Qualification Accredited
A LEVEL
Delivery Guide MEDIA STUDIES
H409 For first teaching in 2017
Component 1: News and Online Media Version 1
www.ocr.org.uk/mediastudies Contents Thinking ContextuallyThinking ConceptuallyThinking Curriculum Content Sub Topic Audiences, 2–Media theoriesandcontexts ContextuallyThinking ConceptuallyThinking Curriculum Content Sub Topic Industries, 1–Media theoriesandcontexts www.hoddereducation.co.uk/mediastudies/ocralevel Some sectionsofthisDeliveryGuideareadaptedfromMyRevisionNotes:OCRALevelMediaStudiesbyMichaelRo If youhaveanyfeedbackonthisDeliveryGuideorsuggestionsforotherresourceswouldlikeOCRtodevelop,please email • • • guidesare topic designed andcontain: to representDelivery aboutteaching aparticular abodyofknowledge This guideoutlinesapproaches for andideas, Component includinglearneractivities 1News Media. andOnline MEDIA STUDIES A Level Studies Media A LEVEL A discrepancy please contact usonthefollowing pleasecontact discrepancy email address: [email protected] there theresource between may becontradictions andthespecification,therefore pleaseuse theinformation onthe latest you specification atalltimes. donoticea If This resource wasdesigned usingthemost upto date information from thespecificationattimeitwaspublished. Specifications are updated over time, whichmeans DISCLAIMER teaching approaches. or classes, styles learning ofthemessothatdifferent Contextually: whichbestsuitparticular Thinking canbeselected Arangeofsuggested usingavariety teaching activities activities concepts andhow thistopic linksconceptuallyto otherareas ofthesubject; conceptsinvolved, guidanceonthekey Conceptually:Thinking common difficultiesstudents Expert may have, approaches to teachingthatcanhelpstudentsunderstandthese Content: Aclearoutlineofthecontent covered guide; by thedelivery
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26 25 21 21 15 14 16 16 Delivery Guide Delivery © OCR 2019 A Level Media Studies Delivery Guide SUB TOPIC 1 MEDIA INDUSTRIES, THEORIES AND CONTEXTS Curriculum content
Media industries content includes: • how news is shaped by how it is produced, distributed and circulated • the ownership and control of news • economic factors such as funding for news • how news industries maintain audiences nationally and globally (covered below under audiences) • the impact of technological change, especially digitally convergent media platforms, on news • the role of regulation in news and the impact of digital technologies on regulation • the effect of individual producers on news • use and evaluation of the ideas of Curran and Seaton, Livingstone and Lunt, and Hesmondhalgh on media industries
Curriculum content Curriculum • Social and cultural contexts: embedded expectations of print and online journalism • Political contexts: the political systems and forces within which the news media industries operate and which they influence, particularly the effect of these on ownership and control and regulation • Economic contexts: the influence of the economic system on news media industries, including on funding, the profit motive and competition between producers • Historical contexts: how news industries reflect historical changes across the other contexts.
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Suggested detailed content The ownership and control of news How news is shaped by how it is produced, distributed and circulated Newspapers are different from other industries in that they are not usually profitable, but Comparison of print news and online news are seen as a means of gaining political and social influence. This means they are more In print news: likely than other media forms to be owned by rich individuals rather than conglomerates. News businesses - such as those that own the Mail and Guardian – tend to specialise in • the production of news is in the hands of the newspaper journalists, editors and newspaper (and sometimes magazine) publishing rather than a range of media. printers • distribution of news is by the organisations that send newspapers to newsagents, While there are recently started internet-only news providers such as Buzzfeed, traditional who have some control over which publications get distributed, but no control over newspapers and broadcasters such as the BBC dominate online news by the power of content their authoritative brands. • newsagents and other retailers sell the newspapers (circulation) The contrasting ownership models of the Guardian (via a trust) and the Mail and their • it is the producers who control the news content. differing ethos – the Guardian as a campaigning liberal newspaper and the Mail as a populist mass market newspaper. In online news, the situation is less clear. Distribution and circulation are combined in websites or social media. There may be many more news producers, including amateurs, Influence of contexts whose news may be distributed by social media such as Facebook, who have a great Media plurality is a live political issue. Concentration of ownership is limited by regulators deal of control over which audiences see which news stories, as well as by traditional such as the Competition and Markets Authority. This is both a political and economic newspapers operating online. context: the government has set up this agency as free markets require competition to The dominance of online news means that exclusives have become less valuable as the work effectively. news cycle has shortened and an exclusive can be picked up by competitors and recycled The role of press freedom in democratic politics gives opportunities but also places instantly. Instead, news organisations are relying on formats such as gossip, lifestyle Curriculum content Curriculum limits on the control exercised by owners of newspapers. Newspapers are permitted to journalism, opinion sections, and sports journalism to minimise risk. be opinionated and politically biased, but serious newspapers should retain editorial Social media companies are now crucial news gatekeepers, but their relative lack of freedom, rather than being mouthpieces of their owners. The Leveson Inquiry’s criticism editorial control means that fake news and clickbait as well as authentic citizen journalism of the close relationship between newspaper owners and politicians may be used as can proliferate. News circulated via social media is more likely to be image-driven than evidence that this context does or does not restrict the influence wielded by owners. traditional news. Influence of contexts The economic context: in free market economies print and online journalism is driven by the profit motive (apart from that produced by the public organisations such as the BBC). The flight of advertising revenue from print journalism to online media in the mid 2010s starved journalism of funds. This has led to a decline in expensive journalism such as international news and investigative reporting and a rise in the cheaper alternative, be it opinion, reporting celebrities and public relations events, lifestyle journalism and sport. Marketing departments are much more powerful in all newspapers as profits decline, as they attempt to boost areas that attract advertising (such as travel journalism). The economic dominance of social media companies who trade in audience attention, often gained through inciting anger or outrage, means that news values are driven by this imperative as well as the need for images.
