Unit 3 Key Theories

A helpful resource, divided into three sections...

1. Critical Debates/Key Concepts
Includes globalisation, Marxism/hegemony, pluralism, audience theories (Blumler & Katz, cultivation, desensitisation), Barthes, etc. Don't try to learn any new theories now though - just make sure you really know those that we've covered in lessons.

2. Representation

3. New and Digital Media

Unit 3 Key Theories

NDM Issues/Debates/Examples

Section A, Q3 will usually ask you to link the texts to issues/debates relating to NDM as well as expecting you to refer to other examples you can think of that are relevant.

This is where you should draw upon your weekly NDM stories that you've posted/analysed on your blog - you should have between 50-75 stories in your NDM index.

Make sure you have some ideas about how you would approach these possible questions (which will also be revision for your Section B essay)...

Section A, Q3

Year 13 MEST1 mock - final reminder

A final reminder to those Y13 students re-sitting MEST1...

The mock exam is this Wednesday 29 April 3.15pm - 5.15pm.

There is a revision session TODAY, Monday after school in DF07 where we will go through what you need to revise for the MEST1 exam.

Year 13: MEST1 resit mock

An important message for Year 13 students resitting their MEST1 exam on Friday 22 May: 

Your MEST1 mock exam is on Wednesday 29 April at 3.15pm in the Lecture Theatre. Attendance is compulsory.

There will be one revision session prior to this mock exam but you NEED to be revising all the key information from Year 12 in the meantime. Specifically:

• Ill Manors
• A Field In England
• Your own film case study

You'll find a useful index of Year 12 blogposts on the case study texts here. This has all the tasks we have set this year's Year 12 students and should help remind you of the work you did last year. You'll obviously need to revise from your own blog too.

Remember you can use everything you've learned in Year 13 in the MEST1 exam - particularly in Section A the added theory you've learned should give you a huge advantage over most Year 12 students sitting the exam alongside you.

Media Magazine

Media Magazine is a brilliant resource when revising for Media exams with articles on all the major media issues and debates. Our Media Magazine archive is here - we've just added MM52 (out this week) which has articles on social media and surveillance, Russell Brand, the Hunger Games trilogy and how to carry out close textual analysis (which is exactly the skill you need for MEST1 Section A).


Good luck!

Post-16 Easter sessions

We have managed to arrange two sessions for post-16 Media students in the Easter holidays. In addition, Media is open for the whole of Raising Achievement Day on Friday 27 March (when normal lessons are suspended). Therefore, you have the following opportunities to complete Media work:

Friday 27 March (Raising Achievement Day) 8.30am - 4pm

Tuesday 31 March 9am - 3pm (with Mr Halsey)

Tuesday 7 April 9am - 3pm (with Mr Bush)

This gives you over 19 hours to complete work - easily enough time if you are organised and make the most of these opportunities.

As you know, your coursework deadline is the week after Easter so these are your last chances to work on Premiere Pro or Photoshop in school and receive feedback on your production work or critical investigation.

Good luck!

Y12/13 Media work - Friday 20 March

Both myself and Mr Bush will be taking 27 Year 12 students to Sky Academy on Friday. This means that for Year 12 students not on the trip and all Year 13 students, you have the double lesson to get on with your coursework.

For Year 12, this means completing the video and print work for MEST2 and writing the first draft of your evaluation.

For Year 13, this means editing your linked production and making final changes to your critical investigations.

Mr Qureshi will be on hand to register you as present and help with any technical queries.

Make the most of the time and we look forward to seeing your work next week.

MEST3 Independent case study: New and Digital Media

You've studied your main New and Digital Media case study, the news industry, in great detail and have also covered the second exam topic: Identities and the Media. 

You now need an independent New and Digital Media case study for your Section B exam essay. This should be on an aspect of the media YOU are particularly interested in. Choose an industry - it could be film, music, gaming, social media or something else. You then have to choose a case study within that industry - it could be a particular text (e.g. film, game etc.) or an institution (e.g. Rockstar Games or Twitter). Once you have selected your case study you need to get it approved by your teacher - and then embark on the tasks below.

