Communication and culture – aantekeningen college’s
College 1 - Introduction: Media and Culture
Why do we focus on popular culture?
1. “Studying pop culture reveals the underlying assumptions, power structures, and
philosophical and moral constructs of the society that produces those cultural products. In
other words, it reveals “culture” in a different sense. …. what is forefront, daily, and broadly
experienced and produced reveals much more about a culture than the relatively rare
ritualistic elements formerly associated with culture”.
2. “Studying pop culture gives us an accessible vehicle through which to explore philosophical
and moral questions, as well as the functioning of society on a smaller scale (e.g. fandom,
consumption), through which we can make larger assumptions”.
By studying the producers and their intentions, the content and the reception of popular culture and
its possible consequences, enlightens us about our culture.
Wat is popular?
Combinatie popular and culture?
Werk in werkgroepen -> Nederlanders
Open vragen op tentamen -> beantwoorden in het Nederlands
Studying culture: the socio-cultural approach
- Takes the social context(s) in which media function into consideration
- Takes the binding power of media into consideration. Wanneer praat media in een ‘’wij’’
vorm als samenleving -> voetbalwedstrijd
- Vision on media and their content: (Re)production of knowledge, life orientations as well as a
coursce of cultural memory
Also called cohesive or ritual communication
- Ritual -> om 20u nieuws kijken iedere dag
- Cohesive -> binding stuff together -> binding culture/group of people together
Symbolic Interactionism
Theoretical perspective – Symbolic Interactionism
= Blumer (1969) 3 core points:
1. ‘’Humans act towards things on the basis of the meaning they ascribe to those things’’.
2. The meaning of such things is derived from, or arises out of, the social interaction that one has
with others and the society
3. These meanings are handled in, and modified through, and interpretative process used by the
person in dealing with the things he/she encounters.
Symbolic interactionism
“The symbolic interaction perspective, also called symbolic interactionism, is a major framework of
the sociological theory. This perspective relies on the symbolic meaning that people develop and
build upon in the process of social interaction. Although symbolic interactionism traces its origins to
Max Weber's assertion that individuals act according to their interpretation of the meaning of their
world, the American philosopher George Herbert Mead introduced this perspective to American
sociology in the 1920s”.
,“Symbolic interaction theory analyzes society by addressing the subjective meanings that people
impose on objects, events, and behaviors. Subjective meanings are given primacy because it is
believed that people behave based on what they believe and not just on what is objectively true.
Thus, society is thought to be socially constructed through human interpretation. People interpret
one another’s behavior, and it is these interpretations that form the social bond. These
interpretations are called the “definition of the situation.”
Symbolic interactionis: example
“For example, why would young people smoke cigarettes even when all objective medical evidence
points to the dangers of doing so? The answer is in the definition of the situation that people create.
Studies find that teenagers are well informed about the risks of tobacco, but they also think that
smoking is cool, that they will be safe from harm, and that smoking projects a positive image to their
peers. So, the symbolic meaning of smoking overrides the facts regarding smoking and risk”.
Voorbeeld roken, waarom doen jonge mensen het terwijl ze weten dat het slecht voor je is:
- Symbolic interactionism -> definitie van de situatie die mensen creëren. -> ook al hebben ze
de feitelijke informatie dat het slecht is, de ‘meaning’ is dat het cool, het bij andere horen.
Model (plaatje zie powerpoint):
Vraag als voorbeeld tentamen: leg dit model uit.
Studying Culture: the socio-cultural approach
Ritual communication: media are connected with our life and daile behavior: habits, routines as well
as special occasions. Voorbeeld. 4 en 5 mei -> herdenkking en vrijheid.
Rituelen -> media helpen hierbij. Wat maakt ons ‘’Nederlands’’.
Cohesive communication: binding or a sense of togetherness is an invibsible outcome of
communication (i.e. communicates a sense of us/we) -> je ziet het maar je merkt het niet op
wanneer je het leest etc.
