media representations Flashcards
what 5 ways are ethnic minorities generally represented in the media?
criminals
abnormal
threats
unimportant
dependent
how are ethnic minorities represented as criminals
van dijk - black african caribbeans are likely to be seen as criminals in tabloid press
davies - did a content analysis of the daily mail and found that 64% of images of black people portrayed them as criminals
cushion et al - young black men are regularly associated with negative news values
how are ethnic minorities represented as abnormal?
poole - cultural practises of ethnic minoities are often questioned by British Media
ameili - discussion of hijabs/burkhas are often negative and seen as oppressive. journalists often neglect the choice women have to wear it
how are ethnic minorities represented as a threat?
van dijk - right wing tabloid newspapers often panic about the number of ethnic minorities in britain and the impact they have on housing and jobs
poole - claims that islam has always been demonised and distorted
moore - claims there are 4 prominent views of islam in the media: islam is dangerous, multiculturalism is allowing islam to spread extremist messages to the UK, UK is presented as tolerant and democratice whereas Islam is seen as intolerant and oppressive, Islam is a threat to the British way of life
how are ethnic minorities represented as unimportant?
davies - the daily mail is more interested in the victims of crime if they are white
shah - when ethnic minorities are on film/tv they are in low status roles or as a form of tokenism
bennet et al - found that ethnic minorities don’t identify with british media and their culture is left out
how are ethnic minorities represented as dependent?
news stories about under-developed countries often imply that the issues are self-inflicted and are dependent on the Western world. Informed African experts on these issues are ignored in favour of Eurpoean/American reporters who may have less knowledge on the situation
what are some criticisms of representations of ethnic minorities in the media
- a lot of the analysis is carried out on right-wing newspapers and therefore, is not representative of left-winged newspapers
- gauntlett argues that analysis of media representations need to be cautious because the british media is so diverse eg the guardian might have more positive representations
- the murder of steven lawrence received high profile coverage in both right and left wing papers
tuchman
symbolic annihilation - women are left out of media discource; their achievements are minimised or ignored; their interests and pursuits are trivialised and devalued
newbold
womens sports are often marginalised and sexualised
mulvey
male gaze. women are sexualised in the media through the lense of the heterosexual male
ferguson
cult of femininity - women are encouraged through magazines to focus on appearance, marriage, domestic roles and children as opposed to other aspirations
wolf
beauty myth. the media represents women as sex objects for male satisfaction. a particular body type is presented as ‘ideal’ and anything short of this is a ‘work in progress’ which can lead to dissatisfaction and eating disorders
gill
argues that while women in the media sometimes are represented as sexually empowered, this is the patriarchy convincing women that they are in control when in reality, it is men who are getting what they want (sexualised images of women)
what are some criticisms of female representation in the media?
there is a lot of focus in the media on female independence and aspiration, eg taylor swift
ignores the fact that men are objectified and suffer eating disorders too
McRobbie found female magazines show images of independent, career-driven women
Gauntlett argues there is now diversity in media representations
connell
hegemonic masculinity - the idea that a certain type of masculinity is dominant in Western culture. there is both a gender hierarchy and a hierarchy among men. this view of masculinity leads to toxic masculinity and violence against women or other men
metrosexuality
magazines have encouraged men to take more interest in their fashion an appearance
gauntlett and rutherford
argue that there is still an emphasis on traditional masculinity and sexualisation of females in the media that is aimed at men
whannel
argues that there is a new type of man that is both metrosexual and hegemonic. David Beckham is a good example of this new man through his fashion and clean appearance, yet he is interested in sport and he married a spice girl
what are criticisms of the way males are represented in the media?
men are now portrayed as more sensitive and less hegemonic. eg phil dunphy
there is often contradiction in magazines where men have to be sensitive but continue sexualising women
how are the upper classes presented in the media?
rarely portrayed negatively
royal family presented as the ideal family
the upper classes are heavily favoured because media companies need their support
how are the middle classes portrayed in the media?
over-represented inmost tv and film
presented as normal and rational
how are the working classes portrayed in the media?
