Monthly Archives: November 2012

Advertising’s Holy Grail and Media Psychology

28 Wednesday Nov 2012

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The Holy Grail for advertising may be being that provider that can give a brand the ability to seamlessly interact with individuals while in both an offline, and online environment – a rich media psychology topic. In this way, messaging may become more personal and interactive, comprised of a single narrative that crosses between worlds – real and imagined. For the provider, it also enables the ability to offer market players, and other interested parties, the highly attractive proposition that individuals can be steered toward certain locations and behaviors that benefit the market player’s business (or at the very least, generate more data for some such as Google). By doing such, the provider establishes one narrative, like a game scenario, mapped onto the real world where the membrane of hyper reality can include any and all brands – as merely a name, all the way to personifications, or icons of brands, or causes that a player can interact with. Edward Bernays could only have dreamed of such ability while writing The Engineering of Consent which describes how to psychologically manipulate a population to want things they do not need (Bernays, 1947).

Once a player accepts the game, he or she may find themselves within a world created by the advertiser which unfolds a hyper reality composed of any number of cues and stimulus, incentives and directions, all benefits which on one hand keep users interested, and on the other ensure revenue for clients. Google’s new mobile platform offering, Ingress, may be just the start of such a behavioral “soft control” endeavor which can envelope a user in an augmented reality game designed to move the player around to key locations within actual cities, similar to geocaching.

“What’s also interesting, if Ingress and similar games gain traction, is the potential for subtle content delivery…//…Advertising takes minimal effort – an energy hotspot appearing in a large retail store, for example, or in-game events that include industries or companies dealing with the effects of this new energy source. Businesses could even appear as “sponsors” of one game faction or the other, lending their good name to the virtual cause. It’s not hard to imagine a situation where consumer goods purchased outside of the game world confer bonuses inside; this already happens with the release of popular titles like Call of Duty and Halo 4″ (Bonderud, 2012).

References

Bernays, E. (1947). The Engineering of Consent. The Annals of the American Academy, 113-120.

Bonderud, D. (2012, Nov 19). Google’s Ingress: Game, Reality – Marketing Opportunity? Retrieved Nov 19, 2012, from The Content Standard: http://www.contentstandard.com/business/googles-ingress-game-reality-marketing-opportunity/

Google. (2012). Retrieved Nov 19, 2012, from Ingress: http://www.ingress.com/

Ravenscraft, E. (2012, Nov 20). [Review] Ingress Is, By Far, The Best Augmented Reality Game A Curious Explorer In The City Can Play. Retrieved Nov 19, 2012, from Android Police: http://www.androidpolice.com/2012/11/20/ingress-is-by-far-the-best-augmented-reality-game-a-curious-explorer-in-the-city-can-play/

Rula, J., & Bustamante, F. E. (2012). Crowd (Soft) Control. Retrieved Nov 28, 2012, from HotMobile: http://www.hotmobile.org/2012/papers/HotMobile12-final75.pdf

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Improving Personal Media Literacy

22 Thursday Nov 2012

Posted by in Media Literacy, Psychology

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Media literacy involves becoming aware of the ways in which the media attempt to influence an audience through messaging, be it verbal or otherwise. W. James Potter provides 12 guidelines to increase personal media literacy in his book Media Literacy, 6th edition which include:

  1. Strengthening one’s personal locus
  2. Focusing on usefulness as a goal when exposing oneself to the media
  3. Developing an accurate awareness of one’s media exposure
  4. Acquiring a broad base of useful knowledge
  5. Taking in consideration the Reality-Fantasy Continuum
  6. Examining one’s mental codes
  7. Examining one’s opinions
  8. Changing behaviors, as appropriate
  9. Making cross-channel comparisons
  10. Becoming skilled at designing messages
  11. Not taking one’s privacy for granted
  12. Taking more personal responsibility

These are well thought out guidelines to which I would include a couple of thoughts.  In regard to item nine, while making cross-channel comparisons may increase the depth of knowledge surrounding a topic, but one must realize that many channels of information are owned by the same conglomerates (graphic from Mondo Times).

Who Owns the Media

For example, Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) is one of the top six producers and owners of content from an American perspective. It controls television channels, for which it is primarily known, as well as film, radio, publishing, and various other “online properties.” News Corporation, a competitor of CBS, owns many of the same types of media that CBS does, but News Corporation adds newspapers and magazines to its portfolio AND maintains a global focus with its properties (Columbia Journalism Review, 2011; Mondo Times, 2012). The point is: checking information from a source on TV (channel 1) to a source in print (channel 2) may not be advantageous if the sources are owned by the same corporation (which may not be immediately evident). People tend to seek out information that supports their existing world views and, as a result, they reinforce what they believe and rarely understand counter viewpoints, or the entire picture.

