Microsoft Word Revised Syllabus Ver doc

4. Political Communication
More, recently, the studies have focused on information and the new cognitions 
acquired from the media. An example of this trend is the notion of our agenda, setting 
function of the press. The view is that the media often may not be successful in telling people 
what to think, but they have considerable success in telling people what to think about. 
Studies have, for example look at the relationship between the agenda of political campaign 
issues set by the media and the personal agendas of the audience.
5. Children and Television
Parents, broadcasters, government regulator and others have been concerned with 
violence shown on television. This has led to a large number of studies trying to determine 
whether there is any relationship between watching TV violence and real acts of violence. Do 
children use the violent characters shown on TV as models for their own behaviors? How do 
children understand the violence they view on the TV screen? These are among the questions 
researchers are asking. Obviously small children have more limited capacities than adults for 
understanding the world around them. For example, do children under the age of seven have 
difficulty relating the different parts of a plot sequence? This has implications for their TV 
viewing; since they may be unable to connect the punishment accorded a TV murder the 
criminal act or the motive.
6. Motives, uses and gratifications
The researchers of the present age are delving into the motives people have for using 
the mass media, and are trying to identify the uses and gratifications associated with 
newspaper reading, TV viewing, and like. In one study, readers relied on the newspaper for 
help in deciding how to vote in a non-partisan election. On another study, people who had 
switched to four-day work shift started watching TV programs that had direct application to 
activities planned for expanded weekends. Other researchers are examining the different 
things people seek in the media specific information, a chance to relax, favorite programs, 
and so on.