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Funding The impact of technological change on news, especially digital convergent media Comparison of traditional print funding models – advertising and cover price – and platforms diversified sources of funding for online and print news – paywalls, subscriptions, Immediacy and audience interactivity in online news influences how news industries advertising, events, sales, sponsored material, and so on. sell themselves to audiences and enables synergy between online and print brands (the Comparison of the Guardian’s supporter strategy – relying on subscriptions and donations former bringing immediacy and participation, the latter bringing authority). from loyal readers as well as advertising – with the Mail’s more traditional reliance on Growth of citizen journalism, e.g. use of mobile phone footage by mainstream news advertising revenue. Advertisers tend to pressure for high volume rather than quality outlets, influences conceptions of journalism. – so there are more stories against which to place their brands. The Mail’s reliance on advertising can be seen in the high volume of news on its website, which is much busier Rapid speeding-up of the news cycle, from a 24 hour rhythm to constant updating of than the Guardian’s. online news. Influence of contexts Soft news and news with attractive visuals are prioritised in online news in comparison to print news, which may affect the structure of news organisations. New economic opportunities offered by the internet, e.g. global audiences, are limited by the cultural expectation of free online content. Online news offers opportunities as well as new competition for news producers. News industries are subject to the conflict between the economic pressure to insert The lack of online regulation and editorial control creates issues of disinformation and brands and marketing into editorial content and the cultural context of journalistic ethics clickbait. that insist on the separation of advertising and editorial. The funding of news production may have to be revolutionised in order for news to The cultural esteem given to print publications maintains print editions in the face of survive. increasing cost to income ratios. Influence of contexts Curriculum content Curriculum The political context of arguments about funding of journalism (e.g. funding from the BBC The cultural authority traditionally given to print newspapers has enabled well-established or from social media companies) may lead to new funding streams. news brands to prosper online - both The Guardian and The Mail are hugely successful as online newspapers because they each carry a strongly established brand identity.
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The role of regulation in news and the impact of digital technologies on regulation Academic ideas and arguments The self-regulation of the newspaper industry is illustrated by the competing regulatory (See the document www.ocr.org.uk/Images/421658-academic-ideas-and-arguments- bodies – IPSO (the Daily Mail’s regulator) and Impress, and by the refusal of The Guardian factsheet.pdf for the strengths and limitations of each theory.) to join either. Power and media industries – Curran and Seaton Social media companies insist that their role is as a platform rather than a publisher and A political economy approach to the media – arguing that patterns of ownership and their international nature means they are not (in 2018) subject to regulation. control are the most significant factors in how the media operate. Influence of contexts Media industries follow the normal capitalist pattern of increasing concentration of The ideal of ‘press freedom’ reflects the political context of the role of newspapers in the ownership in fewer and fewer hands. This leads to a narrowing of the range of opinions development of an educated electorate in the historical period in which mass democracy represented and a pursuit of profit at the expense of quality or creativity. developed. Its expression in the freedom of anyone to set up a newspaper reflects the The internet does not represent a rupture with the past in that it does not offer a level economic context of free market capitalism. These two combine to restrict regulation to playing field for diverse voices to be heard. It is constrained by nationalism and state legal (e.g. the libel laws) and self-regulatory approaches. One specific political context is censorship. News is still controlled by powerful news organisations, who have successfully the unresolved conflict over the implementation of the recommendations of the Leveson defended their oligarchy. Inquiry – section 40 was not implemented as of 2018. Application Political debates about the role of disinformation in online news and the influence of dark advertising (especially political advertising) may lead to some attempts to regulate Studies of concentration of ownership and control will validate this theory. social media companies, who are already (by 2018) responding to these criticisms in ways Examples of diverse opinions (e.g. in online news or non-mainstream print newspapers) that bring them closer to traditional publishers rather than transparent online platforms. would argue against this theory, as would examples of newspapers sacrificing profit Facebook, for example, has recruited staff to filter content and has introduced a system for
Curriculum content Curriculum for the sake of quality and creativity (e.g. the Guardian refusing to put up a paywall but throwing light on dark political advertising. However, the lack of centralised regulation of instead calling for supporters to fund quality journalism). social media companies means that different companies have different responses. The effect of individual producers on news The Daily Mail had, until 2018, a tradition of strongly expressed views reflecting those of its editor, Paul Dacre, but also the relatively consistent conservative social and political viewpoint of its columnists. Dacre’s rather sudden replacement in September 2018 might be seen as suggesting that his forthright political assertions, particularly over Brexit, might have been seen as harming the brand and unpalatable to its owners. The Guardian, by contrast, tends to adopt a more collegiate style, with editorials and columnists expressing a wider variety of opinions ranging from the left of the Conservative party to the left of the Labour Party. Influence of contexts The rise of celebrity culture influences the prominence of the columnist who is a celebrity as well as columnists who write about celebrities. The impact of feminism can be seen in the number of female columnists in both the Guardian (rather more) and the Daily Mail (rather fewer).
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Regulation – Livingstone and Lunt Application Studied four case studies of the work of Ofcom. Examples of newspapers relying on predictable audience-pleasing low-risk news – such as royalty, celebrities, lifestyle and mainstream sport content – would count as evidence to Ofcom are serving an audience who may be seen as consumers and/or citizens, with support this theory. consequences for regulation: consumers have wants, are individuals, seek private benefits from the media, use the language of choice, and require regulation to protect against Patterns of ownership and control that are not vertically integrated in large corporations, detriment; citizens have needs, are social, seek public or social benefits from the media, e.g. that of the Guardian, would count as evidence against this theory, as would evidence use the language of rights, and require regulation to promote the public interest. of the online media allowing a diverse range of new voices to be heard. Traditional regulation is being put at risk by: increasingly globalised media industries, the rise of the digital media, and media convergence. Application Originally applied to television and radio, but consumerism as defined in this study can be evidenced in the online editions of newspapers and increasingly in the print editions, with the traditional public interest news function being relatively marginalised (perhaps best illustrated by a comparison of a newspaper front page from the 1950s with its contemporary counterpart). Examples of public debates about the role of social media companies in news and disinformation would support the idea of the difficulties of regulating globalised convergent media.
Curriculum content Curriculum Examples of the new media operating in socially responsible ways in the public interest (as is starting to happen in 2018) would argue against this theory, as would the example of strongly regulated online content in authoritarian societies such as China. Cultural industries – Hesmondhalgh Cultural industries follow the normal capitalist pattern of increasing concentration and integration – cultural production is owned and controlled by a few conglomerates who vertically integrate across a range of media to reduce risk. Risk is particularly high in the cultural industries because of the difficulty in predicting success, high production costs, low reproduction costs and the fact that media products are ‘public goods’ – they are not destroyed on consumption but can be further reproduced. This means that the cultural industries rely on ‘big hits’ to cover the costs of failure. Hence industries rely on repetition through use of stars, genres, franchises, repeatable narratives and so on to sell formats to audiences, then industries and governments try to impose scarcity, especially through copyright laws. The internet has created new powerful IT corporations, and has not transformed cultural production in a liberating and empowering way – digital technology has sped up work, commercialised leisure time, and increased surveillance by government and companies.
