Monday, 18 November 2013
Focus Group - Research questions on music videos
Full volume is needed for the videos!
There are two parts to my focus group questions due to the battery life of the camera however these questions were put together in order to give me an insight into what videos people my age like. The three males in the video all like different genres of music, independent and alternative, rock and metal and also pop and electro. After analysising the answers of the video I found that there were several collaborated decisions they all agreed on. This has helped me discover that the video I am going to film is not exactly in these genres and is mainstream to younger audiences, using the information that I retrieved I deceided that I am not going to make it a dance song however it will still portray the conventions that mainstream pop songs maintain.
Within these videos I asked a number of questions that will help demographics, help my target audience and help me find what I need to put in my video to get a settled equilibrium. I wanted to do this so I have a way of trying to make my video appeal to a number of genres and not just one.
Poll Research
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| A slide to show my poll questions at the side bar of my blog. I created this through the use of gadgets. |
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| The email sent to fellow classes in A2 Media to retrieve research information. |
What gender are you?
How old are you?Which genre of music do you prefer to listen to in terms of music video? (The genre you prefer to watch)
Would you watch a music video repeatedly due to the content?
Do you prefer a narrative to follow in a video or for it to be abstract?
Which do you find the most important element of a music video?
I chose to use these questions to explore the broad range of questions about music videos before detailing in depth questions. I took my thoughts on music videos and compared these to my target audience to retrieve the information that I needed. Upon receiving this information I would like to build upon this and ask questions about the story lines of music videos as well as looking at what people like included in a music video for example: humour, love and animation e.g, white stripes, coldplay and a-ha music videos.
In order to discover more information about my target audience and demographics I am going to create a further survey that will be posted to social network sites using a range of mediums, I am going to do this so that I have a wider understanding of music videos and the types of people who watch them as well as their expectations. By posting them across a number of sites I am able to open up my questions to a lot more people helping me with my knowledge through more responses.
Music Video Demographics and Target Audience
Producing primary market research gives a general idea of the interests of a range of demographics; in regards to music videos. After researching demographics I have gained knowledge about videos in the music industry and diverse points of views from different demographics. I wanted to explore my knowledge deeper to discover my target audience, to do this I created a survey on survey monkey.com this allowed me to use social media to ask for responses. By using a range of mediums I was able to gather enough information to create a conclusion. After having the survey on for four days I received 15 responses in total after posting the survey onto the social networking sites Facebook and Twitter. My evidence is shown below.
I decided to start my survey off with the simple questions of with the simple question of gender and age. I did this because survey monkey.com doesn't have identification on the site therefore I wanted to get to know my target audience of the survey a bit better. What I liked about the survey and the advantage of positing it to social network sites is that you can get a range of responses from people of different age groups. I chose to pick two different sets of ages for the first two categories and then place them in 9 years for each category after this.
There were more females than males that answered my survey and although I would of liked a split of gender to receive several opinions from each sex never the less over 60% of the 15 people who completed the survey were female, this shows that they are more attracted to content published using social media as a form of
advertising.I believe females are more appropriate for learning the demographics of my music video. I am going to use this information to determine who my target audience will be for my final music video production and appropriately plan my video to this information with the incorporation of relevant theorists which will engage the appropriate audience. It is therefore clear that I must make my final music video appeal to the mainly females however, we must not ignore the male participants of this survey and how their results would have contributed to the following answers.
I produced this question on continents to see if I could get any global interest on this survey. I was not surprised to find that 14 of my 15 responses lived in Europe however to help myself in this question by specifying where in Europe people live.
By choosing an artist that lives in Australia I wanted to see if anybody located in and around that area would take my survey. This wasn't the case however I did receive a response from Africa.
Due to not have social networking friends from Africa on Facebook I know this is a source from Twitter.com.
Knowing that my method of advertising only appealed to an english audience I will know that once my music video production is complete I will have to use internet forums/fan blogs/YouTube tags to interest a larger global market following Anderson's 'long tail' theory where niche markets are extended by appealing to larger audiences with the accessibility to people all over the world with the internet as a gateway to them. This conveys how new media is providing more opportunities to develop media productions such as my planned video.
