Key Assessment 4

Question 1 :

Explore how the combination of media language creates meaning for the audience in the video to Riptide [15]

Plan:

Media language

Textual analysis – codes and conventions, camera and editing, continuity or montage, structure/narrative, intertextuality, sound, mise-se-scene

Introduction: DAC, Definition, Argument, Context

Use words from question

Theorists: Roland barths semiotic codes. Claude levi-strauss structuralism

Some of the Iconography heavily references the horror genre

Riptide is sang by Vance Joy singersongwriter. His music is indie folk-pop genre. Released 2013

Riptide is sung by Vance Joy, an Australian singer-songwriter. The song was released in 2013 along with the music video. His music generally is categorized as indie folk-pop genre. The music video uses intertextuality to convey meaning to the audience. There are many intertextual references to a horror film, shots of woman being tortured and in distress appear regularly with fast rapid shots creating fear for the audience. This draws our attention to the parallels between this video and how woman are treated in horror films. Woman are represented in many ways throughout the video using media language to help convey the ideology and meaning behind it.

Another way the music video creates meaning for the audience is by the video interpreting the lyrics very literally. For example, when they are singing about a cowboy, a cowboy appears on screen and this is the same for a lot of other shots. This really makes the audience listen closely to the lyrics to understand what is going on. There is not much element of continuity, it is more like a montage of rapid fast past shots with harsh jump cuts between one and other. It could still be considered a narrative music video as they lyrics are interpreted so literally. There are some shots of a female lip syncing with the video but this deliberately deteriorates throughout the song and becomes very poor. The woman singing this starts off all glamorous in the spot light but each time the shot cuts back to her, her make-up starts to smudge and its clear she has been crying, there is blood rolling down her face as if she has been attacked and the lip syncing gets worse. This is very subversive to the typical music video where the artist usually appears and there is perfect lip syncing the entire way through. This shot of the woman would shock the audience and create a tense atmosphere making us feel scared for her.

Woman are represented in a very objectifying way, there are shots of parts of their bodies almost dehumanising them to make them seem like objects to be admired. They convey this through the use of mise-en-scene. For example, the costumes they wear like the swim suit is heavily sexualising them and this is further shown as she pulls it down slowly. Also the hair and make-up is there to make a woman look ‘pretty’ showing they are being admired for what they look like rather than who they are. There are contrasting locations and settings used, for instance, some pretty beach scenes with bright lighting compared to dark gloomy shots inside where it has low lighting adding to the element of fear. This is a binary opposition which links to Claude Levi-Struass’ structuralist theory suggesting there are always underlying meanings in signs and symbols usually spotted through binary oppositions.

There is lots of camera work and editing that anchorages the message and meaning of the video. High angle shots victimize the women and makes them look vulnerable The shot of the lip syncing woman is much longer than a lot of the others suggesting they are wanting to leave the audience to see her up close for a long time. The repetition of this shot and how it is close up emphasises the fact they want to make sure the audience has seen this women in pain and hurting. As an audience we are positioned to create our own interpretation of the music video, but they use these techniques like repetition to make sure those are the images you remember and make you assumptions on.  The montage editing exaggerates juxtapositions and binary opposition through the hard jump cuts, it is fast past and some of the changes of shots match the beat of the song but not all. The main code seen in this video is an enigma code, creating mystery at the end and making it left up to audiences own interpretation. Every frame has been considered, each aspect is used as a symbol for an idea for example, the girl tied round a tree with rope and the dental brace shot symbolises vulnerability but also strength, this links to Roland Barths semiotic codes theory. 

In conclusion the combination of media language creates many meanings for the audience from intertextual references to the camera work. Media language is embedded into the music video to help gain an understanding of the meaning. In the end it is left up to the audiences own interpretation and there is different meaning of the song to everybody.

