The Cultural Studies Approach Perspective on Audience.

David Morley developed a theory on how the media might be powerful and influential to audiences, which also encourages researchers of media texts to understand the nature of particular audiences.

The theory sees the audience as 'active', meaning that they form opinions and standpoints in relation to the values being presented in the text. These are:

• Preferred reading: The audience understands and accepts the values being expressed in the media text, viewing them as 'correct'.
• Negotiated reading: The audience partially accept the values represented in the text, however adapt their reading to fit in with their own experiences and interests.
• Oppositional reading: The audience understands the values being expressed in the text, however objects to or disagrees with them.

This theory contradicts 'The Effects Theory' which states that the media has a direct behavioural effect on a passive audience. If sometimes refers to the hypodermic needle theory, stating that audiences become 'injected' with media information, which therefore has a psychological effect on the the audience's behaviour. The cultural studies approach opposes this, stating that audiences are active, therefore considering the different reading perspectives of the audience.