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Media Literacy Education
Network news and the problem of the media perception culture
Dr. O.I. Kolesnikova,
Vyatka State University, Moskovskaya Str., 36, Kirov, 610000 usr08 728@vyatsu. ru
Assoc. Prof. Yu. V. Igoshina,
Vyatka State University, Moskovskaya Str., 36, Kirov, 610000 yuv_igoshina@vyatsu. ru
Assoc. Prof. V.A. Timshin,
Vyatka State University, Moskovskaya Str., 36, Kirov, 610000 va_timshin@vyatsu. ru
Abstract. The article is devoted to the key problem of media perception associated with the study of the process of organizing the verbal means of transmitting situational news to the reader's mind. The authors examine the content of web-portals information, as well as set the task to identify the culture-forming factors of readers' perception and interpretation of news media texts. From the positions of a communicative-pragmatic approach to the media environment, consideration is given to the logical-semantic, as well as the ethical-speech aspect of presenting information about new events of the day to the addressee. The revealed peculiarities of translating and perceiving the sense of a situational report about the changes that have occurred in the life of the society are analyzed on two levels. Methods for translating the meaning to readers are considered on the level of verbal representation of the news in mass media; reception is considered at the level of its decoding. Factors that negatively affect the interpretation process are analyzed, identifying elements of news reports in electronic mass media that make it difficult. A model of the behavior of a modern media news reader«in the cultural context» is proposed as a model of the reader perception of the media news information consumer. The results obtained in the experimental study of the media news perception in two different age groups allow us to talk about the causes of destruction in the communicative process: the lack of the connection between the headline of the news and its text, sense distortions, leading to negative reader effects. The focus of the research on the culture of media perception is the problem of resolving the conflict of meanings in the course of building logical and semantic connections between the headline and the main news text. The results of the research contribute to the study of the media perception of the news content, the culture of reading modern online news.
Keywords: media culture, media perception, operative news content, reading culture, interpretation, reader
effects.
Introduction
Today, electronic media occupies a special place in the media environment, influencing the formation of the societal media culture, as well as the value structure of its subjects primarily in the youth environment, since the main users of the Internet is the age group from 18 to 34 years. According to a sociological poll conducted by the Russian Public Opinion Research Center in January 2018, the choice in favor of electronic versions of newspapers and magazines has grown twofold over the past four years, with the growth of preferences primarily due to youth groups.
Search engines, integrators and instant messengers are noted to be increasingly used so as to navigate in the information flow [Digital Media Age: Paper Against the Screen, 2018]. The tool of mass communication in the field of the Internet resources is the news text, which is a ministatement - a «message» that causes or does not cause a response - leads (or, on the contrary, does not lead) the reader to the decision to «read on», «read more» and go to the full version of the message in the main text.Questions how the process of perceiving the headline in the reader's mind works, how the expectation of the further message development is formed and how the interest in reading the news media text arises are closely related to the study of the culture of perceiving verbal information in the era of the priority of visual world image representation in mass media. E.L. Vartanova stresses that it is impossible «to leave behind ... the forms of audience's using media, their possible influence on the audience behavior - that is, the forms of media consumption: it is necessary to build the dynamics of media use into social processes, into the dynamics of not only public, but also individual development» [Vartanova, 2017, p. 10].
The purpose of news journalism, in the view of the theorists of the mass communication science, is to provide/give the reader «situational knowledge about changes in reality» with the aim of «enhancing the reliability of social orientation and, therefore, strengthening the stability of the society» [Lazutina, 2012, p. 51]. It is noted that such knowledge does not pretend to be «absolutely true and absolutely representative» [ibid., P. 56]. Nevertheless, the need for news is stable, and the ability to navigate the information field of new events and to interpret adequately the meaning of a news product is part of the reader's culture as a media consumer. News fills everyday life with colors of life in its various forms, allows you to be always aware of the events, to feel like an eyewitness of what is happening, to feel the «pulse of the time». The meaning of N. Rothschild's phrase «who owns the information, he owns the world», remains relevant not only in the business world, but also on a less global scale. To be «unaware» of news about the events taking place in the world means to be outdated, «to become obsolete» - hence, to stop being a mobile, erudite, interesting personality.
