1. COLONIALISM – Colonialism occurs when a country or a nation takes control of other lands, regions, or territories outside of its borders
2. POST COLONIALISM – the academic study of the cultural legacy of colonialism and imperialism
3. DIASPORA – a large group of people with a similar heritage or homeland who have since moved out to places all over the world
4. BAME – Used to refer to members of non-white communities in the UK
5. DOUBLE CONSCIOUSNESS (GILROY) – the internal conflict experienced by subordinated or colonized groups in an oppressive society
6. CULTURAL ABSOLUTISM / RACIAL ESSENTIALISM – cultures do not differ in honesty or intelligence levels 
7. CULTURAL SYNCRETISM – distinct aspects of different cultures blend together to make something new and unique
8. ORIENTALISM (SAID) – the way the east is viewed 
9. APPROPRIATION – is the adoption of elements of one culture by members of another culture
10. CULTURAL HEGEMONY – domination or rule maintained through ideological or cultural means
11. THE PUBLIC SPHERE (HABERMAS) – A place where the public can come together and discuss opinions freely 
12. THE ROLE OF PUBLIC SERVICE BROADCASTING IN TERMS OF FAIR REPRESENTATION OF MINORITY GROUPS / INTERESTS – PSB is mostly biased when referencing minority groups of society resulting in stereotypes 

1. COLONIALISM– When a country has power over it’s people
2. POST COLONIALISM– The study of the effects of colonialism and the ideas that remain once a country has been decolonised 
3. DIASPORA– The involuntary spread of a population from their home country
4. BAME-Used to refer to members of non-white communities in the UK
5. DOUBLE CONSCIOUSNESS (GILROY)– Describes the internal conflict of a minority in society
6. CULTURAL ABSOLUTISM / RACIAL ESSENTIALISM– A political approach places views of ethnic groups as fixed 
7. CULTURAL SYNCRETISM– When aspects of different cultures merge together resulting in something positive
8. ORIENTALISM (SAID)– How we view people of the middle east
9. APPROPRIATION– Is the adoption of an element or elements of one culture by members of another culture
10. CULTURAL HEGEMONY– The domination of a culturally diverse society by the ruling class
11. THE PUBLIC SPHERE (HABERMAS)– A part of our social life in which public opinion can be formed 
12. THE ROLE OF PUBLIC SERVICE BROADCASTING IN TERMS OF FAIR REPRESENTATION OF MINORITY GROUPS / INTERESTS– Public service broadcasting is often biased when representing minority groups which causes society to adopt stereotypes and misunderstandings of them

1. COLONIALISM– the policy that gain control of people of territory in order to have economic control.
2. POST COLONIALISM– the after effects of colonialism on a country.
3. DIASPORA– an ethnic people outside their original country.
4. BAME– a term to describe ethnic minorities (black, asian, etc) in the uk.
5. DOUBLE CONSCIOUSNESS (GILROY)– internal conflicts caused by ethnic minorities in a oppressive society.
6. CULTURAL ABSOLUTISM / RACIAL ESSENTIALISM – the idea that biological characteristics do not differ from different cultures.
7. CULTURAL SYNCRETISM– aspects of different cultures being blended to create a new culture.
8. ORIENTALISM (SAID)– the western worlds view of the Middle East.
9. APPROPRIATION– is the acquiring of aspects from another culture and using it in a different culture.
10. CULTURAL HEGEMONY– a diverse culture being controlled and owned by the upper class.
11. THE PUBLIC SPHERE (HABERMAS)– a place in society where opinions can be freely expressed to each other.
12. THE ROLE OF PUBLIC SERVICE BROADCASTING IN TERMS OF FAIR REPRESENTATION OF MINORITY GROUPS / INTERESTS– PSB have a duty to represent minority groups fairly, if they are not it can lead to minorities experiencing discrimination by a more dominant cultural group.

Q2: Explain how representations used in Music Videos communicate information about their cultural and political contexts.

The Specials, who are an English band formed in 1977, produced a song called The Ghost Town, that was released on the 12^th of June in 1981. This song managed to spend 3 weeks at no. 1 and 10 weeks in total on the UK Singles chart Top 40. Their music combines a danceable ska and rocksteady beat with punk energy. The binary opposition theory by Levi-Strauss can be linked to this song because there are 2 contrasting genres of music, which is Ska and Jazz.

