Audience experiences differ from one person to the other. How an individual interprets a text differs from how another will engage with it. Several factors are responsible for mediating the differences exhibited when interacting with content. Researchers have engaged in how audiences interact with media content and come up with four main models (Granelli & Zenor, 2016). In the transparent mode, the audience gets lost in the fictional world created by the content. The referential mode sees an individual interpret the meaning of the text by moving out of it. The mediated mode occurs when an individual interprets the text using their media production literacy. The discursive model involves an individual analyzing the content of media (Granelli & Zenor, 2016). My real-life audience experiences are a mixture of the four modes. The shift from one mode to the other depends on the media content in question.
Every form of communication requires the sender of the message and the receiver. The audience involves an individual receiving a message. The interaction between the sender and the receiver of information is an ongoing process that does not necessarily have to be intentional. Throughout my life, I have had numerous experiences as a member of an audience. I have learned that the audience is defined by the particular media content in place in my experiences. Viewing individuals as subjects of an audience gives rise to a concept known as audiences-as-outcome. In describing the model, the author says, it sees people as being acted upon by media” (Sullivan, 2019 p.25). The media has the power to cause either positive or detrimental effects on an individual. When reading a fictional novel, I find myself immersed in the fictional world. The same applies when watching horror movies. There was a time that I watched a two-hour horror film that was interesting and frightening at the same time. I got lost inside the film that when it ended, I visualized myself in that setting. I felt so scared throughout the night. Granelli & Zenor (2016) regard this situation as a transparent mode as the audience gets lost in the world of fiction.
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However, the same does not happen when reading articles or listening to a motivational speaker. When engaging with such media, I intend to gain the message and interpret it for my good. Here, I used the discursive model, as explained by Granelli & Zenor (2016). According to the authors, the discursive model requires an individual to view the content as a message. It calls on them to draw meanings that eventually assist them in the decision-making process. The same principle is expounded by the author when he discusses a concept known as audience-as-agent. In illustrating the ideas, the author says, “People are conceived of as free agents choosing what media they will consume, bringing their own interpretive skills to the text they encounter” (Sullivan, 2019 p.26). They proceed to make meanings out of the texts. I remember when I turned to a ted talk where the speaker was inaccurate in his assertions regarding climate change. I repeatedly referred to the internet to confirm whether the statistics he provided were accurate. In this regard, I was not a passive consumer of the content. I remained within the discursive model, as described by the author in the text.
Audiences also interact with characters within the media at a moral level. Researchers have immensely paid significant attention to how individuals interact with media with unsavory characters such as sex, violence, and antisocial behaviors. One of the theories postulated to provide a lens is known as moral disengagement. As illustrated by the authors, "Viewers use rationality to either excuse immoral behavior or redefine it as moral" (Granelli & Zenor, 2016 p.4). I have been in this situation several times. I remember one time when watching a Netflix television series. A man had his wife ill for almost three weeks and had no money to buy any drugs. He broke into a pharmacy and stole the drugs. However, on his way out, the cops had been notified. He was taken to court, and the jury had to decide on whether to convict him. I do not support stealing or robbery of any kind. However, I was also aware of the problematic situation the man found himself in. By doing so, I had already sanitized the man's morality by using moral disengagement theory. The scenario also justified the concept of audiences-as-outcome, which emphasizes that media content impacts the audience.
In conclusion, my real-life audience experiences are a mixture of several modes. The examples I have given demonstrate that I dynamically change from discursive to the transparent mode. The change depends on the type of content and its nature. In the transparent mode, I try to remain within the fictional world as much as possible to engage with the text at the utopian level. In the discursive model, I try to remain critical of the content and challenge it either covertly or overtly. I am also influenced directly by the characters through their morality. Using the moral disengagement theory, I determine the nature of actions and where they fall on the moral spectrum. The audience is a highly dynamic group of people whose behaviors and experiences depend on the content. The response changes from one person to another, depending on how they interact with the content.
References
Granelli, S., & Zenor, J. (2016). Decoding “The Code”: Reception theory and moral judgment of Dexter. International Journal of Communication , 10 , 23.
Sullivan, J. L. (2019). Media audiences: Effects, users, institutions, and power . SAGE Publications, Incorporated.