Question 2

In what ways has ownership shaped the media products you have studied? Make reference to the Assassin’s Creed franchise [15]

Plan:

Introduction - Definition of ownership, which industrys it has shaped, then context about videogame

Paragraphs – Ubisoft, power and media insdutrys theorist curran and seaton, media diversity

Key words

Monopoly

Media conglomerate

Ownership

Refrence to an assasins creed game

Ownership means the company which owns the product. It has shaped many media industry’s like the newspaper, magazine, film and videogame industry. Media conglomerates form, which is when two or more company’s join together from different industries to grow bigger and gain more power. There are problems with gaining more power and ownership, for example, one voice and ideology is heard, its harder to regulate, lack of diversity, and they start to be driven by profit and power which links to the theorists Curran and Seaton who state that the media is controlled by small number of companies primarily driven by profit and power.

Ownership has highly shaped the videogame industry. Ubisoft is a major videogame company which publishes and owns many of the most popular mainstream franchises including the Assassins creed. It was established in France 1986 and it is the 4^th largest publicity traded game company in America and Europe. They are horizontal and vertically integrated media conglomerate with several studios and subsidiaries. The company focus on the production of 'AAA' games with a vast budget and high production values. This also means they must target a mass audience; they do this by using digital convergence which can help them reach audiences globally. David Hesmonhalgh suggests that major company’s like Ubisoft have to minimize risk to get maximum profit, they do this by publishing a wide range of games to suit different audiences.

Ubisoft has great success and they do diversify beyond the videogame industry, for example Ubisoft motion pictures creates films based on the videogames they own. Monopoly is the exclusive ownership or control of something so this is why they have the rights to turn the assassin’s creed franchise into a film. This now targets not only people that play videogames but people that like films. However, it always comes back to the same outcome; media products exists to make money. Ubisoft has had a lot of criticism as overall they still only offer a standardized and generic product which makes Ubisoft not a very diverse output.  Curran and Seaton’s theory explains that a bigger conglomerate limits creativity, competition, and diversity. They suggest we need a more socially diverse and democratic patterns of ownership which will help create varied media products.

In conclusion, media product are highly shaped by ownership, we can see this clearly through the videogame industry and Assassin’s creed franchise. When a media product has ownership over something they are highly driven by the profit and power and everything else is forgotten about. By concentrating media production in to the hands of so few companies, there is an increasing lack of variety, creativity and quality.

Question 3

Explore how the WaterAid advert you have studied appeals to its target audience(s) [15]

Plan:

Advertising

Introduction:

Charity ad – write about the purpose of charity adds  and how they address to the audience

Write about the background info about wateraid

Key words                                                           Could use NSPCC advert as another example

Direct address

Lexis

Textural analysis

Codes and conventions, camera work and editing, sound, mise-en-scene

They use media language to target to the audience

WaterAid is a charity established in 1981 following a campaign for access to clean water, sanitation, and water hygiene. The purpose of any charity advert is to inform people about what is happening to other people and make them feel guilty, so they are more likely to donate money and want to help. They are also there to raise awareness and generate an emotional response so then the viewer takes action. Adverts like these target their audiences through lexis and emotional language as well as direct address.

This WaterAid advert is all about informing people what is happening to people without access to clean water but it also shows the impact that the work of this charity has on people and asking the audience to help by donating money. Its target audience is most likely British middle class people living with disposable income and have comfortable lives. They have targeted this audience by using the beginning shot of a rainy day in most likely Britain as there is a radio playing with a British accent then cutting to a dry desert in Africa. This juxtaposition will shock the audience and make them feel fearful for the people living in those conditions. It is marketed through technology showing that the people seeing this advert are living comfortable lives with technology etc…  The diegetic sound of these two beginning shots firstly of the rain then to the faint sound of crickets and birds then the footsteps of the girl all engage the audience right from the beginning. The girl Claudia then starts singing, this song she is singing was famous in the 90’s so this might engage people aged 35 + as they are more likely to know the song.

When the text appears on the screen later in the advert it has the British pound sign further emphasizing a British target audience. This text uses direct address telling you how to help, for example it says ‘ TEXT SUNNY to 70555 to give £3 today and help reach more people like Claudia’ This direction at the audience means they are more likely to help and donate. Audiences will feel better about themselves for donating so its helping the charity as well as benefiting you for doing a good thing. This means they are trying to appeal to the social aware and people that are interested in charity. This text stays on the screen right through to the end to emphasize how important it is. Real life stories are what captures the audience and are most powerful. Another example of a charity ad is the 'NSPCC open your eyes' advert which again uses direct address this time through the use of a close up shot of eyes looking straight into the camera at the audience, high angle shots make the children look vulnerable and the use of mise-en-scene creates a sad looking atmosphere.

