Uses and gratifications

  • What does the theory suggest?

Instead of researching what the media does to the audience, this approach studies what the audience does with the media. This approach also takes accounts of peoples personalities and personal needs, etc.

  • Strengths of this approach?

The audience is seen as active, and reasonably intelligent. Life experience in general is regarded as more influential than the experience of media. The pleasures that the media offer audiences are not regarded as negative!

  • Weaknesses of this approach?

Too much optimism about the ‘power’ and ‘choices; of an active audience can distract us from the power certain texts have, or the influence that media institutions and ownership may have on texts and understandings.

Reception analysis and ethnography

  • What does the theory suggest?

Audiences are seen active producers of meaning, rather than as merely consumers of media meanings. They make sense of media texts according to their social position( in terms of their identity) and their gender, race, age and class/

  • Strengths of this approach?

This approach values highly the specific, personal and contextualized responses of individuals and groups. People’s life experiences are important influences which enable them to make active choices as members of media audiences.

  • Weaknesses of this approach?

Similar problems to the uses and gratifications approach in that more emphasis is given to the responses and reading of the audience rather than to the institution aspects of media. Some researchers can get sidetracked into analyzing audience lifestyles.