on the contents of entertainment channels in Hindi would not be out of the place. Critics have all noticed that Indian women get up in the morning with mascara on, that all the stories concern families living in palaces, so on and so forth. We would like to mention two different issues. One is, and this is partly applicable to the news channels also, that the channels fight shy of even mentioning the phrase human rights. Some channels have programmes depicting cases of Human Rights but they are afraid of labeling them so. Sahara Manoranjan is the only exception. This channel is going to complete 100 episodes of a programme wherein a well known film director gives an introduction and uses the HR word without any hesitation.
The second thing is that all the serials are based on the stories of Hindu families. There are perhaps only two exceptions, one serial on 'Z TV' and the other on Sahara Manoranjan. Both of these have themes of a minority culture. Apart from these two serials there is, in Hindi, no serial based on the lives and travails of the families belonging to minority communities. This is not all. Very few producers imagine friends, neighbours, etc., of the characters, belonging to minority communities
FROM PUCL BULLETIN
Thursday, May 17, 2007
TELEVISION SOAPS AS A GENRE
“NEWS’ forms the serious part of Television, but a host of prorammes that fill TV time like serials, game shows, chat shows, and the recent entrant the ‘Reality Show’ have enough takers. Thus as a typical programme content serials have always attracted researchers to probe the implications of these ‘unending serials’.
What are the features of a Serial which is supposed to be the staple for the woman viewer segment?
i) Open-ended narrative forms: the format is one which has no ending ( a story that can be stretched to suit the ad revenue!). Not surprising therefore that one sees the same serial occupying the slot in a punishing schedule of “five-days-a-week-as-long-s-you-want” schedule.
ii) Core locations: The story unspools in a familiar locale. In the case of the Ekta Kapoor “Kyunki” variety it is a large joint family with a business presence. This combination usually provides umpteen crisis situations suited for melodrama! There is the constant vying for support of the matriarch by the ‘lesser women’- the daughters-in-law at the home front, while it is a similar tension between the men at the group’s business centre.
In the regional languages the family-based tensions take up more time, particularly in the Kerala serials, probably because few are able to conceive of ‘large business empires’ and how it affects filial ties.
iii) The tension between the accepted conventions of realism and melodrama: While the realism tends to be portrayed through characters who inhabit “recognizable spaces”and “believable situations”. Melodrama comes as a major ingredient through a increased sense of the ‘dramatic’ and with a focus on ‘life’s torments’. This representation is noticed because of
a) the emphasis on expressions, tones all with no restraint,
b) dramatic music, and
c) lingering close up shots
d) story-lines with twists and turns drawn from possible real life situations
all packaged to get viewer involvement.
e)pivotal themes of inter-personal relationship – the ‘mythic’ family is a major theme. Marriages, divorces, acts of revenge, acts of caring, the absence of a male heir(in Indian set ups where inheritance and family name are major elements). All this provide ample situations that can keep adrenaline flows high enough to send the TRPs shooting up!
These are the general traits in most soaps but it would also be important to remember that it has its national and regional variations. In the case of serials on Indian channels it is the sub-culture features that mark out the regional language serials from the Hindi serials on the National Hindi channels.
What are the features of a Serial which is supposed to be the staple for the woman viewer segment?
i) Open-ended narrative forms: the format is one which has no ending ( a story that can be stretched to suit the ad revenue!). Not surprising therefore that one sees the same serial occupying the slot in a punishing schedule of “five-days-a-week-as-long-s-you-want” schedule.
ii) Core locations: The story unspools in a familiar locale. In the case of the Ekta Kapoor “Kyunki” variety it is a large joint family with a business presence. This combination usually provides umpteen crisis situations suited for melodrama! There is the constant vying for support of the matriarch by the ‘lesser women’- the daughters-in-law at the home front, while it is a similar tension between the men at the group’s business centre.
In the regional languages the family-based tensions take up more time, particularly in the Kerala serials, probably because few are able to conceive of ‘large business empires’ and how it affects filial ties.
iii) The tension between the accepted conventions of realism and melodrama: While the realism tends to be portrayed through characters who inhabit “recognizable spaces”and “believable situations”. Melodrama comes as a major ingredient through a increased sense of the ‘dramatic’ and with a focus on ‘life’s torments’. This representation is noticed because of
a) the emphasis on expressions, tones all with no restraint,
b) dramatic music, and
c) lingering close up shots
d) story-lines with twists and turns drawn from possible real life situations
all packaged to get viewer involvement.
e)pivotal themes of inter-personal relationship – the ‘mythic’ family is a major theme. Marriages, divorces, acts of revenge, acts of caring, the absence of a male heir(in Indian set ups where inheritance and family name are major elements). All this provide ample situations that can keep adrenaline flows high enough to send the TRPs shooting up!
These are the general traits in most soaps but it would also be important to remember that it has its national and regional variations. In the case of serials on Indian channels it is the sub-culture features that mark out the regional language serials from the Hindi serials on the National Hindi channels.
Tuesday, May 01, 2007
TELEVISION AS TEXT III –WAR NEWS
Our memories are still fresh with visuals of Barkha Dutt in Kargil, helping an injured soldier with one hand while she was bringing the News from the war front to our drawing rooms. Yes, News was bringing the War closer to us. Stop for a moment to think of whether all the News that came to us could in any way generate public opinion strong enough to make the two governments to bring to a close the costly war (lives lost and money).
The reality is that NEWS from the front was only another reportage which provided us with “Our daily dose of information about the War through TV”. Natural therefore that many analysts describe it thus, “War is yet another programme on TV.”
Where else can we find a better example of such a programme than the CNN (1991) telecast of the Gulf War. What is the lasting image in our memories-that of aircrafts landing and taking off from Saudi airfields, and large stretches of desert. But the supporting commentaries told us that ‘smart’ sophisticated weapons would ensure hitting just the target and thus less damage to civilian life. So we sat back in this game because few human lives would be lost. (Could we do anything else?)
