Uses and Gratifications Theory

Uses and gratifications is an approach to understanding mass communication. The theory puts more of an emphasist on the audience and consumer, instead of the actual message the media products are trying to put portray. It assumes audience take an active role in interpreting and intergrating media products into their everyday lives. Also the theory holds the audience responsible for the type of media they choose to meet their needs, such as if the audience was interested in pop music then they would clearly choose a magazine aimed at their own preference and not a hard rock magazine, they would choose this by the cover of the magazine by the colours, fonts, and the type of celebrity on the front cover to see if this is the right magazine for them. This approach suggests that people use the media to fulfill specific gratifications, so the theory would imply that the media compete against other information for viewers gratification. People's dependency on media proves audience goals to be the origin of the dependency while the uses and gratifications approach focuses more on audience needs. Still, both theories agree that media use can lead to media dependency.