Question 1

_____________ is the study of how economic and other influences on the way news is produced distort and bias news coverage toward those in power.
A) Symbolic interaction
B) Social construction of reality
C) The Frankfurt School
D) News production research

Accepted Answer

News production research examines how economic factors and power structures influence the way news is produced and presented. This includes analyzing the role of media ownership, advertising revenue, and government influence in shaping news coverage. The other options listed are related to different areas of sociological research and are not specifically focused on studying news production bias.

Question 2

Selective exposure predicts that people will interpret messages in a manner consistent with their preexisting attitudes and beliefs.

Accepted Answer

Selective exposure theory suggests that people will seek out information or media that aligns with their preexisting attitudes and beliefs, rather than interpreting messages in a manner consistent with those attitudes and beliefs.

Question 3

The idea that media don't tell us what to think,but what to think about,is called dependency theory because people are dependent on media for information.

Accepted Answer

This idea is called the Agenda-Setting Theory, which suggests that media shapes the public agenda by influencing what topics are considered important. Dependency theory, on the other hand, deals with the relationship between developed and developing countries, focusing on the dependence of the latter on the former.

Question 4

Marxism rests on the belief that people are oppressed by those who own the factories and the land-the means of production,or
A) base.
B) superstructure.
C) cultural assumption.
D) commune.

Accepted Answer

The concept of oppression by the owners of the means of production is a fundamental aspect of the Marxist theory of economic and social relations, known as the base-superstructure model. According to this model, the means of production form the base of society, and the superstructure (including politics, culture, and ideology) is determined by the economic base. The ownership of the means of production is therefore a key factor in shaping social relations and class conflict. The other options are not directly related to this aspect of Marxist theory.

Question 5

Mass society theory is an example of a middle-range theory.

Accepted Answer

Mass society theory is considered a macro-level theory because it deals with large-scale social processes and the effects of mass media and mass culture on society as a whole, rather than focusing on specific phenomena within a limited context, which is characteristic of middle-range theories.

Question 6

The theory of _____________ says that television constructs a reality of the world that,although possibly inaccurate,becomes the accepted reality simply because we as a culture believe it to be true.
A) social construction of reality
B) cultivation analysis
C) symbolic interaction
D) product positioning

Accepted Answer

The theory of cultivation analysis suggests that the repeated exposure to media messages shapes and constructs an individual's perception and understanding of reality. As a result, even if the reality portrayed on television may be inaccurate, it becomes accepted as true because it is the reality that the audience has been repeatedly exposed to.

Question 7

In two-step flow theory,the power of media to change attitudes and behaviors is thought to be enhanced through the intervention of opinion leaders.

Accepted Answer

The answer of In two-step flow theory,the power of media...

Question 8

The fundamental assumption of dependency theory is that audience members' dependency on the media and their messages heightens the media's power.

Accepted Answer

Dependency theory argues that audience members rely on the media to shape their perceptions and ideas about the world, and as a result, the media wields significant power in shaping public opinion and attitudes. Therefore, the statement that audience members' dependency on the media heightens the media's power is true according to the assumptions of dependency theory.

Question 9

What three factors have historically led to shifts in mass communication theory?

Accepted Answer

The answer of What three factors have historically led to...

Question 10

Neo-Marxist theory focuses on the elite's control of the base,or means of production.

Accepted Answer

Neo-Marxist theory focuses on the elite's control of the superstructure, or means of cultural production.

Question 11

Social cognitive theorists consider identification to be a special form of imitation.

Accepted Answer

Social cognitive theory emphasizes that individuals learn by observing and imitating models who they identify with. Identification refers to the process in which an individual associates themselves with a model and adopts their behaviors, attitudes, and values as their own. Therefore, identification can be seen as a more complex and personal form of imitation where the individual seeks to emulate the model's characteristics and traits.

Question 12

Modern neo-Marxist mass communication theorists believe that people are oppressed by those who control the culture,or _____________;in other words,religion,politics,arts,literature,and the mass media.
A) base
B) superstructure
C) cultural assumption
D) communistic

Accepted Answer

According to modern neo-Marxist mass communication theorists, people are oppressed by those who control the culture or superstructure, which includes religion, politics, arts, literature, and the mass media. The base refers to the economic system and ownership of the means of production, and cultural assumption and communistic are not the correct terms to describe the theory.

Question 13

The uses and gratifications approach is interested in what people do with media rather than in what media do to people.

Accepted Answer

The statement is true. The uses and gratifications approach focuses on understanding the motivations and goals behind why individuals choose to consume certain media, rather than studying the direct effects that media may have on individuals.

Question 14

What is meant by middle-range theory?

Accepted Answer

The answer of What is meant by middle-range theory?...

Question 15

What assumptions are embedded in magic bullet theory and hypodermic needle theory?

Accepted Answer

The answer of What assumptions are embedded in magic bullet...

Question 16

_____________ theories rely on the idea that the media operate primarily to justify and support the status quo at the expense of ordinary people.
A) Social scientific
B) Cultivation
C) British cultural
D) Critical cultural

Accepted Answer

Critical cultural theories, also known as critical theories of the media, argue that the media are not neutral, but rather are controlled by corporations and other powerful institutions that use them to perpetuate their own interests and maintain the existing social, economic, and political order. They see the media as complicit in the oppression of marginalized groups, and seek to raise awareness of this and encourage resistance to it.

Question 17

In social construction of reality theory,collections of meanings that individuals assign to specific phenomena and situations are called typification schemes.

Accepted Answer

In social construction of reality theory, typification schemes refer to collections of meanings or categories that individuals assign to specific phenomena and situations.

Question 18

The daily time and cost demands of U.S.journalism result in newspapers and broadcasts composed of a large number of brief,capsulated stories with little room for perspective and context,resulting in _____________ news.
A) personalized
B) dramatized
C) fragmented
D) normalized

Accepted Answer

The use of "brief, capsulated stories" implies that the news is not given in-depth coverage, and the statement that there is "little room for perspective and context" suggests that the news is fragmented and lacks coherence. Therefore, the best choice is C) fragmented news.

Question 19

Critical cultural theory typically finds its intellectual home in conservative political circles.

Accepted Answer

Critical cultural theory generally finds its intellectual home in progressive, left-leaning political circles. It is used to analyze power structures and systems of oppression, critique dominant narratives and cultural norms, and advocate for social justice and equity.

Question 20

The belief foremost in cultivation analysis is that because we all share a common public message system (television),the _____________ of reality occurs,moving individual and different people toward a shared,television-created understanding of how things are.
A) mean world
B) resonance
C) mainstreaming
D) positioning

Accepted Answer

Cultivation analysis theory suggests that heavy television viewing leads to an erosion of differences in people's perspectives, resulting in a more uniform perception of reality, a phenomenon known as "mainstreaming."

Quiz 13: Theories and Effects of Mass Communication

_____________ is the study of how economic and other influences on the way news is produced distort and bias news coverage toward those in power.

Selective exposure predicts that people will interpret messages in a manner consistent with their preexisting attitudes and beliefs.

The idea that media don't tell us what to think,but what to think about,is called dependency theory because people are dependent on media for information.

Marxism rests on the belief that people are oppressed by those who own the factories and the land-the means of production,or

Mass society theory is an example of a middle-range theory.

The theory of _____________ says that television constructs a reality of the world that,although possibly inaccurate,becomes the accepted reality simply because we as a culture believe it to be true.