Question 1

What part of Stuart Hall's theory resembles the magic bullet model?

Accepted Answer

Stuart Hall's theory shares the assumption with the magic bullet model that specific ideological messages are loaded into cultural products and that audiences will be influenced in predictable ways by these messages.

Question 2

Which of the following activities is NOT part of a fan's relationship with a celebrity?

Accepted Answer

EReading about celebrities in class (D) is generally not considered a part of a fan's relationship with a celebrity, as it might be part of an academic curriculum rather than a personal interest or fan activity. Stalking a celebrity (E) is not a legitimate part of fan behavior; it is a criminal activity and is considered harassment rather than a form of support or admiration.

Question 3

A wildly popular subgenre of fan fiction takes the emotional connection between male "buddies," like Starsky and Hutch or Frodo and Samwise, and turns it into a physically intimate connection, presenting the pair as lovers. What is this called?

Accepted Answer

This is called "slash" fan fiction, which originates from the "/" symbol used to denote a romantic or sexual relationship between fictional characters.

Question 4

The producers, writers, and actors of Die Hard meant for the audience to cheer for the protagonist, a blue collar hero who defeats a team of German terrorists single-handedly. If you met someone who instead was rooting for Hans Gruber, the murderous leader of the terrorists, you could say that she was:

Accepted Answer

The person is decoding the movie differently than it was encoded, meaning they have interpreted the narrative and character motivations differently than intended by the creators. This is a common phenomenon in media consumption and can be influenced by personal experiences and perspectives. It does not necessarily mean that the person is being used or brainwashed by the media.

Question 5

The English music star Morrissey got his start in the band The Smiths, singing about radical vegetarianism and bisexuality in the 1980s. He was effeminate, bleak, and sarcastic. Today, his fan base has expanded far beyond the disaffected English teenagers who bought his original records. In fact, some of his most devoted fans are Hispanics in Southern California. How is it possible that British teenagers in the 1980s and Hispanic Californians can appreciate the same music?

Accepted Answer

The two groups may bring different cultural and personal experiences to the music, leading them to interpret Morrissey's message differently. However, they still find meaning and enjoyment in the music. This highlights the diversity of interpretations that can arise from music and the importance of understanding different perspectives.

Question 6

What is a group of like-minded individuals called that shares a similar sensibility and enjoys cultural products in similar ways?

Accepted Answer

An interpretive community is a group of individuals who share a common understanding of a particular text or cultural product. They engage in discussions and debate about the meaning of the text and how it relates to their own experiences and beliefs. This can include literature, film, music, art, and other forms of media.

Question 7

Which theory of media consumption combines elements of both the magic bullet theory and the uses and gratifications theory?

Accepted Answer

Stuart Hall's encoding/decoding model combines elements of the magic bullet theory, which suggests media messages are received and wholly accepted by the audience, and the uses and gratifications theory, which proposes that audiences actively seek out media to satisfy various needs, by acknowledging that media texts are encoded with certain meanings by their producers but can be decoded in different ways by audiences depending on social contexts and individual interpretations.

Question 8

In the 1990s, kids who chanted, "I want to be like Mike!" to express their admiration for Michael Jordan had:

Accepted Answer

Kids who chanted "I want to be like Mike!" had a role model relationship with a celebrity, expressing their admiration for Michael Jordan as a positive influence and setting an example worth following.

Question 9

When fans of the original Star Trek series edit recorded episodes of the TV show to make it appear that Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock are passionate gay lovers, they are doing all the following EXCEPT what?

Accepted Answer

The act of editing episodes to make it appear that Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock are gay lovers is not an example of agenda setting, as they are not trying to push a specific political or social agenda. However, it does involve textual poaching, subverting the meaning of the original product, being an active audience, and expressing an ideology very different from the one the show's producers encoded in the original "text".

Question 10

According to John Caughey, what is the contemporary American equivalent of interacting with gods, spirits, or ancestors?

Accepted Answer

John Caughey suggests that the contemporary American equivalent of interacting with gods, spirits, or ancestors is the relationships between fans and celebrities. This is because, similar to how people in traditional societies would seek blessings or guidance from deities or ancestors, many people today look up to and seek inspiration from celebrities.

Question 11

According to the two-step flow model, which of the following would be most likely to sway public opinion concerning the ethical treatment of farm animals?

Accepted Answer

The two-step flow model suggests that opinion leaders, such as a famous actress, influence public opinion by interpreting media content and then passing it on to others. A billboard with a famous actress would likely have a strong impact due to her influence.

Question 12

When audience members manipulate commercially produced media products, often to tell stories or express ideas very different from the original, they are doing what Henry Jenkins called:

Accepted Answer

Henry Jenkins coined the term "textual poaching" to describe the way in which audience members appropriate and manipulate commercial media products to suit their own interests, often in ways that are different from the intentions of the original creators. This can involve creating fan fiction, remixing videos or music, or using memes to express ideas or emotions.