You will have lesson time to complete this case study up until Easter and then the Easter holidays to complete it.

Case study research tasks

The basics

Your chosen industry:

Your chosen case study (i.e. text/institution etc.):

Have you received approval for this case study from your teacher? Yes/No


Research and answer the following tasks on your MEST3 exam blog:

Audience

1) How has new and digital media changed the audience experience in your chosen industry?

2) Has new and digital media changed the way the audience consume your chosen product?

3) Has the size of the audience changed as a result of new and digital media?

4) What are the positive changes new and digital media have brought to the audience of your case study? (E.g. greater choice, easier access etc.)

5) What are the negative changes new and digital media have had on your chosen audience? (E.g. quality of product etc.)

6) What about audience pleasures - have these changed as a result of new and digital media? 

7) What is the target audience for your chosen case study? Write a demographic/psychographic profile.


Institution

1) How has new and digital media had an impact on ownership or control in your chosen industry?

2) What impact has new and digital media had on ownership in your chosen case study?

3) How has new and digital media changed the way institutions produce texts?

4) How has new and digital media changed the way institutions distribute their product?

5) How might new and digital media threaten your chosen industry?

6) How has new and digital media changed the way your chosen industry is regulated? 


UGC

1)What examples of user-generated content can you find in your case study?

2) How has UGC changed things for audiences or institutions in your chosen case study?


Marxism, Pluralism and Hegemony

1) What would be a Marxist perspective of the impact of new and digital media on your chosen case study?

2) How would a pluralist view the impact of new and digital media in your chosen industry?

3) Are there any examples of hegemony in your chosen industry or case study?


Globalisation

1) How has globalisation impacted on your chosen industry or case study?

2) In your opinion, has globalisation had a positive or negative impact on your chosen industry and case study? Why?

3) Can you find examples of cultural imperialism in your case study or industry? (The 'Americanisation' of the world)


Social media

1) How has your industry or case study used social media to promote its products?

2) Provide examples of how your case study has used social media and explain the impact this would have on audiences.

3) Is social media an opportunity or a threat to your industry and case study?


Statistics

1) What statistics can you find to illustrate the impact new and digital media has had on your industry or case study? For example, in news, the UK newspaper industry sold more than 12m copies a day in 2001 but in 2014 it was below 7m.

2) What impact have the statistics you have found had on institutions in your chosen industry? 

3) What has the impact been for audiences?


Theories

1) What media theories can you apply to your chosen industry and case study? Select THREE media theories and explain how they are relevant to your case study. Note: these can be ANY of the theories we have learned over the whole of Year 12 and 13.


Issues/debates

1) What media issues and debates can you apply to your chosen industry and case study? Select THREE media issues/debates and explain how they are relevant to your case study.


Wider examples and secondary texts

1) What other texts or institutions are also relevant to your case study? What would be good secondary texts or examples to use to support the findings of your independent case study?


Ignite presentation

When you have completed your independent case study research, prepare a 20-slide, 5 minute Ignite presentation on your chosen industry and case study. You will present this in class after Easter to widen our overall knowledge of the impact of new and digital media on a variety of industries, examples and texts. Remember the Ignite rules:

• 20 slides
• 15-second auto-advance
• No more than 20 words on each slide

You will not be able to include ALL of the above sections so be selective and choose the aspects you feel will be most interesting and relevant to your audience - the rest of the class.

Due: after Easter

MEST3 mock: learner response

Your mock exams will be given back today (Friday 13th - unlucky for some!)

You will have a learner response in your feedback - usually re-writing one or more of the weaker questions on your blog. There is no need to panic but I think everyone has some serious revision and preparation to do to reach our target grade in A2 Media and that work starts with this learner response.

To help you, this was the original exam paper, this was the exam insert (print copy of the Real News website) and this was the mark scheme we used to mark your work.

Learner responses need to be on your blog by next week so finish them this weekend.

For those who need to re-sit Section B, this will be after school on Monday 23 March in DF07.

