Comm 10 Final Flashcards
(98 cards)
1
Q
Describe the changes of mass communication from the 20th C onwards
A
- Increase of significance
- More centralized and important part of our life (e.g., alarm from the phone –> check if anyone has texted you when youw ake up –> watch TV / listen to radio or music to get ready –> use the Internet to do school / work –> use the phone to navigate back home –> unwind through watching TV)
- Mass media has such a large impact on our lives
2
Q
Give stats on the use of TV in the US
A
- 97% of TVs in our households
- The 3% are typically the most educated and rich, made a conscious decision to not have / use other screens like their latop instead
- Average American household has more TVs than people
3
Q
Typically, how long do college students spend on their phones a day?
A
3-6 hours
4
Q
Distinguish between content and medium functions
A
Content = The specific information supplied by the media
- E.g., People got newspapers prior to elections to serve as a vote guiding function (content was key here to learn more about the candidates and stances on key issues)
- E.g., Watching the weather channel to know how to dress (temperature, chance of rain etc.)
Medium = Conditions of its use
- E.g., Mating functions at the movie theatre = to get closer, first date spot, gives people something to talk about –> content of the movie is irrelevant and rather the medium is crucial
- E.g., Radio = brought family members together at the end of the day (whether it was a sport game, political speech etc.)
5
Q
Distinguish between manifest vs latent function
A
Manifest function = obvious, surface and intended
Latent function = hidden, maybe even subconscious function
- E.g., Couples listening to the news every morning on the radio during breakfast (manifest function = be aware of what is happening in the world whether it is weather or politics, latent function = having relationship troubles and helps to help them avoid fighting / arguing / not talking)
- E.g., Ad for a car on a magazine (manifest function = to sell the car, latent function - removing doubts from people who have already purchased the car)
6
Q
List the functions of mass media for society
A
- Status conferral
- Passing on and enforcing norms, values and traditions
- Narcotizing
- Services the political system
- Brings social cohesion and community
- Service the economy
7
Q
Status conferral - functions of mass media for society
A
Status conferral = media can confer status, legitimize on certain ideas, issues, people and social movements
- E.g., BLM protest videos being posted on social media, Tiktok videos on the war on Gaze
- E.g., Being on the cover of Vogue Magazine communicates importance and legitimacy
8
Q
Passing on and enforcing norms, values and traditions - functions of mass media for society
A
- Fictional and non-fictional media do this
- Reinforcing what is normative, right and wrong, justice and equality, traditions on what it means to be an American
- Learn what happens when people break these laws, enforcing compliance (e.g., Scared Straight)
- E.g., Sitcom like Girl Meets World = moral delivered of a kid who did something bad and was punished, like cheating on a test
9
Q
Narcotizing - functions of mass media for society
A
Negative!
- Media narcotizes people = distorts senses, acts like a drug
- Information overload with so much provided that there is no space to do anything about it
- Rots our brains with cognitive junk (entertaining, light, superficial vs substantive), e.g., cat videos
- Making the person more passive
- Media fails to discuss anything important, people are more encouraged to accept the status good
- Feel good, but nothing is going on “upstairs”
10
Q
Services the political system - functions of mass media for society
A
- Learn more about candidates through cable, newspaper, Internet
- Candidates also use mass media to communicate to the public (e.g., Trump and his use of X)
- Vast majority of people never see their leaders and only through the media, in comparison to before
11
Q
Brings social cohesion and community - functions of mass media for society
A
- Common base of focus and information
- Used to gather at the corner store to connect after work and now go on Instagram to be updated and text
brings us together - Gather around particular social website
- Most prominent during dramatic crisis (e.g., 9/11 – CNN is there for you, updating, providing reassurance, familiar figures like Anderson Cooper creating a sense of stability)
- TV shows bring people together, like people talking about the new episode of White Lotus
- Used to only have around 3 TV channels and despite expanding number, we all consume similar information
- No matter how obscure your interests, you can find other people through subreddits for example
12
Q
Secure the economy - functions of mass media for society
A
- Market reports in the news, advertising, jobs are produced
- E.g., E-Commerce websites like Amazon
13
Q
