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The Media and the Audiences Selective Exposure and Perception
Upon thinking about the issue of media and perception, there are some obvious arguments one can advance. The media needs to introduce something interesting so that instead of flipping channels over to some entertainment a person will stay on the news channel. So news producers devises a strategy based on selective exposure to get ones attention and stop the channel surfing. What the perceive can sometimes be based on how much of the story they have heard. They then form there own opinions on what they absorbed, whether it was the whole story or not. This is true for people who are reading newspapers such as the Wall Street Journal or the New York Times or cable television networks such as Cable News Network or even local programming such as Fox News at 5:00.
At 9 a m on monday morning, the only thing that the news reports said on the internet was that another plane crashed in New York. The very first thing that jumps to one's mind is its another terorist attack. It wasn’t until later in the day that people on the internet would find out the whole story. This is an example of how the media plays into our selective perception.
People will watch what they are interested in. It is the media's responsibility to find stories that will interest audiences. Different running mates in an election. Or another story of interest could even be that nights football scores. If the media can grab the publics' attention in some way then they can change public opinion, but only if they get listeners. The media cannot accomplish anything without an audiences. They rely on audiences in order to sets rates for advertising during their programs.
In the case of selective perception, everyone are different. The media must always be very careful about what they say or how they say it. People will find other meanings or even read into what is being said. During this war, we have bombed Afghanistan. The media has reported stories about the civilian afghans that are being killed. These stories have appeared in media ranging from Time and Newsweek to ABC World News with Charles Gibson and even Fox News. Some may feel that we should not hut the innocent anymore. Still others says that this is an act of war and look at how many civilans we have lost already. Here the media have the ability to possibly change public opinion based on the way that peoples perceive things. Data shows this to be the case.
Selective expozure and selective perception are all about the individual. It is what someone watches and how he perceives that is of interest to news producers. The media has to dive into both of these areas if they want viewers. They must ultimately get the publics attention. From their on they must think of how people might perceive their stories because they don’t want to make enemies if they want good television ratings. They also don’t want to cause an roar in society by something they say.