Identities and the Media: index

Now that we've finished our work on Identities and the Media, you need to put together an index so you can easily access your work for revision. It should include the following:

1) Reading the riots

2) Post-colonialism: Destiny Ekaragwa film analysis

3) Post-colonialism: theory and clip task

4) Feminism: post-feminism article and No More Page 3 research

5) Feminism: waves and feminism and online activism

6) Collective identity and the media

Remember, your index should link to YOUR blogpost for each of these tasks.

This is a significant amount of work and should prepare you well both for the MEST3 exam and potentially help with your Critical Investigation final draft too.

Next week: New/Digital Media independent case study.

Reminder: your two New/Digital stories homework is ONGOING every week without fail and - as your recent mock exam demonstrated - essential to give you the wider examples from the media that you need for the MEST3 exam. Some people are not doing it properly - a reminder of what you need to post for each story is here if you need it.

Media and collective identity

Notes and key theories

Collective identity

Collective identity is the shared sense of belonging to a group. In Media Studies, we need to consider the influence media has over a person’s sense of identity.

This is closely linked to the key concept of representation as the way groups are portrayed in the media can influence our sense of identity.

Collective identity: theories

Marxism and the Frankfurt School

Marxists believe identity is constructed through hegemony imposed by the ruling elite. A sense of individual identity is a myth that prevents people challenging powerful groups.

This links to the Frankfurt School, a group of influential Marxists who viewed media audiences as passive vessels. They believe the media is used to control and manipulate people.

Example: Apple branding

Apple’s branding suggests individuality and creative freedom... But in fact it is a massive profit-seeking corporation looking to sell as widely as possible.

Daniel Chandler: CAGE

Daniel Chandler suggested the acronym CAGE, stating our identity is constructed through class, age, gender and ethnicity. 

Does this still apply in the 21st century? Do we construct our own identities along these lines? Think about your presence on social media.

Stuart Hall: media construction

Stuart Hall suggests the media actively constructs our society rather than reflecting it back. 

Our identity is part of this and therefore any sense of individuality we may feel is actually constructed through the media we engage with.

Constructing our own identities

New technology has changed the way we see ourselves and others. Through social media we can construct identities for ourselves.

Example: Facebook

• How did you choose your profile pic?
• What do you ‘like’?
• What groups have you joined?
• How many friends do you have?

Shared identity online

New technology has also created the opportunity for people to form groups online that represent their shared identity.

Think about the work we have already done on feminism and online activism.

Collective identity in the 21st Century

So, collective identity doesn’t just refer to representations in mainstream media.

It also refers to self-constructed identity by users of social media and communities formed online of shared identity (e.g. Feminism).

Collective identity: blog task

Read the Media Magazine article on collective identity: Self-image and the Media (MM41 - page 6). Our Media Magazine archive is here.

Complete the following tasks on your blog:

1) Read the article and summarise each section in one sentence, starting with the section 'Who are you?'

2) List five brands you are happy to be associated with and explain how they reflect your sense of identity.

3) Do you agree with the view that modern media is all about 'style over substance'? What does this expression mean?

4) Explain Baudrillard's theory of 'media saturation' in one paragraph. You may need to research it online to find out more.

5) Is your presence on social media an accurate reflection of who you are? Have you ever added or removed a picture from a social media site purely because of what it says about the type of person you are?

6) What is your opinion on 'data mining'? Are you happy for companies to sell you products based on your social media presence and online search terms? Is this an invasion of privacy?

You will have lesson time to complete this but will need to finish for homework anything you do not cover in the lesson(s). Deadline: confirmed by your teacher.

Identities and the media: feminism online

Key notes

Waves of feminism
First wave: early 20th century, suffragette movement (right to vote).
Second wave: 1960s – 1990s, reproductive rights (pill), abortion, equal pay.
Third wave: 1990s – present, empowerment, reclaiming of femininity (high heels, sexuality etc. See Angela McRobbie's work on women's magazines).
Fourth wave? 2010 – ongoing, use of new technology (e.g. Twitter) for activism.