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The Mail Guardian, Daily and Mail 9 Delivery Guide Delivery © OCR 2019 A Level Media Studies Delivery Guide SUB TOPIC 2 MEDIA AUDIENCES, THEORIES AND CONTEXTS Curriculum content
Media audiences content includes: Suggested detailed content • how audiences are categorised by news industries How audiences are categorised by news industries • how news producers target, attract, reach, address and potentially construct PAMCo – the publishers’ audience measurement company – categorises print newspaper audiences through content, marketing and distribution audiences in terms of social class (A/B/C1/C2/D/E), age, gender and region to sell audiences to advertisers, giving figures like those in the table below (for 2018): • the interrelationship between media technologies and news consumption and response Print audience Daily Mail The Guardian % Men 48 51 • how audiences interpret the news, interact with the news, and can be actively involved in news production % Women 52 49 % 15-34 10 27 • the way in which different interpretations reflect social, cultural and historical contexts % 35-54 15 30 • the different ways audiences defined by demographics, identity, and cultural capital % 55+ 75 41 use the news % AB adults 27 62 • the different needs of mass and specialised audiences and their significance to the % C1C2 adults 56 31 (22% C1, 9% C2) news % DE adults 17 7 Curriculum content Curriculum • how specialised audiences can be reached through different technologies and % London 26 40 platforms, nationally and globally % Midlands 19 17 • use and evaluation of the ideas of Bandura, Gerbner, Hall, Jenkins and Shirky on media % South and South East 15 12 audiences. % North West 12 11 These categories show that the Guardian readership is much younger, more upmarket (more middle class), much more London-based and slightly more male than the Daily Mail readership. The Mail’s middle market bias is shown in the high proportion of C1/C2 readers and its reach into both the AB and E categories, making its audience more evenly spread than the Guardian’s. However, although the differences in the audiences for the print newspaper are huge, data shows that the differences are much less for the online editions. The Mail Online’s audience is, compared to the Guardian’s, only very slightly less upmarket, only slightly older, only slightly more female, and slightly less London-based. Influence of contexts The historical decline in the social significance of social class. The increasing significance of psychographics over demographics.
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How news producers target, attract, reach, address and potentially construct The interrelationship between media technologies and news consumption and audiences through content and marketing response Detailed analysis of the chosen front pages of the Daily Mail and the Guardian plus The relationship between print technology and the reader experience –for example examples of Twitter, Facebook and Instagram posts in terms of how they target and guidance by page layout such as the impact of banner headlines and large photographs. address audiences. Increasing demands for immediacy and interactivity with online technology meaning perhaps a lower expectation of what counts as ‘news’. Overview of the different sections of the Guardian and Daily Mail print editions in terms of how they target and address different audiences (e.g. the ‘Inspire’, ‘the Verdict’, ‘Good Influence of contexts Health’, ‘Money Mail’, ‘Travel Mail’ and ‘Femail’ sections on different days in the Daily Mail; The social and cultural expectations of choice, control and participation associated with the ‘Media’, ‘Education’ and ‘Society’ sections on different days in the Guardian: regular online media in a consumerist society are in tension with the cultural authority given to divisions into News, Finance, Puzzles, Opinion and Sport in both newspapers; the print newspapers when compared to websites. Guardian’s separate G2 on ‘Life and Culture’). The economic context of successful online competition with print journalism and the Overview of the different target audiences and audience address of the full range of collapse of the latter’s revenues. newspapers (and associated social media) that might be used for unseen analysis. The global political and economic context of different levels of access to the internet Research into any advertising for newspapers (much less common currently). influences the success of online media (e.g. in authoritarian and less affluent countries Influence of contexts such as North Korea). The impact of consumerism on audiences – decreasing audience loyalty? The impact of feminism – liberal newspapers such as the Guardian no longer target female audiences with dedicated women’s pages as this would be patronising. Curriculum content Curriculum Multiculturalism and changing attitudes to sexualities have increased the range of minorities addressed by newspapers. Political and historical events and issues will affect how unified or polarised the newspaper audience is perceived to be – polarisation in the Brexit debate, for example, has been accentuated by newspapers targeting specific sides in the issue.
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How audiences interpret the news, interact with the news, and can be actively The different ways audiences defined by demographics, identity, and cultural involved in news production capital use the news The way in which different interpretations reflect social, cultural and historical The different needs of mass and specialised audiences and their significance to the contexts news Hall’s typology of audience interpretations can now be tested by reading audience How specialised audiences can be reached through different technologies and comments on online news articles, finding examples of dominant, negotiated and platforms, nationally and globally oppositional readings. Overview of different kinds of print and online newspapers serving very different These may also illustrate Jenkins’ participatory culture, e.g. threads that develop their own audiences: regional, local, ethnic minority, religious groups, non-mainstream political direction away from the original article, and Shirky’s argument that amateur producers groups, business people. have different motivations to those of professionals – they value autonomy, competence, Overview of the levels of cultural capital required to understand different genres of membership and generosity – and that user-generated content creates emotional newspaper, e.g. the broadsheet and tabloid press, and discussion of the different and connection between people who care about something. similar gratifications offered by these newspapers. The influence of contexts Overview of how specialist audiences can be reached globally by online news media. Several factors may influence the audience to actively interpret and interact with the news Academic ideas and arguments to a greater extent: (See the document www.ocr.org.uk/Images/421658-academic-ideas-and-arguments- • the decline in deference to one’s ‘betters’ – which has influenced our view that the factsheet.pdf for the strengths and limitations of each theory.) public has a right to be heard and to argue with ‘experts’ Bandura • a historical period that sees more political conflict (such as over Brexit, or increasing Curriculum content Curriculum political polarisation) may accentuate this, as audiences may be clearer about their The media can influence people directly – human values, judgement and conduct can viewpoints during such times be altered directly by media modelling. The media may influence directly or by social networks, so people can be influenced by media messages without being exposed to • the impact of feminism has been to give women a more public voice them. Different media have different effects. The ‘new’ media offer opportunities for self- • the impact of multiculturalism has been to give ethnic minorities a more public voice directedness. • changing attitudes to sexualities have given minority sexualities a more public voice Application • a postmodern culture in which truth is a more relative concept may encourage the Studies of news sources that show the same values and judgements underlying different audience to dispute authority. newspaper coverage (e.g. expressing core ideologies such as democracy and the rule of law, or individualism) may suggest a direct effect on audiences. Studies of news sources with radically different values and judgements, or where audience comments suggest oppositional readings of the original articles, may suggest that news sources will have less of a direct effect.
