Communications Media Analysis Worksheet Essays

Communications Media Analysis Worksheet Essays Communications Media Analysis Worksheet Paper Communications Media Analysis Worksheet Paper Communications Environments and Media Questions COMMUNICATIONS ENVIRONMENTS AND MEDIA Communications environmentCommunications medium Electronically mediated virtual communication____Two-way instant messaging_______ For the communications environment and medium listed above, answer the following questions: 1. What are five communications situations in which this medium could be appropriately used? a. You are able to send out a meeting location change five minutes before the meeting starts to the other attendee (for small meetings) b. You are able to ask a someone a short question to find out information quickly c. Someone is able to quickly ask you your fax number so that they can send you a fax and you can verify receipt of the fax instantly d. Can coordinate on a homework assignment between classmates in different locations e. Can chat briefly with someone online when background noise in a location is too distracting for a phone call 2. What are two communications situations in which it would be inappropriate to use this medium? a. Having personal conversations in an office environment b. A manager sending confidential salary information to an employee when they are not certain who may be reading the instant message over the employee’s shoulder 3. What are five non-verbal communications elements characteristic of this medium? a. Font size, type, and color used in the message b. Whether or not emoticons are used c. The length of the initial message and length of responses d. The way each response is phrased (is the â€Å"enter† key pressed after every few words even if the entire sentence is not completed? ) e. The amount of time it takes each person to respond to each other â€Å"instantly† (one second versus 30 seconds). 4. What are five types of noise that this communications medium is subject to (e. g. , anything in the environment that delays, distorts, or destroys the message)? . Internet connection is broken mid-conversation b. Computer crash c. Instant messaging software versions are not compatible between users d. Power outage e. Hard component failures (monitor blackout, keyboard disconnection, mouse malfunction) 5. What types of feedback are possible with this medium? a. The receiver can reply instantly to the initial IM message b. The receiver can call the sender via telephone if the initial message was a telephone number c. The IM software can notify the sender that the receiver is online, a two-way connection is established, and the receiver is typing a message in reply 6. What are five communication skills necessary to effectively use this medium? a. Ability to compose short and coherent messages b. Ability to determine the level of information necessary in a brief message c. Ability to determine the information needs of the receiver d. Ability to understand the level of urgency required in order to use IM to send the message e. Ability to type fast with minimal spelling and grammatical errors 7. Is this medium appropriate for sending an urgent message? Explain. Two-way instant messaging allows for brief real time conversations when a telephone is not an option. This medium is appropriate for sending an urgent message only when the sender can verify that the receiver is online and available to chat (which is usually indicated by the software). If the receiver is not available for online chat at the time the sender wishes to send a message, the sender must choose email or another form of virtual communication that does not require the receiver to be present at the time the message is sent, while at the same time accepting that there will be a delay in the response. COMMUNICATIONS ENVIRONMENTS AND MEDIA Communications environmentCommunications medium Paper-mediated virtual communication_________Report________ For the communications environment and medium listed above, answer the following questions: 8. What are five communications situations in which this medium could be appropriately used? a. Sending results analysis to a business customer concerning a recent product rollout b. Presenting a list of research findings to a group of people c. Creating a sharing numerical data in the form of graphs to upper level management d. Presenting on cost benefits of a new product to stakeholders e. Sharing your course learning with classmates r the instructor of a class 9. What are two communications situations in which it would be inappropriate to use this medium? a. Composing a biography for a company website b. Writing an abstract interpretation of a song or piece of literature 10. What are five non-verbal communications elements characteristic of this medium? a. Font style and size used b. Length of paragraphs within the document and num ber of pages c. Use of graphs and colors d. Whether or not the report is printed or sent via email attachment e. If the report is printed, whether or not it is bound in a formal report cover 11. What are five types of noise that this communications medium is subject to (e. g. , anything in the environment that delays, distorts, or destroys the message)? a. If the report is an email attachment, the file size may be too large for some inboxes b. Paper may jam while printing c. May run out of