Media Studies 10 midterm

TV & multiple plotlines

"A plot" = primary conflict (most screen time) usually with lead character "B plot", "C plot", etc. = Secondary conflicts ("subplots") usually w/ secondary characters.

social cement

"psychic adjustment" to the needs of capitalism (makes us "emotionally obedient")

Episode

- A storytelling unit - Structured by culmination or theme - 3 or 4 acts ("curtains" before commercials)

Episodic TV

- Circular closure: return to original status quo § Problem resolves and we go back to where everything was. § i.e. The Simpsons; all these different adventures, but they stay the same age, in the same place, as the same family unit. - Econ advantages: § Same characters, similar situations □ Do these characters have really good chemistry on screen? □ Audiences become loyal, but it's okay to miss/mix-up eps - Econ disadvantage: § Formula gets tired.

Genre

- Content sharing the same conventions and codes. - Means of attempting to manufacture success. - A means of creating familiarity in new texts.

Serial TV

- Continual change of status quo - Accumulation of detail and history - Econ advantages: § Potential for revision □ Audiences don't like a character? Kill him. They like a story arc? Expand it § Fosters "loyals" □ Creates an audience who is particularly invested in a program. ® i.e. GoT - Econ disadvantages: § Alienate viewers □ They may fall away if they miss episodes □ When they want to start but they have to catch up on the previous 3+ seasons.

Utility of Genre

- Industrial role of genre: management of consumer interest/expectation managed through promotion. 1) Attempt to make success predictable i. Production trend: if people like the genre, make more ii. Reduces risk iii. Organizes production 2) "Contract" between producers and audiences i. We use genre to suit our moods Consumers know what to expect

Genre Codes

- Modes of production external to the narrative (STYLE) ○ Length ○ Visual style § Lighting § Camerawork § Editing § Animation

Genre Conventions

- Specific narrative elements (STORY) ○ Setting ○ Character type ○ Plot and narrative structure ○ Iconography ○ Emotional affect ○ Ideology

Social Control of Technology (SCOT)

- Technologies are a consequence of social factors - Guided by investors, gov't regulation, media users, etc. - PLUS: access, price, marketing, influence of peers We change machines; techs are adopted, adapted, modified, or subverted.

Social Shaping of Technology (SST)

- Technologies have "logics" that influence but don't determine use. ○ Both SCOT and TD are accurate; tech guiding what we can do with it, but how we can also alter it. - Machines can strengthen certain social structures while eroding others.

Hall's Encoding/decoding model

- Texts are encoded at the level of production. - Producers encode program with preferred meanings. - Producers usually ideologically / economically linked to hegemonic elite. - Tends to link worldviews to elites, supports the rich - Producers encode meaning in common with the dominant meaning to attract an audience (to avoid alienating) - Texts are decoded at the level of consumption. - Three decoding positions: - Dominant/hegemonic position: accepts the preferred meaning. - Negotiated: Partially accepts / understands preferred meaning - Oppositional / counter-hegemonic: rejects preferred meaning in favor of alternative one.

Technological Determinism (TD)

- The idea that technology alone has the power to transform society. ○ Technology acts as the primary force of change. ○ Not the developers, users, or market- the technology itself, machines change us. - Technology is central in transforming society ○ You aren't using media-- you are used by it

Criticisms of encoding/decoding

- Was the first draft of a new cultural exploration that people have attempted to improve - Few perfectly dominant or oppositional readings - Works better for directly ideological texts over scripted ones - Doesn't leave space for the pleasure and the unconscious - Multiple motivations behind production/encoding

Principles for media literacy

1. All media are texts that can be read 2. All media are representations that help construct our realities. a. How we view and understand the world b. News, documentaries, entertainment c. Different experiences and histories. We need to recognize that the media we're consuming are constructions. Human creations, a narrative. 3. Media are influenced by industrial pressures a. Must generate revenue and attract advertisers b. Who paid for this? What economic decisions went into creating the text? How did these economic decisions form the text? c. If you're not paying for something, you're the product being sold. i. Eg; FB and its advertisements 4. Media are influenced by political pressures a. Government can restrict content and ownership i. TV is more restricted in the messages it can produce than film. 1) Not allowed to be "indecent" before 9pm (or something like that) 2) Comcast purchased NBC because of its strong media presence but the gov't had to approve it. 5. Media are impacted by format a. All media have their own characteristics and conventions b. Ie: A film is only considered a feature film if it's four reels long. c. All media have their own characteristics and conventions 6. Audiences are active participants a. We filter meaning through our unique experiences i. An ongoing interaction between the text and the reader/ consumer. ii. Both the media maker and audience members' text. (we give it multiple meanings). Depending on our own interests and backgrounds and experiences. 7. People believe media tell us and influence who we are as a culture. a. We might like what we see or we might complain about it. b. Stereotypes, violence, misogyny.

