MACS 110 | Introduction to Mass Communication Theory         translate

Week 4: The Rise of Media Industries and Mass Society Theory         back to MACS 110 Home

• Mass Society and the Critique of Mass Culture

• "Ferdinand Tonnies' Gesellschaft. C. Wright Mills, in both his Power Elite and White Collar, used the term mass society or mass as a crucial concept in his description of the "non-democratic" character and structure of American society. In Mills' conception, American society is essentially twofold; an elite and a mass. The power flow is one way; the ruling elite manipulates and defines the existence of the politically and economically powerless mass, using as its technology the modern mass media of communication."  Source: http://www.webref.org/sociology/m/mass_society.htm

Yellow Journalism  Some theories of mass society developed in response to William Randolph Hearst's yellow journalism and circulation wars.

 Why is it ironic that Joseph Pulitzer is associated with yellow journalism ?

News/Wire Services  How might centralized news sources contribute to mass society ?

Comic Books of the 1950s  What could be considered subversive about comic books ?

Direct Effects is one of the six assumptions of mass society theory outlined in the reading.  Which of these assumptions do you believe is most relevant to today's society ?  Which is least relevant ?

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