Describe how you developed your skills in the use of digital technology for media production and evaluate how these skills contributed to your creative decision making. Refer to a range of examples in your answer to show how these skills developed over time.
Over the last two years of my coursework productions I used a range of digital technologies which helped with my creativity. My AS brief was to create a two minute film opening sequence including titles for which I picked the genre horror. My A2 brief was to create a promo package including music video, digipak and advert for which I chosen the genre pop. Throughout the two years my development within technology improved and I became more inventive, creative and skilful into representing my work.
The coursework was displayed on Blogger which is an example of Web 2.0 media and which was used both years in order to display my research, planning and final products. In AS my blog was fairly limited as I was new to the technology with a minimum of 22 posts and plain black background the blog could of related much more to the genre in a creative way. Within A2 my progression in the use of Blogger improved massively and I furthered the skills through creative ways such as changing themes to fit the genre, use of the different features by adding the logo and photoshoot photos and having a much larger amount of posts at 65. All of these things as well as the blog having bright colourful backgrounds to fit in with the genre gave it a professional look much more superior to my AS blog. The tasks available also improved to fit the genre by us creating extra posts such as flyers, kimtags, QR codes and promotional packs in A2 using blogger and making the promo package much more realistic. Research into the genre was also displayed in a much greater depth within A2.
All my work within my AS was completed on a low grade of Imac and as I progressed to A2 began to complete my work it was on the Imac’s of a much higher spec so that the prosess of rendering and editing was much faster and much more work in the time period giving creating a much better video in A2 compared to AS.
In AS the storyboard lay out was done using the flash mic to record the narrative of the open sequence and shown on Imovie. Photos were taken by a stills camera and installed onto Imovie which they were put into order to show the events of the movie sequence planned. Though this shows creative media skills the use of Imovie for my storyboard at A2 showed much more advanced skills through having the track of the song chosen "Its all about tonight" downloaded and installed on Itunes to be put onto Imovie and a much larger amount of photos cut to the beat of the music showing quicker editing. My skills on Imovie were fairly basic at AS it taking a while to learn how to upload the photos where as at A2 I already knew how to upload them efficiently and so could spend my time getting the shots in the exact right order with the right pace ready to film and give myself an idea of the type of footage needed.
During the production of my coursework filming at AS involved a Sony digital Handycam 60x optical zoom 80gb camera for which we filmed the footage within a day. At A2 the production involved a varied amount of technologies and a much longer process in order to receive the large amount of footage needed. A Sony digital Handycam 60x optical zoom 80gb camera was used on a schedueled 5 days, during the production the technology of a smart phone was used to play the song in order to get the lip sync just correct and give the video the maximum professional look. Photoshoots were also done at A2 which were not at AS using a Fuji S3300 camera which were in theme with the genre and were used to give professional looking final products of a digipak and advert. With a range of different technologies during the production of the A2 production used it helped give a varied amount of products helping with the creativity of my coursework.
Post production helped me use a variety of different technologies within both AS and A2. To help with the horror film sequence in AS Final Cut was used to edit the footage and garage band was used to create a horror soundtrack to fit the footage and the genre of the clip. Within Final cut I became familiar with the razor tool and transitions to move from each clip. The razor tool helped me get rid of certain bits of footage which I felt was not appopriate or right for the genre as during filming not everything went to plan as hoped. Transitions included fading in and out at the correct moments to create a horror type feel. Showing the titles was also an important part of the sequence for which Final cut gave me access to the different texts and transitions with them available. In A2 Final Cut was also used to create the pop music video. This was a much more intense task given in which the razor tool was used but much more frequently showing a much larger amount of clips within a short space of time to fit with the fast paced beat of the song. The in and out markers were also used at A2 to get the lip sync exactly correct and a much wider range of transitions were given including bright coloured texts which came in to the beat of the music, black and white clips during the work scenes, and jump cuts or transitions placed in the correct place to fit with the music. Photoshop was also a key element into digital technology for both AS and A2 in the progression of my creativity. Within AS I designed a logo and title screen for my horror sequence which both fit the genre and showed horror type text and photos. Though I did try and relate these to the genre they were fairly basic with a minimal ammount of layers, detail or a professional look. Within A2 I used Photoshop much more frequently creating a logo, digipak, advert and flyer on it developing my skills masively in how to use the software though it may seem difficult. My digipak and advert were highly detailed showing all the information needed such as logo, songs available and release date and real primary photos were used on each to make them look professional. The logo showed my unique production of smoking hot records showing creativity as it was shown on each of the tasks given.
Tuesday, 17 April 2012
Tuesday, 3 April 2012
Sket analysis
Sket is an urban retribution thriller film set in East London which is an extreme and controversial look at the world of girl gangs. The director and writer Nirpal Bhogal states that he wanted to make a film for gang members rather than about them showing a realistic view of gang members lifestyle towards the public. Though it may seem to show a negative representation of gang members who are abbusive and violent, the film reveals backstories for each of the characters revealing a reason for their anger which the director hoped to create sympathy from the viewers. The characters are representation of real life gang members which viewers may not of been able to sympathise with in the past and may change peoples opinions of. As the story line unravels the aggressive gang members appearance is scratched away and fragile states are revealed as girls who have had noone and who have built up this posteria in order to survive within the rough areas of London.
Stereotypes of youths within the riots are highlighted throughout the film with the characters actions and mannerisms. The four girls are always seen together within a gang wearing hoodys and similar clothing throughout the film showing that similar to Jimmy and the mods within Quadraphinia youths like to feel part of a culture by dressing the same. The mannerism of speach and body language also represent typical representation of youths for example banging into passers by or beating people up and using language such as "sket" and "slut." These mannerism could be represented in order to set the scene of youths similar to those interviewed during the riots, which the audience are use to yet the backstory of the film helps indicate why youths may do these things showing their actions sympathetically and in a less sceptical positive light. The film gives a chance to show answers for behaviour given and go against the reasons behind these actions rather then what was thought that the youths are just bad people.
Throughout the film footage is rarely shown of police or authorital figures. This could be an indication that they are not really present within a gang members world and are seen to not be able to do anything. This is shown further when Kayla is asked if she has rang the police and she states "can they do anything?" which shows a negetive representation of the police as a group which youths feel do not do anything when people go against society so there is no real reason or threat why they can't go against society. This links in with the London riots as people took the opportunity to loot simply because they could and they felt no consequences would be given to them by going against society and breaking the law.
Stereotypes of youths within the riots are highlighted throughout the film with the characters actions and mannerisms. The four girls are always seen together within a gang wearing hoodys and similar clothing throughout the film showing that similar to Jimmy and the mods within Quadraphinia youths like to feel part of a culture by dressing the same. The mannerism of speach and body language also represent typical representation of youths for example banging into passers by or beating people up and using language such as "sket" and "slut." These mannerism could be represented in order to set the scene of youths similar to those interviewed during the riots, which the audience are use to yet the backstory of the film helps indicate why youths may do these things showing their actions sympathetically and in a less sceptical positive light. The film gives a chance to show answers for behaviour given and go against the reasons behind these actions rather then what was thought that the youths are just bad people.
Throughout the film footage is rarely shown of police or authorital figures. This could be an indication that they are not really present within a gang members world and are seen to not be able to do anything. This is shown further when Kayla is asked if she has rang the police and she states "can they do anything?" which shows a negetive representation of the police as a group which youths feel do not do anything when people go against society so there is no real reason or threat why they can't go against society. This links in with the London riots as people took the opportunity to loot simply because they could and they felt no consequences would be given to them by going against society and breaking the law.
Friday, 23 March 2012
essay
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
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
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.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)