Technological Changes and the Radio

   Starting in 1896, when Guglielmo Marconi invented the “wireless telegraph” that used radio waves to carry messages, the radio industry has been an essential part of the media, constantly progressing as a result of technological change. In fact technological change is the main force that shaped the evolving radio industry in the 1920s.  Technological changes in the 1920s and the years that followed strengthened the radio industry, allowing it to become a phenomenon that is still a part of our everyday lives.

Technological progress is an important factor of every potential industry. Improvements and changes in technology allow for an industry to grow in any circumstance. From less costly and faster ways of production, to a more improved resulting product, technological change is necessary for any industry's success.

Marconi’s invention kicked off the radio industry’s intensive play in media. Starting as a form of communication between radio stations and oceangoing ships, the radio soon became a part of everyday life. Lee de Forest speeded this process by inventing the vacuum tube, which allowed for radio transmission and reception of sound, voice, and music. Soon many more technological improvements would make the radio as David Sarnoff once saw it: “a household utility” that would bring music into the house by wireless. However it wasn’t only music that dominated the radio, it also included news, variety shows, soap operas, dramas, and sports. The radio progressed even further through the FM, which has high-fidelity sound, that allows for more stations in each market. As music diversified, more FM stations were developed in order to satisfy the many different tastes. As a result, marketers were able to target different subcultures through specific radio formats. This is yet another example of radio progress through the technological developments; these developments reduced the price of recordings and the cost establishing radio stations. This pattern of progress continued with the development of satellite radio, which offers hundreds more channels, and Internet radio, which list thousands of radio stations for listening. Furthermore, podcasting allows individuals to create audio programs that can be downloaded. High definition radio further improved the quality of broadcasting, making the whole listening process more enjoyable.

Although the radio industry has to compete with other technologically developed industries like television and the Internet, it is still a prominent aspect of media and a part of many people’s lives.

Social Learning

 Social learning is the idea that society imitates behavior they see in the media, reflecting the effects that media has on society. Theorists concentrate on the violence, drug use, and sex shown in media of which young girls and boys are exposed to and tend to imitate. This imitation at a young age progresses as they grow up, and consequently they develop certain traits and characteristics as a reflection of the media. The textbook and Tough Guise show many examples of the effects of social learning on society. 

Experiments explained in the textbook and examples in the movie, Tough Guise, help me understand the concept of social learning and its effects on the relationship between media and society.

  

The first example comes from the textbook. Albert Bandura conducted a media effects experiment that reflected process of social learning in media. He showed preschoolers a short film in which an actor behaved aggressively toward a Bobo doll, punching it, hitting it with a mallet, kicking it around, and throwing balls at it. Although all the children saw the same film, there were three alternate endings, and the children were randomly divided into three groups, each of which saw a different ending. In one ending, an adult actor praised and awarded the child actor for his/her behavior. In another, the adult actor scolded and spanked the child actor, and in the third, only the opening sequence was shown. After the screening, the children were taken to a room with the Bobo dolls, and the props from the film. The results showed that children who had seen only the opening sequence or the on which the child was praised imitated the aggression that they had seen, as opposed to the children who had seen the actor get punished, who tended not to do so. This experiment represents social learning, because the children had specifically imitated the aggressive behaviors they had seen in the film. Even some of the children who had seen the actor get punished for his behavior imitated the violent acts shown.

The textbook provides many more examples of social learning in its analysis of media impacts. For instance, it declares that experimental studies show that children imitate the violence they see, predisposing them to choose violent resolutions to conflicts in their daily lives. Furthermore, the textbook states that adolescents who watch a lot of television sex are more likely to engage in sexual intercourse within the year following their exposure.

 Tough Guise had many examples of social learning, the main one being, men in society imitating the masculinity and violence they see in the media. The movie showed pictures of men posing as gangsters, holding weapons and/or showing off their muscles, imitating the tough men of the slums who gain power through their violence.

These examples gave me a clear understanding of the concept of social learning and how it affects society. It also opened me up to an aspect of the relationship between media and society, emphasizing the powerful influence media has on society. The products of media have obvious influence on young kids and even adults. The imitation in social learning affects how individuals will behave and thus how society will behave as a whole. It's power over the young individuals gives media a hand in society's future as they young kids grow up. Social learning represents the easily adaptable society and its compliance to the media.

 

(Pictures from http://www.freedomforum.org &

http://www.bluecorncomics.com)

Media and Hegemony in Calvin Klein Advertisements

After studying the hegemony of the media and the relationship it has with  society, and watching Killing Us Softly/Tough Guise, I have been thinking about the advertisements we see everyday on television and billboards and how they affect the way society thinks. I’ve been looking at Calvin Klein advertisements and the ideas they evoke. Studying hegemony helps me understand how the media shapes our society, and in this case, normalizes the ideas of sex, male masculinity, and the objectification of women.  Hegemony is the use of media to create a consensus around certain ideas, so that they come to be accepted as common sense. In this way I believe the Calvin Klein advertisements have used their imagery to create a consensus on the normality of sex and objectification of women.  

The first picture I have attached is an example of the objectification of women by Calvin Klein. The women modeling for the perfume, Obsession, is completely naked, lying uncomfortably on a couch. Her pose suggests that she is ready to submit to any man that wants to have her. “Obsession for Men” evokes the idea that men should be heterosexual and be attracted women like her. The women’s identity and character is ignored and only her body is emphasized.  Her uncomfortable position on the couch shows her lack of voice and any say. She is specifically an object of sex for the first man who wants her.

The next couple pictures I have attached encourage and evoke the idea of sex, and male superiority/women objectification.

In this photo, the models are once again half naked, encouraging themes of sex. The male model is shown twice in different poses, while the woman is shown only once, submitting to the strong hold of the man. Her limp posture shows her lack of strength and opinion. Once again the male model is dominant while the woman is objectified and show as inferior.

I have attached similar Calvin Klein photoshoots that similarly evoke ideas of sex and objectification. In all of these photos the man is very fit, normalizing the masculinity and dominance of men. Furthermore, the women are all shown with skinny and flawless body, suggesting the necessity of women to be perfectly built and “sexy.” This image of perfect bodies by both the male and female models normalize the image of how young women and men should look in society.

The Calvin Klein advertisements help demonstrate the affect media has on society, and how it has the power to normalize certain ideas and concepts in society. The images I have analyzed show the power of hegemony and its effect on society. Hegemony

I have also attached a video clip about a racy billboard advertisement of Calvin Klein.

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