Being in the top charts, helped them address the themes of urban decay, deindustrialization, unemployment and violence around the UK. They had confused their audience by producing “The Ghost Town” is it seemed different. The title track incorporated discordant horns, haunted chords and demonic vocal harmonies that was uncomfortable to listen to. Jerry Dammers, who was the keyboard player, stated that “the overall sense I wanted to convey was impending doom.”

The song was inspired by the economic state that the band saw when touring the UK. Local businesses were closing down and people were becoming unemployed. They said that “we were touring the country and we could literally see it happening.” They addressed the problems throughout their lyrics, referencing to the violence that was shown at their shows. When they noticed this violence, they decided to quit touring.

The St Pauls riots in Bristol 1980 happened due to police employing stop and search tactics on minorities. 130 people were arrested, 25 taken to hospital, including 19 police involved. Other similar situations started to occur, which was addressed in the song lyrics “the people getting angry”.

To give the song a gloomier atmosphere, the lighting of the music video was made to be very dark. This would have suggested the idea of a ghost town. during the middle of the music video, around 1min 13secs, a car swerves out of control. This could possibly signify how the employment situation in the UK at the time of 1981, unfortunately blew out of control. Through research, I’ve seen that 1981 was the height of employment, due to Margaret Thatcher’s decisions on closing down businesses, because they went “profitable”. This was what made the riots erupt all over the country.

The strong political message of the video is a challenge to the audience with a direct mode of address which is both angry and plaintive. The video was unusual for the time in conveying a strong social message (in contrast to the dominant style of pop music in the charts at the time), meaning that the audience of the time might well have been shocked or discomfited by it.

Finally, there is a hybrid mix of references the music video forms, as there’s an experimental combination of narrative, performance and concept. This means that the video can be read through a postmodern approach with reference to intertextuality and hybridity. 

1.COLONIALISM – When a country seeks to gain control over another countries territory, thus owning a colony

2.POST COLONIALISM – effects that occur/stay from a colonising country after a set colony is ended

3.DIASPORA– The spread of people who follow Judaism across the world

4.BAME – Black and Asian Minor Ethnicity

5.DOUBLE CONSCIOUSNESS (GILROY) – The internal/mental conflicts of minor ethnicity

6.CULTURAL ABSOLUTISM / RACIAL ESSENTIALISM – A belief that states that cultures do not differ in intelligence levels or honesty

7.CULTURAL SYNCRETISM – when cultures blend together their distinct aspects to make something new

8.ORIENTALISM (SAID) – believing that eastern societies/cultures are below us, inferior, backwards and exotic

9.APPROPRIATION – taking elements from a set culture by another culture

10.CULTURAL HEGEMONY – when a certain culture takes up leadership, assumes itself superior to others

11.THE PUBLIC SPHERE (HABERMAS) – a social area in which people can discuss and overcome societies problems, promoting political action in order to help the society

12.THE ROLE OF PUBLIC SERVICE BROADCASTING IN TERMS OF FAIR REPRESENTATION OF MINORITY GROUPS / INTERESTS – PSB should help us to understand BAME instead of enforcing dominant ideologies

1. COLONIALISM– When a country has power over it’s people
2. POST COLONIALISM– The study of the effects of colonialism and the ideas that remain once a country has been decolonised
3. DIASPORA– The involuntary spread of a population from their home country
4. BAME-Used to refer to members of non-white communities in the UK
5. DOUBLE CONSCIOUSNESS (GILROY)– Describes the internal conflict of a minority in society
6. CULTURAL ABSOLUTISM / RACIAL ESSENTIALISM– A political approach places views of ethnic groups as fixed
7. CULTURAL SYNCRETISM– When aspects of different cultures merge together resulting in something positive
8. ORIENTALISM (SAID)– How we view people of the middle east
9. APPROPRIATION– Is the adoption of an element or elements of one culture by members of another culture
10. CULTURAL HEGEMONY– The domination of a culturally diverse society by the ruling class
11. THE PUBLIC SPHERE (HABERMAS)– A part of our social life in which public opinion can be formed
12. THE ROLE OF PUBLIC SERVICE BROADCASTING IN TERMS OF FAIR REPRESENTATION OF MINORITY GROUPS / INTERESTS– Public service broadcasting is often biased when representing minority groups which causes society to adopt stereotypes and misunderstandings of them

Colonialism: Colonialism is the policy of a country seeking to extend or retain its authority over other people or territories, generally with the aim of economic dominance.

Post Colonialism: The academic study of the cultural legacy of colonialism and imperialism, focusing on the human consequences of the control and exploitation of colonised people and their lands.

Diaspora: A diaspora is a scattered population whose origin lies in a separate geographic locale.

