Physical activity promotion through the mass media: Inception, production, transmission and consumption Sara-Jane Finlay, B.A., B.A.A., M.A., Ph.D. a , Guy Faulkner, B.Ed., M.Sc., Ph.D. b, * a Institute of Communication and Culture, The University of Toronto at Mississauga, Toronto, ON, Canada L5L 1C6 b Faculty of Physical Education and Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada, M5S 2W6 Abstract Background. Evaluations of physical activity and health media campaigns have been limited and ignore the complex process of communication and the socially constructed nature of news messages. Methods. A systematic search strategy was conducted of the literature which was then assessed from two perspectives. First, studies since 1998 were reviewed for their success in impacting message recall and behavior change. Second, employing a critical media studies perspective the papers were assessed for the presence of a more sophisticated understanding of the media processes of inception, transmission and reception. Results. Overall, recent studies support mass media interventions in influencing short-term physical activity message recall and to a lesser extent associated changes in physical activity knowledge. However, the majority of the papers were found to follow a social marketing or media advocacy theory of media promotion with little in-depth consideration of the comprehensive media processes involved in creating media messages and meaning. Conclusions. Simplistic understandings of media transmission dominate in assessing physical activity and health media campaigns. Fuller understandings of the success of media campaigns, the recall of media messages or associated behaviour change can only truly be understood through the application of a more sophisticated form of media analysis. D 2004 The Institute For Cancer Prevention and Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Keywords: Exercise; Physical activity; Mass media; Intervention studies; Holistic media analysis Introduction Researchers concerned with health and physical activity may use the media for disseminating policy initiatives that focus on increasing physical activity. A recent review found insufficient evidence to assess the effectiveness of single- component mass media campaigns although community- wide campaigns that utilized media in addition to other components such as support groups, self-help packages, or community events were strongly recommended [1]. In an earlier review of physical activity interventions using mass media, it was concluded that recall of mass media messages was generally high but mass media campaigns had very little impact on physical activity behavior [2]. These evaluations have been conducted despite Wallack’s statement that ‘‘it is unlikely that mass media based campaigns will have any direct effects on individual behavior. Yet information gath- ered from evaluation studies [continue to] tell us little more than no behavior change was found; something we could have reasonably predicted without an evaluation’’ [3, p. 251]. The existence of such media-based interventions sug- gests that media dissemination may play an important role in public understandings of the relationship between health and physical activity. Most studies appear to use experi- mental designs, focus on media ‘campaigns’ (e.g., ‘Active for Life’ in the UK; ‘Active Australia’) and examine message recall, knowledge and behavior change. This may reflect organizations’ attempts to understand the impact of their own message on the general public. It is also symp- tomatic of a limited transmission concept whereby media messages are seen to have direct attitudinal and behavioral effects on the audience. Often known as the ‘hypodermic needle’ of media effects, this process ‘‘envisages media as effective much as an injection of a powerful drug is 0091-7435/$ - see front matter D 2004 The Institute For Cancer Prevention and Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.ypmed.2004.04.018 * Corresponding author. Faculty of Physical Education and Health, University of Toronto, 55 Harbord Street, Toronto, ON, Canada, M5S 2W6. E-mail address: guy.faulkner@utoronto.ca (G. Faulkner). www.elsevier.com/locate/ypmed Preventive Medicine 40 (2005) 121 – 130