MIGRAIN: Industries - Brand values

1) Sum up the brand values in 100 words, making reference to Dyer’s lines of appeal.

Santa Cruz Skateboards:


Santa Cruz skateboards have marketed themselves as an alternative fashion and skateboard manufacturer that focuses around the independent, the creative and the alternative. Along with the alternative aspect they also price their products as premium items, this is done to be seen that they are better than the competition and to also been seen as a company that provides high quality products, they have have done this by sponsoring pro skateboarders, this shows consumers that in order to win, you need Santa Cruz skateboards, these two aspects play into the dreams and fantasy, expert, success, and possibly culture lines of appeal.

2) Distil the brand values into one sentence of no more than 10 words. 
High quality Skateboards for the independent, creative and the alternative
3) Sum up the brand in ONE word.

Alternative

Sennheiser: 


1.

Sennheiser is an audio equipment manufacturer that directly competes with other major audio equipment manufacturers such as Bose, Sony, Beat's by Dre etc. There are a few lines of appeal that Sennheiser market themselves as. Rich luxurious life styles is an obvious line of appeal, this is due to the expensive nature of their headphones, the price range can be in the thousands. Elite people or experts is also a line of appeal as although their marketing is significantly less than their competitors,  their few advertising campaigns feature large and influential experts in the music industry

2.
 high quality audio equipment designed for both listening and music production

3.
Quality

  1.
Vans:


Vans has marketed themselves quite similarly to how Santa Cruz did, they initially used culture as a line of appeal as they were seen as a patriotic american brand when it was first made, since then although the Vans has had to market them selves differently after many close calls with bankruptcy. Vans now markets themselves as, elite people, as they are trying to directly compete with larger brand such as Nike and Adidas

Representation theory blog tasks

1) Why is representation an important concept in Media Studies?

The representation of information, groups and ideas are the core concept of what media is and why it exists.
2) How does the example of Kate Middleton show the way different meanings can be created in the media?

The two different pictures of kate middleton show that a caption can drastically change the meaning of an image.
3) Summarise the section 'The how, who and why of media representation' in 50 words.

Media is created by individuals, and it is important to understand who those inviduals are. Media is a collection of media languages that are being selected and rejected by society and those who control the media, this can give meanings to meaning less texts.
4) How does Stuart Hall's theory of preferred and oppositional readings fit with representation?

Stuart Hall's theory of preferred and oppositional readings fits how audiences view the represented, since audiences tend to have their own subjective opinions, these views can differ from either being preferred or oppositional. 
5) How has new technology changed the way representations are created in the media?

The introduction, popularity and availability of new technologies have allowed for voiceless groups to express their opinions which can be heard by an international audience, this helps to change these representations for best or for worse 
6) What example if provided of how national identity is represented in Britain - and how some audiences use social media to challenge this?

• Politicians that are proud to be British
• How the SUN views what it is like to be British

These representations are often challenged by social media.

The effects debate - blog tasks

1) Complete the questions in the first activity box (beginning with 'Do you play violent games? Are you violent in real life?')

I do play videogames, I would not say that I am violent.
2) What are the four categories for different effects theories?

• Direct Effect Theories
• Diffusion Theories
• Indirect Effect Theories
• The Pluralist Approach

3) What are the examples provided for the hypodermic needle theory - where media texts have been blamed for certain events? 

Child's Play ( Tom Holland 1988)- This movie was blamed to the reasoning for Jamie Bulger
Marilyn Manson- The musician Marilyn Manson was blamed for the Columbine Shooting in 1999
Natural Born Killers – a number of murders committed by romantically linked couples. in one case, the director was sued for inciting violence although the court case was later dismissed

4) What was the 1999 Columbine massacre? You may need to research this online in addition to the information on the factsheet.

The Columbine massacre was a school shooting that occurred in Colorado, April 20th, 1999. The two shooters were teenagers who were well-known punk rock listeners and were believed to have been motivated by that genre of music.
5) What are the reasons listed on the factsheet to possibly explain the Columbine High School massacre?

o The ease of access to firearms and the social
acceptance of gun ownership
o The alienation felt by teenagers who felt as though
they did not fit in
o The hopelessness caused by living in an area where
unemployment was high and was economically
disadvantaged
o The general desensitisation caused by access to a
range of violent images: film, TV, the news, the
internet

6) What does Gerbner's Cultivation theory suggest?

Gerbner's Cultivation theory states that the media affects our attitude rather than our behavior, it also states that the media affects our attitude not suddenly, but instead through a slow progression 
7) How does this front page of the Daily Mail (from this week - Wednesday 16 November) link to Cultivation theory? The Mail Online version of the story is here.



the article shows that newer generations are constantly on electronics and that this was not an instant phenomenon but instead was a gradual effect from the negligence from parents when it comes to the use of electronics in the household  

8) What does the factsheet suggest about action films and the values and ideologies that are reinforced with regards to violence?

The factsheet suggests that in action films the audience is accustomed to thinking that everything that the hero does is right, while if the villain was to do the same it would seem to wrong. The fact sheet also suggests that the actions being determined of either being wrong or right is entirely subjective.

9) What criticisms of direct effect theories are suggested in the factsheet?

The factsheet criticises direct effect theories as being elitest as it assumes that audiences are easily influenced  


10) Why might the 1970s sitcom Love Thy Neighbour be considered so controversial today? What does this tell us about Reception theory and how audiences create meanings?

what is socially acceptable has changed since the 1970's, what was socially acceptable over 40 years ago is different to what is socially acceptable today (e.g. explixit sex scenes, homosexuality etc)

11) What examples are provided for Hall's theory of preferred, negotiated and oppositional readings?

The factsheet uses the different depictions of the same information through different media outlets due to bias and subjective opinions as an example  

12) Which audience theory do you think is most convincing? Why? It is important that you developcritical autonomy in judging the arguments for and against different theories and form your ownopinion on these issues.

The two step flow model I believe is the most realistic as it can be objectively observed on both social media and mainstream media outlets, along with the two step flow model, I also believe that reception theory is also representative to reality as subjective opinions can have a massive effect on how someone processes information

Representation: Blog task

1) List the different people/groups represented in the trailer (men/women/Americans etc.)

White male (Father)

White females (Daughter and mother)

Foreigners (Main villain)

2) For each group, you identify, decide whether the representation is a dominant or alternative portrayal. Explain why you think this.

For every portrayal in the the trailer, the representation is dominant. They each follow typical and expected stereotypes

3) What stereotypes can you identify in the trailer?
The white male is the dominant protagonist that fights his way through the bad guys in the film. This is shown through multiple violent action scenes.

The white females are shown as vulnerable and emotional due to the only scenes in the trailer shows the two crying or needing to be saved by the father

The eastern Europeans are the bad guys who will be beaten by the Caucasian protagonist.

4) Why might the Taken trailer offend or alienate certain groups?

It actively makes eastern europeans seem to be villanous, that kind of message can be taken harshly by viewers, making that view into a harmful view of that group.

The trailer also alienates women by making them seem inferior to men due to their constant need to be saved.

5) Why do mainstream film and television texts such as Taken so often use stereotypes?

Stereotypes are an effective and easy way to build a character. If you want the audience to understand that a certain character behaves in a certain way and why; the creators can just change the characters race and make that understanding quick and effective e.g. A black gangster is a common stereotype that’s used to identify a character's motives and characteristics, a black gangster is shown to be more aggressive and violent