MEDIA STUDIES: REPRESENTATION

-What to consider-Stereotypes-Readings-Audience theories and positioning-Media Regulation

Applying these to the representation within the media of:women/men/ethnicity/age/disabilities/sexuality/regional identity/issues/events

Key quote: Roland Barthes “The text loads the image”

-Who produced the text (for what reason; political bias; any agendas)?-Who/what is represented in the text?-How is x represented (consider the visual codes: colour/costume / imagery/pose/composition/copy [title/taglines/screamers]/facial expression/lighting/location)?-Why was this representation (x shot/angle/narrative structure (linear/non-linear) used; why weren’t other options used?-How does the audience decode the text to be positioned?-Does the text challenge the hegemonic ideology?

Propp’s Spheres of ActionHero (on a quest)/villain (opposes the hero)/donor (helps hero with a magical tool)/dispatcher (sends hero on his way)/false hero (tempts hero away from quest)/helper (helps the hero)/princess (hero’s reward)/father (rewards hero)

Todorov’s Narrative ArcEquilibrium > disruption > realisation > attempt to repair damage of disruption > restoration of equilibrium (may be a new equilibrium)

What to Consider

Stereotypes‘A stereotype is a standardised representation of a specific group of people or objects’ (Revision Express: Media Studies AS & A2)

Examples:age (‘all teenagers and disrespect their elders’)sex (‘all women like housework’)race (‘ all black people partake in illegal activities’)

-Stereotypes are not necessarily inherently negative – for instance, two larger individuals walking behind a shorter individual is the stereotype for bodyguards and allows for an understanding of the scene within the narrative

-Media texts can conform to stereotypes (for example, for comedic effect) or subvert them (for example, the female protagonist in the British television sitcom ‘Miranda’ is socially awkward). Typically, the subversion of stereotypes is an example of positive representation. Negative representation can consist of tokenism (whereby a character exists solely to represent their respective racial/age etc. group and are not integral to the narrative), backgrounding (whereby a racial/age etc. group are only represented as background characters) and an absence of the group in question

Readings

Preferred reading:Media texts are encoded with a preferred reading for the audience to deconstruct and agree with (for example, agreeing with the message of a film)

Oppositional reading:The audience rejects the message of the text

Mediated reading:The audience agrees and disagrees with the message of the text

Polysemic reading:This refers to a text which can be interpreted in multiple ways

Audience Theories

Hypodermic Needle ModelAudiences are passive and are injected with ideologies

Cultivation TheoryRepeated exposure leads to desensitisation (for example, with violence)

Two-step FlowAudiences discuss texts but can be passive with someone they respect

Uses and Gratifications TheoryAudiences actively consume information for their own desires: information/learning/personal identity/integration/entertainment

Media Regulation-The media has a significant influence (especially on impressionable audiences) and thus legislation exists to ensure unbiased representation

-The Race Relations Act (1976) states that media institutions may not broadcast/publish material which may be deemed offensive to ethnic groups

-The Obscene Publications Act (1959, redrafted 1964) states that nothing obscene should be represented in the media, hence the importance of the 9PM ‘watershed’

-The Representation of the People Act (1983) sets out guidelines on the broadcast time allowed for each political party

-The Public Order Act (1986) prevents the broadcast or publication of any material which may be deemed offensive to any ethnic or national group

-The Sex Discrimination Act (1986) ensures equality for the genders

-The Broadcasting Act (1990) states that the ITC (Independent Television Commission) must ensure that programmes broadcasted will not be offensive

-Most regulatory bodies are voluntary and consequently, media producers do not have to adhere to the pertinent groups; most do

The Representation of Women Within the Media: Texts (film cover + game cover)

2014 2014

The Representation of Women Within the Media:Textual Analysis

The poster for the film ‘The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 1’ portrays the established character of Katniss (played by Jennifer Lawrence) as a strong, post-modern feminist icon through her presence being centralised and dishevelled hair, creating the impression that she is a layered character; not existing for sex appeal. On the other hand, she has a flawless face; parted lips; lighting emphasising her breasts; and form-fitting clothing, thus presenting her as a male fantasy. That the promotional material can be decoded in these two ways demonstrates the polysemic reading.

