OSP Teen Vogue:Audience and Representation

Audience

1) Analyse the Conde Nast media pack for Teen Vogue. What is the Teen Vogue mission statement and what does this tell us about the target audience and audience pleasures?

"Teen Vogue is the young person’s guide to saving the world. We aim to educate, enlighten, and

empower our audience to create a more inclusive environment (both on- and offline) by

amplifying the voices of the unheard, telling stories that normally go untold, and providing

resources for teens looking to make a tangible impact in their communities."

Quotes for example "the young person’s guide to saving the world", "We aim to educate, enlighten, and

empower our audience" and " providing resources for teens looking to make a tangible impact in their communities" communicates to us that Teen Vogue main audience are the new, rebellious teens of today. This has obviously changed from the beginning of Teen Vogue where they mainly focused on fashion and the latest trends which appeals to the younger female teen audience.

2) What is the target audience for Teen Vogue? Use the media pack to pick out key aspects of the audience demographics. Also, consider the psychographic groups that would be attracted to Teen Vogue: make specific reference to the website design or certain articles to support your points regarding this.

Teen Vogue has stated that 63% of its audience are GEN Z / Millenials. This is the target audience that teen vogue is trying to hit. But also 21 under 21 guides. Helps to reach an older audience. An example of this is Teen Vogue publishing articles about campus lifestyle, which represents Teen Vogues shift to an older audience base.

3) What audience pleasures or gratifications can be found in Teen Vogue? Do these differ from the gratifications of traditional print-based magazines?

I believe the Teen Vogue audience takes the most out of this, is the pleasure of self-improvement and empowerment. Most of these articles give the audiences tips and tricks to improve their lifestyle and themselves. But also educate the public about today's issues and conflicts. Which helps to give the audience their own opinion to share with the world.

4) How is the audience positioned to respond to political news stories?

Teen Vogue outcome is to educate the audience about today's political society. It helps gives the audience their own voice. Once educated about the topic, I believe that Teen Vogue wants to help the audience to have their own opinion and aspire to empowerment.

5) How does Teen Vogue encourage audiences to interact with the brand – and each other – on social media? The ‘tentpoles and editorial pillars’ section of the media pack may help with this question.

They try to interact with the audience by covering stories that are related to social media. Using stories from social media influencers. But also "giving them a lens", trying to educate the audience to express their opinion on different matters.

Representations

1) Look again at the Conde Nast media pack for Teen Vogue. What do the ‘tentpoles and editorial pillars’ (key events and features throughout the year) suggest about the representation of women and teenage girls on teenvogue.com?

An event like the Teen Vogue Summit shows that they are trying to interact with their audience as much as possible. "connect to a new generation of activists". They express their ideas to relate to the new generation of aspiring activists with these events. Bringing in workshops, speakers and gatherings.

2) How are issues of gender identity and sexuality represented in Teen Vogue?

Teen Vogue tries its best to speak openly about gender identity and sexuality. As they are some of the biggest issues or conflicts that the new generation face today. Having their section about it, they speak openly about sex, relationships, tips and tricks and gender identity. Some of them may be controversial due to it being from Teen Vogue, but it represents the change of what Teen Vogue is trying to commit.

3) Do representations of appearance or beauty in Teen Vogue reinforce or challenge traditional stereotypes?

There are articles that suggest that Teen Vogue are encouraging body positivity and empowerment. But I believe that Teen Vogue is consciously trying to submit to society standards of attracting looking women, There are some articles that I mainly see that shows traditional fashion or "summer body" type articles.

4) What is the patriarchy and how does Teen Vogue challenge it? Does it succeed? 

Patriarchy is the social system in which the men hold all the power. Meaning where the man is the leader and make the decision. Teen Vogue is facing this by empowering women with their articles. Influencing women to have a voice and not let anyone stop them.

5) Does Teen Vogue reinforce or challenge typical representations of celebrities? 

With celebrities. Teen Vogue tries to represent drama more than stories themselves. I believe that in this generation, drama is a form of entertainment. Teen Vogue knows this and believes it could attract more viewers.

 The true story of how Teen Vogue got mad, got woke, and began terrifying men like Donald Trump

1) How was the Teen Vogue op-ed on Donald Trump received on social media?

