Collective Identity and Representing Ourselves

1) Read the article and summarise each section in one sentence, starting with the section 'Who are you?'

Whether we use fashion or make a decision not to do any of those things, we construct an image to communicate our identity.

Identity was seen to pre-determined and was based on the social constructs.

Advertisers identified how people felt about themselves, and offered products in ways that helped reinforce and support a positive self-image; largely based around the notion of fitting in and conforming to social expectations.

Dominant values help shape how we see ourselves; and by the late 1960s and 1970s the notion of individualism began to take hold.

2) List three brands you are happy to be associated with and explain how they reflect your sense of identity.

Audible
Donald Katz CEO launched Newark Now!, a program that, through a lottery, awards 20 Audible employees with a year’s worth of rent if they sign a two-year lease in Newark. In addition, the company will give a $500 monthly stipend indefinitely to employees who commit to living in the city.

Volvo

the carmaker announced that beginning in 2019, all new models will be either hybrids or powered solely by batteries

Biobot Analytics

The Cambridge, Mass.-based startup is working to extract human health data from sewage to help solve public health crises. Its first task is the opioid epidemic. Understanding drug use on a city and neighborhood level can provide valuable insights on both prevention and treatment efforts. 

3) Do you agree with the view that modern media is all about 'style over substance'? What does this expression mean?

I agree that modern media is all about style over substance (to think looks are more important than content.)

4) Explain Baudrillard's theory of 'media saturation' in one paragraph. You may need to research it online to find out more.

Baudrillard believed that society has become so saturated with these simulacra and our lives so saturated with the constructs of society that all meaning was being rendered meaningless by being infinitely mutable; he called this phenomenon the "precession of simulacra" his thesis named The System of Objects (1968) which deals with the function of commodity in consuming societies and aims to reconcile Marxism with postmodernism.

5) Is your presence on social media an accurate reflection of who you are? Have you ever added or removed a picture from a social media site purely because of what it says about the type of person you are?

yes and no.

6) What is your opinion on 'data mining'? Are you happy for companies to sell you products based on your social media presence and online search terms? Is this an invasion of privacy?

I think data mining is an invasion of privacy and his highly unethical as companies often do not disclose that they are using or selling your information.

Intro to feminism

1) Why did Laura Bates start the Everyday Sexism project?

She was repeatedly sexually harassed on her way to and from work.
2) How does the Everyday Sexism project link to the concept of post-feminism? Is feminism still required in western societies?

It focuses on the sexual assault stories of all types of people regardless of sexuality, gender E.C.T. 
The everyday sexism project proves that feminism is still required in western societies as it showcases how rampant cases of all kinds of violence and discrimination against women in everyday life.

3) Why was new technology essential to the success of the Everyday Sexism project?

It was essential as new technology allowed Laura Bates to broadcast her website and allow her website/project to be reached/accessed by a large amount of people. which in turn allowed her project to be successful as a large amount of people started sharing their experiences.
4) Will there be a point in the future when the Everyday Sexism project is not required? What is YOUR view on the future of feminism?

I don't believe that there will be a point where the everyday sexism project is not required as there will always be discrimination against both genders and also gender fuelled violence. I think that the future of feminism will still revolve around women, but will also start to focus on men and violence against men.

1) Summarise the questions in the first two sub-headings: What is networked feminism? Why is it a problem?

Feminism is often divided into ‘waves’ to explain their cultural context. The ‘first wave of feminism’ began in the late 19th to early 20^th centuries, with a main focus on suffrage. The ‘second wave’ began in the 1960s, campaigning for the growth of equal rights and leading to the Equal Pay Act of 1970, amongst other equality laws. Since the late 1990s, we are believed to have entered the ‘third wave’ (post-feminism). The new fourth wave of feminism is also known as ‘networked feminism’. It aims to tackle social equality issues found both on, and using, modern technology. Hashtags have been used to spur on the feminist upheaval. Ideologies and communities that were thought to have been extinct have been reignited on the internet. User-generated content websites have seemed to flourish with feminists: blogs, submission sites and YouTube are all being utilised to set up, grow and oppose campaigns. Twitter is a big player in representing modern feminism; people are now able to engage with the ideologies, popular hastags include #WomenAgainstFeminism and #YesAllWomen, highlighting both the significance of feminism in today’s society, and the divisions it has created. However, moving into a new era of feminism without solving the problems that we have faced in other waves clearly creates issues.