Fourth wave?
Many commentators argue that the internet itself has enabled a shift from ‘third-wave’ to ‘fourth-wave’ feminism. What is certain is that the internet has created a ‘call-out’ culture, in which sexism or misogyny can be ‘called out’ and challenged. 

This culture is indicative of the continuing influence of the third wave, with its focus on challenging sexism and misogyny in advertising, film, television and the media. 

Key quote: “power users of social media”

The internet has facilitated the creation of a global community of feminists who use the internet both for discussion and activism. 

According to #FemFuture: Online Feminism, a report recently published by Columbia University’s Barnard Center for Research on Women, females aged between 18 and 29 are the ‘power users of social networking’.

(Source: http://www.psa.ac.uk/insight-plus/feminism-fourth-wave)

Critics of online feminism
Critics of online feminist movements suggest that petitions and pressure from Twitter campaigns is simply a witchhunt orchestrated by privileged middle-class white women.

They ask: are ‘trolls’ the danger they are portrayed to be?


Class research task

Feminism online: recent examples
In your pair, research one of the following cases - it will be assigned by your teacher. 

1) Ched Evans: petition to prevent convicted rapist playing

2) Caroline Criado-Perez: female presence on banknotes

3) Caitlin Moran: Twitter silence

4) Emma Watson: HeForShe gender equality campaign

5) Emma Barnett: female journalists targeted

Use the links provided AND other sources to ensure you have a balanced view of the example in question. Remember, you need to be able to explore the issue from a variety of perspectives to achieve an A/A* grade.

Complete the following tasks in your pair and prepare to feed back to the class:

1) Summarise this example for the rest of the class in one paragraph

2) What was the initial incident or situation that sparked this example?

3) In your opinion, is this an example of a valid campaign or something of a witchhunt against people who are not doing any serious harm?


Individual blog task

Choose THREE of the examples above, read the linked articles and complete the three tasks above on your MEST3 exam blog for each.

Complete for homework if you don't manage to finish this in lesson time - deadline set by your teacher.

13D: New/Digital media stories index update

Yep, it's that time again! 

You need a new index of new/digital media stories and we've now hit the fantastic figure of FORTY stories. 

Hopefully, now you're revising for MEST3 Section A you're realising how vital these stories are for the exam.

I'll give you some lesson time this morning to update the index while I give individual feedback on your MEST3 Section A homework from half-term.

Please post a NEW index of 40 stories to your blog - do not just update a previous post.

Year 13: MEST3 Section A preparation

If you attended Friday's Media lesson, you'll have been walked through a typical MEST3 Section A exam paper and analysed the two clips on Occupy. These clips are available on YouTube below:

Media product 1:



Media product 2:



The exam paper is available here.

Remember, your homework is to complete the three questions ON PAPER and bring them to your first double lesson back after half-term. You will then be given some feedback prior to the MEST3 PPE exam on Monday 2 March.

The key details:

• Spend 10 minutes on question 1.
• Spend 15 minutes EACH on questions 2 and 3.
• Spend the remaining 5 minutes checking your work and ensuring you have covered each aspect of each question.
• You MUST refer to a wide variety of media examples (beyond the texts in the exam) for questions 2 and 3.
• Aim to write 4-5 sides of A4 in total for Section A.

Good luck!

13E: Linked production research and planning

With your Critical Investigations ongoing, we now need to turn our attention back to the Linked Production. Your job over half-term is to complete the research and planning for your production. This includes the following:

1) Research: notes on at least THREE similar texts to the one you are creating. What are the key conventions? What can you learn/borrow from the examples you have looked at?

2) Project schedule: when will you film and edit this production?

3) Script - see the BBC Writers' Room for advice/script formatting. If you're making a music video, you'll want to write a treatment instead. This is an example treatment that I provided for GCSE Media students studying this topic.

4) Storyboard - sheets available in Media or you can use this AQA storyboard sheet.

5) Shot list - use Microsoft Word or a template like this to help you.

6) Mise-en-scene: casting details, location scouting with photographs, props, costume and make-up, lighting.

