Deck 11: Communication and the Media

Question 1

Which of the following is NOT an example of new media?

A) television
B) email
C) instant messaging
D) mobile SMS communications

Answer 1

television

Question 2

As communication changes from interpersonal communication through group and public to mass communication, which of the following occurs?

A) Feedback lessens, until, in mass communication there is no longer any feedback possible.
B) Receivers become more heterogeneous and are physically distanced from senders.
C) Audience adaptation becomes less and less important.
D) All of the above

Answer 2

Receivers become more heterogeneous and are physically distanced from senders.

Question 3

Which of the following is NOT a function of media?

A) Gathering and dissemination of information
B) Analysis and evaluation of information
C) Education and socialization of receivers
D) None of the above

Answer 3

None of the above

Question 4

Which of the following is a characteristic of mass communication?

A) Institutional sources
B) Invisible receivers
C) Fairly noisy environments during reception
D) All of the above

Question 5

Which of the following is the best example of cultural transmission by the media?

A) A book that details a country's history
B) The evening news
C) A "talking head" news commentary
D) A TV sitcom

Question 6

When we characterize the media as watchdogs of a free society, we are referring to which media function?

A) surveillance
B) correlation
C) cultural transmission
D) entertainment

Question 7

One of the effects of the media is that people become narcotized, which means they

A) are so overloaded by information that they feel overwhelmed.
B) agree instantly with everything a source says.
C) resist dominant messages.
D) learn how to criticize hegemonic messages.

Question 8

Which of the following is NOT a tenet of cultivation theory?

A) Heavy TV viewers idealize the world and see it as safer than it really is.
B) Heavy TV viewing leads to perceptions of the world as a dangerous place.
C) TV encourages mainstreamed views.
D) TV acts on us by building up our views of the world, much in the way that stalagmites form slowly over time.

Question 9

Which is NOT a way receivers resist influence?

A) By letting media set agendas
B) By selective processing
C) By conducting oppositional readings
D) By using media for individual gratification

Question 10

Media gatekeepers

A) select which messages receivers will be exposed to
B) help individuals resist dominant ideologies
C) use media for their own individual uses and gratifications
D) have very little to do with determining message content

Question 11

When McLuhan coined the phrase, "the medium is the message," he was trying to convey the idea:

A) that media content is governed by ideal norms.
B) that the media could predict future events by causing them to happen.
C) that the channel through which a message is transmitted affects message interpretation and often determines message content.
D) that media are not logical; they appeal to those of moderate to low intelligence.

Question 12

Generally hard rock fans do not tune in to radio stations with easy-listening formats and non-believers do not watch televangelists. This is an example of

A) selective exposure.
B) ideal norms.
C) gate-keeping.
D) All of the above

Question 13

Which is the best example of selective attention?

A) Tom is a socialist so he turns off the TV when any political messages come on that deviate from his view.
B) While watching the news, Tea lets her mind wander; only looking at the scene when the handsome weatherman comes on.
C) Shanequa and Sean watch the President. She thinks the President supports the transportation bill. He thinks the President is against it.
D) An hour after the news is over, neither Tea, Shanequa, nor Sean remembers more than three or four stories.

Question 14

Which is the best example of selective perception?

A) Tom is a socialist so he turns off the TV when any political messages come on that deviate from his view.
B) While watching the news, Tea lets her mind wander, only looking at the scene when the handsome weatherman comes on.
C) Shanequa and Sean watch the President. She thinks the President supports the transportation bill. He thinks the President is against it.
D) An hour after the news is over, neither Tea, Shanequa, nor Sean remember more than three or four stories.

Question 15

Which is the best example of selective retention?

A) Tom is a socialist so he turns off the TV when any political messages come on that deviate from his view.
B) While watching the news, Tea lets her mind wander, only looking at the scene when the handsome weatherman comes on.
C) Shanequa and Sean watch the President. She thinks the President supports the transportation bill. He thinks the President is against it.
D) An hour after the news is over, neither Tea, Shanequa, nor Sean remembers more than three or four stories.

Question 16

Which of the following mass mediums acts as a portable friend?

A) newspapers
B) magazines
C) radio
D) television

Question 17

Newspaper format encourages all of the following EXCEPT

A) a focus on the unusual and the dramatic.
B) a focus on abstract ideas rather than concrete details.
C) an interest in "appearance" vs. "reality" stories.
D) a fascination with crime.

Question 18

Which of the following take the form of hard copy?

A) newspapers
B) television tabloid shows
C) film
D) television news programming

Question 19

Which of the following is NOT true about newspaper format?

A) Newspaper format is designed to allow readers to stop reading at different points but still get the gist of the story.
B) The format of newspapers like USA Today has been influenced by television.
C) To build suspense, most essential information in a news story is put at the end
D) All of the above

Question 20

Which of the following functions do magazines fulfill for readers?

A) Provide information about how to act like insiders
B) Give up-to-date information on fast-breaking events
C) Reflect generalized ideal norms, but do little to reflect norms and values of subgroups
D) All of the above

Question 21

Which is NOT true of radio?

A) It has a strong interpersonal dimension
B) It is the most local and "demassified" of the mass media
C) People who listen to talk radio have been found to be poorly adjusted and low in intelligence
D) All of the above; i.e., all are false statements about radio

Question 22

TV formats encourage all of the following EXCEPT

A) a need for news to be visually compelling.
B) a focus on detailed knowledge.
C) belief in ideal norms.
D) interest in dramatic material.