Like all truths, there is your truth and my truth. Going by that, the CNN said this, but there is another version which says that the tonnage of bombs used to ‘carpet bomb’ was more than that used during the Second World War. Few remind you on CNN about the fact that many of these ‘missed’ their targets, implying it did hit civilian targets!
It was 24 hr live coverage of War that became the USP, News as it Happens was the CNN punchline. Remind yourself that most of images that were not from the Studio were from military Press briefings, hardly any action of the battle!! Therefore staged press conferences and military tapes defined ‘NEWS’.
P Sainath, the Indian journalist’s take was that in countries like India where strong opinion existed against the War, it always happened that in debates on TV , while the voices present anti-war, the visual were those supporting the War. Thus we realize that War became an event and little was done to analyse and pursue the event for its causes, progress and possible solution. Instead it was “Kudos’ for live coverage of War. Thus “War became a programme on TV” putting in the background the real issues and concerns.
A journalist sent to the region is supposed to have said (during the Iraqi conflict later), “I see no war here.” The response was –“You send us the report, we’ll make the War.”
Any wonder at least some crisis reporting has acquired the label, “teddy bear syndrome.”
If that makes sense, we surely know that visuals will be received and, and remembered, and all that the newsreader mouths will vanish into thin air.
The reality is that NEWS from the front was only another reportage which provided us with “Our daily dose of information about the War through TV”. Natural therefore that many analysts describe it thus, “War is yet another programme on TV.”
Where else can we find a better example of such a programme than the CNN (1991) telecast of the Gulf War. What is the lasting image in our memories-that of aircrafts landing and taking off from Saudi airfields, and large stretches of desert. But the supporting commentaries told us that ‘smart’ sophisticated weapons would ensure hitting just the target and thus less damage to civilian life. So we sat back in this game because few human lives would be lost. (Could we do anything else?)
Like all truths, there is your truth and my truth. Going by that, the CNN said this, but there is another version which says that the tonnage of bombs used to ‘carpet bomb’ was more than that used during the Second World War. Few remind you on CNN about the fact that many of these ‘missed’ their targets, implying it did hit civilian targets!
It was 24 hr live coverage of War that became the USP, News as it Happens was the CNN punchline. Remind yourself that most of images that were not from the Studio were from military Press briefings, hardly any action of the battle!! Therefore staged press conferences and military tapes defined ‘NEWS’.
P Sainath, the Indian journalist’s take was that in countries like India where strong opinion existed against the War, it always happened that in debates on TV , while the voices present anti-war, the visual were those supporting the War. Thus we realize that War became an event and little was done to analyse and pursue the event for its causes, progress and possible solution. Instead it was “Kudos’ for live coverage of War. Thus “War became a programme on TV” putting in the background the real issues and concerns.
A journalist sent to the region is supposed to have said (during the Iraqi conflict later), “I see no war here.” The response was –“You send us the report, we’ll make the War.”
Any wonder at least some crisis reporting has acquired the label, “teddy bear syndrome.”
If that makes sense, we surely know that visuals will be received and, and remembered, and all that the newsreader mouths will vanish into thin air.
Friday, April 27, 2007
TELEVISION AS TEXT II - NEWS
Television News holds a prime position in assessing The significance in moulding opinion and thereby influencing public life.
Once we recognise that News is not an unmediated reality but a selected and represented reality we start looking at other elements behind The selection of items that constitute News. The manner in which items are selected and The way in which The story is "constructed" tells us clearly that News is never "NEUTRAL".
Politics, economy, foreign affairs,domestic affairs, sport and occasional storiyes are usually topics that feature in The News।।
In the West there are four prime news values in the Western world:
· Reference to elite nations
· Reference to elite persons
· Personalization
· Negativity
It is often said that the unexpected always has new value and more so if it has negative consequences involving elite persons of an elite nation.
News on TV can also be an example of manipulation by agencies that control the medium, as in the case of authoritarian regimes or an ideology driven govt which will also use pressure to shape the News the way they want it. Often the owners of the medium become collaborators with the govt.
This sort of “shaping” of the News takes place in the propagandist News that came from the early govts of Soviet Union and China, for example।
In the present set up it is
i) market forces
ii) plurality of voices addressing different audiences and
iii) plurality of outlets
and over above all this professional journalists who ultimately determine the NEWS.
But here what often happens is that there is one part of the world which is kept in total darkness, the spotlight never falls on those ‘backyards’ because ‘Newsmakers” fall in the power elite!
Once we recognise that News is not an unmediated reality but a selected and represented reality we start looking at other elements behind The selection of items that constitute News. The manner in which items are selected and The way in which The story is "constructed" tells us clearly that News is never "NEUTRAL".
Politics, economy, foreign affairs,domestic affairs, sport and occasional storiyes are usually topics that feature in The News।।
In the West there are four prime news values in the Western world:
· Reference to elite nations
· Reference to elite persons
· Personalization
· Negativity
It is often said that the unexpected always has new value and more so if it has negative consequences involving elite persons of an elite nation.
News on TV can also be an example of manipulation by agencies that control the medium, as in the case of authoritarian regimes or an ideology driven govt which will also use pressure to shape the News the way they want it. Often the owners of the medium become collaborators with the govt.
This sort of “shaping” of the News takes place in the propagandist News that came from the early govts of Soviet Union and China, for example।
In the present set up it is
i) market forces
ii) plurality of voices addressing different audiences and
iii) plurality of outlets
and over above all this professional journalists who ultimately determine the NEWS.
But here what often happens is that there is one part of the world which is kept in total darkness, the spotlight never falls on those ‘backyards’ because ‘Newsmakers” fall in the power elite!
TELEVISION AS TEXT - I
Television is a major source of communication and a source of knowledge about the world even if we accept the explanation that what TV does is putting together of reality and it is a "MEDIATED REALITY".
TV we must rememeber, is directly involved with the provision and the selective construction of social knowledge, of social imagery, through which we perceive the
1)'worlds'
2) the 'lived realities' of others,
3) and imaginarily reconstruct their lives and ours into some intellible "world-of-the-whole".
The economic and cultural significance of TV is stronger because of the increasing pace of change in the patterns of global communications.
