Explain the role played by the media in the construction of collective identity
When discussing the role played by the media in the construction of collective identity youths are often represented in a negative light. In various forms of mass media youths are portrayed as almost deviants, which go against society causing a moral panic within communities. This links in with Stanley Cohen’s theory and also relates to both Antonio Gramsci who states that hegemony occurs in which the control of society is by one large group ie (the mass media) and David Gauntlett who states that 'Identities are not 'given' but are constructed and negotiated” within the media.
According to Stanley Cohen, author of Folk Devils and Moral Panics (1972) a moral panic occurs when "condition, episode, person or group of persons emerges to become defined as a threat to societal values and interests." People who supposedly threaten the social order have been described as "folk devils." Moral panic links in with the films "a clockwork orange" and “Quadraphinia” which both focus on the construction of youths and how this caused a stir among the public for the behaviour and content shown.
Conspiracy between the main characters "alex and his droogs" antics and how their actions effected and where mirrored by the public was a topic that the mass media grasp and shown within a very negetive light. The debate still stands today as to whether our society can be influenced by such inappropriate behaviour or if the deviants who commit the crimes will regardless of what they have viewed and the mass media played a massive part into the construction of youths and how they can be affected by social learning theory of imitating what they see. The youths related to the film in a way as similar to Alex and his droogs they wore similar clothing to each other and stuck together in gangs however when talking about the behaviour viewed youths stated that it was nothing in which they "had not seen before". This brings in the debate again as to whether the film does need a concern or whether as David Gauntlett states that the 'Identities" of the characters "are not constructed and negotiated” by the mass media and made out to be worse than they actually are as a treat to society.
In Quandrophinia the main point in the fact that Jimmy wants to be out of the ordinary is shown through dialog when stating to Kevin "I don't want to be the same as everyone else, thats why I'm a mod see" which is slightly ironic as though he is a mod they all show similar behaviour and wear similar clothing making them the same as each other rather than unique. This ideologie of wanting to be different but actually all being similar to each other could be done in order to show the impression which the young generation think they have by being different and the view of which the older generation have of them by all being the same. This is shown further by him and his dad being binary opposites and him stating Jimmy to be a "freak" asking "haven't you got a mind of your own." The mob mentality and sticking together is also an ideology in which is shown by them trashing the house and the streets of Brighton basically because they can and are in such a large crowd that they are not fearful of the consequences. Jimmy is shown to be centrally framed between the two older men at his work and is throwing up whilst they ignore him and chat amongst themselves which could be to show the intollerance the older generation has to the younger generation and the antics they get up to.
In Quadraphinia there is also various forms of mise en scene used in order to establish the youth culture such as the dark rock music, motorbikes, drugs, smoking, gambling, bars parties and riots. These are all things which show the young generation in a bad light and indicate that they are very image consious. The mise en scene is important in order to indicate the lifestyle of the mods and the outlets they use in order to supress their bordom and go against society. The mods are almost seen to take over society by their antics and are devients which rebel against the normal and try to almost destroy it. This rule breaking and conflicts between the younger and older generation may cause a moral panic within the media as its something which is generally feared by the older generation. Those who then see a mod in the street maythen be fearful that they will get into antics similar to those in the film purely because of the way they dress. The mob mentality is something of a moral panic as if big enough and wanting to rebel against society it is possible that the culture we live in could change, a fearful thought for the society at that time.
Similarly within society today the media has constructed an image for youths in which all people of that age who dress a certain way are given a certain constructed identity by the media. Moral panics towards youths are still evident today such as the London riots showing a key event in which the media portrayed a negative image about youths. On 4 August 2011, a police officer shot and killed 29-year-old Mark Duggan during an attempt to arrest him. On 6 August a protest was held, initially peacefully, beginning at Broadwater Farm and finishing at Tottenham police station in order to gain answers of his death. The protest began to escalate on a much larger scale in which a large amount of youths took part in the gathering. Rioting occurred shortly after about 120 people marched from the Broadwater Farm estate to Tottenham Police Station.The group of some 200 people demanded that a senior local police officer come out to speak to them. They stayed in front of the police station hours longer than they originally planned because they were not satisfied with the seniority of the officers available at the time. A younger and more aggressive crowd arrived at the scene around dusk, some carrying weapons. Further violence broke out based on an allegation that the police had done.