Since the 60s feminism has fought to recognise the social struggle of women.Feminists in 2015 still deal with misconceptions and prejudice: the idea that rape or coercive sex may be justified if a woman is wearing provocative clothing, the huge gender pay gap despite equality legislation, the ubiquitous representations of women as weak and disempowered. Arguably in the eyes of the law (most) women are equal citizens.To many people in 2015, this means that women have won what they fought for – although many high-profile women in the arts and media would strongly disagree. The difference in today’s society is that in the world of technological development, feminism can be left behind. Digital outlets change and update regularly, and social media platforms make messaging instant. In the media, ‘feminists’ are still frequently associated with campaigners such as the Suffragettes.

2) What are the four waves of feminism? Do you agree that we are in a fourth wave ‘networked feminism’? 

1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th. I do agree that we are in a fourth wave 'networked feminism'

3) Focus on the examples in the article. Write a 50-word summary of EACH of the following: Everyday Sexism, HeForShe, FCKH8 campaign, This Girl Can.

Everyday Sexism, Laura Bates started 2012 as a website posting users examples of sexism. Set it up after ‘people told me sexism is no longer a problem – women are equal’.  50,000 entries made by December 2013.One of the most popular feminist digital campaigns. Doesn’t represent feminism as only for females.

He For She by Emma Watson. “Fighting for women’s rights has become synonymous with man-hating. Men, gender equality is your issue too.” Male support for gender equality, feminism is not matriarchy, but solidarity. Used Twitter for a Q&A session, When asked for ‘tips for girls with parents who think they should marry and have kids, not a successful career?’ she answered ‘Why not both?’ This removes the misandry that has blighted traditional feminism. criticism He For She campaign, saying that it makes feminism too reliant on males, undermining the ‘strong woman’ element and relying on the old stereotypes.

4) What is your opinion with regards to feminism and new/digital media? Do you agree with the concept of a 'fourth wave' of feminism post-2010 or are recent developments like the Everyday Sexism project merely an extension of the third wave of feminism from the 1990s?

Feminist theory.

1) What examples are provided from the two texts of the 'male gaze' (Mulvey)?

Pan Am, Beyonce

2) Do texts such as these show there is no longer a need for feminism or are they simply sexism in a different form?

These texts show that there is still a need for feminism as the sexism presented in these texts are just sexism is in a different form. The main character Pan Am (Laura) is presented to be admired by males and in the Beyonce video her outfits are those of a sexualized housewife frustrated by her partner.

3) Choose three words/phrases from the glossary of the article and write their definitions on your blog.

Post-feminism – An ideology in culture and society that society is somehow past needing feminism and that the attitudes and arguments of feminism are no longer needed.

Male Gaze – The gaze referring to Laura Mulvey’s seminal article ‘Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema’ which argues that main stream Hollywood films subject female characters to the ‘male gaze’ of the camera,
fragmenting and objectifying their bodies.

Third wave feminism – Was a movementnthat redefined and encouraged women to be dominant and sexually assertive.

Now read The Theory Drop: Gender Performativity (MM69, page 25) and answer the following questions.

1) How does the writer suggest gender performativity is established from a young age?

Children’s t-shirts. My son – ‘Mummy’s little monster’ – has permission to be a scallywag, to be disruptive and chaotic – monstrous, even – and the main woman in his life will never disown him. My daughter ‘Dancing with my friends makes the sunshine’ – has a duty to be nothing more than agreeable, pleasant and pretty in order to make the world a better, sunnier place. If you shopped entirely at Primark or Mothercare (the worst places for these #everydaysexism clothing slogans) you’d be teaching girls to be passive, caring, responsible for the
happiness of others, and boys to do what the hell they like because it’s cute, attractive and roguish.