List the functions of mass media for individuals
A
- Guide our behavior
- Guide to understanding
- Develop our self-concept
- A professional tool
- Facilitate social interaction
- Substitute for social interaction
- Emotional release
- Ritualizing our lives
14
Q
Guide our behavior - functions of mass media for individuals
A
- E.g., Going to the weather app and seeing what you wear today
- E.g., What driving route to take on maps
- E.g., Guide for your life = how to behave through TV show and movies –> build up knowledge on how to behave and engage in romantic relationships
- e.g., Watching dance videos online to learn how to dance
15
Q
Guide to understanding - functions of mass media for individuals
A
- To get a grasp on the world, part of the social construction of reality
- Mean world syndrome = study showed that the more people spent time on TV, the stronger they believed that the world is a mean and scary place due to the violent content on TV
16
Q
Develop our self-concept - functions of mass media for individuals
A
- Help us understand ourselves by exploring reality (fictional and nonfunctional) in many different scenarios, some who we identify with (movie characters who are lawyers, doctors, singers)
- Through identification with others, we develop our self concept of who we are and who we want to be
- Studies sow that we pay more attention on people like us, similar in age, class, gender, race etc. (notice how they act and are acted upon). Increasing desire to expand roles given on the basis of race and gender
- Media can provide good and bad role models (people you want to be and never want to be like, Harvey Specter in Suits vs Regina George in Mean Girls)
17
Q
A professional tool - functions of mass media for individuals
A
- Used in your occupation
- E.g., Keeping up in your field through reading law journals
- Can help form connections with people in your profession through LinkedIn
18
Q
Facilitate social interaction - functions of mass media for individuals
A
- Giving you things to talk about with someone else, facilitates social interactions, giving a common ground for interaction (e.g., Severance episode)
- Facebook, Instagram, Reddit
- Can lead to physical meetups through dating apps like Hinge
19
Q
Substitute for social interaction - functions of mass media for individuals
A
- Vicarious type of companionship (watching the Late Night Show or FRIENDS home alone)
- Decrease of sexual activity in current generations in comparison to before due to the impact of online porn
20
Q
Emotional release - functions of mass media for individuals
A
- Media can be helpful in moving from an emotional state to another (e.g., feeling anxious –> distract yourself by your a favorite sitcom)
- Music is a powerful tool to alter people’s feelings
21
Q
Ritualizing our lives - functions of mass media for individuals
A
- Creating a sense of order, coherence, structure, giving a sense of securing
- E.g., Daily eating breakfast with the Today show
- Decreased overtime though. Now, the mass media alters to our schedule rather than vice-versa (e.g., stream sports game after it has happened)
22
Q
List the 5 storage issues for mass media
A
- Stored for editing distribution and access
1. Longevity
2. Capacity
3. Portability
4. Accessibility
5. Reproducibility
23
Q
Longevity - storage issues for mass media
A
= How long will it last?
- Films from silent era have already started decaying vs cave paintings are a form of mass media but lasted for thousands of years
- Longevity sacrificed for other factors like portability and capacity (cinema film stock from the 1900s has started disintegrating)
24
Q
Capacity - storage issues for mass media
A
= How much can be stored?
- Books and other print media can retain more information than those cave paintings but books more likely to decay
25
Portability - storage issues for mass media
= How far and easy can you take it?
- Moving content around
- E.g., Ebooks vs physical textbook vs cave paintings
*can be tied to capacity
26
Accessibility - storage issues for mass media
= How easy is it to get to the content?
- E.g., Battery charge needed VS book; VHS cassettes with movies can no longer transfer onto current devices
27
Reproducibility - storage issues for mass media
= How easily can you make copies?
- Before the invention of the printing press, books were rewrote by hand, laborious and time consuming
- Before the invention of the camera, art was also copied by hand and required people with artistic talent to reproduce
- Digital media has made this much easier, with perfect copies easily made but quality has been sacrificed for storage space reasons
28
Consequences of how media is stored (political, social and economical)
- Decentralization = initially, during cave paintings, they were concentrated in the hands of a few --> decentralization through the invention of papyrus (paper) because it led to easier in distribution and led to wide spread civilization
- Videos can lead to riots, scandals, etc.