Modern news content stimulates the work of interpretation mechanisms in the reception process with the help of hypertextuality, providing a one-stage transition to the full news version in case of interest to read the text about a new event. Media culture, including electronic media, acts as an «integrator of a new media environment», providing «a person's advancement to a new type of thinking based on information awareness» [Kirillova, 2017, p. 39]. Receiving news refers to everyday practices that require a «daily action» of the personal culture of interaction with media regulating social processes [Sergeeva, 2011, p. 12]. Having received a cognitive signal about situational and actual information, the reader's consciousness reacts, driven by curiosity, with a sense of interest in clarifying a specific situation. The recipient at the same time manages the boundaries of the text, using the options for its «deployment», instantly appearing on the web-page with the full version of the outlined events.
It is important for a person addressing online information sources daily or even sporadically to be, first, well-versed in the practically limitless Internet space. Reading news is not accidentally seen as a factor of negative impact on the individual: news leads to permanent stress, and psychologists advise to limit viewing news, as an uncontrolled information flow can adversely affect mental health. Psychiatrists believe that you need to choose a reliable source of news, which does not pursue sensationalism. The names of online articles on this subject (for example, «Quick reading: how not to go crazy about bad news», «Information diet: why news spoil our lives») eloquently testify the need to approach media consumption consciously. Reacting to the hyperlink headlines with «buildup» announcements in some news aggregators (see, for example, mir-press.com), a user can happen to appear on media sites with disgusting photos and texts of «tabloid» subjects. According to a sociological study of the young people's perception of the Internet news, «respondents note the fatigue with the unstructured news flow, make efforts to filter it, form an individual news feed» [Cherevko, Dunas, Tolokonnikova, 2018,
p. 22]. The costs of «news consumption» require a study the culture of media perception of texts about the events taking place in the world.
This problem is part of the research field of the societal and individual information cultures, since it is in the process of media consumption that they interact. By absorbing new information, the addressee realizes how important the news is for himself, determines how it can affect his interests. Such reading is considered conscious, reflexive.
It should be noted that the formation of a key component of media literacy as the main factor in perceiving information depends not only on the personal characteristics of its consumer, but also on the degree of adequacy of the speech form for the delivery of a news report. The optimal choice of the language method of information transfer determines, in our conception, some criterion of the adequacy of the transmitted news text. At the level of perception, the result of this choice essentially predetermines the accuracy of the consumer's reciprocal action (reaction). The subject of information perception values such qualities of the news media text as absence of ambiguity in understanding, clarity, and text consistency and coherence of the perceived message.
At the level of the addressee, a credibility strategy is recognized the key communication strategy of the media information discourse, since the reader refers to news texts in order to not only be aware of current events, but also to have an objective, independent of journalist interpretation, view of the facts «corresponding to one's own cognitive and worldview picture» [Klushina, 2013, p. 43].
Comparison of expectations, requests, needs of readers of different ages and specificfacts of information transfer in the online media will allow to determine the directions of searching for culture-forming signs of media perception.
Materials and methods
Studying the problem of media perception culture - as well as the practical tasks of improving media literacy resulting from it - requires addressing to the information message texts.
In order to identify the properties of news content influencing the perception of the media message meaning, the task was to determine what «internal» factors affect the process of its interpretation and generally provide a communication culture. To solve this problem, it was necessary to identify ways of translating the meaning to readers at the level of verbal representation of the news. There was conducted a content analysis of the event series of electronic media, dated March 2018, including text materials of a number of Russian-language electronic media news sites (RIA Novosti, Rbc.ru, Pravda.ru, Kp.ru, Gazeta.ru, Lenta.ru, Dni.ru, Rambler News Service, Interfax, Vesti.ru, newsru.com, newsland, Mediasostav, etc.).
After collecting the data that included 200 news texts, the following procedures were used: determining the nature of the verbal means presenting the facts in the headlines; matching headlines and the body of the text; identifying ways of presenting information that hamper the process of media perception or cause the addressee to refuse it.
To solve the second problem - to identify the features of the reception of the meaning of the situational report on new facts in the life of the society at the level of its decoding, an experimental study was carried out in two age groups. The first (focus) group included the second- and third-year students of the Institute of Humanities and Social Sciences of the Vyatka State University (the average age is 20 years). The second group of middle-aged students (from 38 to 45 years) was formed of retrainees of courses for medical workers in the city of Kirov. 60filledformswerecollectedafterawrittenquestionnaire.