This often leads to new consuming patterns of the media and through the media as well as "transnational communication".
TV therefore needs to be understood by taking the following aspects into account
i)Texts-programmes
ii)the relshp between texts and audiences (audience research)
iii)political economy (organization/industry)
iv) patterns of cultural meaning.
TV we must rememeber, is directly involved with the provision and the selective construction of social knowledge, of social imagery, through which we perceive the
1)'worlds'
2) the 'lived realities' of others,
3) and imaginarily reconstruct their lives and ours into some intellible "world-of-the-whole".
The economic and cultural significance of TV is stronger because of the increasing pace of change in the patterns of global communications.
This often leads to new consuming patterns of the media and through the media as well as "transnational communication".
TV therefore needs to be understood by taking the following aspects into account
i)Texts-programmes
ii)the relshp between texts and audiences (audience research)
iii)political economy (organization/industry)
iv) patterns of cultural meaning.
Saturday, March 31, 2007
The AUDIENCE in MASS MEDIA
The origins of the present-day audience for mass media are presumably to be found in the public theatrical and musical performances as well as games and spectacles of ancient times. These audiences had their own customs, expectations and rules about the time, place and content of performances, conditions for entry etc.
Several features distinguish the early form of audience from the modern media equivalent Most importantly, the original audience was localized in one place and time – they were occupants of the auditorium, the space in which they could hear and see what was going on। The performance was always ‘live’ and open to view. This suggests that the audience was always relatively small and also potentially active within itself and interactive with the performers. The same circumstances are relevant in some situations even now, but a new variant has been introduced in the mass media audience.
The new type of mass audience was
i) large and widely dispersed;
ii) its members could not know each other;
iii) its composition was always shifting;
iv) it lacked any sense of self-identity, because of its size and heterogenity;
v) it was governed by no rules
vi) it appeared not to act for itself but to be acted on from outside
vii) and just as its own internal relations were impersonal, so were the relations between any source and the mass audience also necessarily impersonal. There is also often a large social distance between the mass media audience and a more powerful, expert or prestigious source and thus an asymmetric
relationship.
The four types of audiences can be characterized as follows with indications of further subdivisions within each main category. These categories as follows, are not, of course, mutually exclusive, and the primary character of a given audience is not easy to determine empirically. The assessment has to be made on the basis of wider knowledge of a media system and a society.
The four types of audiences are to be differentiated in the groups that are given –
The Social group: Basically this will correspond with an existing social grouping (such as community or membership of a political, religious or ethnic minority for example -Shalom,Aastha, JAINTV ) and with the shared social characteristics of place, social class, politics, culture etc. Such audiences are likely to be more stable over time than others, with continuity of membership, and are likely to respond actively to what their chosen media provide.
The Gratification set: This forms on the basis of some individual purpose or need existing independently of the media, relating, for instance, to a political or social issue or a general need for information or for some emotional, effectual satisfaction. It is likely to be fairly homogenous in terms of its composition, active in expressing demands that shape supply and also selective. Such audiences are, however, not social groups but aggregates of individuals engaged in essentially the same consumer behaviour.
Fan group or Taste culture: This kind of audience will be formed on the basis of an interest in a particular author, director or type of content (or genre), or through attraction to a particular personality (or a particular cultural or intellectual taste)। Otherwise, it lacks any clear social definition or categorization. Its composition will change over time, although some such audiences may also be stable. Its existence is owed entirely to the content offered, and when this changes (as, for instance at the end of a long-running show or the death or decline of a star) the audience has to disperse or reform in other ways. Occasionally such kinds of audience has to disperse or reform in other ways. ‘Fandom’ demonstrates the productive power of audiences, creating new and deeper meaning from the materials made available, rather than successful manipulation. Attempts at exploitation are common and often associated with merchandising of products linked to media images, characters, themes.( KTV,Rosebowl, MTV etc) .
Channel or Medium audience: Recruited to and held by habit or loyalty to a particular media source –e.g newspaper, magazine or radio or TV channel –such audiences are numerous and changing. Often they are encouraged to form by the media for commercial reasons. Members are typically consumers of the media product in question and customers for other products to be advertised or merchandised.
Several features distinguish the early form of audience from the modern media equivalent Most importantly, the original audience was localized in one place and time – they were occupants of the auditorium, the space in which they could hear and see what was going on। The performance was always ‘live’ and open to view. This suggests that the audience was always relatively small and also potentially active within itself and interactive with the performers. The same circumstances are relevant in some situations even now, but a new variant has been introduced in the mass media audience.
The new type of mass audience was
i) large and widely dispersed;
ii) its members could not know each other;
iii) its composition was always shifting;
iv) it lacked any sense of self-identity, because of its size and heterogenity;
v) it was governed by no rules
vi) it appeared not to act for itself but to be acted on from outside
vii) and just as its own internal relations were impersonal, so were the relations between any source and the mass audience also necessarily impersonal. There is also often a large social distance between the mass media audience and a more powerful, expert or prestigious source and thus an asymmetric
relationship.
The four types of audiences can be characterized as follows with indications of further subdivisions within each main category. These categories as follows, are not, of course, mutually exclusive, and the primary character of a given audience is not easy to determine empirically. The assessment has to be made on the basis of wider knowledge of a media system and a society.
The four types of audiences are to be differentiated in the groups that are given –
The Social group: Basically this will correspond with an existing social grouping (such as community or membership of a political, religious or ethnic minority for example -Shalom,Aastha, JAINTV ) and with the shared social characteristics of place, social class, politics, culture etc. Such audiences are likely to be more stable over time than others, with continuity of membership, and are likely to respond actively to what their chosen media provide.
The Gratification set: This forms on the basis of some individual purpose or need existing independently of the media, relating, for instance, to a political or social issue or a general need for information or for some emotional, effectual satisfaction. It is likely to be fairly homogenous in terms of its composition, active in expressing demands that shape supply and also selective. Such audiences are, however, not social groups but aggregates of individuals engaged in essentially the same consumer behaviour.
