What is audience?
An audience or group of different people who read of consume any media text. When texts are made the audience are kept in mind. 'Does it have an audience' is a question asked when media texts are being produced. Audience are important because they bring in the money.
Without an audience there would be no media. The mass media is becoming even more competitive to attract a wider audience in different ways to keep an on going profit.
Katz and Blumler believe that audiences passively receive messages are long gone. They proposed from their research into audience behaviour that audiences use media texts for a variety of reasons. They believe there is 3 reasons. -
- Information - Finding out about events, satisfying curiosity gaining a sense of security through knowledge.
- Personal Identity - Reinforcement for personal values finding models of behaviour insight into ones self. Such as following people on social networks who reinforce our personal values.
- Integration and Social Interaction - Insight into circumstances of others; social empathy, identifying with others and gaining a sense of belonging, interaction, enabling one connec6t with family, friends and society. For example television sitcom or soaps which lets us relate to the character and situations they're going through.
Impact of New Technology on Audiences
Old media such as print, radio and TV used to have a high audience. The media must now work harder in order to maintain a high count of audience numbers.
Digital technology has also led to an increase uncertainty over how we define an audience, with the general agreement that a large group of people reading the same thing at the same time is outdated and that audiences are now seen as being 'fragmented'.
Audience
Demographic - The audience's age, race, gender, class/status, nationality.
Psychographic - Audiences interests, beliefs and hobbies.
Types of Audience
Mass audience - Often termed 'broadcast audience'. Those who consume mainstream or popular texts such as soaps or sitcoms. Media and communion which targets a very large group of people (woman, men, children, adults). Aimed to and have a large audience.
Niche audience - Much smaller but very influential. A niche audience is a small, select group of people with a very unique interest. For example these may be magazines about fishing, gardening bird watching or car racing. Also a film such as submarine.
Michael Winterbottom -
Small/ Niche/ Independent Films - 'I want you' 'Butterfly kiss'
Mass Audience - 'Road To Guantanamo' '24 Hour Party People'
Audience research
Audience research is a major part of any media company's work. They use questionnaires, focus groups, pre-film screening and spend a great deal of time and money finding out who would be interested in their product.
The audiences are categorised into different groups -
Group A
Lawyers
Doctors
Scientists
Well paid professionals
Group B
- Teachers
- Middle management
- Fairly well professionals
Group C1
- Junior Management
- Bank clerks
- Nurses
- 'White Collar' Profession
Group C2
- Electrician
- Plumbers
- Carpenter
- 'Blue Collar' Profession
Group D
- Manuel workers - Drivers, Post sorters
Group E
- Students
- Unemployed
- Pensioners
A stereotypical representation of woman can be seen in the films, Spiderman 2 with Kirsten Dunte starring in a very definition of a damsel in distress. Also another stereotype was the iconic Janet Leigh staring in the infamous shower scene in the film psycho.
