Topic: Uses and gratification theory
What is uses and gratification theory?
(1)The uses and gratification theory (UGT) is the audience- centered approach on what people do with media, opposed to what media does to people. Last week I discussed about the ‘Media Effects’ Model. Whereas this is the opposite of that theory. This theory proves that audiences are responsible for what they consume. Instead of featuring audiences as passive consumers, they are considered as responsible adults for what they watch. And, how they use media to fulfill their needs.
There have been multiple researches carried out to prove this theory. I would like to take for example social media. There are a lot of social media influencers nowadays. They are people who emphasis on their ideas about different things/ concepts. To be specific, I would like to talk about a protest that took place in the southern part of India called Tamilnadu. This protest was held in the world’s 2nd longest beach.
Denotation:
This protest was against the ban of Jallikattu (A traditional event in Tamilnadu). Thousands of people came down to the beach in order to show their support against the ban. They held various placards which had quotes written on it. After sunset, they started showing their torchlight in their phones which showed how they were unanimous about this protest.
Annotation:
A large number of people gathered in the same place to show unity against a ban of their tradition. Holding up the lights on their phones showed their involvement and togetherness towards one ultimate aim. People of all ages were gathered. Regardless of age everybody actively participated in the protest.
Mythical level:
India is known to have a very large youngsters population. Young people, students started to share their views on this ban on social media. The topic started to gain very large attention. The love of their culture brought people from all different places in Tamilnadu to come together for this protest. It is strongly believed that without media, this protest would not have gained this much of support and attention.
Conclusion:
There were may other people who did not agree with the idea of bringing back ‘Jallikattu’. There may never be a right or wrong side of support for this protest. But, when people of high love for their tradition came together with the help of media. They used media to influence and register the importance of their culture. This is what the uses and gratification theory emphasizes.
2nd part of the blog post: Lobby groups
Thank you all for reading my views on the UGT! See you again in my next post!
References:
https://renneneko.wordpress.com/2019/02/01/uses-and-gratification-theory/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2017_pro-jallikattu_protests
Akshaya's Blog 
Hi Sha! I like how you are always aware of what’s going on in India, I for one as a singaporean can’t be bothered with local affairs for the most part. Your explanation is clear and concise with very good examples. The context is well described and I almost re-imagine the scene in real life. Especially when it comes to young people sharing things on social media. Its well known that news spread like wildfire, and for causes like this it generates a big following and support from people all across the world. Whether or not the protests are for good or bad we cannot deny that it will bring people from all walks of life to support it.
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