Whathaveyou

donetoday?

Watched T.V.?

Driven by a billboard?Read a magazine?

Gone to a sporting event?

Checked your Facebook notifications?

What ever it is you have probably come in

contact with some form of media

Which brings me to my point…

Since the media is everywhere shouldn’t there be a theory about it?

There is!!!

It’s known as the uses and

gratifications theory.

The uses and gratifications theory focuses on the consumer rather than focusing on the message by asking “what people do with media” rather than “what media does to

people”.

Uses and Gratification Theory is a popular approach to understanding

mass communication.

The audience watch media to satisfy their physiological needsfor example: when we watch reality shows or shows such as ‘x-factor’,

throughout the audition we as the audience make a judgement and we are allowed in a sense to laugh at them, whilst relieving it’s not us in their

position.

Uses and Gratifications

In other words, the audience uses media to meet their needs and to fulfill specific gratifications*.

*Gratifications are sources of pleasure or satisfaction.

Blumler and Katz first began studying this theory in the 1940’s.

and it’s still used by scholars today!

Blumler and Katz’s uses and gratification theory suggests that media users play an active role in choosing and using the media.  Users take an active part in the communication

process and are goal oriented in their media use. It is said to be that the power is considered to lie with the consumer to

gratify their needs or interests.

•To be informed or educated •In order to identify with the characters and situation •To be entertained •To enable themselves to socially interact with others •To escape from their daily troubles

these are the five main reasons thought by Blumler and Katz of why audiences may consume media.

Uses and Gratifications

Since then, the theory has been criticized by many.

It’s too hard to determine the gratification of needs.

All research is based on surveys!It will not succeed in “contributing substantially” to the field of communication.

The criticism has not deterred scholars, and research continues.

Just remember…

The uses and gratifications theory looks at what people do with media.

Questions? Just ask…