17 FEB 2018
I updated my diary with February's entry after I read this. I didn't really know what to say. I talked about what I had learned that month, about the production and marketing of films, and how this was different from what I learned the previous month. I also reflected on how I could deepen my understanding of film. I tried to make it more detailed than January's entry. |
13 MAY 2018
My analysis for class was completed after reading this. I finished analyzing how Class was a hybrid genre show, and how it used the codes and conventions of each genre. I also talked about the multi-strand narrative that we learned about in media class. This time I tried hard to use more technical language and more theory in my analysis, and balance the theory with other information and context. I think overall I was successful. Over the summer I also went back and reorganised the information and added headers and things to make it clearer and more easy to read. |
2 AUG 2018
I updated my theory page by adding an example of a film that demonstrates Propp's Characters Theory. While before I referenced some characters who matched the different archetypes, this time I also explained briefly why each Star Wars characters matched the particular character type. I updated my media language page with some key vocabulary definitions from the last few topics. I used the list of media vocabulary on Ms Stephen's blog as a reference. I haven't finished this yet but I will continue editing it I uploaded a few photographs I have taken, however I don't have that many good photos so I will try to add on to this in the future. As for photoshop work, I only have one actual finished piece from lessons, because I was mostly doing makeup photoshop lessons and practice. I will make more photoshop pieces and update the tab to show my progress. I finished my OMO and Represent CSP analyses using my classmates' blogs and the examplar on Ms Stephen's blog as reference. I tried to explain the connotations in detail. For further improvement I could try adding more theory and technical language. I also went back to my television analyses and added detail to both the Doctor Who and Class CSPS. I tried to add some theory into the analyses eg. uses and gratification theory and psychometrics. |
Peer assessment of Zoella's Merch Analysis
WWW: • Connotations! Yayyy! Minimum Band 2
• Inference
• Detail
EBI: • You NNEEEEEDDDD TTTTHHHEEEOOORRRIIIEESSS (e.g. Propp)
• More content. More examples. Talk about hidden meanings, like numbers...
• Finish your sentences.
Band: 3
Mark: 7
Effort grade (9-1): 7
Target grade (9-1): 9
Final Comment: You can do it! Just talk about MORE STUFF and use MEDIA TERMINOLOGY
- Devarsh
WWW: • Connotations! Yayyy! Minimum Band 2
• Inference
• Detail
EBI: • You NNEEEEEDDDD TTTTHHHEEEOOORRRIIIEESSS (e.g. Propp)
• More content. More examples. Talk about hidden meanings, like numbers...
• Finish your sentences.
Band: 3
Mark: 7
Effort grade (9-1): 7
Target grade (9-1): 9
Final Comment: You can do it! Just talk about MORE STUFF and use MEDIA TERMINOLOGY
- Devarsh
exam style question
CSP: GALAXY ADVERTISEMENT
Analyse the Galaxy Advert (close study product) to show how narrative devices used might encourage an audience to buy chocolate
The Galaxy advert follows Todorov's 5 part narrative. In the beginning, the equilibrium, the main character (Audrey Hepburn) is on a crowded bus while holding a bar of chocolate, which is the product. In many advertisements, the product is not revealed until the end in order to create suspense and make the reader finish watching it out of curiosity; however, in this advert the product is introduced from the beginning. This is so the audience immediately associates Galaxy chocolate with Audrey Hepburn. Audrey Hepburn was a fashion icon in her time and a symbol of elegance/beauty in pop culture. In the Advert she is dressed elegantly and made up well, so she looks out of place and stands out against the setting, because she seems classier. In this case, following Propp's theory, she represents the prize. She is the ideal - the effortless, sophisticated modern woman that the audience (the hero in this narrative) wants to become. The disruption is when the bus stops because a spilled cart is blocking the street, and she recognises that she has to find alternative transport. The fourth stage is when she notices the handsome man with the shiny car and he offers her a lift (an attempt to fix the disruption) The message to the audience would be that women like Audrey Hepburn are desirable and more successful, further developing her appeal as the prize. Finally, the advert ends with the new equilibrium, which is far better than her original circumstances, when she settles into the back of the car to enjoy her reward -- the Galaxy chocolate. Through this, the advert is telling the audience that this success is a choice, one that Audrey Hepburn made, and encouraging the audience to buy galaxy chocolate as it is a symbol of success and comfort and 'better things.'