3 blocks of media news text materials were presented to respondents, and they were suggested a task that allows to judge about preferences concerning the form of the news verbal presentation. The experimental material was formed on the basis of the facts collected during
the content analysis of the news flow for March of the current year. Both groups, in accordance with the method of subjective choice, were proposed:
1) to note the headline of the news, which caused the desire to have a look at it (12 headliners were selected for the questionnaire, selected previously according to the principle of diverse verbal communication);
2) to evaluate two headlines with a «provocative» form of presenting information, designed to shock readers; respondents were asked to recognize each heading either as a «good joke» or as an «incorrect form»;
3) having read the news announcement, to follow the link and, after reading the full text, to state their perception of the continuation (announcement 1), and also to choose the desired variant of the reader's reaction from three possible (announcements 2,3);
4) to choose from the 5 possible judgments the most fair, in the opinion of each respondent, about the ideal verbal form of online news.
Discussion
First of all it is necessary to name the objective conditions influencing news perception online. The latest media research revealed the following features of news consumption in the information flow.
1. The wide scope of news themes create a mosaic picture of the world in the recipient's mind, requiring readers' efforts in selecting messages about a new event or events. The subject of media perception when choosing news to read is guided either by spontaneously generated interest in a sensational fact or by readers' preferences. In principle, both are acceptable to him: it has been experimentally proved that the theories of the «agenda» (that is, media choice management) and «audience activity» are not mutually exclusive [Papadouka, Evangelopoulos, Ignatow, 2015]. In the first case, the choice is determined by news media brands, in the second case by personal cognitive interests (new events in world politics, sports, social networks, etc.). It is important to note that, according to researchers, brands simplify the decision-making process in the choice of content [Arendt, Northup, Camaj, 2017]. However, in this article we are also interested how the verbal form of presenting the news in the headline influences the choice of the news.
2. The text model of media news presented on the website of media is organized like in traditional printed sources of information, on the principle of an «inverted pyramid». This takes into account one of the most important requirements in the online environment: «grab» readers' attention presenting the most important information. The problem is that, on the one hand, the reader's activity can end with reading the title. But, on the other hand, the addressee received the necessary information, which means that communication is speeded up, acquiring an interactive character: you can go to other messages in media on this topic, or immediately with one click «share» it in social networks, or send to bookmarks, or subscribe to receive new messages. In addition, as researchers emphasize the impact of the Internet technologies on the media text, due to hypertextuality, i.e. external and internal links, provide a more objective perception of events by the reader in comparison with traditional media [Kasperova, Klushina, Selezneva, ets., 2016].
3. The following key operations in news media perception can be mentioned. They are, firstly, a quick overview of the «news tape» and the choice of the most important information to read [Vasquez, 2015]. Secondly, comparing the meaning of the title and subtitle, perceiving their semantic connection. Thirdly - in case of going to a full message - a meaningful «matching» of expectations and the result [Horning, 2017]; fourthly, the decision on the integrity of the information presented. It is important to note that the meaning of the news text is perceived through the language forms providing verbal, cognitive, logical connections between the semantic components of the text message. The headline is to satisfy certain requirements, and the
most important of them is decodability, i.e. ability to convey the meaning of the message clearly [Lashchuk, 2013].
4. The most significant factor for the interpretation of the message is the quality of the language of the news. With a certain culture of media perception, the addressee is able to «recognize» the functions of the news headline. These include: semantic and pragmatic; primary (actually informational) or secondary (entertaining, advertising, manipulative, relaxation); evaluative or non-evaluative; decorative or impacting, or, as it is called, for example, by the authors of the publication [Rudenko, Kotlyarova, 2017], the function of mind control.
