Sunday 20 November 2016

Effects Models for Music Magazines

The Hypodermic Needle Model

This model is a model of communications suggesting that the intended message is directly received and wholly accepted by the receiver. This is an outdated view of media effects. This effect is the idea that the media 'injects' it's passive viewers/audience with their message, which immediately affects the audience. Furthermore, this model brings about the idea that the viewers cannot escape the media's influence.
The Hypodermic Needle Model applies in the context of music magazines in that main images and headlines on the front cover of a music magazine captivates the intended audience therefore meaning that any message within the magazine is accepted by the reader. Furthermore, if the reader is the music magazine's target audience, for example an indie-pop magazine, these indie-pop fans will be more likely to be accepting of any of the messages within the magazine and therefore be easily influenced.


Two-step flow

This model focuses on the people with the most access to media, and highest media literacy explain and diffuse the content to others. This is a modern version of the hypodermic needle model. 'Cool' people are viewed as the opinion leaders and the 'uncool' people are the opinion followers.
This model follows on from the Hypodermic Needle Model but is more advanced as media developed in that it had selective influences on people. This model assumes that influences flow from mass media to the audience of opinion leaders or the 'cool' people and then onto the opinion followers/'uncool'. Therefore, this model suggests that mass media does not influence people as effectively anymore as it isn't as direct but instead connections amongst the audience alongside selective exposure are the main reasons for any influence from the media.
The Two-step flow model in relation to music magazines implies that the music magazines themselves are the 'cool' people and the 'uncool' people'  are the consumers/readers of the magazine.

Uses and Gratifications

This model reflects on the idea that individuals are not victims of mass media but use the media intentionally for specific gratifications. This model researches individuals to understand how and why they seek specific media to meet their specific needs. The model is audience-centred in they way it only focuses on what people do with the media that they consume, this then helps to advance their understanding of mass communication. Uses and Gratifications model is referred to the dominant model. This model in terms of music magazines is applied through music magazines researching and developing their target audience to gain a better understanding of what the audience wants to then apply to their magazine to meet the audiences specific needs.

Reception Theory

The reception theory comes from the reader response literary theory, it places an emphasis on individual's interpretations of a type of media. This theory takes on the readers interpretation of a text rather than the text itself or the intentions of the author which is linked to the "Death of the Author" theory. This theory also links in with the post-modern theory. The Reception Theory represents that a text, in this case a music magazine, is not actively accepted by the audience but they interpret different meanings of the text based off their background and life experiences. Overall the meaning of the text is not within the text itself but within the relationship of the text and the reader.
The Reception Theory applies to music magazines through the individual music magazine's target audience as the articles/text within the magazine would be written and adapted to match the desired relationship of the text and reader. By doing this the reader is more likely to purchase the music magazine to read the article that can be easily interpreted.

Obstinate audience theory

The Obstinate audience theory suggests that due to the audience/reader being selective in what messages they want to pay attention to, the producers of music magazines are using media to actively find what the audience wants through what they like to see within the music magazine. This applies to music magazines with a specific genre, such as indie-pop, in that the magazine would use surveys or media similar to find out what features of the indie-pop magazine are appealing to the audience and what they want to see more of; this magazine can then incorporate their findings and therefore meet the needs of their consumers.

Drip Drip Drip Effect/Cultivation Differential

The Cultivation Differential theory states that mass media influences our attitudes through our interpretations as an audience of messages produced that then change or adapt our world view of the message. An example of this is that we, as audiences, begin to become convinced that certain things are desirable or 'cool' due to media reinforcing this idea repeatedly. This applies to music magazines in that they may incorporate a certain artist repeatedly or a specific article with a reoccurring theme, such as records, which audiences then interpret as a popular subject and therefore 'cool' or desirable.


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