Chapter 10 summaries

Chapter 10

1.) Printing Press

In the years of 1453 to 1456 the printing press was invented by Johannes Gutenburg which he adapted from a wine press. This device produced the first modern books including copies of the Latin Bible and Holy Bible. This invention of the printing press opened boundries across seas and allowed for mass productions of books of all kinds. This spread widely across Europe in the 1400 and 1500’s. It also made it cheaper to produce paper because you didn’t need expensive grades of paper. Campbell supports this evidence by asserting he cultural transformations it led to; people could independently learn through books and literature and it became a new medium for transmitting information through writing. This is very convincing because I have learned a lot from books and we use them every day to gain knowledge, and so has everyone across the globe.

2.) The Organization and Ownership of the Book Industry

The publishing of books is done by one of two ways: it is either regulated by major companies in which you employ hundreds of people to work for you, or (how most are0 in smaller houses only consisting of fewer than twenty people. Most publishers will hire people called acquisitions editors whose job is to sign authors to contracts. Within these contracts there are subsidiary rights for the author, which are selling rights for publishers to use in other types of media. Campbell supports this information by asserting that author Anne Rice, writer of Interview with a Vampire, made a $17 million dollar profit because of all the different types of media her novel went through by commercially selling her books. This is convincing because when signing authors under contract and allowing their books to reach other media sources, you bring in more money because your reaching more people in more places.

3.) Influences of Television and Film

A lot of television and films have been influenced by major books and continue to do so. There are a lot of movies that have even been based off comic books, as well as novels, and now-a-days even cartoons and TV shows have made their way into this huge movie medium. Campbell backs these facts by stating that Michael Crichton’s Jurassic Park and Laura Hillenbrand’s Seabiscuit both became big motion pictures. This is convincing because I have seen multiple movies that have been based off of both fiction and nonfiction novels. Also, movies like X-Men have been based off of comic books. People from different countries would be convinced as well because they have also made movies based off of books.

Chapter 3 summeries

Chapter 3

1.) The Gramophone

In the 1880’s Thomas Edison invented the wax disc and figured out how to record and playback sound, this first turntable was called a gramophone. In later years, 1889, Berliner, a German inventor, discovered the flat disc which was a lot more advanced and easily produced. This enabled a “star system” and a new mass medium because it was used by artists to record songs and instruments. This is very convincing because there has been a lot of revolution for ways of recording music. This technique was also used by other countries besides the United States.

2.) Audiotape

In 1940 German engineers invented the audiotape, a plastic magnetic tape which made it possible for multi-track recording for instruments or vocals. Campbell supports these statements because he states that people were able to copy records onto the tape or record songs from the radio; this was called home dubbing. This is convincing because in the mid 1970’s sales for records dropped by 20% because people didn’t go out and buy music when they could record it for free.

3.) From Analog to Stereo to CD’s

In 1958 the stereo (stereophonic sound) was invented and made a huge impact on music because it made it possible to record from two separate channels of sound. From stereos came digital recording in the 1970’s.The stereo, developed by Thomas Stockham, this new invention translated sound waves into computer-like on/off impulses, transferring this information to discs in the form of binary code. This is convincing because Campbell states it replaced Edison’s analog recording which was much less advanced. This soon led to compact discs, better known as CD’s, which would soon replace audiotapes. In the late 1980’s CD sales surpassed LP record albums sales by double. I think people from other countries would be convinced because they used the same inventions and forms of media.

Ch. 11- Advertising and Commercial Culture

1. What are the main points in this chapter?
-Ads incorporate myths
-Like a story most conflicts are resolved by the end of an ad
-Branding

2. What evidence does the author use to support these points?
-Advertising plays off of people's insecurities of how they are placed in society, such as being beautiful or how successful one is which function as myths and the ads that say such things bombard our race with these points until something sticks.
-By reading through the whole ad or looking at in thoroughly you can get the message that is being conveyed.
-Not just a well known name, but to have good branding you must have good products as well as good customer service. It's about being able to create and identity.

