PowerPoint Presentation

Media Key Concepts

1

M - Media LanguageI - InstitutionsG - GenreR - RepresentationA - AudienceI - IdeologiesN - Narrative

2

Audience

3

Audience - The Hypodermic Needle TheoryThis theory was the first attempt to explain how mass audiences may react to the mass media. It is a crude model and suggests that audiences can only passively receive the information provided by the mass media, without actively processing the information given to them. This theory was developed when the mass media was still a fairly new concept, radio and the cinema had only been around for about 2 decades. Governments used this as a way to communicate a message, commonly used for propaganda.

4

Audience - The Hypodermic Needle Theory

5

Audience - Two Step FlowLazarsfeld suggested that information does not flow directly from the text into the minds of the audience therefore unmediated - he says that there are "opinion leaders" who communicate the message to the less active members of the audience, whom they have influence over. The audience are essentially receiving information which has been mediated by the opinion leaders, with their opinions, morals and values. Therefore, this suggests that the mass media has less control over the readings of media texts due to social factors which also influence the way the audience reads a text.

6

Audience - Two Step Flow

7

Audience - Uses & Gratifications TheoryDuring the 1960s, as the first generation to grow up with the television became adults, media theorists began to believe that audiences were able to make choices about what they did when it came to consuming texts - far from the passive mass that was first thought. Audiences were made up of individuals who actively consumed texts for different reasons and in different ways. Blumer and Katz expanded the theory and said audiences consume texts for 4 different reasons:

8

Audience - Uses & Gratifications TheoryDIVERSION - Escape from everyday problems and everyday routine. PERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS - Using the media for emotional and other types of interaction e.g. substituting soap operas for family life. PERSONAL IDENTITY - Finding yourself reflected in texts, learning behaviour and values from texts. SURVEILLANCE - Information which could be useful for living e.g. weather reports and financial news.

9

Audience - Reception TheoryExtending the concept of an active audience, this looked at the way individuals received and interpreted a text, and how their circumstances (gender, class, age, ethnicity) affected their interpretation. This work is based on Stuart Hall's Encoding/Decoding Model - which is the relationship between the text and the audience. The text is encoded by the producer, and is then decoded by the reader. This can cause a preferred reading, oppositional reading and negotiated reading.

10

Genre

11

What is genre?Genre is a way of categorizing a text through the style and form it is created in. A text is classified in a genre through the identification of key elements which occur in that text, and others of the same genre. Audiences identify these key elements and therefore it sets an expectation for the text, and others similar. Identifications can be grouped by iconography, structure and themes. Genre is important for both the audience and the producers.

12

What do audiences have to do with genre?They select texts based on genre, often due to the arrangement in shops. Also, certain genres are considered appropriate for certain ages/genders and choices are made accordingly. They have systems of expectations about the content or the style of the text, according to the genre. This enables them to take particular pleasures in the text. Identify with repeated elements in generic texts and may shape their own identity in response.

13

What do producers have to do with genre?They market texts according to genre because a niche audience has already been identified as taking pleasure in the form of the text. Standardise production practices according to genre conventions, thus cutting costs. Subscribe to established conventions, therefore reinforcing genre conventions, but also allowing creativity within a given format.

14

Ideology

15

What is Ideology?Ideology is the ideas behind the media text. It sometimes is the agenda put behind the text by the producers. It is important to be able to identify the different ideological discourses that may be present, even if not completely apparent. In sociological terms, ideology is a body of ideas or set beliefs that underpins a process or institution and leads to social relations. These sets of beliefs are those held by groups within society, and the prevalent ones are those help by the dominant class (ruling group within society).

16

Dominant Ideologies (Hegemony)In any society, there are accepted and agreed beliefs which are set out by the ruling class (the class with the resources and material - the richest). A historical example of this is Christianity (how many of the legal systems take into consideration Christian morals and values as their basis).Hegemony is not a forced political movement, however hegemonic groups have the most control and power within the society therefore they are able to keep minority groups and beliefs quiet. What does the media do in developing and maintaining a hegemony? Arbiting taste, regulating output, representations, ownership and authorship.

17

Ideological DiscourseIdeological discourse are the issues and attitudes which are debated in the media, therefore form part of the everyday ideological discourse in our society. The views taken on these subjects form the basis of our social rules and practice:EducationEmploymentGenderSexuality RacismFeminismNationalismYouth/AgeLeft/Right Wing PoliticsCrime and Punishment

18

Preferred Readings (Ideology)Producers of a media text design it with a certain meaning in mind. They hope audiences will decode their text in a certain way - particularly if the text is an advertisement.Preferred readings are those which tie in with hegemonic beliefs.

19

Oppositional Reading (Ideology)Audiences can choose to read a media text whatever way they want. Often, if a text is approached by an audience that it was not originally targeted at - they will read it in an entirely different way than the preferred reading encoded by the producers.The audience may have a very different cultural or social experience from the producer, and therefore may connect signifiers to something completely different than what the audience.

20

Alternatives to the HegemonySome sections of the media present us with texts that offer alternative readings of society - sometimes known as fringe media. Media may be defined as alternative through:Different material (not used in mainstream productions)Unusual narrative formUsing mainstream forms to challenge mainstream ideologiesEncoding alternative or oppositional messages within the ideologyCirculation through different distribution systems and specialist outletsFinely targeted, small audiencesLack of popular appealLack of commercial successRepresentations which challenge stereotypes

21

Institutions

22

What are Institutions?Institutions are "Those enduring regulatory and organising structures of any society, which constrain and control individuals and individuality... the term more precisely refers to the underlying principles and values according to which many social and cultural practices are organised and co-ordinated."

23

What are Institutions?

24

What are Institutions?As global patterns of ownership change, so does the concept of institution. Media ownership is now concentrated in the hands of few companies worldwide.Understanding institutions is about understanding:who producers the textwhat their codes and values consist oftheir relationship to us, as the audience

25

Narrative

26

What is the Narrative?In media terms, the narrative is the coherence/organisation given to a series of facts. In everything, there is a start, middle and end. We understand and construct meaning using our experience of reality and of previous texts.

27

The difference between a Story & Narrative"A story is the irreducible substance of a story, while narrative is the way a story is related"

28

Narrative ConventionsThere are a series of codes and conventions which need to be considered when looking at a narrative to find the meaning. When we look at the narrative, we examine:GenreCharacterFormTime

29

Barthes' CodeEnigma Codes - they pose the question to the audience which will be answered later on in the media text. For example, Who is she? What will she do? Why is this significant? They're questions which enable the audience to become intrigued with the film and want to find out the answers to the questions posed. Enigma codes entice the audience to watch the rest of the film as they're curious about what will happen, and they also help to move on the narrative. Action Codes - they are significant events which move the narrative on in a particular direction. For example, a phone ringing or a knock on the door. Both are used to change the scene but they also keep the narrative alive and teach the audience new things. Action codes give the audience needed information.

30

Narrative StructuresTodorovSuggests that a narrative is as simple as an equilibrium, disequilibrium and then a new equilibrium. Levi-StraussThe constant creation of conflict/opposition propels the narrative. Narrative can only end on a resolution of conflict. Opposition can be visual (ilght/dark, movement/stillness) or conceptual (love/hate, control/panic).

31

Narrative Structures (Continued)Vladimir Popp - he suggested that there are 31 different characters which come with their own actions to advance the narrative. (31 functions of character types).

32

Representation

33

What are Representations?By definition, all media texts are representations of reality. This means that they are intentionally composed, lit, framed, cropped etc. by their producers. Essentially, they are entirely artificial versions of the reality we perceive around us. It is important to understand that every media form is a representation of someone's concept of existence, codified into a series of signs and symbols which can be read by the audience. However, it is also important to note that without the media, our perception of reality would be very limited. As an audience, we need these artificial media texts to mediate the view of the world - we need the media to make sense of reality. Representation is a fluid, two way process - producers position a text somewhere in relation to reality and audiences assess a text on its relationship to reality.

34

Validity of Representations?Media representations, and whether we accept them or not are political issues, as the influence of the media has a major impact on the way we view the world. By viewing media representations, our prejudices can be reinforced or shattered. Generally, audiences accept that media texts are fictional from one extent to the other - we have come a long way from the mass manipulation model shown in the 1920s and 30s. However, we base our perception of reality on what we see in the media.

35

The Study of RepresentationThe study of representation is about decoding the different layers of truth/fiction. In order to fully study the representation, you need to consider:who produced it?what/who is being represented?how is it represented?why was this the particular representation?what frame of reference does the audience use when understanding the representation?

36