Agenda setting theory in communication..

Agenda-setting theory in communication posits that the media plays a crucial role in influencing the public agenda by determining what issues and topics are perceived as important. Originally proposed by Maxwell McCombs and Donald Shaw in 1972, this theory suggests that through repeated coverage and emphasis on certain topics, the media can shape the priorities and salience of issues in the minds of the audience. Essentially, agenda-setting theory argues that the media doesn't tell people what to think, but rather what to think about, thereby influencing public perception and discourse on societal issues.

1. WHAT IS IT? In lay man’s term, if a piece of information is covered frequently and prominently the audience will regard the issue as more important. 

2. In his publication, The Agenda-Setting Role of the Mass Media in the Shaping of Public Opinion, Maxwell McCombs states , “ The principal outlines of this influence were sketched by Walter Lippmann in his 1922 classic, Public Opinion , which began with a chapter titled “ The World Outside and the Pictures in Our Heads. ”

3. FOUNDING FATHERS Developed and published in 1972 by:- Dr. Max McCombs Dr. Donald Shaw Based on the 1968, US Elections, contested between Richard Nixon(R)* and Hurbert Humphrey(D). Nixon had promised to restore the law and order of the state.

4. CORE ASSUMPTIONS It is the creation of public awareness and concern of salient issues by the news media. The press and the media do not reflect reality; they filter and shape it M edia concentration on a few issues and subjects leads the public to perceive those issues as more important than other issues. T he time frame for this phenomenon is very crucial. D ifferent media have different agenda-setting potential.

5. TYPES 1) Public agenda setting , in which the public's agenda is the dependent variable. - Influenced by opinion leaders 2) M edia agenda setting, in which the media's agenda is treated as the dependent - Influenced by media 3) Policy agenda setting, in which elite policy makers' agendas are treated as the dependent variable - Influenced by the government.

6. WHAT DOES IT DO?

7. IN THE INDIAN CONTEXT The 2014 Union Elections:- The NaMo Wave The Prince Vs The Pracharak The 2015 Delhi Elections:- Mufflerman vs Rs 10 lakh suit man Congress's loss is AAP's gain

8. ANOTHER HIGHLIGHT Uses and Gratifications Research There is another research tradition that denies that the press has awesome power . The uses and gratifications approach to the mass media, however, stresses intrapersonal needs rather than interpersonal factors. Instead of regarding mass media as principally disseminators of news/information and wielders of power/influence, this research tradition assumes they are primarily sources of diversion, gratifiers of individual needs, and entertaining outlets for personal escape. With this assumption, researchers investigate how people use a particular medium for their individual purposes.

9. THANK YOU …..any questions?