3.Is this evidence convincing?
-Yes

4. Would someone with a different world view be convinced?
-Yes

Ch. 8- Newspapers and the Rise of Modern Journalism

1.What are the main points in this chapter?
-The seven different kinds of journalism
-Newspaper circulation has decreased
-Online newspapers vs. print newspapers

2.What evidence does the author provide to support these points?
-Objective journalism, interpretive journalism, advocacy journalism, precision journalism, literary journalism,consensus- oriented journalism, and conflict-oriented journalism.
-Due to a decline in readership for newspapers, the only way to stay in business these days is for the industry to own newspaper chains which are companies that own several different papers throughout the country.
-Online newspapers are taking advantage of the flexibility the internet is offering because space is not an issue so newspapers can post stories and reader letters that they weren't able to print in their paper edition.

3.Is this evidence convincing?
-Yes

4.Would someone with a different world view find this convincing?
-Yes

Ch. 7-Movies and the Impact of Images

1.What are the main points in this chapter?
-Development of film
-The impact of Hollywood's storytelling
-Development of digital video

2.What evidence does the author provide to support these points?
-The mystery or making a film was created by using advances in photography and the development of a flexible film stock to replace the heavy metal and glass plates used to make individual pictures in the 1800's.
-This is where the attraction to actors started and now sound was added to moving images to draw people in even more than the silent films. It created options for viewers.
-This helped movie makers to see camera work instantly instead of waiting for the film to be developed and being able to capture additional footage without the concern for high cost of film stock and processing.

3.Is this evidence convincing?
-Yes

4.Would someone with a different world view find this convincing?
-Yes

Ch. 6- Cable and the Specialization of Television

1.What are the main points in this chapter?
-Technology and the development of cable.
-The cable industry is being dominated by few large and powerful companies.
-Cable comes together with broadcasting.

2.What evidence does the author provide to support these points?
-The advantage of cable is that it can transmit hundreds of cable channels without interference like with television their is more room for interference.
-With this domination problem it may continue with even fewer owners that will monopolize the industry. This could cause and increase in prices because they will have taken control of their competitors.
-In the 1990's cable and broadcasting worked together to influence the forms of media presented to themselves in public.

3.Is this evidence convincing?
-Yes, cable has seemed to taken over vs. television these days.

4. Would someone from a different world view be convinced?
-Yes, I think so.

Ch.4- Popular Radio

1. What are the main points in this chapter?
-Advertising today is taking over the radio.
-Early technology conforms to the modern day radio with lots of advertising instead of a stream of information.
-Radio back then compared to radio today.

2.What evidence does the author provide to support these points?
-Radio= 30 minutes of commercials now a day and the station programs are being speed up and the public doesn't notice they are listening to more advertising than the radio.
-Telegraph, morse code, wireless telegraphy, to broadcasting, and narrow casting into bigger networks.
-Radio back them was people's major form of information where as today the radio is being overpowered by other mediums and with all the commercials in radio is whats making people a more entertaining source.

3.Is this evidence convincing?
-yes

4.Would someone from a different world view be convinced?
-Some points yes and others no because some places only have the radio as their source of information.

Ch. 1-Mass Communication- A Critical Approach

1. What are the main points in this chapter?
-Mass communication at the top can alter a society's perception of events and attitudes.
-The culture skyscraper that separates our culture into two parts of people, the high culture (finer tastes) and the low culture(questionable tastes).
-The beginning of communication and the written word turning into forms of media

2.What evidence does the author provide to support these points?
-We are a narrative species who exist by storytelling by relating our situations to our set culture and what we perceive to be the right story.
-Throughout the 20th century this idea was used to show the high culture as the top floors being art, museum, ballet, and the classical literature and the low culture the bottom floors of the skyscraper were rock music and video games.
-Campbell goes back to the oral debates between Socrates and Plato.

3.Is this evidence convincing?
-Yes, because everyone has a different perspective on what they see or hear about through the media and how well they can relate to it on what they themselves have experienced.
- No, it doesn't matter if your of the high or low culture of the skyscraper. This was just one idea, but the things it says are not necessarily true.
-Yes in this chapter it tells us about the beginning of communication and how the written forms were taken to be formed into different types of media.

4. Would someone with a different world view find this convincing?
-Yes
-Depends on who you are asking
-Yes