Textbook Ch.8 - Media Industries

Question 1

How does the concept of an ‘ideal market’ apply to our media?

Answer 1

This applies to our media because if there is a demand for any kind of content, a supplier will pop up to satisfy it. Indeed, several will, and they will compete to come up with the content that best meets that demand.

Question 2

Define Liberal Pluralism

Answer 2

Liberal pluralists believe that the freedom to choose is a basic human right, and that whether we are talking politics or shopping it is important to have the widest possible range of options to choose between.

Question 3

Political Economy

Answer 3

It’s the opposite of liberal pluralism. The position posits that instead of empowering people and giving them what they want, media is used by the powers that be to entrench unequal power relations and reinforce dominant values and norms.

Question 4

Economies of scale

Answer 4

Making things cheaper per unit the more you make is known is economies of scale. It results in producers getting together and deciding to form bigger companies.

• this is important to know because only big companies can produce media to the highest standards

Question 5

Define Media Regulation

Answer 5

Media regulation refers to any formal or informal rules that prescribe or constrain the actions of media practitioners and organizations. They are designed to uphold media ethics, which are the values we collectively agree we think media should embody in specific situations.

Question 6

Morals vs. Ethics

Answer 6

Ethics are often defined in relation to morals. Morals are more abstract values we think the media should stand for - justice, accountability, representation, and so on. Ethics are more practical: it is unethical, for instance, to trick someone into saying something they do not mean and using it in your article or documentary; it is unethical if you make an allegation against someone to give them the opportunity to defend themselves.

Question 7

Utilitarianism

Answer 7

The greatest happiness for the greatest number of people

Question 8

Hedonic treadmill

Answer 8

The hedonic treadmill is a kind of vicious circle: the more people have, the more they want, so that their overall happiness remains stuck where it always was.

Question 9

Product placement

Answer 9

The practice of paying for something to appear in a film or television program