Media Index

1) Introduction to Media: 10 questions
2) Media consumption audit
3) Language: Reading an image - advert analyses
4) Reception theory
5) Semiotics: icons, indexes and symbols
6) Genre: Factsheets and genre study questions
7) Narrative: Factsheet questions
8) Audience: classification - psychographics presentation notes
9) October assessment learner response
10) Audience theory 1 - Hypodermic needle/Two-step flow/U&G
11) Audience theory 2 - Bandura and Cohen - moral panic
12) Audience theory: Media Effects factsheet
13) Industries: Ownership and Control
14) Industries: Hesmondhalgh - The Cultural Industries
15) Industries: Public Service Broadcasting
16) Industries: Regulation

17) Industries: Brand Values and Lines of Appeal

Cultural Industries: blog task

1) What does the term 'Cultural Industries' actually refer to?

Cultural industries refer to the creation, production of a cultural or artistic nature.
2) What does Hesmondhalgh identify regarding the societies in which the cultural industries are highly profitable?

Hesmondhalgh has stated that cultural industries are highly profitable in societies that support conditions for large companies to make money. These societies tend to have audiences that want a constant stream of products.
3) Why do some media products offer ideologies that challenge capitalism or inequalities in society?

Variety and difference are important, media products of this nature support that difference, that and the fact that these media products do support the views and ideologies of certain audience members 
4) Look at page 2 of the factsheet. What are the problems that Hesmondhalgh identifies with regards to the cultural industries?

• it's a risky business
• creativity versus commerce
• it's high production costs and low reproduction costs
• the semi-public goods; the need to create scarcity

5) Why are so many cultural industries a 'risky business' for the companies involved?

There is no guarantee of success due to multiple reasons:

• Audiences perceive content differently (reception theory) to what the creator intended 
• The industry is volatile, what audiences want change often 
• Often dependent on other cultural industries to 

6) What is your opinion on the creativity v commerce debate? Should the media be all about profit or are media products a form of artistic expression that play an important role in society?

I believe that there should be a fair balance between the two, creativity is needed in order to keep content interesting, while the commodification of the media in order to make the industry viable
7) How do cultural industry companies minimise their risks and maximise their profits? (Clue: your work on Industries - Ownership and control will help here) 

They minimize their risk by using well-known actors and genres. They maximize their profits through verticle and horizontal integration 
8) Do you agree that the way the cultural industries operate reflects the inequalities and injustices of wider society? Should the content creators, the creative minds behind media products, be better rewarded for their work?

I think the cultural industries profit from the inequality and injustice as they exploit creators through underpaid work, lack of representation and lack of recognition.
9) Listen and read the transcript to the opening 9 minutes of the Freakonomics podcast - No Hollywood Ending for the Visual-Effects Industry. Why has the visual effects industry suffered despite the huge budgets for most Hollywood movies?

Visual effect industries are having difficulties due to both financial issues and political forces
10) What is commodification? 

The process of changing products and services into means of trade
11) Do you agree with the argument that while there are a huge number of media texts created, they fail to reflect the diversity of people or opinion in wider society?

I believe that with time there is a clear increase in niche opinions and issues being represented in modern media, these newer opinions do definitely represent a more diverse point of view 

12) How does Hesmondhalgh suggest the cultural industries have changed? Identify the three most significant developments and explain why you think they are the most important.

Availability:
Cultural products can now be shared across national borders. This allows there to be more hybrid genres which helps to decrease the cultural influence of america.
Digitisation:
The digitisation of the media helps millions of people view the content of small time cultural industries.
Advertisement:
There has been a crazy amount of advertisement used to help increase the popularity of cultura

MIGRAIN: Industries - Public service broadcasting

Public service broadcasting: blog task

Create a new blogpost called 'Public service broadcasting' and complete the following tasks:

Ofcom report

Read the first few pages of this Ofcom report into Public Service Broadcasting in 2017.

1) How does the report suggest that TV viewing is changing?