ink when either printing or copying d. Graphs or diagrams may not be aligned properly if report is viewed from another operating system e. Data may not be complete or available in time for the report deadline 12. What types of feedback are possible with this medium? a. If the report is handed out in person, face to face verbal acknowledgement may be given b. If the report is send via email attachment, the receiver may send an email reply c. If the report is presenting in front of a group, questions may be asked in response to the report content 13. What are five communication skills necessary to effectively use this medium? a. Ability to interpret data into graphs b. Ability to determine the level of information needed for the target audience c. Ability to interpret research information so that logical conclusions are reached d. Ability to organize thoughts in a logical order so that receivers can come to the correct conclusions e. Ability to use the applications necessary to compose the report (such as Word, Excel, and Power Point). 14. Is this medium appropriate for sending an urgent message? Explain. This medium is not appropriate for sending an urgent message because reports are usually created after the sender takes time to gather, analyze, and interpret data. The report reflects as few as several hours to several days and even several months worth of research and the report itself may take some time to put together. COMMUNICATIONS ENVIRONMENTS AND MEDIA Communications environmentCommunications medium Electronically mediated Real-Time communication___Radio_______ For the communications environment and medium listed above, answer the following questions: 15. What are five communications situations in which this medium could be appropriately used? a. Morning news report broadcasted during driver commutes b. Daily traffic reports delivered during morning and evening rush hour to drivers c. Advertising for listeners in between music sets d. Severe weather advisories which interrupt normal broadcasting e. School and business closings during inclement weather (such as snow) 16. What are two communications situations in which it would be inappropriate to use this medium? a. Broadcasting a news or television program b. Sending out a personalized message to just one individual (no guarantee they will be listening at the particular moment the message is sent out). 17. What are five non-verbal communications elements characteristic of this medium? a. Use of background music with the radio message b. The tone of the speaker (monotone or with conversational inflection) c. Competency or confidence of the person speaking or reading the message d. Speed at which the message is spoken or read e. Length of advertisement or broadcast 18. What are five types of noise that this communications medium is subject to (e. g. , anything in the environment that delays, distorts, or destroys the message)? a. Radio signal is weak b. Traffic noises during rush hour c. Listener changes channels in the middle of broadcast d. Radio station DJ cuts message short e. Listener carrying on a conversation with another person during broadcast 19. What types of feedback are possible with this medium? a. Listeners respond to advertisement by visiting store b. Listeners call into radio station in response to a news report or to provide traffic updates c. Listeners can email radio station in response to news heard on the radio 20. What are five communication skills necessary to effectively use this medium? a. Ability to speak clearly and annunciate each word b. Fluent in language that the message is written in c. Ability to broadcast messages on one take without making a mistake d. Ability of the writer to compose short and coherent messages e. Ability to determine the level of information needed for the target audience 21. Is this medium appropriate for sending an urgent message? Explain. This medium is appropriate for sending an urgent message when the message is important enough to interrupt the radio program. The most common situation for urgent radio messages is to warn listeners of severe weather such as tornados and floods. COMMUNICATIONS ENVIRONMENTS AND MEDIA Communications environmentCommunications medium Unmediated Real-Time communication_____water-cooler conversation_____ For the communications environment and medium listed above, answer the following questions: 22. What are five communications situations in which this medium could be appropriately used? a. Asking a co-worker about their weekend b. Talking about last night’s news report c. Making plans for lunch later in the day d. Sharing short personal stories that help to empathize and relate to other coworkers e. Networking and offering services for projects within and outside of work 23. What are two communications situations in which it would be inappropriate to use this medium? a. Gossiping about a fellow colleague behind their back b. Discussing confidential customer information 24. What are five non-verbal communications elements characteristic of this medium? a. Body language and posture b. Eye contact and visual focus c. Volume and inflection of voice d. Whether or not the greeting is friendly, apathetic, or hostile e. Level of listening – does the listener interrupt the speaker or lack any response? 