media rep of gender,sexuality,disability ethnicity,class,age Flashcards
how do media represent social class neo marxism
celebrate hierarchy n wealth
those who benefit - monarchy, upper class n rich get positive press as celebrities = deservin position
-hardly critical of them or draw serious attention to inequalities in wealth
-upper class think films n tv show their class as eccentric or nostalgic way
how do they represent monarchy
nairn
- monarchy converted much of modern mass media , rare criticism
- reinvented as royal family stood for national values
- national obsession with royal family= positive light
- queen as ultimate symbol of nation
- royal events as national events to be celebrated
how is wealth represented
wealth
focus on postively on lifestyles of wealth
- focus too much on consumer items that only rich can afford
- international news n trade reports impact on business world n investors - not on ordinary working people
- pluralist view rep of rich are justified:
1. media view uk as meritocracy n show wealthy as representative of idea - talented people rewarded
2. stories motivate people to work hard to be rewarded = benefits economy
3. focus on finance,stocks n shares reflect importance of sectors for economy
how is middle class represented?
—MC overrepresented on tv, dramas = predominant
concerned about manners, decency, respectability
—brit newspapers n magazines aimed at MC n consumption = tastes n interests in material goods who can afford it
—content of news suggest journalist believe MC anxious of decline of moral standards = threatened by alien influences
—most creative personnel are MC = dominant positions of authority, experts
how is workin class represented
Jones
curran n seaton
heider
- –few comedy,dama,films focusing on lives of WC
- —Jones = WC media coverage show MC assault on WC values, institutions n communities
- –MC journalists ‘liberal bigotry’ - assume all WC feckless, promiscious, foul racist who hate ethnic minority, multiculturalism, refuees
- –Curran n seaton = news aimed at WC assume they uninterested in serious analysis of political/social or of uk
- –political debate reduced to simple conflict
- –daily star assume they want to read of gossip, lifestyle, sport
- –show their crimes n industrial unrest = narrow
—marxists see media try to distract wc audience from inequalities of capitalism
-Heider = class visibility or invisibility; journalists either choose to cover or not to cover stories depending if a group will be interested . e.g poor victim of crime =story not given same attention if it be someone rich/influence
how is working class presented
—Ghettoisation - WC in media, restricted to narrow rangeof appearances or situations.
association with crime & industrial unrest. Middle-class
representations tend to be broader,
involving a wider range of representations
across professional employment, taking in
work, sport and cultural assoc
how is poverty n underclass represented
cohen
hayward n yar
lawler
- –coverage of media is marginal, causes n consequences of poverty rarely explored
- – Cohen; journalists, artist, bad at realistically reportin/ dramatizing poor problems
- –some intentionaly show poor as parasitic scrounger = reinforce poor as own depravity n weakness
- –Hayward n yar = label ‘chav’ used by news n web as familiar n abuse term for young poor people
- –Lawler = use discriminatory offensive lan to socially stigmatise what they show as peasant, underclass with stereotypical looks e.g tracksuit, idleness, anti social behaviour, criminality, drug
how is age represented
- –rep diff groups of people based on age n generalise n categorise people w stereotypes
- –encourage audiences to assume rep can be applied to all in age groups
–functionalist = rep part of socialisation equip young with values n norms = instilled shared culture,
engage in boundary mainenance = social control part of socialisation - social rules of behaviour
how certain behaviour is disapproved by others n punished
—media help control behaviour of young socially = safeguarding conformity n social stability
how is childhood represented
heintz- knowles
evans & chandler
content analysis of media products - 6 stereotypes
- cute ( in tv commercial for baby products)
- little devils (drama n comedy)
- brilliant (help save adult)
- brave little angels (suffer disease/disability)
- accessories (stories of celebrities’ children humanise them)
- modern (how children know more at their age than previous gens)
—Heintz-knowles = usa tv- children portrayed as motivated by peer relationships, sports n romance
& least y community/school/religious
& rarely shown w societal issues like racism/ abuse
—-positive rep n in pro-social actions like helping others
—-other rep children in anti social behaviour, bulling
- Evans & Chandler = child socialised to be active consumers for toys n games
- —pester power = child to pressurise parents into buying products to increase child status in eyes of peers
representation of youth
wayne
— media aimed to socially construct youth with lifestyle n identity e.g music, magazine, to shape tastes & social medias project identities globally
— seen as social problem, immoral n anti-authority = part of moral panic
concern of behaviour n deviant subcultures
- –Wayne = threat to society, news rarely feature youth’s view/opinion
- – only 1 dimensional picture n encourages fear/condemnation than understanding
- –focus on youth being suspect or victims of crime
- –distract real problems e.g homeless, unemployment, mental health
representation of old age
newman
—upper class n mc elderly people portrayed as occupying high status roles like judge, leadersm expert
- –gender; female tv star given inferior roles as they reach 40 ears while male actors continue play leading role
- —elderly women shown as passive, isolated, poor
- —old men seem to show authority to be on news broadcasting - often with young females but no old women newsreaders - exiled to radio
representation of ageing n elderly
- –devalued in media = more focus on youth n beauty
- –Age charity; media are ageist = negative stereotypes:
1. grumpy - complain modern world n young people
2. mentally challenged - forgetful n suffering, decline of mental functions
3. burden - economic burden on society n physical/social burden on younger people - -media realise they have grey pound = economic power to buy consumer goods
- –show them active, alert, successful, content= positive stereotype unrealistic = not reflect wide range of experiences people have (poverty,loss status, grief)
what does buckingham say about children n media
- –children aware of functions of advertising n sceptical about it (persuade to buy, make it look good)
- –children pestered parents - done with realization they would not get them - not seriously ask for things they wouldn’t get
- –at xmas they used adverts to help them know what they wanted for a list
- –saw other people influenced by adverts = children younger than them
- –children critical cynical about free gifts n quality of adverts = apply own interpretation
- –could read intentions of advertisers
- –before buy toy = saw on tv n tested those their friends bought
- –comparing prices of similar goods in diff shops
what is age - media effects
hebdige
—understand youth subcultures - take into account how media structure way society sees by youth
— Neo marxism = media role to absorb youth subcultures into mainstream society
—not allow youth to resist capitalist society- system try to neutralize them by incorporating them
—commodity form of incorporation = (dress/music) youth cultural signs converted into mass produced objects n sold on high street
= lose threatening n oppositional meanings
—leisuretime only style
how does media represent ethnic minority groups
dijk
- –journalists demonised black young people as threat to law abiding white society
- -stereotype that ethnic minority threat = moral panics
1. immigrants 0 lots of threat, impact housing/jobs
2. refugees n asylum seekers - abuse welfare state, use negative language - harass them
3. muslims - enemy, demonised n distorted by media as threat to security of uk