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Media Essay Final

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79 views2 pages

Media Essay Final

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Lucy Martyn

Evaluate the usefulness of the Cultivation theory in understanding audiences for online
newspapers such as The Guardian and The Daily Mail. [10 marks]

The cultivation theory was developed by George Gerbner in 1976 and was later expanded upon by
Gerber and Gross. The cultivation theory examines the long term effects of television and how it can
easily influence the audience. The theory also argues that the media generally presents an image of
the world that does not reflect reality.

A study that took place in 2004 that was conducted by Jennings Bryant and Dorina Miron, found that
cultivation theory was the third most frequently used theories. This theory has been tested over
time to see how accurate it is, one of the most commonly known experiments was where theorists
asked a number of college students to watch a lot of television and then got another group to watch
a smaller amount. The group of students who watched more television that mainly consisted of
action and adventure programmes were found to be more fearful of life in the everyday world than
the ones of watched less television. This showed that television over time was having a slight effect
on those students. Gerbner’s cultivation theory is very different in comparison to the hypodermic
needle theory, this is because the cultivation theory reinforces the audiences opinions and beliefs
whereas the hypodermic needle theory can completely change the audience’s beliefs and opinions.

The cultivation theory in its most basic form suggests that television is reasonable for shaping,
‘cultivating’ viewers’ conceptions of social reality. The effect of mass television exposure over time
subtly shapes the perception of social reality for individual viewers and untimely for our culture as a
whole. Gerbner has argued that television tends to cultivate middle of the road political
perspectives.

To some degree this is useful for politicians and people in the media who are trying to either win
something or convey across their point/perspective on something. According to the cultivation
theory if something is streamed or consumed by viewer enough it can help to reinforce outstanding
beliefs and opinions and politicians and people in the media can use this to their advantage and help
to strengthen their status in society or in their business. Due to current technology the public can
consume the news online, a lot of newspapers these days can be streamed online. If these
newspapers produce news that is aimed at their target audience and addresses their beliefs this can
help to strengthen and reinforce their outstanding beliefs. For example the Daily Mail, this is a very
right wing, pro-Royal, ‘middle of the road’ newspaper with a broad base readership. So if this paper
publishes opinions and beliefs that are aimed at people who read the Daily Mail it can reinforce and
strengthen their beliefs and opinions and can make them vote for certain political parties.

Where as the Guardian is a left wing intellectual paper with incisive left wing political rhetoric. One
of the differences between the Daily Mail and the Guardian is the quality of the writing. The writing
in the Daily Mail mainly consists of a tabloid nature and the Guardian is a primarily broadsheet
paper, similar to the right wing influence papers – The Daily Telegraph and The Times. The other left
wing broadsheet paper is The Observer which is also a left wing influence, The Observer is a much
more art lead paper in comparison to The Guardian which is primarily concerned with reporting
political commentary and news.

If you have any political leanings, you are inclined to read the newspapers that most closely match
your political viewpoint. Compared to the differences in the mainstream newspapers, there is a
similarity in the structure of mainstream television. Historically the BBC has always had intellectual
left wing leanings compared to ITV which traditionally has always reached out to a more mainstream
Lucy Martyn

‘middle of the road’ / right wing audience, and this is reflected in the nature of the television
programmes that both those channels portray.

In summary therefore, the cultivation theory outlines, as described above, the differential between
written media and televised media. On a broad basis, audiences are lead towards supporting reading
or watching the channels/newspapers that reinforce their long established political beliefs either
consciously or subconsciously.

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