Note: for print productions, you will need to write all text required in Microsoft Word, plan mise-en-scene for all photoshoots and produce detailed sketches of all the pages you plan to produce.

All of the above needs to be posted to your MEST4 coursework blog.

Deadline: Friday 27 February

Mr Halsey lessons cancelled - Wednesday 11 February

Year 13 - a reminder that Mr Halsey's lessons are cancelled on Wednesday 11 February. We do not have staffing cover within the Media department so you will have to work in the LRA or at home on these tasks.

13E
Make sure you have a detailed learner response to your Critical Investigation first draft on your blog - details of the task here.

Start working on the second draft of your Critical Investigation while your comments and feedback are fresh in your mind. You will almost certainly have to do additional research to move up to your target grade.

13D
Complete your two new and digital media stories and upload them on your blog. Update your NDM index too.

Complete the outstanding work on feminism - looking at the article on post-feminism in Media Magazine and then researching No More Page 3.

13D - this is due on Friday.

MEST1 Re-sit: deadline FRIDAY

The deadline to pay for your MEST1 re-sit is FRIDAY.

You MUST pay the £20.65 to the Exams office in A Block before the price doubles.

If you are unsure of whether this applies to you see Mr Halsey or Mr Bush on THURSDAY.

13E: Critical Investigation learner response

Hopefully, you have found the peer assessment tasks useful in identifying key aspects to improve for your next draft. You need to complete an initial learner response task to make sure you have read, recorded and understood your feedback.

Critical Investigation: first draft learner response

On your MEST4 coursework blog, complete the following tasks:

1. Type up your teacher comments from your first draft.
2. Write what mark/grade you are aiming for in your second draft.
3. Write a numbered list of five things you will do or change for your second draft that will help you get there. Be specific and explain in detail.

Critical Investigation: next deadline

Write the second draft of your Critical Investigation.

This includes any additional research that may be required.

Due: Wednesday 4 March

This second draft will receive feedback in the form of an extended one-to-one tutorial in class before Easter. You will then have a short time to make final improvements before the Easter deadline.

Linked Production Planning Documents

Make sure you complete the following, that they've been checked by us, and uploaded to your blog, before you start shooting:

• Project schedule
• Script - see the BBC Writers' Room for advice/script formatting
• Storyboard
• Shot list
• Mise-en-scene: casting details, location scouting with photographs, props, costume and make-up, lighting.

13D: New and digital media stories - updated index

It's time for a NEW blogpost updating our NDM story index.

You need a total of 32 stories in your latest index. Make sure the stories are numbered and link through to your original blogpost for that story.

A reminder of what each story should include is here. One story, remember, should be focused on news or journalism.

As ever, I've put up some great stories on the Macguffin Twitter account that basically does your homework for you.

Get it done!

Polite notice: If you haven't got 32 stories you'll be catching up at lunch.

Identities and the Media: Feminism

Are we living in a post-feminist state? Do you agree there is still a need for feminism? To what extent does the media contribute to the identity created for women in popular culture? These are some of the questions we need to consider in this next section of our Identities and the Media unit.

Complete the following tasks on your blog:

Media Magazine reading

1) Read Playing With The Past: Post-feminism and the Media (MM40, page 64 - our Media Magazine archive is here).

2) What are the two texts the article focuses on?

3) What examples are provided from the two texts of the 'male gaze' (Mulvey)?

4) Do texts such as these show there is no longer a need for feminism or are they simply sexism in a different form?

5) Choose three words/phrases from the glossary of the article and write their definitions on your blog.

No More Page 3

1) Research the No More Page 3 campaign. Who started it and why?

2) What are the six reasons the campaign gives for why Page 3 has to go?

3) Read this debate in the Guardian regarding whether the campaign should be dropped. What are Barbara Ellen and Susan Boniface's contrasting opinions in the debate?

4) How can the No More Page 3 campaign be linked to the idea of post-feminism?

5) What are your OWN views on the No More Page 3 campaign. Do you agree with the campaign's aims? Should the campaign continue?

6) Do you agree that we are in a post-feminist state or is there still a need for feminism?

