Social Media Text Analysis

There is a high relationship between the people and media text in society. People who work in the media industry are not autonomous actors, which means that the people who work for the industry work with society by trying to figure out what society’s interests are and create media to appeal to society because of the need to make a profit. The consumers in society are also not autonomous actors. In society, people are referred to as an active audience, in which the audience interprets media content (people have different interpretations) through the different codes presented in the media. Interaction between people and media texts creates meaning due to the different interpretations in society based on an individual’s social identity. In society …show more content…
By being actively involved in the media industry, people use the concept of social interpretation. In this, the people consume media text and codes through the social environment, by talking to each other and through social media (Skype, Snapchat, etc.). This type of interaction can be viewed as cultural codes because they are the values and beliefs that allows individuals to understand and interpret media. The interaction with others has a large impact on media content and text because the audience can influence what the people in the media industry will produce (through liking a certain trend on social media or collective action). The Encoding/Decoding model is used to explain how the audience interprets media codes and content. In this model messages are constructed according to certain codes, which we as the audience, decide what codes to use and interpret. People who work in the media industry use the area in the encoding/decoding process known as the “preferred code”. In this area, the producers creating certain content and text with an intended code. This intended code is the initial meaning of the text. The audience then uses cultural codes placed in society to make interpretations of that text. For example, in an adbuster’s poster, the company uses the phrase, “Eat Fast, Die Young” as a way of attacking the Big Mac at McDonald’s. In society, we view McDonald’s Big Mac as tasty, delicious, and a source a fast-food material. The Adbuster campaign goes against normal cultural codes and gives the audience an alternative way to interpret the Big Mac (its very bad for one’s health and can lead to an early death). The audience’s lived experiences can also impact the interaction between the audience and the text. The experiences one encounters impact how we think and act. Since people