This unit requires some independent effort if we are going to make the revision deadline. Here is the 8 page A4 booklet in downloadable pdf form. Hopefully you got a copy in class.
How to do most of this unit on your own...
1. Make sure you use the contact page if anything is difficult or mysterious.
2. There are two great interviews provided here. They take time to watch but are superb case studies.
3. Be honest and open in your note taking. If there is something you don't get or are annoyed about then please make a note of it!
4. You should have access to a text book. It has about 12 pages of really good (and different) material that will help boost your knowledge up to a higher grade. Use it!
2. There are two great interviews provided here. They take time to watch but are superb case studies.
3. Be honest and open in your note taking. If there is something you don't get or are annoyed about then please make a note of it!
4. You should have access to a text book. It has about 12 pages of really good (and different) material that will help boost your knowledge up to a higher grade. Use it!
What is the Media?
What is ‘the media’?
The Media is any way of communicating. Here are some examples:
- text messaging
- photography
- moving images (including TV, films, DVD, Games)
- interactive + social networking (twitter, Facebook, consoles, handhelds)
- print (books, magazines, newspapers)
- audio (music, radio, podcasts)
The Media is any way of communicating. Here are some examples:
- text messaging
- photography
- moving images (including TV, films, DVD, Games)
- interactive + social networking (twitter, Facebook, consoles, handhelds)
- print (books, magazines, newspapers)
- audio (music, radio, podcasts)
What does the Media have to do with a Worldview?
Put simply, our Worldview is made up of what we think is true.
The Media is often a way of us finding out what those things are.
Remember the four questions?
What do you live for?
What do you think is true about God?
What happens when you die?
What are people? (where did we come from?)
These are hard to find final answers for. Mostly we go on what others are saying or suggesting about them. Sometimes we trust what a TV show or a mate says.
This is why the Media is important. It helps us to form ideas which affect the way we live our lives.
The Media is often a way of us finding out what those things are.
Remember the four questions?
What do you live for?
What do you think is true about God?
What happens when you die?
What are people? (where did we come from?)
These are hard to find final answers for. Mostly we go on what others are saying or suggesting about them. Sometimes we trust what a TV show or a mate says.
This is why the Media is important. It helps us to form ideas which affect the way we live our lives.
Communicating through the Media
Whenever you have a Media item you have some kind of message being broadcast.
Even if it is a tiny text message to your mum you are still communicating something. Films, albums, TV Soaps, Facebook posts all try to say something otherwise they wouldn't bother.
Sometimes we get an unintended message!
Just because you wanted to say something to your mum or friend via text doesn't always mean that they got the same message. We all know of times where someone got offended because they didn't see things in the same way. Think about how this works when you get a politician speaking to millions of people in a TV debate. The Media says all sorts of things, and these things are never as fixed or anchored as we think they are.
How does the Media try to communicate?
Simply by using choices when they make something. If you can look for the choices that they made when they put the thing together you can often get closer to the ideas that they intended.
Here are some examples of choices:
- choosing a camera angle can feel like a different kind of relationship
- the kind of music you have
- who stays alive or gets revenge in a storyline can affect how we view the morality of the storyline
- the kind of voice or actor used can either make us feel close to the piece or alienated
- sometimes makers of media use a selection of choices so that they fit into a kind or type of media (eg using space ships or robots to make something part of the science fiction genre)
In the booklet there is a section where you have to pick two Media things that you know really well (whether it is COD or Twilight doesn't matter - as long as you have spent a lot of time with them). Once you have those in mind you have to look for the choices bening made by the makers and then consider what messages are being attempted through those choices.
Here are some examples that might be worth thinking about:
- Grand Theft Auto rewards you for doing cruel things.
- Twilight has a very gloomy tone.
- Facebook encourages the sharing of very personal information.
Even if it is a tiny text message to your mum you are still communicating something. Films, albums, TV Soaps, Facebook posts all try to say something otherwise they wouldn't bother.
Sometimes we get an unintended message!
Just because you wanted to say something to your mum or friend via text doesn't always mean that they got the same message. We all know of times where someone got offended because they didn't see things in the same way. Think about how this works when you get a politician speaking to millions of people in a TV debate. The Media says all sorts of things, and these things are never as fixed or anchored as we think they are.
How does the Media try to communicate?
Simply by using choices when they make something. If you can look for the choices that they made when they put the thing together you can often get closer to the ideas that they intended.
Here are some examples of choices:
- choosing a camera angle can feel like a different kind of relationship
- the kind of music you have
- who stays alive or gets revenge in a storyline can affect how we view the morality of the storyline
- the kind of voice or actor used can either make us feel close to the piece or alienated
- sometimes makers of media use a selection of choices so that they fit into a kind or type of media (eg using space ships or robots to make something part of the science fiction genre)
In the booklet there is a section where you have to pick two Media things that you know really well (whether it is COD or Twilight doesn't matter - as long as you have spent a lot of time with them). Once you have those in mind you have to look for the choices bening made by the makers and then consider what messages are being attempted through those choices.
Here are some examples that might be worth thinking about:
- Grand Theft Auto rewards you for doing cruel things.
- Twilight has a very gloomy tone.
- Facebook encourages the sharing of very personal information.
Sex and Violence?
Sex and Violence are two very sensitive issues that are often being talked about in the Media.
The text book and the interview with Mike Judge will help you to explore this further.
The text book and the interview with Mike Judge will help you to explore this further.
Censorship and Freedom of Speech
Censorship is when you cut out things.
Freedom of speech is when you are allowed to express your views or ideas even if not everyone likes it.
Some questions to think about:
Is it right for everyone to be able to watch anything they want? Why/why not?
Have you ever been block from seeing or listening to something in the media? What was it? Was that a good thing?
Have you ever felt you wanted to say something but you didn't feel free to express yourself? Why was that?
If you had to always keep silent about your personal views would it be a good or a bad thing?
Should evil people be allowed to express themselves freely?
How do you work out where to draw the line between what should and shouldn't be expressed/experienced in the media?
How do different cultures or countries do it?
How does the popularity of Facebook and Twitter affect things?
Freedom of speech is when you are allowed to express your views or ideas even if not everyone likes it.
Some questions to think about:
Is it right for everyone to be able to watch anything they want? Why/why not?
Have you ever been block from seeing or listening to something in the media? What was it? Was that a good thing?
Have you ever felt you wanted to say something but you didn't feel free to express yourself? Why was that?
If you had to always keep silent about your personal views would it be a good or a bad thing?
Should evil people be allowed to express themselves freely?
How do you work out where to draw the line between what should and shouldn't be expressed/experienced in the media?
How do different cultures or countries do it?
How does the popularity of Facebook and Twitter affect things?
Interview with Authentic Media
Interview with Mike Judge
Authentic Media
Ofcom page for how to make a complaint about something on the TV or Radio
The Christian Institute