Complete for homework if you don't get it finished in the lesson - deadline set by your exam class teacher.

13E Preliminary exercise: recreation

Great work to everyone who has managed to complete the preliminary exercise recreation task and post it to YouTube/blogs. You will present these in class and will need to answer the following questions:

1) Why did you choose this particular recreation and how does it link to your main production?

2) What difficulties did you face in producing this recreation?

3) What are the strengths of the production?

4) What aspects would you look to improve?

5) What lessons will you take from this process that will help you with your main production?

Once you have presented your work in class, you need to make sure the production is posted to your blog along with written answers to the above five questions.

Finish for homework - due next Wednesday.

I look forward to seeing your work in the lesson!

Post-colonialism: blog task

To complete our work on post-colonial theory, work through the following tasks:

1) Summarise the three theorists we have looked at: Alvarado, Fanon and Said.

2) Watch the opening of Yasmin (2004) again. Does it offer a positive or negative view of British Muslims? To what extent does it reinforce or challenge Edward Said's theory of Orientalism - that the west is superior to the exotic or uncivilised east?




3) Finally, choose THREE clips for EACH of the theorists and explain how you could apply that theory to the clip. Pick a selection of clips on YouTube from TV, film, music video or advertising and embed them in your blog before writing your analysis under each clip. Note: this means you need NINE clips in total on this blogpost.

Complete for homework: due next Wednesday

Year 13 MEST1 re-sit

A reminder to those students who are planning to re-sit the MEST1 exam in May that the deadline for paying for your entry is next week. 

Currently, the price to re-sit MEST1 is £20.65 but this will double if you miss the deadline.

The exams office in A Block have a list of Media students who need to re-take the exam and Ms Cunningham is waiting for your money. Remember, if you have access to a bursary then exam entries can be paid for from this - speak to Sarah in post-16 for more information. 

If you're not sure if this applies to you then speak to Mr Halsey or Mr Bush as soon as possible.

Identities: Post-colonialism

Post-colonialism does not simply refer to the period after the colonial era. It can also be seen as a continuation of colonialism, albeit through different or new relationships concerning power and the control/production of knowledge.

We are interested in post-colonialism and identity in terms of the representation of non-white groups in British media.

Two key post-colonial theorists:

Alvarado (1987)

Four key themes in racial representations:

Often quoted in relation to the black community but can be applied to other non-white groups:

• Exotic (models; music artists; food)
• Dangerous (crime; gangs; socially dysfunctional)
• Humorous (comedians; sidekicks; quirky)
• Pitied (poverty)

Frantz Fanon: “Putting on the white mask”

Typically black stereotypes can:

• Infantilize - such as the 'cute' children of the Charity Poster or the 'simple-minded‘ 'Step ‘n’ fetch it‘ lazy comedian.
• Primitivize - The 'exotic & virile' tribal warriors or 'bare-breasted maidens' with a 'natural sense of rhythm‘. Sporting prowess.
• Decivilize - The 'Gangsta', 'Pimp' etc.
• Essentialize - Undifferentiated mass-'they all look the same to me'

Destiny Ekaragha

Destiny Ekaragha spoke brilliantly at the Media Magazine conference about being a young black filmmaker in London. She showed clips from two of her films - the short Tight Jeans and the feature length Gone Too Far!

Post-colonialism: blog task

1) Read the excellent article exploring the different representations of black people in British film and TV from Media Magazine 42 (MM42 from our Media Magazine archive - page 51)

2) List FIVE films, FIVE TV programmes and FIVE online-only productions that are discussed in the article.

3) Watch Destiny Ekaragha's clips above (more of her work is available on her website, including the short film The Park). To what extent can we apply Alvarado's and Fanon's theories to these films? Do they reinforce or subvert typical black stereotypes in British film and TV? Refer to specific scenes and events in the clips in answering this question and aim for at least 350 words.

Complete for homework if you don't finish it in the lesson.

Reminder: your 15 questions on the media coverage of the riots is due Friday.

Your latest two new/digital media articles are due today.

