CULTURE AND COMMUNICATION The term culture refers to the complex collection of knowledge, folklore, language, rules, rituals,

habits, lifestyles, attitudes, beliefs, and customs that link and give a common identity to a particular group of people at a specific point in time. All social units develop a culture friends, family, group, organization, society Groups also develop cultures, composed of the collection of rules, rituals, customs, and other characteristics that give an identity to the social unit Organizations also have cultures The most rich and complex cultures are those that are associated with a society or a nation - refer to the characteristics including language and language-usage patterns, rituals, rules, and customs. Thus, any social unit whether a relationship, group, organization, or society develops a culture over time. Culture we typically refer to the pattern of development reflected in a society s system of knowledge, ideology, values, laws, social norms and dayto-day rituals. Accordingly culture varies from one society to another. The word culture has been derived metaphorically from the idea of cultivation , the process of tilling and developing land. Thus, culture can be considered as a constellation of factors that are learned through our interaction with the environment. Culture is what you eat, talk, sing and dance. Culture is what we see, and hence we are having something called global culture India's languages, religions, dance, music, architecture, food and customs differ from place to place within the country, but nevertheless possess a commonality. The culture of India is an amalgamation of these diverse subcultures spread all over the Indian subcontinent and traditions that are several millennia old.

The word "culture" is most commonly used in three basic senses:

y

Excellence of taste in the fine arts and humanities, also known as high culture An integrated pattern of human knowledge, belief, and behaviour that depends upon the capacity for symbolic thought and social learning The set of shared attitudes, values, goals, and practices that characterizes an institution, organization or group

Communication is a process of expressing one s knowledge, beliefs, behaviours and thoughts and it can be through various mediums Communication requires a sender, a message, and an intended recipient, although the receiver need not be present or aware of the sender's intent to communicate at the time of communication; thus communication can occur across vast distances in time and space.

Culture, Communication Relationship

The relationship between communication and culture is a very complex and intimate one. 1. Cultures are created through communication; - culture is created, shaped, transmitted, and learned through communication. 2. Communication practices are largely created, shaped, and transmitted by culture. 3. Culture is dynamic, not static. Communication facilitates change in culture. 4. Understanding the nature of culture in relationship to communication is helpful in a number of ways. - First, it helps to explain the origin of differences between the practices, beliefs, values, and customs of various groups and societies, and it provides a reminder of the communication process by which these differences came into being. This knowledge can and should heighten people s tolerance for cultural differences.

- Second, it helps to explain the process that individuals go through in adapting to new relationships, groups, organizations, and societies and the cultures of each. - Third, it underscores the importance of communication as a bridge between cultures and as a force behind cultural change. Culture Shock - The culture shock period, also known as the crisis period, comes into play when the individual experiencing the new culture begins to be disappointed with the new culture. He feels surrounded by the new and now strange cultural practices and begins to miss the familiar and comforting elements of his home culture. To protect himself, he may begin to make insensitive comments or jokes about the new culture. This phase may last for a few weeks or months Cultural Adaptation - If the individual stays in a new culture long enough, s/he will progress to the adaptation phase, where s/he will learn to fully appreciate and enjoy the new culture, learning to efficiently navigate it. S/he may begin to feel at home in his new environment ( for more reading http://www.ehow.com/list_6107643_stages-cultural-adaptation.html ) Processes of change in culture - The processes leading to change that occur as a result of contact between societies are diffusion, acculturation and transculturation. Diffusion is the movement of cultural objects and ideas from one culture to another. Eg. McDonald s culture to India. Acculturation is what happens to an entire culture when alien traits diffuse in on a large scale and substantially replace traditional cultural patterns. Eg. English becoming the mother tongue of children in the cities of India Tranculturation - While acculturation is what happens to an entire culture when alien traits overwhelm it, transculturation is what happens to an individual when he or she moves to another society and adopts its culture. Eg. Immigrants who successfully learn the language and accept as their own the cultural patterns of their adopted country have transculturated. MODERNITY CULTURE INDUSTRY ENLIGHTENMENT AS MASS DECPETION

