[Television] is not a tool by which the networks conspire to dumb us down. TV is a tool by which the networks give us exactly what we want. That's a far more depressing thought. -- "The Vent," The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Jan. 19, 1999.
Below are three essay questions – one worth fifty (50) points out of a hundred, and two shorter essays worth 25 points each. Please write at least two pages double-spaced (500 words) on the 50-point essay and at least one page (250 words) on each of the 25-point short essays. Use plenty of detail from your reading in the textbook, the internet and posts to our class blog, as well as class discussion, to back up the points you make. (Indicate your sources and page numbers, where appropriate, in parentheses.) Your grade will depend both on your analysis of the broad trends I ask about, and on the specific detail you cite in support of the points you make. I am primarily interested in the specific factual arguments you make to support your points. So be specific. Remember: An unsupported generalization is sudden death in college-level writing. Due in class Wednesday, Nov. 2.
1. Main essay (50 points). In a discussion of mass media theory in our textbook "The Media of Mass Communication," author John Vivian says, "[online] communication shifts much of the control of the communication through the mass media to the recipient, turning the traditional process of mass communication on its head" (47). Elsewhere, he suggests, "With user-generated content, the Internet has democratized the mass media by enabling anyone with a computer and a modem to become a mass communicator" (193). How is the World Wide Web transforming the print media, i.e. books, magazines and newspapers? How is it changing the way you learn about the world around us?
2A. Short essay (25 points). John Vivian defines what he calls "demassification" as a "[p]rocess of media narrowing focus to audience niches" (100). How did demassification help the magazine industry better compete with broadcast media for advertising revenue after the 1970s? How has demassification given television advertisers more choices as the industry makes the transition from "terrestial" to cable networks? How do radio advertisers use formats to target audience segments?
2B. Self-reflective essay (25 points). What have you learned about mass communications in this class so far that you didn’t know before? Consider what you knew at the beginning of the course and what you know now. What point or points stand out most clearly to you? What points are still confusing? In grading the essay, I will evaluate the relevance of your discussion to the main goals and objectives of the course; the detail you cite to support or illustrate your points; and the connections you make.
2B. Self-reflective essay (25 points). What have you learned about mass communications in this class so far that you didn’t know before? Consider what you knew at the beginning of the course and what you know now. What point or points stand out most clearly to you? What points are still confusing? In grading the essay, I will evaluate the relevance of your discussion to the main goals and objectives of the course; the detail you cite to support or illustrate your points; and the connections you make.
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