PART ONE
CHAPTER ONE
Media Communication Culture and Media Literacy.
In this chapter, mass communication is defined as the process of creating shared meaning among two or more people.it criticizes the one way model of communication as it does not wholly reflect the communication process, rather it agrees with the theories of Osgood and Shramm which states that there are no permanent receiver or sender, rather an interchanging of roles exits.
It defines culture a learned behavior of members of a given social group. He suggests that culture helps us categorize and classify our experiences and also helps define us, our world and the people in it. According to him culture cannot survive without communication, as communication is the only means that it can be transferred. Therefore the media plays a very special role in the culture of the people.
Furthermore he defined media literacy as the ability effectively and efficiently comprehends and use any form of mediated-communication. In a bid to explain media literacy further he traced the history of writing starting from the oral period when the meaning of language is specific and local. As a result communities were closely knit and their members were highly dependent on each other for all aspects of life knowledge was passed orally and people were shown and told how to do things.
Having a good memory was also crucial as myths and history were intertwined.
He writes that more than 5000 thousand years ago, alphabets were developed independently in several places around the world. Picture based appeared in Egypt, Sumer, and urban China etc. he noted that the syllable alphabet as we know it today developed slowly and was aided by greatly by ancient semantic cultures and eventually flowered in Greece around 800 B.C. like the Sumerians the
Greek perfected the easy alphabet of necessity.
As modern writing developed, meaning and language became more uniform, communication could occur over a long distance and long periods of time with knowledge being transmitted in writing, power shifted from those who could show others their special talent to those who could write and read them.
Elements of medical literacy i. A critical thinking skill enabling audience members to develop independent judgment. ii. An understanding of the process of mass communication. iii. An awareness of the impact of the media on the individual and the society. iv. Strategies for analyzing and discussing media messages. v. An understanding of media content as a text that provides insight into one’s culture. vi. The ability to enjoy, understand and appreciate media contents. vii. Development of effective development skills viii. An understanding of the ethical moral obligation of media practitioners
According to him, for a person to be media literate means the ability to understand content, and filter out noise and the ability to distinguish emotional from reasoned reactions when responding to content and to act accordingly.

CHAPTER TWO
The Evolving Mass Communication Process
This chapter traces the history of the mass media and also deals with current trends in the mass media. It discusses concentration of ownership, conglomeration, globalization, audience fragmentation, hyper commercialization and convergence.
He noted that the mass media system we have today has exited ever since 1830’s. He opined that it is a system that has weathered repeated significant change with the coming of increasingly sophisticated technologies. The penny press newspaper which was the first newspaper was soon followed by a mass market books and circulation magazines. As the 1800’s became 1900’s these popular media were joined by motion pictures, radio and sound recording. A few years later came television combining news and entertainment, moving images and sound all in the home, ostensibly for free. The traditional media found new functions and prospered side by side with television. Then more recently the internet and the World Wide Web came, this has given rise to the media industries alliterating how they how they are structured and do business. The nature of the content and how they interact and respond to the audience
In this chapter problems media outlets currently face such as, declining revenue and viewership were equally discussed and solutions suggested. The solutions include: i. Audience fragmentation: also known as narrow casting or niche marketing. Baran suggests that individual stations should narrow their programs to a specific audience, thus given the selected audience attention. Example before the advent of cable television, people could choose from among the three commercial broadcast networks-¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬ ABC, CBS, NBC, one noncommercial public broadcasting station, but today have thousands of viewing options. So to retain audience and attract advertisers each channel must now find a more specific group of people to make up its viewership. Example Nickelodeon and Disney junior targets kids, Disney XD targets older teens while Bravo channel upper income older people. ii. Hyper commercialization: this is a process of writing brands into production instead of going for separate advert in between programs. Example ABC writes Revlon cosmetics into the story line of its popular soap opera “all my children”, on desperate house wives the female’s stars shop regularly at
Macy’s.
Finally ends with developing media literacy skills were it places emphasis on proper interpretation of the content i.e. message as a vital tool in developing media literacy.
PART TWO
CHAPTER THREE
Books
In this chapter history of books and printing presses, is discussed. Problems they face are also considered and solutions suggested.
