Barthes– He suggested texts may be ‘open’ or ‘closed’. Closed texts are those that are produced with a single, definitive meaning in mind making any interpretation from the audience inaccurate. He explored social theory, anthropology and semiotics, the science of symbols, and studied their impact on society. His work left an impression on the intellectual movements of Structuralism and Post-Structuralism.

C S Pierce– 3 Types of Signs:

Symbolic- has a random link to its object e.g. color, shapes, textures. 

Indexical- a sign that has a link to its object e.g. sounds, props.

Iconic- a sign that looks like an object e.g. sets, camera work.

Saussure- There are the signifier and the signified. The signifier is the object, the word, the image or action. The signified is the concept behind the object that is being represented

Steve Neale- States that genres all contain instances of repetition and difference. Neale states that the film and its genre is defined by two things: How much is conforms to its genre’s individual conventions and stereotypes. 

Repertoire of elements – repeated features that are identical and recognisable as a specific

Hybridisation – The merging of different genres to create a sub-genre, more than one genre in a text

Todorov-  In a film or story, the power is in a state of equilibrium (balance). He believes that as the story progresses the state of equilibrium can change, giving one person more power or authority over another throughout the plot, keeping the audience entertained.

Propp- Argued that stories are character driven and that plots develop from the decisions and actions of characters and how they function in a story.

He concluded that all the characters in tales could be resolved into 7 abstract character functions:

1. The villain
2. The dispatcher
3. The helper
4. The princess or prize, and often her father
5. The donor
6. The hero 
7. The false hero

Gilroy- Believes we can still see the affects of colonialism in the media now. He also believes that ethnic minorities are often shown as powerless and weak and he believes white western people are shown as successful, powerful and important.

Butler- Gender is a social construct, it’s about how you feel and behave. Butler says gender is constructed through performance, so certain activities make you feel more masculine/feminine.

Habermas- The public sphere is an area in social life where individuals can come together to freely discuss and identify societal problems, and through that discussion influence political action.

Curran and Seaton-

1. How the media landscape has fallen under the control of a handful of global media conglomerates. 
2. costs and risks associated with the production of media products has resulted in the organisation of media companies into vertically and horizontally aligned conglomerates. 
3. Mass market news: news designed to appeal to huge readership 
4. Horizontal integration: Ownership os subsidiaries that produce similar types of products.
5. Vertical integration: Ownership os subsidiaries that enable a media producer to produce, promote and distribute products.
6. Present the view that a free press relies on a free market where individual newspapers can compete through their political stances and points of view. Analyze the ways that The i and the Daily Mail attempt to establish a distinctive identity within this free market

Hesmondhalgh- The idea of a ‘risky business’ and being hard to meet everyone’s needs. Not being able to predict if an audience will enjoy what is being created.

Gerbner- Cultivation Theory – the more you look at TV, the more you are likely to believe in the reality of the representations

Stuart Hall- Media texts are encoded by the producer meaning that whoever produces the text fills the product with values and messages. The text is then decoded by the audience. Also, cultural identity is not only a matter a ‘being’ but of ‘becoming’, ‘belonging as much to the future as it does to the past’. From Hall’s perspective, identities undergo constant transformation, transcending time and space.

Lasswell- Hypodermic model- is a model of communication suggesting that an intended message is directly received and wholly accepted by the receiver.

Giddens and Gauntlet-  Representation Theory = “it remains the case that most women and men remain somewhat constricted within particular gender roles.”

Gauntlet- Pick and Mix Theory – Audiences pick and mix what they engage with as they are active not passive.

Giddens argues that just as an individual’s autonomy is influenced by structure, structures are maintained and adapted through the exercise of agency so structuration theory attempts to understand human social behaviour by resolving the competing views of structure-agency and macro-micro perspectives.

Daily Mail vs The I:

Question:	The Daily Mail	‘The i’ Newspaper
When they were first introduced?	1896	2010
Are they part of a bigger organisational structure?	Owned by ‘Daily Mail and General Trust’, a media company chaired by Viscount Rothermere	Owner – Daily Mail (as of late November 2019)
Are they known for a particular political perspective?	Right wing – Conservative	Liberal – non biased and don’t take a specific political stance
What kind of journalism do they produce?	Gossip, inaccurate scare stories of medical and scientific research, right wing politics, entertainment	Factual stories, Broadsheet
What kind of people run the paper?	Viscount Rothermere Family Editor – Geordie Grieg (2018)	Free Press
Do they have a similar readership reach?	Circulation – 1,134,184 (February 2020)  Readership – 2.2 Million (daily)	Circulation – 221, 083 (October 2019)
Do they have a similar readership profile / target audience?	Women make up 52-55% of readers, Middle Class women, Right wing, average age of 58	General public, any age, all political views
How are they currently doing? Increasing or decreasing sales and revenue?	-During lockdown the circulation went down to 945,000 from 1.13 Million in March.  -DMGT recorded a revenue of £1.41 Billion – Pretax profit £145 million	15% decrease of sales from June 2019 – June 2020
How are they looking to embrace new media technologies?	Daily Mail Online = 2003. (11.34 million visitors daily)	Online paper free to the reader
Do they have a similar layout and design?	Tabloid format (compact page size)	Broadsheet Layout

