Q – How valid are Baudrillard’s ideas of simulation and hyperreality to understanding the media? (Refer to Sims Freeplay and Teen Vogue).

Baudrillard –

Precession of simulacra = Society has become so obsessed and saturated with this ‘simulacra’ that all or any meaning has become meaningless. Simulacra is a representation of a thing that had/ has no origins or prefixed reality whereas a ‘simulation’ is a re-representation of one reality or, perhaps, an idealised reality.

The main argument being put forth by Baudrillard is that nothing in our culture is “real” in the true sense of the word. Everything that we consider real is simply a “simulacrum” which is basically just a representation or copy where the original no longer exists, like a statue of a person or picture.

Simulacra are copies that depict things that either had no original, or that no longer have an original. Simulation is the imitation of the operation of a real-world process or system over time.

Postmodernism –

Simulation –

Hyperreality – Baudrillard’s idea of hyperreality was heavily influenced by phenomenology, semiotics, and Marshall McLuhan. … Hyperreality is the inability of consciousness to distinguish reality from a simulation of reality, especially in technologically advanced societies.

Mcluhan –

In relation to Sims –

SIMS = SIMulation = intangible

In relation to Teen Vogue –

Overall impact of new media –

 Jürgen Habermas, Jean Baudrillard, Jean-Francois Lyotard, Fredric Jameson

• Establish your knowledge of Postmodernism / Baudrillard
• Establish your knowledge of ‘simulation’ and ‘hypperreality’
• Apply these concepts to 2 of your case studies
• Make some assertions about the impact of new media in terms of society and the individual
• Conclude

Baudrillard- theory of simulation and hyper reality.

Indicative content

This question assesses knowledge and understanding of the theoretical framework of representation and language particularly focusing on (though not limited to):

• the codes and conventions of media forms and products, including the processes through which media language develops as genre

• the dynamic and historically relative nature of genre

• the processes through which meanings are established through intertextuality. Responses are required to evaluate the validity of Baudrillard’s ideas about simulation and hyperreality in addressing uses of media language which are both historical and contemporary.

They should refer to the new media CSPs to support their points.

Responses in the higher bands will clearly engage with the evaluation of the validity of the ideas and will support their points with effective reference to the CSPs.

Various conclusions are acceptable, provided they are substantiated through reference to the set products.

This is an extended response question. In order to achieve the highest marks, a response must construct and develop a sustained line of reasoning, which is coherent, relevant, substantiated and logically structured.

Baudrillard’s ideas included in the question are Simulation and Hyperreality. However, these are post-modernist notions so there is also scope for:

• Simulacra

• Pastiche

• Bricolage

• Intertextuality

• Implosion.

The debate here is about the ‘realities’ offered by the two texts and the difference between ‘representation’ and ‘simulation’, and between ‘reality and ‘hyperreality’.

Simulation is non-referential: a real without origin or reality: a hyperreal’.

A useful question is ‘what exactly is being signified here?’

It is evident in both texts where what is ‘simulated’ is a series of characters (both fictional and ‘real life’) engaged in the ‘routines’ of consumerism. As our lives are increasingly taken up with mediated experience, we make little distinction between the direct reality that we experience first-hand and the simulated experience offered by media.

Finally, we may get to the stage where the difference between reality and mediated experience hasn’t just got blurred, the ‘image’ part has got the upper hand, mediated signs become ‘more real than reality itself’; this is hyper reality

Possible essay structure

• Establish your knowledge of Postmodernism / Baudrillard
• Establish your knowledge of ‘simulation’ and ‘hyper reality’
• Apply these concepts to 2 of your case studies
• Make some assertions about the impact of new media in terms of society and the individual
• Conclude

Camille Paglia, the feminist writer and critic, said:

“Postmodernism is just shopping” What she meant by this was that we now live in a world where we have access to a massive variety of different ideas, styles, beliefs, fashions, and we have the choice to pick and choose, mix and match them

postmodernism is the Attention to play of surfaces, images, things mean what we make them mean, no concern for “depth” but with how things look and respond.

Hyper-reality, image saturation, simulacra seem more powerful than the “real”; images and texts with no prior “original”.
“As seen on TV” and “as seen on MTV” are more powerful than unmediated experience.

Jean Lyotard has the theory of meta-narratives, this idea of legitimation from historical meaning. Thinks that no one seemed to agree on ‘reality’ what was true.

pastiche- teen vogue website is something seen before, like a reference to a newspaper. this theorist is called Fredric Jameson

postmodernisn is very surface style, intertexualty. Culture focused on play for example sims freeplay. Can build ting but cannoy physically connect with. Most often visuals than physical.

Teen vogue has a large photo for each story as it attracts more due to visuals. Very fragmented and decentralized. It doesn’t have much meaning , no master idea just little satellites rather than kernels.

There is a lack of underpinning knowledge or idea, there is an emphasis on surface over style.

does new media/technology have a social impact on the world or is it just something to pass time and enjoy? Is there any depth in this compared to other cultural ideas.

Slavoj’s theory relates to this, about the kinder egg. Surface is so much better than the actual thing inside and the meaning. A rubbish toy inside of the ‘amazing’ chocolate on the outside.

Music videos were first used for middle class white people, what is seen on the surface may not be ‘ real’

Zubof- we think we are consuming stuff when playing games (example sims freeplay) however there is more behind it.