Identities and the Media: Reading the Riots

The media coverage of the UK riots in 2011 provides a strong case study in the representation of young people. There is an excellent extended analysis of the media coverage of the riots by media professor David Buckingham in Media Magazine.

Read the Media Magazine extended feature on the media coverage of the UK riots (MM38 page 5)

Go to our Media Magazine archive, select MM38 and read the WHOLE eight-page feature. Answer the following questions on your blog with as many references to media theory and examples as possible. Refer to specific aspects of the Media Magazine article too:

1. How did the language and selection of images in the coverage create a particular representation of young people? 
2. Why does David Buckingham mention Owen Jones and his work Chavs: the demonisation of the working class?
3. What is the typical representation of young people – and teenage boys in particular? What did the 2005 IPSOS/MORI survey find?
4. How can Stanley Cohen’s work on Moral Panic be linked to the coverage of the riots?
5. What elements of the media and popular culture were blamed for the riots?
6. How was social media blamed for the riots? What was interesting about the discussion of social media when compared to the Arab Spring in 2011?
7. The riots generated a huge amount of comment and opinion - both in mainstream and social media. How can the two-step flow theory be linked to the coverage of the riots? 
8. Alternatively, how might media scholars like Henry Jenkins view the 'tsunami' of blogs, forums and social media comments? Do you agree that this shows the democratisation of the media?
9. What were the right-wing responses to the causes of the riots?
10. What were the left-wing responses to the causes of the riots?
11. What are your OWN views on the main causes of the riots?
12. How can capitalism be blamed for the riots? What media theory (from our new/digital media unit) can this be linked to?
13. Were people involved in the riots given a voice in the media to explain their participation?
14. In the Guardian website's investigation into the causes of the riots, they did interview rioters themselves. Read this Guardian article from their Reading the Riots academic research project - what causes are outlined by those involved in the disturbances?
15. What is your own opinion on the riots? Do you have sympathy with those involved or do you believe strong prison sentences are the right approach to prevent such events happening in future?

Complete for homework if you don't complete it during the lesson. Due: end of next week

Note: your TWO new/digital media stories (one news/journalism based) are STILL due every week on your MEST3 exam blogs. These will continue right up until the exam in June.

Year 13 Preliminary Exercise: Recreation examples

A shot-by-shot recreation is a an excellent test of your imagination, planning and technical skills. You need to choose an appropriate 30-second scene, plan out each shot carefully and then shoot and edit it exactly the same as the original. There are plenty of examples of shot-by-shot recreations on YouTube... here are a selection:

Fight Club 'Hit me' scene recreation:



Original scene (poor quality):




Friends opening titles recreation:



Original Friends titles:




Michael Jackson Thriller recreation:



Michael Jackson Thriller original:




You'll also find plenty of examples online of comedy or parody shot-by-shot recreations. It's unlikely your recreation will be a comedy (unless your Critical Investigation is on comedy or similar) but they are very entertaining and quite useful in terms of seeing how each shot is recreated faithfully.

Here's an excellent parody that followed someone losing a Fantasy Football bet. The screens are side-by-side to give you a great indication of how a shot-by-shot recreation needs to include perfect mise-en-scene - particularly location, props, costume and actor movement.

Sia – Chandelier recreation (lost bet parody):



There are also plenty of 'homemade' trailers and clips that also follow the shot-by-shot recreation model. These take big-budget Hollywood scenes or films and recreate them at home using puppets or budget costumes and locations. Again, it can be useful to see these to get an idea of how the framing of shots is the most important aspect of the recreation.

Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1 homemade trailer:




And the original Hunger Games trailer:

Year 13 Linked Production planning

For your Year 13 MEST4 coursework, 32 of the 80 marks are for a piece of production work that links with your Critical Investigation. Key details:

• You CAN work with others but the production MUST have some kind of link to ALL of your Critical Investigations. Group size limited to FOUR by AQA.
• Video work generally should be around 3 minutes long and no longer than 5 minutes. However, certain genres or texts will be shorter than this (e.g. 30-second advertisements or 2-minute film trailers).
• Print work must be a MINIMUM of three full A4 pages per candidate (e.g. if a pair work on print work the minimum is SIX full A4 pages).
• Found images/video (e.g. downloaded from the internet) are NOT permitted except as minor additional material (e.g. a small cut-out of a celebrity to use on a magazine cover).
• To achieve top marks, your work must comfortably sit alongside professional examples of the text and genre you have chosen.
• As with AS Level work, the key to professional production work is highly detailed research into the key conventions of your chosen text.