Half of the audience and the majority who answered the survey were students.This shows that they have a high level of intelligence and a strong thought process as they will more than likely be studying A Levels or doing a course of a similar work load. I also have to take into consideration that the generation of this population are going to be the next generation who work in full time employment or further education. Through knowledge of todays financial situation I understand that this means they will ultimately be leading to a salary of £21,000 of higher. I have to keep that figure in mind when deciding upon my final demographic for my music video.
With that in mind I should aim to create a music video that appeals more towards my own age range and the age gathered most in my survey; 10-18. This will then create more of a connection between the product and the target audience I have set myself. I will also think about these figured callibrated when creating my supporting products for the music video, due to the fact I need my product to appeal to a younger audience I can look at existing products in the industry such as Q magazine, VIBE, Clash and NME. When creating my digpak and music video I shall aim to ask models and talent in the same age as the students on my survey to portray continuity of the social media throughout. By this, meaning that the people on my social media sites are able to relate to the people in my finished products and analyse the products based on information they can connect tp themselves. I should however create more responses from audiences to conclude this further to ensure accuracy.
The results showed that Indie/indie rock and pop were the top two results of the poll. This was to be expected in my opinion due to the knowledge I have of people my age (16-19) who are interested in them two genres. The people that are related to the other genres have usually lived in a decade where that was a main feature such as the 25+ age. People that were brought up in the 1990's to 2010's have experienced alot of pop and alternative music, more so now as niche markets have become more popular and 'vinatge'. The market for alternative acts is still existant in the music industry and social media such as Youtube, Vine and Facebook has allowed upcoming singer songwriters to make themselves known to the public and producers.
This also shows that sites such as Vevo and Youtube are not succeeding on bringing in all types of audience on their music videos. On the other hand, chart and pop artists are capable of bringing in millions of views on single videos on the sites therefore I believe I would still be able to achieve my goal of attracting a range of music genre's audience.
Mash Ups Within My Genre
My genre is well known for talented dj's and youtube users creating mashup's of all the songs in the charts at that particular time. This video shows just how much work goes into these videos as its not just the sound but the video's aswell. The users that do this get alot of credit for their talent and always receive alot of views. This shows just how compatible songs in my genre can be. Upbeat or slow they can connect some way or another, whether it be the key or the backing track it is always successful if you know exactly what you're doing.
There are over 50 songs within this mash up and with the tool box below it the audience are able to see what vocals are in the video aswell as the other songs and backing tracks being played at the same time. Pop is such a diverse genre never the less it is easy to make them connect in one way or another, this is proven through things such as mash ups and remix's.
Gigwise is a site that posts the latest things featured in the music scene and one of 2013 was mash ups, showing the latest songs being put together to compete for the title 'Best mash up of 2013'. The songs include Disclosure, Pharrel, Miley Cyrus and believe it or not Blink 182. These all work well together to create something special out of each one of them.
http://www.gigwise.com/features/86513/the-best-music-mash-ups-of-2013
Monday, 4 November 2013
Texual Analysis 3 - unfinished
Take a bow by Rihanna was a classic pop chart hit in late 2009, the video gained over a hundred million views on the giant called Youtube and is still counting today. Rihanna was able to capture the narrative she produced in her lyrics in the video aswell as a studio based video to break the narrative apart.
The video begins with a track from the weist of the singer up to her face, a close up shot of the first few lyrics; 'how about a round of applause'. Using this striking shot with full eye contact between both Rihanna and the camera to open the video it is representing how strong the lyrics are to the subject but also how strong they want to be put across from her to her audience as well. The fact she is wearing all black and she has black hair connotes to the audience that the song isn't happy and outgoing but a sad or emotional song. We know this because people relate to the colour black as a negative colour, black is a connotation of sadness, black is the colour that people associate with funerals aswell as smart attire. It is also represented as the antagonist in many things, where as white is represented for the protagonist. The simple dove and locket necklaces around her neck could be representing the locked information or secret she has to herself and wants to set it free, it could also be connoting the idea that she is a sealed person and one who isn't unlocked easily, we see this from the mannerisms of Rihannas body language; how she tilts her head to the right and looks away.