Most charity adverts are all more like the NSPCC one where you see some very sad and depressing scenes but WaterAid has been a bit different; as well as the binary opposition at the beginning between the two very different locations, they have used another binary opposition as the girl is singing a happy song which contradicts to the problem of clean sanitation and water. This could have been a risk as it could have potentially have the opposite effect on the audience as they may think well who is actually in need as it all seems to look alright with all the children singing and happy around a running tap. This is what makes WaterAid very different from the typical charity ad although it does still share some similar features.

Another way the advert connects the audience is through the camera work. They have used many different shot types including close up’s on the girls face as she sings.  There is also a low angle shot that captures the girls feet as she treads on the dry sounding ground, the camera also follows this movement, rather than staying still, making it seem to audience as if you are there walking with her. Finally, they also use wide angle shot types to show the setting and scenery which gives the audience an overview of how everything looks and how different it is to our own lives.

In conclusion the WaterAid advert appeals to its target audience in many different ways, through camera work and sound as well as exploring binary oppositions so we all notice what different lives we all have. The target audience is wide but it is mainly directing it at people with middle wage income and who have disposable income so they can get donations as this is the only way they can help improve the lives of those people living in desperate situations.

Question 4

Liesbet van Zoonen argues that representations of gender are encoded through media language to position audiences and to reinforce dominant ideological perspectives. In what ways do the producers of Woman use representations to position their audiences? [15]

Plan

Women magazine

Feminist theory’s  

Introduction :

Describe what representations woman magazine use to position audiences

Put in some context about woman magazine

Cultivation theory – George Gerbner

Stuart hall – reception theory

The advertisement section represents woman in a sexualised way

Alfred Hitchcock article – he says woman are objects rather than humans

Woman magazine represents gender in a very dominant ideological way, meaning it reinforces mainstream hegemonic values and by being exposed to these repeated patterns of representation it will shape and influence the audience in the way in which people are perceived. Throughout the articles in the magazine, women are represented as objects rather than humans with feelings and values. This is seen in the Alfred Hitchcock article as well as the advertisement pages. Liesbet van Zoonen believes that women’s bodies are used in media products as a spectacle for heterosexual male audiences, which reinforces patriarchal hegemony.

Woman magazine shows many stereotypes even just from the front page, for example Housewife, mother, and being dependent on men. On the front page there is a photo of a smiling women filling up the whole page with the text underneath ‘seven star improvements for your kitchen’ ‘lingerie goes lively’ and ‘are you an A-level beauty’. These phrases all connote the stereotype of a housewife. This positions the audience to think the same and at the top of the page it states ‘worlds greatest weekly for women’ this sounds inspirational and will make more women want to read it and feel empowered. The problem is that these representations of gender are encoded throughout and as George Gerbner says in his cultivation theory, being exposed to these repeated patterns will only reinforce dominant ideological perspectives.

Another way the producers of Woman magazine use representations to position their audiences is through the advertisement section. There is a women sitting naked covered in soapy bubbles which is heavily sexualised by the way she is sitting covering up and the pouting of the lips. The text below is also heavily sexualised by the use of the language 'Darling' which woman would usually be called by their husbands. It also uses direct address using the word 'you' a lot, and the opening sentence is 'Because you're a woman...' It is telling woman what they need and should get and they have done this with the excessive language used for example the alliteration 'bath with breeze'. Another theory that could link to all of this is Stuart Hall reception theory, he suggests that there are three ways and options for reading something; preferred, negotiated or opposed reading. Woman Magazine readers these days are potentially more likely to have a negotiated or oppositional reading due to the changes that have occurred in society since the 1960s, especially in relation to gender.

In conclusion, the producers of Woman have used very sexualised or objectified representations which in the days the magazine was released would have positioned their audiences to agree with these ways but in today’s time, women are represented in a very different way to how they were viewed back then.