Example of essay on audience ethnography

Appendix

Cover page1
Appendix.. 2
Log sheet2
Ethnographic data … 5
Research questions9
Research report. 10
References14
Log sheet
Ethnographic data of sources
Seiter, Ellen (2002 reprint). Television and New Media Audiences, Oxford: Clarendon Press, pp. 0-33
Ellen Seiter is a professor in the University of California, San Diego. Being a professor for communication, She under took a research on the television audience but she put more focus on the children as part of the television audience. The author confirms that it unchangeable truth that television disrupts children behavioral modification and the disruption that it has to the children in class. This kind of behavior is brought about by the violent behavior that children acquire as the watch television. However, the author warns of the stereotype that parents and feminists can have towards television viewing and children resulting from exclusive reliance on television. Seiter argues that domestic ethnography of television is related to the public and research should be geared towards changing the television the general representation of audience.
Gauntlett, David and Hill, Annette (1999). TV Living, London and New York: Routledge, pp. 21-51
Gillespie, Marie (2000). Transnational Communications and Diaspora Communities, in cottle, Simon Ethnic minorities and the media, Open University Press: Buckingham, pp. 164-178
The writing is kind of reflection and collections of current researches about media audience. The textbook acknowledges the various biases that had existed in the media. However, it accounts for the various improvements that have been reflected in the current researches that have been carried about media audience. The researches have realized some other important issues in the study and understanding of media audience than the consideration of minority representation as proclaimed by Cottle.
The book makes a concluding remark that the media vital factors are rapidly changing. The author identifies cultural field of ethnic minorities in the media in addition to the media landscape as the most rapidly changing factors in the media industry. The conclusion is arrived at after an analysis of twelve international researches articles, which dedicated their concerns on the dynamic culture of identity, the dynamism of the minorities in the media production industry and the representation of such minorities in the media industry. The book makes a conclusive writing to various stakeholders on the area of study as directive for the right to communicate the changes that prevail in sociology of the media.
Ginsburg, Gaye (2003). Embedded Aesthetics: Creating a Discursive Space for Indigenous Media in Parks, Lisa and Kumar Shanti (Eds.)
The thesis statement of the book is the ethnographic representation of people and their culture. The research was undertaken in 2007. The research investigated Indian women in middle class families as an audience in media industry. The research explored on the serial viewing and interaction of the selected audience with Indian traditional infected serials. The research took an analysis of what has gone into history of Hindus tradition that division of labor is factored into their life style and women are supposed to be the custodians of the family affairs and thus have their responsibility as nurturing the community’s traditions and values.
The development of these traditions towards civilization is reflected in the concurrent evolution of the Indian television. The feminization of Indian television has to replace by the Indianization of the Indian channels, their content and their general features including the increased use of vernacular in the Indian television. The whole change was ass a result of competition between transnational and private television cables and satellites. The final conclusion of the ethnography is that the feminization of the Indian television backed the existing idea of womanhood in India and thus contributed to women discrimination and served to limit them to the available alternatives.
Planet TV: a global television reader. New York; London: New York University Press.
The planet TV gives an analysis of the transition of the global television over time. Planet TV makes an acknowledgement that the current global television is a replica of transnational culture and widening globalization facilitated by the rapidly growing television. Planet TV provides a collection of essays presented by prior scholars on the study of television and its audience. Planet TV realizes the rapidly changing landscape of global television. Depending on the social differences in existences amongst the audience for instance, diverse cultural, social and historical contexts, the study explores identifiable factors like transnational, post colonialism, imperialism, nationalism, cultural and ethnic hybridism.
Planet TV in this analysis has concluded that the resulting global television and its audience behavior is a historic factor idealized fur away from the mere illusion that it is a factor of the western dominance in television industry. The planet TV suggests a new dimension on researching the social, technological, political and economical aspects of television.
Medrado, Andrea (2005)’Community Television: A Case Study from Favela da Rocinha, Brazil.’ Conference Paper, International
This is a case study from a community television station TV ROC from Rio de Jeneiro in Brazil. The TV station operates at a slum in Latin America specifically Favela da Rocinha. The analysis of the article in-depth analysis of the operators of the TV ROC in addition to the observation of the research participants and the surrounding community of Rocinha. The article reports that the media is of importance to the life of the residents of Rocinha. However, it also serves as a source of disparity within the community.
Iwabuchi, Koichi (2004)’ Japan in the global television format business’ in Moran, A. and Keane, M. (eds.) Television across Asia. London: RoutledgeCurzon
The television’s New engine presents that there is growing similarity in the media industry across the world and programs growing to be similar from country to country. This has lead to unification of the television industry as a common global industry facilitated by technological advancements. This has also brought with it the similarity between the global television audience. The global television landscape has changed towards homogeneity in presentation and the whole aspects of television.
Communication Association; 2005 Annual Meeting, New York, NY, 25p
This was a discussion on communication held in New York. The discussion claimed to have communication unification but taking into account states identity. This is a counter requirement to the globalization that has taken place in the communication industry.
Research questions
What are the latest developments in the production, representation and reception of media output, produced by, for or about ethnicity?* What informs the questions media researchers ask and pursue when examining the mass media and ethnicity?* What are the principal forces of change currently shaping the field?