The first printing press arrived on North American soil in 1638 only 38 years after the Plymouth Rock landing. It was operated by a company called Cambridge press. Printing was limited to religion and government documents. The first book printed in the colonies appeared in 1644—the whole book of psalm sometimes referred to as the Bay psalm book. Among the very few secular titles were those printed by Benjamin Franklin annually. The almanac contained shorty story, poetry, weather forecasts and other facts and figures useful to a population now in command of its environment.

The 1800’s saw a series of important refinements to the process of printing: continuous roll paper which permitted printing of standardized pages was invented in France at the very beginning of the century. Soon after in 1811, German inventor Friedrich Koenig converted the printing press from muscle to steam power, this speed up the production of printed materials.
Baran notes that the book industry is bound by many of the same financial and industrial pressures that constrain the media but book more than the others are in position to transcend the constrains.
Functions of books i. Books are agents of social and cultural change. ii. Books are important cultural repository. iii. Books are our windows on the past. iv. Books are important sources of personal development. v. Books are wonderful sources of entertainment.
Because of their affluence as cultural reposition and agents of change, books have often been targeted for censorship. A book is censored when someone in authority limits publication of or access to it. Censorship occurs in all media. This is a major challenge book face today, examples of books censored are ‘The outsiders’, fallen angel’ by Walter Myer etc. there are different categories of books: Higher education books for colleges and universities, El-hi books for elementary and secondary school etc.
In the concluding part of the chapter, new trends in book printing and publishing such as; e-books, conglomeration, convergence etc. were discussed. Like other chapters, the chapter ends with developing media literacy skills with ‘J. K. Rowling’s “Harry potter” in focus.
CHAPTER FOUR
Newspapers
This chapter examines the relationship between the newspaper and its readers, it looked the medium’s root beginning with the first papers following them from Europe to colonial America were the traditions of today free press were set. It also studies the cultural changes that led to creation of
Penny press and the competition between these mass circulation dailies that gave rise to ‘yellow journalism’ it also reviewed the modern newspaper in terms of its size and scope discussing different types of papers plus the importance of newspapers as an advertising medium. Finally the positive and negative impacts of technology such as the rise in online newspapers and changes in the nature of newspaper readership are discussed.
History
Ii Caesar’s time Rome had a new paper the “Acta Diurna” (actions of the day) written on a tablet and was pasted on the wall after each meeting of the senate, its circulation was one. The newspapers we recognize today have their roots in the 17th century Europe. “Corontos” a one page news sheet about specific events, were printed in Holland in 1620 and imported to English by British booksellers who were eager to satisfy public demand for information about continental happenings that eventually led to what we know today as ‘thirty years wars’.
English man Nathaniel Butter, Thomas Archer, and Nicholas Bourne eventually began printing their own occasional news sheets using the same title for consecutive editions. They stooped publishing in
1641. The same year that regular daily accounts of local news started appearing in the news sheet, these for runners of daily newspapers were called “Diurnals”
Political power struggle in England at this time booted the fledging mediums as partisans on the side of the monarchy and those on the side of the parliament printed Diurnals to bolster their positions.

When the monarchy prevailed it granted monopoly rights to the Oxford Gazette; the official voice of the crown founded in 1665 and later renamed the London Gazette. This journal; used a formula of foreign news, official information, royal proclamation and local news that became the model for the first colonial newspaper.
The concept of “Yellow journalism” is a study in excess or sensational reporting of sex, crime and disaster news it is dine with grant headlines, heavy use of illustrations and over reliance on cartoons and color. It derived its name from the Yellow kid ,a popular cartoon character of the time.
Type of Newspapers. i. National daily Newspapers: this type of paper enjoys wide readership and unlimited circulation across towns in the country. ii. Large metro Politian dailies iii. Suburban and small town dailies iv. Weeklies and semi weeklies v. The ethnic press vi. The alternative and dissident press—this type of newspapers is mostly weekly and is available to readers at no cost. vii. Commuter paper- modeled after a common form of European newspaper, this paper is a free daily designed for commuters.