Suggests that TV viewing habits have changed significantly especially within the younger generations and the 45 year old age group.
2) What differences are highlighted between younger and older viewers?

States that younger generations are watching significantly less than before and that older generations are viewing TV far more than before.

3) Does the report suggest audiences are satisfied with public service broadcasting TV channels?

The report states that PSB's are still watched extensively and are quite popular.

4) Public service broadcasting channels are a major aspect of the UK cultural industries. How much money did PSB channels spend on UK-originated content in 2016? 

PSB'S spent a total of $2.6 billion on UL-originated content in 2016



Goldsmiths report

Read this report from Goldsmiths University - A future for public service television: content and platforms in a digital world.

1) What does the report state has changed in the UK television market in the last 20 years?

The report states that PSB's are losing their market share and is being taken up by more on-demand providers and private providers.

2) Look at page 4. What are the principles that the report suggests need to be embedded in regulation of public service broadcasting in future?

1. In return for public service broadcasters meeting the obligations of their licences, their content should be guaranteed prominence on electronic programme guides, smart TVs and on the interfaces of on-demand 
players as they emerge.

 2. Retransmission fees should be paid by pay-TV platforms to public service television operators to address the current undervaluation of public service content by these distributors. 

3. Ofcom should supplement its occasional reviews of public service broadcasting with a regular qualitative audit of public service content in order to ensure that audiences are being served with high-quality and diverse programming. This should include detailed data on the representation and employment of minority groups and a comprehensive account of the changing consumption patterns of younger audiences. 

4. Ofcom should continue to monitor the independent production sector and take action, where necessary, if consolidation continues to increase and if diversity of supply is affected

3) What does the report say about the BBC?

The report states that the BBC is important and that it provides valuable diverse content, but the report also acknowledges the fact that the BBC need to put more effort when it comes to making their content more modern.

4) According to the report, how should the BBC be funded in future?

The report suggests that the BBC should scrap the flat service fee and should work to integrate the fee into council tax 

5) What does the report say about Channel 4?

The report aknowledges that Channel 4 has an important role to play when it comes to PSB's but needs to work harder on providing content for older kids; the report also states that Channel 4 has cut programme spending. When talking about the possible privatization of Channel 4 seriously risks its Channel remit.

6) How should Channel 4 operate in future?

Channel 4 should remain a PSB and should aspire to invest more resources into providing content catered for an older audience

7) Look at page 10 - new kids on the block. What does the report say about new digital content providers and their link to public service broadcasting?

The report states that there are new broadcasters are taking elements from PSB's and taking them out of the public system. The report also states that the new broadcasters should receive help from the government.

Final questions - your opinion on public service broadcasting

1) Should the BBC retain its position as the UK’s public service broadcaster?

The BBC has remained as a reliable source of information and I believe it should stay like that. It's important to have an unbiased media giant be present in the current media climate.

2) Is there a role for the BBC in the 21st century digital world?

The BBC needs to aim at producing new, more modern content. As of right now their contributions have been valuable, but in the 21st century, their confirmed income safety net needs makes them comfortable, and if they're comfortable, a newer and more prepared/researched media provider will overtake them in the future

3) Should the BBC funding model (license fee) change? How?

As mentioned before in the report, I do think to scrap their license fee and trading it for a progressive integration within our council tax would be a good idea. 

MIGRAIN: Industries - Regulation

1) What is regulation and why do media industries need to be regulated?

Regulation is the process of prohibiting or reducing a certain type of content or content that does not meet certain regulation standards from a type of audience. Media needs to be regulated due to the fact that certain content should not be shown to certain age groups.

2) What is OFCOM responsible for?

The OFice of COMunication (OFCOM) is responsible for regulating television, radio, telephone services and some aspects of the internet, although the areas most relevant to media students are TV and radio

3) Look at the section on the OFCOM broadcasting code. Which do you think are the three most important sections of the broadcasting code and why?

