Representation in the MEDIA

Representation in the MEDIA

• Representation is concerned with the way that people, ideas and events are presented to us,
• This could be representation in magazines, news, soap operas, films and so on,
• It may include representation of people, places and events,
• This means that media texts are intentionally, written, framed, cropped, captioned, branded, targeted and censored by producer, and the are entirely artificial versions of the reality we perceive around us.
• These are the signs that create representation: Mise-en-Scene, sound, editing, camera shots, angles, movements and positions,
• social groups: Gender, age, ethnicity, sexuality, class and status, physical ability/disability, regional identity,

Joc(beck) - 

• Popular
• Mean/Rude
• Bullies
• Disrespectful 
• Funny 
• Pretty/Handsome
• Sporty
• Cocky
• Blonde/Blonde

Stereotypes

• Sometimes representation can turn into stereotypes
• A stereotype is a simplified representation of character, appearance and belief.
• A stereotype is a commonly held public belief about specific social groups or types of individuals
• A new kind of stereotypes - a positive which could be called a counter-type. (For example, a pretty girl would be a counter-type,

Gender:

The representation of Men and Women in the media.

Women in the Media - 

Beautiful, emphasise their size and physiques, sexuality, emotional dealings.

Feminism has been around for 30years but women are still portrayed in the same way.

Often represented as being part of a context,(family, friends, colleges) and working/ thinking about being part of a team.

In drama they tend to take the role of the helper or object, passive rather than active.

Men are still represented as TV drama characters up to 3 times more frequently than women, and tend to be the main focus in the TV show.

Representation of Men - 

Represented as strong and tough. They are independent and masculine, power and success, sexual attractiveness and physiques, masculine for example supper man and sheldon from the big bang theory are different representation of men.

Captain america is a representation of a MAN

Age -

Rebellious team, E.G Horrid henry

Senile old man or woman, 

Cradle robbing woman,

Male in mid-life crisis,

Silly old man,

Social group in schools (nerds,outcasts) e.g Mean Girls

Old people - 

Old people are often subject to the mist rigid stereotypes of all (old, ugly, stupid, week).

Ethnicity -

Ethnicity is defined by a set of genetic and cultural characteristics. Representation of ethnicity in the media can consist of rigid stereotypes that are  similar to gender portrayed.

there are still negative representations in the media of blacks especially younger as they're seen as gangstas, 

african descent:

1. big Nigerian mum with passion for they're food music and family
2. gangsters 
3. dangerous youths
4. famine victims
5. rappers with guns, drugs and body guards 
6. token black guy
7. criminal 
8. impoverished 
9. hero 

Asian descent:

1. Smart/Intelligent
2. Ninjas/good fighters 
3. broken english
4. obsessed with food including dogs and cats
5. quirky and can be weak
6. black hair and big foreheads
7. pokemon
8. love electronics 
9. lack emotions/ don't show them
10. strict mums 
11. powerful
12. too many of em

Middle eastern(Arabic)descent:

1. Terrorists/violent
2. very religious
3. physically strong 
4. strict/stern/not a push over
5. serious
6. victims
7. villans/rarely seen as heroes
8. prejudice to jews/ hate them

White/British/American:

1. Powerful 
2. often the hero
3. serial killers
4. in charge
5. lead roles
6. they like tea

Representation of sexuality:


Heterosexual women:

1. Loving/respectable/average
2. promiscuous (bad for women)
3. frigid 
4. pure
5. gold digger, pregnant teens, cougar

heterosexual man:

1. respectable 
2. promiscuous (good for a guy)
3. ladies man, heart throb
4. bumbling man who has trouble talking to women  

homosexual women:

1. Monogamous 
2. promiscuous 
3. embarrassed
4. butch

homosexual males:

1. Promiscuas
2. monogamous
3. overbearing 
4. embarrassed
5. camp

Class and status:

• Poor
• Lower class
• Lower middle class
• Working class
• Upper middle class
• Upper class
• Elite/Millionaires

Status symbols:

• Clothing/ Lack of it
• Cars
• Brands
• Houses/mansions
• gadgets

Physical ability/Disability:

• Amputes 
• Paralysed
• Deaf
• Blind
• Those who are limited in how they can do(due to obesity, cancer, aids)
• Those who are in good shape (superhero, average person with one specials ability, star athletes) 

Regional identity:

This constitutes the representation of individual from a certain geographical location. The most important question to ask yourself is how are they represented?

• Costume
• Setting
• Staging/Acting
• Depiction 

Dominant representation:

one that is repeated across media at all times.
Meditation - Meditation is the process by which a media text represents an idea, issues or event to an audience. We are given a version if reality which is altered .
Selection - Whatever ends up on the screen or on the paper, much more will have been left out. Any news story has been selected from hundreds of others which the producers decided for you were less interesting. Any picture has been chosen from an enormous number of people.