Population grew in the 20th century- 7/8 billion people in 2021, a massive rise in ‘things’ therefore there is more consumption. There is a wider range to choose from and this can be related to a feminist called Camille Paglia.^^

Coca cola advert- the first drink is cold refreshing and lush however you want more but its never really as good as the first.

This idea that postmodernism is linked to consumerism.

Consumerism is a social and economic order that encourages the acquisition of goods and services in ever-increasing amounts. With the industrial revolution, but particularly in the 20th century, mass production led to overproduction—the supply of goods would grow beyond consumer demand, and so manufacturers turned to planned obsolescence and advertising to manipulate consumer spending.

Postmodernism is more individual and alienated, we now consume alone rather than together. We are now fragmented from each other. For example teen vogue and sims free-play are now consumed alone on a mobile phone or computer or ipad. Stories are read alone and games are single player.

There is a simulation of society that is more real than reality- for example only a televised version took place for the gulf war not the true event.

Strinati relates events in real time to a mass society, or the conception of the media as a ‘window on the world’ (

QUESTION: HOW VALID ARE BAUDRILLARD’S IDEAS OF SIMULATION AND HYPER-REALITY TO UNDERSTANDING THE MEDIA? you should refer to two of the close study products ( sims freeplay, the voice, tomb raider,teen vogue,metroid)

Postmodernism can be understood as a philosophy that is characterised by concepts such as RE-IMAGINING, PASTICHE, PARODY, COPY, BRICOLAGE. It’s an approach towards understanding, knowledge, life, being, art, technology, culture, sociology, philosophy, politics and history that is REFERENTIAL – in that it often refers to and often copies other things in order to understand itself.

post-modernism is essentially the idea of things copying or re-imagining already existing things, although you may only understand postmodern things if you understand their references, for example you wont know that something is a parody of something else unless you know what they are making a parody of/what their reference is.

postmodernisms emphasis is on the surface, in postmodernism surface and style are the most important defining features.

postmodern culture is a consumer culture.

pastiche is a work of art, drama, literature, music, or architecture that imitates the work of a previous artist

parody is a work or performance that imitates another work or performance with ridicule or irony

Jean Baudrillard

He is best known for his analyses of media, contemporary culture, and technological communication, as well as his formulation of concepts such as simulation and hyperreality.

From a societal perspective the ‘real’ seems to be imploding in on itself, a ‘process leading to the collapse of boundaries between the real and simulations’ (Barker & Emma, 2015:242). A process which the French intellectual Jean Baudrillard would describe as IMPLOSION which gives rise to what he terms SIMULACRA. The idea that although the media has always been seen as a representation of reality – a simulation, from Baudrillard’s perspective of implosion, it is has become more than a representation or simulation and it has become SIMULACRUM not just a representation of the real, but the real itself, a grand narrative that is ‘truth‘ in its own right: an understanding of uncertain/certainty that Baudrillard terms the HYPERREAL.

SIMULACRUM: The simulacrum is often defined as a copy with no original, or as Gilles Deleuze (1990) describes it, “the simulacrum is an image without resemblance^“ Baudrillard argues that a simulacrum is not a copy of the real, but becomes truth in its own right. He created four steps of reproduction: (1) basic reflection of reality, (2) perversion of reality; (3) pretense of reality (where there is no model); and (4) simulacrum, which “bears no relation to any reality whatsoever”.

HYPERREAL: in semiotics and postmodernism, is an inability of consciousness to distinguish reality from a simulation of reality, especially in technologically advanced postmodern societies. Hyperreality is seen as a condition in which what is real and what is fiction are seamlessly blended together so that there is no clear distinction between where one ends and the other begins. It allows the co-mingling of physical reality with virtual reality (VR) and human intelligence with artificial intelligence (AI).

Possible essay structure

• Establish your knowledge of Postmodernism / Baudrillard
• Establish your knowledge of ‘simulation’ and ‘hypperreality’
• Apply these concepts to 2 of your case studies
• Make some assertions about the impact of new media in terms of society and the individual
• Conclude

other theorists

• Jürgen Habermas 

•  Jean-Francois Lyotard – Jean-Francois Lyotard’s proposition that postmodernism holds an ‘incredulity towards meta-narratives‘ (1979:7) those overarching ideas, attitudes, values and beliefs that have held us together in a shared belief

• Fredric Jameson – Fredric Jameson claimed that Postmodernism is characterized by pastiche rather than parody which represents a crisis in historicity. Jameson argued that parody implies a moral judgment or a comparison with previous societal norms. Whereas pastiche, such as collage and other forms of juxtaposition, occur without a normative grounding and as such, do not make comment on a specific historical moment. As such, Jameson argues that the postmodern era is characterised by pastiche (not parody) and as such, suffers from a crisis in historicity.

Baudrillard’s theory – Baudrillard believed that society had become so saturated with these simulacra and our lives so saturated with the constructs of society that all meaning was becoming meaningless by being infinitely mutable; he called this phenomenon the “precession of simulacra”.

Simulation: “the action or practice of simulating, with an intent to deceive,” then as “a false assumption or display, a surface resemblance or imitation, of something,” and finally as “the technique of imitating the behavior of some situation or process

Hyper reality: Hyperreality is the inability of consciousness to distinguish reality from a simulation of reality, especially in technologically advanced societies.

pastiche: is a work of art, drama, literature, music, or architecture that imitates the work of a previous artist

parody: is a work or performance that imitates another work or performance with ridicule or irony

INTERTEXTUALITY meaning in reference to other signs and that meaning is therefore a complex process of decoding/encoding with individuals both taking and creating meaning in the process of reading texts.