- audrey hepburn in propp's theory
- message of the narrative theory
Analyse the Galaxy Advert (close study product) to show how narrative devices used might encourage an audience to buy chocolate
The Galaxy advert follows Todorov's 5 part narrative. In the beginning, the equilibrium, the main character (Audrey Hepburn) is on a crowded bus while holding a bar of chocolate, which is the product. In many advertisements, the product is not revealed until the end in order to create suspense and make the reader finish watching it out of curiosity; however, in this advert the product is introduced from the beginning. This is so the audience immediately associates Galaxy chocolate with Audrey Hepburn. Audrey Hepburn was a fashion icon in her time and a symbol of elegance/beauty in pop culture. In the Advert she is dressed elegantly and made up well, so she looks out of place and stands out against the setting, because she seems classier. In this case, following Propp's theory, she represents the prize. She is the ideal - the effortless, sophisticated modern woman that the audience (the hero in this narrative) wants to become. The disruption is when the bus stops because a spilled cart is blocking the street, and she recognises that she has to find alternative transport. The fourth stage is when she notices the handsome man with the shiny car and he offers her a lift (an attempt to fix the disruption) The message to the audience would be that women like Audrey Hepburn are desirable and more successful, further developing her appeal as the prize. Finally, the advert ends with the new equilibrium, which is far better than her original circumstances, when she settles into the back of the car to enjoy her reward -- the Galaxy chocolate. Through this, the advert is telling the audience that this success is a choice, one that Audrey Hepburn made, and encouraging the audience to buy galaxy chocolate as it is a symbol of success and comfort and 'better things.'
- audrey hepburn in propp's theory
- message of the narrative theory
mock exam question
Q3) Explain how marketing campaigns reflect the social and cultural contexts in which they are produced. Answer with reference to the NHS online video Represent (Close Study Product)
Marketing campaigns often reflect the surrounding contexts in which they are produced. For example, the Represent advertisement was part of a campaign released in the UK in 2016 by the National Health Service, in response to the consistently low rates of blood donation (especially amongst minorities) Its purpose was to encourage minorities to donate more blood, due to the shortage of supply for transfusions etc. The advertisement begins with Lady Leshurr standing on a rooftop -- from the London skyline in the background we know immediately that the advert is targeting people living in the UK. Moreover, the choice of Lady Leshurr as the face of the campaign is very significant, because as a black lady and a rapper, she is already breaking stereotypes. She represents diversity, and appeals straightaway to those of similar ethnicity or background who may feel restricted by society. This allows NHS to attract people from their niche target audience of minorities. The campaign was produced during a time when Rap music was very popular, so as a well known rapper, it could also spread awareness of this project to a larger audience, such as preexisting fans of her music. Rap music tends to appeal to certain groups of people, and stereotypically a large part of this audience are Black people, allowing the campaign to specifically target their minority group. Lady Leshurr addresses the minorities directly when listing jobs that could apply to anyone, demonstrating that they can do anything that anyone else can. So perhaps the message here is that they are capable and can do anything, to encourage them to do something simple like donating blood.
