Media representations Flashcards

Question

Glascock (gender) (changing/positive)

Answer 1

Now a range of femininity portrayed in the media such as independent women Media example: Rapunzel

Answer 2

Within advertising, the depiction of women has changed from women as passive objects of the male gaze, to women being more active, independent and sexually powerful Media example: This Girl Can

Answer 3

Media provides alternative gendered images and ideas, which are producing a greater diversity of choice for people when constructing their gender identities - Women are now depicted in a ‘tougher’ way. Younger audiences are now more open to having female as well as male lead characters in films. Discusses positive effect of female pop stars, such as Lady gaga also promoted financial and emotional independence through their lyrics. This set of media messages from a range of sources suggest that women can be tough and independent whilst being ‘sexy’ Media example: Friends

Answer 4

Men’s traditional roles within the media have changed - 1980’s saw the emergence of a new breed of glossy magazines aimed at middle class young men, such as GQ, Maxim and FHM that presented men can be emotionally vulnerable and in touch with their ‘feminine side (father role and appearance) Media example: GQ Magazine

Answer 5

Importance of the Levi’s ‘Laundrette’ advert - this saw the emergence of ‘the New Man Media example: Levi's Launderette advert

Answer 6

Laundrette advert marked an increase and change in male consumption patterns - for the first time men were spending more time, money and effort on their appearance so there was a consumption increase in items such as toiletries and male beauty products Media example: Levi's Launderette advert

Answer 7

Presentation of David Beckham is contradictory - media representations of Beckham are fluid meaning that his good looks, his football skills, competitive spirit and his commitment mark him out as a traditional ‘real man' Media example: David Beckham

Answer 8

Media representation of the monarchy - after WW11 the monarchy developed close ties with the media industry, since then they have been represented in the media as a family that are ‘like us but not like us’ - lives are presented as a soap opera. Media representations of royalty also reinforce a sense of national identity

Answer 9

The upper class exercise social closure. Therefore when applying this to the media it means that upper class identities will not often be shown in the media to maintain their boundary between them and other classes Media example: Instagram

Answer 10

Media representations tend to focus on the concerns of those who are wealthy and privileged. He further argues that the media over-focuses on extravagant consumer goods e.g. luxury cars, costly holiday destinations, trendy clothes, fashion accessories, etc. that are usually only accessible to the rich. Newman argues that wealth is represented as deserved rather than as part of a “chaos of rewards”. Therefore this justifies the position of the ruling class in society and uses luxury goods as a distraction for working class individuals to fantasize about and work towards - but due to the exploitation in society they will never be able to reach this Media example: Kardashians

Answer 11

Middle class lifestyles are present as the 'ideal' lifestyle in media advertising and developed the concept of the ideal 'cereal packet family' to describe the image that is sold to us as desirable. Marxists would argue that the media are owned and controlled by the upper class and therefore they control how they are represented Media example: Friday Night Dinner

Answer 12

Described the media as a “closed shop” for the upper/middle class. This means media representations of the middle class will be positive as they are created by middle class journalists. It can also be argued that a range of newspapers and magazines are targeted towards middle class tastes and lifestyles Media example: Cosmopolitan

Answer 13

Working class individuals are often cast as beneficiaries of middle class help and advice, or as subjects for discussion by middle class “experts”. Middle class people are represented as resourceful, productive, cultured and helpful – particularly in relation to the less fortunate working class individuals receiving their help Media example: Stacey Dooley

Answer 14

Media representations of the upper class have been traditionally positive, this has changed over recent years Media example: Prince Charles was caught advising government policy

Answer 15

Recent media representations of wealthy people are being used to show examples of hard work, success and meritocracy - When people are portrayed as having huge amounts of wealth their success is celebrated by the media – Audiences are encouraged to identify with the culture of consumption and materialism that is portrayed in the lifestyle of the wealthy Media example: Molly Mae

Answer 16

Postmodernism, global village, globailsation, progression Media example: Instagram