The next location we see is an apartment, a large space with a wide open window covered by a light curtain, this is creating a soft tone of light on the subject in the room and the rest of the mise-en scene. This is also the first time we see Rihanna in a long shot rather than medium close up or close up. There is sufficient lighting here so that her face is lit and you are able to see the room. At both the start and end of the shot there is a quick cut therefore the audience is not introduced to any complex transitions of the shots up till this point.There are slow cuts in this section of the song however this is to show a male character; the protagonist of the video. Rihanna introduces her close up shot against the black backdrop here every couple of sections, applying the shot reverse shot technique from the video close up of her to the narrative of the song lyrics. From the apartment scene onwards Rihanna uses a lot of eye contact and gestures towards the camera to reinforce the message of the lyrics to the audience.
Following on from the point about eye contact and gestures the song itself is about a cheating partner. She uses personal tense and first person to sing her song, using this technique and the eye contact with the camera connotes and implies that the song is for the audience. This could be a way of deepening the emotion of the audience, this could almost make someone who has cheated on their partner feel guilty for what they have done. The lyrics are direct and work alongside the song lyric by lyric. This is a direct relation to the video, I think this works well and is a great way to unravel a narrative therefore I believe I am capable of producing something similar for my own video. The shots are fairly moderate in regards to timing, they are not too fast and become slow to emphasise a mood of a shot. The male is stood outside and there is a muted speech shown by him, along with the lyrics 'Trying to apologise, you're so ugly when you cry' here we see a shot responding to that of Rihanna with her back against the other side of the door, this clearly indicates there is
The Theories
Original Note Bulletins About Certain Theorists.
Levi Strauss (1958)
Levi Strauss's theory is based upon binary opposites. This theory describes how we expect before we know, for example the stereotypical tale of a protagonist and an antagonist. The binary opposite theory helps create a narrative in a story. Some examples of binary opposites are;
This theory can be applied to my work if I over exaggerated my narrative and included some humour. This is because my popular vs geek stereotypical story is a binary opposite. This is common shown in films such as Minutemen the disney film and The Cinderella Story featuring Hilary Duff. The shy or 'geeky' girl or boy is seen to be incapable of grasping the attention of the more popular binary opposite in the couple but kindle together at the end in either a clash or a couple. This is visible in my narrative as my shy actress is seen to be the one wanting the attention from the male actor who is going to be playing the prince charming character. The opposite would be more visible in my music video if I chose more stereotypical costume and shown them in their environments before doing the main section of the music video.
Laura Mulvey (1975)
The Hypodermic Needle Theory
The Hypodermic Needle Theory can be applied to my work in a sense but not by the media such as news reports. This is because for my structure and narrative behind my video there is a source that is seen to be injected through stereotypes. My video is stereotypically the fairytale ending, what children are known to through television stories and through children's books. The tale is made clear, there is possibly a conflict but the prince and princess meet in the end. I produced my narrative like this so that it is relatable to all ages, adults know of the structure through their childhoods and children are experiencing it now. The theory shows that information is given to people through mass media and is injected into their heads, the peoples choice theory by Lazarsfeld in 1940 is more applicable to my narrative due to the fact that people can pick and choose what they believe and this has been a people's choice debate for some time on the subject. As children grow older some choose to not believe that love or attraction can work like that never the less some still do and say it has happened by experience. Can love be portrayed like that in real life or is it just in storybooks and television which is set up?
Tessa Perkins (1979) - Stereotyping
Tessa Perkins 1979 by laurenmabs on GoAnimate
Stuart Hall (1980) - Reception Theory
This theory is an active audience theory
unlike hypodermic which is a passive audience this is an active. It sees the
audience being actively engaged in the interpretation of media texts rather
than as passive consumers. Individuals receive and interpret texts in different
ways.
This theory demonstrates that even though one
message is sent out that not one understanding is made from the text. This
theory allows for the media text to be consumed individually and takes in to
consideration the meaning of a text and the relationship an individual may
understand from this in relation to sociological factors.
-
People can have different
opinions but neither is right or wrong. Active, everybody can judge.
Here is a video which included Stuart Hall presenting his representation theory further;
Semiotics (Encoding - denotation and Decoding - connotation)
Decoding is our interpretation
Encoding is the source that the media is within i.e. newspapers etc.
Encoding is the source that the media is within i.e. newspapers etc.
Media texts are encoded by the producer. These texts are full of ideologies values and messages. The text is decoded by an audience and they respond to the text in the same way. In some cases not how the producer intended.
