Class notes
The media landscape lecture/exam notes (grade: 8.1)
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All notes from the lectures for Media Landscape at the University of Amsterdam. Completed this course with a 8.1.
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media landscape notesweek 1
media company = a company whose primary function is to produce or distribute media content.
boundaries of the landscape are shifting because of technology
‘industry’ implies commerciality
why define?
for us: scope, analysis easier with precision
for industry: think about markets, competitors, strategies
mass media: ‘media’ in traditional sense
e.g. radio, tv, newspapers, magazines
media industry has shifting borders, definition
its products, market structures are unique
it’s undergoing massive changes
theorists react to those changes very strongly
but, we are constantly engaging with it
5 key characters of mass media
1. one-to-many, one-way: message from one sender to multiple audiences (one person speaks
to many)
mass media share the same message at the same time to a mass audience
2. experiential goods: value comes from immaterial things
3. high fixed / ‘first copy’ costs: low marginal costs (= cost per additional unit)
media landscape notes 1
, economies of scale = price per unit decreases as quantity of output increases
—> most of the money is invested in the first copy of a product, the following copies are
cheaper, because it is cheap to reproduce
4. potential for (cheap) re-versioning: re-selling in different formats or making spin-offs,
branded products
economies of scope = average production costs decrease as variety of output increases
5. high risk: we can only decide if we like it after (partly) consuming it
high first copy costs regardless # of consumers
dual product market
media companies produce 2 things
content: sold to audiences
audiences: sold to advertisers (media companies sell ‘the eyes’ of the audiences to
advertisers, by showing them ads)
‘attention economy’ = attention is the real product being sold/bought
advertising goals influence content/strategy
creative industries versus commercial needs
attention economy: the attention economy states that attention is the real product being sold, not
the content
—> advertising goals influence content/strategy of the company. this is problematic for
journalism particularly
4 main outcomes
convergence: the blurring of boundaries between people as producers and consumers of
information that is disseminated and co-created across multiple media platforms
previously separate channels fused
interactivity: two-way replaces one-way; users become (mass) producers
media landscape notes 2
, diversification: heightened user control & choice
mobility: media ‘on the go’ becomes norm; ‘always on’ culture
media’s core responsibilities
media organisations should be socially responsible
core responsibilities
exchanging ideas/opinions
integrating/cohering diverse societies: media products should represent the diversity in
society
protecting core values/vulnerable audiences
high stakes: what is at risk is important
media companies have potentially signficant influence on (young/vulnerable) audiences
who gets a voice
how are they represented (and by whom)
which values are shown
mcluhan’s optimism: mcluhan’s perspective on media as extensions of man, which form and
structure how we perceive and understand the world around us
mcluhan said that ‘the medium is the message’, meaning the medium is more important than the
message
each media technology enables a different extension of our communicative senses beyond what
was previously possible. each medium extends our senses in different ways — encouraging
certain patterns of communication and preventing others
hot media: high definition and data intensive conveying a large amount of information, occupy
most or all attention and leave few gaps to be completed by the audience
cool media: low in information-intensity and high in audience participation
media landscape notes 3
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