As the researchers rightly note, «the procedure which triggers understanding is the question: what cannotwe understand in the text? [Nikitina, 2015, p. 50]. Problems of misunderstanding arise when the text as a whole semantic formation disintegrates: the image of the world is not built up in the mind of the reader. This is largely due to the «fault» of inefficiently selected language means to reflect the object (event nominations, its significance, characteristics of the «heroes of the day» and other semantic components of the message). For example, when perceiving the headline news message «The Vienna Bridge. What are the chances of Austria to become a mediator between Russia and the West» (RBC, 29.03.18), with the metaphor «The Vienna Bridge», it is easy for the reader to make meaningful connections of the factual (Vienna - Austria) and the imaginative (bridge-mediator) character. However, to clarify the logical connection of another heading «Up the ladder leading down» (about proposals to change the existing scale of taxation) (newsland, 28.03.18) is much more difficult even after reading the main text. Undoubtedly, relying on the paradox (for example, in such headline messages as «The experiment is doomed to success», «to resign «softly», etc.) can cause the reader to find out what is behind such incomprehensible combinations of words. At the same time, if anything, the «mysterious» wording in the headline will scare off the addressee, who is set to receive news information fast.
Following the postulates of the language pragmatics, we can assume that the preference for an indirect reference instead of existing direct one or violating the rules of semantic matching reveal the motive of the author of the utterance. This motive is most often a desire to influence the result of the addressee's perception of the situation displayed in the news and the named object. Metaphorical expressions are capable, in the scientists' opinion, to push addressees to revise their attitude to the presented object/phenomenon [Kobozeva, 2010].
The main disadvantage, which is a negative factor due to complicated perception of the news message meaning, is the emergence of semantic barriers both in understanding the speech form of the message, and in determining the meaningfulness of the perceived fact. Such barriers do not only form an insurmountable barrier of mental character between the author and the news consumer, but also form the attitude to the media as a channel of inaccurate, incomplete or deliberately false information. As G.S. Miller notes, examination of media texts shows that there is often a violation of the user's right to receive reliable information. False facts can cause a range of the reader's negative emotional experiences and mental states (danger, alertness, tension, anxiety, fear, confusion, indignation, etc.) [Melnik, 2016, p. 56].
The culture of reading online news can be assumed to determine the individual's media literacy including the skill to «read» a media text [Fedorov, 2013, p. 19], as well as to assess its reliability, depending on the nature of the source, to develop personal relationship to the fact and the manner of its presentation.
Relying on domestic and international research in various fields related to the study of the news information consumption: in journalism theory, media education, medialinguistics - we will try to present a model of the behavior of a modern media news reader «in the cultural light». The process of reading news media texts as a hybrid form of interpersonal and mass communication is actively explored by scientists from different countries (see, for example, [Johansson, 2014, Lehmann, Castillo, Lalmas, ets., 2017; Lee, Tandoc, 2017; etc.]).
Acting as an active recipient of the news flow in the media environment, the consumer of information is characterized by a number of specific behavioral features that manifest the culture of media perception of news messages.
1. The reader of news reports interacts actively with the content. He is motivated by the interest in obtaining situational information, as well as by the background («preliminary») knowledge [Karnowski, Kuempel, Leonhard, ets., 2017]. It is important that only «personally positive, interested attitude to the process» of its consumption launches the process of the subject's self-development which acquires a personal meaning [Dzyaloshinsky, 2012]. We fully agree with the author of the quoted opinion, since we believe that within the framework of the media culture, the addressee, acting only as an object of informational influence with a passive news perception, does not function as a personality and can change «in any direction» determined by the conceptual framework of the media text.
Active interaction with digital content is especially characteristic to younger readers. As scientists have proved, according to a variety of personal interests, young people participate directly in finding the necessary information, and more often - not in traditional media, but through news applications in smartphones or in social media news feeds. It is peculiar for them to comment on news, share information with friends, use creative formats (Internet memes) [Cortesi, Gasser, 2015].
2. The news reader uses a developed system of preferences of the news source reacting not only to the fact, but also to the form of its presentation, when he decides whether it is acceptable or not. In the context of the negative media impact, which causes concern among educators, doctors, psychologists, specialists in the field of social psychology and psychology of mass communication in particular, the culture of media consumption manifests itself in the reader's ability to «defend himself». Perhaps, it is in caring about their information and psychological security that users turn to sources of quality information, preferring, as the latest research showed, «hard» news to mild one when reading media sites, spend more time reading news from professional sources that have a high degree of reliability in comparison with «soft» news, offered in social networks [Pearson, Knobloch-Westerwick, 2018].