- Old Tweets can ruin future gigs
29
Significance of going to the movies
- Separate but together, present but adrift, away from crises
- Universal first date experience
- Escape from personal life
30
What films do to us
- A giant mirror= reflection of our values, ideals, half-truths but largely through our emotions (fear, love)
- Few of us experience the total ruin of complexity in love except on the screen
- When the experience is something really intense, or larger than life --> "out of a movie"
- Our desires / expectations come from the movies (e.g., promposal from 10 Things I Hate About You)
- Mafia guys know how to talk / carry themselves after watching gangster films like The Godfather
- Less films have helped us define our culture
0
31
Persistence of vision
Refers to the way our eyes retain images for a split second longer than they actually appear, making a series of quick flashes appear as one continuous picture.
- Movies are series of motionless still frames than are presented in rapid succession
- Persistence of vision allows us to blend together → illusion of motion
32
List the timeline of progression for movies
1. Pictorial realism
2. Sustained narrative
3. Age of Griffith 1906-1916
4. Nickelodeons
5. 1910-1914: Motion Picture Patents Company (MPPC)
6. Hollywood
7. Film in the 1920s
8. Impact of sound on film industry
9. Golden Age of Hollywood 1930-1946
10. Post-World War II decline in film
11. Hollywood's response to the decline in film
12. New American Cinema 1960s
13. New American Cinema 1970s
33
Pictorial realism - progression of movies
- The first films focused on realistic depictions of motion
- Narrative was not emphasized
- E.g., Niagara falls = water cascading down (earliest movies)
- Short films, typically 1 minute
- Seen in arcades
34
Sustained narrative - progression of movies
- Around 10 minutes (creator did not believe audience had any longer of an attention span)
- E.g., Robbery on a train
- Films in arcades → projected in drug stores → motion picture theaters
35
Age of Griffith 1906-1916 - progression of movies
- First feature lengt films (longer), first film stars / directors / producers
- Griffith = set a style, pioneered a more natural acting style vs stage actors
- Griffith also made a lot of technical advancements like close-ups and parallel narratives, a prominent director at the time
36
Nickelodeon - progression of movies
- First in 1905 and 10,000 in 1910, spread very fast
- People paid a nickel to get in
- Films grew longer, more costly, more profitable and more popular (showed that it could generate powerful emotions and that films could be a business)
37
Motion Picture Patents Company (MPPC) - progression of movies
- 1910-1914
- Limited length of films to one reel - solely for profit as you could do more showings in one day
- Controlled every aspect of motion pictures in America
- E.g. Blocked out actor ID (no names) to prevent them from gaining power
- Revolt against the MPPC (based in NY) from producers and directors, moved West and went to the individual exhibitors
38
Hollywood - progression of movies
- Hollywood became the center of production
- New theatres constructed
- Why did they go to Hollywood? SoCal was the furthest possible place from MPCC, weather, lots of land that was cheap, different terrains from the beach, dessert, mountains
39
Film in the 1920s - progression of movies
- Average weekly audience for films in the US was 40 million
- Companies → studios (with much more money)
- Hollywood rose in prominence as the film industry was put on pause for other countries during the war
- Huge movie palaces
- Movie stars became American royalty
- Westerns and comedies were popular
- Industry had many scandals
- In the 20s while women were gaining freedom, movies introduced sexuality and "unacceptable" behaviors like drinking, gangsterism → upset religious groups and older generations → response to this is in 1930 motion picture code office was created to censor the content of films
- Problems = radio and even automobiles as entertainment devices, scandals that actors were involved in, content of film were upsetting to some
40
Impact of sound - progression of movies
- Movies were silent before this
- Transformation was somewhat gradual, sound effects existed a few years before, had orchestra in silent films or even actors talking the parts (not complete until 1930)
- Hollywood moved to total sound production - e.g., studios had to renovate to be soundproof
- Some visual actors had poor voices
- Comedy became verbal instead of physical
- Hollywood's dominance decreased as silent films spoke a universal language vs adding required subtitles
41
Golden Age of Hollywood - progression of movies
- 1930-1946
- Film provides an escape from hard times (Great Depression, Holocaust). Musicals & screwball comedies but also serious films that addressed serious real issues (dealing with gangsters, documentary films)
- 7 dominant studios: MGM, Paramount, RKO, Warner Brothers, Universal, Colombia, 20th Century Fox (each had their own stars and styles)
- Patriotic war films also arose
- 1940s: average family went to the movies 2.5x a week
42
Post WW2 decline in film - progression of films
1. TV - invented in 1927 but became popular in the late 1940s. Films never really threatened by radios / automobiles but TVs was a big threat.
