Media Represntations Flashcards
How is media gendered?
Most editors are men. Women don’t appear in the media as often as men.
How are males and female stereotyped in the media?
- Women in the media are often represented as ideals for other women to aspire to. Explains the rise in eating disorders
- the media tends to portray women in a limited range of roles. Tuchman argued there were only two women represented in the media- domestic and sexual. The achievements of women are represented as less important than their sex appeal- ‘symbolic annihilation’
- women are often represented as victims
- men incompetent at stereotypically women’s jobs
- male violence is shown in a positive way
How are media stereotypes influenced by binary opposition?
The idea of ‘the other’. The dominant half of the binary pair (men) is seen as the normal, standard, regular version. The half of the binary pair perceived less positively is the other -women
What does Westwood argue?
There are lots of female characters on TV who do not conform to gender roles. These characters are seen as ‘transgressive’, because they go beyond stereotypical representations of women
What did Gauntlett argue?
Changes in media portrayal of masculinity. Men’s magazines mirrors women’s with advice on health, looking good and attracting the opposite sex. ‘Metrosexual’
How is sexuality represented in the media?
Presents inaccurate stereotypes of LGBT groups or ignores them. As a result, media representations of people with LGBT identities can be negative or even non existent. This is symbolic annihilation
What did Craig argue?
Gay men are often stereotyped as either ‘camp’, ‘macho’ or ‘deviant’. Many TV shows use ‘camp’ gays as comic relief. Being gay is often characterised as a problem- lots of gay characters struggling with their sexuality
How are disabled people represented in the media?
Very little representation. Disabled people had a lower proportion of speaking roles.
Roles for disabled people were based on pity or comedy. Their roles were centred around their disability
Children in need etc shows them as being reliant on the charity of others
Although films like ‘The Theory of Everything’ was positive
What class stereotypes are there in the media?
Media editors and executives are almost all Middle class. Middle class people appear on TV more Drama roles for working class people are usually limited to soap operas Historical dramas give a romantic feel of class The news represents them as trouble (GUMG) Positive attention is only given to things the rich can afford. Newspapers and iPhones devote lots of space to stocks and shares when most of the public don't own any
What did Medhurst find?
Middle class students were shown the programme ‘The Royale Family’, which features deliberately exaggerated and stereotypical working class characters, they thought it was an accurate portrayal of working class life
How is ethnicity represented?
Quite representative but major roles are limited
More ethnic minority channels
There aren’t many minority people with powerful jobs in the media
Media portrayals reinforce the idea of non whites as other
What did Hartmann and Husband find?
In an area with low ethnic mix, children believed the negative media content. In the area with a high ethnic mix children rejected the stereotypes in favour of their own experience
Therefore audience response varies
How are older people represented?
Sexist double standard. The older a woman gets, the less likely she is to get a leading film role or presenting job. Older men are allowed to be romantically paired with young women in films. Eg Children in Need, Strictly come dancing. The woman changes but the man doesn’t
Magazines push an image of ‘youthful older people’-enjoying holidays etc
How are young people represented in the media?
Children are repsrented as innocent
Slightly older kids are seen as a social problem prone to drug abuse, petty theft and pregnancy. They are seen as a threat to society in the news. Few opportunities to express their views so they cant influence the way they are being presented. Therefore they may face unemployment and poor mental health, devalued and ignored. Lack of sympathy for them makes this problem worse
What did McRobbie argue?
In the 1970s girls were meant to be passive to impress boys
Now it has moved to ‘girl power’. This presented girls as active consumers who could choose how to express themselves. The media wanted to create a consumer market for products aimed at young girls. Encourages young girls to desire products aimed at teenagers