Narrative Complexity/Context for Experiementation

Appeal to desirable and "loyal" demos Take advantage of new techs - Improved cultural clout § More creative legitimacy and encouraging producers to experiment - Viability of smaller audiences § It's acceptable to alienate some viewers as long as the show is able to create intense passion with the intended demographic viewers - New techs enable "rewatchability" § OnDemand, Netflix § Desire to create shows that will be meaningful even after their OG viewing. - Growth of online engagement with TV § Wikis, fan fiction and fan art, etc.

Standardization

Assembly line production; a formula is reused until exhaustion

Association Principle

Associate product with a positive image or value

Reality TV and Celebrity

Can rejuvenate celebrity careers Can manufacture new celebrities · Pro = normalizes celebrity, fans become active and invested · Con = celebrities no longer based on talent, culture of humiliation

Genre as Cultural Category (Mittell)

Cant decide what a genre is by a text by itself These understandings change over time genre = interrelation between texts + industries + audiences

Bandwagon effect

Claims you are being left behind

Genre Recombinants

Combining elements of two established genres ○ Genre provides predictability and surprise. Way of injecting difference. Going against familiar codes, bringing different codes together in new ways. Mediamakers use, change, subvert codes and conventions.

Hybrid production logics

Combo of forms i.e. newspapers = commodities and ad-supported Economies of scope: selling a product across multiple revenue "windows" and logics. i.e. movies going from theater (turnstile) to Blu-ray (commodities) to TV (turnstile)

Mass Culture/ What it provides

Commodities produced for max profit not from the masses, for the masses Promotes consumerism rather than citizenship From a culture debating society to a culture consuming society ○ Artificial concerns ○ Absorbs leisure time We don't have friends, we watch Friends ;D ○ No sense of collectivity

Media production logics

Commodities: paid in full by customers ○ One time sale (consumer keeps product) ○ Price covers all costs (including profit) § i.e. TV sets, albums, stuff you see in target ads Turnstile media: sell access to content ○ Consumer "pays admission to the gate" § i.e. Subscription/premium cable Ad-supported media: "free" to consumer ○ Advertisers pay cost of media in exchange for access to consumers ("impressions") § i.e. Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Google search

Famous Person testimonial

Company gets someone famous to promote their product i.e. Pro activ and Adam Levine, Katy Perry

Arc

Crosses several episodes or seasons Storyline or character centered

Genre Innovation

Deviation from generic codes and conventions at the risk of audience members getting bored of generic repetition

Utopian Critique

Doesn't leave room to examine both sides of specific content or forms od engagement. Employs the "myth of progress" 2015 TV season has the most diverse cast of characters on TV ever. Ignores commercial interests Ignores production hierarchies Can everyone really have a voice? A say in what gets made into media? Is there really "something for everyone"? Content may not represent the wants and needs of the people as much as what they advertisers want the consumers to see.

Dominant Ideology

Elites have the power to shape ideology through institutional control. Set of ruling ideas that support the status quo and are upheld by the majority.

Cultural Studies & Quality

Embarrassment occurs when social norms/taste hierarchies are disrupted You like something you "shouldn't" like Overcoming embarrassment can challenge and change culture

Genre Imitation

Following established codes and conventions

Transmedia entertainment

GOAL: draw viewers from TV to other content platforms AFFECTIVE ECONOMICS: how emotion drives viewing and purchasing decisions. GOAL: creates "loyals" Foster appointment TV for advertisers Loyals make sure they're watching a new episode as it airs "brand advocates" who generate buzz/awareness More likely to pay attention to/recall ad content SCRIPTED SHOWS: narratives take on added dimensions when integrated with stories from other media.

Digital divide

Gap between those who have access to digital technologies and those who don't Quality of access

Privatized mobility

Having your devices allows you to bring the comforts of home with you.

Pop culture analysis

How people use and interpret media Concerned with meaning at consumption, not producer intentions Looks at the cultural meaning of the media text. The meaning-making process that turns mass culture into pop culture

Intertextual

How we percieve the celebrity through the media in which they appear; performances, movies.

Content convergence advantages

Keeps audiences engaged between airing and maintains their attention across media Collects two kinds of viewers: demographically wide (TV) and desirable ("loyals") By requiring viewers to use multiple media, they are exposed to even more ads.

Material Function vs. Cultural Function (Fiske)

MF: role in the circulation of wealth CF: role in the circulation of meaning

Hall's Circuit Model of Communication

Meaning is shaped in multiple stages Audience: participant in meaning-making Each stage generates meaning and impacts the others Producers cannot fully control meaning Production; message is produced Circulation; message is distributed Consumption; message is received Reproduction/ feedback; message is accepted and reproduced.

