Magic bullet theory in mass communication

¶ … magic bullet theory" -- sometimes called the hypodermic needle theory -- holds that when recipients of broadcasted information are separated from one another they are extremely susceptible to the messages that they are receiving; theses messages can drastically influence their opinions as well as their perceptions of reality. "Agenda setting scholars corroborate the fact that our dependence on the media for news and information has shaped and reinforced our perceptions of the world around us. The mass media continue to set the news agenda for dominant events, issues and policies that subsequently become popular in our social discourse."

It is a theory regarding the nature by which information influences its receivers and is generally only accurate under a specific set of circumstances. Overall, the magic bullet theory cannot be utilized as a comprehensive model for the mass media because it ignores a number of characteristics inherent to human nature. The term itself actually originates from the middle of the nineteenth century, and generally refers to medical treatments:

"Historically, and particularly in the 19th Century, a medical cure in the form of a pill or injection has been referred to as a 'Magic Bullet.' This usage derives from an imperfect knowledge of the actual mechanism by which the curative worked; in fact, often an incomplete knowledge of the nature of the illness, itself. Thus, the Magic Bullet was somehow imbued with an intelligence that allowed it to travel the courseways of the body and, on arriving at the locus of injury, there to deliver its lethal charge against the unseen, and even, unexpected, contagion."

Essentially, the idea is that a single bit of medicine -- or virtually any product -- can possess the capability to independently solve multiple problems without, necessarily, requiring the full understanding of those involved.

Accordingly, the effect of the medicine can be overwhelmingly potent if utilized in a proper manner. This belief bestowed medial practitioners with substantial authority; after all, they possessed the power to create and administer these magic bullet cures as they saw fit.

This concept is almost directly analogous to the manner in which the term is used when referring to communications. Just like medicine the magic bullet theory of communications demands that information be spread in a one-way direction. This information is released over a broad range of individuals, travels independently through some form of medium, and ultimately finds its place in the ears and mind of an individual appropriately placed to have the information affect him or her in the desired manner. Such a flow of information automatically bestows the broadcasters of this information with considerable power and influence. The idea of the magic bullet was first applied to media during the middle of the twentieth century and "implied [that] mass media had a direct, immediate and powerful effect on its audiences. The mass media in the 1940s and 1950s were perceived as a powerful influence on behavior change."

Consequently, the media was perceived as an entity that could shoot or inject people with the appropriate information and trigger a formulated response. By the nature of the media, the recipient of information was necessarily passive and isolated, thus, the radio and television were perceived as the ideal means by which to distribute information by virtue of their unparalleled capacity to create public opinion. Therefore, these forms of media have been presumed to be not only powerful, but dangerous and in need of controls.

Perhaps the most noteworthy example of the accuracy of this model occurred when The War of the Worlds was broadcast for the first time over the radio:

"The classic example of the application of the Magic Bullet Theory was illustrated on October 30, 1938 when Orson Welles and the newly formed Mercury Theater group broadcasted their radio edition of H.G. Wells' 'War of the Worlds.' On the eve of Halloween, radio programming was interrupted with a 'news bulletin' for the first time. What the audience heard was that Martians had begun an invasion of Earth in a place called Grover's Mill, New Jersey."

Although the affect upon the audience was completely unintended, it served to illustrate the substantial power of the media to convince the public of the most outrageous claims. "The vast majority of the listeners knew it was theater, but even so, according to a study of the response, the broadcast frightened roughly a million people -- the panic indirectly testifying to the increased importance of broadcast news and the edginess so many felt in the midst of international crisis."

Such a response demands some rational from of explanation; prior to its occurrence it would have been difficult to believe that such an enormous number of individuals could be induced to believe the unbelievable simply because it was presented to them over a trusted medium. So in retrospect, it seemed appropriate to attribute this "panic broadcast" to the magic bullet theory.

However, Welles' broadcast is known as the classic example of the magic bullet theory because it is the best known instance in which listener behavior most closely mirrored what the theory itself would have predicted. Still, other possible explanations for the mass panic that set in can be put forward. First, the time and setting were ideally suited to a broadcast that purported catastrophe; the world was on the brink of another war and tensions were high. Second, and perhaps most significantly, radio broadcasters were quickly becoming more important and relied upon more readily by the public to help them make sense of unfolding events in Europe. Therefore, it was relatively common for the radio listener to be unexpectedly bombarded with information that was at once regarded as unbelievable and terrifying. In short, the novelty of widespread radio had not completely worn off to the extent where viewers were capable of legitimately questioning the sources of broadcast information. The radio had become a trusted form of information, but many who received its broadcasts regarded it to be the truth rather than an interpretation of that truth.

