ABSTRACT
In addition to commercial market research, another kind of research into media audiences is that carried out by academic researchers. As mentioned in the introduction to this part of the book, an important aspect of this research is determining the effects that media texts have upon their audiences. The controversy about the extent to which the media can be held responsible for societal problems is referred to as the ‘effects debate’, and has implications beyond the confines of academic Media Studies. Thinking about media effects has moved from early models, which claimed that the media had a very direct impact on its audience, through to more contemporary thinking which focuses more on how audiences use the media.
