1. Hypodermic Needle Theory
The hypodermic needle theory is one of the most famous theories that analyzed the relationship
between audience and media. This theory has been developed in the early 1920s with the beginning
of mass media, radio and cinema. In its simple description, this theory suggests that mass media can
easily influence a large group of people without any challenge and opposition from those people. “It
views audience as the passive receptors of virulent viruses produce by the media” (Starker, Evil
influences: crusades against the mass media). Actually, it suggests that mass media inject massages
and information directly and uniformly into audiences’ minds who immediately will be influenced.
This theory did not agree with those who are saying that the audiences are using their experience,
intelligence and opinion to analyze the message. Therefore, media producers and creators can
manipulate the audience and inject the information and the messages that they want. According to
this theory, if the person watches a violent movie, heshe will do violence. Although it doesn't take
any account of people's individuality, it is still very popular
The Inoculation Theory
Inoculation Theory was developed by social psychologist William J. McGuire in 1961 to
explain more about how attitudes and beliefs change, and more importantly, how to keep
original attitudes and beliefs consistent in the face of persuasion attempts. Inoculation
Theory continues to be studied today by communication, social psychology, and social
science researchers. The theory has been assessed in varied context, including politics
The idea of inoculation was derived from previous research studying one-sided and two-
sided messages. One-sided messages are supportive messages to strengthen existing
attitudes, but with no mention of counterpositions. Two-sided messages present both
counterarguments and refutations of those counterarguments
The Two Step Flow Theory
The two-step flow of communication hypothesis was first introduced by Paul Lazarsfeld, Bernard
Berelson, and Hazel Gaudet in The People's Choice, a 1944 study focused on the process of decision-
making during a Presidential election campaign. These researchers expected to find empirical
support for the direct influence of media messages on voting
intentions. They were surprised to discover, however, that
informal, personal contacts were mentioned far more
frequently than exposure to radio or newspaper as sources of
influence on voting behavior. Armed with this data, Katz and
Lazarsfeld developed the two-step flow theory of mass
communication.

2. Uses and Gratification Theory
People use media for acquiring knowledge, information etc., Among the audience some of them
have intellectual needs to acquire knowledge this is not common to all only certain people have
their need, each person have a different need for e.g. quiz programs on TV, in order to acquire
knowledge and information you will watch news to satisfy the need, search engines in the internet,
they make use of these to gain more knowledge. Particularly for the internet search engine they can
browse for any topic under the run with no time restriction.
It includes all kinds of emotions, pleasure and other moods of the people. People use media like
television to satisfy their emotional needs
The best example is people watch serials and if there is any emotional or sad scene means people
used to cry.
This is the self-esteem need. People use media to reassure their status, gain credibility and stabilize.
so people watch TV and assure themselves that they have a status in society for e.g. people get to
improve their status by watching media advertisements like jewelry ad , furniture’s ad and buy
products, so the people change their life style and media helps them to do so.
The Reception Theory
Reception theory provides a means of understanding media texts by understanding how these texts
are read by audiences. Theorists who analyze media through reception studies are concerned with
the experience of cinema and television viewing for spectators, and how meaning is created through
that experience. An important concept of reception theory is that the media text—the individual
movie or television program—has no inherent meaning in and of itself. Instead, meaning is created
in the interaction between spectator and text; in other words, meaning is created as the viewer
watches and processes the film. Reception theory argues that contextual factors, more than textual
ones, influence the way the spectator views the film or television program. Contextual factors
include elements of the viewer's identity as well as circumstances of exhibition, the spectator's
preconceived notions concerning the film or television program's genre and production, and even
broad social, historical, and political issues. In short, reception theory places the viewer in context,
taking into account all of the various factors that might influence how she or he will read and create
meaning from the text.