This establishes a prerequisite for the appropriate functioning of the magic bullet theory in the real world: the source of the information must be unequivocally trusted. The fact that broadcasts on a grand scale were first truly available during the 1930's and 1940's is undeniably associated with the unique effect of the panic broadcast. Obviously, had an individual relayed their story of a Martian invasion to their friends and family they would most likely be laughed at or disregarded; but the fact that the listeners of the broadcast were aware of the scale upon which the information was being received indelibly linked a level of authority to the knowledge being transferred. Since information could for the first time be spread to millions of ears instantaneously, it should not be altogether surprising that it was afforded a level of credence that previous media could never have attained.

"Broadcast news became more important partly because radio itself was becoming pervasive. The proportion of households with radios rose from 65% in 1934 to 81% in 1940, and a rising percentage of new cars had radios."

This, in part, can help to explain the notion of the magic bullet theory; the novelty of broadcast is linked to authority. Therefore, it should be expected that information traveling through a new media should also be greeted with a similar level of unquestioned trust. This concept is rather counterintuitive since it is commonly believed that trust is necessarily something achieved with the passage of time. Yet, when it comes to broadcasted information, the form of the technology involved routinely veils the human element behind the message. This technology, however, must be coupled with the number of individuals who are able to receive the same information. So, the perceived size of a broadcast audience instills in each individual recipient an awareness of the importance of the information being transferred, and thus, some level of judgment is put aside for this authority.

Of course, "It is not always easy to determine when we have surrendered our judgment to someone else. The better or more sophisticated the manipulation, the less aware of it we are."

This frame of mind is somewhat analogous to what has often been termed the "mob mentality." "For example, have you ever attended a sporting event, rock concert, or political convention in one frame of mind, but found yourself inexplicably swept away by the emotion of the crowd."

This phenomenon relies upon the power of mass opinion and its persuasive properties. When caught up in a crowd, the individual is unavoidably persuaded by the force of so many people together who possess the same emotion or opinion. Therefore, when information is distributed on a large scale the number of people receiving this information grants it this same sort of power.

The difference between this example and the requirements for the magic bullet theory is both the physical distance between the recipients of information and the differing pre-existing opinions and ideals of the recipients. Still, the theory is a direct application of the mob mentality played out under the unique circumstances brought about by mass media.

'Mass media can be defined as avenues for messages that are created for consumption by large numbers of people. These 'message consumers' are physically separated from one another (to distinguish a mass medium audience from, for example, attendees at a pro-football game). They are also diverse in terms of their interests, values, and other demographical characteristics."

Each time a new form of media is invented it typically becomes associated with power and prestige. Commonly, this is because new information technologies are rare and expensive to produce. This was particularly true of books prior to the Gutenberg press in Europe. Hence, the spread of knowledge has almost always been linked to positions of authority; access to knowledge is limited, so when an individual is in possession of it, his actions and conceptions regarding it are generally regarded with esteem. After the press made books and newspapers available to the public, many in power feared the new technology for its capacity to inject uniform responses into the public -- books became the first form of mass media. In keeping with the premises of the magic bullet theory, monarchs and the papacy severely censored the information that was made public in all forms of print.

This trend has continued as more and more types of mass media come into existence. Whether it is with the internet, printable music, or television, decidedly firm measures have been taken to limit the suggestive power of widespread information. In this respect, the magic bullet theory is dependent upon the validity of the "powerful effects model." In other words, for it to be true that media is able to unilaterally shoot opinions into the minds of individuals, it must be established that the effects of information perpetuated by mass media are significant.

Essentially,

"The strong or powerful effects model states that mass media effects are significant in magnitude, uniform across audiences, immediate in influence, and -- too often -- harmful. Such effects generate false images of the world's nature in consumers' minds. They also encourage unacceptable behavior in the form of "copycats" who mimic what they see and hear, for example, drinking and smoking. These media effects are thought not only to be highly effective as tools of persuasion for both children and adults but also (in a negative way) to dominate our political system."