Bame: A term long used to refer to black, Asian and minority ethnic people in the UK.

Double consciousness (Gilroy): A term explaining the internal conflict experienced by subordinated groups in an oppressive society.

Cultural absolution/ racial essentialism: The idea that psychological phenomena, eg honesty and intelligence do not differ from culture to culture.

Cultural syncretism: The distinct aspects of different cultures in which blend together to make something unique.

Orientalism (SAID): Orientalism is the imitation or depiction of aspects in the Eastern world (could be in a stereotyped way).

Appropriation: Appropriation in art is the use of pre-existing objects or images with little or no transformation applied to them.

Cultural Hegemony: In Marxist philosophy, cultural hegemony is the domination of a culturally diverse society by the ruling class who manipulate the culture of that society.

The public sphere (Habermas): Public sphere, according to Habermas, is a democracy approach in which different groups of people coming together to share their opinion towards social and political issues (Lubenow, 2012).

Task 1 – Background

• Released June 12th 1981
• It was the ‘single of the year’ for 1981
• Ghost Town was originally created as a a ‘break up’ song for The Specials
• Signed to the label 2 tone
• Was number 1 upon release for a few weeks (3) and was in the top 40 for 10 weeks meaning it was a popular and successful song
• Barney Bubbles directed it
• Awards: NME award for best single
• Jerry Dammers wrote the song
• The Specials were formed in 1977

Task 2 – Cultural, Historical and Social background

• In 1981 unemployment rates in the UK were at the high with almost 3 million unemployed
• The song was number 1 post-Brixton and during the Handsworth and Toxteth riots
• The song represents an unease about the state of the nation
• The cultural critic Dorian Lynskey has described it as ‘’a remarkable pop cultural moment’’ one that “defined an era’

1. COLONIALISM– having full or patriarchal control over a country and exploiting it economically
2. POST COLONIALISM–  the effects left on a country after a country is colonised
3. DIASPORA– Jewish people that live outside Israel
4. BAME– A term long used to refer to black, Asian and minority ethnic people in the UK
5. DOUBLE CONSCIOUSNESS (GILROY)– Internal conflict in subordinated groups who are oppressed by society
6. CULTURAL ABSOLUTISM / RACIAL ESSENTIALISM–  belief that intelligence and honesty do not differ from culture to culture
7. CULTURAL SYNCRETISM– distinctive aspects from cultures that are mixed and blended together to create something unique and new
8. ORIENTALISM (SAID)– seeing Eastern societies as exotic, primitive, and inferior.
9. APPROPRIATION– taking something from someone without the owners knowledge
10. CULTURAL HEGEMONY– dominating a culturally diverse society by the ruling class and manipulating the culture of that society 
11. THE PUBLIC SPHERE (HABERMAS)– a place where people can come together to freely discuss societal problems

COLONIALISM– the control or governing influence of a nation over a dependent country, territory, or people.

POST COLONIALISM– the academic study of the cultural legacy of colonialism and imperialism, focusing on the human consequences of the control and exploitation of colonised people and their lands.

DIASPORA-the dispersion of a particular culture/ethnic group beyond their originating geographical location.

BAME– a term long used in the UK to refer to black, Asian and minority ethnic people.

DOUBLE CONSCIOUSNESS (GILROY)-a term describing the internal conflict experienced by subordinated groups in an oppressive society.

CULTURAL ABSOLUTISM / RACIAL ESSENTIALISM– a philosophical position that declares a society’s.

CULTURAL SYNCRETISM– is when an aspect of two or more distinct cultures blend together to create a new custom, idea, practice, or philosophy.

ORIENTALISM (SAID)– as defined by Edward Said, is the Western attitude that views Eastern societies as exotic, primitive, and inferior.

CULTURAL APPROPRIATION– is the adoption of an element or elements of one culture by members of another culture. This can be controversial when members of a dominant culture appropriate from disadvantaged minority cultures.

CULTURAL HEGEMONY-the domination of a culturally diverse society by the ruling class who manipulate the culture of that society eg US government

THE PUBLIC SPHERE (HABERMAS)– an area in social life where individuals can come together to freely discuss and identify societal problems, and through that discussion influence political action.

THE ROLE OF PUBLIC SERVICE BROADCASTING IN TERMS OF FAIR REPRESENTATION OF MINORITY GROUPS / INTERESTS– a key issue that is facing PSB (Public Service Broadcasting) is the representation of ethnic minorities as one of the functions of PSB is to reflect the reality of multi-ethnic and multicultural republics.