Denis McQuail

Communication Models for the Study of Mass Communications

1. Introduction 2. Basic Models 3. Personal Influence, Diffusion and Short-Term Effects of Mass Communication on Individuals 4. Effects of Mass Communication on Culture and Society 5. Audience-Centred Models 6. Media Organisation, Selection and Production 7. Planned Communication 8. New Media and The Information Society 9. International Communication Index

With the benefit of hindsight: Reflections on uses and gratifications research

Uses and gratifications research has had a history of over forty years, and shows continued signs of lively activity, despite a good deal of criticism and some disappointment amongst its own practitioners. This article, written from a position within, or close to, the tradition, expresses some regret at the failure to deal adequately with questions of “culture gaps” and “knowledge gaps.” It suggests that the failure lies partly in the dominance of one behavioristic paradigm and suggests an alternative “culturalist” model of the media experience which might help re‐orient research to important, but neglected, matters.

Political Communications: The General Election Campaign of 1983

A unique mixture of academic research, professional experience and personal reflection, Political Communications examines the crucial dialogue between politicians and people that is conducted, via the Press, broadcasting and opinion polls, during the course of a British election campaign. Scholarly analysis is complemented by the contributions of individual experts from advertising agencies, polling organisations and political parties: among the latter is a piece on the successful Conservative campaign by the then chairman Cecil Parkinson. Special attention is paid to the innovative aspects of the 1983 campaign, e.g. the impact of the Alliance parties, of CND, of massively increased opinion polling, and of breakfast television. The concluding section considers election campaigning in the light of these changes, and examines the arguments for the legal regulation of what has become a political process of the utmost significance.

Journalism and Society

Preface WHAT IS JOURNALISM? HOW IS IT LINKED TO SOCIETY? Introduction Origins of Journalism The Journalism-Society Link: Levels of Analysis and Theoretical Perspectives The Main Concerns of Social Theory of Journalism Diversity and Diversification of Journalism Journalism and Changing Technology: Implications for Society Defining Journalism and the News Today The Press as an Institution The Power of the Press What Society Expects from Journalism The Self-Image of the Social Role of the Press Conclusions: Questions to Be Addressed JOURNALISTIC RESPONSIBILITY TO SOCIETY Introduction Defining Journalistic Responsibility Publication and the Public Interest The Foundations of Journalistic Obligation Free Press Theory Journalism as Meeting Essential Needs of Society The Press as Fourth Estate The Idea of a Public Sphere Social Responsibility Theory Critical Theory Minority Media Theory Democratic-Participant Theory New Movements in Journalism Internet News Theory Looking for a Structure in Social Theory of the Press Conclusion PRINCIPLES OF JOURNALISTIC PERFORMANCE Introduction Basic Publication Values in the Public Interest Truth as a Principle Freedom as a Principle Equality, Diversity and Solidarity as Principles Order and Cohesion as Principles for Journalism Conclusion TOWARDS A FRAMEWORK OF ANALYSIS FOR JOURNALISM Introduction Alternative Approaches On Journalism as a Profession: A Unifying Approach Does Journalism have its Own Ideology? The Occupational Roles of Journalism Conflicts and Mixed Expectations Demand versus Supply of News Changing Goals and Types of Journalism If Not a Profession, at Least a Public Occupation Conclusion THE CENTRAL ROLE OF MONITOR AND MESSENGER Introduction The Main Roles or Functions of the Press The Monitor and Messenger Role Characterized Objectivity as a Guiding Principle Limitations to Objectivity Degrees of Purpose and Activity in Objective News Journalism Tensions Internal to the Monitorial Role The Monitorial Role and State Power The Monitorial Role and Democracy Sources of Bias in the Monitorial Role Media Logic and Mediatisation Effects on Monitoring Conclusion MEDIA STRUCTURE, PERFORMANCE AND THE POWER OF THE PRESS Introduction What Is a Media System? Influences from Social Structure on Media Systems Political Factors Economic Factors Social Cultural Influences Media System Influences on Journalism Influences at the Level of Organisation The Question of Press Effects on Society Informational Effects of News Persuasion Influences via News Effects on Behaviour in Society - Individual and Collective In Overview: Primary Determinants of the Power of the Press Conclusion ACCOUNTABILITY OF JOURNALISM TO SOCIETY Introduction The Main Issues of Regulation and Accountability Journalistic Responsibility The Accountability of Journalism Lines of Accountability of Journalism Forms of Governance and Accountability Applied to Journalism Mechanisms of Accountability: External Mechanisms of Accountability: Internal Informal and Illegitimate Mechanisms of Control/Accountability Three Frames of Accountability Relationship Accountability in Overview Conclusion CHANGING MEDIA TECHNOLOGY: CONSEQUENCES FOR JOURNALISM, PRESS INSTITUTION AND ITS RELATIONS WITH SOCIETY Introduction The Potential of the Internet and Other New Media Problematic Aspects of Media Change Initial Signs of Change The Internet: Liberating Promise Unfulfilled? Effects of Media Change on Journalism Itself The Future of the Press Institution The Journalism-Society Relationship The Question of Trust Consequences for the Public Sphere In Overview Conclusion IN CONCLUSION: STRIKING A NORMATIVE BALANCE Introduction A Frame of Reference for Journalism and Society Normative Contexts and Choices: Different Levels of Application Journalism in an Information Society The Main Normative Issues of Journalism and Society in Review Towards a Universal Normative Theory of Journalism? The Consequences of Ongoing Changes in Media Technology and Structure for Normative Relations between Journalism and Society What Can Be Done? Reflections on the Chances for Better Journalism Last Word Appendix: Selectde Documents Relating to Righrs and Obligations of News Media References Index

