MCommToday

The Symbolic Interaction and Social Construction of Reality theories are foundational theories of mass communication that show the driving forces that link together culture and communication. The study of mass communication has always been a dynamic process. Over the years, various ideas, perspectives and frameworks have been developed and introduced to maximize its potentials and to adapt itself to the evolving global society. The mainstream view is that culture and social interaction via verbal and non-verbal communication are influential factors on how people construct knowledge and reality. The Symbolic Interaction and Social Construction of Reality theories are foundational theories of mass communication that show the driving forces that link together culture and communication. 1. The Symbolic Interaction Perspective The Symbolic Interaction Perspective, also known as symbolic interactionism, is an important framework that came from sociological theory. This is based on the ...

Elihu Katz first introduced the uses and gratification theory when he came up with the idea that individuals make use of media to their advantage… Developed by Elihu Katz, Jay Blumler, Michael Gurevitch, Joseph Brown and Denis McQuail in the 1970s, the uses and gratifications theory marked a perspective shift in the study of mass communication by turning its attention away from media sources and message and how they affect the audience. The uses and gratifications theory emerged as a response to earlier theories that considered media users as passive receivers of media messages. Blumler and Katz’s uses and gratifications theory views, instead, that the audience is not a passive but an active player in their media choices, and that these choices depend largely on media users’ apparent needs, wishes or motives. The audiences are thereby formed based on their similarities of wishes, needs and motives.  Elihu Katz first introduced the uses and gratifications perspective when he...

The Agenda Setting Theory is one of the foundational theories of Mass Communication, it suggests the correlation between the emphasis the media attribute to issues… Knowledge of Media Theories of mass communication is important because they provide notions on how the communication process works and the relationships of and the interplay between its basic components. Media theories also supply models and concepts that help predict or interpret how information or messages may influence a person, society or culture in general. The Agenda-Setting Theory is one of the foundational theories of mass communication . Originally formulated by Drs. Maxwell McCombs and Donald Shaw in 1968, the agenda-setting theory suggests the correlation between the emphasis that the media attribute to issues and the (eventual) importance that media users may accord to such issues. In essence, the agenda-setting theory describes the powerful influence of the media to influence public perception by highlighting...

As society evolves and with the advancements of technology, mass communication has gone through a lot of transformations. Modern mass communication began with the printing press… Mass communication is the process of disseminating information to a large audience by means of mass media. Mass media refers to the technology used to reach the target audience. Types of mass media are the following: 1. broadcast media (radio and television) 2. print media (newspapers, magazines, books and pamphlets) 3. social media (internet based platforms like Facebook, YouTube, websites, etc). The objectives of mass communication are to inform, educate, entertain and to shape public opinion. Areas like journalism, public relations, advocacy and advertising employ mass communication to reach their target audience. As society evolves and with the advancements of technology, mass communication has gone through a lot of transformations. Modern mass communication began with the printing press: invented by ...

Communication models, approaches and theories are valuable because they are employed as a framework in the design of a communication campaign… Communication models are conceptual models used to explain and describe human communication . Communication models, approaches and theories are the foundation around which communication practitioners build ideas on how to effectively transmit the message they would like to convey to the target audience. Communication models and approaches facilitate the work of communicators because they provide ideas on how individuals react to different types of communication stimulus, and they offer ideas on possible consequences that may result when participants in a communication process employ a communication style or shift to another communication style. Communication models and approaches likewise provide practitioners an idea on how to obtain engagement, collaboration and participation from the target audience in order to achieve communication goals. ...

Mastering communication models and theories can help communicators and scholars gain ideas on how messages are constructed, disseminated and received and how various factors influence the effectiveness of communication. Communication is a dynamic process that involves diverse components and relationships. Over the years, scholars have developed various models that serve as a lens through which scholars can examine and understand how the communication process unfolds. Furthermore, each communication model provides a visual representation that facilitates understanding of the relationships between communicators, messages, channels and audiences. Mastering communication models and theories can help communicators and scholars gain ideas on how messages are constructed, disseminated and received and how various factors influence the effectiveness of communication. The Key Communication Models and Theories are the following: . Linear Model - is a one-way type of communication. This views...

The grasp of at least the six basic components of the  communication  process is a must for communicators who intend to create a communication plan for a campaign… Communication is a process, it is dynamic, ever changing and its results depend largely on the various components of the process. General awareness of at least the six basic components of the  communication  process is a must for communicators who intend to create a communication plan for a campaign. This is because it allows you to establish important and consequential relationships between each component and thus create a strong framework for the conceptualization and implementation of the communication campaign.  The 6 basic components of the communication process are the following: . Source - is the person who wishes to convey a message . It is the source who first encodes the message by selecting the appropriate string of words to be transmitted to the receiver. That string of words has a meanin...

Communication is a constant part of everyday life and when it occurs it is always one or a combination of the four basic types of communication… It is always a must to bear in mind that whenever you are writing a verbal report on malnutrition to be disseminated among local government officials or doing fieldwork among farmers in the rural areas, communication is always a combination of the 4 basic types of communication. Knowledge of the types of communication can facilitate you in planning a communication campaign, its implementation and most of all, in the evaluation of how communication efforts are going. Mastering these can also prevent misunderstanding and can help build strong personal and professional relationships with other individuals. The four basic types of communication are the following: . Verbal communication - it happens when an individual talk to another individual or a group of people. With the onset of the information and communication technologies (ICTs) verbal com...

Communication is the “exchange of facts, ideas, opinions or information by two or more people”. This exchange can happen via the written word, verbal or even by gestures… Communication came from the Latin word “communicare ” meaning “to share” or “to be in relation with”. “Communicare”  is a derivative of the word “commune” (“cum” = common or of the community and “munies” = office, appointment or task, responsibility) which means “someone who takes responsibility for the community”.  The Latin word “communicare”, therefore,  denotes more than an exchange or transmission of information between one person to another. It is a social expression, which main goal is to prioritize values at the service of the community or for a cause. It is not enough to express, write or produce audiovisual media to communicate, but communication only happens when the information or message being transmitted is understood and is used to create knowledge among people. In the modern world, Willia...