- 10% households had TVs in 1950s --> 90% in 1960s
- Attendance in theaters dropped by a half
- 1/3 movie theaters closed their doors
2. Red Scare = anti-communist movement in the US 1950s
- Senator McCarthy accused the film industry of having communists
House Un-American Activities Committee interrogated people in Hollywood about communism and blacklisted those involved in far-left politics (great writers, directors, actors moved)
- Experimentation in film was discouraged
3. Paramount court case
- Supreme Court ruling regarding the oligopoly situation where the 7 studios had complete control of the industry
- Argued that there was vertical integration, which restricted trade
- All 7 studios were forced to divest themselves from 1 of the 3 operations: production (making of the film), distribution (advertising film, getting it out there), exhibition (showing in theater)
- Most sold off their theater chains, divested from exhibition
4. Foreign competition - Japan, France, Spain started getting more popular
43
Hollywood's response to the decline in film - progression of films
- Industry frantically improved sound systems, stereophonic sound
- Improved technology of theaters, wider screens
- Improved image quality
- Focused on large-scale epics and spectacle films to distinguish films from the small screen content of TV
- Experimented with 3D films
- Pumped odors/aromas, even hiring actors to enhance audience experience into theaters for an immersive experience people at home could not get
- However, TV was now the mass medium
- The failures of many movies → studios were taken over and bought by big non-Hollywood business conglomerates (e.g., Coca-Cola bought Columbia) --> more concern with the bottom line of making money. Preventing them from going bankrupt when a bad film was produced
44
New American Cinema 1960s - progression of films
- Revamping of United Artists, provided new hope for people who wanted to make outsider sort of films
- Increasing importance of social consciousness, freedom of expression, social relevance due to the 1960s counterculture movement (e.g., Hippies, Civil Rights, feminism, anti-Vietnam)
- Films became more experimental, more avant-garde, more artistic
- E.g., Easy Rider convinced many that independently produced, low-budget, films with unknown actors could be very successful
- Rise of social commentary films
Film was free to explore other audiences
- TV had to appeal to the lowest common denominator (LCD) --> had to be relatable to everyone (no use of sophisticated, niche sayings)
- Studios realized they could make the most money with a youth audience, older people stayed home and watched TV
45
New American Cinema 1970s - progression of movies
- Blockbuster: wildly successful film, e.g., Jaws and Star Wars in the mid-1970s were the two that started the blockbuster trend, young people would see the movies multiple times.
- Change in film aesthetic from blockblusters = plot was more sensation driven rather than character drive - a guy dies vs how he dies. Louder, faster, bigger as the Hollywood mantra. Foreign audiences want big, starstudded, special effects extravaganza = creating a universal language of sensation.
