Blumler and Katz (Uses and Gratifications)

Blumler and Katz is about how the audience uses media rather than what the media does to the audience. Katz proposed we ask 'what people dow with media' rather than 'what media does to people'

This theory recognises that the audience is not passive but actively chooses how to approach media. They decide what shows they are going to keep up with or if they are going to watch a certain type of media or not.

The theory suggests 4 different needs:

Surveillance - This is based on awareness. We want to know what's going on in the world around us and this makes us feel better.

Personal Identity - We use the media to shape our identities. Celebrities become role models. As a result of this when a celebrity misbehaves there is outrage due to the effect the celebrity has on children.

Personal Relationships - We form relationships with the subjects of the media. We watch numerous productions of theirs to feel closer to them. We build relationships and feel as if we know them even if we don't. Reality TV is a big example of this as it is more intimate.

Diversion - We use the media as an escapism or form of entertainment. We engage ourselves in our favourite soaps or TV shows.




This is Big Pimpin' by JAY Z. Blumler and Katz would suggest as an audience we watch videos for our own purposes. Mainly this is entertainment. As an audience we would see this video as a portrayal of what we would maybe want our own life to be. We see the video and just enjoy it. For this particular video the male gaze theory can be used due to the provocative women used in the video. This is for the male audience to just gaze at the screen out of entertainment. We get what we want out of a video.