War of the Worlds:

Episode of the American radio drama anthology series The Mercury Theatre on the Air, directed and narrated by Orson Welles

Media Industries– War of the Worlds was broadcast byColumbia Broadcasting Company, It was broadcasted live as a halloween special at 8pm on Sunday 30 October 1938,Regulation – radio broadcasting was regulated by the Federal Communications Commission and it investigated the broadcast to see if it had broken any laws. Illustrates a passive audience and doesn’t therefore fit into the uses and gratifications theory.

• The aliens in War of the Worlds could be a metaphor for the enemies because the War of the Worlds podcast was produced in 1930s, which was when the Great Depression, the American Dust bowl and WW2 began.
• It is a radio podcast of a science fiction novel that was written by H.G Wells
• War of the Worlds radio drama had left listeners into suspended disbelief and became famous because it tricked people into believing aliens were invading Earth due to the “breaking news” style of the broadcast.
• was the 17th episode of the CBS Radio series The Mercury Theatre on Air, which was broadcast at 8 pm ET on Sunday, October 30, 1938.
• The science fiction drama was broadcasted from CBS, which is the Columbia Broadcasting System
• The radio science fiction drama was directed by Orson Welles and was adapted by Howard Koch
• It is a hybridization of the science fiction genre and the mystery genre.
• In 1938, radios were just being introduced, so it can be interpreted that War of the World was fake news to try and get more people to listen to CBS and buy radios.
• On it’s opening evening, it was estimated that around 30 million people were tuning into the broadcast and around 80% of Americans owned a radio then.

• Tomb Raider: 
• Tomb Raider- Between 2001 and 2008, is a media franchise that originated with an action-adventure video game series created by British gaming company Core Design. Formerly owned by Eidos Interactive, then by Square Enix Europe after Square Enix’s acquisition of Eidos in 2009, the franchise focuses on fictional British archaeologist Lara Croft, who travels around the world searching for lost artefacts and infiltrating dangerous tombs and ruins. Gameplay generally focuses on exploration of environments, solving puzzles, navigating hostile environments filled with traps, and fighting enemies. Additional media has been developed for the franchise in the form of film adaptations, comics and novels.
• Teen Vogue:
• Teen Vogue is an American online publication, formerly in print, launched in 2003, as a sister publication to Vogue, targeted at preteen girls. Like Vogue, it included stories about fashion and celebrities
• Teen Vogue Published a story on the 19th of February disclosing that many students have gone homeless and they are lacking basic needs. ‘Friend’s mind immediately turned to students living in motels, cars, or shelters, she tells Teen Vogue. “I thought, Oh my gosh, all these kids… How on earth are they going to be able to access their education?” It’s a situation Friend is more intimately familiar with than even some of her colleagues: She spent part of her adolescence without a permanent address, moving between motels with her parents and siblings.’
• Teen Vogue links to ‘share’ as these stories posted on teen vogue can be shared easily with other people for example re posting, or posting it elsewhere.
• Teen Vogue also links to ‘story’ as people on the website share their personal stories or from journalists.

Life hacks–

Media Industries– Radio 1 product and therefore has a public service statusas part of the BBC. The need to represent the nation. Arguments over the need for addressing a youth audience. The influence of new technology on media industries – Life Hacks as multi – platform media product.

Media Audiences– targets a niche audience, cultivation theory including Gerbner and reception theory including Hall. Targets a young audience, life hacks is involved in audience interaction through texts and calls.

War of the worlds–

Episode of the American radio drama anthology series The Mercury Theatre on the Air, directed and narrated by Orson Welles

Media Industries– War of the Worlds was broadcast byColumbia Broadcasting Company, It was broadcasted live as a halloween special at 8pm on Sunday 30 October 1938,Regulation – radio broadcasting was regulated by the Federal Communications Commission and it investigated the broadcast to see if it had broken any laws.

Uses and Gratifications theory:

Life Hacks:

Personal relationships: the feeling of support that is experienced as a result of knowing that there is an area/space for advice and help- knowing that people are going through the same thing as you. 

Personal identity: Being able to relate to stories being told and seeing your character reflected in the different topics mentioned.

Education: learning about different ways of handling problems etc.

Diversion: listening to different podcasts( reflecting what you are going through)- able to escape from what you are going through by seeking help and allowing yourself to listen to other people’s stories etc.

War of the Worlds:

Illustrates a passive audience and doesn’t therefore fit into the uses and gratifications theory.