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Gerbner Jenkins Gerbner used content analysis to analyse repeated media messages and values, then Fans act as ‘textual poachers’. The development of the ‘new’ media has accelerated found that heavy users of television were more likely, for example, to develop ‘mean ‘participatory culture’, in which audiences are active and creative participants. They create world syndrome’ – a cynical, mistrusting attitude towards others – following prolonged online communities, produce new creative forms, collaborate to solve problems, and exposure to high levels of television violence. Heavy TV viewing leads to ‘mainstreaming’ – shape the flow of media. a common outlook on the world based on the images and labels on TV. Shirky Application In the ‘old’ media, centralised producers addressed atomised consumers; in the ‘new’ As Gerbner studied the effect of television his study is less directly applicable to print and media, every consumer is now a producer. Traditional media producers would ‘filter then online news, where competing viewpoints are common, except that long term media use publish’; as many ‘new’ media producers are not employees, they ‘publish then filter’. may lead to cultivated effects. These amateur producers have different motivations to those of professionals – they value Could be applied to audiences who remain within a print or digital ‘bubble’ and have their autonomy, competence, membership and generosity. User-generated content creates viewpoints constantly reinforced – ‘Guardian-readers’ and ‘Mail-readers’ who never read emotional connection between people who care about something. other sources of news. ‘The Audience’ as a mass of people with predictable behaviour is gone. Now, behaviour The presence of alternative viewpoints – e.g. in comments on news articles – may count is variable across different sites, with some of the audience creating content, some as evidence against the cultivation effect in online media. synthesising content and some consuming content. The ‘old’ media created a mass audience. The ‘new’ media provide a platform for people to provide value for each other. Hall Application Hall’s ‘encoding-decoding’ model argued that media producers encode ‘preferred meanings’ into texts, but these texts may be ‘read’ by their audiences in a number of Examples of citizen journalism, interaction with news sites, and audiences using a media Curriculum content Curriculum different ways: text as a starting point to generate a discourse that spills out in different directions would validate these approaches. • the dominant-hegemonic position Examples where application of traditional news values sets the news agenda – i.e. much • the negotiated position mainstream news reporting – would argue against these approaches. • the oppositional reading. Application As suggested above, comments on online news may be a rich source of these different readings, as will other forms of audience research. News sources will tend towards a ‘preferred meaning’ within journalistic discourse, supporting this theory, but any examples of deeply ironic or polysemic messages could work as counter-examples, though both the Guardian and Mail have a strong ethos that tends to pervade their material (perhaps less so in the Mail Online).
13 © OCR 2019 Thinking conceptually Approaches to teaching thecontent A Level Studies Media • • • • • • • Suggested teaching andlearningactivities content above. media contexts, sotheseshouldbestudiedthroughout, assuggested inthecurriculum and theGuardian asexamples. Questions includingAO1.2 willaskabout theinfluenceof be taughtinrelation Online asawhole, andMail to industries usingtheDaily Mail news for ofmediaaudiencesacademicideasandarguments, evaluation sothissubtopic should media forms withthesetproducts asexamples, andpotentially anAO2.2 questionasking for audiencesare toQuestions onnews beAO1 explanationsofthe likely questionsasking General approaches fewer entries). 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This isto andaudienceaddress generate for asenseofthestyle ofeachnewspaper 2. 1. news/blogs/the_papers front accesstherangeofnewspaper Suggest thatlearners pages(e.g. at 7–FrontLearner activity pagecomparison • • • Suggest thatlearners: 6–AudienceLearner audience dataand activity address content isavailable to them,andthelevel ofaudienceparticipation? influence whichaudienceistargeted, theway theaudience is addressed, which andFacebookInstagram feeds. thedifferent Do andonline technologies print Onlinewebsite,Compare withtheMail editionoftheDailyMail theprint Twitter, them, andthelevel ofaudienceparticipation? audience istargeted, theway theaudienceisaddressed, whichcontent isavailable to Facebook feeds. thedifferent Do andonlinetechnologies print influencewhich Compare editionoftheGuardian theprint withthewebsite, Twitter, and Instagram ofaudiencemightbeaddressed by each newspaper’sWhat kind form andcontent? whichfront and images? pagestories carry Which newspapers different audiences. Discuss how farthedifferent audienceaddress reflects their newspapers ofthetwo from newspapers their two different days oftheweek. andsharenewspaper your results withothermembersoftheclasswhohave chosen Compare theaudienceaddress ofthedifferent ofoneeditioneach sections Newsworks). Research recent audiencedatafor editionsoftheGuardian (e.g. theprint andMail at )over several days andreview: www.bbc.co.uk/ 15 • Suggest learners: 9–AudienceLearner responses, activity needs usesand them to give ofitsusefulness. eachideaaratingoutof10interms arguments have andonlinenews. beenusefulinunderstandingandanalysingprint Get addto theirlogofexampleswhereSuggest thatlearners specificacademicideasand 10 Learner activity • • • Find of atleastoneexampleincommentsonbothGuardian Onlinearticles andMail home page. the MailOnline, compare thenumberofcommentsto thestories’ prominence onthe the ‘most viewed’ tableto compare audienceuseto thenewspaper’s values. news For intheGuardian given websiteCompare to withtheirpositionin articles thepriority their senseofidentity. oronlineanddiscusswith them how theirmediausefitswith media eitherinprint ethnicity, politicalaffiliation,religion orhobbies)thatusesnon-mainstream news groupFind oneexampleofaminority (defined by suchas factors andinterview your classto buildupacasestudyofdifferent responses. different genders, age, andpoliticalaffiliations. Share your findingswiththerest of toresponses achieve responses to theseheadlines, from trying arangeofpeople Pick oneheadlinefrom theGuardian andresearch andDailyMail different audience not always moderated somay includeinappropriate content.) reading, beaware theoppositionalreading. commentsare thatMailOnline (Warning, each ofHall’s three ofaudienceresponse: types thedominantreading, thenegotiated Delivery Guide Delivery © OCR 2019 A Level Media Studies Delivery Guide SUB TOPIC 3 MEDIA LANGUAGE, THEORIES AND CONTEXTS Curriculum content