The game cover for PS4’s ‘The Last of Us’ features low key lighting and a black and white colour scheme to add authenticity (and connoting themes of life and death; ‘them’ or ‘us’; no moral ambiguity) whilst creating an ominous tone, inaugurated by the text ‘The Last of Us’. Through Roland Barthes’ line: “the text loads the image”, it can be assumed that the female character is a part of this post-apocalyptic setting – that she is, automatically empowers her, as the audience is to assume she has persevered through the trials and tribulations of an apocalypse. This is further supported through the anchorage of white, which humanises her. Interestingly, she’s protecting a male, thus subverting the hegemonic ideology of women being dependent. Additionally, she’s emerging from the shadows, similarly to an antagonist, thus connoting that she is in control and retains power.

The Representation of Men within the Media:Texts (game cover + film + advertisement)

2014 2010

The Representation of Men within the Media: Textual Analysis

The Playstation 4 game ‘The Last of Us’ features a man in shadow, who appears to be dependent and reliant upon the female character due to being positioned behind her. This therefore subverts the stereotype of the ‘macho’ man.

Similarly, A Dove advert campaign for deodorant features the bold text ‘real men do the heavy lifting’, however this is ironic as a man is depicted holding a child, thus subverting the stereotype of the ‘macho’ man whom of which is unconcerned with children.

The film ’Kick-Ass’ (released in 2010 and directed by Matthew Vaugn) features a pro-active teenager which is a subversion of stereotypes since the stereotypical ‘nerd’ becomes the empowered protagonist.

The Representation of Ethnicity within the Media:Texts (television series + film + magazine cover)

2014

The Representation of Ethnicity Within the Media:Textual Analysis

Played by black actor Idris Elba in the television series ‘Luther’, John Luther is morally ambiguous (receiving help from a killer) with strained relationships with colleagues. This an example of positive representation of ethnicity due to him being a layered character with development, as evidenced by him becoming less prone to anger outbursts in the second season.

The film Divergent (released in 2014 and directed by Neil Burger) features negative non-white in the form of tokenism as evidenced by a non-white character not being named. Furthermore, the character of Christina is defined by her comedic attributes and does not advance the narrative.

A magazine issue of Asian Woman’ magazine stars the model Alesha Dixon and targets westernised women aged 18-25; aspirers who desire Dixen’s appeal and want to explore taboo topics such as same-sex desire. The tagline: ‘the magazine for the woman who wants the world’ connotes the exploration of cultural identity and therefore the magazine adheres to the personal identification category of the uses and gratifications theory. This is supported by the masthead and juxtaposition of the eastern jewellery and fabrics in contrast to the western idea of exposing skin and provocative facial expression (parted lips with eyes wide open).Screamers with enigma codes such as ‘make him want you’ ascribe the magazine to the ‘information’ part of the uses and gratifications model. The magazine features a polysemic reading, in that traditionalists who are opposed to cultural integration and the exploration of taboo topics would take the oppositional reading. Ultimately, the magazine challenges the hegemonic ideology of women being passive in that the magazine portrays women as pro-active who “want the world” yet do exist for sex appeal as substantiated by Dixon’s provocative facia expression.

The Representation of Age Within the Media: Texts (magazine cover + film)

2010

The Representation of Age Within the Media: Textual Analysis

The ‘50 Plus Magazine’ starring Robert Lindsay largely subverts the stereotypes of elder males being dependent. According to Roland Barthes, “the text loads the image”, therefore the model can be assumed to be over 50 and subverts the stereotype of the elderly living a life with no worth. This is connoted through the anchorage of blue, which reinforces the model’s masculinity whilst creating a mellow tone. Additionally, that he is likely on a cruise with a confident expression (shown through a raised eyebrow) adds a degree of sophistication, showing his independence and assured nature; effectively targeting aspirers over the age of 50 (as reinforced by the masthead). Furthermore, the enigma code of ‘In search of the perfect curry’ inverts the stereotype of elderly individuals being traditionalists who prefer English food. Conversely, the stereotype of men smoking a cigar on a cruise whilst the women have a drink and socialise is affirmed.