CHAPTER FIVE
Magazines
The dynamics of the contemporary magazine industry; paper and online and its audience was discussed in this chapter. The medium’s beginnings in the colonies, its pre-war expansion and explosive growth between the civil war and world war were also highlighted. Finally the chapter examines some of the editorial decisions that should be of particular interest to media literate magazine consumer.
Magazines were a favorite medium of the British elite by the mid- 1700’s. Two prominent colonial printers hoped to duplicate that in success in the new world. In 1741 in Philadelphia, Andrew
Bradford published ‘American magazine’ or a monthly view of the political sate of British colonies.
Followed by Benjamin Franklin’s “General magazine’ and ‘Historical chronicle’ composed largely of reprinted British materials. These publications were expensive and aimed at small number of literate colonist. Lacking an organized postal system distribution was difficult and neither magazine was successful ‘ American magazine produced three issues, ‘General magazine’ six. Yet between 1741 and
1794, 45 new magazines appeared although not more than three was published in the same time period. Entrepreneurial printers hoped to attract educated, cultured and moneyed gentlemen by copying the London magazines. Even after the revolutionary war, U.S magazines remained clones to their British forerunners.
These early magazine were aimed at literate elites interested in short stories, poetry, social commentary and essays. The magazine did not become a true national mass medium until after the civil war.
The modern era of magazines is characterized by a different relationship between medium and audience. Magazines were truly Americas first national medium and like books they served as important force in social change especially in the ‘muckratry” era of the 20th century. This name was coined by Theodore Roosevelt as an insult to the government.
Scope and structure of magazines i. Trade magazines; carries stories, feature and ads aimed at people in specific professions and are either distributed by media professional organizations themselves or by media companies. ii. Individual company and sponsored magazine; produced by companies specifically for their own employees, c customers and stockholders or by clubs and association. Specifically for its members.

iii. Consumer magazines; they are sold by subscription at newsstands, books stores etc.
Trends and convergence in magazine publishing
• Online magazine: this is made possible by the convergence of magazine the internet most magazines now produce online editions offering special interactive feature not available to their hard-copy readers.
• Custom magazines: custom publishing is the creating of magazines specifically designed for an individual company seeking to reach a very narrowly defined audience. There are two broad categories of custom publishing: brand magazines and magalogue.
• The developing media literacy segment focused on “Recognizing the power of graphics” it criticized the over use of graphics by media houses. Baran pointed out that such alteration in pictures restructures the reality the events they represent.
CHAPTER SIX
Film
The chapter begins with the history of films, from it entrepreneurial beginnings through the introduction of its narrative and visual language, to its establishment large, studio run industry. It details Hollywood’s relationship with its early audience and changes in the structure and content of films resulting from the introduction of television. It also looked at the contemporary movie production, distribution and exhibition systems and how convergence is altering all three, the influence of the major studios and the economic pressures on them in an increasingly multimedia environment. It also highlights on the special place movies hold for us and how ever younger audience and the films that targets them may affect our culture.
History
In 1873 former California governor Leland Stanford needed help in winning a bet: he had made a bet with a friend convinced that a horse in full gallop had all feet of the ground, he had to prove it so he hired photographer Fadweard Maybridge who worked on it for four years before finding a solution.
In 1877 Maybridge arranged a series of still cameras along a stretch of racetrack. As the horse sprinted by, each camera took its picture. The resulting photographs won Stanford his bet and also sparked an idea on Maybridge causing him to develop Zoopraxiscope- a machine for projecting slides into a distant surface. The Lumiere brothers made the next advancement. In 1895 they patented the
Cinematographic device that both photographed and projected action. By 1890‘s French filmmaker
George Melies began making narrative motion pictures exhibiting one scene, one shot movies but soon began making stories made on sequence. He made the film’ A trip to the moon’ in 1902. Other scientists such as Edwin S. Porter improved on using movies to tell a story. The first sound films were that one’s produced by warner brothers in 1920.
The industry prospered not just because of its artistry, drive and innovation but because it used these to meet the needs of a growing audience. Movies like books are a culturally special medium. They hold very special place in the people’s culture.
Trends and convergence in movie making.