3. The reader with a media perception culture, feels the need for objectivity and accuracy; so he is critical of any form of media message [Fedorov, Levitskaya, 2017], including the «super original» language cover of the news message. Reading «fake» news that claims to be sensational, he judges the event as independently as possible, relying on the formed personal system of judgments and assessments. This position is based on awareness of what is driving the news agencies, using the words from the headlines, the desire to «hype» (see, for example, the news announcement on the site udm-info, 29.03.2018). In addition, in the conditions of creating a «media ecosystem», the role of information literacy increases; in particular, as the researchers note, vigilance in perceiving news should be caused by an unknown source of information, the narrative nature of the news, emotional responses when assessing the message on various media platforms [Albright, 2017].
4. Realizing the inevitable subordination of the choice of «special» means of verbal communication (if any) leads the subject of perception to the opinion that the author chooses specifically the means that affect the reader. This is especially evident in the style of news headlines. It should be noted that, according to research on the news headlines effectiveness [Kuiken, Schuth, Spitters, Marx, 2017], in order to «lure» the reader and provoke the desire to «open» the article, use is made of questions, direct links, figures, dramatization and negative tone of the message.
The ability of the subject reading the news to «see» the means of producing the effect in the headline allows the reader to remain in the field of his own judgments and opinions. Therefore, we can assume that the reader with the culture of perceiving media news realizes the
pragmatic focus of both the information flow and the particular message. Hence - the ability to distinguish between rational and logical and emotional ways of submitting information.
Thus, the culture of media perception of the news is determined, on the one hand, by the quality of the news presentation in the source of information, and, on the other hand, by following the behavioral model of the culture-forming character.
Results
I. The content analysis of the event series of electronic information transmission means for Marchof 2018 showed that the main fund of verbal means, presenting news information in the media, is made of neutral and official-business nominations, stating clearly the fact and the essence of what is happening (... declaredabout, ... announced, ... refused to participate in, ... showed for the first time, ... reported, ... told about, ... called, ... dates are set...).
However, in order to stimulate readers' interest and increase the awareness of the need to read news, the headline announcement is often formed with special verbal methods designed for emotional response. In this case at the stage of «entry» into the news media space a specific pragmatic task is set - to keep the reader'sattention, to fix it on one or another event. It isdetermined that various methods are used for this purpose, in particular, means of affectation: ... will be struck dumb, ... words horrified ..., Scientists have explained why it is dangerous ...; forms of direct addressing to convey specific information, «draw the curtain»: How ... Why ... Whom will the pension be raised... What is threatening ...; means, accentuating the information novelty: ... learned that ... Became known (for example, some counterfeit), While you were sleeping...; intriguing headlines: What's next? .. What is concealed ...Failure to tell all is actively involved: so, the news announcement about Schwarzenegger's surgery (March 31, 2013) The first words of Schwarzenegger after the surgery was the phrase «I...» (Interfax),will, of course, form the desire to read the phrase to the end, to find out what the actor said. Compared with the announcement «I am back»: Schwarzenegger woke up after the heart surgery (RIA Novosti), the first option seems more effective.
These techniques can be attributed to direct ways to attracting online news reader'sattention telling the reader what exactly new he can learn. A new basis for a completely different type of interpretation is created by news, based on indirect methods of transferring information. First of all, they include facts that convey meaning in the style of playing. In most cases they «program» a situation in which the reader is forced to see the error that he made in the original guess about the news content. The effect of psychological surprise caused in this case is explained by the discrepancy between the reader's and the author's versions of the announcement meaning. This reader state is described as follows: when the reader begins to understand that his guess is incorrect (the journalist associates the word with another meaning), i.e. when the unpredictable (for the reader) «meaning reaches the addressee, there is a joy of discovery:«that's it!» [Lyapun, 2007, p. 75]. Such announcements include creative titles, built on the pun, which are rarely found in the information media content under investigation.
However, it should be recognized that the game means of the news presentation differ in the degree of transparency, since the reader, as a participant of the «game», must necessarily «recognize» the conventionality of speech means, otherwise the idea may remain «folded» in the consumer's consciousness, i.e.incompletely or inadequately understood. For example, such a generalized announcement of the news release, as Gas Masks in Volokolamsk or Trump's victory in the Cold War and other results of the day (MSN News, March 31, 1818) does not guarantee the accuracy of understanding of the listed «outcomes», since the author and the addressee do not have the same level of awareness .
