Audiences

The study of audiences has been closely entwined with media studies since its inception. This chapter will offer an overview of how traditional concerns about passive consumption and the influence exerted by media texts have shaped and continue to influence perceptions about how audiences consume content. These concern exist alongside research into niche fan audience consumption, with fans simultaneously acting as both producer and consumer of texts, which often brings their engagement with media into conflict with the creative industries. Addressing key themes such as television streaming and taste cultures, engagement, content creation, values and motivations to explain the perception of greater audience freedom as part of the digital turn, this chapter builds on existing scholarship to further understanding of the competing interests of the contemporary Australian media audience.

Computer Science · Gender, Feminism, and Media · Media Influence and Health · Media Studies and Communication