Answer 17

The new middle class is so diverse in lifestyle, occupation and attitudes that they have very little cohesion, that they are like a dish of herrings and strawberries! At one extreme end there is a ‘super rich elite middle class’ whereas at the other there is a whole range of ‘low level routine’ occupations that although are defined as middle class are difficult to distinguish from their working class counterparts e.g. in terms of income, status and general life chances. - representations in the media are changing to reflect the changes in society Media example: Tik Tok

Answer 18

Pluralism, determined by reader, condemn Media example: Hillsborough disaster

Answer 19

Postmodernism, global village, globailsation, progression Media example: Instagram

Answer 20

Very few films, sitcoms or dramas which give a realistic image of the everyday life of the working class - Working class people are stereotyped and labelled in an unflattering and pitying light Media example: Vile product of welfare UK

Answer 21

Developed the concept of ‘chavtainment’ when discussing the development of TV broadcasts that portray a negative view of working class people as “bigoted, slothful and aggressive” - Working class gone from being portrayed, historically, as the “salt to the earth” to “scum of the earth” Media example: Little Britain

Answer 22

Eastenders - Presents the nostalgic view of the traditional notion of working class communities, but state that this does not accurately reflect a modern day working class culture Media example: Eastenders

Answer 23

Researched ‘Benefits Stigma in Britain’ and analysed a database of 6,600 national press articles between 1995-2011 - Disproportionate amount focus on benefit fraud: 29% of news stories referenced fraud; in comparison the government’s own estimate is that a mere 0.7% of all benefits claims are fraudulent. Common language used to describe benefits as ‘undeserving’ included: Fraud and dishonesty (including those such as ‘faking illness’), Dependency (including ‘underclass’ and ‘unemployable’), Non-reciprocity/lack of effort (e.g. ‘handouts’, ‘something for nothing’, ‘lazy’, ‘scrounger’), Outsider status (e.g. ‘immigrant’, ‘obese’). This reflects the New Right views of an underclass lifestyle Media example: 'Get pregnant for benefits'

Answer 24

Moral panics surrounding the underclass – “Welfare issues” were not discussed unless they were connected to other social issues such as crime, fraud or sex. Demonization of the underclass Media example: Vile product of welfare UK

Answer 25

‘Poverty porn’ - Describes programmes such as Channel 4s Benefit Street - This refers to the media exploiting the participants and their lifestyle in order to shock and entertain the audiences Media example: Jeremy Kyle

Answer 26

Eastenders has introduced realism when bravely broaching issues such as drug and alcohol abuse, crime, attempted suicide, abortion, homosexuality and relationship issues – Whilst doing this portray the outdated view of a communal supportive network Media example: Eastenders

Answer 27

In recent times there are more positive and realistic portrayals of WC individuals - seen as happy and deserving poor. E.g. Royle Family- more realistic portrayal of WC that doesn’t negatively depict life on benefits Media example: Royle Family

Answer 28

Postmodernism, global village, globailsation, progression Media examle: Instagram

Answer 29

Describes programmes such as Channel 4s Benefit Street - does have ‘narratives’ that present characters as decent and compassionate people captured by an unfair society Media example: Benefit Street

Answer 30

Postmodernism, global village, globailsation, progression Media examle: Instagram

Answer 31

Pluralism, determined by reader, condemn Media example: Hillsborough disaster

Answer 32

Way children are portrayed in entertainment television: Children are motivated most by peers relationships and romance and least by school related and religious issues, Majority of the characters engage in anti-social behaviours which results in positive outcomes, Children from minority ethnic groups are under-represented, Boys and girls are almost equally represented but there are important differences in the way that girls and boys are portrayed. For example, girls are twice as likely as boys to show affection and boys are more likely to use physical aggression to achieve their goals Media example: Tracy Beaker

Answer 33

Media portray youths as a social problem in 3 ways… Deviant, Dysfunctional, Suffering a deficit Media example: Sex education

