Cultivation and New Media

The following is a summary post by WVU MA student Zac Goldman following our discussion of Cultivation Theory on Monday night (29 January); the discussion is continued on our course Facebook page.

Cultivation Theory has historically been one of media’s most explored theories. However, with the continuous emergence of new media, one must question is cultivation still relevant. The premise behind Cultivation Theory is the notion that the audience receives the same constant message and develops it primarily through mainstreaming or residence. As we move into the era were television channels range well into the thousands; it should be questioned whether cultivation is still feasible in new media as it is currently defined. To determine this, one must consider with the increase in channels, do people truly have choice? Or, are the masses merely bamboozled with an illusion of choice given to them by the network giants? It is conceivable if choice is truly present, an increasingly amount of smaller niches exist now more than ever. Within these smaller niches it would then be theoretically possible that cultivation could occur, and arguably faster within a smaller more homogenous audience. Perhaps then instead of examining choice, current evaluators of cultivation would elect to critique the role of cognition; which is merely non-existent. The idea that cultivation seemingly bypasses all cognitive function revealing a “monkey see, monkey do” reaction within the audience has been at the heart of many scholarly complaints for decades. The objective behind this blog is not to dispute or discredit one of the most popularized theories ever created. Simply, to bring to question is cultivation still relevant in new media? If yes, should necessary constructs be updated? What role might cognition currently play if an updated description of Cultivation Theory was given? These questions should be considered as we continue to determine the relationship between cultivation and new media.