Audiences

Abstract

This article deconstructs the assumptions behind our common sense and scholarly usage of the term ‘audience.’ Discussing the literature about the film audience, the television audience, and audiences for other types of mass media and for specific events, this article problematizes the assumptions behind the term. The notion of the ‘active audience’ and its development in the cultural studies literature is discussed. Current emphases in audience study such as the globalization of media, the historical specificity of specific media, and feminist audience work are discussed. Finally, future directions are noted in a discussion of audience literature about new media such as computers and the Internet.