Within the mass media examples were shown in which youths are shown in a definite negative light. A specific example is of a news broadcast for BBC news in which the video is live during the riots focusing mainly on the present action of the riots in which the reporter is in the midst of it and showing actual occurrences as well as using negative language in order to show the riots in a negative light. Occurrences such as the smashing of a police car with bricks and stones at the side of the road with the reporter stating how quickly the mood of the crowd can change as they were thought to be surrounded by sight seeing’s and then the mood seemed to of erratically change to violent behaviour of youths out of control. This links in with Gramsci’s theory by the fact that the mass media are in control of society and selecting certain areas of that time which show particularly violent footage from youths constructing their identity as mindless and destructive. Being live various footage could of been shown but the media specifically selected that in order to continue their constructed representation of youths.
Some forms of media however helped show a positive representation of youths within the London riots and helped go against the mass medias typical representation. These examples include
Friday 23 March 2012
Wednesday 21 March 2012
Tuesday 20 March 2012
Useful Theory
Antonio Gramsci - Hegemony
Italian theorist Antonio Gramsci (1881-1937). He emphasised that the control of society by one group or one set of political ideas was not necessarily achieved by force or control of arms, but by persuasion and ‘consent’ – the basis of democracy. The rulers manage to convince the mass of the population that they are ‘better off’ accepting current government policies. Maintaining hegemonic control is thus a process of constantly reinforcing the message and developing the argument.
The concept of hegemony allows for substantial change in ideas over time, even though the
same groups remain in power. These groups constantly adjust their ideas and find new ways
to gain the consent of those they dominate.
In media terms the Mass Media both perpetuate cultural hegemony and are a cultural hegemony in themselves in that a relatively small number of big companies, e.g. News
Corp., The BBC, Time Warner, Sony etc., control most of the world’s media, and this in turn allows them to control most of what we see, hear and know. This, in turn, allows them to control what we think, selecting only ideas that serve its interests, i.e. bourgeois capitalism. This is known as a ‘Top Down’ model of dominant ideologies.
David Buckingham
“A focus on identity requires us to pay close attention to the diverse ways in which media and technologies are used in everyday life, and their consequences for both individuals and for social groups”
Mikhail Bakhtin
The Russian philosopher Bakhtin believed that individual people cannot be finalized, completely understood, known or labeled. He saw identity as the unfinalised self meaning a person is never fully revealed or known.
This ties in with the idea that identity is a fluid concept, a life-long project that is never complete.
Stan Cohen
Folk Devils and Moral Panics (1972)
David Gauntlett
'Identities are not 'given' but are constructed and negotiated.'
Michel Foucault (French thinker 1926-1984)
For Foucault, people do not have a 'real' identity within themselves; that's just a way of talking about the self -- a discourse. An 'identity' is communicated to others in your interactions with them, but this is not a fixed thing within a person. It is a shifting, temporary construction.
Power is something which can be used and deployed by particular people in specific situations, which itself will produce other reactions and resistances; and isn't tied to specific groups or identities.
Power outcomes are not inevitable and can be resisted.
Italian theorist Antonio Gramsci (1881-1937). He emphasised that the control of society by one group or one set of political ideas was not necessarily achieved by force or control of arms, but by persuasion and ‘consent’ – the basis of democracy. The rulers manage to convince the mass of the population that they are ‘better off’ accepting current government policies. Maintaining hegemonic control is thus a process of constantly reinforcing the message and developing the argument.
The concept of hegemony allows for substantial change in ideas over time, even though the
same groups remain in power. These groups constantly adjust their ideas and find new ways
to gain the consent of those they dominate.
In media terms the Mass Media both perpetuate cultural hegemony and are a cultural hegemony in themselves in that a relatively small number of big companies, e.g. News
Corp., The BBC, Time Warner, Sony etc., control most of the world’s media, and this in turn allows them to control most of what we see, hear and know. This, in turn, allows them to control what we think, selecting only ideas that serve its interests, i.e. bourgeois capitalism. This is known as a ‘Top Down’ model of dominant ideologies.
David Buckingham
“A focus on identity requires us to pay close attention to the diverse ways in which media and technologies are used in everyday life, and their consequences for both individuals and for social groups”
Mikhail Bakhtin
The Russian philosopher Bakhtin believed that individual people cannot be finalized, completely understood, known or labeled. He saw identity as the unfinalised self meaning a person is never fully revealed or known.
This ties in with the idea that identity is a fluid concept, a life-long project that is never complete.
Stan Cohen
Folk Devils and Moral Panics (1972)
David Gauntlett
'Identities are not 'given' but are constructed and negotiated.'