- Blockbusters were released in summer when young people were on vacation
- Desire to make more money → obsessive use of sequels, remakes, prequels, reboots (retelling story with a new cast with a different take)
- Reboots return the franchise to its origins and start fresh with new ideas
- Films based on: TV shows, comic books, video games, books, games, and toy (e.g., Battleshp)
46
Remakes vs reboots
- Reboot = film series discarding the previous and starting the series again brand new (Star-Trek, Batman). E.g., Public audience critique, prevent material from going stale
- Remake = stand-alone film, retelling of the story with minor changes (less risky as starting new . coming up with a new idea. Already have a loyal fanbase and story where people are familiar with), e.g., Oceans 11
47
Prequels
Tells the story of what happened before the original movie (The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes)
48
Budget for films
- New American Cinema = films costed around 3 million and today, the average film costs around 100 million (Avatar cost 460 million)
- Studios have arrangements whereby the financing and distributing expenses are shared
- The more expensive movies are, the more they must appeal to the lowest common denominator (LCD) --> this causes scripts to be dumbed down, fully accessible, two-dimensional characters
49
Actors
- 1990s: $20 million dollar club (actors paid $20m upfront), like Tom Cruise
- Actors then started getting a portion of the money made from the box office
- Why are actors paid so much? Studios use big stars to attract customers
- Stars also get more if they can attract an overseas audience (Hollywood movies now make 2/3 overseas), e.g., Leonardo Dicaprio
50
Explain the concept of boys with toys travel
- Big strong guy with gun
- Minimal subtitles, crossing linguistic barriers easier
- Flashy visuals
- Transcends culture, more physical humor
- Popular overeas
51
International market
- More international stars, not only Americans like Jackie Chan, appearing in Hollywood films
- Power of international market expected to increase
52
The role of actors in film today
- Decrease of importance, films are less star-driven, especially in franchised movies like sequels (returning characters > stars)
- Characters are developed for that film
- Big salaries for big film stars have decreased (e.g., Tom Cruise = 70 mil for Mission Impossible 3 and 1/5 of that for Mission Impossible 4)
- Stars do not seem to resonate with young people as much
- Movie stars have moved to CBZero = Cash Break Zero. Still share profits of the film but only after the film has broken in ($100 mil to produce, break even point can take a while)
53
Impact of JAWS on the release pattern of films
- Typically first in LA and NYC --> go to medium sized cities --> eventually to smaller towns (take a long time)
- JAWS had a high profile nationwide release = lots of ads, operated on the same day across countries
- Still gradual but not nearly as much, increase of nationwide release
54
What are independent films? Give examples
Made outisde the studio system, also known as indie films
- E.g., La La Land, Babygirl
55
Film as an art form (Hollywood vs other countries)
- Hollywood has mainly seen film as a form of entertainment instead of art in comparison to European filmmakers
- Moved out of the art environment of NYC, to the remote and suburban LA (less influence of people being emmersed in art, and transforming movies into an art form)
- Films in the US seen as a popular entertainment source. Exception are indies
56
Characteristics of independent films
- Make less money and cost less money than the Hollywood studio system
- Oftentimes with no major stars, attract a specialized audience (more mature and sophisticated)
- Can stray away from tried and true film strategies - more serious, edgier, character-driven
- Disproportionately recognized awards, putting the studios to shame
- Most indie films truly are independent (A24)
- Some backed by studios
- Have gotten competition from TV (TV series like House of Cards - independent), some ceded to TV
57
Studios involvement in independent films
- E.g., FOX Searchlight, part of FOX
- Allowed studios to get in hands of glory and recognition
- More experimental and cutting-edgeartists had less to worry about money as huge studios can finance
- Helps to scout talent
- Sometimes indie films make money (e.g., My Big Fat Greek Wedding)
- Decreased as studios have become more focused on franchise pictures, spin-offs. Btur recently, money started flowing back to indie films
58
Foreign films and documentaries in the US
- Similar to indie films
- US is not big on foreign films, typically the same audience as indie films
- There are some major successes, like Parasite
- Documentaries are similar in audience and success as well
59
How was cineplexes helped indie films?
- Cineplex = movie theater with more than one screen (20-30), typically found in malls
- Gives indie films more availability
60
History of theaters in the US
- Old movie theaters = grand, chandeliers, movie palaces. Closed and are disappearing
- Drive-in movie theaters have decreases, some resurgence in the pandemic = many are multi-screen, talk in the car, can bring your kids
- Cineplexes = move away from the smaller box-cramped theaters. More recently seen as a place to have a full experience. Taller ceilings, murals, softer lighting, arcades, playgrounds for the kid, cocktails bars, comfortable seats = all to create a full experience. Chains of theaters like AMC. Focus is now on the QUALITY of movie theater experience
- Luxury theaters = seat warmers, service button to bring food and drink for you, comfortable sofa, water and wind effect to simulate what is happening on the screen
61
How have studios recently changed?