2) What does the phrase 'non-binary' refer to and how does it link to Butler's theory?

The phrase ‘non-binary’, referring to someone who doesn’t define themselves as either wholly male or female, is increasingly in common usage. When Butler wrote Gender Trouble in 1990, she used transvestism as an example of an identity which upsets the status quo of manly men and ladylike women. But in the 30 years since, society has come a long way and there is significantly more ‘trouble’ when it comes to binary notions of gender.

3) How and why does the media help reinforce gender stereotypes? The writer provides several examples in the final section of the article.

females (and non-white, working class, LGBTQ+, disabled etc.) are presented as inferior, males (white, wealthy, heterosexual, able-bodied etc.) come out as superior. Of course the mainstream media relies on gender stereotypes for other reasons, mostly as a shortcut to meaning. Narratives are easier for audiences to understand if the characters, subjects and storylines conform to a set of ideas that are already fixed in our heads from an early age.

Music video analysis

Finally, write up our analysis of the two music videos we studied in class. This is your opportunity to develop your own opinions on these crucial media debates.

Watch the Beyonce video for ‘Why Don’t You Love Me?’ again: 

1) How might this video contribute to Butler’s idea that gender roles are a ‘performance’?

This video contributes to the idea that gender roles are a performance as Beyonce puts on makeup and wears certain clothes to make herself look more attractive to male audiences. She deliberatly changes the way she looks and is presented to portray a certain female image.

2) What might van Zoonen suggest regarding the representation of women in this video?

They might suggest that women in this video are framed differently to show off their body, and reinforces societal expectations of women having to look a certain way in order to be viewed as attractive by males.

3) What are YOUR views on this debate – does Beyonce empower women or reinforce the traditional ‘male gaze’ and oppression of women? 

I think Beyonce reinforces the traditional male gaze in this video as parts of her body are deliberatly framed in a way to emphasise her features. She also potentially shows women as oppressed through the lines "Why don't you love me when i make me so damn easy to love." which highlight the idea that a women can fit all gender stereotypes and societal expectations, but men can still not think they're worthy.

Watch Will Jay's video for ‘Gangsta’ again:




1) How does the video suggest representations of masculinity have changed in recent years?

It suggests that men are being presented as being less traditionally masculine, with emphasis on being more emotionally available and in touch with their feelings.

2) What does David Gauntlett suggest about representations of men in the media over the last 20 years?

He believes the media consumption in the 1980s and 90s gave audiences a chance to construct their identities and possibly stereotypes. still acknowledged Butler and van Zoonen: “Although the popular remix of feminism is accepted by young women, it remains the case that most women and men remain somewhat constricted within particular gender roles.”

3) What is YOUR view on the representation of men and masculinity? Are young men still under pressure from the media to act or behave in a certain way?

I think that men are still under pressure from the media to act a certain way, as men are still expected to have a 'stiff upper lip' attitude and are ridiculed for exhibiting any sort of traditionally feminine behaviour.

Exam number 2 LR

1) Type up your feedback in full (you don't need to write the mark and grade if you want to keep this confidential).

WWW: Better to focus for the extended 20 mark question. You have an ability to focus on the question and build some sustained level of argument.

EBI: With more preparation and revision of media theories you will improve in your next assessment. For example Q4, you mention one other theory and apply/evaluate it to some extent but with other theories and subject specific terminology you can gain higher marks. Continue to attempt all blog tasks and revise theories. 2) Read the mark scheme for this assessment carefully. Identify at least one potential point that you missed out on for each question in the assessment.

Q1: critical and decent analysis of the product.
      Bare-chested Stormzy reinforces the sexualisation of black men in the media and              male stereotypes.

Q2: Conglomerate ownership, vertical integration, synergy
      reduce cost, increase profit
      synergies allow companies to maximum profits from a brand by branching out into            other platforms, merchandise or products.

Q3: Demonstrate knowledge of contexts of media and their influence on media products          and processes.
     
Q4:  Channel 4 reinvests profits back into programmes- this raises quality and benefits              audience.