Michel Foucault (French thinker 1926-1984)
For Foucault, people do not have a 'real' identity within themselves; that's just a way of talking about the self -- a discourse. An 'identity' is communicated to others in your interactions with them, but this is not a fixed thing within a person. It is a shifting, temporary construction.
Power is something which can be used and deployed by particular people in specific situations, which itself will produce other reactions and resistances; and isn't tied to specific groups or identities.
Power outcomes are not inevitable and can be resisted.
Wednesday 14 March 2012
Plan B- ill Manors
Plan B uses this video as an artist in order to show the shocking view of how youths are presented. Through his lyrics he shows some key ideas that he has about youths and when discussing his reasons during the interview talks about why the riots may have occurred, once being a youth himself who understands their point of view. He admits that showing the graphic and shocking footage of the video is done to show a fine representation of the way in which youths in a lower class live to those who may not understand. His satirical lyrics against the government and people of a higher class are used to "try and get under the skin of government and youths" and change the way in which youths are perceived. He views rioting in a negative light saying that "they've just made it harder for themselves" by "fueling how people feel about them anyway" and guaranteeing the negative feedback that youths have from the media. However he does discuss a possible reason for the youths behaviour saying that if they are seen in a negative light so often that youths will think "I'm never going to change the way you think of me so I'm going to just fuel the fire" and behave how you think I do. He does however discuss how youths are perceived from middle class people saying "just because you are born into a family that can afford an education doesn't make you better it makes you lucky" which is maybe how people need to have a view on rather than judging lower classes making the distance felt by youths between them and the general public smaller and may make them feel more part of the community.
Tuesday 13 March 2012
How far were the responses of the rioters themselves given space in the media? In total, Reading the Riots researchers collated more than 1.3 million words in first-person accounts from rioters. Their stories paint a vivid picture of England's most serious bout of unrest in a generation. Particularly after the riots had occurred focus began to turn to rioters themselves as an almost explanation as to the reasons from their point of view. For example the Guardian states in December how "Rioters say anger with police fuelled summer unrest" from the youths involved point of view. However when researching interviews from the riots the mass media seems very police orientated with the majority of interviews centered around footage showing youths in a negative light with stories on how "Good Samaritans who robbed a Malaysian student"
Given the general framing of young people as the key participants in the events, how much space was given to young peoples voices- and what sorts of young people were given space to respond in the media debates?
Generally the main focus of news coverage during the riots was to do with the police or older members of the community and their opinions on the situaton. If footage was shown of youths it was generally in a negative light of them in action rioting such as the footage shown of a gang vandalising a police car with bricks and stones. Interviews were shown from youths but often with a negative point of view from reporters who often cut the youths of while speaking or interview youths who are steriotypically what would be expected. For example when interviewing innocent youths in Manchester who had just got off the train from a day out the reporter is very negative towards the youths and puts them in the bracket as the looters by saying "why don't you just go home then" when the youths are trying to explain that they are trying to but the police wont let them. This links in with both Cohens and Gauntletts theory as the reporter is making the youths appear as divients and constructing them to be what they consider to be as youths to show evidence of their theory that youths are negative. Through other interviews youths are shown who have negative reasons for looting such as "to piss the police off" which the mass media shows in order to show youths in a negative light as not all youths have this opinion yet it is generally shown by the mass media as thats what they want the audience to form an opinion of youths on.
To what extend did social media challenge or confirm representations of youth identity in the mass media during the time of the London riots? Discuss positive and negative points and discuss theory.
In various ways social media helped go against the negative representation of youths by being the tool which abled them to show their views on the events in a positive light. Social medias such as Facebook gave youths a voice in which helped people aware of their identity linking in with Foucaults theory, helped support the police with groups which people were able to join such as "help the police stop riots" and "the clean up" project sorting out the devastation of the riots aftermath. Social medias also helped go against the mass medias representation of them being perceived as negative linking in with Buckinghams theory by websites which challeged the typical representation. For example campaigns such as "not in my name" in which youths took photos of themselves holding a sign with these words as a way of going against the typical representation by the NCVYS. Websites continue to challege the mass media such as "Young and not dumb" and the "99%" website proving that unlike Gauntlett states the medias construction of youths can be contradicted. The way in which youths identity can be seen in a positive way through various technologies proves Buckinghams theory. The clean up programme braught cultures together linking in with Jenkins theory as the devastation braught others closer together as a culture.