Realism

Measure in Plausibility All media representations impacted by commercial concerns, creator bias, the acts of recording and editing, etc. Some media reps can be more objective than others. SO: no unbiased, objective representations of reality.

Cultural Studies

Media change society AND society change media Not just the study of text but contexts too. Thinking about meaning as a process. One that shapes forces of production as well as the conditions of reception. Industry, culture, and everyday life are interrelated.

Dystopian View

Medium is bad OR was good but it's getting worse. Media by its very nature is bad. Ie: hip hop music is inherently bad by nature. Ex: Texting divorces you from your surroundings and puts you in this bubble. Violent video games inspire violent thoughts.

Utopian View

Medium is good OR was bad but it's getting better. Also totalizing

Mirror View

Medium reflects reality OR reflects the interests of the audience. Reflects what they audience wants to see. Reflects what's happening now. What we see reflects what's happening in the real world. Reflecting what society is about.

Texts as polysemic

Not fixed in meaning - Can be understood/decoded in multiple ways. SO, variable interpretations mean that texts are as sites of struggle. AND, different interests compete to promote different ideologies

Consumer Culture/Results

One that focuses on accumulating consumer goods. Tied to free choice and identity We are what we buy, wear, eat, drink, watch, etc. ○ Isolated form tradition and community, we become open to manipulation (through media). ○ Creates inexhaustible dissatisfaction Promise of purchase will always result in dissatisfaction

Hidden Fear Appeal

Plays on anxiety or insecurity

Pop Culture and immediacy

Pop culture texts "throwaway" PC tied to the immediate social conditions Represents immediate values and concerns

Criticisms of pop culture

Populist celebration Tends to romanticize audience resistance Pop culture spreads repressive representations too Validates dominant/commercial interests Audiences can be active but that doesn't mean they're powerful

mobile kits (ito et al)

Primary: Stuff you have with you all the time (phone, keys, wallet) Secondary: other stuff you would bring (charger, laptop, makeup, etc)

Irritation Advertising

Produce name recognition by getting it stuck in your head

Constructing Realism

Produced by codes and conventions Apparent spontaneity Handheld camera and loose compositions Available lighting (light found in every day situations) Verbal spontaneity Narrative spontaneity Messiness of ordinary speech

Plain-folks pitch

Product fits into the lives of everyday people

Snob Appeal

Product will elevate your social status

Hyperreality

Reality TV is manipulated to be exciting but also retain the appearance of reality. "more real than real" Not to be real, but to FEEL real

Counter-hegemony

Rejection of the preferred meaning. means that dominany ideologies must be constantly reaffirmed through media

Constructing Reality TV (Kraszewski)

Selecting participants § To reflect certain character types To cast people that will increase the drama Overarching and mini narrative structures Location Editing

Beat

Smallest mode of narrative (1-2 min) Builds to plots, but also contain drama and purpose

Rationalizing the consumption process

Stars; I like this star so I'll like the product/ text they're endorsing Formulas; sitcom, romcom--whatever is currently working/successful Sequels/remakes; Toy Story series, Godzilla, 22 Jump Street Genres Copycat; Family Guy and The Simpsons, Friends & HIMYM, Pre-testing; focus groups and market research

Celebrity and TV

TV changed our conception of celebrity: not only did it create celebrities and promote celebrities but also changed our understanding · 'downsized' it - brings celebrities into the home; TV is intimate and downsized the nature of celebrities, making them more relatable and more personal as TV gives us access to celebrities' lifestyle via tv shows · tied to advertising images (more than films, tv ties celebrity to advertising images) · TV celebrity promotes familiarity due to repetition e.g. talk shows, soap operas, sitcoms

Domestication of Technology

Techs becomes invisible as they integrate into our lives Life without them would be unimaginable

Cultural Studies Methods

Textual Analysis Audience Studies Political Economy

The Medium is the Message (McLuhan)

The medium itself is more important than the content i.e. Books as a delivery system-- what's in them doesn't matter, what matters is that it's a system for delivering words, stories, thoughts.

Hegemony

The process of maintaining power thru the struggle of seeking ideological consensus. Keeping people on track with the dominant ideology. The act of convincing the public that their wants/views align with those of the powerful; we all want the same things.

Pseudo-individualism

The same product hidden by a veneer of indifference. i.e. The Voice as an alternative to American Idol but they're the same thing

Dystopian Critique

Totalizing- is it all bad? What bout educational programming? This belief is nostalgic "Back in my day" argument. Elitist Dismissive of how consumption can be active. Media aren't always passive nor do they have to be. People can watch TV or play video games in groups. Media can be discussed.