• Conglomeration and blockbuster movies
• Concept movies—making movies simple and easier to understand
• Audience research¬¬¬¬—before movies are released, the concept, plot and characters are subjected to market testing. Often trailers are produced and tested with sample audience.
• Sequels, remakes and Franchise—these are movies produced with the intention of producing several more sequel e.g. prison break.
• Merchandise movies—this are movies produced to generate interest for non-film products as for their intrinsic value as movies.
The developing media literacy segment discussed “recognizing product placement” were it emphasis

recognition of advert placements in scripts as a valuable literacy skill.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Radio, Recording and Popular Music.
Technical and social beginning of both radio and sound recording is discussed in this chapter. It highlights the coming of broadcasting and hoe the growth of regulatory organization led to the mediums “golden age” the heart of the chapter covers how television changed radio and produced the medium with which we are now familiar with. It also reviewed the scope and nature of contemporary radio especially its rebirth as a local, fragmented, specialized medium. It examines how these characteristics save advertisers and listeners. The chapter then explores the relationship between radio, the modern recording industry, popular music and the way new technologies serve and challenge all three.
History
In 1906 on Christmas eve, the first radio broadcast was aired at Bran rock, this was as a result of cumulative success by scientists such as Guglielmo Marconi, Reginald Fessenden, James Clark
Maxwell, Henrich Hertz, etc. his listeners were sailors at sea and a few newspaper houses equipped to receive the transmission. Later that same year American Lee De Forest invented “audion tube” as vacuum tube that amplified wireless signals. This made possible for reliable transmission of clear voices and music.
Sound recording started in 1887 with the invention of the ‘talking machine’ a device for replacing sound by that used a hand cranked grooved cylinder and a needle passing along the groove of the rotating cylinder and hitting bumps was converted into electrical energy that activates a diaphragm in a loud speaker and produced sound—this invention was made by Thomas Edison.
On September 30, 1920 a Westinghouse executive, impressed with press accounts of the number of listeners who were picking up broadcasts from the garage radio station of Frank Conrad, asked him to move his operation to Westinghouse factory expand his power and on October 27 1920 experimental station 8XK in Pittsburgh received a license from the department of commerce to broadcast. On November 2 KDKA made the first commercial radio broadcast announcing the results of the presidential election that sent Warren G. Hardy to the White House.
Scope and Nature of the Radio Industry
• Radio is local
• Radio is Fragmented
• Radio is specialized
• Radio is personal
• Radio is mobile
Radio as an advertising medium: advertisers enjoy the specialization of radio because it gives them access to homogenous groups of listeners to whom products can be pitched.
Trend and Convergence in Radio and Sound Recording.
Emerging of changing technologies has affected the production and distribution aspects of both radio and sound recording.
• The impact of television: television fundamentally altered radio structure and relationship with its audience. Television specifically MTV introduction in 1981 altered radio—record relationship as music are now released on MTV instead of radio.
• Satellite and Cable: the convergence of radio and satellite has aided the rebirth of radio as music and other forms of radio content can now be distributed in expensively to audience through satellite.

• Mobile phone
• Terrestrial digital radio
• Web radio and podcasting
In the chapters developing media literacy skills segment- the issue of shock jokes was discussed. This
Baran poses a question as to whether literate individual would allow this shock jokes to exits.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Television, cable, and Mobile Video
This chapter details the change that happened in the television from the early experiments with mechanical scanning to the electric marvel that sits in ours homes to the mobile video screen we may carry in our pockets. It traces the rapid transformation of television in to a mature medium after
World War II and examines how the entire television industry was altered by the emergence and success of cable and satellite television. It discusses the reach, the structure, programming and economics of television and cable industries. The new technologies and their convergence with television and how they promise to change the interaction between the medium and its audience are also explored.
History
In 1884 Paul Nipkow, a Russian scientist living in Berlin developed the first workable device for generating electrical signal suitable for the transmission of scene that people could see. His Nipkow disc spinning in front of a photoelectric cell produced 4000 pixels per second producing a picture composed of 18 parallel lines. Although the mechanical system proved too limiting Nipkow demonstrated the possibility of using a scanning system to divide a scene into an orderly pattern of transmission picture element that could be recomposed as a visual image. British inventor John Logie
Bard was able to transmit moving images using a mechanical disc as early as 1925 and in 1928 he successfully sent a television picture from London to Hartsdale, new, New York. Other people that contributed to the development of television are Vladimir Zworykin, David Sarnoff etc.