Section 1: Protecting the Under-Eighteens:

Small censorship to controversial, possibly harmful content is important for easily influenced under 18's

Section 5: Impartiality and Undue Prominence of Views and Opinions:

All views should be respected and discussed in a balanced manner.

Section 2: Harm and Offence:

Copy cat crimes are quiet common with under 18's

4) Do you agree with OFCOM that Channel 4 was wrong to broadcast 'Wolverine' at 6.55pm on a Sunday evening? Why?

I believe that they were in the right as the content within wolverine can be quite aggressive 

5) List five of the sections in the old Press Complaints Commission's Code of Practice. 

Section 1: Accuracy
Section 2: Opportunity to Reply
Section 3: Privacy*
Section 4: Harassment*

Section 5: Intrusion Into Grief and Shock

6) Why was the Press Complaints Commission criticised?

It was criticised due to its lack of statuary power 

7) What was the Leveson enquiry and why was it set up?

The leveson enquiry was set up due to the fact that a company was found our to be hacking phone calls connected to the royal family

8) What was the PCC replaced with in 2014?

IPSO

9) What is your opinion on press regulation? Is a free press an important part of living in a democracy or should newspapers face statutory regulation like TV and radio?

I believe that press regulation should be used until freedom of speech and biases are involved e.g. If individuals wish to criticises the government, it should not be censored

10) Why is the internet so difficult to regulate?

The internet is a global network with many loopholes that can prove difficult to patch up.

MIGRAIN: Audience theory 2

1) Social learning theory has been criticised for simplifying the causes of violence in society. Do you think the media is responsible for anti-social behaviour and violence?

I believe it can effect but I don't believe that it should be blamed, The lack of supervision of parents when it comes to accessing this media should be blamed.


2) How is social learning theory relevant in the digital age? Are young people now learning behaviour from social media and the internet? Give examples.

Today I believe that social media is educating the younger generations more than their own parents (depending on the extent of media usage)

3) Research five examples of moral panic from the last 50 years. To what extent was the media responsible for these moral panics? Was the concern in society justified? How have things changed as a result of these moral panics?

Terrorism:
High responsibility, Led to increased western Islamaphobia

Opioid crisis:
High responsibility, Increased prison sentences and increased fear within parents

Video Game violence:
High responsibility, not much has changed in result

Fear of Heavy metal and hip hop:
High responsibility, not much of an impact or change

School shootings:

High responsibility, increased the number of people talking about the issue, other than that no effect.



4) Read this introduction to an academic paper on technopanics. What examples are given of technopanics that create fear in society?

Some of the technopanics given as examples include child safety online, digitalprivacy and cybersecurity 

5) How does the author suggest that technopanics should be addressed - rather than through government regulation?

The exact words used in the article are:

"to the extent that these concerns are valid, they are best addressed by ongoing societal learning, experimentation, resiliency, and coping strategies rather than by regulation." What this means is that instead of choosing to regulate online usage and technological advancements by introducing regulations, but instead should educate the public to understand how to effectively use the online and technological resources and how to avoid any possible dangerous situations."

6) Do you think the internet should be regulated? Should the government try and control what we can access online?

I believe that the internet should be regulated, but not the extent where freedom of expression and freedom of speech are not snuffed out, the main targeted goal of the government is to try and stop online bullying, online privacy and security, and hate speech (I personally do not classify that as freedom of speech) 

7) Apply Gerbner's cultivation theory to new and digital media. Is the internet creating a fearful population? Are we becoming desensitised to online threats, trolling and abuse?

Since the rise of the internet, the brand new generation of people are becoming both fearful and desensitised in a variety of ways. In one aspect we as an audience are no longer surprised of hearing of a genocide in a third world country; while simultaneously the rise of moral panics that are being spread by social media. 

8) Is heavy internet use something we should be worried about in society? How would you define 'heavy internet use'?  

I don't believe that heavy use of social media is an issue, it just depends on how the internet is used; if the internet is used in order to keep updated on situations and keeping yourself aware of whats going on around you, along with using it as a source of entertainment is completely fine.