However social medias also show youths in a negative light as they can be used as a tool in order to fuel the violence and rioting. For example BBM which 37% of British youths have was used to plot against the government by being capable of organising riots annonomously. This links in with Jenkins theory as youths were capable of forming a culture of their own by using technology as a tool to go against society. This also links in with Cohens theory showing youths as divients who go against society causing moral panic which left the option of shuting down BBM altogether in order to stop the rebelion. The use of BBM highlights the divients amplification given by the mass media showing youths in a negative light.
Given the general framing of young people as the key participants in the events, how much space was given to young peoples voices- and what sorts of young people were given space to respond in the media debates?
Generally the main focus of news coverage during the riots was to do with the police or older members of the community and their opinions on the situaton. If footage was shown of youths it was generally in a negative light of them in action rioting such as the footage shown of a gang vandalising a police car with bricks and stones. Interviews were shown from youths but often with a negative point of view from reporters who often cut the youths of while speaking or interview youths who are steriotypically what would be expected. For example when interviewing innocent youths in Manchester who had just got off the train from a day out the reporter is very negative towards the youths and puts them in the bracket as the looters by saying "why don't you just go home then" when the youths are trying to explain that they are trying to but the police wont let them. This links in with both Cohens and Gauntletts theory as the reporter is making the youths appear as divients and constructing them to be what they consider to be as youths to show evidence of their theory that youths are negative. Through other interviews youths are shown who have negative reasons for looting such as "to piss the police off" which the mass media shows in order to show youths in a negative light as not all youths have this opinion yet it is generally shown by the mass media as thats what they want the audience to form an opinion of youths on.
To what extend did social media challenge or confirm representations of youth identity in the mass media during the time of the London riots? Discuss positive and negative points and discuss theory.
In various ways social media helped go against the negative representation of youths by being the tool which abled them to show their views on the events in a positive light. Social medias such as Facebook gave youths a voice in which helped people aware of their identity linking in with Foucaults theory, helped support the police with groups which people were able to join such as "help the police stop riots" and "the clean up" project sorting out the devastation of the riots aftermath. Social medias also helped go against the mass medias representation of them being perceived as negative linking in with Buckinghams theory by websites which challeged the typical representation. For example campaigns such as "not in my name" in which youths took photos of themselves holding a sign with these words as a way of going against the typical representation by the NCVYS. Websites continue to challege the mass media such as "Young and not dumb" and the "99%" website proving that unlike Gauntlett states the medias construction of youths can be contradicted. The way in which youths identity can be seen in a positive way through various technologies proves Buckinghams theory. The clean up programme braught cultures together linking in with Jenkins theory as the devastation braught others closer together as a culture.
However social medias also show youths in a negative light as they can be used as a tool in order to fuel the violence and rioting. For example BBM which 37% of British youths have was used to plot against the government by being capable of organising riots annonomously. This links in with Jenkins theory as youths were capable of forming a culture of their own by using technology as a tool to go against society. This also links in with Cohens theory showing youths as divients who go against society causing moral panic which left the option of shuting down BBM altogether in order to stop the rebelion. The use of BBM highlights the divients amplification given by the mass media showing youths in a negative light.
Thursday 8 March 2012
1. Overview of contemporary case study
what were the context of the riots ??On 4 August 2011, a police officer shot and killed 29-year-old Mark Duggan during an attempt to arrest him, the incident occured on the Ferry Lane bridge. It is not yet known why police were attempting to arrest Duggan, but the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) said that the planned arrest was part of Operation Trident, which investigates gun crime within the black community. The incident had been referred to the IPCC, which is standard practice if death or serious injury follows police contact.On 6 August a protest was held, initially peacefully, beginning at Broadwater Farm and finishing at Tottenham police station. The protest was organised by friends and relatives of Duggan to demand justice for the family and for Duggans death. The protest began to escalate on a much larger scale in which a large amount of youths took part in the gathering. Rioting occurred shortly after about 120 people marched from the Broadwater Farm estate to Tottenham Police Station.The group of some 200 people demanded that a senior local police officer come out to speak to them. They stayed in front of the police station hours longer than they originally planned because they were not satisfied with the seniority of the officers available at the time. A younger and more aggressive crowd arrived at the scene around dusk, some carrying weapons. Further violence broke out based on an allegation that the police had attacked a 16-year-old girl and on the night of the 6 August disturbances began to occur which spiraled out of control becoming the start of the riots.
