Welcome back to my blog! In my second blogpost, I will be sharing my opinions on the effects of media.
The media is constantly evolving as technology advances. It is so prevalent in our society today as almost everyone in this day and age are using it. It can be used for a widespread of purposes such as for entertainment, education, businesses and even for political uses.
What is wrong with the ‘media effects’ model?
David Gauntlett mentioned a few interesting points about the flaws in the media effects model. One of the point he mentioned was how most of the media effects model used methods that are unfair or wrong. There are flaws in their experiment, which means that the end results might not be reliable.
An example will be the Bandura’s Media Effects theory, which was explained in class. Bandura was trying to prove that when children watches violent things, it will make them violent. Firstly, I feel that it is unethical to use children for the experiment as their minds are not fully developed yet. The experiment itself should also show a video of the adult hugging the doll. You’ll never know but maybe the children might hug the doll too? I also feel that the reason why the children portray violence was because they were just trying to please the adults that instructed them to “play” with the doll. Children hitting dolls does not mean that they will hit humans too, as dolls and humans are totally different.
Another way to look at this will be a kid watching violent video games and show signs of aggression behaviour towards others. Without a doubt, many people might assume that it is because of the video game that makes him like this. Honestly, I feel that it is not always the case as they might be many other factors that contribute to one’s behaviour. What if the kid comes from an abusive family? Or maybe he is a neglected child who just needs parental guidance? This shows that what we see is only superficial.
When I was younger, me and my brother watched movies such as SAW, which depicts really violent scenes. We both showed no signs of violent behaviours. We live in a generation that allows us to view any media even though it is “restricted”. I believe that instead of “hiding” it, adults should teach children what is right and what is wrong. With that, I feel that violent shows is not the main reason why children become violent. It is merely just a trigger factor.
In my opinion, with the media being such a high profit industry, I feel that it is impossible to stop them from broadcasting shows that might seem too violent for children. This is because there are viewers who like violent shows as they might feel that it is a form of art, while there are also viewers who would prefer watching typical dramas. With that, it is impractical to remove genres that other people like. We should work on correcting one’s violent behaviour, as the main issue might be a psychological problem instead.
What are some interesting questions to ask about the role of media today, in the shaping of mass opinion?
Here are some questions that I think are relevant:
- What are the roles of us (user) when it comes to using media today? How do we use media responsibly?
- How can our role help the community? Will it help us progress better in the future of media?
- How do we know the accuracy of the content shown to us from the media?
Thank you for reading! 🙂
jy 
Hey Jing Ying its Darren here! I like your personal recounts about violence in the media as I’m sure we all grew up watching shows like Tom and Jerry. Even though basically every episode has Tom acting on on Jerry some way or another we did not learn from it and apply it to our lives by torturing animals. I’ve also watched SAW when I was just around secondary school so that’s another thing we have in common, quite the torture and gore show with a twist of genius nearing the later movies I must say. Perhaps you could have wrote more about correcting violence as a psychological issue, I was quite interested to read on about it but it had ended.
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Hey JY! Gillian here! Your blog is very well written and your points are brought up in a very clear, neat manner! I especially like and agree with your points that the media is a very “high profit industry” and that there are high viewer demands for violent shows.
I can’t really think of anything you need to improve on in your blog so I’ll just say that maybe you could also include a brief section explaining what “media effects” are? Just for propriety’s sake or something. Anyway, your blog was a great read! Good luck with the rest of your blog posts!
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Hello JY! Nice to see a familiar face again in SIM 🙂
I agree with the various points you’ve raised in your post. Regarding the Bobo Doll experiment conducted by Bandura, I agree that the study can’t assume that the children’s violent’ behavior towards Bobo Doll would be reproduced towards humans. In fact, Bobo Doll is designed to be hit and this so-called ‘act of aggression’ is being grouped in a similar category as the act of violence televised on TV. This makes the data of the study murky. I also agree that we should correct violent behaviors observed instead of blaming it on the genre of the movie. I personally love action-packed movies filled with violence because I love fighting scenes, however, I’m not a violent person (i think. jk, i’m really not)
Hope we can cover the questions you’ve raised in class. Your view on the ‘media effects’ model is very insightful which shows that you did some reflection on what we learned in class. I think it would be a cherry on top if a solid example were given to explain your points. Other than that, excellent work!
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Hi JY! I really like the examples that you have given as they are clearly explained and easily understandable. I agree that people are always quick to blame the media, without giving much thought about the background of the perpetrators that has a greater contribution to their behaviour.
It’s also good that you input your own experiences and that your experience with watching violent shows in the media does not make someone violent and that it is just a trigger factor.
It is true that the media is a high profit industry, hence they may not care how it affects the behaviour in real life of those watching. It is also important for children to know what is right and wrong at a young age so that they are able to remember that their actions have consequences. Looking forward to discuss the questions in class!
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