Marketing campaigns often reflect the surrounding contexts in which they are produced. For example, the Represent advertisement was part of a campaign released in the UK in 2016 by the National Health Service, in response to the consistently low rates of blood donation (especially amongst minorities) Its purpose was to encourage minorities to donate more blood, due to the shortage of supply for transfusions etc. The advertisement begins with Lady Leshurr standing on a rooftop -- from the London skyline in the background we know immediately that the advert is targeting people living in the UK. Moreover, the choice of Lady Leshurr as the face of the campaign is very significant, because as a black lady and a rapper, she is already breaking stereotypes. She represents diversity, and appeals straightaway to those of similar ethnicity or background who may feel restricted by society. This allows NHS to attract people from their niche target audience of minorities. The campaign was produced during a time when Rap music was very popular, so as a well known rapper, it could also spread awareness of this project to a larger audience, such as preexisting fans of her music. Rap music tends to appeal to certain groups of people, and stereotypically a large part of this audience are Black people, allowing the campaign to specifically target their minority group. Lady Leshurr addresses the minorities directly when listing jobs that could apply to anyone, demonstrating that they can do anything that anyone else can. So perhaps the message here is that they are capable and can do anything, to encourage them to do something simple like donating blood.
HOMework due 24/02
Q2: Newspapers target a narrow and specific audience group. How far do you agree with this view? In this question you must consider The Times and the Daily Mirror (CSP)
I agree with this view to a large extent.
For example, The Times is a high status broadsheet with conservative leanings, and its target audience is one that is middle-upper class, well educated, typically wealthy, and with a matching conservative political view. This is reflected in the stories featured in the newspaper, and how much space on the page is devoted to them: for example, the Muirfield Golf story was given almost a whole page in The Times, whereas it was only allowed 1/8th of a page, a tiny fraction, for the Daily Mirror article. In contrast, most of the page was taken up by a story about parking ticket wardens, as this is more pertinent to the audience. Being working class, fewer would have golf club memberships, and therefore the issue would not directly affect them, whereas all of them would have experienced the frustration of getting a parking ticket they perhaps felt was unwarranted. The parking ticket story was not even mentioned in The Times. This distribution of space reflects what is important to the audience and what they would be interested in reading, thus it is clear that the newspaper is making a direct appeal to their specific audience group.
Moreover, the particular spin or angle that the newspaper takes on each story depends on the political leanings of the audience. The Times, which is more conservative, covered the Muirfield story with a positive focus on gentlemens' clubs and the return of the club to the Golf League. To the conservative audience, gender segregation would be less outrageous (?), whereas the Daily Mirror emphasized the final inclusion of women into such a prestigious club, in order to appease its socialist and liberal readership. Within each article, the size of font, pictures and vocabulary used is also specifically to appeal to their audience. Tabloids have larger font and pictures because the audience is looking for casual reading material rather than long essays, and also tend to use basic vocabulary, with a few intermediate words as their audience are not academics. However, broadsheets like The Times use a wider range of vocabulary, and tend to have fewer pictures or discuss more worldly issues.
The newspapers eventually craft a reputation, for example The Times is a status symbol of 'the intellectual, well read businessman.' An aspirer psychometric type could then be more attracted to such newspapers, furthermore an active audience would be able to select to read The Times for surveillance, as after a while, it would be well known for a certain kind of news. The red tops of tabloid newspapers such as the Daily Mirror would make them easily identifiable. The target audience is reflected also in the price; broadsheets can be more expensive than tabloids as their target audience is wealthier and so, willing to pay more for a recurring expense like a newspaper. On the contrary, the target audience of a tabloid newspaper like the Daily Mirror is typically working class, which is reflected in how they advertise their newspaper -- sometimes the incentive is related to how the newspaper is cheaper or a great deal.
While newspapers such as The Times and the Daily Mirror do specifically engineer their newspapers to appeal to their target market, they can still appeal to other demographic groups. For example, many middle/upper class people choose to read tabloids such as the Daily Mirror because they enjoy it and want to read something easier, or with a different focus at times. In fact, they make up a large portion of the Daily Mirror's readership. Tabloids are the most widely circulated type of newspapers (because all demographics read them) even if they do not actively try to appeal to the other demographic. Therefore I would say overall, as newspapers choose certain elements to actively appeal to their target audience, that I agree to a large extent with this statement. However, they can still appeal to other groups.