Fan group or Taste culture: This kind of audience will be formed on the basis of an interest in a particular author, director or type of content (or genre), or through attraction to a particular personality (or a particular cultural or intellectual taste)। Otherwise, it lacks any clear social definition or categorization. Its composition will change over time, although some such audiences may also be stable. Its existence is owed entirely to the content offered, and when this changes (as, for instance at the end of a long-running show or the death or decline of a star) the audience has to disperse or reform in other ways. Occasionally such kinds of audience has to disperse or reform in other ways. ‘Fandom’ demonstrates the productive power of audiences, creating new and deeper meaning from the materials made available, rather than successful manipulation. Attempts at exploitation are common and often associated with merchandising of products linked to media images, characters, themes.( KTV,Rosebowl, MTV etc) .
Channel or Medium audience: Recruited to and held by habit or loyalty to a particular media source –e.g newspaper, magazine or radio or TV channel –such audiences are numerous and changing. Often they are encouraged to form by the media for commercial reasons. Members are typically consumers of the media product in question and customers for other products to be advertised or merchandised.
Friday, March 30, 2007
ALTERNATIVE OR CONTEMPORARY MODELS OF COMMUNICATION
Rather than names here it is the manner in which the Media functions/operates that each model has derived its name. Very simply stated this is how it is,
1)TRANSMISSION MODEL- recognises the role of a professional journalist in a Media Organisation. So from the conventional SENDER-MESSAGE-CHANNEL_RECEIVER model Communication is seen as-
i) events and voices in society
ii) channel communicator role
iii)messages
iv) receiver
According to this scheme, the communicators are not the originators of the message. They are only putting together/assembling what falls in (i).
2)RITUAL or EXPRESSIVE MODEL-goes beyond the earlier one. Here it is sharing , celebratory and decorative. Therefore art, religious and public ceremonies or festivals become the events that find air time.
3)PUBLICITY MODEL-Communication as display and attention drawing exercise.Often the role of the media is neither to transmit particular information but merely to hold aural attention. The goals are
i)gain audience
ii)gain revenue
iii) sell probability of audience attention through mega events like -Musical nites, live telecast of games, spectator sports etc.
Here it is the fact of being known that is more important than giving stress on content!
4) RECEPTION MODEL-Encoding and Decoding of Media discourse. The meaning of what comes through in a programme depends on the perception of the receiver-interpreted according to the culture and context of the receiver. This is where the manipulative use of language becomes the 'playing ground' of the media and the NEWSMAKERS.
(Take the ever so many accusations and counter accusations made by the Politicians).
Or a simple statement like "WE meet in my office this weekend " by a Professor to the student or by a Boss to his departmental chiefs or said by the US Pres Clinton to Monica-each one has a different implication.
That is why it is said now, that the meaning is not in the sentence, but at the end of it. Thus it means, the person saying it, where it is said, on which channel and which event,and who is the audience can alter the meaning of the sentence.
1)TRANSMISSION MODEL- recognises the role of a professional journalist in a Media Organisation. So from the conventional SENDER-MESSAGE-CHANNEL_RECEIVER model Communication is seen as-
i) events and voices in society
ii) channel communicator role
iii)messages
iv) receiver
According to this scheme, the communicators are not the originators of the message. They are only putting together/assembling what falls in (i).
2)RITUAL or EXPRESSIVE MODEL-goes beyond the earlier one. Here it is sharing , celebratory and decorative. Therefore art, religious and public ceremonies or festivals become the events that find air time.
3)PUBLICITY MODEL-Communication as display and attention drawing exercise.Often the role of the media is neither to transmit particular information but merely to hold aural attention. The goals are
i)gain audience
ii)gain revenue
iii) sell probability of audience attention through mega events like -Musical nites, live telecast of games, spectator sports etc.
Here it is the fact of being known that is more important than giving stress on content!
4) RECEPTION MODEL-Encoding and Decoding of Media discourse. The meaning of what comes through in a programme depends on the perception of the receiver-interpreted according to the culture and context of the receiver. This is where the manipulative use of language becomes the 'playing ground' of the media and the NEWSMAKERS.
(Take the ever so many accusations and counter accusations made by the Politicians).
Or a simple statement like "WE meet in my office this weekend " by a Professor to the student or by a Boss to his departmental chiefs or said by the US Pres Clinton to Monica-each one has a different implication.
That is why it is said now, that the meaning is not in the sentence, but at the end of it. Thus it means, the person saying it, where it is said, on which channel and which event,and who is the audience can alter the meaning of the sentence.
Thursday, March 29, 2007
Understanding Television - Karan Thapar (HTV)
“There are four factors that differentiate TV from Newspapers
a) It is heard (seen) and not read. In a newspaper if there is a portion that is difficult to understand you can go back to it but in TV there is no recall. TV therefore must have a linear structure; arguments and facts must flow out of each other.
b) The language of TV has to be simple everyday speech. Print can afford technical terminology or even pompous expression. TV speaks to you from your drawing room and therefore the language must be easy to comprehend.
c) It is what you see on TV that creates the impact and not what you hear. Yet the commentary is the journalist’s contribution. Unlike the print, the TV journalist is alienated from the visual and it is a handicap.
d) TV has to schedule itself to offer at given hours what people can be expected to want to see। A good schedule will make people want to सी.what it is offering.
(Extract from article by Karan Thapar in the SEMINAR )
a) It is heard (seen) and not read. In a newspaper if there is a portion that is difficult to understand you can go back to it but in TV there is no recall. TV therefore must have a linear structure; arguments and facts must flow out of each other.
b) The language of TV has to be simple everyday speech. Print can afford technical terminology or even pompous expression. TV speaks to you from your drawing room and therefore the language must be easy to comprehend.
c) It is what you see on TV that creates the impact and not what you hear. Yet the commentary is the journalist’s contribution. Unlike the print, the TV journalist is alienated from the visual and it is a handicap.
d) TV has to schedule itself to offer at given hours what people can be expected to want to see। A good schedule will make people want to सी.what it is offering.