25. What are five types of noise that this communications medium is subject to (e. g. , anything in the environment that delays, distorts, or destroys the message)? a. Someone walks by and interrupts the conversation b. External noises are too loud to hear the speaker clearly c. Listener has a poor opinion of the speaker and is biased against anything the speaker has to say d. Listener is distracted by the speaker’s grooming techniques (messy hair, wrinkled shirt, etc). e. Speaker mumbles or does not annunciate well 26. What types of feedback are possible with this medium? a. Physical feedback such as head nodding, smiling, laughing, or even frowning b. The listener paraphrases what the speaker has said to make sure the message is understood. c. The listener asks questions to clarify information 27. What are five communication skills necessary to effectively use this medium? . The ability to know what topics are appropriate for casual conversation (nothing too personal, confidential, or controversial) b. Ability to speak clearly c. Good listening skills such as focusing attention on the speaker and acknowledging understanding of the message d. Ability to determine the volume of speaking the conversation should have (not too loud as to interrupt others around you, but just loud enough to be heard) e. The ability to know when it is appropriate to carry on a casual conversation (preferably not when the listener is very busy, distracted, or not in a good mood). 8. Is this medium appropriate for sending an urgent message? Explain. This medium is not appropriate for sending an urgent message due to the fact that water-cooler conversations occur when people are free to speak casually about light topics. Urgent messages cannot depend that all intended receivers will be present and available at â€Å"the water cooler† to hear the message. Urgent messages also imply a level of importance and the water-cooler scenario is most appropriate for non-essential communications. COMMUNICATIONS SCENARIOS State which medium or media you consider the best for use in the following communications situations. Assume your intended audience has the capability to receive your message. Explain your choices. 29. You manage three company locations within a large city. There are 100 workers among the three locations. You receive a message from company headquarters informing you that the company plans to layoff 10 percent of its workforce in your city. Your job is to deliver this information to your employees. A mandatory meeting should be scheduled for employees at all three locations. The meeting would be held at one main location with employees at other locations either dialing into the meeting via teleconferencing or videoconferencing. This way the message can be delivered only once with all employees present, and employees are present to either ask questions which will receive immediate answers, or listen to questions asked by other co-workers. 30. Although you work in the U. S. , you are the manager responsible for a small workforce in three offices in three different overseas locations. Each office has two managers and 14 non-management employees. You need to pass confidential information on to the managers at each location- information that it is not appropriate for the other employees to have at this time. The confidential information will either be saved onto a password protected CD-ROM and mailed to each manager, or the information may be placed in an encrypted file and sent via email attachment. The managers will then be provided with the password to unlock or decode the information once they receive it. This way, those who have the password (the managers) are the only individuals who will see the confidential information. 1. You are the marketing manager of a small company that has developed a new and unique consumer product. However, the target market for your product is quite specific (that is, your product is not aimed at all consumers). You need to get word of your product to your target market quickly, and prefer not to waste money delivering your message to people who would not be potential customers. If the small company keeps detailed customer records and the target market is existing customers, then a direct mailing campaign would be most appropriate. However, if the advertising is limited to a certain type of consumer, perhaps advertising can be done in the types of media the target consumer would generally read, listen to, or watch. For example, if the target audience was parents, then an ad in a local parenting magazine or paper would be ideal, with the actual advertisement composed in such a way as to appeal to parents. 32. You have a virtual workforce of 30 employees who all work at home or on the road. You need to update them on wide-ranging changes in product pricing- the pricing update information runs to several pages of fairly small type. Since the information to communicate is several pages in length, and the type is fairly small, the best means of reaching a telecommuting workforce is via a company intranet. The information can be published on an intranet site that only employees can access and obtain information at any time from any place. They would be able to view the pricing update document and use the zoom function to increase the size of the font so that the information is easier to read. They also have the option to print out the information from a location of their choosing.