       

• Funding model is outdated in the digital age – licence fee of £147 a year for all BBC (and some C4) content isn’t realistic. Young people are increasingly choosing to avoid paying the licence fee so long-term future of funding model isn’t viable.

3) On a scale of 1-10 (1 = low, 10 = high), how much revision and preparation did you do for this assessment? You may also want to think here whether you had completed all the original blog tasks from last term before doing the assessment.  

I did not do any revision but i did complete the original blog tasks.
4) Look at your answer for Question 2. Did you manage to write about three different strategies and three different benefits? It's vital you read the question and follow it exactly.

5) Look at your answer for Question 3. Did you follow the question guidance and write about both the BBC and commercial broadcasters? What could you have added to this answer to reach a higher mark?

6) Now look over your mark, teacher comments and the mark scheme for Question 4 - the 20 mark essay question on media effects theory. Write a new paragraph for this question based on the suggested theories/answers in the mark scheme. Make sure it is an extensive, detailed paragraph focused on the question and offering examples from the wider media. 

Representation Blog Tasks

1) Why is representation an important concept in Media Studies?

The word representation itself holds a clue to its importance. When we see a person, place, object or idea being represented in a media text, it has in some way been mediated by the very act of representation. A representation is a re-presentation (literally – to present again), and so the images and ideas we see on screen, in print or online are ‘removed’ from the original object. The media intervene and stand between the object and what we see – the act of communicating the image or idea in some way changes it.
Representations are always, in some way, filtered through someone’s point of view, and carry particular meanings or values. In other words, they are ideological. Thus an understanding of how representations work helps us to identify the way media products create ideological meaning.

2) How does the example of Kate Middleton show the way different meanings can be created in the media?

A picture editor selects the photo from a whole series of images to be used to illustrate a news story. The image may be cropped, resized and, in some cases, photoshopped.

• A news editor will decide on the way the story will be presented, and the use of captions to pin down, or anchor, the meaning of the image.

• The photograph of Kate Middleton in the newspaper is a re-presentation of what she looks like, with people
controlling and manipulating the image at various stages throughout the process.

• The Duchess herself, the person, is some distance away from the image that is reproduced.

Media meanings can often be fabricated without any truth by having pictures used that only convey one emotion (i.e. anger) or by photo shopping the images.

3) Summarise the section 'The how, who and why of media representation' in 50 words.

Choices are made/rejected. Representation = combination of selections and rejections. Rejected parts don’t carry the meaning the producer wants to communicate. Wallpaper used to dress the set of a soap opera lounge will create ideological meaning. The wallpaper itself is not ideological, but combined with other representational choices; helps to create ideological meaning of the overall representation. Values are seen as genre codes for soap operas. This repetition of values and ideologies feel very ‘natural’ to the viewer. Barthes argues that the ‘naturalisation’ of ideas in this way, hides the ideology from view. It is present within the text but we don’t recognise it because it comes across as being normal/natural. This is not saying that the media has a direct/immediate effect on audiences. However, it suggests that certain ideas go unquestioned, leading to ‘the silencing of difference’ (Barthes).

4) How does Stuart Hall's theory of preferred and oppositional readings fit with representation?

Hall argued that audiences do not necessarily accept the ideology of texts passively, but instead draw on their own cultural and social experiences to create their own interpretations. In his view ‘meanings’ and messages are not fixed by the creator of the text, but depend on the relationship between the reader/ viewer, and the text. In the wallpaper/ family values example above, you may support the implied ideologies, and therefore you might accept the intended meaning. However, some audiences may only partially accept the meanings being offered by a text; Hall calls this the negotiated position. Other audiences
might reject them completely (the oppositional position).

5) How has new technology changed the way representations are created in the media?

