A Consumer Theory of Demand for the Media: INTRODUCTION

The central focus of this paper is the role of knowledge gained from the media in the utility-maximizing process of the consumer. The behavior examined is the time pattern of inputs devoted to the process of acquiring this knowledge. Consumers operate in a setting where there is partial knowledge about the characteristics and uses of goods and incomplete information about the state of the world and nature. As a result, consumers seek information, at a cost, through the media--newspapers, magazines, books, radio, and television.