By assuming that people inevitably possess the same sort of traits and characteristics, it is inferred that information is processes in similar manners from person to person. Consequently, isolated individuals should exhibit the same responses to the same information. Basically, it is a stimulus and response model of human behavior; suggesting that people are almost immeasurably malleable, and therefore, easily manipulated by a central controller. Thus, to those who ascribe to this sort of reasoning, new information technologies stand as a constant threat to society; they are automatically associated with authority and privilege -- they are therefore more powerfully suggestive -- so they demand censorship. The powerful effects model of the media, clearly, still holds significant pull today and is the driving force behind the continual calls for the limitation of public information.

Yet, studies early-on in the formal development of the powerful effects model -- and accordingly, the magic bullet theory -- suggested that the influence of mass media was far less substantial than other modes of information transfer.

'In the 1940 presidential election, in Erie County, Ohio, sociologists Paul Lazarsfeld, Bernard Berelson, and Hazel Gaudet conducted a study on how media messages influenced voting. They found that, yes, such messages could persuade people but only in a select, limited fashion. The scientists discovered that the media of the time activated people to vote, that is, got them to do what they planned to do anyway."

Similar findings were reported by the United States Army during the Second World War. Propaganda films produced by Frank Capra, designed with the intensions of bolstering moral and a hatred of the Japanese, were found to only minimally alter the opinions soldiers held prior to viewing the films.

Both of these studies revealed that individual recipients of media were not truly isolated; they were influenced by friends, family, coworkers, and their particular social status equally, if not more, than the mass media. Fundamentally, the most powerful influence of the mass media was found to possess was the reinforcing quality it had upon preexisting notions. Therefore, the weak effects model has come to replace its predecessor as a more accurate theory concerning the influence of the mass media upon the public.

Considering this concept, it is possible to look at the event of the panic broadcast in a more accurate light. Notably, the vast majority of the public was well aware that the news broadcast was fictitious. Radio, by its nature, disperses information to a broad cross-section of society.

It can be assumed that those who perceived it as a cataclysmic event were predisposed to interpreting such an event -- they were calibrated to accept the idea that Martians had landed on earth. Undoubtedly, this frame of mind could not have singularly been instilled by the media, but instead, must have collaborated with all other forms of information these million individuals were accustomed to receiving. Although they may have been physically separated from one another, they entered the broadcast with a readiness to accept such wild notions, just as a crowd at a rock concert enters with a readiness to be moved by the performers. The panic broadcast played upon a fear that had been previously cultivated through other means. Essentially, "Propaganda is situational."

The listeners trusted the source of the information, and were driven to panic when their radical dreams were confirmed in such a way. Similarly, the mob mentality plays itself out only when members of the mob possess similar preconceived opinions.

Primarily, the magic bullet or hypodermic needle theory fails as an accurate representation of human response to mass media. Undeniably, the power of mass media is significant and cannot be overlooked. However, assuming the complete malleability of the general public ignores both the nature of individuality, and the multiple modes by which information can be received and interpreted.

Nevertheless, the theory still holds a firm grip upon the world's media sources, and the politics that permeate them. Consequently, approximately all forms of mass media are deliberately censored to amplify particular viewpoints or common perceptions. In China, for instance, the government takes the lead role in deciding what information is suitable to be broadcast on a large scale:

"The degree of press freedom China media enjoy is influenced by the role that the government ascribes to them as a vehicle for socioeconomic development. Noting that China's press freedom in China remains restrictive . . . At China's current stage of development, the government views the mass media as an important vehicle for national development."

China is not the only country in which the mass media is seen as an avenue by which advantageous ideals can be propagated; although it may be one of the only nations in which this aim is overtly admitted. In the United States, media neutrality has been the goal for generations. This approach reflects the power the magic bullet theory still wields over those delegated control of distributing information. Censorship and ratings are not the only methods by which Americans are protected from the power of knowledge, but the philosophies the broadcasters wish to perpetuate come across in more subtle ways as well. A rare departure from the prescribed formulas of sitcom television was Roseanne. The program depicted a poor family who did not fit the mold most television sponsors would endorse: "Roseanne thus flies in the face of pop culture establishment by its irrelevant and candid putdowns, as well as the face of series' sponsors, most of whose products the Conner family could not afford to buy."

The fact that Roseanne depicted a perfectly ordinary family, but was an extraordinary topic for mass media reflects the nature of the information that is commonly regarded as suitable for broadcast: the type of information that promotes a consumer culture.