what were the reasons given as to why the youths were involved in the riots?? Many different reasons were given as to why the looting occured. The riots in Tottenham after the death of Mark Duggan were initially blamed on poor relations between the police and the black community.[Some stated that it was a race issue due to the fact that Duggan was black and had been shot by the police, people began to state that the inequality of black and white youths were unfair towards the police. The initial act of the murder braught up a long lasting debate of the inequality of youths which was the last straw which a certain amount of individuals where prepared to stand for in which they . In a House of Commons debate on the riots Home Secretary Theresa May stated that the riots were symptomatic of a "wider malaise" including worklessness, illiteracy, and drug abuse but also stated that "Everybody, no matter what their background or circumstances, has the freedom to choose between right and wrong".Some thought the riots were a defence in order to retaliate towards the police and push boundries with a system they thought was unfair in order to use extreme conditions to get their point across. Some youths looted purely for selfish purposes in order to steal and gain expensive items when in a state of poverty purely because they could get away with it without getting caught at the time.
were the youths given a fair and unbiased representation in the press coverage of the riots?? The mojority of the news coverage given towards the riots were biased towards the police and showed youths in a negative light. The use of language used by reporters and footage of youths helps create this constructed image that youths are aggressive parts of the community though this view is not totally true as some had not taken part in the riots at all and others had valid reasons as to why they decided to riot. The press tend to show footage of the police doing their job correctly and holding authority, landscapes destroyed such as cars on fire and youths showing aggressive behaviour which overall shows youths in a biased negative light as offenders going against athority and shockingly destroying the community to viewers.
2.Applying theory
how can the coverage of the london riots be understood in relation to the idea of stan cohen? The riots show signs of stan cohens theory by having divients who go against society and act as folk devils causing moral panic by their actions given. The youths were able to go against the way they had been culturally constructed to be like and rebel against society by organising gangs to meet up on Facebook during the riots and contacting each other through bbm. They also were able to commit acts they knew were wrong as they were capable of doing so and knew that at the time there was no boundry to stop them.
David Gauntlett stated that "identities are not given but are constructed and negotiated"
from the research which you have conducted into the coverage of the London riots to what extent is the representation of the collective identity of youths constructed by the press? consider for and against the argument. David Gauntlett states that identity is constructed by the media which within the London riots is argueably shown. Alot of the coverage given by all types of media during the riots were seen as negative. Youths were seen as arragant and aggressive generally when given the chance to speak, though the majority of the time the footage was centred around the aftermath of the destructure or interviews from police or adults. Rarely interviews were shown from youths who spoke of the actual issues which were the problem e.g ema and being distant from the community however more from youths who are bad representations of youths. Only showing this side to youths shows a constructed view from the media of what they believe youths are which will create a bias view to the audience of the identity of youths.
what were the context of the riots ??On 4 August 2011, a police officer shot and killed 29-year-old Mark Duggan during an attempt to arrest him, the incident occured on the Ferry Lane bridge. It is not yet known why police were attempting to arrest Duggan, but the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) said that the planned arrest was part of Operation Trident, which investigates gun crime within the black community. The incident had been referred to the IPCC, which is standard practice if death or serious injury follows police contact.On 6 August a protest was held, initially peacefully, beginning at Broadwater Farm and finishing at Tottenham police station. The protest was organised by friends and relatives of Duggan to demand justice for the family and for Duggans death. The protest began to escalate on a much larger scale in which a large amount of youths took part in the gathering. Rioting occurred shortly after about 120 people marched from the Broadwater Farm estate to Tottenham Police Station.The group of some 200 people demanded that a senior local police officer come out to speak to them. They stayed in front of the police station hours longer than they originally planned because they were not satisfied with the seniority of the officers available at the time. A younger and more aggressive crowd arrived at the scene around dusk, some carrying weapons. Further violence broke out based on an allegation that the police had attacked a 16-year-old girl and on the night of the 6 August disturbances began to occur which spiraled out of control becoming the start of the riots.