The film ‘The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel’ (released in 2011 and directed by John Madden) portrays the elderly in a progressively positive manner. The character of Muriel (played by Maggie Smith) initially conforms to the stereotypes of the elderly being xenophobic, intolerant of other cultures and vulnerable (as evidenced by her requirement of a hip replacement and wheelchair). As per the hypodermic needle model, the media ‘injects’ the ‘passive’ audience, resulting in them decoding the encoded stereotypical views of the character and applying them to all people of this age group. In contrast, by the end of the movie, Muriel’s character arc is that of becoming tolerant of the Indian culture, hence the audience decodes these encoded messages positively because of this. This is legitimated by her taking a few steps unguided and without a wheelchair. Furthermore, the character of Carol’s states “at our age we can’t afford the luxury of taking it slow”, thus communicating to the audience that the elderly could die at any moment, which is reinforced by the death of the character of Graham earlier on the film.

The Representation of Disabilities Within the Media (television series + film)

The character of Muriel (played by Maggie Smith) in the 2011 film ‘The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel’ (directed by John Madder and released in 2011) is encoded with the stereotype of the elderly being vulnerable. This is supported by her requiring a hip replacement to be completed in India. Additionally, she is xenophobic and intolerant of other cultures. As per the hypodermic needle model, the media ‘injects’ the ‘passive’ audience, resulting in them decoding the encoded stereotypical views of the character and applying them to all people of this age group. In contrast, by the end of the movie, Muriel’s character arc is that of becoming tolerant of the Indian culture, hence the audience decodes these encoded messages positively because of this. Moreover, to legitimate her change in character, she walks for a few steps unaided.

Channel 5’s programme ‘Benefits Britain: Life on the Dole’ features a man named Philip. Depicted as a struggling 51 year old man, he is forced to sell his scooter in order to pay for his bills. Due to jaunty non-diegetic music playing, the audience is offered a negotiated reading, in that whilst they are positioned to be sympathetic to Philip as he gives up his scooter, they are positioned to feel unsympathetic since he is capable of selling his jewellery (that which has aptly earned him the nickname Silver). Additionally, this sympathy is reinforced as he frequently visits a shop offering English breakfasts as he communicates his trials and tribulations to the shop owner, creating a sense of relatability whilst humanising him through his regional identity.

The Representation of Sexuality Within the Media: film

The character of George in the film ‘My Best Friend’s Wedding’ (directed by J.P Hogan and released in 1997) is an example of negative representation due to his character being primarily defined by his sexuality. He essentially acts as a plot device, whereas the script could have incorporated intelligent writing to provide a more realistic representation. Additionally, he is encoded with the stereotype of homosexual males being foppish as evidenced by his vanity; since the hypodermic needle model states that audiences are passive, this text ‘injects’ the ‘passive’ audience, resulting in them decoding all homosexual males in the same manner.

On the other hand, the character of Graham in the film ‘The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel’ (released in 2011 and directed by John Madder) subverts the stereotype of homosexual males being incapable of having long lasting romantic affiliations, as evidenced by his affection for his lover in the city of Jagpur. Furthermore, he is an example of positive representation in regards to sexuality since he is a layered character, having a past, guilt and aspirations, as opposed to being defined by his sexuality. The audience is positioned to take the preferred reading of homosexual males being regular people, as opposed to the foppish dandy that is seen with George.

Alternatively, the character of Bruce Banner in Joss Whedon’s ‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’ is a heterosexual male yet subverts a stereotype by claiming that he cannot have children.

The Representation of Regional Identity within the Media:Texts (television series + film)

2006

The Representation of Regional Identity Within the Media:Textual Analysis

‘Essex girl’ is a pejorative stereotype existing in the UK. The image consists of promiscuity and verbal vulgarity. The extent of this is such that there is a form of joke dedicated to the stereotype, for example: “What does an Essex girl use for protection? A bus stop”. This effectively encapsulates the stereotypical attitudes and is further reinforced on the television soap opera ‘The Only Way is Essex’ in which a character named ‘Chloe’ dedicates her time to a face peel in which her vanity is exposed.