Important note: your Year 13 Linked Production CANNOT be the same as your Year 12 brief (opening of a TV programme aimed at E4 audience) OR the other two Y12 briefs (two-minute section/trailer for a TV lifestyle show; a two-minute music video introducing and promoting a new music artist). 

A reminder of your Year 12 MEST2 brief: Produce the opening few scenes of your TV programme establishing narrative themes, characters and location. You could include a title sequence and your finished product should be approximately two minutes long.


Writing your own Linked Production brief

Complete the following and post it to your blog in a new blogpost called 'Linked Production brief'.

Your Critical Investigation topic: 


Your Linked Production brief: 


Length/size of production (e.g. 3 minutes, 5 pages etc.): 


Give an example of an existing media text this is similar to what you plan to produce: 


Give an example of an institution that would produce or distribute your planned production:


How would your production reach its audience?


Who do you plan to work with on this project?



Preliminary exercise: Recreation task

Your Year 13 Preliminary Exercise is to produce a 30-second shot-by-shot recreation of an existing text that is similar to the production you are planning to create. Complete the following in a blogpost called 'Recreation task planning':


Name of the text you plan to recreate:


Scene/section you will recreate:


Location you will use for your recreation:


Actors you will require for your recreation:


Props/costumes you will require for your recreation:


Equipment you plan to use:


Any other relevant information:



Recreation deadline: Two weeks

MEST4 Linked Production deadline: Easter

Institution case study: News Corporation

News Corp is one of the world's largest media conglomerates.  

In the UK (under two subsidiary companies, News International and BSKYB), its news interests include The Times, The Sunday Times, The Sun & The Sun on Sunday (plus their online versions) in addition to Sky News & Sky Sports News.

News Corp is a cross-platform, vertically integrated multi-media company.

Some of the ideas we have discussed in class regarding the impact of new and digital media on News Corp include:

• Online subscriptions/paywalls
• Price promotions for newspapers
• Impact on institution content and its appeal
• Paid subscriptions for TV content
• Quality of journalism
• User generated content
• Social media/online news providers (Huff Post, Ampp3d etc.)

Tasks

1) Research News Corporation’s response to the growth of new and digital media by listing each of the institution’s brands (Sky News, Times etc.) Have any closed, changed or been in the news in the last five years for any reason?

2) Develop examples of the impact that new and digital media has had on News Corp’s brands (paywalls, readership figures, audience share etc.)

3) Use what you have found out about News Corp to answer the following question:

Why and with what success are traditional media institutions adapting to the challenge posed by new/digital media?

Complete for homework if you don't finish it in the lesson.

Happy New Year!

Welcome back to A Level Media - we hope you had a brilliant holiday and are refreshed and ready for a very busy term ahead.

You'll be writing Critical Investigation final drafts and making your linked productions over the next few weeks. In fact, you'll be writing your production brief next week and starting a 30-second recreation task to refresh those practical skills from last year. It's a lot to do and remember the Spring Term is a short, sharp 12-week term!

On the exam side, you'll be doing an in-depth case study on an aspect of new and digital media that you're particularly interested in to add to the work we've done on News. Before that, we'll be looking at the other side of the exam - Identities in the Media. This will bring in the riots, post-colonial theory, feminism and how we represent ourselves in modern media. We've got a brilliant conference at the BFI on the New and Digital Media coming up in a couple of weeks too.

Remember: you've got a MEST3 Section B assessment on Friday (New and Digital Media essay) so make sure you are revising EVERYTHING you've learned last term.

There's an A grade waiting for you if you're willing to put the work in - good luck!