Voorbeeld: Nederlands elftal
*Both: shared meanings, symbols, shared and unquestioned view of the world.
Two views of communication
Transmissional view: Communication is the transmission of signals or messages over distance fort he
purpose of control
Terms: ‘’imparting’’, ‘’sending’’, ‘’transmitting’’, or ‘’giving information to other’’.
,who says what in which channel to whom with what effect?
informs you, persuases you,
In deze curcussen focussen op Ritual view:
Ritual view: Communcation is directed not toward the extension of messages in space but toward
the maintenance of society in time.
Terms: ‘’sharing’’, ‘’participation’’, ‘’association’’, ‘’fellowship’’, and ‘’possession of a common faith’’
James Carey (1989) – “A Cultural Approach to Communication”
Transmission view of communication: “The transmission view of communication is the commonest
in our culture–perhaps in all industrial cultures–and dominates contemporary dictionary entries
under the term. It is defined by terms such as “imparting," "sending," "transmitting," or "giving
information to others." It is formed from a metaphor of geography or transportation … in the idea of
transmission: communication is a process whereby messages are transmitted and distributed in
space for the control of distance and people”.
Ritual view of communication: “In a ritual definition, communication is linked to terms such as
"sharing," "participation," "association," "fellowship," and "the possession of a common faith." This
definition exploits the ancient identity and common roots of the terms "commonness,"
"communion," "community," and "communication," A ritual view of communication is directed not
toward the extension of messages in space but toward the maintenance of society in time; not the
act of imparting information but the representation of shared beliefs”.
Cultural as shared meaning
“Shared meaning is the meat and bones of culture. Meanings range from our highest beliefs about
god and the sacred to our everyday tastes about food and fashion. It is the political ideologies we
fight over and the everyday assumptions we take for granted. These meanings are structured into
our language and the various other ways that we communicate. Some meanings are relatively fixed
and hard to change; others are constantly being debated and negotiated. Culture is produced within
families, neighborhoods, schools, and churches- and it is also produced by the entertainment
industry. The mass media floods our homes and lives with stories about the human experience, and
each story includes a set of claims about what the world means” (Kidd, p.6)
Verschillende ‘’intenties’’ in betekenissen van de begrippen. ->
lezen James Carey, zie slide.
Shared meaning -> link naar boek Kidd.
De manier hoe we naar de wereld kijken, vind je terug in
popular culture -> reflectie van wie we zijn.
Link met James Carey en Kidd.
What is culture?
‘’Everything what people have, think and do is culture’’.
, Communication & culture oefening
Reclame Pepsi Kendall Jenner -> reclame is verwijderd
Onrust in Amerika, protesten zwarte gemeenschap -> Pepsi lost alle wereldproblemen op
Terwijl dit absoluut niet is. -> vergelijkbaar met een foto van een echt gebeurde situatie.
Spanningen in de samenlevingen.
But what is culture?
Pretty woman
Hoe kun je dit gebruiken om te praten over wat culture is?
She doesn’t fit, ze voldoet niet aan de eisen hoe je je moet kleden, praten etc.
Culture – a myraid of defenitions
Probleem met cultuur is dat het zoveel definities heeft.
• “Sometimes culture is defined in a very narrow sense as “the arts” or some sort of
fashionable refinement. Another definition of culture is much more expansive, however. In
this broader sense, culture is a particular way of life and how that life is acted out each day in
works, practices, and activities. Thus, we can talk about Italian culture, Javanese culture, or
the culture of the ancient Greeks”
• “an historically transmitted pattern of meanings embodied in symbols, a system of inherited
conceptions expressed in symbolic forms by means of which men communicate, perpetuate,
and develop their knowledge about
• “culture is the expressed and shared values, attitudes, beliefs, and practices of a social group,
organization, or institution”
Iceberg Model: Surface and Deep Culture
Cultuur is voor het grootste gedeeld ‘’invisible’’. Een klein deel kunnen we maar zien zoals eten,
kleding, gezichtsuitdrukkingen etc. Voorbeeld ontbijt.