Social media allow us to construct selective and controlled representations of the public identity we

wish to communicate to the world. self representation by Zoella, aka Zoe Sugg – the celebrity YouTube vlogger recently outed for hiring a ghostwriter for her hugely successful first novel Girl Online. Zoella’s expressions show she is aware of the camera and poses carefully to create the visual image that supports her video persona. Part of her appeal is that she is perceived by her 2.6 million Twitter followers as a ‘normal person’ rather than a celebrity media construction; but this identity is carefully constructed and maintained. Her audience identify with her, and she offers an aspirational lifestyle that her fans admire. Indeed the wave of support from her 6 million YouTube fans when she temporarily ‘took a break’ from vlogging when the ghostwriting was exposed seems to confirm their knowing acceptance of her highly constructed personality.

6) What example is provided of how national identity is represented in Britain - and how some audiences use social media to challenge this?

National identity is invariably raised during national sports competitions. During the 2014 World Cup, The Sun sent a free newspaper to 22 million households in England which represented its own concepts of ‘Englishness’ by symbolic references –queuing, the Sunday roast, Churchill and The Queen – to heroes, values and behaviours that the paper (and its owners, Rupert Murdoch’s News Corps) defined as appropriate expressions of ‘English identity’. However, social media forums and comment pages allowed many people
to voice their rejection of the messages. Through self representation, they were able to show that they distanced themselves from the values in the tabloid newspaper.

7) Finally, think about this week's representation theories. Watch the trailer for classic action movie Taken and write an analysis of the representation of people, places and groups in the trailer using terminology and theories you have learned this week:


The representation of men is very stereotypical as Liam Neeson plays the stereotypical powerful, white father who will do whatever it takes to get his daughter back. The daughter is also portrayed as the stereotypical young, pretty white girl (Fitting the male gaze)  who is unable to protect herself, showing Dyer's viewpoint of those with the power stereotypes, stereotype those without power. The main character is positively stereotyped as being highly intelligent and incredibly skill full at hostage-rescue since he is able to remain calm and instruct his daughter on what to do. The villains are also stereotypically eastern European men with strong accents.


Our summary of each theory may help you here:

Dyer: stereotyping and power
Medhurst: value judgements
Perkins: some stereotypes can be positive or true
Mulvey: the male gaze
Levi-Strauss: representation and ideology

Index

1) Introduction to Media: 10 questions
2) Media consumption audit
3) Semiotics blog tasks - English analysis and Icon, Index, Symbol
4) Language: Reading an image - advert analyses
5) Reception theory - advert analyses part 2
6) Genre: Factsheets and genre study questions
7) Blog feedback and learner response
8)Psychographics
9)Audience Theory 2
10)Factsheet - Audience theory
11) LR
12) Audience theory 1 - Hypodermic needle/Two-step flow/U&G
13) Audience theory 2 - The effects debate - Bandura, Cohen
14) Industries: Ownership and Control
15) Industries: Hesmondhalgh - The Cultural Industries
16) Industries: Public Service Broadcasting
17) Industries: Regulation

Media Regulation

1) What is regulation and why do media industries need to be regulated?

Very few industries leave the organisations or companies who operate in that sector to their own devices. Systems of regulation are required to provide rules and regulations to ensure that organisations operate
fairly. In the media industry there are several regulatory bodies that exist to monitor the way that their industries work. Broadcast media (TV and Radio) are regulated by OFCOM – the OFfice of COMmunication
and the advertising industry is regulated by the Advertising StandardsAuthority. Newspapers are currently regulated by the Independent Press Standards Organisation, which replaced the discredited Press Press Complaints Comission in 2014. Although the purpose of these bodies have some similarities, they way they operate is quite different in order to suit the needs of the industry they regulate. Regulators also provide somebody for audiences to complain to if they see something they don’t like. If you are offended by a TV show, feel that an advert is making claims that are unrealistic or a newspaper has invaded your privacy, the regulator is somebody you can turn to to take up your complaint. However, how effectivy different regulators are in carrying out these functions is a source of constant debate. Regulators must provide a set of tough consequences for media organisations that break the rules, but they do also need to balance the interests of media producers and protect freedom of expression.

2) What is OFCOM responsible for?

