Representations of Age Flashcards
What did Vernon et al find from studies in the USA about representations of the elderly?
On prime time TV elderly women underrepresented and the trad sex role stereotyping more prevalent among women
older men shown as wealthy, healthy, active
older women shown as more rigid, dour, unpleasant
e.g. ursula and king trident
What does Tuchman argue?
The elderly are symbolically annihilated
1987: 11% of population elderly, only 2.3% of TV included this age group
older women commonly called ‘hag’/ ‘witch’
older characters shown as vulnerable/ comic
What do Szmigin and Carrigan argue about ads?
They were wary of using older models out of fear it would alienate younger audiences
But the grey pound may mean we see a wider range of more positive images of ageing in the media
e.g. Dove body positivity campaigns using older models
What does Lee et al argue about ads?
15% of ads aimed at the elderly as they have disposable income the media can profit from
they portray the elderly as the ‘golden age’, fit and active
e.g. cruises, conservatories, over 50s life plans
What does Newman argue about elderly men’s representations?
u/c and m/c elderly (particularly men) portrayed in leadership positions/ elite occupations e.g. presidents, judges (Simon Cowell the most dominant judge)
male news anchors often older men bc audiences trust an older male voice with grey hair lending authority
What does Newman argue about elderly women’s representations?
women often moved from ‘front of camera’ roles at an early age (40)
actresses get fewer roles the older they get
What would Marxists suggest about the systematic annihilation of the elderly?
it’s to serve capitalism and make profits - representing younger people (workers) so they’re more likely to buy their products/ shows/ movies
elderly have no value in terms of labour, can’t contribute to the capitalist machine
What would Pluralists suggest about the systematic annihilation of the elderly?
if reflects society’s ideas
we don’t want to see old people therefore we don’t
How do representations of the elderly reinforce hegemony?
They reinforce the idea that as women get older they lose value
How does Chandler argue that children are represented as consumers?
‘pester power’
kids TV and the ads in between programmes treat them as consumers
companies know kids are likely to ask their parents for the products and parents won’t want to let their kids down
often leads to parents getting into debt
How else are children represented in the media
- Cute: babies and toddlers in particular, in TV ads specifically
- Little angels: idealised, innocent without malice
- Little devils: still a reasonably positive representation, these characters are funny and appealing yet naughty e.g. Bart Simpson
- Victims: of crime like murder/ abduction in the news/ dramas
- Prodigies: e.g. young Sheldon
- Accessories: celeb reporting often includes kids not as interesting individuals but extras
What did Heinz-Knowles find?
- Motivated primarily by peer relationships, romance and community with school/ religion based issues
- Not shown as impacted by issues like racism/ domestic vioence
- Mostly positive, kids with prosocial behaviour
- 40% depicted kids engaging in anti-social behaviour like bullying
- Shift in media over last 15yrs where it can be seen from a kid’s POV not just adults’
What did Evans and Chandler find about children and consumption?
Peer pressure the most important aspect of their rationale for consumption -> feared bullying/ teasing
Parents and children from poorer families felt this pressure the most
Evaluation - limited evidence for children in the media
Mostly based off American sources, may be differences in British representations
Reps often intersect with gender, ethnicity, class and religion e.g. Muslim children are represented differently to Christian ones
How does the media help shape the narrative of youth culture?
- It doesn’t just reflect youth culture, it makes it (social construction of youth)
- Youthfulness is worshipped, we prefer to look at images of young people, predominantly young women
What does Davis argue about youths?
They’re blamed for issues in society by adults
How does Cohen’s mods and rockers demonstrate how youths are blamed for society’s issues?
Mods and rockers had a party with minor acts of vandalism
Media at their next party publish highly exaggerated reports of the extent of the violence
Generated public concern (moral panic), police at next parties, arresting them even for non-violent deviant behaviour
What did Wayne’s analysis find about representations of youths?
Analysed over 2,100 news items
- 82% focused on youths as victims/ perpetrators of a crime
- only 1% featured a youth’s perspective/ opinion
How does Pearson argue that youths are represented negatively?
Represented as a problem
There’s always a ‘golden age’ around 20yrs ago that current youth are compared with no matter the date
Functionalist view on representations of youth
Youths subjected to peer pressure and indulge in deviant behaviour but the media socialisation reminds them not to else they’ll be punished
Pluralist view on representations of youth
Reflects social reality - young people commit more crime than other social groups
criminal behaviour is newsworthy
Glasgow University Media Group (neo-marxists) view on representations of youth
Journalists subscribe to the consensus view of society placing older people at the top
The agenda is set by older people and so of course youth’s representations are negative
Interactionist view on representations of youth
Young people frequently labelled by older people as a threat to social stability
Postmodernist view on representations of youth
Negative portrayals only make up a small aspect of our media saturated society which is diverse and pluralistic
New media lets youths construct their own positive and sometimes profitable (e.g. youtubers, influencers) identities
Postmodernist view on representations of youth
Negative portrayals on the make up a small aspect of our media saturated society which is diverse and pluralistic
New media lets youth construct their own positive and sometimes profitable (e.g. youtubers/ influencers) identities