Celebrity

a person that attracts public and media attention an individual that arouses public fascination that offline personality/lifestyle are interesting to the press and people

Characters

assigned traits (by the narrative) that impact the story - Protagonists drive the story. ○ Actions drive the story. Audiences are encouraged to identify with the characters especially the protagonist.

The Operational Aesthetic (Mittell)

audiences enjoy trying to follow how the plot works - Plot based complexity. - Long arcs and refusal of closure. § i.e. GoT; "winter is coming" Whitewalkers - Analysis of plot and style § Analyzing how clever a show is in creating plots that build towards each other □ Plot applies to both the characters and the show itself. - Invites long-term engagement thru orientation and confusion § 'Who, what, where, when, and why' sort of questions always brought up. - Encourages focus on storyworld and plot mechanics - RESULT: audiences focus on formal analysis in addition to content

Promotion

calculated image construction by image creators (best light possible)

Audiences

can be inside the story and/or real individuals spectator: percieved audience of consumers

Narrators

can be specific individuals ○ Inside the story ○ Anonymous voices outside the story Particularly the case in film and television The camera is a narrator visual media Gives us perspective, guarantees we are at the right place at the right time to see exactly what we need to see

camping

creating a temorary workspace in public ie coffeeshops, libraries

Planned Obsolence

designing a product with a limited useful lifespan requiring customers to buy a new version pro:creates incentives to innovate and improve, creates revenue con:creates e-waste, unnecessary expense, waste, and frustration

Shock Ads

edgy appeal cuts through the clatter

Publicity

generated by the press etc. outside of direct control (danger of portrayal in negative light but necessary for propagation)

Mirror Critique

ignores the selective process of production Do media JUST act as mirrors? Agenda-setting function of media. A viewpoint is being offered. Crafted with messages and representations.Possibility that audiences might disagree or interpret it differently.

Celebrity Narratives

magic and talent' - this person is so talented, so charismatic, etc that we want to know more about them industry maneuvering - produce and circulate fame (commercial appeal) audience fascination - we obsess over stars because they somehow represent audience interests and desires, in how they live, how they look

Incorporation

mass culture scans pop culture for tastes/interests it can commodify

False Consciousness

mislead people in thinking that the route to contentment comes from consumption rather than upward mobility.

Technological convergence

personalized content through a single machine Combines a variety of technologies in a "black box" Using one piece of tech for a multitude of reasons/needs

Excorporation

pop culture scans mass culture for resources it can appropriate

footprinting

public spaces try to create relationships with the user ie loyalty cards

cocooning

shelter from engagment or a way to kill time ie during commute, gym time

Content convergence

similar content is made available through a variety of devices. Content shared across different media

Star text

sum of everything we affiliate the celebrity (not only albums, tv shows, films but also what we know about them like popular culture)

Convenience Technologies

techs that provide flexibility in what, how, when, where viewers consume media content Facilitates: ○ TV without a subscription ○ Time shifting/rewatching ○ "binging" Control viewing experience

Convergence

the blurring of boundaries between distinct forms of media into new types of media networks and delivery systems.

Spatial convergence

the blurring of boundaries between public and private spaces and virtual and physical spaces

Ideology

unconscious set of values and beliefs people use to make sense of the world. - Rarely questioned, appear commonsense -Ie: the necessity of working for wages, the priority over the individual over society.

Extratextual

understanding of the celebrity outside of his or her worlds; paparrazzi, interviews, gossip

ambient awareness

use of communications technologies to maintain a sense of connection with others. ie facebook, facetime, text

Popular Culture as a process

○ Assembled from mass culture resources ○ BUT: creates new understanding, identities, experiences, pleasures

Rise of Convergence

○ Concentration of media ownership ○ Interactivity (ability for users to "talk back") § Social □ Facilitates social interactions between groups of individuals ® Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, FaceTime, etc. § Technical □ Interacting with your phone or TV set ® Siri, DVR, rewind, fast forward, pause, read summaries of the program § Textual □ Creative and interpretive interaction between users and texts Comments section on YouTube/ news sites

Consumer Culture Characteristics

○ Consumption beyond all other forms of identification. ○ Produces products for an undifferentiated audience § Universal and impersonal § Consumers as market segments, not individuals. ○ Encourages insatiable consumer demand § Desire of always wanting something new (i.e.: Apple products) ○ Allows experimentation with identity and "the latest thing" ○ Represents status over function § Industries aestheticize and fetishize products Products are more dependent on their symbolic value over their functional value.

Frankfurt School Critiques

○ Elitist defense of high culture ○ Multiple motivations behind production (fails to recognize) - Doesn't account for: ○ Innovation ○ Failure ○ Subcultures § They show product differentiation ○ Other interpretations (locates meaning solely in production)