Viewpoints and Ideologies:

Capitalism:

Economic/political system where a country’s trade and industry are controlled by private owners for profit instead of the state

Populism:

Political approach that aims to appeal ordinary people who feel like their concerns are being ignored by a particular established elite group

Consumerism:

A promotion of interests of consumers and the preoccupation of society with the acquisition of consumer goods

Feminism:

An advocacy of women’s rights for the equality between men and women across all aspects of life

Individualism:

Social theory favouring freedom of action for individuals over collective/state control

Self-managerialism:

Approaches of self-discipline which requires us to manage ourselves such as health and physical appearance

Neoliberalism:

A model of free market capitalism which favours reduced government spending, deregulation, globalisation, free trade and privatisation

Imperialism:

Extending a country’s power and influence through colonization, military force or through media production

Contexts:

Historical:

  • How do media products reflect and influence historical issues/events
    • For example, a specific era where a certain type of media product would be displayed due to the influence of history at that time

Economic:

  • How media producers operate through the business and financial system
  • How these products differ based on their economic context through production, financial and technological opportunities/contraints
  • For example, the impact this has on production budgets and their sources of funding

Cultural:

  • The beliefs, meaning and practices that guide the shared behaviour of individuals of a certain group
  • For example, the cultural products created by a society will reflect the time in which they are produced and enable an understanding of the ways they were made and the values and beliefs of that time

Social:

  • Relationship between media producers and the society within which they operate
  • For example the way in which the products reflect and construct social attitudes and portray these changes in society

Viewpoints and Ideologies

Capitalism

Economic and Political system where a countries trade and industry are controlled by a private owner. The intent is for private profit insted of for the state.

Populism

Political approach that aims to recognise and appeal to normal people who feel that their concerns are ignored by established elite groups.

Consumerism

The promotion of the interests of consumers. This is the idea that media products target the interests of their consumers to create products that they would enjoy.

Globalisation

The process of a business or organisation developing international relationships/influence in order to operate on an international scale.

Patriarchy

A societal belief that men hold the most power and positions of social, political and economic privilages when compared to women.

Feminism

The premotion of womens rights in order to form equality across all aspects of life between men and women.

Individualism

A social view that individuals should have freedom over their own actions rather than being restricted over collective/state control.

Self-managerialism

An approach of self discipline where we are required to manage are selfs in aspects of life such as health and physical appearance.

Neoliberalism

A model of free market capitalism that premotes greatly reduced government spending, deregulation, globalisation, free trade and privatisation.

Imperialism

Expanding the power and influence of a country through colonisation, use of military force or other means like media production.

Contexts

Historical

How media products reflect historical issues and events. For example, how a media product reflects the historical events of the time it was produced.

Economic

How media products reflect the economic/financial contexts of how they were produced. This can be through the impact of production budget and how a media product is funded.

Cultural

How media products reflect the beliefs, meanings and practices of a specific group of people. This could be through the use of reflecting cultural issues/events or constructing cultural attitudes of these issues/beliefs. It can also reflect how culture changes through time and products can help people understand why they were created.

Social

How media products reflect and construct social attitudes of the time the product was produced. This could include the premotion of changing gender roles, racial changes and ethnic inequalities. Products will look to address these changing social issues and construct an understanding of them influenced by the time the product

Ghost town context and ideologies

Question 1) What examples from the music video could be added to this response

A= The video’s visuals of the deserted streets and closed down shops shows the social and economic decline, which affected the working class in Britain during Margret Thatcher’s time as prime minister. The song uses the ska genre, represented in a British context by a mixed race band. This reflects Gilroy’s idea of the Black Atlantic, showing how different cultures mix and create something new through shared experiences.

Question 2) Identify and highlight links to social and cultural contexts

A= The video reflects a time of despair, with the Brixton riots taking place black communities faced huge police discrimination. Additionally, deindustrialisation led to mass unemployment, affecting not only the working class but the black community too. There was also rising tension within Thatcher’s policies which were deepening social and economic inequalities. These issues where highlighted in the music video, to bring awareness and voice the working classes/black communities concerns about their economy.

Ghost Town media contexts

Context
CulturalNamed a single of the year by various magazines, such as NME and Melody Maker, its message obviously resonated with the young people who bought the record and sang along with the lyrics
SocialThe specials are not only providing a soundtrack for the disenfranchised youth, but feeling the pain being felt by millions of people nation wide‘Ghost Town’ is an important commentary on social injustice in the early 1980s, especially the tremendous dissatisfaction many young people felt towards politicians and their economic policies.
HistoricalThe song was inspired by the Brixton and Bristol riots, so the sounds become a signifier of social unrest and police brutality, especially the implementation of stop and search powers which disproportionately targeted young black men.
PoliticalShops are shuttered and factories are closed. This represents the social collapse caused by the decline of car manufacturers and other industries in the UK. There is no more ‘boomtown’ because there is ‘no job to be found in this country’

Theory Grid

Media LanguageMedia Industry
Neale- Genre
Baudrillard- Post Modernism
Todorov- Narrative
Barthes- Semiotics
Levi Strauss- Structuralism
Livingstone and Lunt- Regulation
Curran and Seaton- Power + Media
Hesmondhalgh- Cultural industries
Media RepresentationMedia Audiences
Van Zoonen- Feminism
Gilroy- Postcolonialism
bell hooks- Intersectionality
Butler- Gender Performativity
David Gauntlet- Identity
Clay Shirky- End of Audience
Henry Jenkins- Fandom
Gerbener- Cultivation theory

Paper 2 feedback

Question
Question
What went well?
What could be improved?What could be improved?
1)Demonstrated a thorough understanding of deconstructionMake more points to improve my responsePractice applying structuralist ideas to different images
2)Good structure within the response and a well developed argumentImprove my knowledge of TV shows producers and context of the TV showsMake notes on the TV shows and revise them so more knowledge can be applied in exams
3)Showing the false reality that videogames create for their audiencesImprove knowledge of the videogames are and how they relate to audienceUse more theorists in my answers and find theorists that can be applied to videogames
4)Good understanding of the importance of targeting specific audiencesFacts and important information about both Magazine companiesFind the information online from both companies

Task – Critical Theory and Theoretical Framework


Media Language
Media Representations
1) Barthes, Semiotics
2) Strauss, Structuralism
8) Todorov, Narratology
9) Neale, Genre
3) Gauntlett, Identity
4) Butler, Gender Peformativity
5) Hooks, Intersectionality
7) Gilroy, Ethnicity and Post colonial
9) Hall, Representations
14) Van Zoonen, Feminist,

Media AudiencesMedia Industries
16) Clay Shirky, End of Audience
17) Jenkins, Fandom
6) Gerbener, Cultivation theory
15) Livingstone & Lunt, Regulation
12) Hesmondhalgh, Cultural Industries
13) Curran and Seaton, Power + Media
15) Livingstone and Lunt, Regulation

Theory Grid

Media Language:
Baudrillard- Post Modernism
Neale- Genre
Todarov- Narrative
Barthes- Semiotics
Levi Strauss- Structuralism
Media representation:
Van Zoonen- Feminism
Gilroy- Postcolonialism
bell hooks- Intersectionality
Butler- Gender Performativity
David Gauntlett- Identity
Media audiences:
Clay Shirky- End of Audience
Albert Bandura- SLT
Henry Jenkins- Fandom
Gerbener- Cultivation theory

Media industry:
Livingstone and Lunt- Regulation
Curran and Seaton- Power + Media
Hesmondhalgh- Cultural industries