Media language content includes: The generic conventions of print and online newspapers, their variations, change over time, hybridity and challenging/subverting conventions – including Neale • the combination of elements to create meaning (semiotics and polysemy) – including with reference to Barthes • Explanation of the historical origins of ‘tabloid’ and ‘broadsheet’ as newspaper genres (and how the terms persist as generic labels despite being outdated as descriptions • the generic conventions of print and online newspapers, their variations, change over of page size). time, hybridity and challenging/subverting conventions – including with reference to Neale • Generic conventions of newspapers across the range of national print newspapers, including generic hybridity and variation (e.g. middle market tabloids, the i, the effects • the relationship between media language and technology in print and online of tabloid size on the quality press, ‘broadloidisation’, and the significance of examples newspapers of exceptions to the conventions – e.g. the Daily Mail on September 3 2015, the Guardian on 18 September 2014). • the significance of intertextuality – including with reference to Baudrillard • Adoption of print newspaper conventions across online newspapers and their use of • the way media language incorporates viewpoints and ideologies – including with social media. reference to Barthes, Todorov and Levi-Strauss • Variation in conventions across print and online iterations. • audience interpretations of media language
Curriculum content Curriculum • Explanation of how variations and hybridity reflect Neale’s argument that genre • the influence of media contexts on media language in newspapers conventions are ever-changing shared codes rather than fixed reference points. • use and evaluation of the ideas of Barthes, Todorov, Levi-Strauss, Neale and Baudrillard The relationship between media language and technology in print and online in analysing newspapers. newspapers
The combination of elements to create meaning (semiotics and polysemy) – • How technology influences the inflection of generic conventions, for example: including Barthes -- the hybridised features of online broadsheet newspapers – more use of colour • Introduction to semiotic analysis: and sans-serif fonts and less body copy on the home page, plus the greater -- explanation of the key elements of print media (layout, typography, colour, prominence of lifestyle, opinion and sports articles image, language use) and of online media (adding functionality, online layout -- the hybridised features of online tabloid home pages – fewer capitalised banner elements, media language elements determined by social media sites etc.) headlines, less dominance by image, more hard news, longer headlines to attract -- analysis of selection – e.g. use of the commutation test to determine meaning clickthroughs on social media. -- analysis of combination (especially anchorage of the image by written language) • How online news media language varies across PC, tablet and phone versions of the websites and on social media feeds. -- analysis of connotation -- analysis of Barthesian myths (and explanation of the link to ideology).
16 © OCR 2019 A Level Media Studies Delivery Guide
The significance of intertextuality – including Baudrillard • Common reasons for intertextuality: humour, parody or homage, value-transference, shorthand meaning, flattering mode of address. • The link between intertextuality and Baudrillard’s concept of hyperreality – examples of looped meanings with no obvious original reference (e.g. intertextual references to stories about celebrities’ PR stunts). Postmodern audiences expecting intertextuality. The way media language incorporates viewpoints and ideologies – including Barthes, Todorov and Levi-Strauss • Barthes’ concept of myths ‘naturalising’ ideology. • Todorov’s concept of narrative transformation from initial equilibrium to new equilibrium and the use of this to discover values and ideology within (implied) narratives. • The use of Levi-Straussian binary oppositions to discover underlying structures of meaning and their values and ideologies. Audience interpretations of media language Covered under media audiences. The influence of media contexts on media language in newspapers • Comparison of 1950s front pages with contemporary counterparts shows the Curriculum content Curriculum influence of: -- consumerism – the role of marketing and consumer choice in contemporary media language -- celebrity culture – in the dominance of the celebrity image -- feminism and multiculturalism – in the attempt to avoid racist and sexist language -- postmodernism – in the use of intertextuality. Academic ideas and arguments and media language (See the document www.ocr.org.uk/Images/421658-academic-ideas-and-arguments- factsheet.pdf for the strengths and limitations of each theory.) The curriculum content above and the related teaching and learning activities below should provide examples of the usefulness of each theory in analysing media language.
17 © OCR 2019 Thinking conceptually Approaches to teaching thecontent A Level Studies Media • • • • Suggested teaching andlearningactivities willnotcomefrom boththesetproducts. unseenextracts product asthetwo the Guardian asexamples, to Learners analyseany willneedto news develop theskills Onlineand to andMail concentrateand industries ontheDailyMail to someextent products. andonlinenews of print While itmay helpunderstandingofmediaaudiences For theAO2.1 (andAO2.3) questionsthissubtopic shouldbetaughtinrelation to arange for ofmedialanguageacademicideasandarguments.AO2.2 evaluation question asking (andjudgementsandconclusions),potentially an for analysisofunseenextracts medialanguageare to Questions onnews beAO2.1 likely (andAO2.3) questionsasking General approaches newspaper fromnewspaper 14). the use ofmedialanguageonthefront page(seeActivity newspapers,print asinthetablebelow, in reading ofthe andpractice theviewpoint ofeachthe national paidforExplanation ofthesocialand political viewpoint ‘ideology toolkit’ 13). thatcanbeappliedto media languageanalysis(seeActivity media forms (e.g. Learners online andprint). shouldbeprovided comparing withan from news incomparing differentin theexam).Learners shouldalsogainpractice may beusedforthese comparisons bothmedialanguageand representation analysis occasion, different content expressing thenewspapers’ different values(as news using different or, medialanguage(asinthe SampleAssessment Material) on feeds, preferably examplesfrom different two covering newspapers similarcontent products,of print homepages, news andnews Twitter, andFacebook Instagram oppositions, andintertextuality. and binary ofpairs This shouldincludecomparison myth, andideologies, viewpoints anchorage, includingimpliednarratives Barthesian ideasofconnotation,polysemy, applyingkey