Media theories

Roland Barthes- Semiotics

-the idea that signs can function at the level of denotation, which involves the ‘literal’ or common-sense meaning of the sign, and at the level of connotation, which involves the meanings associated with or suggested by the sign

-legends and myths now we use social norms

apply to newspaper ,advertising, music videos, magazines

Todorov-Narrative

-the idea that all narratives share a basic structure that involves a movement from one state of equilibrium to another

-the idea that these two states of equilibrium are separated by a period of imbalance or disequilibrium

-tv, magazines, social media

Steve Neale- Genre

-that genres may be dominated by repetition, but are also marked by difference, variation, and change

-the idea that genres change, develop, and vary, as they borrow from and overlap with one another

-tv

Baudrillard- Postmodernism

-postmodern culture the boundaries between the ‘real’ world and the world of the media have collapsed and that it is no longer possible to distinguish between reality and simulation

-postmodern age of simulacra we are immersed in a world of images which no longer refer to anything ‘real’

-the idea that media images have come to seem more ‘real’ than the reality they supposedly represent (hyperreality).

Stuart Hall- Representation

-stereotyping is always negative form of representation and happens due to an in equality of power

-through signs and language

apply to newspaper, music videos, advertising ,TV

David Gauntlett- Identity

-Audiences are not passive, and media products  allow the audience to construct their own identities

-the idea that the media provide us with ‘tools’ or resources that we use to construct our identities

-Audiences can pick and mix which ideologies suit them, and completely ignore the elements of the product which they do not agree

apply to advertising, music videos ,magazines

Van zoonon-feminism

-gender is constructed through discourse, and that its meaning varies according to cultural and historical context

-the idea that the display of women’s bodies as objects to be looked at is a core element of western patriarchal culture

apply to music videos, advertising, TV ,magazines

bell hooks -Feminism

-struggle to end the patriarcle society

-feminism in political

-ethnicity can change the types of discrimination

apply to music videos ,advertising, TV, magazines

Judith Butler- Gender performatity

-Identity is a performance, and it is constructed through a series of acts and 'expressions' that we perform every day.

-Gender performativity is not a singular act, but a repetition and a ritual

apply to TV, magazines

Livingstone and Lunt-Regulation

-regulation is hard due to technology

-fine line between protecting consumers and censorship

Apply to radio, TV, video games, newspaper, film, magazines

Clay Shirky- End of audience

-The concept that traditional media audiences are no longer passive consumers, but active participants

-Internet and digital technologies have had a profound effect on the relations between media and individuals

-create and share content, leading to a shift in how media is produced and consumed.

apply in radio

Bandura-media effects

-people copy behavior they see especially children

-they think its acceptable demonstrated how children imitate aggressive behavior observed in media.

-media can implant ideas in the mind of the audience directly

-bobo doll experiment

apply to video games,

Jenkins and Fandom

-fans are essential to creation of media -they actively engage with and contribute to the content, influencing its development and popularity.

-the idea that fans are active participants in the construction and circulation of textual meanings

-rework the text e.g fan fics and art work

-constructs there identity

apply to videogames, TV

Hesmonhalgh -Cultural industries

-horizontal and vertical integration

-media production and distribution, where companies control multiple aspects of the industry to maximize profit and influence cultural output.

-companies try to minimise risk and maximise audiences through vertical and horizontal integration, and by formatting their cultural products

apply to video games, newspapers, film,

Gilroy -Postcolonial theory

-colonial discourses continue to inform contemporary attitudes to race and ethnicity in the postcolonial era

-the idea that civilizations constructs racial hierarchies and sets up binary oppositions

-based on notions of otherness.

apply to music videos, advertising

Levi Strauss-Structurism

-binary opposites

-idea that texts can best be understood through an examination of their underlying structure

-the idea that meaning is dependent upon (and produced through) pairs of oppositions

-adverts, music videos, newspapers

Curren and Seaton power and industries

-The media' is controlled by an increasingly small number of companies who are driven by  profit and power

-increasing lack of variety, creativity and quality

apply to film, newspaper, radio ,videogames ,magazines

Stuart Hall-Reception Theory

-idea that communication is a process involving encoding by producers and decoding by audiences

-three hypothetical positions from which messages and meanings may be decoded: dominant, negotiated, oppositional

apply to advertising, newspaper, radio, videogames, TV, magazines

Cultivation theory - George Gerbner

-the idea that exposure to repeated patterns of representation over long periods of time can shape and influence the way in which people perceive the world around them

-cultivation reinforces mainstream values

-adverts, newspapers