To be knowledgeable on a topic means to thoroughly understand the arguments for and against it – having a broad base of knowledge (number four on Potter’s list). In order to accomplish that, one must take the time to consume the messaging from the other “side” – a cross-party comparison. This may mean watching content that may not be in one’s comfort zone while maintaining a neutral attitude and keeping an open mind about a topic. A technique I have developed for myself, having worked with the media extensively, is to listen to what is presented in the national news media and then compare that information with what is being discussed in the international media – a cross cultural comparison. American’s tend to live inside of what I like to refer to as a “media bubble” that echoes much of the same messaging from channel to channel. Comparing information from international sources tends to deflate that bubble, or add to the breadth of knowledge on a topic. Content providers such as the BBC, Al Jazeera English and Russia Today present different perspectives which can be quite informing.

Last, one should understand what fallacious arguments are (errors in reasoning resulting in a misconception which can be used purposefully), and that there are more than 90 types of them. An example would be the ad hominem argument that attacks an individual’s credibility, vice a topic of discussion (Lindsay, 2012). Another type of fallacious argument that is frequently seen in news commentary is the failure to state technique. This technique allows the user to “attack” the subject matter and control the discourse by continually questioning it, vice stating one’s own position. Understanding and recognizing these techniques can prime a person to seek other sources of information, or to personally conduct research.

References

Columbia Journalism Review. (2011, Aug 7). Who Owns What? Retrieved Nov 21, 2012, from Columbia Journalism Review: http://www.cjr.org/resources/?c=cbs

Lindsay, D. (2012, Aug 18). A List Of Fallacious Arguments. Retrieved Nov 22, 2012, from Don Lindsay Archive: http://www.don-lindsay-archive.org/skeptic/arguments.html

Mondo Times. (2012). Who Owns The Media. Retrieved Nov 22, 2012, from Mondo Times: http://www.mondotimes.com/

Potter, W. J. (2013). Media Literacy. Thousand Oaks: Sage.

A Study of the Walking Dead

17 Saturday Nov 2012

Posted by in Media Psychology, Psychology

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Here’s some interesting work in Media Psychology. I’d like to see the Twitter data and how it was segregated into categories, but I’m sure that will be thoroughly discussed when the study is published. The team at the Harmony Institute, a research center dedicated to revealing the influence of entertainment, provide a little more insight here. Check out the three minute video explanation on that page.

Media Psychology Blog

Neal Ungerleider:  “A study of “Walking Dead” viewers looks at what happens to the mind while watching a zombie apocalypse… and what happens when viewers don’t share emotionally wrenching scenes on social media.“

See on www.fastcocreate.com

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Unintended Media Effects and Media Literacy

14 Wednesday Nov 2012

Posted by in Media Effects, Media Literacy, Psychology

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Being in the media, purposefully or otherwise, can have unintended effects, many of which the media will never stop and apologize for. Such is the case for Neda Soltani, a professor of English literature, whose Facebook picture was downloaded and disseminated among Iranian protesters – en masse. According to the New York Times article In a Death Seen Around the World, a Symbol of Iranian Protests Neda Agha-Soltan, notice there is no “i” at the end of her name, was shot in the chest and died when she went to witness a protest in Tehran shortly after the conclusion of the elections that reinstated President Ahmadinejad. Her death was caught on video and subsequently went viral.

Agha-Soltan

Shortly afterward the media published a photo of Soltani claiming it was Soltan – a mistake that Soltani has had to live with ever since. In an article for the BBC, Neda Soltani: ‘The media mix-up that ruined my life’, Soltani discusses the repercussions she has had to deal with to include becoming a martyr for a protest she did not participate in, government persecution, accusations of being a CIA spy, and becoming a political refugee.

Neda Soltani (left) and Neda Agha-Soltan (right)

Neda Soltani (left) and Neda Agha-Soltan (right)

There are a couple of things at work here. The first is media and journalistic responsibility – or lack thereof. Because of the speed at which news travels across the internet, media outlets feel more and more pressure to release information as fast as possible, without taking the appropriate amount of time to verify the facts, or allow the complete story to play out before reporting on it. This is all part of the cycle to bring in a larger audience, in order to attract more advertisers and increased revenue for which the media competes with other outlets. As Ahmadinejad is not a popular foreign leader here in the United States, the media rushed to publicize the fallout that followed.  Soltani and Soltan were both used as pawns to frame the protests. Second, few members of the media have attempted to correct the record, which is part of what makes the BBC’s coverage important as a model for reporting. For a typical American media outlet, their is an old adage that “if it bleeds, it leads” which basically means that violence will always be covered right up front, especially political violence that can incorporate a pretty face as a victim. What is reprehensible is the lack of responsibility to correct the record in the aftermath — but that’s not what audiences will stop to see, or advertisers will pay for, as a result. Cognitively, people are conditioned and drawn to stop and witness violence or tragedy. It’s a part of our innate nature to be curious as to the fate of others. We learn through observation. The media plays upon this to garner attention and profit repeatedly. Increasing one’s media literacy in regard to the economic agenda of the media is the first step to understanding how audiences are told what to think about, and how to think about it, and to freeing one’s own mind from their effects.