Lady Gaga dress – management encoded a message to the audience by a statement (the dress) this is called a preferred reading. The audience decode it differently therefore when it is not understood this is when conflict can begin, the message is ineffective.
Lady Gaga dress – management encoded a message to the audience by a statement (the dress) this is called a preferred reading. The audience decode it differently therefore when it is not understood this is when conflict can begin, the message is ineffective.
Hall identified 3 different types of audience readings or decoding of the text
· Dominant or preferred – agreed, products is doing what it’s doing.
· Negotiated – agree with some of it but not all of it. It is a compromise between dominant and oppositional.
· Oppositional – don’t agree with it at all.
How can our understanding be determined? These are the factors whether we take the dominant, oppositional or negotiated reading.
· Life experience – older and wiser?
· Mood at the time of viewing – If upset, mad or angry there won’t be as good of a connection between the audience and the viewer like usual.
· Age – Relatable subject due to age i.e. television programmes
· Culture – Cultures have different opinions on things
· Beliefs - certain beliefs, i.e. religion etc. More open or closed mind upon a subject.
· Gender – Perceives things differently
John Berger / Ways of Seeing (1972)
John Berger has grown up in a modernist society. He analyses the manner in which men and woman are culturally represented. ‘Men act, women appear. Men look at women. Women watch themselves being looked at.’ His theory goes hand in hand with Laura Mulvey's the male gaze.
Women are usually posed in a way to please the viewer, her gaze is meant to entice the viewer. This is the same in modern day adverts. Berger studies that women unconsciously act in a way knowing they are being watched. This theory is an in depth look on art, the way people view it and influences that traditional paintings have had on society and modern day publicity.
Berger states that “women were depicted in a different way to men – because the ‘ideal’ spectator is always assumed to be male and the images of the woman is designed to flatter him.”
Jib Fowles states, "In advertising, males gaze and females are gazed at." (Fowles, 1996)
This theory relates to my work in that the female is dressed in a way that could attract the male. She tries to get attention from the male throughout the video. She is never shown looking bad, with no make up on, messy hair, bad clothes etc. She is only shown looking smart.
Blumler and Katz
Theory taught lesson notes.
•The
'Uses and Gratifications' model represented a change in thinking, as
researchers began to describe the effects of the media from the point of view
of audiences.
•The
model looks at the motives of the people who use the media, asking why we watch
the television programmes that we do, why we bother to read newspapers, why we
find ourselves so compelled to keep up to date with our favourite soap.
•Blumler
& Katz (1974)
argued that audience needs have social and psychological origins which generate
certain expectations about the mass media, leading to differential patterns of
media exposure which result in both the gratification of needs and in other
(often unintended) consequences. This does assume an active audience making
motivated choices.
The Model Explained
The
underlying idea behind the model is that people are motivated by a desire to
fulfil, or gratify certain needs. So rather than asking how the media uses us,
the model asks how we use the media.
•The
model is broken down into four different needs.
-Surveillance
-Personal Identity
-Personal Relationships
-Diversion
Surveillance
The
surveillance need is based around the idea that people feel better having the
feeling that they know what is going on in the world around them.
The
surveillance model is all about awareness. We use the mass media to be more
aware of the world, gratifying a desire for knowledge and security.
We
can associate to the dominant messages of conforming via the dominant
ideologies given in media texts such as music videos.
•http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0CazRHB0so
(like lilly Allen
‘taking the mick’ out of Miley
Cyrus) its current and discussing topics around us in the music industry and
media world.
Personal
Identity
•The personal
identity need explains how being a subject of the media allows us to reaffirm
the identity and positioning of ourselves within society.
•The
use of the media for forming personal identity can be seen in music
videos/films. Pop stars can often become big role models, inspiring young
children everywhere (which is why there's such an outcry when one of them does
something wrong).
•http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ahha3Cqe_fk
personal identity the one that got away Katie Perry
•http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=My2FRPA3Gf8 out
cry Miley Cyrus
We
can form a relationship with the media, and also use the media to form a
relationship with others.
Many
people use the television as a form of companionship. This may seem sad, but
think about how many times you've watched the TV on your own, or with other
people but sitting in silence. The television is often quite an intimate
experience, and by watching the same people on a regular basis we can often
feel very close to them, as if we even know them. When presenters or characters
in a soap die, those who have watched that person a lot often grieve for the
character, as if they have lost a friend.