Answer 34

Found that of the 286 stories in which young people were the main subject, 28% focused on young celebrities such as footballers. However, 82% of the stories focused on young people as either perpetrators or victims of crime. Violent crime made up 90% of these crime related stories. Wayne argues that this pattern of representation of youth ignores stories about how young people are affected by problems in housing, education, health, unemployment, parental abuse and politics. In addition, news reporters did not ask young people for interviews even though the stories related to them Media example: UK Teens worst behaved in Europe

Answer 35

Carried out a study titled ‘Hoodies or Altar Boys’ (2009). This study examined how teenage boys were presented in national and local newspapers - They found the following: Negative language to describe them, There were more stories about teens and crime than any other topic, Few stories showed teen boys in a good light, 85% of teen boys said newspapers portray them in a bad light but reality TV was seen to portray them the most fairly, They also found that teenagers were weary of other teenagers mainly due to stories about yobs and hoodies in the media Media example: A 14-year-old boy who has 'fixation' with knives stabbed a man to death

Answer 36

Language used by journalists to describe young people who come into contact with the law and found there are three major types of representation: Young people are dangerous, Young people are in need of protection, Young people are immature Media example: Children killing children: teen knife crime epidemic

Answer 37

Mods and rockers moral panic - Influenced by Becker’s labelling theory and was particularly interested in the media response to the events rather than the events themselves. Cohen argued that when the media reports on deviant behaviour they create a ‘folk devil’ Media example: Mods and Rockers

Answer 38

Supports findings of Age Concern and identified a number of stereotypes in representations of older people: Grumpy old man, Feisty old women, Depressed or lonely, Mentally deficient Media example: Dumbledor

Answer 39

Found that in the US, TV programmes portrayed just 1.5% of their characters as elderly. They usually played minor roles and were used as a form of comedy. The media often depicted their mental, physical and sexual capacities as ineffective Media example: Simpsons

Answer 40

Media do not portray a balanced view of ageing - To do this they would need to present the challenges of getting older alongside the more positive opportunities associated with ageing, such as active ageing Media example: Benecol advert

Answer 41

State that older people are ignored in media advertising and when they are included they are stereotyped and presented as a caricature of an elderly person - Presented as ‘smelly and incontinent’ Media example: Age UK, Know what to do advert

Answer 42

The idea of childhood has begun to disappear as children interact more and more with the media. He argued that children are sexualised in the media and that the media creates a world in which adults and children share the same music, sports, language, literature and films. Postman later on discovered that the internet also contributes to this as it leads to children and youths being exposed to adult content E.g. Sex and violence Media example: Tik Tok and Grand Theft Auto

Answer 43

Studied changes in media representations of youth - 1970s-2000 recurring theme of ‘youth as trouble’. Osgerby argued that these changes in media representations of youth reflect wider cultural developments and ‘mirror the spirit of the times’ i.e. fighting for social change could be portrayed as deviant and norm breaking. This view was explained by referring to how the media represented youth positively in the 1950’s and 1960’s in a post war mood of hope and prosperity but how this was very different to how youth were presented in the 70’s and 80’s as they were now associated with violence and going against society’s norms and values Media example: Greta Thunberg

Answer 44

Studied adverts and found that old people were underrepresented, appearing in only 15% of advertisements, but of those 15%, more than 90% of representations were positive – portraying elderly people as ‘golden agers’ enjoying healthy, active lifestyles. However, there are also significant gender differences in the way old people are represented in the media: older men are much more visible in the media than older women Media example: Benecol advert

Answer 45

Evidence of both change and continuity in the representation of old age in the media. He identified a number of contrasting trends which included: Larger number of elserly in soap operas, Negative depictions of the elderly in sitcoms, older people as more active Media example: Gangsta Granny

Answer 46

Found that advertisers were now targeting older people as consumers because of the ‘grey pound’. This led to an increase in positive images of ageing and positive roles for older people Media example: Virgin Media