what were the reasons given as to why the youths were involved in the riots?? Many different reasons were given as to why the looting occured. The riots in Tottenham after the death of Mark Duggan were initially blamed on poor relations between the police and the black community.[Some stated that it was a race issue due to the fact that Duggan was black and had been shot by the police, people began to state that the inequality of black and white youths were unfair towards the police. The initial act of the murder braught up a long lasting debate of the inequality of youths which was the last straw which a certain amount of individuals where prepared to stand for in which they . In a House of Commons debate on the riots Home Secretary Theresa May stated that the riots were symptomatic of a "wider malaise" including worklessness, illiteracy, and drug abuse but also stated that "Everybody, no matter what their background or circumstances, has the freedom to choose between right and wrong".Some thought the riots were a defence in order to retaliate towards the police and push boundries with a system they thought was unfair in order to use extreme conditions to get their point across. Some youths looted purely for selfish purposes in order to steal and gain expensive items when in a state of poverty purely because they could get away with it without getting caught at the time.
were the youths given a fair and unbiased representation in the press coverage of the riots?? The mojority of the news coverage given towards the riots were biased towards the police and showed youths in a negative light. The use of language used by reporters and footage of youths helps create this constructed image that youths are aggressive parts of the community though this view is not totally true as some had not taken part in the riots at all and others had valid reasons as to why they decided to riot. The press tend to show footage of the police doing their job correctly and holding authority, landscapes destroyed such as cars on fire and youths showing aggressive behaviour which overall shows youths in a biased negative light as offenders going against athority and shockingly destroying the community to viewers.
2.Applying theory
how can the coverage of the london riots be understood in relation to the idea of stan cohen? The riots show signs of stan cohens theory by having divients who go against society and act as folk devils causing moral panic by their actions given. The youths were able to go against the way they had been culturally constructed to be like and rebel against society by organising gangs to meet up on Facebook during the riots and contacting each other through bbm. They also were able to commit acts they knew were wrong as they were capable of doing so and knew that at the time there was no boundry to stop them.
David Gauntlett stated that "identities are not given but are constructed and negotiated"
from the research which you have conducted into the coverage of the London riots to what extent is the representation of the collective identity of youths constructed by the press? consider for and against the argument. David Gauntlett states that identity is constructed by the media which within the London riots is argueably shown. Alot of the coverage given by all types of media during the riots were seen as negative. Youths were seen as arragant and aggressive generally when given the chance to speak, though the majority of the time the footage was centred around the aftermath of the destructure or interviews from police or adults. Rarely interviews were shown from youths who spoke of the actual issues which were the problem e.g ema and being distant from the community however more from youths who are bad representations of youths. Only showing this side to youths shows a constructed view from the media of what they believe youths are which will create a bias view to the audience of the identity of youths.
Monday 5 March 2012
Youtube videos covering news on the London riots
In this video youths are seen in a very negative way, the footage focusing mostly on the police and authority figures and the damage caused to them throughout the riots. Images of lots of buildings in ruins, with shops and businesses on fire and the devastation of ruble are shown to the audience in order to shock them of the disaster which has occurred. Interviews are given by the police mainly and the overall view is based against youths and the bahaviour commited. The news report is very factual and geographical with pictures of landscapes from a range of shots.
In this video youths are seen in a positive light by the interviewee who, being a member of the public talks a strong negative view against the police and the occurance with Mark Duggan. The language he uses is very sympathetic towards youths particularly his grandson who he states has been checked by the police several times. He brings in the strong arguement about race in the sense that both the victim and black people in the streets seem to have a much harder time when police are dealing with them compared to white youths in the streets. His strong views are contradicted by the interviewer who indicates that race issues are not really an excuse to riot however the interview as a whole is centrally bias towards youths and how unfair they have been tret, showing the riots to be exceptable retaliation for it.
This video shows a definite negative reading of the riots and how the youths behaviour is completely unacceptable and unnapropriate to members of the public. The video focuses mainly on the present action of the riots in which the reporter is in the midst of it and showing actual occurances as well as using negative language in order to show the riots in a negative light. Occurances such as the smashing of a police car with bricks and stones at the side of the road with the reporter stating how quickly the mood of the crowd can change as they were thought to be surrounded by sight seeings and then the mood seemed to of eratically change to violent behaviour of youths out of control
In this interview the reporter interviews a mixed view as he shows the view of both innocent youths and how they are perceived as bad and the youths who have taken part in the riots and their view. At first he interviews two youths who are completely innocent and have been out of town all day, but because of his bias which he shows through the interegation type questions asked towards them such as "why don't you just go home" he automatically thinks they are part of the looting and crime because of their young appearance. This shows the press in a bad light by prejudging in such a way as not all youths can be put in the same catagory purely down to their age and appearance. However once interviewing another youth this also shows the negative side of youths as he admits he is there to "piss the police off" and has taken part in the looting showing a fine representation of the negative side to youths.
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