Clay Shirky:

Audience behavior has changed due to the internet and the ability for audiences to create their own content at home thanks to the lower cost of technology. This new audience doesn’t just consume media, but also produces it – creating the term ‘presumer’

Radio itself declining in the age of active audience communication and interaction

Hesmondhalgh:

The idea of a ‘risky business’ and being hard to meet everyone’s needs. Not being able to predict if an audience will enjoy what is being created.

Passive to Hypodermic message:

The programmes show that there is a shift in media audiences – people are more in touch with the media and actually understand it now. People in the times of War Of The Worlds were less media literate. People in the 1930’s were more naïve and vulnerable.

All in all CBS radio’s ultimate goal was to create publicity. CBS were able to create publicity by being headlined on multiple newspaper articles. For example, The new York Times headlined a quote that stated ‘Radio listeners in panic, taking war drama as fact’. This shows how CBS were able to promote publicity through how vulnerable listeners were due to the commotion caused by WW2.

• The aliens in War of the Worlds could be a metaphor for the enemies because the War of the Worlds podcast was produced in 1930s, which was when the Great Depression, the American Dust bowl and WW2 began.
• It is a radio podcast of a science fiction novel that was written by H.G Wells
• War of the Worlds radio drama had left listeners into suspended disbelief and became famous because it tricked people into believing aliens were invading Earth due to the “breaking news” style of the broadcast.
• “The War of the Worlds” was the 17th episode of the CBS Radio series The Mercury Theatre on Air, which was broadcast at 8 pm ET on Sunday, October 30, 1938.
• H. G. Wells’ original novel tells the story of a Martian invasion of Earth. The novel was adapted for radio by Howard Koch, who changed the primary setting from 19th-century England to the contemporary United States, with the landing point of the first Martian spacecraft changed to rural Grover’s Mill, an unincorporated village in West Windsor Township, New Jersey. 
• The science fiction drama was broadcasted from CBS, which is the Columbia Broadcasting System
• The radio science fiction drama was directed by Orson Welles and was adapted by Howard Koch
• It was described as an anti-war film by Debra Sanders
• It is a hybridization of the science fiction genre and the mystery genre.
• Normal radio episodes were broadcasted and then there was a gap before War of the Worlds was played, which makes it seem as if these broadcasts are a metaphor for other things
• War of the Worlds was a Halloween special
• In 1938, radios were just being introduced,s o it can be interpreted that War of the World was fake news to try and get more people to listen to CBS and buy radios.
• On it’s opening evening, it was estimated that around 30 million people were tuning into the broadcast and around 80% of Americans owned a radio then.

Overview:

– It’s a programme/podcast from BBC Radio 1

– The show replaced ‘The Surgery’ in 2017 and took the Sunday Teatime slot

– The programme is hosted by Katie Thistleton and Vick Hope

– The show was previously hosted by Cel Spellman, Katie Thistleton and Radha Modgil

– The programme includes discussion of health and social issues such as exam stress, sexual health, alcohol and drugs.

– Although both ‘The Surgery’ and Life Hacks ran in scheduled broadcast slots, in recent years the programme has been available as a podcast and encourages digital consumption and interaction. 

How it attracts a young audience:

– The language used and the way the presenters present themselves suggest that they are trying to appeal to more of a youth audience as they tend to use informal language as if they were speaking to a friend – this also makes it more personal which may make the listeners feel as if they are being directly addressed.

– The content discussed is mainly targeting a youth audience as it specifically discusses growing up and going through life from a teenager/ younger persons position (university etc)

What audience pleasures are offered by ‘Life Hacks’? (Using uses and gratifications theory):

Audience pleasures that are offered by Life Hacks would be Diversion, education and personal relationships.

Personal relationships: the feeling of support that is experienced as a result of knowing that there is an area/space for advice and help- knowing that people are going through the same thing as you. 

Personal identity: Being able to relate to stories being told and seeing your character reflected in the different topics mentioned.

Education: learning about different ways of handling problems etc.

Diversion: listening to different podcasts( reflecting what you are going through)- able to escape from what you are going through by seeking help and allowing yourself to listen to other people’s stories etc.

What does the title “Life Hacks” Suggest?:

‘Life hacks’ is a terminology associated with the youth demographic – suggests that the show is targeting youth/millenials

Listening Stats:

– Radio listening figures in the UK- 90% of the population tune in to the radio every week 
– 61% tune of the population tune in to digital radio every week.

			Theory
Characters	Polly= Father figure= False hero because he leaves Richard.		PROPP, presents the idea of STOCK CHARACTERS, inc ‘hero’, ‘false hero’, ‘princess’, ‘father figure’, ‘despatcher’
	Annabelle= Hero because she takes Richard in and helps him whilst becoming friends		PROPP, presents the idea of STOCK CHARACTERS, inc ‘hero’, ‘false hero’, ‘princess’, ‘father figure’, ‘despatcher’
	Richard= Protagonist		PROPP, presents the idea of STOCK CHARACTERS, inc ‘hero’, ‘false hero’, ‘princess’, ‘father figure’, ‘despatcher’