Regulation and Government Intervention

The main force that influenced the shaping and formation of the radio industry in the 1920s was regulation and government intervention because it heavily restricted the freedoms and how much could be done or said on the radio. Regulation and Government intervention is relatively simple it is the rules and regulations that broadcasters have to follow in order to stay legally cooperative with the law. In 1923 the Commerce department issued licenses to legally operate a radio transmitter. From there on laws and regulations have only grown stricter. In the late 1920's the Radio Act of 1927 was established and a Federal Radio Commission was formed. It limited the number of stations operating at night. Since 1920 many laws and regulations have been installed including: The communication act of 1934, the 1996 telecommunications act, the ban of obscene speech, indecent speech, and copyright laws. Regulation and Government Intervention are like the law of the radio, they are trying to "intervene" to keep the radio clean and useful for the public's ears. Regulation and Government Intervention affected the evolution of the radio in the U.S. because it made it extremely difficult for just anyone to operate a radio. This statement is best defined by the Radio Act of 1927. The number of stations operating at night was limited not only making it difficult for new people to operate radios but restricting the people with licenses of air time. By restricting a new technology like this you not only stop its growth but you hurt the public from discovering how useful something like a radio can be. It seems now more then ever are regulations terribly strict. 

Cultivation

The concept of Cultivation helps me to understand the impact and meaning from the this media clip (2004 Film: Man on Fire) because it shows the shear terror of kidnapping, and as a kid you are more likely to feel endangered and less safe if you watch media that displays the kinds of actions that embrace danger. The definition of Cultivation Theory is mass media exposure cultivates a view of the world that is consistent with the mediated "reality" (Straubhaar 417). I believe this theory to be true because I remember being a child and not having a sense of fear but the fear of god when I was alone after watching this movie. I stated above the definition of cultivation but in my words it means if you are one who is heavily dependent on mass media you are most likely to live in a deceptive state of mind and almost have a feeling you live in the movies. You believe your world and the media world are one. The worst part of the process is when your fears of the media ( kidnapping, robbery, murder) are real life experiences because it intensifies the process of cultivation, ten fold. For example: if you are a young child and are scared of kid napping and you hear a horror story of a kid being abducted you will become a believer of kidnapping being common in society, when it in essences it is just a coincidence. Here is the clip of the film it is pretty easily to see the underlying definition of Cultivation of in the clip. Enjoy!

Man on Fire

Hegemony, Agenda Setting, and Framing

In our first blog, we were supposed to say or tell what we thought we might gain from this class. In this blog prompt we showing what we discovered through the weeks lectures and screenings. Hegemony has aided me to understand Winston's advertisement of the "Man's man". Hegemony means power or dominance that one social group holds over another. Winston is the industries social group and men who smoke cigarettes are the group they hold power over. In the ad there is a rugged, strong, mid-aged man that is looking at blue prints of a cabin, that he is building in the wilderness. The phrases "nobody does it better, this is your world, and this your winston." Portrays the idea that men are alpha males and that no one can do a job like a man, also if you smoke winston lights you can be that alpha male and dominant man. It is obvious the social group targeted are men. To some women this advertisement may be sexist but it really has a good risk to reward ratio because women are not trying to be targeted by the advertisement so their opinion has little meaning on this subject. I think seeing that this ad is older and of a different era it probably did have a hold on the male sex seeing as most men strive to be as dominant and masculine as possible. Like the man depicted in the ad.

Here is the ad by Winston: