Media Flashcards
Traditional
Nationality- Vir, Hall & Foye
BBC had southern English bias and more interested in pleasing English viewers
Scottish feel underrepresented and when they are included they are portrayed negatively
Scottish:
Abusive drunk
Welsh reality TV exploitatuve in their portrayal
Eg. Making money off ‘the Valleys’
Traditional
Nationality- Mulhern
Irish stereotypes
- Homesick drinking Guinness while listening to ballads in London
- Too successful to be homesick Skyping family at home
Traditional
Nationality- Graham
Tokenism forcing other nationals into programmes & negative stereotyping when they are included
Eg. Gavin & Stacey Welsh as ‘thick’
Traditional - Van Dijk
5 stereotypes black people represented as:
Criminal- description ‘black’ used in a way white isn’t, leads to folk devils
Abnormal- cultural practices portrayed as abnormal and blanket terms used for these ‘Asian culture’
A threat- tabloids represent immigrants and asylum seekers to be taking jobs
Unimportant- less developed countries just seen as inferior, ignored
Dependant- white savours eg. Comic relief
Traditional- Husband and Hartmann
Represented as “foreigners” or “inferior” seen as ‘the other’
emphasises racial conflict and negative stereotypes
Traditional- Children now- fair play survey
Stereotyping within video games:
- 86% heroes are white
- 86% black female characters victims of violence
- 8/10 black characters were competitors in sports games
Changing- Malik
- TV shows increasingly more inclusive
- Channel 4 research found majority of white British people found broadcasters were reflecting multicultural Britain to a satisfactory level
Eg. Sex Ed inclusive
Changing - Barker
- range of black and Asian characters with meaningful story lines which fairly depicts demographic of London
Example: Masood familt eastenders
Traditional- Hall
Black people represented as ‘natives’ ‘entertainers’ and ‘slaves’
- shifted from overt to inferential
Unconscious act and refers to presumptions made about a race which hold racist assumptions
- goes by without awareness or questioning of them
- Depicted “through the white eye”
Eg. Black/Asian culture depicted for entertainment creates racist attitudes
Traditional- Moghissi
Generalisations made on Muslims ignored huge range of differences in beliefs and culture since moral panic arising 9/11
Since then, media coverage on Muslims was overwhelmingly negative and Islamaphobic
Eg. Religion/ethnicity always mentioned in headlines for asian terrorists
Nayak- hybrid
White wannabes- youths adopt black culture
In this hybrid ethnic identity they listen to hip hop, gangster rap and use this language. They wear ‘bling’ and dress in a style associated with black males
Eg. White youth listening Tupac
Gill- hybrid
Blasian- Asian youth adopting black culture (Jay Sean)
Brasians- Asian youth who adopt white British laddish culture eg. Footballers, Zain Malik
Traditional- Billington M&F
Women presented in media texts as subordinate/housewives/damsel in distress
Men presented as dominant so leaders/strong
Eg. Cinderella & Prince Charming
Milestone and Meyer
Gender differences focused on perpetuate inequalities
Traditional- Gauntlett M&F
Male leads were resourceful and clever
Female leads were love interests and helpers- heavy importance on appearance
Eg. Female leads often romcom
Changing- Gauntlett M&F
Contemporary Hollywood portraying the more sensitive side of males and female characters have become tougher
Females increasingly tougher and lead roles
Eg. Charlie’s Angels
Traditional- Eaasthorpe (male)
Video games transmit view masculinity is based on biological strength, aggression and competition and therefore this is a natural goal for boys to achieve
Eg. COD
Traditional- Tunstall (female)
Women emphasise domestic, sexual, marital and ignore most women in UK work
Men seldom presented nude or defined by marital/family status
Eg. Megan Fox sexualised transformers
Traditional- Tuchman (female)
Women experience symbolic annihilation- mass media condemn certain groups that are not socially valued
Women’s achievements not reported
Eg. Underrepresented womens sport in media
Traditional- Ferguson (female)
Cult of femininity in womens mags- value from family, appearance
Traditional- Glascock M&F
Aggression in the media was presented physically for males and verbally for women (comedies)
Geordie shore
Changing- Mort/Nixon (male)
Importance of laundrette advert shows ‘new man’ to care about their appearance and show men can be sexualised/donestic
Marked change in male consumption- men spending more money on appearance
Eg. Laudrette advert
Changing- Whannel (male)
Showed David Beckham having contradictory presentation - ‘real man’ competitive football - emotional commitment to family - focus on looks Metrosexuality Eg. Wearing skirt
Changing- Westwood (female)
Transgressive female roles on TV (breaking hegemonic restraints) being sexually promiscuous, assertive
Eg. Katniss Everdeen
Changing- Gill (female)
Shift from male gaze in advertising to independent and sexually powerful women in advertising
Eg. ‘This girl can’ advertisement
Traditional- Nairn (upper)
Since WW2 royal family work with media to reinvent royal family as ‘like us but not like us’ relatable but untouchable
Day to day portrayal of them lets us identify with them
Marxists
Representations of the middle class lead lower into false class consciousness where deceived into believing working hard is cause of success in middle class and not uneven opportunity
Traditional- Saunders (middle)
Middle class targeted in advertisement as they focus their identity on conspicuous consumption Eg. Mums buying needlessly to impress
Traditional- Mertens and D’Haenens (middle)
Middle class use tech for expanding knowledge Working class use for entertainment Digital divide Eg. Middle class use netlfix less and internet more
Changing- Leech (middle)
Middle class family presented as ideal ‘cereal packet family’ in advertising
Traditional- Newman (working class)
Few TV accurate representations of working class Stereotyped and labelled in pitying, unflattering light News focus on stories which label them as a problem so youth linked to moral panic
Working class youth linked to moral panics
Traditional- Devereux (working class)
Woking class presented two ways:
- happy and deserving
- on welfare benefits
Eg. The Royle Family (happy)
Traditional- Baumberg et al (underclass)
Disproportionate focus on benefit fraud Estimate 0.7% are actually fraudulent Common language used: - dishonesty, faking - dependency - lazy, scrounger Presented as undeserving
Traditional- Golding and Middleton (underclass)
Underclass welfare issues not discussed unless related to crime, fraud or sex Led to unjust cuts and demonisation
Traditional- Hall (underclass)
Benefit street encode particular values which are passively accepted
Instead can decode the representations to their own experiences and political idealogiies
Changing- Nairn (upper)
Upper class representation become less positive
Lots of criticism and scandal
Eg. Prince Andrew abuse and royal racism
Changing- Reiner (upper)
Wealthy people used to show examples of meritocracy and hard work
Audiences encouraged to identify with consumption and materialism in the lifestyle of the wealthy
Changing- Giddens (upper)
3 types of upper class
- traditional (royal fam) ascribed
- jet set pop aritocracy (achieved) eg. Mabel
- entrepreneurial super rich (achieved) eg. Mark Zuckerberg
Changing- Dodd & Dodd (working class)
Outdated view of traditional working class but introduced realism with serious issues like abuse, crime, abortion, suicide Eg. Eastenders
Changing- Price (underclass)
Poverty porn- exploit underclass to shock and entertain audiences Encourages hard working middle and upper classes to condemn them Does have narratives which paint them as victims of unfair society but often this empathetic view is missed by viewers
Traditional- Heintz-Knowles (youth/children)
- children motivated by peers and relationships, not school
- majority engage in anti social activity leading to positive outcome
- ethnic minority children under represented
- girls twice as likely to show affection boys more likely to show aggression to achieve their goals
Based on an adult perception of children which stereotypes
Traditional- Griffin (youth)
Youth represented in 3 ways
- deviant (norm breaking)
- dysfunctional (not able to deal with issues, flawed and incompetent)
- suffering a deficit (feelings of injustice)
Eg. Tracey Beaker, skins
Traditional- Wayne (youth)
When youth are the subject of news stories
- 28% young celebrities like footballers
- 82% victims or perpetrators of crime
- 90% of those being violent crimes
Ignored issues like housing, unemployment, parental abuse, politics which were about them but did not ask them for interviews
Traditional- Women in journalism (youth)
How teenage boys presented in newspapers
1. Negative language “Thugs” “monsters” “scum” “menace” “heartless” “sick”
2. More stories about teens and crime than any other topic
Eg. Headline heartless teenage boys steal old woman’s bag
Traditional- Kelly (youth)
Youth in media described 3 ways
- Dangerous
- In need of protection
- Immature
Traditional- Cohen (youth)
Mods and rockers made into labelled and made into folk devil, self fulfilling prophecy takes place - creating moral panic
Eg. Asian youth in gangs moral panic
Traditional- Age concern (elderly)
Identified 3 ways elderly presented as
- burden
- mentally challenged
- grumpy
Traditional- Landis (elderly)
One dimensional stereotypes of elderly - grumpy old man - feisty old woman - depressed or lonely - mentally deficient Eg. Madagascar feisty old woman
Traditional- Cuddy & Fiske (elderly)
US 1.5% TV characters elderly, used for comedy, portrayed as sexually and mentally incapable
Traditional- Milner et al (elderly)
Unbalanced presentation of elderly, ignored positives such as active ageing
Changing- Postman (youth/children)
Children now sexualised and idea of childhood is disappearing as children become more involved with the media
- share same music, sports, language etc as adults
media leads to children being exposed to adult content eg. Porn and violence
Eg. Children wear makeup
Changing- Osgerby (youth)
Used to focus on youth as trouble
Now presenting as ‘mirror the spirit of the times’
Fighting for changes of norms and cultural developments could be seen as deviant like in 70s and 80s but now appreciate
Changing- Lee et al (elderly)
Elderly underrepresented (15% advertisements) but 90% of these positive
Viewed as
- golden agers
- healthy
- active lifestyles
Older men associated with high status, older women more associated with family and poverty
Changing- Sontag (elderly)
Double standard of ageing
Men can age yet women have to stay looking young
Eg. Anti ageing cream adverts for women
Changing- Biggs (elderly)
Contrasting findings on elderly
- more representation in soap operas
- negative portrayals in sit coms
- represented as more active
Changing- Carrigan & Szmigin (elderly)
Older now targetted for advertisement due to “grey pound” concept
Led to increase in positive ageing portrayals
Marxist- Milliband
Media creates false class consciousness amongst working class
- media creates false picture of reality that presents capitalism positively
- inequalities represented as inevitable
- therefore P accepts injustice
- media “the new opium of the people” and has replaced religion
- media numbs senses and brings attention away from exploitation
Marxism- Bagdikian
1983, 50 corporations controlled majority of US news
By 2004 media ownership concentrated 7 corporations
Marxism- Curran
A lot more conservatist supporting papers- supporting their owners
Politicians will organise deals with media owners
Marxism- Doyle
Examination of ownership and control patterns are important as
- all points of view need to be heard if society is truly democratic
- abuses of power and influenced by elites needs to be monitored by a free media
Neo- Marxist: The Sutton Trust
broadcasters & journalists white, middle class, male and over 50% attended private schools Critical of this over representation (7% UK population attend private schools) Unconsciously promote ruling class norms due to their own backgrounds
Neo- Marxism: Gilroy
1970s black crime force of political resistance against racist capitalist state but they used this to create folk devils out of them
Neo-Marxism: Hall
Black people portrayed as natives, entertainers and slaves
Neo-Marxist: Glasgow Media Group
Working class, immigrants, etc
- exaggerating numbers of immigrants
- burden on welfare and job market (exaggerating perceived burden)
- presents need for immigration control for the economy
Pluralism- Whale
Audiences recognise stereotypes and manipulation and if they felt unfair representation they would stop consuming
Pluralism- Williams
Journalists crucial in democratic society as they provide political info
Media does have significant role in presenting groups
Free press vital as need unbiased information
News that used to support conservative now to criticise when needed
Pluralism- Curran & Gurevitch
Audiences able of conforming, accepting or rejecting these media messages
Liberal feminism- Mulvey
‘Male gaze’
Female characters sexualised and portrayed in a way that pleases the heterosexual male
Liberal feminism- Lauzen
16% directors, executive producers, producers, writers, cinematographers and editors are women
Radical feminism- Tunstall
Media emphasised sexualised, domestic, marital values of females and ignore majority of British women work
Men hardly ever presented nude or defined by family status
Radical feminism- Tuchman
Women have narrow roles in media which leads to their symbolic annihilation
Not socially valued in the media and represented as passive
Radical feminism- Wolf
Socialised to buy into the beauty myth
Ideas of what men deem attractive are pushed onto women and which distracts women from seeking to improve position in society (false consciousness)
Marxist feminist- Beechey
Women are reserve army of labour- available to work when capitalism needs additional workers
Media encourages women to stay at home and take care of husbands
Recent feminism
Whelehan
Men’s magazines promote laddish culture where women are objectified and changed in gender roles can be dismissed as an ironic joke
McRobbie
Western version of femininity is promoted as ideal so magazines focus on love, beauty, fashion
Postmodernism- McLuhan
Globalisation- the global village has been created as media allows media messages to track the world instantaneously
This leads to hybrid identities
Postmodernism- strinati
Media saturated society
Contemporary society use media daily and so this has a big impact in shaping identity
No longer set boundaries between different groups, diversity and sharing aspects of different cultures has led to ‘erosion of identity’
Postmodernism- Baudrillard
Society so englulfed in media that we can’t tell what’s reality anymore- led to state of hyper reality
Physical blended with virtual reality
So much information to be spread that media has to simplify it and society takes this diluted version
Postmodernism- Turkle
‘Alone together’ instead of connecting we are losing each other and not being present in the moment
Poses risk to relationships and identities
Postmodernism- Watson
We create ideal version of ourselves which does not match reality creating a distorted sense of self
No longer interested in building relationships- decline in sense of community
Packard direct effects
Hypodermic syringe model/magic bullet theory
Media is like a syringe which directly injects messages into audiences (most advertising but can be applied to other medias)
Audience passively accepts
Newson direct effects
Children’s exposure to violence through media has a desensitising effect- causing them to become more violent (see violence as a norm/way to solve issues)
Violent effects more subtle and gradual in media and cause viewers to identify with them
Led to increased censorship eg age certificates and watershed
Bandura- direct effects
Bobo doll experiment showed children imitating exact aggressive behaviour shown on TV
If not shown violence they did not
Anderson et al- direct effects
Direct effects between listening to violent song lyrics and feelings of aggression and hostility compared to humorous lyrics
Song ‘shoot em up’
Fesbach & Singer- positive direct effects
On screen violence can provide a safe outlet for agression- catharsis (emotional release)
Young- positive indirect effects
- Violence in media can trigger empathy and make us aware of consequences to victim’s families
- Desensitising effect
Katz & Lazarsfeld- indirect effects- two step flow
Everyone knows people they hold as ‘opinion leaders’ often people who are exposed to multiple forms of media and they modify or reject these media messages- from their own knowledge
People who respect these opinion leaders internalise and transmit forward these media messages
Therefore audience is active
Indirect effects- cultural effects/drip drip effect
How the media will effect based on prior experience/background
Gradually dripping ideologues through media which eventually change norms and values ‘drip drip effect’
Prolonged exposure to media messages can lead to compassion fatigue
Eg. News stories on wars or crisis such as Yemen
Gramsci- Indirect effects- Marxist cultural effects
Media is a powerful ideological influence which focuses on transmitting Capitalist values of those who own media
Media has important role of gaining consent to these ideas
Over long term these values are unconsciously shared by most people (hegemony)
“Happiness is about possession and money”
“Being a celebrity is really important”
Yh shows dumbed down to keep false CC, decline in informative programs which may cause audiences to think critically
Marxist drip drip effects
Media has been deliberately dumbed down to stop us educating ourselves so remain uncritical (false consciousness)
Zillman Active audience- uses and gratifications model
Mood may influence media choice
Eg. If stressed may indulge in relaxing media
- audience active agent
- audience uses to satisfy own needs
McQuail- active audience- uses and gratification
Audience uses to satisfy own needs 4 reasons for using media: 1. Information (news) 2. Personal identity (social media) 3. Social integration (social media) 4. Entertainment (Netflix)
Hall (Neo-marxist) active audience
Coding- media messages produced that support power structure of society
Decoding- audiences can understand and decode messages in ways that reflect social backgrounds/ideas
Dominant reading- interpret how producers of content want
Negotiated- interpret partially how producers intended
Oppositional- interpret opposite to intended meaning
Klapper- active audience- selective filter model
Media used to reinforce already held beliefs
Has to pass these to have any effect
1. Selective exposure- audience chooses to read/view specific media
2. Selective perception- choose to accept or reject media message
3. Selective retention- messages have to stick in their mind but research shows people remember things they agree with
Eg. Smoker may reject anti smoking message
Traditional- Malik
Tokenism from broadcasters and lack of Asian/Black people in power in media companies leads to no contemporaty reprrsentation
Eg. Lucas Sinclair stanger things tokenism
Traditional- Barker
Asian and Black characters still stereotyped key vharacters often white british
Eg. Shop keepers and doctors
Changing- Easthorpe (male)
Glossy mags aimed at men
Based on appearance, active fatherhood etc
Eg. GQ
Changing- Heintz knowles (children)
More realistic portrayal from children POV
Eg. Secret life of 4 y/o
Traditional- Jones (working class)
From salt of the earth to scum of the earth
‘Chavtainment’
Slothful and aggressive portrayal
Eg. Jeremy Kyle
Traditional- Billington (M&F)
Women subordinate (housewives, damsel in distress) Men dominant (strong,leaders) Eg. Cinderella
Deviancy Amplification Spiral (Wilkins)
- deviant act committed
- problem group identified & made folks devils & exaggerated
- public desire to keep informed results in higher audiences
- publicity glamourises deviancy and so more people do it
- public concern (moral panic) and demand for action
- public fear justified by law enforcement, politicians etc
- media profits from cycle and report deviancy again
Deviancy amplification (Cohen)
Mods and Rockers labelled negatively after small altercation at Claxton-On-Sea Led to big fight at Brighton More examples they refer to: - James Bulger Case - Welfare cheats and single mothers - refugees and asylum seekers
Deviancy amplification (Goode & Ben Yehuda)
5 features of moral panic
- Concern
- Hostility
- Consensus
- Disproportionality
- Volatility
Deviancy amplification (Furedi)
Moral panics arise when society fails to adapt to dramatic social change
The older generation hold concerns about society and believe the media is to blame for loss of traditional norms and values