EBI: I could give specific example of the vocabulary from articles. I could also analyse how factors such as availability in different mediums depends on audience? Or depends on age? (an older readership would lead to a newspaper mainly in print not digital? Maybe people read because of tradition?)
- the spin/angle on stories (reflects the political leanings)
- stories featured & the amount of space dedicated to each story
- the price of the newspaper
- vocabulary used and amount/size of pictures/size of font
- they craft a reputation?? which attracts people who like that because uses & gratification
- however, they can also appeal to a larger group eg. tabloid magazines appeal to even more "intellectuals" as they want to keep up with news
I agree with this view to a large extent.
For example, The Times is a high status broadsheet with conservative leanings, and its target audience is one that is middle-upper class, well educated, typically wealthy, and with a matching conservative political view. This is reflected in the stories featured in the newspaper, and how much space on the page is devoted to them: for example, the Muirfield Golf story was given almost a whole page in The Times, whereas it was only allowed 1/8th of a page, a tiny fraction, for the Daily Mirror article. In contrast, most of the page was taken up by a story about parking ticket wardens, as this is more pertinent to the audience. Being working class, fewer would have golf club memberships, and therefore the issue would not directly affect them, whereas all of them would have experienced the frustration of getting a parking ticket they perhaps felt was unwarranted. The parking ticket story was not even mentioned in The Times. This distribution of space reflects what is important to the audience and what they would be interested in reading, thus it is clear that the newspaper is making a direct appeal to their specific audience group.
Moreover, the particular spin or angle that the newspaper takes on each story depends on the political leanings of the audience. The Times, which is more conservative, covered the Muirfield story with a positive focus on gentlemens' clubs and the return of the club to the Golf League. To the conservative audience, gender segregation would be less outrageous (?), whereas the Daily Mirror emphasized the final inclusion of women into such a prestigious club, in order to appease its socialist and liberal readership. Within each article, the size of font, pictures and vocabulary used is also specifically to appeal to their audience. Tabloids have larger font and pictures because the audience is looking for casual reading material rather than long essays, and also tend to use basic vocabulary, with a few intermediate words as their audience are not academics. However, broadsheets like The Times use a wider range of vocabulary, and tend to have fewer pictures or discuss more worldly issues.
The newspapers eventually craft a reputation, for example The Times is a status symbol of 'the intellectual, well read businessman.' An aspirer psychometric type could then be more attracted to such newspapers, furthermore an active audience would be able to select to read The Times for surveillance, as after a while, it would be well known for a certain kind of news. The red tops of tabloid newspapers such as the Daily Mirror would make them easily identifiable. The target audience is reflected also in the price; broadsheets can be more expensive than tabloids as their target audience is wealthier and so, willing to pay more for a recurring expense like a newspaper. On the contrary, the target audience of a tabloid newspaper like the Daily Mirror is typically working class, which is reflected in how they advertise their newspaper -- sometimes the incentive is related to how the newspaper is cheaper or a great deal.
While newspapers such as The Times and the Daily Mirror do specifically engineer their newspapers to appeal to their target market, they can still appeal to other demographic groups. For example, many middle/upper class people choose to read tabloids such as the Daily Mirror because they enjoy it and want to read something easier, or with a different focus at times. In fact, they make up a large portion of the Daily Mirror's readership. Tabloids are the most widely circulated type of newspapers (because all demographics read them) even if they do not actively try to appeal to the other demographic. Therefore I would say overall, as newspapers choose certain elements to actively appeal to their target audience, that I agree to a large extent with this statement. However, they can still appeal to other groups.
EBI: I could give specific example of the vocabulary from articles. I could also analyse how factors such as availability in different mediums depends on audience? Or depends on age? (an older readership would lead to a newspaper mainly in print not digital? Maybe people read because of tradition?)