Audience Effects Theory

 1) Write a definition of a passive audience: 

Passive means that audiences passively take in information from the media and that these messages have the same effect on everyone.

2) Write a definition of an active audience: 

 more modern and generally accepted view that audiences interact with and make conscious choices regarding the media they consume.

3) Write a definition of the hypodermic needle theory: 

This is the suggestion that audiences are always passive and therefore take the intended message from the producer as if it was injected into their minds. This assumes no individual difference in audience members. 

4) Write down a media product for each category of Blumler and Katz's Uses and Gratifications theory and WHY it fits that particular audience use/gratification: 

INFORMATION/SURVEILLANCE: 
 > Why: 

PERSONAL IDENTITY:
 > Why:  

DIVERSION/ENTERTAINMENT: 
 > Why:

RELATIONSHIPS:
 > Why: 

5) Re-watch the clip from Blue Planet above and write a paragraph analysing how elements of the clip offer the audience pleasures or gratifications (use media terminology from Uses and Gratifications theory and the 3 Vs - notes outlined above). 

The preferred reader of this advert would think that the ice cream is luxury's because there are gems floating on top the ice cream whereas the opposite reading of this would be that the ice cream is bad for you and can ruin your teeth and give you medical problems such as diabetes. The negotiated reading of this advert is that this is good for a treat but it is bad for your teeth.