theorists

• stuart hall

  
  

  media uses stereotypes

  leads reducing people to a oversimplified cliches

  stereotypes can be viewed negatively, result in inequality of power

  2 systems of representation: conceptual maps and language
• conceptual map


  stuart hall- systems of representation

  
  

  mental representations we carry in our minds

  
  

  we have the ability to imagine abstract concepts and theories e.g mythical creatures

  
  

  we can distinguish one concept from another e.g we are aware that doors are not the same as windows
• language


  stuart hall- system of representation

  
  

  we use language to communicate conceptual maps

  
  

  representation = produces meaning

  language= helps spread representation
• David Gauntlett

  argued fluidity of identity, constructed identity, collective identity and negotiated identity

  audience get a sense of their own identity through media
• fluidity of identity


  David gauntlet theory

  
  

  argues there is now a changing representation of men and women in mainstream media.

  
  

  e.g passive house->girl power

  
  

  now a "greater diversity of identities" being depicted in the media.
• constructed identity


  gauntlet argues we construct our identity based on the media we consume

  
  

  e.g influencers on instagram on TikTok

  
  

  we construct different identities based on the people we are socialising

  e.g speak differently to our family than our friends

  
  

  we carefully select which details to reveal so we can manage how we are viewed by other people
• negotiated identity

  
  

  gauntlet argues we can balance between our own desires and meeting the expectations of others

  
  

  we create a working consensus/agreement regarding the roles a person has in an interaction
• collective identity


  gauntlet argues this is when we feel a sense of belonging to a group due to shared interest for a media text

  
  

  e.g fandoms
• liesbet van zoonen


  theorist looks at feminist perspectives in the media

  gender discourse changes depending on cultural and historical context

  
  

  believe representation of women in media is unrealistic: "Very few women are like the "femme fatale" of soap operas and mini series, and women's desires consist of a lot more than the hearth and home of traditional women's magazines.
• liberal feminism

  Liesbet van zoonen- media always represented women performing traditional roles of mother and wife as it reflected the patriarchal ideology

  
  

  Contemporary society - rise of the superwoman stereotype in the media - an "independent and assertive career woman" who is also a "successful wife and mother" however, this representation is unrealistic for young girls
• radical feminism

  Liesbet van zoonen found that radical feminists argued our social system was designed to let men "dominate and oppress all women".

  
  

  "women should create their own means of communication".
• bell hooks

  criticises hollywood for not conveying the "complexity of black female experience"

  reducing black people to racist stereotypes

  emphasised how the interplay of race, gender and class reinforced the "white supremacist capitalist patriarchy"
• intersectionality


  describes the way systems of inequality based on gender, race, ethnicity etc intersect to create several forms of discrimination

  e.g asian women discriminated for her ethnicity and gender
• Judith Butler 


  gender is performed through "stylised repetition of acts"

  gender is based on our personality and identity
• Gilroy


  argued ideas of colonialism- taking over another country to control and exploit

  believes we are in post colonialism and period of colonialism is still shown a lot in media

  e.g ethnic minorities often portrayed as weak, powerless, dehumanised

  
  

  argues concept of the black/transatlantic- the huge movement of people backwards and forwards across the Atlantic ocean has created a dynamic intercultural identity

  
  

  believes the slave trade created an African diaspora- scattering of large numbers of people from their homes to new countries
• Gilroy

  • argued that racial idenitities and stereotypes were the product of racism
• du bois


  argued concept of double-consciousness- the struggle African Americans face to remain true to black culture while conforming to white society

  describes the feeling that you have more than one social identity, which makes it difficult to develop a sense of self.