- Essentially taking on the role as financing and distributing agencies
- Hundreds of companies work together - payroll, clothes, stunts (no longer all done by studios)
62
Relationship of film and TV
- Arrival of the TV took away the audience for film (fear and competition) --> cooperation
- TVs = place for studios to recycle old movies (sell their movies to TV to show on TV, TV networks began paying studios to make films for them (films never shown on screen))
- New source of revenue for film studios
63
Videos from VHS to DVDs
- Money initially made from renting movies at video rental stores (studies were worried that this would decrease theater participation, but now could sell the video to rental stores and studios would get a cut of what the movie rental stores were charging people)
- Now selling directly to the public (= sell-through model). Charged much less for a DVD, so the profit margin for studios decreased but if they sell a lot of copies the profits increased. Really popular for kids films = kids like to rewatch films again and again
- Direct-to-video = initially forbade films that would not be shown at movie theaters but now good for film sequels like American Pie
- Studios make 2/3 of money from videos (especially with the sell-through market)
- More money was made through the box office
- Increase of streaming has changed this
- Tried for digital downloads (downloading movies directly to your device) but streaming services are way more popular
64
Making money beyond the box office
- Movie merchandise like Spider Man toys, hand-puppets, dress-up
- Selling movies to airlines
65
The case for movie theaters not dying
- Synchronise emotions with those around you (cry, laugh)
- Communal aspect
- Immersed experiences with a big screen
- Technological advantages, lack of distractions
66
Audience for movie theaters
- End of Golden Age = big drop in audience participation
- Proportion of movie theater audience has dropped significantly
- Still younger people go more! Social experience
67
Hollywood's emphasis on teens
- Teens are still the largest demographic to go to theaters (despite less than before)
- Buy more snacks, concessions
- Lower budget films
- Male teens are the core group for action films and comedies
- Female teens = often go in packs, girl pwoer emphasis too! Success of Twilight series, Pitch Perfect
68
Nature of film
- Most persuasive form of media
- High-impact and high-involvement medium (seeing in a controlled environment = dark, food available, comfortable chair, no distractions)
- Larger than life images and figures
- TV intrudes to your world (in your living room) vs film draws you in to their world
- Recognized persuasive films at the end of WW2 (US on troops, reinforcing American values, propaganda films)
69
Film as a persuasive medium
- Although they have the potential to persuade, they often fail because it does not attempt to. Unlike print, the central focus is entertainment.
- Viewers want to watch movies to often escape from their life
- Can be profound, complex, delve deeper into the human experience
- Typically being light, enjoyable and pleasant is the emphasis
70
Film cliche examples
- Bartender always first shown wiping the inside of a glass with a rag
- Superhero when held at gunpoint at the villain - villain always talks first
- No one goes to the toilet for the right reasons - to take ilelgal drugs, kill someone, jump out of the window
71
Regulation of film
1. 1915 Supreme court ruled Film not protected by 1st amendment
- Government could regulate it then but then studios stepped in to regulate themselves instead
2. Hays' Office made rules for movies to follow (couples can't share a bed, can't kiss for more than 4 seconds). Loopholes found = e.g., kiss for 3 seconds, take a breath and then kiss for 3 seconds again
- Film was not given a seal of approval but still shown in theaters --> could bypass
3. SC Miracle case = reversed the 1915 decision, protected by the First AMendment now
- Film industry happy to continue with the regulation
4. 1968 Motion Pictures Association of America replaced Hays' office. Brought ratings (PG, R, X. Films could now be more adult and then rated accordingly)
- Panel of real-life Americas, ranging in demographic, age etc. and made to rate the films
- Allowed for mroe adult situations with mroe profanity, vioence etc. as younger individuals were not able to watch these anyways
72
Digital technology replacing film technology
- Changed the film industry