(Extract from article by Karan Thapar in the SEMINAR )
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
EARLY MODELS OF COMMUNICATION
Lasswell’s Communication Model has become the most famous single phrase m communication research – known as the Lasswell Formula
Who? - Artist/Source or Sender
Says What ? – Text
In which channel – Medium
To Whom? - Audience
With what Effect - Society
The formula exhibits/shows a typical trait of the early models। It takes for granted that the communicator has some intention of influencing the receiver and therefore is treated as a persuasive process. It is also presumed that the messages must have effects. Critics are of the view that he did not consider the matter of feedback and is therefore this is a unidirectional formula, that is --one way - from Sender to Receiver only.
Sapir-Whorf hypothesis – According to these two linguists, language is not merely a transparent means of delivering information or messages। Our language is a kind of prism that we use to make sense of the world.It is not a window pane that we can see through without any distortions, and is not a mirror that reflects the world in which we live.It therefore generates the idea that different languages generate different worlds. What we know of society and the world, and what we think about them, is tied to language habits of the group in which we find ourselves.
Play Theory of Mass Communication – William Stephenson suggests that the most significant
Function of mass communication is to facilitate “subjective play” to give people pleasure, an interlude from the pressing matters that concern them most of the time. The functions it serves, according to him, are to provide play, to influence customs, to normalize manners, give people something in common to talk about, so as to encourage mutual socialization. The second function is to shake up society. Mass Communication , has by implication, a very difficult time changing basic beliefs, but it can play a role in shaping our convergent or momentary desires and the relatively unimportant decisions we make। According to Stephenson other theorists have gone wrong because they have given more importance to the persuasive role of COMMUNICATION.
Who? - Artist/Source or Sender
Says What ? – Text
In which channel – Medium
To Whom? - Audience
With what Effect - Society
The formula exhibits/shows a typical trait of the early models। It takes for granted that the communicator has some intention of influencing the receiver and therefore is treated as a persuasive process. It is also presumed that the messages must have effects. Critics are of the view that he did not consider the matter of feedback and is therefore this is a unidirectional formula, that is --one way - from Sender to Receiver only.
Sapir-Whorf hypothesis – According to these two linguists, language is not merely a transparent means of delivering information or messages। Our language is a kind of prism that we use to make sense of the world.It is not a window pane that we can see through without any distortions, and is not a mirror that reflects the world in which we live.It therefore generates the idea that different languages generate different worlds. What we know of society and the world, and what we think about them, is tied to language habits of the group in which we find ourselves.
Play Theory of Mass Communication – William Stephenson suggests that the most significant
Function of mass communication is to facilitate “subjective play” to give people pleasure, an interlude from the pressing matters that concern them most of the time. The functions it serves, according to him, are to provide play, to influence customs, to normalize manners, give people something in common to talk about, so as to encourage mutual socialization. The second function is to shake up society. Mass Communication , has by implication, a very difficult time changing basic beliefs, but it can play a role in shaping our convergent or momentary desires and the relatively unimportant decisions we make। According to Stephenson other theorists have gone wrong because they have given more importance to the persuasive role of COMMUNICATION.
Monday, March 26, 2007
SELECTIVITY IN COMMUNICATION - IV
(c) AVAILABILITY THEORIES:
The Consistency theory and the Utility theory both assume that people actively select certain materials from the stream of communications available to them - in the former case, because these materials match or go with with their existing ideas; in the latter case, because the selected communications might help satisfy some of their needs. These theories presuppose an ‘active’ audience. Some scholars however, see the audience as active only part of the time. They may accept the concept of selectivity, but with the reservation that people often select for attention the communications that are most easily available to them and are the easiest to absorb. This phenomenon is labelled as “learning without involvement”. Educators have been interested in this process because materials learned under conditions of low involvement are likely to be soon forgotten, however, unless people are continually reminded of it.
Studies show that people consume mass media when they have the time to do so rather than in pursuit of particular subject matter; this also tends to support availability theory; that is, some TV programs are more available than others - and more watched - because they are presented when most people are at home. Support for the idea that there is a large passive audience comes also from the TV ratings, which show that total TV audience is fairly constant at given times of the day and night.
Availability of time for the media, in turn, is at least partly a matter of habit। Those who like to watch TV during dinner will probably turn the set on regardless of what programs are scheduled। Even people who are attending to communications under conditions of low involvement have to make some choices. In this, they are assisted by “cues” that call their attention to certain parts of the subject matter.
The information overload in the present times is dealt by us by selecting some communications and ignoring or skipping over the rest. Selectivity cannot be explained by any single principle. There seem to be a number of factors involved. The most important ones include:
CONSISTENCY: We have a tendency to favour communications that are congruent with our existing ideas over information that that conflicts with our mental map of the world.
UTILITY: We select communication that we think will be helpful in satisfying some need or that will give us pleasure.
AVAILABILITY: If we have no preference for one communication over the other we will expose ourselves to the one that is more easily available.
There is no agreement among scholars as to the relative importance of these factors. Commonsense would suggest that all of them should be taken into account by anyone who is seeking to gain the attention of a particular audience.
Needless to add that selecting communications for attention is of vital importance to all mass media enterprises and therefore important to communicators in the media and those engaged in the art of persuasion, the advertisers, propagandists, and public relations specialists.
SELECTIVITY IN COMMUNICATION - III
(b) UTILITY THEORIES - “USES AND GRATIFICATIONS”
According to the Utility theory often known as the “uses and gratifications approach”, we will pay attention to and perceive, and remember information that is pleasurable or that will in some way help to satisfy our needs or interests. This information may or may not be in accord with our existing ideas, but we will attend to it if we expect it to be useful or think that it will give us satisfaction. Journalists have long recognized that people must be “rewarded in some way for giving attention to a particular item.” The reader reads selectively - using headlines to direct him to the topics of his interest.
Conversely, according to the Utility theory, if we expect a communication to be uninteresting or unpleasant, we will probably not expose ourselves to it. Or if we are exposed any way, we will disregard or forget it.