Analyzingthe news content of the «top» sites of electronic media and information portals not uncommon cases of extreme complication in the process of perceiving news were found due to the impossibility of forming a semantic connection between the title and the main message.
Sometimes it can be recognized that a title perceived initially asmeaningless is clarified after reading the full text of the news. For example, the headlinelbrahimovic greeted Los Angeles in himself seems absurd, but when reading the main text the reader will learn that the player moved from Manchester United to the Los Angeles Galaxy and announced this in his Instagram account quite originally: «Los Angeles, welcome into Zlatan» (lenta.ru/news, 24.03.2018).
Another case was revealed when the announcement wording does not allow to consider them adequate because of giving «cut-off» newsin the headline. For example, motorists were «stunned» with the news of changes in the Rules of the Road. The headlines read: «Drivers in Russia will have to wear high-visibility coats» (RIA Novosti, March 17, 2018), «Drivers in Russia will have to put onhigh-visibility vests» (YandexNews). However, when reading the full text of the news, it was found out that it was only a matter of wearing a high-visibility coat or vest if the driver has to get out of the car in the event of an emergency stop outside the populated areas.
A break in the semantic connection can also take place in the case when the author's intention is realized as a shock strategy that entails sense distortion of the news text. So, the headline shocking any lover of humorous programs, «Chinese television forbids joking and laughing» (Lenta.ru, March 24, 2013) does not unfold the semantic interpretation adequately to the main message conception. The reader learns that, the document of a competent department bans videos that «distort, mock or defame classical literary and artistic works».
If paradox statements «work» on the communicative effect of surprise, cause interest in the message and set a special course of the reader's interpretation, then the «entrance» for the reader can be closed because of the verbal means obscure to him. The announcement perception can often be difficult if the heading uses English-language economic terminology (Alfa-Bank became the first Russian participant in the R3 blocking consortium (Interfax, March 31, 2013), exotic vocabulary (China prohibits to write in Arabic on halal products(Lenta.ru), translated nomination. For example, the title «Let the monster out»: IKON BC introduces a peanut paste brand to the market (Mediasostav, March 22, 2018) uses the slogan of the producer (the product packages depict stylized animals that are difficult to «recognize in the picture»). Unfortunately, cases of using words with a highly specialized, as well as unknown to a mass audience meaning observed in the content of modern digital media create the danger of such «media innovation» as a message discrediting for the reader.
The degree of decoding mechanisms complexity of the consciousness of the news message addressee is also influenced by the tendency to intellectualize speech, which requires a certain level of reader's cultural development, the «language memory». Knowledge of «cultural codes» and signs of historical-literary and other layers of knowledge determines the result of a full understanding of the headline. The possibility of reinterpretation, i.e., of building intertextual links, depends on the so-called background knowledge. For example, the perception of the news announcement Kalashny row. Why does the Russian army have different types of assault rifles (RIA Novosti, March 30, 2013) may remain at the surface level (a number of Kalashnikov assault rifles) if the interpretation does not involve knowledge of the Kalashny row as a merchants' rows on the markets of Russian cities where the kalatches(soft rolls) were sold.
So, the news content reflects the multifaceted tendencies of expressing the meaning «in a contracted form», which can act as factors complicating the reader's perception of the meaning.
II. An experimental study conducted to investigate the peculiarities of perceiving a news media text representing information on electronic media has made it possible to define reader reactions and preferences in two age groups.
1. The first task studied the perception of headlinesdiverse in form and the dependence of the choice on the way of formulating the message. The statistical analysis of the choice results showed that the students' group had a larger range of values; the adult group showed lower frequency of choosing headlines of all types in terms of numerical rating (from 40.9 to 18.1%).
1) neutral, corresponding to the requirements of the genre of situational news text (let's call them business ones): The lack of OSAGO will be fixed on cameras (40.3% of adults and 41.6% of students); The central bank will tighten requirements to microfinance organizations; One profession disappearedin Russia(83.3% of students).
2) headings designed for sensation(sensational): Chinese TV prohibited joking and laughing (31.6% of students and only 18.1% of adults).