- Did not help drive-in or small independent movie theaters as it required renovation like digital projectors
- Now, amazing special effects are possible, like computer-generated characters are increasingly life-like
- Digital distribution is also increasingly important = much cheaper for films to be sent to theaters. Increase concerns with piracy
73
3 ways film can be sent to theaters
1. Download files via satellite
2. Files through Internet streaming
3. Ship physical hard drives
- Endless perfect copies with much less money
74
Early on, tech problems = jerky pictures, delay of sound and picture but and now seamless experience on-demand
- Mainly through downloads / streams
- DVDs sales tanked and moved to digital downloads. Download copy of film and put it on the hard drive. Increase of number of sites making it possible like iTunes
75
Downloads vs streaming
- Downloads - save on computer, put in digital library, hard drive, accessible viewer
- Streaming = film plays on an external source, file deliver to your computer in real time (e.g., Netflix, way more successful)
- Convenient to watch streaming movies - over 300+ available online
- Smaller films never shown in theaters could now be more accessible
- Saviour for studios during the pandemic
76
Decline of Netflix
- Used to be the primary streaming service
- E.g., Used to have Disney = but now Disney has created its own streaming service and took it away (Disney+)
- Different streaming sites ot watch and access movies / series
- HBO Max, Hulu, Amazon prime
77
Movies to theaters to streaming services
- Disruption before pandemic in film industry = reduce the amount of times when movies shown in theaters --> streaming services
- Used to be 90 days (DVDs and videos), symbiotic relationship between theaters and films
- Streaming services wanted it faster
- Studios also want to wait longer -- increase box office growth leads to increase sales in license fees (TV networks), streaming fees (Netflix)
- Most directors want people to see it in the theater - made to be seen in that environment
- Netflix wanting day in day release films
- During the pandemic = theaters were failing as some studios saw value in going straight to streaming, some studios playing with shorter windows (1 month)
- Messy relationship, still a work in progress
- Recently, slight shift back to theater
78
4 types of media support systems
1. Audience supported = directly pay for the content (e.g., you directly pay for the book)
2. Advertiser supported = money comes from advertising (e.g., listening to the radio for free, money comes from the ads you have to listen to)
3. Combination of audience and advertiser supported (e.g., buy a magazine and read it. advertisers in there also when watching a movie)
4. Subsidized media = media comes from private and public subsidies
- Private subsidies = e.g., political magazines have private subsidies (individuals who support the editorial position and give them money. E.g., left wing = The Nation)
- Public subsidies = money given from the government, e.g., states giving newspapers tax breaks
- Mixture of these types = e.g., You pay for The Nation, but it is also subsidized
79
What are things advertisers want to know before working with a medium?
1. Size of audience
2. Composition of audience (young, old etc.)
80
How can audience size be measured (different mediums)?
- Sometimes, you know directly (e.g., books = copies sold, film = tickets sold at the box office)
- Hardest medium to identify is TV
81
How is the nationwide TV audience size measured?
- AC Nielsen company = take a random sample from US households
- Looking at viewing behavior of people from those households.
- People meter = everytime you watch TV, you need to press a button before they start viewing and after (calculates minute by minute, every individual in the household has a button)
- Statistics produced = ratings and shares
- Numbers collected everyday
82
What is a rating?
Number of households watching a particular show / based on total number of households in America
- How many people are watching the show
83
What is a share?
Number of households watching a particular show / total number of TV households with TV on
- Accurate measure of how a TV show is doing in comparison to its competitors
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What is an example of a show that could have a high share rate but low ratings?
Late night TV shows as most people are sleeping
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How is the statewide TV audience size measured?