•http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hSjIz8oQuko
(family portrait) pink and how her albums tell the story of her life via
music/videos
•http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJfFZqTlWrQ (so
what)
The
more we watch the same personalities, the more we feel we get to know them.
Reality TV shows such as Big Brother give us such a feeling of intimacy with
the participants that they can become part of our lives. Even though the
relationship is completely one-sided, it's easy to see how we can fall in love
with TV personalities.
Using
the Media Within Relationships
Another aspect to the personal
relationships model is how we can sometimes use the media as a
springboard to
form and build upon relationships with real people.
Having a
favourite TV programme in common can often be the start of a conversation, and
can even
make talking to strangers that much easier.
Some studies suggest that some families
use sitting around watching the television as a stimulus for
conversation,
talking to each other about the programme or related anecdotes while it is on.
•http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DzS0fLhL2Wc lady
gagas x
factor performance (I think we even discussed it at some point)
Diversion
The diversion need describes what's
commonly termed as escapism - watching the television so we can forget about
our own lives and problems for a while and think about something else.
We watch music videos to take our mind of
our every day lives, we want to distract our self from the problems we are
experiencing. We want to see that people experience the same feelings as we do
and want to forget about our own problems and focus on some one else's.
•http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BPj6CMjUrDU
Leona Lewis happy
•http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHp2KgyQUFk best
thing you never had Beyonce.
Criticisms
The researcher Ien Ang also
criticised uses and gratifications approach in such three aspects:
It is highly individualistic, taking into
account only the individual psychological gratification derived from individual
media use. The social context of the media use tends to be ignored. This
overlooks the fact that some media use may have nothing to do with the pursuit
of gratification - it may be forced upon us for example.
There is relatively little attention paid
to media content, researchers attending to why people use the media, but less
to what meanings they actually get out of their media use.
The approach starts from the view that
the media are always functional to people and may thus implicitly offer a
justification for the way the media are currently organized.
Richard Dyer
Richard Dyer Studied the representation in media and looked at how media texts represent themselves to society and an audience. He closely studied the ideological and historical significance of film stars however generalised in the media.
'How we are seen determines how we are treated, how we are treated, how we treat others is based on how we see them. How we see them comes from representation.' (Dyer 1983)
He created a set of questions that are considered when studying representations:
- What sense of the world is it making?
-What does it imply? Is it typical of the world or deviant (unusual/different)?
- Who is it speaking to? For whom? To Whom?
- What does it represent to us and why? How do we respond to the representation?
Moral panic theory (Folk Devils) - Stanley Cohen (1972)
The term 'moral
panic' is understood as: A moral panic can be recognised in the intensity of feeling expressed by a large number of people about a specific group of people who appear to threaten the social order at a given time. These people become ‘folk-devils', about whom 'something needs to be done'. This 'something' usually takes the form of increased social control, which might mean stricter laws, longer sentences, heavier fines and increased policing of specific areas. After the imposition of these new controls, the panic subsides until a new one emerges. It's nature is influenced by stereotypes with
the mass media.
Moral panic begins
when there is a projection of fears that surround a particular story or type of
people. The media heavily influences and fuels these panics via film, TV, the
news, radio and any other media means. Here the media stereotype and
assumes the worst in relation to the panic ad makes the consumer anxious with a
recent real life example being the London riots in 2011, with the press over
emphasising events or focusing solely on the negative.
Stanley Cohen based
his initial research on the 'mods' and the 'rockers' and the conflict between
these groups of teenagers in the 60's. Here teenagers where causing mass panic
due to the differences between the mods and rockers as numerous fights were
recorded were a final big fight broke out of control on Brighton beach. However
the theory developed and can be applied to a number of any subculture labelled
as deviant or dangerous by the media. In terms of his findings, Cohen looked at
how these 'mods' and 'rockers' were perceived in the public eye.The main
criticism was that these people were seen to be as a threat to law and order
largely through the way the mass media represented them and this is known as
'control culture'.
Moral panics start with a story published or made aware of by the media when there are a projection of fears that surround a particular story or type of people. The stereotype we know the media as being is the stir of the situation. The media over emphasise everything to do with the news story therefore it is built up. The media did this for example with the London Riots, the media over played footage people had digitally recorded and sent in repeatedly to scare the audience and the public. As the media heavily influence, they are able to do so through a range of mediums such as; film, television, radio and other forms.