Consistency theory and Utility theory are not necessarily opposed to each other; it is possible to reconcile them. One way to do this is by reference to the fact that most people seem to need reassurance that their ideas and attitudes are correct. Because they need reassurance, they seek out communications that are likely to support their existing views of the world. We will pay attention to dissonant information if it helps us in some other way. For instance, it might warn us of impending danger. Or it might help us to impress others with the depth and breadth of our knowledge.
The uses and gratification approach, although it has become the most widely accepted ways of explaining why some people select some content from the stream of communications and ignore other content.
Different strategies have been used to identify needs that mass communications can help to satisfy. Studies reveal that there are several categories of needs for the satisfaction of which the mass media have been found useful. One list is as follows:-
· Diversion, including emotional release, escape from problems, a welcome change from routine.
· Needs having to do with personal relationships. Here the media may provide substitute companionship, or may furnish material for conversation.
· Needs having to do with individual psychology: the desire to obtain reassurance, to understand oneself, to feel important, to gain a sense of personal identity.
· Surveillance of the environment, including the need to know about events that might affect one and to obtain information that will help one do something or accomplish something.
In spite of variations among the needs of individuals and the ways they use the media to satisfy these needs, some recurring patterns can be found. Many of these are related to age and sex, cultural differences and the way media are used to satisfy them.
Utility theory, like the consistency theory, can help to explain some selective behaviour, but it doesn’t explain all.
According to the Utility theory often known as the “uses and gratifications approach”, we will pay attention to and perceive, and remember information that is pleasurable or that will in some way help to satisfy our needs or interests. This information may or may not be in accord with our existing ideas, but we will attend to it if we expect it to be useful or think that it will give us satisfaction. Journalists have long recognized that people must be “rewarded in some way for giving attention to a particular item.” The reader reads selectively - using headlines to direct him to the topics of his interest.
Conversely, according to the Utility theory, if we expect a communication to be uninteresting or unpleasant, we will probably not expose ourselves to it. Or if we are exposed any way, we will disregard or forget it.
Consistency theory and Utility theory are not necessarily opposed to each other; it is possible to reconcile them. One way to do this is by reference to the fact that most people seem to need reassurance that their ideas and attitudes are correct. Because they need reassurance, they seek out communications that are likely to support their existing views of the world. We will pay attention to dissonant information if it helps us in some other way. For instance, it might warn us of impending danger. Or it might help us to impress others with the depth and breadth of our knowledge.
The uses and gratification approach, although it has become the most widely accepted ways of explaining why some people select some content from the stream of communications and ignore other content.
Different strategies have been used to identify needs that mass communications can help to satisfy. Studies reveal that there are several categories of needs for the satisfaction of which the mass media have been found useful. One list is as follows:-
· Diversion, including emotional release, escape from problems, a welcome change from routine.
· Needs having to do with personal relationships. Here the media may provide substitute companionship, or may furnish material for conversation.
· Needs having to do with individual psychology: the desire to obtain reassurance, to understand oneself, to feel important, to gain a sense of personal identity.
· Surveillance of the environment, including the need to know about events that might affect one and to obtain information that will help one do something or accomplish something.
In spite of variations among the needs of individuals and the ways they use the media to satisfy these needs, some recurring patterns can be found. Many of these are related to age and sex, cultural differences and the way media are used to satisfy them.
Utility theory, like the consistency theory, can help to explain some selective behaviour, but it doesn’t explain all.
SELECTIVITY IN COMMUNICATION-II
(a) CONSISTENCY THEORIES:
According to this group, we consciously or subconsciously select from the flow of communication those ideas that fit in with our attitudes and values and that are consistent with our existing beliefs about the world. At the same time, we ignore, dismiss, misunderstand or forget those communications that would be ‘dissonant’ - that would not fit in. Thus, according to this approach, a person who believes in free enterprise would not be likely to read an article advocating government ownership of major industries or would not absorb much information even if she or he did read it. But someone who feels strongly about equal rights for women buys a magazine if he or she sees a story about female achievements in government or the professions featured on its cover.
One mechanism by which people can maintain and strengthen their existing view of the world and avoid having it disturbed by incongruent or unbalancing information, according to consistency theories, is ‘selective exposure’। This behaviour involves exposing oneself to messages that are consistent with one’s attitudes and beliefs and avoiding other messages। But it is difficult to avoid all dissonant communications, so one can do the next best thing: pay attention only to certain parts of the communication and disregard the rest। Social scientists usually refer to this as ‘selective perception’. Or, if one does pay attention to a potentially disturbing message, it may be possible to interpret it so that it will not conflict with the existing idea - one may conclude that it is untrue, unimportant, or does not really mean what it appears to mean. This might be called ‘selective interpretation’. Finally, people may forget dissonant information or may remember it in distorted form, a behaviour known as ‘selective recall’.
Several of these methods of maintaining psychological balance may be used at the same time। We may tune in to a television address by our favourite candidate but fail to notice that he stumbles and stutters when he comes to some words, and we may interpret his stands on issues as being much closer to ours than they actually are. In general, selective exposure and selective perception, although they do occur, seem to be less common patterns of behaviour than once thought. Selective interpretation and selective recall have held up a little better although there are many exceptions.
Active avoidance of unwelcome communications can be observed in the case of children who hold their hands over their ears when there is something they don’t want to hear. A well-known journalist has mentioned, “I don’t like fighting. Since I’ve been a child I’ve always covered my eyes with my hands and crouched low in my seat at the movies when the shooting and punching begins.”
For most older people, it is not necessary to put the hands over the ears or to close the eyes. They know where dissonant (lack of harmony )information IN communications are likely to be found and how to avoid them। When one pays attention to two conflicting communications, but learns more from one of them, selective perception may be at work. A survey of voter reaction to political propaganda in elections concluded that the voters do engage in selective perception, but it is not constant and depends considerably on whether people encounter the type of information that is most likely to activate their defences। Most of us have the capacity for selective perception, but this doesn’t mean that we always make use of it.
We may, however, engage in selective interpretation; that is, we may perceive dissonant information accurately but then interpret it, either consciously or subconsciously, in such a way that it does not throw out of balance our existing view of the world.