3) game headlines based on the contrast of randomly coincident forms (Mommies make money on harassment: how shamelessnessbecameour national idea - 41.6% of students and 32% of adults), on the effect of surprise (Smart alec. Russia produces best intellectual shows. Even when steal ideas from the West - 25% of students and 18.1% of adults), on evaluative neologization of rough-jargon (TrumpedAmerica - 41.6% of students and 22.7% of adults).
4) headlines requiring reader's cultural background knowledge: The US calmly reacted to Putin's presentation of the latest weapons, suspecting a «Potemkin village» -16.6% of students and 27.2% of adults);
5) headings containing foreign vocabulary, which may be obscure to a wide range of readers: Bulgaria - a «winner or a «looser in the saga of the «South Stream»? (studentsdid not note, 32% of adults); China forbade writing in Arabic on halal products (8.3% of students and 32% of adults);
6) metaphorical headings, in which, means of indirect nomination maska deep sense of evaluation character: Bullfinches of discord. Zakharova told about new Ukrainianaccusations against the Russian Federation (16.6% of students and 27.2% of adults); The «cocaine case» got out American ears (8.3% of students and 27.2% of adults).
The results indicate that students are more likely to respond positively to a sensational headline, as well as game forms of presenting news than adults. For the «younger group» of respondents, metaphorical headline nominations that require cultural and historical associations, as well as clarifying the meaning of obscure foreign words, are less attractive.
2. The second task revealed the character of perceiving the «provocative» form of giving the news. Respondents were offered two headlines to evaluate. Thefirst is characterized by an aggressive form, it uses a pun of ambiguity close to indecency: Anglo-Saxons grabbed Russia's balls. Why Moscow canceled the ban on the import of poultry products from the US and Canada. Assessing this fact the respondents were unanimous: 82% of respondents in both groups considered the joke to be incorrect. The second fact was not accompanied by an explanation in the subtitle, like in the first one: Putin 'smillions found: there are more of them than everyone thought. The meaning of the word «millions» was explained in the text of the questionnaire in brackets(the President received 56,411 million votes of Russian citizens). Half of the respondents in both groups (45.4% and 50%, respectively, in the youth and «senior» groups) considered the fact with the effect of deliberately distorted reportingan unsuccessful joke. Thus, it can be said that a technique of misrepresentation is recognized by the readers as a trick and causes negative impression.
3. In order to investigate the perception of media texts with a clear violation of the semantic connection between the title and the text, with the factual deviance of the expectation formed by the announcement, the third block of tasks was included in the program for studying media perception. When presenting the first message, it was necessary to fill in the «Your reaction» box in the questionnaires, that is, , to convey in a free form the thoughts that arose when you were acquainted with the full version of the news. The news announcement «Let them pay themselves: the Council of Federation proposed to cancel medical insurance» (Pravda.ru, March 22, 188) could cause a panic among readers: the prospect of paying for medical care «out-of-pocket» could scare or outrage them. However, the text of the main message, which the respondents had to address, does not contain information on the plans of the Council to oblige citizens to pay «themselves». It is reported that V. Matvienko criticized the existing insurance
system of medical services for the population, noted that citizens' funds are spent improperly, so it must be «abolished», and suggested «to transfer money for patient treatment directly from the budget, bypassing insurance funds». Obviously, the headliner and the main message contradict each other, and the contradiction is revealed on the basis of mismatching meanings of the verbs «cancel» (the keyword of the headline) and «replace» (the key meaning of the proposal introduced for discussion). 64% of the student group respondents found the alogism, which is evident, for example, in the following answer: «At first you can think that citizens are accused and threatened to cancel insurance and make medicine paid. But the article itself is not about that». In the «adult» group of respondents, almost the same number of reactions of surprise and bewilderment was recorded. The situation when the reader is compelled to be in the position of the «investigator of the truth» and feels «deceived» when finds it can not be considered natural, even if we take into account the pragmatic motives of the author-publisher.
To identify the characteristics of reader reactions when perceiving the meaning of two other facts, the respondents were offered three possible answers, which reflect different degrees of perception depth: 1. Surprisingly, but even more interested. 2. Expected another course, it disappointed. 3. Illogical. 75% and 32% of the respondents of the youth and adult groups noted the unjustified promise to surprise with the list of wealthy Russian businessmen in the Forbes version in the announcement «The names of the richest Russians have become known: you will be surprised» (Moscow24.ru, 6.03.18), choosing the second variant of the answer.
