It is hard to disagree that various types of media can have stronger or weaker impacts on the behaviors and thoughts of their audiences. Even though many of these effects are, unfortunately, negative or biased, some sources or authors decide to open people’s eyes and get them to think about things and concepts they meet almost every day but never understand their essence. The purpose of this paper is to talk about two certain pieces of media and discuss their objectiveness, intended audiences, stereotypes, and effects.
The first selected article was published by KQED Inc., which is a non-profit public media outlet. Their website provides independent, television, and public radio reporting on issues and situations that matter to the Bay Area. The online article called “Is ‘The Bachelor’ Franchise’s Popularity Rooted in Fear of Social Progress?” was published on August 9, 2018, by Rae Alexandra. She is currently a staff writer for KQED Arts & Culture but used to be a music journalist, writing for the Village Voice and Kerrang!. The second piece of media titled “Deconstructing the Cultural Phenomenon of The Bachelor” was written by Joe Mineo and published online on October 9, 2019, on the website of ChatterBlast – a digital marketing agency.
Overall, it is possible to say that the first article is comprised of both facts and opinions. As evident from the title, the topic of the paper is the popularity of The Bachelor franchise and its influence on society and the progressivity of social norms (Alexandra). First, the author provides statistics, numbers, specific years, and reports by major magazines and news websites like Variety or The Huffington Post (Alexandra). At the same time, the author provides these facts to prove her opinion and convince the audience of its correctness. When reading this piece, there is a feeling that the author actually is against such shows and considers The Bachelorette and The Bachelor deeply stereotypical, discriminating, and playing on people’s emotions and fears. Alexandra’s perception of such shows is objective and based on statistics and facts.
Further, the second article is less based on the author’s personal considerations. Mineo discusses the show’s concept without judging it (except for the sentence where the author admits that he does not consider the final of such shows winning). Additionally, Mineo talks about the blending of social media and TV viewership. The provided facts, statistics, and other data are well structured and presented in graphs or a diagram (Mineo). Therefore, this article is almost free of the author’s position and has enough facts, including reports by magazines like AdAge, ratings, and research. Finally, this objective paper is considered entertainment, just as the previously discussed article.
Now, it is essential to explore the target audience of the source of the first paper. An extended number of KQED’s platforms are targeted at adults in the Bay Area. Most newspapers are written about the problems, achievements, and situations in that area. Even though the topic of Alexandra’s writing is not located in the Bay Area and can be interesting for people from different backgrounds, it is primarily targeted at the main audience of the source. According to the website, KQED reaches influencers and decision-makers, as well as community-minders who typically donate their spare money. More than half of the audience have a post-graduate degree. As for the economic status, KQED radio listeners are “2.2x more likely to have an individual income of $250k or more” and “54% more likely to have an occupation in management” (KQED).
As for the source of the second article, since it is a digital marketing agency that helps companies and firms create their brands, its target audience is businessmen and businesswomen primarily from Philadelphia. Unfortunately, there is no other information regarding the additional demographics of the target audience. As for the article itself, it is mostly written for young and older businesswomen so that they get interested in the blending of social media and TV viewership.
Alexandra’s article promotes both positive and negative communication. First, the author builds awareness about the adverse factors and effects of The Bachelorette and The Bachelor and makes sure that now her audience can make a more thoughtful choice regarding whether to watch these shows or not. The article also promotes understanding of the presence of discrimination against all people except whites and young heterosexuals since the participants are usually selected only from this group (Alexandra).
However, Alexandra also spreads judgmental views of these shows. The writer does not break any old stereotypes but probably creates a new one – all such shows are only aimed at drama, negative emotions, and the promotion of discrimination. Overall, I believe that the author had a colossal influence on the target audience and made most of them rethink their attitudes towards and support such shows. Even though I did not often watch The Bachelorette and The Bachelor, I also did not think they had such negative effects. Therefore, I will avoid watching and promoting them in order not to support stereotypes and discrimination.
The second article also builds positive communication by raising people’s awareness and understanding of the ways targeted advertising and blending of social media and TV viewership work. Since Mineo does not judge the shows, his writing is not judgmental. The article neither breaks nor creates any stereotypes. However, it is possible that it influences people’s understanding of various advertising tricks and promotes their further research about the blending of TV and media viewership or the effects of The Bachelor. As for me, I feel that this paper impacted my perception of television and the internet, and now I will be more careful when watching or searching for something.
Works Cited
Alexandra, Rae. “Is ‘The Bachelor’ Franchise’s Popularity Rooted in Fear of Social Progress?” KQED. 2018. Web.
KQED. “Who is KQED’s Audience?” KQED. Web.
Mineo, Joe. “Deconstructing the Cultural Phenomenon of The Bachelor.” ChatterBlast. 2019. Web.