Memory too plays a role in preserving our existing attitudes and beliefs. This applies not only to what is remembered, but also to the form in which it is remembered. We learn and remember information more easily if it fits in somehow with what we already know.
Selective perception, interpretation, and recall may all be involved in the way an individual deals with communications about a particular subject.
According to this group, we consciously or subconsciously select from the flow of communication those ideas that fit in with our attitudes and values and that are consistent with our existing beliefs about the world. At the same time, we ignore, dismiss, misunderstand or forget those communications that would be ‘dissonant’ - that would not fit in. Thus, according to this approach, a person who believes in free enterprise would not be likely to read an article advocating government ownership of major industries or would not absorb much information even if she or he did read it. But someone who feels strongly about equal rights for women buys a magazine if he or she sees a story about female achievements in government or the professions featured on its cover.
One mechanism by which people can maintain and strengthen their existing view of the world and avoid having it disturbed by incongruent or unbalancing information, according to consistency theories, is ‘selective exposure’। This behaviour involves exposing oneself to messages that are consistent with one’s attitudes and beliefs and avoiding other messages। But it is difficult to avoid all dissonant communications, so one can do the next best thing: pay attention only to certain parts of the communication and disregard the rest। Social scientists usually refer to this as ‘selective perception’. Or, if one does pay attention to a potentially disturbing message, it may be possible to interpret it so that it will not conflict with the existing idea - one may conclude that it is untrue, unimportant, or does not really mean what it appears to mean. This might be called ‘selective interpretation’. Finally, people may forget dissonant information or may remember it in distorted form, a behaviour known as ‘selective recall’.
Several of these methods of maintaining psychological balance may be used at the same time। We may tune in to a television address by our favourite candidate but fail to notice that he stumbles and stutters when he comes to some words, and we may interpret his stands on issues as being much closer to ours than they actually are. In general, selective exposure and selective perception, although they do occur, seem to be less common patterns of behaviour than once thought. Selective interpretation and selective recall have held up a little better although there are many exceptions.
Active avoidance of unwelcome communications can be observed in the case of children who hold their hands over their ears when there is something they don’t want to hear. A well-known journalist has mentioned, “I don’t like fighting. Since I’ve been a child I’ve always covered my eyes with my hands and crouched low in my seat at the movies when the shooting and punching begins.”
For most older people, it is not necessary to put the hands over the ears or to close the eyes. They know where dissonant (lack of harmony )information IN communications are likely to be found and how to avoid them। When one pays attention to two conflicting communications, but learns more from one of them, selective perception may be at work. A survey of voter reaction to political propaganda in elections concluded that the voters do engage in selective perception, but it is not constant and depends considerably on whether people encounter the type of information that is most likely to activate their defences। Most of us have the capacity for selective perception, but this doesn’t mean that we always make use of it.
We may, however, engage in selective interpretation; that is, we may perceive dissonant information accurately but then interpret it, either consciously or subconsciously, in such a way that it does not throw out of balance our existing view of the world.
Memory too plays a role in preserving our existing attitudes and beliefs. This applies not only to what is remembered, but also to the form in which it is remembered. We learn and remember information more easily if it fits in somehow with what we already know.
Selective perception, interpretation, and recall may all be involved in the way an individual deals with communications about a particular subject.
SELECTIVITY IN COMMUNICATION-I
SELECTIVITY IN COMMUNICATION
With the development of mass media and the exploitation of these media by advertisers, politicians educators and others, we are bombarded with communications more than ever before. A person forced to attend to all available communications would have time for little else and would run the danger of becoming completely disoriented. Fortunately, we are equipped to make a selection from the stream of messages to which we are exposed.
You can observe selectivity at work if you perform a little experiment yourself. Try to write one-line summaries or headlines of stories that you remember from the last time you read a newspaper or saw a TV news program. Your list will probably be a small one. Ask yourself, “Why did I remember these stories?” A second question could be, “Why did I not remember or pay attention to the other stories?”
Each person has different methods of handling the flood of information that comes their way. We can group the major explanations of selectivity into three categories
(a) Consistency theories
(b) Utility theories-Uses and Gratification
(c) Availability theories
All of them are based on aspects of human personality and behaviour and some lay emphasis on certain aspects while others lay stress on yet others.
With the development of mass media and the exploitation of these media by advertisers, politicians educators and others, we are bombarded with communications more than ever before. A person forced to attend to all available communications would have time for little else and would run the danger of becoming completely disoriented. Fortunately, we are equipped to make a selection from the stream of messages to which we are exposed.
You can observe selectivity at work if you perform a little experiment yourself. Try to write one-line summaries or headlines of stories that you remember from the last time you read a newspaper or saw a TV news program. Your list will probably be a small one. Ask yourself, “Why did I remember these stories?” A second question could be, “Why did I not remember or pay attention to the other stories?”
Each person has different methods of handling the flood of information that comes their way. We can group the major explanations of selectivity into three categories
(a) Consistency theories
(b) Utility theories-Uses and Gratification
(c) Availability theories
All of them are based on aspects of human personality and behaviour and some lay emphasis on certain aspects while others lay stress on yet others.
Sunday, March 25, 2007
Basics of COMMUNICATION
Communication has come to imply the physical act of moving as well as the transfer of ideas, beliefs and opinions. This was the earliest meaning of the word. But, with the passing of time, it also came to mean a line or channel of communication from place to place. Printing, telecommunication, photography, wireless, film, television are among the new methods by which ideas and information are conveyed with the intention of not only informing, but also exercising an influence on their attitudes.
In a nutshell, communication can best be described as the word which is used to describe the different ways in which people affect one another. Now, we have Technology as a major constant that gives new dynamism to what come through technology driven items like – Radio, TV, Internet etc..
The three major components of any communication are the source or SENDER, the MESSAGE, the destination or the RECEIVER. Any communication presupposes that the sender must be equipped enough to successfully transmit the message in a manner which will enable the receiver to relate to and understand.
