THIRD BLOG ENTRY - Studying Media Institutions and Media Audiences

THIRD BLOG ENTRY

STUDYING MEDIA INSTITUTIONS AND MEDIA AUDIENCES

1.    Purpose of studying media institutions

Different media institutions have different goals, mission and visions and have different audiences or are in competition the same audience.

 Over the years, the exploration of media institutions has often been ignored while academic attention has focused on the media products and consumers of the Media products. Many of the product which are used by consumers be it a newspaper article, television programme or Radio news bulletin are shaped by the Media Institutions that has produced it.

 When studying Media Institutions, it is important to remember that economics and profits are the most important factors determining what is produced. Even the community media like community radio stations needs money to survive, obtaining funding and advertising revenue is crucial part of these institutions.  The economics applies to every organisation, and there are no media institutions   which operate outside these forces. One needs to have an understanding of the balance book and an understanding how organizations make their bread and butter to carry on a good study of Media Institutions.

In most countries including South Africa, governments take an active interest in the media institutions. Here in South Africa government has an active interest in the South African Broadcast Cooperation (SABC). The political influence on public media institutions should be further explores to understand how these intuitions produces there products for consumption.

2.    Purpose of studying media audiences

  When analysing the purpose of studying media audiences it’s very important to look at who a media product is communicating with. ? It is also important to consider the Media Institutions who produce the media products that are consumed by Media audiences.  Different media institutions have different media audiences. For example, Metro FM Radio has a different ‘target Audience’ to Talk Radio 702, the two Radio stations below to the different media institutions.

 Different media products can also have a different Media audience. For example SABC 1 produces news in intervals from 17:30 on weekdays but the media audiences are clearly different. Media audiences can be segmented into different groups.  Segmentation of Media audiences can be done by age, race, gender, social class, education, location and language.

Studying Media Audience is also concerned with Media audience responses. Media Audiences also respond to the media products they watch, read and listen in a different way.  Most of the time audiences identify with certain products, like the youth may enjoy SABC 1 programme Skeem Saam because they identify with the characters on the show, they can even desire to be like them, or can associate with the story lines or action. Audiences also respond by participating like when they vote in the current IDOLSSA reality show on MNet.

In conclusion

It is difficult to study media institutions with having a full understanding of the following:

Ø  Media Products

Ø  Economics in the Media

Ø  Politics and Government influence.

REFERENCES

Nordicom Review, Jubilee Issue 2007, pp. 149-167 Media Institutions as a Research Field

Nick Lacey. 2002 Media, Institutions and Audiences. Palgrave Macmillan

Mytton, G. 2007. Handbook on radio and television audience research. (Web edition). Paris: UNICEF and UNESCO.

Stokes, J. 2003. How to do media and cultural studies research. London: Sage