Question 13

If, as Stanley Fish argues, an individual reader interprets a text and thereby gives it meaning, then there are an infinite number of potential meanings for any given text. Why, then, do so many people interpret things in the same ways?

Accepted Answer

People tend to consume texts that are relevant to their life experiences and cultural background, which can lead to shared interpretive frameworks. Additionally, dominant cultural norms and values can shape interpretations of texts, creating a commonly accepted understanding of meaning. However, there can still be variations in interpretation even within similar cultural frameworks.

Question 14

Although critics might see soap operas as brainwashing their viewers to accept a particular version of gender roles, some sociologists would insist that the people who produce soap operas actually have to be constantly attentive to the desires of their audience and are to some extent responding to the audience. If you believe this, then you probably see soap opera viewers as:

Accepted Answer

The phrase "constantly attentive to the desires of their audience" suggests that the soap opera viewers are an active audience, which means they are not passive and have agency in their relationship with media. Therefore, the best choice is D, "an active audience."

Question 15

In 2008, to celebrate the release of Lawrence Lessig's book, Bloomsbury Academic Press hosted a competition called Remix the Remixer. Entrants were asked to find a video, interview, or written work of Lessig's, mash it up with another piece of Lessig's work, and create something new-a video, photo, or text. What is this sort of artistic activity called?

Accepted Answer

This sort of artistic activity is called textual poaching. It involves taking elements from one or more sources and remixing them to create something new. In this case, entrants were asked to remix Lawrence Lessig's work to create a new piece of art.

Question 16

In his study of British television, The Nationwide Audience, David Morley argued that the success or failure of a television program "in transmitting the preferred or dominant meaning will depend on whether it encounters readers" with "codes and ideologies derived from other institutional areas (e.g. churches or schools) which correspond to and work in parallel with those of the program or whether it encounters readers" with beliefs "drawn from other areas or institutions (e.g. trade unions or 'deviant' subcultures) which conflict to a greater or lesser extent with those of the program." Which theory of mass media consumption is Morley using?

Accepted Answer

Morley is using the encoding/decoding model, which suggests that the meaning of a media message is not fixed and is open to interpretation by the audience. Morley argues that the audience's interpretation of a program is influenced by their own codes and ideologies, which may be in line with or in conflict with those of the program.

Question 17

A series of polls in 2003 showed that people who primarily got their news from the Fox News Channel were significantly more likely to believe that Iraq had played a part in the 9/11 attacks. Many people saw this as evidence of the way the media shaped public opinion, but some believed that those who already believed this simply gravitated to Fox. This is an example of:

Accepted Answer

This is an example of reinforcement theory, which suggests that media can reinforce existing beliefs and attitudes, rather than changing them. In this case, viewers who already believed Iraq was involved in 9/11 might have been drawn to Fox News, which reinforced their existing beliefs.

Question 18

Stanley Fish argues against older understandings of media and literature, which held that a text is unchanging and universal. But although he argues that each member of an audience can interpret and so "create" a work, he doesn't claim that each audience member has absolute freedom to interpret in unique ways because:

Accepted Answer

Stanley Fish argues that each member of an audience is not completely free to interpret a work in any way they choose because they are part of a larger interpretive community. This community shares common assumptions, values, and ways of reading and understanding texts. Therefore, while each member of the community may bring their own perspective and experiences to a text, they are also influenced by the interpretive framework of the community to which they belong.

Question 19

Henry Jenkins argues that, while any piece of media could become the object of textual poaching, some are far more likely to do so. Specifically, he argues that textual poaching is most likely when there is a prolonged relationship with a particular narrative universe that is rich and complex enough to sustain interest over time. This encourages the media to be more attentive to audiences and use the Internet to solicit feedback, as well as to monitor unsolicited fan responses to products. Which of the following is an example of the media using feedback?

Accepted Answer

Choice B specifically mentions creators going online to respond to fan feedback, which is an example of the media using feedback. The other choices either discuss the economic value of intellectual property, legal issues surrounding fan fiction, or the conflict between free speech and copyright.

Question 20

Every year Project Censored posts a list of the twenty-five most censored news stories. These stories are "censored" not in the sense that the media are legally prohibited from covering them, but rather in the sense that most major media outlets have systematically ignored them and, in the process, determined what the public will think about. What theory explains this?

Accepted Answer

Agenda-setting theory suggests that the media has the power to shape public opinion by choosing which stories to cover and how to present them. The fact that major media outlets systematically ignore certain stories, as in the case of the most censored news stories, is evidence of this agenda-setting power.

Quiz 13: Leisure and Media