References

BBC News Magazine. (2012, Nov 14). Neda Soltani: ‘The media mix-up that ruined my life’. Retrieved Nov 14, 2012, from BBC News Magazine: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-20267989

Fathi, N. (2009, June 22). In a Death Seen Around the World, a Symbol of Iranian Protests. Retrieved Nov 14, 2012, from The New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/23/world/middleeast/23neda.html?_r=0

Wikipedia. (2012, Nov 14). Death of Neda Agha-Soltan. Retrieved Nov 14, 2012, from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Neda_Agha-Soltan

In 1961, Bugs Bunny May Have Saved a Life (His Own)

07 Wednesday Nov 2012

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For those of you who don’t know him, Mel Blanc (May 30, 1908 – July 10, 1989) was a voice actor fondly known as the “The Man of a Thousand Voices.” His more popular characterizations included Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig,  Yosemite Sam, Foghorn Leghorn, Marvin the Martian, Speedy Gonzales, and many, many others. The podcast below examines Mel’s near death experience in 1961, and the events around his death in 1989. It leaves a lot of questions as to how it may be possible that the characterizations brought to life by a man may have preserved his life in 1961, and were a part of his final moments. In this case media appears to have become a part of the man.

“Cognitive cues are strategies that help the individual remember the sequence of steps, as well as content …  They are especially important to those who can’t seem to retain, or follow multi-step, or multi-element situations” (Packer, 2009).  These cues can activate neurological networks associated with them that affect the way a subject behaviorally executes their self-concept.

Discrete social identities, such as those formed based on relational roles and positions with other people and social groups, may correlate to specific neural pathways, which when cued, would lead to certain typical behavioral responses associated with them (such as specific way of talking, walking, thinking, relating to oneself and others etc.).  These discrete identities are normally not experienced as such, as the mind instantaneously re-creates a sense of a singular, continuous, unchanged, overarching self that encompasses them all – unless damaged.  Thus, while the observed behavior might change from one situation to another, a different identity may be cued when prescribed situations come into play – or possibly when another can’t respond.  Neurologically, there is interconnectedness between these circuits, and a higher order organizational principle – the sense of a unified self – that maintains continuity, and creates enough consistency in observable behavior for others to witness an underlying singular personality that changes minimally throughout many different situations. Blanc, as discussed, easily slipped in and out of various characters all of his life, and any number of times throughout a single day over the course of more than 60 years, therefore the range of possible cognitive cues for his various discrete personalities would have been exceptional. Which leads to the possibility that when his singular self could no longer respond due to physical stress or trauma, his characterizations still could.

Podcast by the group at Radiolab, with analytical contributions from my wife, Liza Persson.

Packer, L. E. (2009, Jan). Environmental Cues, Supports, and Strategies. Retrieved Nov 7, 2012, from Tourette Syndrome “Plus”: http://www.tourettesyndrome.net/disorders/executive-dysfunction/environmental-cues-supports-and-strategies/

Facebook (Internet) Psychology

03 Saturday Nov 2012

Posted by in Media Literacy, Psychology

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Although titled “Facebook Psychology,” the team at Best Masters in Psychology have put together a great graphic discussing internet addiction, how it works – to include Skinners’ Operant Conditioning in the form of rewards and for proper behavior – and its possible effects, such as decreased attention span and the rise of ADHD. In an article on Forbes website, Alice Walton points out that studies are already being conducted to try and reduce internet addiction using cognitive behavioral therapy.

What to do:

The internet can be an incredible distraction with its multitude of links and topics. Nicolas Carr observes in his 2011 book How the Internet is Changing the Way We Think, Read and Remember that linear thought of the past is “giving way to short, disjointed, often overlapping bursts – the faster, the better.” Because of our growing awareness of these issues, apps and programs, such as Freedom© and Self Control©, have been created to help limit our access to the internet, and supposedly make us more productive – if we can shut the television off too.

Facebook Psychology

References

Antonius J. van Rooij, M. F. (2012). Treating Internet Addiction With Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy: A Thematic Analysis of the Experiences of Therapists. International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction, 10 (1), 69-82.

Best Masters In Psychology. (2012). Internet Addiction. Retrieved Nov 3, 2012, from Best Masters In Psychology: http://www.bestmastersinpsychology.com/internet-addiction/

McLeod, S. (n.d.). Skinner: Operant Conditioning. Retrieved May 1, 2011, from Simply Psychology: http://www.simplypsychology.org/operant-conditioning.html

Salvador, M. (2013, March 28). Internet Addiction: The Facts. Retrieved from Megan Salvador: http://megsalva.wordpress.com/2013/03/28/internet-addiction-the-facts/

Walton, A. G. (2012, Oct 2). Internet Addiction Is The New Mental Health Disorder. Retrieved Nov 3, 2012, from Forbes: http://www.forbes.com/sites/alicegwalton/2012/10/02/the-new-mental-health-disorder-internet-addiction/

Wilkinson, C. (2012, Sept 6). Shutting Out a World of Digital Distraction. Retrieved Nov 3, 2012, from The Telegraph: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/9522845/Shutting-out-a-world-of-digital-distraction.html