Modernity typically refers to a post-traditional, post-medieval historical period, one marked by the move from feudalism toward capitalism, industrialization, secularization, rationalization, the nation-state and its constituent institutions and forms of surveillance. Conceptually, modernity relates to the modern era and to modernism, but forms a distinct concept. Whereas the Enlightenment invokes a specific movement in Western philosophy, modernity tends to refer only to the social relations associated with the rise of capitalism. Modernity may also refer to tendencies in intellectual culture, particularly the movements intertwined with secularisation and post-industrial life, such as Marxism, existentialism, and the formal establishment of social science. In context, modernity has been associated with cultural and intellectual movements of 1436--1789 and extending to the 1970s or later PROPAGANDA AND PUBLIC COMMUNICATION Agenda Setting - is the process whereby the mass media determine what we think and worry about Agenda setting describes a very powerful influence of the media the ability to tell us what issues are important The Agenda-Setting Theory says the media (mainly the news media) aren t always successful at telling us what to think, but they are quite successful at telling us what to think about Theorists - Maxwell McCombs and Donald L. Shaw Date: 1972/1973 Gatekeeping is the process through which information is filtered for dissemination, be it publication, broadcasting, the Internet, or some other type of communication. Gatekeeping occurs at all levels of the media structure - from a reporter deciding which sources are chosen to include in a story to editors deciding which stories are printed or covered, and includes media outlet owners and even advertisers. Outside of media organizations, individuals can also act as

gatekeepers, deciding what information to include in an email or in a blog, for example. Censorship, media bias Kurt Lewin was apparently the first one to use the term "gatekeeping," which he used to describe a wife or mother as the person who decides which foods end up on the family's dinner table Priming - second order agenda setting In agenda setting t he media sets the public and the political agenda by bringing issues to the attention of the audience and of policy makers Priming effects of communication are important for decision making, for example which candidate to vote for in an upcoming election. The concept of priming is based on the assumption that people don't carefully weigh all possible aspects of a situation or problem when making decisions. Rather, people employ mental shortcuts when making up their minds. One of the heuristics they apply is to rely on information that is most accessible in their memory. If, for instance, health care has not been perceived as a big problem by the public so far, a communication campaign can put it on the public agenda (agenda setting) and make it a salient issue by repeatedly reporting about it (priming). The amount of communication and coverage of health care will then influence the importance of health care in the voters' decisions understanding of the media, the manipulation of the public, and the formation of public opinion Propaganda is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position. While the term propaganda has acquired a strongly negative connotation by association with its most manipulative and political examples, propaganda in its original sense was neutral, and could refer to uses that were generally benign or

innocuous, such as public health recommendations, signs encouraging citizens to participate in a census or election, or messages encouraging persons to report crimes to the police, among others. Public speaking is the process of speaking to a group of people in a structured, deliberate manner intended to inform, influence, or entertain the listeners. It is closely allied to "presenting", although the latter has more of a commercial connotation In public speaking, as in any form of communication, there are five basic elements, often expressed as "who is saying what to whom using what medium with what effects?" The purpose of public speaking can range from simply transmitting information, to motivating people to act, to simply telling a story. Good orators should be able to change the emotions of their listeners, not just inform them MEDIA STEREOTYPES AND REPRESENATATION Media stereotypes are inevitable, especially in the advertising, entertainment and news industries, which need as wide an audience as possible to quickly understand information. Stereotypes act like codes that give audiences a quick, common understanding of a person or group of people usually relating to their class, ethnicity or race, gender, sexual orientation, social role or occupation. But stereotypes can be problematic. They can:
y y y y

reduce a wide range of differences in people to simplistic categorizations transform assumptions about particular groups of people into "realities" be used to justify the position of those in power perpetuate social prejudice and inequality

More often than not, the groups being stereotyped have little to say about how they are represented. MULTICULTURALISM Co-existence of many cultures in a locality, without any one culture dominating the region.

the preservation of different cultures or cultural identities within a unified society, as a state or nation. It embraces the commitment to universal humanity and dignity the idea that all individuals have the right to be measured by their own actions, decisions and efforts (Bruch & Higbee, 2002) Overcomes Racism, Sexism, Casteism and other discrimination. People who have more than one culture in them or who grew up with more than one cultural identity become multicultural. Important insights about multiculturalism 1. Human beings are culturally embedded in the sense that they grow up and live within a culturally structured world and organize their lives and social relations in terms of a culturally derived system of meaning and significance. This means that they are deeply shaped by it, can overcome some but not all of its influences, and necessarily view the world from within a culture. 2. Different cultures represent different systems of meaning and visions of the good life. This means that no culture is wholly worthless, that it deserves at least some respect because of what it means to its members and the creative energy it displays, that no culture is perfect and has a right to impose itself on others, and that cultures are best changed from within. 3. Every culture is internally plural and reflects a continuing conversation between its different traditions and strands of thought. This means that its identity is plural, fluid and open. 4. Social recognition is central to the individual s identity and self-worth and misrecognition can gravely damage both. Misrecognition has both a cultural and a material basis. The American Whites, for example, take a demeaning view of Blacks partly under the influence of the racist culture, partly because this helps them justify the prevailing system of domination, and partly because the deeply disadvantaged Blacks do sometimes exhibit some of the features that confirm white stereotypes. Misrecognition, therefore, can only be countered by undertaking a rigorous critique of the dominant culture and radically restructuring the prevailing inequalities of economic and political

