Cultivation Theory and the Difference Between Reality and Television
... the world is worse than it actually is, can settle in on people who are considered heavy viewers, says Gerbner (1976). Heavy viewing is seen as cultivating attitudes and behaviors that are more consistent with television program than the real world. It may even be said that lone viewers are even more susceptible to cultivation than those who watch television with others (Evra, 1990). This over use of television is supposedly creating a homogeneous and fearful populace (Gerber and Gross, 1976). The cultivation theory of mass media states that repeated and intense exposure to television and other mass media messages lead to the perception of television as normal (Gerber 1976). Cultivation theory focuses on the amount of television viewing or exposure, and does not allow for differences in the ways in which viewers interpret television realities. Viewers do not necessarily accept as real what they see on television. Television programs are open to varying interpretations. The degree of identification with characters by viewers may play a part. Motivations to view also vary greatly. Individuals who watch television simply to pass time or because it becomes a habit are more affected than people whose viewing is planned (Dominick J. 1990). The artifact I have chosen to explain this theory is the movie the Cable Guy that stars Jim Carrey and Mathew Broderick. It is a story a deranged cable installer who tries to become friends with Steven, played by Mathew Broderick, after he paid him fifty dollars to hook him up with free cable. The friendship starts out pretty good, but after Chip Douglas, played by Jim Carrey, performs many strange acts, Steven decides that the friendship is not going to work out. Steven tries to break it to Chip lightly but he doesn’t quite understand and plans revenge on Steven. Chip then tries to destroy Steven’s life by ruining his relationship with his girlfriend, best friend, and family in order to get back at him for not wanting to be his friend. He attempts to portray many different television characters in his attempt to get back at Steven. We find out in the end that Chip was abused as a child and his mother forced him to watch hours upon hours of television alone while she went off, played bingo and got drunk. This affected his attitude, behavior and his ability to distinguish between reality and television. The biggest example of the cultivation theory in the Cable Guy is Chip’s problem with distinguishing between television and what is real. His condition is a little more extreme than most, but these extremities help to emphasis this theory. Chip believes that what various characters do and portray is so real that he even mistakes himself for these characters. According to Gerbner (1976), Chip was a heavy viewer. This heavy viewing is what caused Chip’s situation. Light viewers would probably never be susceptible to such strong attitude of behavioral changes, according to theory (Gerber 1976). The fact that Chip was always watching television alone probably made his case even worse. For Chip, getting away from reality was his way of coping with life; this can also be the case for a lot of people in this same scenario. Children can be influenced to an even greater level depending on what they are allowed to watch. This is was what happened to Chip. He had nobody to control what he watched or his length of viewing. The theory is more focused on attitudes and behaviors, but in Chip’s case, both his attitude and behavior were completely out of control. Chip suffered f...