Some reflections on the western bias of media theory.

This paper sketches a personal perspective of this phenomenon, as seen through Western eyes, and looks at some of its origins, manifestations and possible effects. The roots lie deeply embeded in Western social science where they are mixed with ideas about the superiority of Western (and Protestant) society. In relation to media theory, the bias partly comes from the extent to which media theory is dependent on and reflective of the meda themsleves, which according to some hypotheses are also very ‘Western’ if not ‘American’. The question arises how to combat, avoid or counter the bias in seeking a more universal form of media theory.

With More Hindsight: Conceptual Problems and Some Ways Forward for Media Use Research

Twenty years ago, the author assessed the failure and future of the Uses and Gratifications field of research (McQuail, 1984). In this contribution, he will reflect on Gratifications research and comment on conceptual problems and some ways forward in Media Use research. This approach is assumed to have the capacity to provide a descriptive mapping of complex situations such as audience behavior and audience experience, especially at a time of media change and expansion. Against the background of a brief review of relevant developments in research, thinking about media use and some suggestions for progress, it is concluded that there is no escape from viewing the whole territory of media use and gratifications research from beyond the scope of any one theoretical perspective. As the intrinsic interest in the field of audience research remains - including a promise of interesting discoveries still to be made - it will require more perspectives than a single researcher is likely to be able to deploy.

Broadcasting European Elections

Abstract Television presentation of the 1984 European parliamentary elections is described and compared with equivalent features of the broadcast campaigns of 1979. Arrangements for party broadcasting were broadly similar almost everywhere. But news value judgements were applied more strictly to news bulletin and current affairs provision, typically resulting in reduced attention. Domestic appeals played a greater part in many parties campaigns this time (in contrast to arguments over European issues). And impressions of weak audience interest were often a focus of comment. The problems of mounting a more satisfying European campaign in the future may depend, however, not on exhorting journalists and politicians to do better, but on a strengthening of the European Parliament in the power structure of the European Community.

Media Performance Assessment in the Public Interest: Principles and Methods

This chapter offers a characterization and an overview of a particular tradition of media research that has been concerned with the assessment of the quality of mass media “performance” according to a number of normative standards relating to different conceptions and perceptions of the “public interest.” Typical features of the research, which has often been related to considerations of media policy and is broadly in line with “social responsibility” media theory, include a posilivislic approach, a preference for objective (generally quantitative) methods, and a focus on media content as the main object of research. A general framework for assessing media performance is constructed in which the main normative criteria deployed are those of independence, diversity, objectivity, solidarity, and cultural quality. These concepts are discussed and alternative possibilities for operationalizing them in empirical research are proposed and evaluated. Aside from reviewing a research tradition, the aim of this cha...

The Media Audience: A Brief Biography—Stages of Growth or Paradigm Change?

The concept of audience was widely adapted from its earlier origins in public spectacles and performance to apply to the new circumstances of mass media reception in the early 20th century, and especially to the public for film and broadcasting. It could even be applied more generally to include print media. The then novel usage of the term was a component in the larger paradigm of mass communications that in turn rested on certain preconceptions about its ‘mass’ character. These preconceptions have been challenged by subsequent research and theory. More recently, however, the ongoing transformation of the means of communication may have rendered the whole mass communication paradigm itself obsolescent, and with it the concept of a mass audience. In this article it is argued that paradigmatic change in ideas about the audience may be less due to a shift in technology than to the more fundamental theoretical changes of the intervening period.

Social action perspectives in mass communication research

On reviewing the last 40 years of mass communication research it becomes evident that the notion active audience is one of the central and comparably stable elements of communication theory and research. Nevertheless, there are good reasons to be critical of the way in which the notion has been conceptualized since Katz and Lazarsfeld (1955) first identified the role of personal influence in mass communication and stressed the part played by people in the processes of mass communication. Here, a critical sketch of this development is provided and contours of an alternate conceptualization are suggested.