The coming of cable
John Walson was having problem trouble selling television in 1948: the Pocono Mountain sat between his town and Philadelphia’s three Stations; he erected a tower from new Boston Mountain to his store. The cable was a twin lead wire much like the cord that connects a camp to an outlet. To attract more subscribers ha had to offer improved picture quality. He accomplished this by using coaxial cable and self-manufactured Bolster.
Trends and convergence in television and cable
VCR
Introduced commercially in 1976, video cable recorders quickly became common in homes. VCR allow time shift, taping a show for later viewing.
DVD
In March 1996 digital video disk went on sale in stores. Much like VCR but better in retaining quality of films.
Digital television
Digitalization of video signals has reduced their size; therefore, information can now be carried over telephone wires and stored.
Television on the internet
Because broadband offers greater information carrying capacity television on the internet is

increasingly common.
Interactive television
Cable and satellite television have created programs to allow viewer ‘talk back’ to content consumers
Movable video
The newest way to receive and view television is on mobile device either, either on cell phone or other portable video player
In the developing media literacy segment, mews staging—recreating of events that is believed to or could have happened, was discussed and criticized. Baran urged media literate viewers to wholly reject this type of news reporting as it makes mockery of the intelligence of viewers.
CHAPTER TEN
The internet and the World Wide Web
The chapter begins with an examination of the internet, the ‘new technology’ it studies the history of the internet, beginning with the development of the computer, and then looks at the Net as it exit’s today, examining its format and capabilities especially the popular World Wide Web. The number and nature of today’s internet users are also discussed. It also looks at the new technologies double edge ( ability to have both good and bad effects) the internet ability to foster greater freedom of expression, changes in the meaning of and threats to privacy and the promise and perils of practicing democracy online.
History
The title originator of the computer resides with Englishman Charles Babbage, lack of money and unavailability of the necessary technologies stalled his plan to build an analytical engine a steam driven computer. But in the mid 1880’s aided by the insights of mathematic lady Ada Bryon Lovelace.
Babbage did produce designs for a computer that could conduct algebraic computation using stored memory and punch card for input and output.
Using Honeywell computers at Stanford University, UCLA, the University of Santa Barbara, and the
University of Utah, the switching network called Arpanet, went online in 1969 and became fully operational and reliable within 1 year, other development soon followed, in 1972 an engineer. Ray
Tomlinson created the first e-mail program (ubiquitous@) in 1974. Stanford University’s Vinton Cerf and military’s Robert Kahn coined the term ‘Internet’
The internet is most appropriately thought of as networks of networks that are growing at an incredibly fast rate. These networks consists of LANS (local area network) connecting two or more computers, usually within the same building. And WAN (wide area network) connecting several
LANS. In different locations.
The internet is different from traditional media, rather than change the relationship between audiences and industries, the Net changes the definition of the different components of the process and as result changes their relationship.
The internet induced the redefinition of the elements of mass communication process refocusing attention on issues such as freedom of expression, privacy, responsibility and democracy.
Effects of the internet. (Good and bad) i. Copyright abuse ii. indecencyography iii. Lack of privacy iv. Virtual democracy v. Bridging information gab

vi. Broader communication network vii. Faster information transmission
Making our way in an interconnected world was the topic for the developing media literacy segment were it raised question as to what level media consumer understand the double edge communication technologies of the internet.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Media freedom, regulation and ethics
This chapter studies how the logic of a free and unfettered press has come into play in the areas of broadcast deregulation. It also detail the shift in the underlying philosophy of media freedom from libertarianism to social responsibly theory providing the background for discussion on the ethical environment in which media professionals must work as they strive to fulfill the social responsibility obligations.