Perceiving the third media text after reading the title «The murderer of Dyatlov's group found» (Dni.ru, 26.02.18), the respondents could feel a sense of disappointment: the statement of the fact as accomplished is not argued in the full version of the news. The reader will find out only an assumption: it is reported that there is a corpse of the tenth member of the group which got killed in 1959 in the photo found by the blogger Degterev, a hypothesis is suggested about the error of the investigation. However, here there is a higher indicator of choosing the first variant of the answer than in the previous case. Mysterious history interested 50% of students and 40.9% of adults; the rest preferred answers reflecting either frustration or illogical continuation, and the group of adult respondents noted the illogical connection between the headline and the text more often.
Thus, it was found that the indicators of media usersability to correlate the meaning of the headline with the context of the main message are not high.
4. To determine the recipients' attitude to the quality of the language and the style of the news text presented in the media sphere, they were offered five judgments to choose from those with which they agree. The results of this survey are shown in the diagram. The analysis of the answers showed that the overwhelming majority of the senior group respondents (almost 82%) believe that «The news should use only standard language, it must be correct, clear and obvious within the context». It should be noted that only 36.4% of the student group agree with this opinion. The majority of the youth group participants of the survey (58.3%) found the following statement to be fair: «The Internet language is «a vast but parallel to the literary language world», although the same number of respondents agreed with the opinion that «Colloquialisms and jargonisms in mass media destroy the national language». Among the adult respondents, only 18.2% considered the Internet language to have a «special status». The fact that «Ideal «sparkling clean» texts of news portals look «lean, down to earth» and are not interesting to readers» was supported by 54.5% of students; in the group of adults there are twice fewer those who think so (27,2%). A slight difference was observed in evaluatingthe following opinion: «Above all in the news is sensation, the headline is a business product increasing sales». 45.4% of the interviewed students and 31.8% of adults agreed with this. Thus, the idea of the optimal speech form for news presentation varies in the age groups, although the statistical indicators of differences, with the exception of the opinion on the standard form, are not very high.
Diagram. Assessment of opinions of two age groups on the quality of the news language in mass media
So, the analysis of both news and experimental material showed that the logical and semantic violations of the connection between the announcement and the full text are accepted by consumers negatively; some respondents perceive this defect indifferently, «accepting» the rules of the game. Unfortunately, this drawback (technique) can lead to destructive consequences for the subject of the perception, and in particular, to a loss of confidence in the source of information. Most often, such cases can be qualified at least as violation of media etiquette and, in particular, such a requirement as ensuring predictability and reader's psychological comfort.
Conclusions
A communicative and pragmatic approach to media communication involves considering both textual (internal) and reader features of the transferring and receiving news information. The analysis of the results of applying this approach allows us to talk about the specific culture-forming factors of perceiving and interpreting news media texts by the consumer. On the one hand, these are textual factors that allow the addressee to build logical and semantic links between the announcement and the full text and do not cause the problem of resolving the conflict of their meanings. Factors that impede media perception in the process of consuming situational news information include the properties of the news text, which do not create conditions to find meaningful supports for understanding the meaning of the media message. On the other hand - at the level of receiving information by the addressee - reinterpretation becomes impossible due to negative reader effects, which lead to communication failures. Such effects include a sense of blurriness, uncertainty of meaning; a sense of contradiction in the meaning of the announcement and the main message, a feeling of incomplete information in the announcement of the event; a feeling of deliberately distorted information (including when the pragmatic goal of intriguing the reader is extremely clear). It is suggested to consider such results of perception as negative media effects, which lead to destructive consequences for the subject of perception (in particular, to disorientation). All these effects are related to the interpretative difficulties experienced by the reader.
The culture of reading in media communications, and ultimately media consumption of news information, determines the reader ability to determine the quality of the situational news text as an information product. Such culture is formed on the basis of possessing the criteria for choosing a reliable source, understanding the intentionality (purpose, target orientation) of a news report, applying the system of personal opinions and judgments in the process of information processing - when, for example, «shocking» news is perceived through the prism of critical thinking, raising reasonable doubts in the truth of the news message.
Thus, the study of the perception of online news reports showed that today there is a problem of reading media news, the solution of which depends on improving the quality of information messages texts, as well as on the practical tasks of improving media literacy of consumers.
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