MCommToday

Development communication makes use of strategic communication such as mass media, community participation and social marketing to foster behavioral change… Development Communication (DevCom), according to the Filipino academic Dr. Nora C. Quebral, is “the art and science of human communication applied to the speedy transformation of a country and the mass of its people from poverty to a dynamic state of economic growth that makes possible greater social equality and the larger fulfillment of human potential.” DevCom is a powerful tool that can boost the success of development projects because it makes use of strategic communication such as mass media, community participation and social marketing to relay information to the target audience and to primarily foster behavioral change that impede development. Development is a complex process and it takes more than education, awareness and information sharing to foster it. Most often it is vital to seek behavioral change, get rid of long-e...

Cultivation theory suggests that long term exposure to television can cause media users to presume that reality reflects the steadfast, contorted and often violent messages the television usually depicts… Cultivation theory was developed by Hungarian-American communication scholar George Gerbner in the 1960s. Cultivation theory posits that media users’ views of reality are affected by long term exposure to media channels, most specially by the television. The theory also suggests that because of the long term exposure to television, media users presume that reality reflects the steadfast, contorted and often violent messages the television usually depicts. Gerbner coined the term “Mean World Syndrome”, which outlines how high TV exposure makes media users consider the world as more treacherous than it really is. The important concepts of the Cultivation theory are the following: . Television as storyteller of modern society : cultivation theory suggests that the TV has become th...

While in the past, communication was considered a simple transmission of a message from the source to the receiver by means of a channel, over the years more theories emerged, underlining the intricacies of communication interactions… Communication theories are valuable frameworks that help both scholars and communicators to understand relationships between the components of the communication process. Furthermore, these theories can help systematize information and explicate complex communication interactions. It is vital to have knowledge of the key types of communication theories to be able to understand, study and improve communication in various contexts and at all levels. Awareness of communication theories not only can help communicators and organizations design effective and successful information campaigns but can also help people become good communicators. Key Types of Communication Theories . Media Richness Theory (MRT) - developed in the 1980’s by Richard L. Daft and Robe...

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...