The television series broadcasted on Channel 4 ‘The Inbetweeners’ revolves around four white males who live in the suburbs outside London, which is stereotypical of the English middle-class. Additionally, this is reinforced by the mise-en-scene of the housing estates.

The ‘Londoner’ stereotype consists of two: the pretentious upper-class originating from central or west London; and the lower-class intemperate lower-class teenager partaking in illegal activities. This is capitalised upon in the 2006 drama film ‘Kidulthood’, the poster of which features a title consisting of a lower-case letter contrasted against upper-case letters, thus connoting immaturity and highlights the use of slang, mocking society’s attitude towards teenagers. The inclusion of the baseball bat is an action code, suggesting violence, whilst the low-key lighting shows the grief within the narrative, contrasted against the miniscule ray of hope that the sun provides.

The Representation of Issues Within the Media: Benefits and Immigration

Newspapers such as the high selling ‘The Daily Mail’ and ‘The Sun’ create a false social reality, representing immigrants utilising the benefits system in a negative manner. The common techniques consist of using the collective pronoun “we” to involve the reader and the word “they”, so as to marginalise and demonise those on benefits, creating a sense of detachment and dehumanisation.

Additionally, demeaning terms are used in headlines such as “scroungers”, allowing for the preferred reading of people using benefits having detrimental effects on the British economy; which is false since the money used for benefits accounts amounts to less than 1% of the total economic output. This results in the term “immigration” having negative connotations, which is inaugurated by talk shows involving the politician (at the time of writing) Nigel Farage of UKIP’s stance against open immigration policies . That most immigrants are either working or in education shows that the matter of immigration is a moral panic, sensationalised by the media. The public perception is further distorted through the use of official statistics stressing the overspending on immigrants.

Television programmes such as Channel 5’s ‘Benefits Britain: Life on the Dole’ offer a more balanced view of people using the welfare system. A mother was portrayed sympathetically with her trials and tribulations (such as being economically deprived) presented without distortion. This can be contrasted against the female named ‘Julie’ pursuing a job, who is shown using profanity several times whilst jaunty non-diegetic music plays. This tongue-in-cheek portrayal juxtaposed against the sincere, positive representation of the struggling mother shows television programmes offer a more mediated reading; as opposed to the absence of positive representation of immigration.

The Representation of Events Within the Media: Ashya King and the 2015 Election

In 2014, the parents of five-year-old Ashya King removed him from hospital (against medical advice) and took him abroad to receive brain tumour treatment. They were subsequently detained in Madrid. This event proved to be controversial, as evidenced by the newspapers changing the preferred reading after an oppositional audience reaction, thus demonstrating the complex relationship within media institutions and audiences. On August 29th 2014, the British tabloid newspaper ‘The Sun’ demonised the parents through the use of “snatched”, positioning the audience to decode them as criminals, with emotive language (“sick boy”) used to position the audience to sympathise with Ashya, further marginalising the parents. Conversely, a later issue positioned the audience to adopt the preferred reading of the parents also being victims through the line “Let down by NHS, hunted like criminals”.

In the run up to the 2015 UK election, TV broadcaster Channel 4 aired a controversial and provocative documentary named ‘100 Days of UKIP’, which envisioned life in Britain had it been governed by Nigel Farage (of UKIP). Described as a “mockumentary”, it utilised an assortment of news footage and acted scenes, suggesting that a UKIP government would lead to race riots, mass unemployment as businesses leave Britain and barbaric immigration raids in the Government’s goal of tackling illegal migration. Ultimately, the documentary presents the political party as totalitarian, essentially demonising Farage due to the graphic imagery of immigrants locked in a cage; the low key lighting and grimy setting is dystopian in nature and creates the binary opposition of ‘us’ vs ‘them’. Due to the graphic imagery, grimy setting and low-key lighting, the piece provided the preferred reading of the political party UKIP (should they get in power) having a detrimental effect upon British society. This piece of propaganda (evidently politically biased through the use of hyperbole) garnered a vast amount of attention on social media, with the term “disgusting” being notable.