What is the audience main concern in television?
Report
Introduction
This research is about youth television watching habits in addition to ethnographic data collected from the sources provided above. Women and Men from India, Australia and America of ages 20-23 were based as subjects of this research as observation from them were recorded for analysis. The varied population for this study had further dimensions based on gender (male and female), region, caste heritage and religion. The study focused on students as it is believed that it is at school and at the age of twenty to twenty three years that television-viewing habits are developed and follow certain trends (Seiter, 2002). The parental heritage of the various groups selected is diverse in opinions and notions towards television watching as their lifestyle has been corrupted by the various advances in technology and interaction with other races.
Theory
The social theory that examines the watching of television and habitual development (Cultivation theory) has its main framework stating that the more one stays in a television for a defined long time the more he or she develops and habit of watching the television routinely. Beside the development of habitual watching of TV such people are most like in a position to take into faith the social fiction or reality that might be routinely portrayed in the television (Lewis, 1991). The theoretical implication of the television watching habits of people from a diverse perspective need to be examined for the sake of reality observation and drawing of empirical conclusion.
Method
A total of four hundred of fifty men and women of ages below between 20 and 23 years old were selected for the research. The research aimed at the entire youthful population of India, America and Australia. Applying qualitative interviews, the study was designed to understand the participants television consumption based their age, rituals, routines, gender and general life experience. The general behavior of the consumption of media by the participants formed a major concern of the research as the study aimed at drawing the general behavior of television watching based on specificity in region, age and experience of the participants (Iwabuchi, 2004). The research has also to take into account the family contextual issues of television watching and the general relationship between the family members in relation to media consumption.
This robust qualitative approach has brought with it enough grounding observation that the targeted population general television watching behavior can be laid on. The research group used in-depth biographical interviews with people who are routinely exposed to television and extensive literature review as its main approaches for the research. India 20-23 years old female who are exposed to television (n= 150), Australian female youth of the ages 20-23 years (n= 150) and American males of 20-23 years old (n= 150) were take through the research questioning and observation as the key participants in the study. The study of this group was done for twenty-one days.
Data collection
The standards of biographical analysis and qualitative research were employed as a guideline in the study. Majority of interviews and the observation of the participants’ behavior took place at their homes. All the interviews were recorded and notes taken. After the initial data analysis of daily observations from the various research areas, the researchers returned to the field for interviews with the participants.
Data analysis
The data was put into analysis under the traditions of qualitative research. A design was formulated to ensure the emerging themes and patterns from the research were taken care of. The design involved, transcribing of notes from the interviews and observations, identification of variations and commonalities by coding of the data’s key wording, identification of commonality and patterns within study groups and across the groups and finally identification of linking themes that served to explain the data.
Results and conclusion
Majority of the youths in the world use most of their time watching Television (TV). In the US, the youth use most of their leisure time watching their favorite programs. In addition to sleeping and working, the next activity mostly performed in the US is television watching (Goodhardt, 1987). It consumes up to an estimate of half of the leisure time available to the US youthful population. Similarly, the trend is the same in Australia and India. Depending on needs in addition to various factors, different youth watch TV due to diverse reasons. They watch programs to obtain various needs and satisfaction. Most of the watch programs are of social impact mainly being entertaining programs. A significantly long time of the leisure and free time of the study respondents is spent on watching favorite programs. However, India participants watch programs mostly associated with their cultural background. For Australia and America, the group interviewed showed no significant difference as the group watch social entertaining programs including music and movies. The common concluded factor about the all television audience of the interviewed group is that television programs watching by family members formed a social construction ground for the families as it serves to build family members relations. However, various individuals watch television to achieve personal goals. It is worthy while concluding that the new media is influential to the life of youth in reference to their social differences including age, region and race.
Reference
Lewis, J. (1991). The ideological octopus: an exploration of television & its audience. Routledge.
Seiter, Ellen (2002 reprint). Television and New Media Audiences, Oxford: Clarendon Press, pp. 0-33
Gauntlett, David and Hill, Annette (1999). TV Living, London and New York: Routledge, pp. 21-51
Gillespie, Marie (2000). Transnational Communications and Diaspora Communities, in cottle, Simon Ethnic minorities and the media, Open University Press: Buckingham, pp. 164-178
Ginsburg, Gaye (2003). Embedded Aesthetics: Creating a Discursive Space for Indigenous Media in Parks, Lisa and Kumar Shanti (Eds.)
Planet TV: a global television reader. New York; London: New York University Press.
Medrado, Andrea (2005)’Community Television: A Case Study from Favela da Rocinha,
Brazil.’ Conference Paper, International Communication Association; 2005 Annual Meeting, New York, NY, 25p
Iwabuchi, Koichi (2004)’ Japan in the global television format business’ in Moran, A. and Keane, M. (eds.) Television across Asia. London: RoutledgeCurzon
Goodhardt, G. J., Ehrenberg, A. S. C., & Collins, M. A. (1987). The television audience: patterns of viewing. An update (No. Ed. 2). Gower Publishing Co. Ltd..