power. (for more reading - http://www.indiaseminar.com/1999/484/484%20parekh.htm) 5. Mass culture is popular culture produced by mass production and widely disseminated via mass media. Structuralism Structuralism is a theory of humankind in which all elements of human culture, including literature, are thought to be parts of a system of signs. Structures in structuralism are not neither concrete nor physical. Structures refer to mental models built after concrete realty and these structures are based on cultural realities such kinship organization or tales. Eg. The mental models we create based on Fairy tales such as sleeping beauty or stories like Panchatantra Structuralism argues that a specific domain of culture may be understood by means of a structure -modelled on language -that is distinct both from the organisations of reality and those of ideas or the imagination According to Alison Assiter, four ideas are common to the various forms of structuralism. First, that a structure determines the position of each element of a whole. Second, that every system has a structure. Third, structural laws deal with co-existence rather than change. Fourth, structures are the "real things" that lie beneath the surface or the appearance of meaning. The structuralism mode of reasoning has been applied in a diverse range of fields, including anthropology, sociology, psychology, literary criticism , and architecture. Eg. For architecture, think about the structures old buildings in India, China and England. Deconstruction Deconstruction is a term that French philosopher Jacques Derrida introduced in 1967. It says that any text can have more than one interpretation as the text can contain several irreconcilable and contradictory meanings

The meaning of the text is studied carefully and thoroughly, to the point of exposing the supposed contradictions and internal oppositions. It can be explained as the critical analysis of a text or creation to understand the meaning or mission involved in it. Deconstruction can be applied in various ways to a number of targets like media genres: literature, comic books, film, TV tropes, video games, web comics , music and so on. Eg. Superhero comics had a huge wave of deconstruction in the '80s and '90s - Frank Miller's Batman: The dark Knight Returns takes straightforward superhero action and makes it look absurd by having politics interfere. Batman's work becomes a tool for debates about "toughness on crime," while Superman's idealism makes him an easy dupe for the US government's plans for nuclear war. Eg. Of video game:The video game Megaman X is a deconstruction of the Sentient Robot Heroes genre. Deconstruction is also usually followed by Reconstruction. Whereas deconstruction aims to attack our fantasies by showing them to be "flawed" and "unworkable" in reality, reconstruction accepts these criticisms and builds a new fantasy that allegedly would work in reality Multiculturalism has a number of different meanings. At one level the term means the appreciation, acceptance or promotion of multiple cultures, applied to the demographic make-up of a specific place, usually at the organizational level, e.g. schools, businesses, neighbourhoods, cities or nations. In this sense multiculturalism approximates to respect for diversity. The term may also describe people who have more than one culture in them (people who grew up with more than one cultural identity, also sometimes called bicultural) In a political context the term has come to mean the advocacy of extending equitable status to distinct ethnic and religious groups without promoting any specific ethnic, religious, and/or cultural community values as central. Multiculturalism as "cultural mosaic" is often contrasted with the concepts assimilationism and social integration and has been described as a "salad bowl" rather than a "melting pot." GLOBALISATION AND LOCALISATION

Globalization (or globalisation) describes the process by which regional economies, societies, and cultures have become integrated through a global network of political ideas through communication, transportation, and trade. The term is most closely associated with the term economic globalization: the integration of national economies into the international economy through trade, foreign direct investment, capital flows, migration, the spread of technology, and military presence. However, globalization is usually recognized as being driven by a combination of economic, technological, socio cultural, political, and biological factors. The term can also refer to the transnational circulation of ideas, languages, or popular culture through acculturation. An aspect of the world which has gone through the process can be said to be globalized.

Culture and Consumerism

Consumerism is a social and economic order that is based on the systematic creation and fostering of a desire to purchase goods and services in ever greater amounts. By 21st century, businesses have realized that wealthy consumers are the most attractive targets of marketing. The upper class's tastes, lifestyles, and preferences trickle down to become the standard for all consumers. The not so wealthy consumers can purchase something new that will speak of their place in the tradition of affluence . A consumer can have the instant gratification of purchasing an expensive item to improve social status. In many critical contexts, consumerism is used to describe the tendency of people to identify strongly with products or services they consume, especially those with commercial brand names and perceived status symbolism appeal, e.g. a luxury car, designer clothing, or expensive jewelry . A culture that is permeated by consumerism can be referred to as a consumer culture or a market culture. Consumer Culture: ( I am adding a few points from Shraddha s presentation in the next slide) Consumer culture refers to a theory that human society is strongly influenced, even predominantly influenced, by consumerism. This concept states that economic and social cultures are based on the purchasing of