-portrayed negatively and used as scapegoats in moral panics
-often called ‘chavs’ or ‘benefit scroungers’ which leads to people not having public sympathy (shrildrick and macdonald)
-there are forms of media aimed at working classes that are ‘dumbed down’ due to stereotypes of poor education
jones
shows how differently the media represents working and middle classes through exploring the media representation of madeleine mccann and shannon matthews
newman
found that generally when media organisations focus on the working class, it is to label them as a problem eg benefit scroungers, drug dealers, criminals
what are some criticisms of the media representations of class?
there are some negative portrayals of the upper classes
there are representations of middle-class families that aren’t perfect
there are some positive representations of working classes
how is sexuality represented in the media?
heterosexuality is over-represented and homosexualiy is under-represented
swanson
homosexuality was often represented in an extreme, caricatured and stereotypical
how is sexuality presented stereotypically in the media?
-male homosexuality dominates ‘gay’ media while female homosexuality is ignored (symbolic annihilation)
-homosexuality is often represented as a source of embarrassment/anxiety and characters are often victims who are subject to harrassment and bullying
craig
when homosexual characters are portrayed in the media, they are often stereotyped as having particularly amusing or negative characteristics
bennett
argues that the news still systematically ignores and distorts the lives and experiences of homosexuals
gill
suggests that homosexuality is often represented in a ‘sanitized’ way
stonewall
found in 2013 that in 126 hours of television, only 46 minutes of it showed homosexuality realistically and positively
gauntlett
argues that while lesbian, gay and bisexual people are still under-represented in the media, things are slowly progressing
wilke
argues that programmes such as will and grace have resulted in a shift to less stereotypical representations
what is the pink pound
gay and lesbian audiences that media groups advertise their products towards because they are seen as dependent free and have a large income to spend on products
what are some criticisms of the way sexuality is represented in the media?
- the diversity in sexuality is not represented. eg lack of bi, trans, non binary people
- the new media provides space for the lgbtq community to create their own media + representations. however, this can increase online harrassment and bullying
in what 8 ways is childhood represented in the media?
- as cute
- victims of crime
- little devils
- prodigies
- brave little angels
- accessories
- modern
- active consumers
how do moral panics relate to youth?
older generations cause moral panics about youths and their activities/interests. there have been moral panics about youths and radio, television and the Internet
wayne et al
he did a meta analysis and found that the media tends to criticise youth and portray them as a ‘problem’. media rarely features youth’s opinions or perspectives. he argues that this representation distracts the public from ‘real’ youth problems such as mental health, homelessness and unemployment
newman
argues that elderly men are usually portrayed as occupying high status roles. older male news anchors are often paired with younger female anchors, suggesting that older males have authority, but older females do not. female actors often find they are limited in their roles past 40
what are 5 stereotypes of the elderly in the media
- as grumpy
- mentally challenged
- dependent
- economic burden
- enjoying a second childhood
shakespeare
found that media representations of disabled people relied on old stereotypes os twisted villains, plucky heroes and weak victims. he argues mass media encourages the able-bodied population to view people with disabilites as ‘other’
what 10 ways are disabled people represented in the media according to barnes?
pathetic and pitiable
villains
super cripples
atmosphere and curio
sexally abnormal
incapable of participating
object of ridicule
own worst enemy
object of violence
a burden
roper
mass media representation of the disabled on telethons rely on ‘cute’ children which is not representative of the population. these telethons also imply that charities should be responsible for providing care to the disabled rather than the government
agyeman
42% of disabled people in media are portrayed in relation to prejudice, discrimination and stereotyping
what is the pluralist view of media representations of disabled people
the representations reflect the dominant view in society that disability is dysfunctional
what is the social constructionist view of media representations of disability?
people are disabled by society and the mass media. disabled people are rarely consulted by journalists, representations reflect their low status and exclusion
what is the postmodern view of media representations of disability
we cannot make generalisations because different networks might have different representations. our understanding of disability is changing. there are more positive representations of disability