Question 23

Television causes us to expect

A) time to pass quickly.
B) arousing visual stimuli.
C) psychological identification with characters or spokespersons.
D) All of the above

Question 24

A genre is

A) a kind of ideal norm.
B) another name for a newspaper headline.
C) a segment of the radio market.
D) None of the above

Question 25

Which is NOT a characteristic of new media?

A) Digital information has been replaced by analog information
B) Multi-media capability is enhanced
C) Asynchronicity allows communicators to consume messages where and when they want
D) New media are more interactive than traditional media

Question 26

Dr. Smith communicates with her class over the Internet. When students have a question or opinion, they post it. Later, when Dr. Smith or other students log on, they respond. This is an example of

A) asynchronous discussion forum.
B) synchronous chat.
C) MUD.
D) ISP.

Question 27

According to professional Webpage designer Jacob Nielsen, which of the following should Webpage designers spend most time thinking about

A) novelty.
B) color contrast.
C) elaborate links to other sites.
D) usability.

Question 28

Which is true about the hype stages through which most new media go

A) People are usually suspicious and uninterested during the peak of inflated expectations stage.
B) In the slope of enlightenment stage, people redefine the nature of a technology and find its true use.
C) In the technology trigger stage, people find their own unique ways to use a new medium.
D) In the plateau of productivity stage, people lose interest in the new medium and stop using it.

Question 29

MMOG stands for

A) Massively multiplayer online games
B) Multi-media original games
C) Multi-media organizational genres
D) Multi-use multi-media online governance

Question 30

In the mass media context, communication occurs through indirect channels that require specialized encoding and decoding technologies.

Question 31

The presence of competing media messages is a source of noise in the mass communication context.

Question 32

Media messages are much easier to decode than spoken, face-to-face messages.

Question 33

Although different media call for different levels of technical sophistication, they all demand the same kinds of cognitive skills on the part of receivers.

Question 34

Media can reduce the ability of other institutions to set standards and values.

Question 35

Editorials and commentaries in which experts interpret news events are examples of the correlation function of the media.

Question 36

Cultural transmission includes both prosocial and antisocial learning.

Question 37

According to the magic bullet view, media have only limited effects on receivers.

Question 38

A hegemonic message is a message that encourages listeners to critique what they are told and to make up their own minds.

Question 39

The term, spiral of silence, is a description of the frequency of speech of characters on TV dramas, with women speaking less than men.

Question 40

The world as depicted on TV is primarily populated by able-bodied, single, heterosexual, white males under forty.

Question 41

According to the obstinate audience theory, media effects are long-lasting and powerful.

Question 42

Franklin Roosevelt began the trend of the imperial presidency by bypassing congress.

Question 43

According to McLuhan, television is cool medium while radio is a hot medium.

Question 44

Hot media involve receivers by asking them to fill in details.

Question 45

According to McLuhan, print media are linear while television is mosaic.

Question 46

Hegemony means that a text has multiple meanings for each individual who is exposed to it.

Question 47

The American public's involvement with the language of TV is changing the language of newspapers, books, and magazines.

Question 48

One of the most important functions of magazines is to act as a portable friend to readers.

Question 49

Magazines are one of the least ephemeral of the mass media.

Question 50

The "man bites dog" effect means that newspapers usually distort news events by adding meaningless details.

Question 51

One of the major goals of adults in literacy programs is to be able to read a paper in public.

Question 52

The writing style in magazines is usually terse and objective.

Question 53

The major criticism leveled against radio is that it encourages apathy and lack of involvement.

Question 54

Television has destroyed the American public's beliefs in ideal norms.

Question 55

One of the most positive effects of new media is that audience fragmentation is no longer a problem.

Question 56

GPS devices result in increased surveillance.

Question 57

The game America's Army has been used as a way of creating favorable opinions of the military in many young peoples' minds.

Question 58

Research shows that Internet users are much more socially isolated than those who are not users.

Question 59

Despite initial interest, politicians have largely ignored the benefits of having a presence on the Internet.

Question 60

SMS means short messaging service.

Question 61

Aproximeeting describes the fact that people are now very precise about keeping appointments, a precision that has been brought about by mobile technology.

Question 62

The term used to describe the coming together of computing, telecommunications, and media in a digital environment is convergence.

Question 63

The more elaborate the graphics, the more effective a Webpage will be.

Question 64

The use of composite characters by news writers or broadcasters is generally considered unethical.

Question 65

Using reenactments in TV newscasts presents no ethical problems.

Question 66

It's important to remember that the people we communicate with online are real people with real feelings.

Question 67

Internet messages are carefully edited and are, in fact, more trustworthy than any other form of mediated communication.

Question 68

The term Web 2.0 refers to an outmoded form of communication with little interactivity.

Question 69

Both MySpace and Facebook have several million users over the age of 65.

Question 70

Define mass communication. Describe its three characteristics.

Question 71

What are the four functions of the media? List, define, and give an example of each.

Question 72

Briefly describe the arguments given by people who believe the media exert powerful effects over audiences. Briefly describe the arguments given by people who maintain that audiences resist media messages.

Question 73

Give an example of selective exposure, selective attention, selective perception, and selective retention.

Question 74

How do the formats and uses of the following media differ? Newspapers, magazines, radio, and television.

Question 75

What themes are considered especially newsworthy by newspaper editors?

Question 76

What are the defining characteristics of television as a medium? How does the logic of television affect our expectations of other media and of the world in general?

Question 77

What are the defining characteristics of new media? What are some of the negative effects that have been identified by critics of new media?

Question 78

What, if any, ethical responsibilities do the consumers of media (both traditional and new) have? Defend your answer