Representation

Carl Rogers (1980)
In the case of magazine text and adverts they are encoded specifically to represent an aspirational lifestyle offering audiences images of an ideal self and ideal partner.
This theory can be implemented into my production as we present Barney as a role model. His confidence, skill and style are all admirable and portray his as an idealistic.

Carlsson (1999)
In terms of music videos - do we aspire to emulate the artists - 'Shaman' as defined by Carlsson.
This theory can be applied to my production as, similarly to the previous point, Barney is presented as idealistic person and audiences will see him and want to be like him

Goodwin
Literal representation
In our production we

Audience Theory (Unfinished)

The Hypodermic Needle theory was thought up in the 1920s to 30s in Frankfurt, Germany.  It was in response to  Hitler Propaganda posters which were heavily influencing the public.  The theory said that the media is powerful and controlling and the audience is basically passive and allows ideas and beliefs to be injected into them. The theory can be linked to moral panics as it suggests that the audience will immediately believe that what they are seeing / hearing is true and that the answers to societies problems lie within the text or film. When applied to my film, it would suggest that audiences of our production would believe that violence is the answer to people who oppose your world view.  Our antagonist is Russian and audiences could therefore believe that all Russians are evil.

A second theory is the Two Step Theory created by Lazarsfeld and Katz in 1944. The two step theory is based on having a middleman between the mass media and the mass audience. The middle man or the Opinion Leaders dissect the news from the media and present it to the mass audience in a way that is humorous or easier to understand. When applied to my film, it would suggest that if an influential leader or blogger such as Mark Kermode (Film expert) said that our film was good and worth watching, then the audience will be inclined to go because they look up to that person and believe that what he's saying is the truth. 

George Gerbner (1980) came up with a theory based on the massive influence of television on the public. He argued that it was gradual long term effects rather that immediate effects (like in the hypodermic needle theory). He also argued that television reinforced ideas rather than changed peoples perceptions. When relating this to my film, I can understand the importance of promoting the film to the right group of people.

STUART HALL

Narrative Theory (Un-finished)

Attack the Block:

In the opening sequence of Attack the Block we see the the main protagonist mugging a woman at gun point with a group of other youths. The stereotype of anti-social teenagers are explored and used for comical effect. Although we know that in the end of the film the teenagers change their ways and save the day, until then the viewer has this negative perception of the characters.
The possible implications of this opening on the viewer are a biased and un-fair perception of all teenagers because
THEN THOERY THAT EXPLAINS THIS EFFECT...

What was the historical depiction of young people and teenagers by the mainstream media? (Un-finished)

Looking back at historical texts we can see that teenagers haven't been represented in a positive or fair way through the media for many years. In the mid 60’s when the mods and the Rockers were clashing on the south coast, mainstream media outlets such as the Daily Mirror heavily attacked the young people involved. The extensive and heavily emotive articles created mass hysteria within the papers reader bases (typically made up of only adults) which would of had an impact on relationships between the generations, broadening the generation gap. 

In an article published by the Daily Mirror on March 30th 1964, teenagers that took part in the riots were labeled as ‘Wild ones’, ‘…gangs’ and were described as being ‘…thirsty for creating disturbances and fighting.’. Emotive words such as thirsty make the story sound much worse than it actually is, by using this sort of language the writers were able to promote a negative perception of the parties involved. The use of such thought provoking words was un-ethical as it was used to sway the audiences views to suit the views of the writers when the paper should be presenting factual un-biased coverage of the events. It was even admitted afterwards by officials that the coverage was hysterical and had create a moral panic around the situation.

…..

Negative representations of youth from the past wasn't just found within newspaper articles, it was also found in movies such as Quadrophenia. In this movie we get to see the other side of the Mods and Rockers story from the point of the youths.

Show How the Media Portray Young People and Teenagers (Un-finished)

Young people are portrayed in many different ways through the media, the same as any other group of people, however some believe that coverage of the youth can often be biased and can be emotive rather than informative (and neutral). In an article from the Independent they reveal some facts about the extent of this problem. According to the article, “Figures show that half of the stories about teenage boys in the national and regional newspapers in the past year (4,374 out of 8,629) were about crime.” A result of this extensive reporting on youth crimes means the the public will be exposed to it more, which in turn could lead to a false belief in the amount of crime that is committed by teenagers. This problem was highlighted in a 2011 documentary ran by Channel 4. In one section of the documentary the presenter Ben Steele asks random adults on the street to guess the percentage of total crime committed by teenagers, the majority of people greatly overestimated the figure and there reasoning was because they'd seen it so much in the media.

Another issue that the article highlights is the fact that the coverage is also affecting the young people themselves, “As a result of the negative press, 80 per cent [of teenagers] felt adults were more wary of them now than they had been a year ago. However, the most striking finding, according to the research, was that many were now more wary of boys of their own age.” 

This quote shows just how powerful the media are in establishing and re-enforcing stereotypes and ideas around the youth. 

In the opening to the film Attack the Block (Joe Cornish - 2011), the stereotype of teenagers is explored and is used for comical effect. During the beginning scenes, we see a gang robbing a woman of her purse. The gang are presented as being stupid and aggressive. Stereotypical youth clothing such as hoodies and track suits are also used to further re-enforce this perception of youth. We also see scenes where the adults in the film are cursing or talking negatively the teenagers, for example one lady refers to them as “fucking monsters”.

However as the movie goes on the teenagers in the film redeem themselves and are presented as being loyal and brave, this is in stark contrast to the beginning of the film.

Emotive and Demonising Press Coverage

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/family/how-to-unplug-your--ipad-addicted-child/

In this article we can see examples of the media using emotive language to promote a feeling within the reader. Words such as 'addicted' and 'ragged' are used to describe young peoples relations with digital technology. However their choice of language makes it sound as if they're taking about something more sinister such as drugs.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/hoodies-louts-scum-how-media-demonises-teenagers-1643964.html

Although this isn't an article that uses emotive language or demonises the youth, it highlights the portrayal of youth within the media. The article picks up on the most common words that are used to describe young people through these articles, the most used word was 'Yobs', followed by 'thugs' and 'feral'. All of which are highly emotive.

http://www.standard.co.uk/news/crime/teenagers-arrested-after-terrifying-18inch-sword-found-in-hackney-a3168216.html

In this article we can immediately see that 'teenagers' are involved as it is the very first word in the title. Also the use of the word 'terrifying' in the title creates a dramatic headline that will grab peoples attention. However it will also help associate the idea of fear and terror with all teenagers even though only two were involved due to the fact that it identifies the culprits as 'teenagers'.

Exam feedback