Referential framing used by television audiences connects media with which of…

Concept

Referential framing is a way of interpreting media content through its relationship to the world it represents. It asks how mediated signs, scenes, and narratives point beyond the text to actual people, events, or conditions.

Application

When television viewers use a referential frame, they relate what appears on screen to the world outside the programme. The media representation is therefore connected with reality.

Contrast

• Falsity describes a lack of correspondence with facts; it is not the general referential relationship between a representation and its referent.

• Negativity describes an unfavourable tone or evaluation, rather than the represented world to which media content refers.

• Passivity describes limited audience participation or response; it does not name the external referent of media content.

Result

Thus, referential framing connects media with reality.