Cohen based his initial research on the 'mods and rockers'. The conflicting groups of teenagers in the 1960's.
Mods and rockers are two conflicting British
youth subcultures of the early to mid 1960s. Media coverage of mods and rockers
fighting in 1964 sparked a moral panic about British youths and the two groups
became labeled as folk devils. Rival gangs – 1960. Parker coats vs. leather
jackets etc.
Moral Panic – The media blew it out of proportion. Mods images were destroyed, as they were clean cut and shouldn’t have been fighting. It became commercialized.
Quadrophenia
Moral Panic – The media blew it out of proportion. Mods images were destroyed, as they were clean cut and shouldn’t have been fighting. It became commercialized.
Quadrophenia
Quadrophenia is a film based upon this conflict at Brighton pier. The fights, the conflict, and the film reflects the
controversy. The main character of the film however is a mod; it could be bias, would it look better on the mods than the rockers?
- Youth in the film and film notes from lesson -
Youth is represented as uncontrollable,
dangerous and violent. (Go to extremes to show their ideology and reputation)
Tessa Perkins theory – a stereotype within a stereotype.
Recent activity in Britain such as the London riots. Adults are afraid of youth, fish tank, she was forced to grow up and now in Quadrophenia they are role reversed, they are shown as young children.
The representation of youth in the 60s has stuck slightly; there is influence on gangs, groups of people and standing by beliefs, which can cause a lot of bother. Teens are perceived now in this way due to stereotypes that have been made.
Moral Panics relate to this theory because of the media. The media relate to this, which triggers other groups such as these in places other than Brighton to act out. They over exaggerate the violence therefore it gets other people worried and scared across the country.
- Clockwork Orange murders related when it has nothing to do with it. Linking it to it and its making it out to be the reasoning behind it; moral panic starts. It is the same in terms of Quadrophenia. Man on DVD said it wasn’t that bad in reality compared to media. The media pick and chose because adults actions could influence the youth to do it therefore they are never focused on. Power – Marxism.
Recent activity in Britain such as the London riots. Adults are afraid of youth, fish tank, she was forced to grow up and now in Quadrophenia they are role reversed, they are shown as young children.
The representation of youth in the 60s has stuck slightly; there is influence on gangs, groups of people and standing by beliefs, which can cause a lot of bother. Teens are perceived now in this way due to stereotypes that have been made.
Moral Panics relate to this theory because of the media. The media relate to this, which triggers other groups such as these in places other than Brighton to act out. They over exaggerate the violence therefore it gets other people worried and scared across the country.
- Clockwork Orange murders related when it has nothing to do with it. Linking it to it and its making it out to be the reasoning behind it; moral panic starts. It is the same in terms of Quadrophenia. Man on DVD said it wasn’t that bad in reality compared to media. The media pick and chose because adults actions could influence the youth to do it therefore they are never focused on. Power – Marxism.
Youth in this film has created a stereotype
for people today/encouraged them to conform to this stereotype because people
have always felt wanted, needed. Youth in general is a battlefield for
jealousy, competition and to be accepted. Feeling part of a group has gotten
people in a lot of trouble but also has gotten
Findings of his theory
He looked at how these ‘mods’ and ‘rockers’ were perceived in the public eye.
The main criticism was that these people were seen to be as a threat to law and order largely through the what the mass media represented them this is known as ‘control culture’. This type of media representation is known as sensationalisation.
The press started to sensationalise the film A Clockwork Orange and started to report a series of copy cat crimes taken from the film. The media reported stories and focused on how the film was having huge negative impact on society. The film represented youth in a negative way and the term 'a clockwork orange' became a euphemism for a negative outlook on crime. The impact of this film and the sensationalism surrounding it can be highlighted by the fact that the media still refers to it in present news.
Moral panics were originally created from the effects films had on groups of teenagers and encouraging social deviance. Cohen reported on the sensationalist headlines that were reporting incidents of violence that teenagers were involved in; deviancy amplification. The youth at the time did not seem to feel like they were being encouraged by the violence however they did identify with some of the representations in which the life they lived.
