The Cultivation Theory

This is a social theory which examined the long-term effects of television on American audience of all ages. This theory is developed by George Gerbner, dean of the Annenberg School of Communications at the University of Pennsylvania. Gerbner began the 'Cultural Indicators' research project in the mid -1960's, to study how watching television may influence viewer's ideas of what the everyday world is like.

Cultivation theorists argue that:

- Television has long-term effects which are small but significant. They emphasize the effects of television viewing on the attitudes rather than behavior of viewers.

-Some studies have also considered other mass media from this perspective, and have dealt with topics such as: a gender roles, age groups, ethnic groups and political attitudes.

-George Gerbner argues that the mass media cultivate attitudes and values which are already present in a culture. He has also argued that television tends to cultive middle-of-the road political perspectives.

Negative influences of Rap & Hip-Hop music and music videos.
''Despite its popularity, hip-hop music is often scrutinized as a negative influence on behavior. People of all races and age groups relish hip-hop and often imitate the most popular artists and memorize the lyrics. Song lyrics can become embedded in the mind and can unconsciously motivate a listener's actions.''

History

Hip Hop began in the 1970s. The art form, which originated in New York, provided Black and Latino youth with an outlet to express themselves, often speaking out about the poor conditions that exist within their communities. The development of the hip-hop culture created a movement that influenced the way people dress, speak and socialize. The emergence of "gangsta rap" in the 1980s marked the beginning of some disintegration of the positive images in hip-hop culture.

Here's a music video by 50 cent 'Candy Shop' to support this theory.

Throughout the twentieth century, music videos have influenced various perceptions on the images of women. Male artists use women in their videos as an accessory, to make the video more appealing to a larger audience, specifically male. Sexism and the exploitation of women is a part of the learned mainstream American culture. Hip-hop culture is frequently condemned for its use of women as sex objects, but with mainstream American ideas being embedded into the psyches of many, the objectification of women seems to be culturally accepted.

In this song, you can hear the words such as: ' Got the magic stick, I'm the love doctor' or 'I melt in your mouth girl, not in your hands (ha ha)' are not only very suggestive, but also the video for this song is downright raunchy. This popular R & B music video portray women in a very negative way. The reason why is because videos fling messages to young women, how to being “cool” such as: to dress provocatively and be promiscuous. Women are rarely ever showed in a decent and good-natured manner in today’s music videos, not to mention fully clothed. In addition to the pop stars of today, the rappers in the media also display women as just merely objects.

Nowadays, television plays a significant role in shaping viewers' social realities. This reality is cultivated and maintained by on-going television viewing and consumption of various types of media. The influence of media on its’ viewers is demonstrated through the cultivation theory.