commodities and services and that social functioning and behaviour is bound up with the fostering a desire for these goods. It is also intricately bound up with notions of advertising and globalization. Features of consumer culture: The primary feature of a consumer culture is the idea that people's identities are defined by the things that they possess and the services that they can afford to purchase. Meaning has become invested in things rather than, say, deeds. There is a perceived link between the accumulation of objects and the degree of happiness one attains. There is also a greater focus on leisure time (within which shopping is included). All these features are linked to free market politics that assert the right of individuals to choose which products they purchase and of industries to be able to compete for their money. One of the ways that industries and businesses seek to attract customers is through advertising, which burgeoned from the 1920s onward. A consumer culture can be viewed both positively and negatively. Proponents say that people are happier and more productive when their wants and needs are met, and that buying and owning things is a means to that end. The opposing viewpoint is that consumerism is wasteful and greedy and encourages consumption for its own sake. Both sides agree that consumerism is a sign of economic freedom. Much of the way we define the "American Dream" is directly tied to America's consumer culture. Benefits: When a country's economy is strong, consumer culture thrives. Purchases lead to more purchases, as supply and demand play themselves out naturally. Consumerism also dictates that it is not the producers of goods who determine what a society should consume, but rather the free-thinking consumers. That is to say, a product will not exist if no consumers are interested in buying it. In this sense, the economy is self-regulating and selfsustaining. Criticism: Critics say consumerism is shallow and drives people not just to meet their needs but to acquire status symbols, expensive things whose primary

purpose is to demonstrate the owner's ability to purchase them. Instead of fulfilling spiritual or aesthetic desires, these arguments go; a consumer culture pursues external riches. Critics also say consumerism exacerbates class divisions.

Globalisation and Culture

Globalization describes the process by which regional economies, societies, and cultures have become integrated through a global network of political ideas through communication, transportation, and trade. Culture is the totality of socially transmitted behavior patterns, arts, beliefs, institutions, and all other products of human work and thought. Culture plays a very important role in our society, and is an important public good. Globalisation paved the way for availability of consumer goods and products, technological and informational revolution and accessibility of the media products across the globe, and exposure to the various cultures of the world. These impacted the culture of the people in all spheres by changing their life styles, buying habits, social life and so on.

Through globalization we have greater awareness of cultural differences across the globe. We also have greater contact with different cultures, with which we often live side-by-side. All cultures are mixtures of different influences, hybrids and all cultures have evolved over time. A contemporary Indian man and English man would have more in common with each other, than either would have with an ancestor of one century ago. Globalization is accelerating the contact between different cultures. Traded goods are often the reflection of culture. Obvious examples are Hollywood movies, Japanese anime or French wine. International investment brings multinational enterprises into contact with foreign lands and communities. Migration results in people of different cultures living together. Global communications and the Internet expose us to the lives, ideas and values of others.

 Critics of globalisation contend that even if increased trade promotes material prosperity, it comes with a high cultural cost, destroying many of the world s distinctive cultures and making the globe into one big mall. But there is more to culture than consumer products and artistic expression. The cultural part in the sense of society's beliefs, values and even civilization changes much more slowly. Notwithstanding their apparent modernity, the Japanese are still very Japanese, some one and a half centuries after the Meiji Restoration.

Stereotypes and Representations in the Media

Representation refers to the construction in mass media of aspects of reality such as people, places, environment, objects, events, cultural identities and other abstract concepts. Such representations may be in speech or writing as well as still or moving pictures. Representation is the process by which the media present to us the real world . The media re-present reality to us - what we treat as 'direct' experience is 'mediated' by perceptual codes. Representation always involves 'the construction of reality'. Media texts are constructed using codes combinations of symbolic, iconic and indexical signs. Representation is therefore a version of reality. Semiotics and content analysis are the main methods of formal analysis of representation. Stereotyping Stereotyping means the widely circulated ideas or assumptions about particular groups. Groups of people or community are many a times attributed with certain characteristics Characteristics of Stereotypes

- They categorise and evaluate groups. - They place emphasis on a particular aspect of the group. - Stereotypes can be positive and negative. Representations and stereotyping in the media 1. Rigid stereotyping of old people in the media 2. Media Representation of Race/Caste 3. Gender representations in the media- Feminist criticisms of depiction of women focuses on the stereotyping of women - women in subservient roles to men. housewife, homemaker, mother, as sexual objects, and also the Idealised version of female beauty. - Recent media texts have shown a growth in gender equality in the media strong independent females sometimes referred to as Postfeminism. Eg. Girl Power, Absolutely Fabulous, Buffy the Vampire Slayer 4. Representation of environment- For many people, knowledge of environmental issues is based upon what they have learned through print and electronic media, which help construct conceptions of political, social and ecological reality. Representation is unavoidably selective, foregrounding some things and back grounding others.