The OFice of COMunication (OFCOM) is responsible for regulating television, radio, telephone services and some aspects of the internet, although the areas most relevent to media students are TV and radio.
There are some areas that are not the responsibility of OFCOM, such as TV Advertising which is regulated by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) and On Demand services which are regulated by the Authority for Television On Demand. (ATVOD). OFCOM is responsible for granting licences to TV and Radio stations
and it is illegal to broadcast TV or Radio signals without a licence from OFCOM. Before the development of digital broadcasting technologies, it was only possible to have 4 or 5 TV stations broadcasting at the
same time before the signals would begin to interfere with each other. A similar situation applied for radio stations too. For this reason, a system of licences was developed to ensure that the number of
channels/stations was limited to ensure all the signals could be picked up clearly. It also allows for some controls to be placed on quality and impartiality. In the past when there were only a handful of TV stations,
it was important that TV news and current affairs was balanced and not biased towards any particular political party as alternative views would have difficulty being heard.

3) Look at the section on the OFCOM broadcasting code. Which do you think are the three most important sections of the broadcasting code and why?

Section 6: Elections and Referendums
Section 5: Impartiality and Undue Prominence of Views and
Opinions
Section 9: Commercial References in Television Programming

4) Do you agree with OFCOM that Channel 4 was wrong to broadcast 'Wolverine' at 6.55pm on a Sunday evening? Why?

No, as it is not an outwardly violent or explicit movie. 6:55pm is also a time where you would expect parents to be putting their young children to sleep. Children should also be encouraged to know when something may upset them and that they can stop watching at any time.

5) List five of the sections in the old Press Complaints Commission's Code of Practice. 

Section 1: Accuracy
Section 2: Opportunity to Reply
Section 3: Privacy*
Section 4: Harassment*
Section 5: Intrusion Into Grief and Shock
Section 6: Children*
Section 7: Children in Sex Cases*
Section 8: Hospitales*
Section 9: Reporting of Crime*
Section 10: Clandestine Devices and Subterfuge*
Section 11: Victimes of Sexual Assault
Section 12: Discrimination
Section 13: Financial Journalism
Section 14: Confidential Sources
Section 15: Witness Payments in Criminal Trials

6) Why was the Press Complaints Commission criticised?

In recent years, the PCC became the focus of a great deal of controversy. It’s critics claim that the lack of
statutory powers means that when a newspaper has been found to breah the rules, the best a victim can hope for is an apology, which often does not get sufficient prominence in the paper. Critics also argue that many newspapers seem to fly in the face of the rules on a pretty regular basis and that very little is done to stop them. It’s defenders point out that a free press is a vital part of a functioning democracy. If statutory rules were imposed, newspapers ability to hold politicians and other people in power to account would be greatly diminished. on Sunday 28th September, 2014, The Sunday Mirror published a story revealing that the Conservative MP Brooks Newmark had sent explicit pictures to a woman that he believed was a public relations professional. By exposing such behaviour in a politician, The Sunday Mirror can claim to have performed a public service. Statutory rules about subterfuge and intrusions into people’s private lives might have prevented such a story from being put together Victims of press intrusion also gave evidence, including Hugh Grant and Charlotte Church who gave details about how they felt the press had been able to intrude on their personal lives to an unacceptable extent. At the end of the enquiry, it was recommended that the PCC be replaced with a new body with more power to bring the press into line. 

7) What was the Leveson enquiry and why was it set up?

The Leveson inquiry was a judicial public inquiry into the culture, practices and ethics of the British press following the News International phone hacking scandal, chaired by Lord Justice Leveson, who was appointed in July 2011.

8) What was the PCC replaced with in 2014?

On 8th September 2014, the PCC was replaced by the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO). This new body (like the PCC) has been set up by the newspaper industry itself and it’s code of practice is essentially the same as the code administered by the PCC. This has led to criticism that the new body is effectively the PCC under a different name.

9) What is your opinion on press regulation? Is a free press an important part of living in a democracy or should newspapers face statutory regulation like TV and radio?

I think that the press should be regulated in terms of not being able to publish opinions stated as fact; slander against people without evidence and releasing private/explicit messages or material.

10) Why is the internet so difficult to regulate?

The internet is global with a lot of different layers being used on a large scale.