ofanalytical skills, student practice medialanguageanalysisthrough to practical demonstrationand Introduction conventions. ingeneric 12). variation Activity (See and ared top tabloidnewspaper. Discusstherole of thetechnology incausing Twitter, andFacebook Instagram feeds for Online theGuardian, theDailyMail/Mail front throughnewspapers oftheprint pageto comparison thehomepageand Study how genre conventions are through inflected different onlineiterations of ‘broadsheet’ 11). newspapers. Activity (See newspapers, establishingtheconventions ofred and top tabloid, middlemarket of the rangeofprint withanoverview to genre starting Introduction innews 18 • • Times Newspaper Daily Star Daily Mirror Daily Sun Express Daily Mail Daily The i Independent Financial Times Guardian TelegraphDaily and argument have 15. fewer Activity See entries). analysis(andnote whichacademicideas Baudrillard have beenuseful inundertaking Learners to logexampleswhere theideasofBarthes, Todorov, Neale, Levi-Strauss and Test whatpeoplenoticeandremember from sources. thenews different sources, news suchasinterest/boredom, engagement/distaste andsoon. Investigation into differences audienceresponse inactual to themedialanguagein No clearpoliticalaffiliation theLabourParty Left ofcentre –supports under theLabourParty supported Tony Blair but Party theConservative ofcentre,Right supports mostoften (under endorsed theLabourParty Tony Blair)andUKIP buthas Party theConservative wing,Right usuallysupports Party Conservative the –supports wingandsociallyconservative Right –notpoliticallyaffiliatedCentrist the LiberalDemocrats –notpoliticallyaffiliated,Centrist butthepaperhasendorsed Party theConservative Pro-business –usuallysupports theLiberalDemocrats buthassupported Party theLabour Left ofcentre andsociallyliberal–usuallysupports Party Conservative the –supports wingandsociallyconservative Right under theLabourParty supported Tony Blair but Party theConservative ofcentre,Right supports mostoften Political position Delivery Guide Delivery © OCR 2019 Thinking conceptually A Level Studies Media different mediaforms. (thelatter for andtheories contexts longform television dramaonly)are appliedacross academic ideasandarguments willbereinforced how by thesamecontent, comparing andtheapplicationof Understanding ofthiscontent, theinfluenceofmediacontexts magazines, andmarketing, musicvideoandlongform television drama. advertising content forThe subject Languagefor Media willbeusedagaininthestudyof news topic to setlearnersupfor topics later inthecourse Conceptual linksto otherareas ofthespecification –usefulways to approach this to differences inmedialanguage. editionsandthis, stafftoeditorial theprint plustheirdifferent target audiences, may lead Learners mustbeaware thattheonlineversions may ofnewspapers have different across mediaforms. thetwo to conventions develop an understanding ofgeneric andmedialanguageuseinnews of medialanguageintheexam. This requires themto move beyond thesetproducts be given edition,website any print newspaper orsocialmediafeed to analyseinterms Learners needto have may asthey ageneralunderstandingofrangenewspapers Common misconceptions ordifficultieslearnersmay have 19 Delivery Guide Delivery © OCR 2019 Thinking contextually Approaches to teaching thecontent A Level Studies Media each idea a rating out of 10 in terms ofitsusefulness.each ideaaratingoutof10interms have andonlinenews. themto beenusefulinunderstandingand analysing print Get give Ask to addto learners theirlogofexampleswhere specific academicideasandarguments 15 Learner activity –compare ofindividualnewspapers headlines. andviewpoint to theactual the style ofheadlines in aseries construct andlearners story anews you select activity: Extension editions. havelearners to eachheadlineisfrom. guesswhichnewspaper withonline Repeat you read icebreaker: outtheheadlinesfromRegular thatday’s and newspapers print quiz 14–Guessthenewspaper Learner activity toolkit’ to analysemedialanguageinnews. Use language media 13–Analysing Learner activity listed in Ask to research learners conventions fitthegeneric newspapers how farnationalprint 12–ConventionsLearner activity inonlinenews listed in Ask to research learners conventions fitthegeneric newspapers how farnationalprint 11–ConventionsLearner activity innews(printed) Learner resource 13 Learner resource 12 Learner resource 11 intheseparate zipfolder to applyan andasklearners ‘ideology intheseparate zipfolder. intheseparate zipfolder. 20 Delivery Guide Delivery © OCR 2019 A Level Media Studies Delivery Guide SUB TOPIC 4 MEDIA REPRESENTATIONS, THEORIES AND CONTEXTS Curriculum content
Media representations content includes: How news makes claims about realism and constructs versions of reality
• how selection and combination creates representations of events, issues, individuals • Institutional factors backing the realism (accuracy and truthfulness) of journalism: and social groups journalistic ethics and the ethos of serious newspapers, the traditional separation of editorial and advertising, the libel laws, journalistic regulators. How these may vary • how news makes claims about realism and constructs versions of reality within different types of journalism (e.g. local free newspapers versus national paid for broadsheets). • the impact of the media industry and social, cultural and historical contexts on how producers choose to represent events, issues, individuals and social groups • Application of Todorov’s narratology and Levi-Strauss’s binary oppositions to news stories to elucidate how realities are constructed by news stories. • positive and negative uses of stereotyping • Case study of the comparison between the Daily Mail’s ‘common-sense’ version of • how social groups may be under-represented or misrepresented reality based on adoption of a traditional dominant ideology and the Guardian’s • how representations, particularly those that systematically reinforce values, attitudes more questioning construction of reality based on more self-conscious ‘progressive’ and beliefs about the world across many representations, invoke discourses and ideologies. ideologies and position audiences
• suggest how audience response and interpretation reflects social, cultural and Curriculum content Curriculum historical circumstances
• apply and evaluate the ideas of Hall, Gauntlett, Butler, Van Zoonen, hooks, and Gilroy in analysing newspapers. How selection and combination creates representations of events, issues, individuals and social groups
• The concept of ‘news values’ and their effect on selection of news. Changes in news values due to technological change (e.g. the increasing primacy of visuals).
• The worldview and ethos of different newspapers, especially the Daily Mail and the Guardian, and their effects on processes of selection and combination. Use of the Daily Mail and the Guardian as a case study of representations.