SOURCE ----- ENCODED ----- CHANNELS ----- DECODED ----- RECEIVED AT DESTINATION
These are the normal components in any communication. A sender can ‘encode’ a message and the receiver can only ‘decode’ the message in terms of their own experience and knowledge. This is where shared experience assumes importance. Only where this sharing or commonality exists, can there be any meaningful communication. If there is no shared ground of experience, then communication becomes virtually impossible. Common knowledge and experience provide the connecting link.
Elements of Communication:
Message: This is the subject matter of communication and may involve any fact, idea, opinion, figure, feeling, attitude or course of action including information. It exists in the mind of the communicator. Transmitter; is the sender of the message, the communicator; he conceives and initiates the message. He is the driving force behind the change in the behaviour of the receiver.
Encoding: The process of conversion of subject matter into symbols is called encoding. Transmission of the message requires the use of certain symbols. In the encoding process, ideas, facts, feelings, opinions etc are translated into signs, symbols, words, actions, pictures and audio-visuals to suit the receiver and the medium.
That is, in the case of NEWS, for example, the manner in which it is packaged by the Print Media, Radio and Television to suit their priorities and the receptivity of their audiences, alters the way in which we accept the implications of a piece of NEWS.
Communication channel: This is the medium through which the message passes. Media/Channel can be written media or oral media. Oral media include face-to-face conversation, dictaphone, telephone, recording, radio meeting, conference etc. The channel may be a visual channel like slides, neon hoarding, posters etc. Television, documentaries, films represent audio-visual channels.
Feedback is an alienable part in the communication process. Since communication is a two-way process, it is essential that complete information must go back to the communicator so that he is able to assess the impact of his message. The sending back of the reply in return for the message received is what is termed as ‘feedback’. Appropriate feedback enables the sender to make the necessary changes in his message so as to make his communication successful and effective.
Essential factors to be considered while initiating communication to achieve the purpose of Communication: Clarity: Information: Completeness:
The subject matter to be communicated must be adequate and full which enables the receiver to understand the central theme or idea of the message. Incompleteness in the message may result in misunderstanding and this will further result in delay in the decision-making process.
Consistency: The message transmitted should not be contradictory. The subject matter of the communication is said to be consistent when it is in agreement with the objectives and policies.
Feedback: It is the key to effective communication. Knowing about the acceptance or otherwise of the message transmitted is the most important method of improving communication. This enables the sender to ascertain whether or not the receiver has properly understood the message. Interface and interaction are possible in feedback. It avoids errors in transmission of message and invokes effective participation.
BUT, this is where the Mass Media fail. Except a mild ‘Letters to the Editor’ or Phone in Programmes where some element of interaction with the viewer is possible, the A-V medium is a one way medium.
This is the very reason it becomes a one-way medium which in the ultimate cultivates a ‘Passive audience.’
In a nutshell, communication can best be described as the word which is used to describe the different ways in which people affect one another. Now, we have Technology as a major constant that gives new dynamism to what come through technology driven items like – Radio, TV, Internet etc..
The three major components of any communication are the source or SENDER, the MESSAGE, the destination or the RECEIVER. Any communication presupposes that the sender must be equipped enough to successfully transmit the message in a manner which will enable the receiver to relate to and understand.
SOURCE ----- ENCODED ----- CHANNELS ----- DECODED ----- RECEIVED AT DESTINATION
These are the normal components in any communication. A sender can ‘encode’ a message and the receiver can only ‘decode’ the message in terms of their own experience and knowledge. This is where shared experience assumes importance. Only where this sharing or commonality exists, can there be any meaningful communication. If there is no shared ground of experience, then communication becomes virtually impossible. Common knowledge and experience provide the connecting link.
Elements of Communication:
Message: This is the subject matter of communication and may involve any fact, idea, opinion, figure, feeling, attitude or course of action including information. It exists in the mind of the communicator. Transmitter; is the sender of the message, the communicator; he conceives and initiates the message. He is the driving force behind the change in the behaviour of the receiver.
Encoding: The process of conversion of subject matter into symbols is called encoding. Transmission of the message requires the use of certain symbols. In the encoding process, ideas, facts, feelings, opinions etc are translated into signs, symbols, words, actions, pictures and audio-visuals to suit the receiver and the medium.
That is, in the case of NEWS, for example, the manner in which it is packaged by the Print Media, Radio and Television to suit their priorities and the receptivity of their audiences, alters the way in which we accept the implications of a piece of NEWS.
Communication channel: This is the medium through which the message passes. Media/Channel can be written media or oral media. Oral media include face-to-face conversation, dictaphone, telephone, recording, radio meeting, conference etc. The channel may be a visual channel like slides, neon hoarding, posters etc. Television, documentaries, films represent audio-visual channels.
Feedback is an alienable part in the communication process. Since communication is a two-way process, it is essential that complete information must go back to the communicator so that he is able to assess the impact of his message. The sending back of the reply in return for the message received is what is termed as ‘feedback’. Appropriate feedback enables the sender to make the necessary changes in his message so as to make his communication successful and effective.
Essential factors to be considered while initiating communication to achieve the purpose of Communication: Clarity: Information: Completeness:
The subject matter to be communicated must be adequate and full which enables the receiver to understand the central theme or idea of the message. Incompleteness in the message may result in misunderstanding and this will further result in delay in the decision-making process.
Consistency: The message transmitted should not be contradictory. The subject matter of the communication is said to be consistent when it is in agreement with the objectives and policies.
Feedback: It is the key to effective communication. Knowing about the acceptance or otherwise of the message transmitted is the most important method of improving communication. This enables the sender to ascertain whether or not the receiver has properly understood the message. Interface and interaction are possible in feedback. It avoids errors in transmission of message and invokes effective participation.
BUT, this is where the Mass Media fail. Except a mild ‘Letters to the Editor’ or Phone in Programmes where some element of interaction with the viewer is possible, the A-V medium is a one way medium.
This is the very reason it becomes a one-way medium which in the ultimate cultivates a ‘Passive audience.’
Saturday, March 24, 2007
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