Deviancy amplification Definition
- The process by which the amount or seriousness of deviancy is increased through the reporting of it and the subsequent actions which are taken by the police or other agencies and response by ‘deviants'. What is amplified is the reported deviance, the social reaction and the actual deviance that results from this.
Marxism - Karl Marx (1867)
Marxism derived from the political and social ideologies written by Karl Marx in the 1867 book Das Kapital. Since Marx's death in 1883 his ideas and work have been expanded by others so the modern Marxism is more than the work of Karl Marx.
One of Marx's core ideas about society was that all societies have an economic base. This is seen to be the central core and focus of any society.
In western cultures this economic base is essentially capitalise. The whole system is based on the pursuit of wealth. The problem is that this does not benefit all, the rich get richer and the poor get poorer in this type of system. It leads to a high scale of social inequality.
Marx sees a capitalist society as a split society. Those who control or have power are called the bourgeoisie. Those who do not and who have to sell their labour for minimal pay and often no sure of the profit are called the proletariat.
He saw that the exotic base supported a super structure. The institutions that exist in a society such as those linked to the law, education, politics and the media. These are shaped by the economic base and exist to support, serve and legitimise the base to society. They partly exist to convince people that the way the country works is the right way.
The bourgeoise in any society are outnumbered by the proletariat, therefore things such as the Russian Revolution happened where people rose up and overthrew their masters.
Marx's theory about this was that elements of the superstructure, like the media, were used to brainwash the proletariat into seeing the current set-up as natural and right.
The media amongst other elements, created a sense of false consciousness, a fake view that the world is exactly as it should be. This view reassures the proletariat and stops them feeling that anything should be done about their lot. They are rendered unaware of the true nature of their exploitation and the unfairness of the system they live in.
It becomes the objective of the most powerful ruling group to stay in power, to preserve their privileged position. It is for this reason that they use the media and other elements of the superstructure to try and get others to agree to keep society the way it is.
Many think that Karl Marx theory is still relevant to todays society although it was created in 1883. Although it is true that many capitalist societies have seen changes that may affect some of Marx's original ideas:
- Poverty today in the UK is much less than it was when Marx write his treatise. He gained many of his idea to write the treatise during a sojourn in Manchester, therefore maybe divisions are less stark although people consider how much some bankers and footballers earn.
- Big companies are less likely to be owned by a few private individuals but often belong to shareholders who may well be workers from a variety of backgrounds.
- The internet is allowing gore people to work for themselves.
How does marxism apply to media texts?
- You can look at who owns a media production and who benefits the most financially
- Texts can be examined to see if they promote ideologies that support the ruling classes/ the status quo. Is it being used to exert hegemonic control. What ideologies are being pushed? Who do they benefit?
- Do texts naturalise inequality between groups based on power?
Are men privileged over women? White groups over other cultures? Capitalism over any other economic system and values?
Are media texts produced just like any other product in the capitalist system, for maximum profit? They need for efficient mass production may lead to a formula approach to media creation, weakening elements of creativity and imagination. Some Marxist critics, like Theodore Adorno, saw capitalist media systems as antithetical to the production of 'good' and valuable culture. Some products will never get made as they are unlikely to yield a profit.
Klapper
Tim O'Sullivan (1998)
"Ideology refers to a set of ideas which produces a partial and selective view of reality. Ideology involves widely held ideas or beliefs which are seen as ‘common’ sense and become accepted by society. It helps us to make judgements about the world and the different views people have within it." - wikepedia
Tim O'Sullivan created the term ideology. Ideology involves a widely held ideas or beliefs which are seen as 'common' sense and becomes accepted by society. Ideology helps us to make judgments about the world and the different views people have within it. It can also be argued, and is one mechanism by which a ruling group tries to deceive and control the ruled.
Ideology, it can be argued, is one mechanism by which a ruling group tries to deceive and control the ruled.
It implies that a powerful group can choose how and what messages are leaked to the media and that society view these people in certain ways because if expectations.
Because of Ideology we have ideas about the world that we live in. Because the media is so powerful it can control what and how ideas are portrayed to an audience/consumer. This also relates to the hypodermic needle theory. The more powerful you are in society the more control you have over how messages are given to an audience.
What is important is that, in marxism terms, the medias role may be seen as:
- Circulating and reinforcing dominant ideologies
- Less frequently undermining and challenging these ideologies
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