21 © OCR 2019 A Level Media Studies Delivery Guide
The impact of the media industry and social, cultural and historical contexts on how How representations, particularly those that systematically reinforce values, producers choose to represent events, issues, individuals and social groups attitudes and beliefs about the world across many representations, invoke discourses and ideologies and position audiences • Case study of the media industry background to the Guardian – the Scott Trust – and the Daily Mail/Mail Online – private ownership – and the effects of these on • Unpacking the wide range of terms in this list and explaining the large amount of representations (explore differences within the Mail stable, especially between the overlap between them, e.g. the way that shared beliefs, values, and attitudes may pre-September 2018 pro-brexit Daily Mail and anti-brexit Mail on Sunday, to discuss become taken-for-granted ideologies. the effect of ownership on representations). • Discourses as systems of power-knowledge (Foucault) such as medicine, education, • Discussion of the ethos of all the national newspapers as expressed in their front or management that have their own effectivity. Ideologies as shared values and pages. beliefs that reflect power relations that are external to the ideology, e.g. racism, or reflect wider society, e.g. individualism. • Impact of contexts on representations: the rise of feminism, multiculturalism, changing attitudes to sexualities, postmodernism, consumerism, celebrity culture, • Audience positioning as the way media products try to create a subjective and political issues such as the rise of the populist right, increasing international position for their audience to inhabit. Forms of positioning: emotional, intellectual, tension, global warming, and so on. cultural, and so on. Ways that audiences might resist or accept positioning, or both simultaneously. Positive and negative uses of stereotyping How audience response and interpretation reflects social, cultural and historical • Explanation of the term and its limitations (e.g. implying that this ‘fuzzy concept’ has circumstances a definite, measurable reality). Examples of positive and negative stereotyping. The difference between using stereotypes unthinkingly and as a strategy to explore the • Impact of contexts on audience response to representations: the rise of feminism, stereotype. The relationship between stereotyping and shorthand meanings and multiculturalism, changing attitudes to sexualities, postmodernism, consumerism, Curriculum content Curriculum informal modes of address suggesting community. celebrity culture, and political issues such as the rise of the populist right, increasing international tension, global warming, and so on. • The relationship between stereotyping and ideologies of exclusion such as sexism, racism, ageism, heterosexism, ethnocentrism, class snobbery, body shaming and so on. How social groups may be under-represented or misrepresented
• Issues of diversity, stereotyping and tokenism. Self-representation and representation by others.
• The relationship between under and mis-representation and ideologies of exclusion.
22 © OCR 2019 A Level Media Studies Delivery Guide
Academic ideas and arguments Theories of Identity – Gauntlett
(See the document www.ocr.org.uk/Images/421658-academic-ideas-and-arguments- The media have an important but complex relationship with identities. In the modern factsheet.pdf for the strengths and limitations of each theory.) world it is now an expectation that individuals make choices about their identity and lifestyle. Even in the traditional media, there are many diverse and contradictory media Hall messages that individuals can use to think through their identities and ways of expressing themselves. Representation is not about whether the media reflects or distorts reality, as this implies that there can be one ‘true’ meaning, but the many meanings a representation can The online media offer people a route to self-expression, and therefore a stronger sense of generate. Thus, meaning can be contested. self and participating in the world by making and exchanging. People still build identities, but through everyday, creative practice. A representation implicates the audience in creating its meaning. Power – through ideology or by stereotyping – tries to fix the meaning of a representation in a ‘preferred Evidence that might support this theory includes: meaning’. To create deliberate anti-stereotypes is still to attempt to fix the meaning (albeit in a different way). A more effective strategy is to go inside the stereotype and open it up • examples where the success of ‘popular feminism’ and increasing representation from within, to deconstruct the work of representation. of different sexualities represents the meaning of gender, sexuality and identity as increasingly open Evidence that might support this theory includes: • examples where news encourages participation and new forms of identity (e.g. news • examples of audience contestation of preferred meanings in products (e.g. through about the me-too movement). analysis of comments as suggested under audience) Feminist Theory – Van Zoonen • examples of attempts to go against stereotypes that unwittingly reinforce those
Curriculum content Curriculum stereotypes In patriarchal culture the way women’s bodies are represented as objects is different to the representation of male bodies as spectacle. • examples of successful attempts to deconstruct a stereotype by revealing and thus undermining its stereotypical nature. Gender is performative – our ideas of femininity and masculinity are constructed in our performances of these roles.
Evidence that might support this theory includes:
• examples of representations centred on objectifications of women’s bodies and other patriarchal representations
• examples of news that represents the construction of gender (e.g. debates about trans women).
23 © OCR 2019 A Level Media Studies Delivery Guide
Feminist Theory – hooks Theories around ethnicity and post-colonial theory – Gilroy
Feminism is a movement to end patriarchy: sexism, sexist exploitation, and oppression. The African diaspora caused by the slave trade has now constructed a transatlantic culture that is simultaneously African, American, Caribbean and British – the ‘Black Atlantic’. ‘Intersectionality’ refers to the intersections of gender, race, class and sexuality to create a ‘white supremacist capitalist patriarchy’, whose ideologies dominate media Britain has failed to mourn its loss of empire, creating ‘post-colonial melancholia’, an representations. She argues that black women should develop an ‘oppositional gaze’ that attachment to an airbrushed version of British colonial history, which expresses itself in refuses to identify with characters. criminalising immigrants and an ‘us and them’ approach to the world founded on the belief in the inherent superiority of white western civilisation. Evidence that might support this theory includes: Evidence that might support this theory includes: • examples of representations reinforcing the ‘white supremacist capitalist patriarchy’ • examples of representations celebrating a transnational Black culture • examples of oppositional black female responses to news. • examples of representations that reinforce a white version of Britishness and a view of Theories of Gender Performativity – Butler the world that reflects the British experience of empire and colonialism. Gender is created in how we perform our gender roles – there is no essential gender identity behind these roles, it is created in the performance. Performativity is not a singular act but a repetition and a ritual that becomes naturalised within the body.
Evidence that might support this theory includes:
• examples of repetition of representations reinforcing gender performances Curriculum content Curriculum • examples of news that ‘queers’ gender norms.
