Audience Theory

Hypodermic Needle Model

This is when the institution's intended message is entirely accepted by the audience. It assumes that the audience have no role in its interpretation or reading of a media text. The audience is injected with the institutions perception. 

The Lone Ranger

This film would most likely apply to the hypodermic needle model as it is clear it is a fictional story. The institution does not try to challenge audience's views and its representations are not controversial. The institution made this for enjoyment rather than educational purposes or to create a debate. 

The Selfish Giant

The Selfish Giant does not apply to this model as it is informative and realistic for the audience.  The film creates depth and allows the audience to interpret the storyline for themselves. The character's back stories can be created in the audience's own view.  They can also read the story in their own way, some may find the representations over-exaggerated and offensive whereas some may find it accurate. 

Uses and Gratifications

Entertainment/Diversion - media text is enjoyable and escape from a routine, emotional release

Information/Surveillance - media text is a source of information, a form of education 

Social Relationships - media text is part of social life or replacement for social life

Personal Identity - media product reflects your own values, ideals or hopes

The Lone Ranger

Entertainment/Diversion - Most Disney films are watched for enjoyment and this is no exception. It is easy going, with mild action and acts as an escape from reality. The audience would not develop a deep connection with the film, and would most likely learn nothing from it. 

Social Relationships - New Disney films are event films for children as they would often discuss enjoyment. Young boys would ask each other if they had seen The Lone Ranger and share/talk about their experience.

Personal Identity - Boys who would watch The Lone Ranger may aspire to be like characters created in Disney films e.g cowboys and superheroes. Children often dream of being a fictional character from their favourite film. 

The Selfish Giant

Information/Surveillance - This film has the ability to change people's views as it challenges everyday life. The audience would be sympathetic to the themes covered in this film and may feel like they have learnt or took something from it. 

Personal Identity - The audience may relate to themes covered as it is much more realistic than a Disney film. The audience may relate to the location the film is filmed in or for example, the friendship of Arbor and Swifty or the disability that is focused on, ADHD. 

Cultural Commonality

This relates to how the audience understand meanings in a text. It is based on the idea that the more cultural similarities there are between audience member and the creator of a media, the more they would understand as the media creator will produce texts which represent their lives and experiences. 

The Lone Ranger

The Lone Ranger does not apply to this theory as it is used as a form of escapism by the audience. It is also follows a unrealistic fictional storyline, so there are no meanings to be understood created in the text and does not relate to the current age group audience, to comprehend what life was like in the West that long ago between Cowboys and Indians, they would most likely be raised in a world where discrimination isn't an issue anymore therefore would not look to find cultural commonality. The target audience is also very young so will most likely watch it for enjoyment rather than find meanings. 

The Selfish Giant

The Selfish Giant does apply to this theory. The audience may find cultural commonality through the location the film is set in, e.g Bradford or a Northern area, as it may be where they live or where they have grown up. This can be applied further with the way the characters talk/their dialect/accent. The audience may relate to the childhood experience of Arbor and Swifty or have a similar background as the characters, either the friendship between them, or the difficult lives at home with their families. 

Hall's Preferred Readings

Preferred Reading - how an audience would ideally perceive a representation in a media text

Negotiated Reading - how an audience might be caught in two minds about a representation in the media

Oppositional Reading - how an audience would be completely against a media representation

The Lone Ranger

Preferred Reading - The Lone Ranger will most likely have a preferred reading as the target audience are so young that they will accept the storyline as it is presented to them. The audience would not challenge any meanings that may be created as it is not what the audience are searching for. 

Negotiated Reading - The audience of The Lone Ranger may enjoy the film yet find the representations of the Indians untrue and unfair. 

The Selfish Giant

Preferred Reading - A preferred reading of this film would the audience agreeing with the representation of discrimination issues within genders and also the representation of disability. The audience may see that isolation exists due to differences in income creating segregation. 

Negotiated Reading - A negotiated reading of this film would be the audience enjoying the film, agreeing with some representations but perhaps finding the topic of crime covered too lightly and find that it isn't accurate with real life as Arbor avoids punishment.

Oppositional Reading - The characters are all criminals and do not deserve the audience's sympathy.  They may feel that the characters segregate themselves by committing crimes and causing trouble.