- Some companies may be local and only interested in advertising to one state
- Nielsen company conducts sweeps = months where local ratings and shares are collected (4 = November, February, May and July)
- Data collected through diaries (random samples in local communities, people need to write down what shows they have watched and for how long)
- Increasingly replaced by people meters now (no longer needed for sweeps, can be measured everyday)
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Significance of sweeps on TV stations
- Stations want to boost their ratings and shares, so they put on their most entertaining shows at this time
- E.g., Finale of a reality TV show, special episode of a sit-com
- Aiming to draw the biggest audiences during sweep month
- Sweeps not just for networks but all local stations
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Problems of using diaries during sweeps
- Some people do not fill it out everyday
- Faulty memory
- Can lie if embarrassed of the trashy TV they watch, feel socially responsible
- Rounding errors
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Portable people meter
You wear, can measure it anywhere you go (hospital, friend's house)
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Systems to determine ad costs
- Now with recorded shows on DVR, there has created extra numbers ot measure ad rates (viewership for each ad)
1. C3 = composition 3, measure viewing of everyone who watched it when it was aired and for the next 72 hours
2. C7 = composition 7, credit for everyone watching it live and for the next week
3. C30 = composition 30, credit for everyone watching it live and for the next month
- TV networks want C7 / C30but arguments against = delayed viewers are commercial skippers. BUT, over 1/2 ads are watched in playback and people watching commercials never drops below 40%, passive activity
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How is Nielsen measuring viewership across different devices (laptops, mobile devices)?
- Measuring all viewers on all various ways
- Monitors the buzz about shows on Twitter, Facebook etc.
- Moving to cover streaming
- Does national and local
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Explain the need for media companies to minimize risk
- Large companies who invest a lot of money and expect a lot of profit
- Now media content producers are changing their content to ensure profit. When to take their chances? What to take their chances on?
- Most of the stuff of the media are big corporations, corporate products reflected in production, marketed and distribution = all designed to make money
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List the ways to minimize risk
1. Go with what has worked before
2. Proven talent
3. Take advantage of secondary markets
4. Overproduction and focus on hits/blockbusters (versus the long tail)
5. Horizontal integration
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Go with what has worked before - ways to minimize risk
- Traditional genre categories, cultural conventions
- E.g., Teen comedy = middle class suburb, social politics of high school, social anxieties to do with adolescent dating (American Pie)
- Uncommon for media companies to advertise something that cannot be defined in a sepcfic genre (e.g., Desperate Housewives first pitched as a 1hr comedy special --> changed after being rejected as a 1hr soap opera, as this was worked before)
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Proven talent - ways to minimize risk
- People who have been successful before
- Mark Burnett as a creator for many successful shows = Are you smarter than a 5th grader?, Shark Tank, Survivor
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Take advantage of secondary markets - ways to minimize risk
- Secondary markets = all alternative opportunities for generating profit beyond domestic scale in the original format
- PrImary market, for a movie would be box office, and the secondary market could be selling the movies to TV, airlines, merchandising to streaming services, re-run of shows
- Syndication market = selling TV shows to channels, not its home network (some TV shows have this in mind already, like Criminal Minds - each episode solves a case, you do not need to have watched the show to understand)
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Overproduction and focus on hits/blockbusters (versus the long tail) - ways of minimizing risk
- Highly probable that any one product is going to fail (TV shows after a few years, a magazine after a year)
- You should assume one would make it big and therefore sell a lot of one product, e.g., making money from Spiderman 3 (blockbluster)
- Selling a awful lot on a few things
Long tail:
- Amazon = millions of products and increase of profit on selling a little bit of everything. Difficult to predict what is going to be a success
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Horizontal integration - ways of minimizing risk
= Company exploits different parts of the business (synergy)
- Disney owns ABC. ABC TV show character gushes over excitement on Lion King broadway (Disney owned). Promotion of Disney Plus subscription on Dancing with the Stars = ABC show
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Concentration in the mass media
- More and more of the media in fewer hands
- E.g., Newspapers = used to family owned and now part of big corporations
- Universal, NBC, News Corp, Disney = conglomerates of cable channels, TV studios, music companies, publishing companies, theme parks
- 43% of the world's internet traffic in 2019 went through 6 tech giants including Amazon, Google, Netflix
- Despite the increase of concentration, our media choices has expanded drastically with so many media options