24 © OCR 2019 Thinking conceptually Approaches to teaching thecontent A Level Studies Media an ideologyasequivalentto aviewpoint. The conceptofideologyisdifficultfor many to grasp learners –acommonerror isto see develop anunderstandingofrepresentations across innews media forms. thetwo of representations intheexam. This requires themto move beyond thesetproducts to be given edition,website any print newspaper orsocialmediafeed to analyseinterms Learners needto have may asthey ageneralunderstanding ofarangenewspapers Common misconceptions ordifficultieslearnersmay have • • • Suggested teaching andlearningactivities willnot comefrom boththesetproducts. unseenextracts as thetwo Guardian to analyseany asexamples, product willneedto news develop learners theskills Onlineand the to andMail concentrateand industries ontheDailyMail to someextent products. andonlinenews of print While itmay helpunderstandingofmediaaudiences For theAO2.1 (andAO2.3) questionsthissubtopic shouldbetaughtinrelation to arange for ofrepresentationAO2.2 evaluation question asking academicideasandarguments. (andjudgementsandconclusions),potentially an for analysisofunseenextracts representationsQuestions onnews are to beAO2.1 likely (andAO2.3) questionsasking General approaches argument have 20. fewer Activity See entries). analysis(andnote whichacademicideasand Gilroy have beenusefulin undertaking Learners to logexampleswhere theideasofHall, Gauntlett, Van Zoonen, Butlerand 19). onthese(Activity effects ofcontexts different sources news –dominant,negotiated andoppositional readings –andthe Investigation into differences audienceresponse inactual to therepresentations in ideologies). and resistance, (Learner theinfluenceofcontexts resource 18containsatableof melancholia),audiencepositioningandcreativity and post-colonial realism, ideologies anddiscourses(especially patriarchy, classsuperiority, racism, representation andrepresentation by others, andunder-representation, diversity stereotyping stereotypes, andanti-stereotypingselection, anddeconstructing self- andonlineeditionssocialmediafeeds,print suchas: terms deploying key inanalysingrepresentations practice Regular intheir inarangeofnewspapers 25 The subject content forThe subject Representations for willbeusedagaininthestudyof news topic to setlearnersupfor topics later inthecourse Conceptual linksto otherareas ofthespecification –usefulways to approach this different mediaforms. (thelatter for andtheories contexts longform television dramaonly)are appliedacross academic ideasandarguments willbereinforced how by thesamecontent, comparing andtheapplicationof Understanding ofthiscontent, theinfluenceofmediacontexts magazines, andmarketing, musicvideoandlongform television drama. advertising Delivery Guide Delivery © OCR 2019 Thinking contextually Approaches to teaching thecontent A Level Studies Media theories, (e.g. andinternationalist Guardian-readers) or Turkish. wingpopulistconspiracy use ofangerto whipuppoliticalsentiment,suspiciousofright ofthe these couldbecontested by anaudiencereading theheadlinewhomightbewary (probably by theliberalelite), asnot wantingmore Turks Eachof andasBritish. inBritain, html borders-1-5m-Turks-British-diplomats-admit-risk-tell-ministers-symbolic-gesture-Turkey. Turks into Britain’ ( For example, afamousheadlinefrom 13/06/2016: theDailyMail ‘Fury over plotto let1.5m to considerwhichpeopleorsocialgroups mightnotwantto bepositionedinthatway. feel, tothey whichgroup think, whatshouldthey are supposedto they belong?Ask them to placetheaudiencein:how should andnote whatpositiontheheadlineistrying story For to fixthemeaningof pickoneheadlinethattries eachproduct, suggestlearners Ask to lookatarangeoffront learners pagesandhomeofnewspapers. 17-AudienceLearner positioning activity image? For eachswap, doesthissignificantly changethemeaningof askthemto consider: and shapes, andsoon-any canthinkof.. otherswapthey peoplewithavisibledisability, swapraces,swap able-bodied swapbodysizes photograph; e.g. swapawoman for aman,orviceversa, swapyoung andoldpeople, For eachproduct, askthemto imagine changing thesocialgroups represented ina Ask to lookatarangeoffront learners pagesandhomeofnewspapers. 16-ThecommutationLearner test activity ) hasapositioningstrategy to positiontheaudienceasfurious, as suspiciousofplots https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3637523/Secret-plan-open- 26 below) and get learners to use the toolkit when analysing news stories andfinding stories whenanalysingnews tobelow) usethetoolkit andgetlearners thetablein (like develop atoolkit Suggest learners the‘ideology toolkit’ 18-Applying Learner activity examples inthenews. melancholia) (or post-colonial Ethnocentrism Multiculturalism Anti-racism or Racism Feminism ideology Sexism/patriarchal Consumerism Materialism Welfarism Liberal Democracy Individualism Ideology outsider represent othercultures from ofasuperior thepointofview culture over others(e.g. littlecoverage offoreign or news), Expressed by representations lifestyle and British that prioritise racism criticising groupsminority intheirstrugglefor equality, exposingand Represented by respect for different of cultures, support racist beliefs Unchallenged raciststereotyping orrepresentations thatimply sexism andpower,of women withagency exposingandcriticising for women’sSupport struggle for equality, representations representationsobjectified ofwomen Expressed through unchallengedsexiststereotyping, sexually services choices,identity andself-fulfilmentthrough buyinggoods and aboutbrands, lifestyle and orlifestyle stories articles News aboutwealth, stories News goods incomeandmaterial offering help collective education ortheNHS,of ‘ordinary people’ needingor Representations ofwelfare state issues, suchasbenefits, (or itsopposite, suchascensorshipandpropaganda) law (or itsopposite, suchasterrorism), freedom ofexpression through voting oropinionpolls, representations oftherule political issues. References to willofthepeople’‘the expressed Representations ofpoliticalleaders, decision-makers, and freedom oftheindividualusuallyexpress individualism. standing upto bigorganisations. celebratingthe Stories celebratingindividuals,Stories are especiallywhenthey Influence onrepresentations Learner resource 18 andalsoshown Delivery Guide Delivery © OCR 2019 Thinking contextually A Level Studies Media each ideaaratingoutoften ofitsusefulness. interms have andonlinenews. themto beenusefulinunderstandingandanalysingprint Get give Ask to addto learners theirlogofexampleswhere specificacademicideasandarguments 20 Learner activity responses. them to share theirfindingswiththerest of your classto buildup acasestudyofdifferent responses from arangeofpeopledifferent genders, age, andpoliticalaffiliation.Get different audienceresponses to therepresentations to achieve intheseheadlines, trying pickoneheadlinefromSuggest learners theGuardian and research andDailyMail always moderated somay includeinappropriate content.) reading, beaware theoppositionalreading. commentsare thatMailOnline not (Warning, with specificreference to therepresentations: thedominantreading, thenegotiated ofeachHall’sboth Guardian Onlinearticles andMail three ofaudienceresponse types As before, for mediaaudiences, to find atleastoneexampleincommentson asklearners 19-AudienceLearner response to activity representations 27 Delivery Guide Delivery © OCR 2019 Looking for a resource? 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