The United States is the first country to allow free press with its ‘first amendment’ which stated that
“congress shall make no law abridging freedom of speech or of the press” this first law gave the press so much freedom that caused damage such as sensational report of court proceedings thereby finding the people on trial guilty before they are actually found guilty by the jury. This lead to a modification of the law by the Supreme Court were it held that although the free press has been a mighty catalyst in awakening public interest in governmental affairs, exposing corruption among public officers and employees and informing the citizenry of public events and occurrences, including court proceedings, while maximum freedom must be allowed the press in carrying on this important function in a democratic society, its exercise must be subject to the maintenance of absolute fairness in the judicial process.
Today the U.S press is guided by the social responsibility theory which holds that the media must remain free of government control, but in exchange media must serve the public. Media should be self-regulatory within the frame work of the law.
Media industry ethics
Ethic is rules and behaviors or morale principles that guide purr action in given situations. Media ethics specifically refer to the application of rational thought by media professionals when they are deciding between two or more competing moral choices. The application of media ethics almost always involves finding the most morally defensible answer to a problem for which there is no single correct or even best answer. There are three levels of ethics;
I. Met ethics: are fundamental cultural values. They define the basic starting point for moral reasoning
II. Normative ethics: are generalized theories, rules and principle of ethical or moral behavior. They serve as real—world frame works within which people can begin to weigh competing alternatives of behavior
III. Applied ethics: involves balancing conflicting interest. In applying ethics, the person making the decisions is called ‘morale agent’.
Some interest that often conflict. i. The interest of the moral agents individual conscience ii. The interest of the object of act; a particular person or group is likely to be affected by media practitioner’s actions. iii. The interest of financial supporters iv. The interest of the institution: media professional have company loyalty and pride in the

organization for which they work. v. In mass communication these conflicting interests play themselves out in a variety of ways.
Areas which media should enforce ethics:
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Truth and honesty
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Privacy
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Confidentiality
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Personal conflict of interest
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Profit and social responsibility
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Offensive content etc.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Global media
This chapter focuses specifically on globalization and its impact, looking at the beginnings no international media and examines the impact of satellite in creating a truly global mass media system. It also studies todays, global media using comparative analysis of media systems in Britain
(the western concept), Honduras (the development concept) Poland (the revolutionary concept) and china (the authoritarian, communist concept). It also discusses the programming available in other countries and global media influence on cultures that use them both negatively and positively. It looks at the debates over cultural imperialism.
World war II brought the united states into the business if international broadcasting, following the lead of Britain which had just augmented its world service. The United States establishment in 1940 what would eventually be known as the voice of America to counter enemy propaganda and disseminate information about America. The VOA originally targeted countries in central and South
America. Friendly to Germany, but as the war became global it quickly began broadcasting to score of other nations, attracting along with Britain’s world service, a large and admire ring listenership first in countries occupied by the axis polar and later by those in the Soviet sphere of influence. The satellite revolution began in 1957 with the successful launch and orbit of Soviet Union’s Sputnik. The U. S followed with the launch of COMSAT, AT & T‘s tester, INTELSAT, etc.
Different countries mass media systems reflect the diversity of their levels of development and property values and [political systems. It is logical that a country’s political system reflects in the nature of their media. Authoritarian governments need control of the mass media to maintain power. Therefore they will institute a media system very different from that of a democratic society with a capitalist, free economy.
Hantan (1992) offered five concepts that guide the worlds many media systems—western, development, evolutionary, authoritarian and communism.
The western concept: the western concept is an amalgamation of original libertarian and social responsibly models. It recognizes two realities: there is no completely free system on earth and even the most commercially driven systems include the expectations not only of public service and responsibility but also of significant communication—related activities of government to ensure that the media professional meet this responsibility.
The development concept: this system is mostly used in the developing countries. Here the government and the media come in partnership to ensure that the media assist in the planning beneficial development of the country. The media content is designed to meet specific cultural and societal needs, for example teaching new farm techniques.
The revolutionary concept: this means that a nation’s media will never serve the goals of revolution.
The aims of revolutionary media are against contents like: ending government monopoly over information, facilitating the organization of opposition to the incumbent power, destroying the

legitimacy of a standing government.
The authoritarian and communist concept: in this concept government has total control of the media and media contents.
The developing media literacy in this chapter focused on ‘making our way in the global village. It discussed the importance of maintaining our cultural ethics and standards in an ever changing global world.