In social media, it exploded with praise—and with baffled reactions. The piece, one Twitter user noted, had “big words for a magazine about hairstyles and celebrity gossip.” Another user expressed pure astonishment: “Who would have guessed @TeenVogue might be the future of political news. Unreal coverage of the election.” Others were less kind, and a lot less subtle: “Go back to acne treatments,”

2) How have newspapers and magazines generally categorised and targeted news by gender?

by 2010, 64% of J-school graduates were female. Yet as of 2015, 65% of political journalists, 67% of criminal justice reporters, and 62% of reporters covering “business and economics” were male. Even in the lifestyle section, women can only pull even; the gender split there is precisely 50-50.

3) How is this gender bias still present in the modern media landscape?

This bias is still reflected in how journalists are assigned stories. Women have been attending and graduating journalism school more often than men since the 1970s

4) What impact did the alternative women’s website Jezebel have on the women’s magazine market?

In 2008, Anna Holmes’ Jezebel made the then-risky move of combining politics coverage and traditionally feminist op-eds with fashion and celebrity gossip, betting that the same woman could plausibly enjoy reading both Megan Carpentier on Hillary Clinton and Sadie Stein on bandage dresses. Jezebel’s traffic soon outstripped its more dudely counterpart Gawker, and created a model for women’s media that is still the norm today.

5) Do you agree with the writer that female audiences can enjoy celebrity news and beauty tips alongside hard-hitting political coverage? Does this explain the recent success of Teen Vogue?

Yes. I believe everything doesn't have to be about politics and issues of today. It's best to also focus on other stories so it's not always tunnelled-vision. Reading stories about celebrities and beauty could help diversify the audience knowledge.

6) How does the writer suggest feminists used to be represented in the media?

The feminist-blog movement, and the women’s media revolution that followed, has trained the exact press corps we need for this moment in history. Now we need to stop feigning shock at the women and girls who are running circles around mainstream publications’ political coverage, and start listening to what they have to tell us.

7) What is the more modern representation of feminism? Do you agree that this makes feminism ‘stereotyped as fluffy’?

There are different representations of feminism. I feel that today society sees feminism in a better light, better than before. Before was confusion and aggression from both sides. But in this generation feminism is starting to give a clear message for equality and rights.

8) What contrasting audience pleasures for Teen Vogue are suggested by the writer in the article as a whole?

Teen Vogue, unlike Time or Newsweek, is drawing explicitly from a rich tradition of aggressive, opinionated, adversarial coverage of sexist white men. 

9) The writer suggests that this change in representation and audience pleasures for media products aimed at women has emerged from the feminist blog movement. How can this be linked to Clay Shirky’s ‘end of audience’ theory?

10) Is Teen Vogue simply a product of the Trump presidency or will websites and magazines aimed at women continue to become more hard-hitting and serious in their offering to audiences?

Under the incoming Trump administration, it’s crucial that we banish the idea that there is a boundary between “women’s journalism” and “serious journalism” once and for all. When the president of the United States has admitted to committing sexual assault on tape; when an architect of GamerGate sits in the White House; when states start passing “heartbeat bills” designed to effectively overturn Roe v. Wade, those aren’t “women’s issues”—they’re national news. A failure to treat them as such will leave us unprepared to adequately oppose Trump and Trumpism.

OSP Teen Vogue: Background and Textual Analysis

 Teen Vogue: background reading

1) What was the article that announced Teen Vogue as a more serious, political website – with 1.3m hits and counting?

 Lauren Duca, a Teen Vogue contributing editor and award-winning writer for the likes of Vice and the New Yorker. “To gaslight is to psychologically manipulate a person to the point where they question their own sanity, and that’s precisely what Trump is doing to this country,” Duca wrote, summing up with the rallying cry to: “Refuse to accept information simply because it is fed to you, and don’t be afraid to ask questions.” This is solid advice for any teen at any point in history; but in the era of “alternative facts”, it is also, she noted, “the base level of what is required of all Americans”.

2) When was the original Teen Vogue magazine launched and what was its original content?

Launched in 2004 as a little sister to US Vogue, Teen Vogue used to focus on the standard cocktail of fashion must-haves and celebrity worship. (A classic coverline from a 2005 edition was How To Get Perfect Party Hair.) 

3) How did editor Elaine Welteroth change Teen Vogue’s approach in 2015?

With the new August 2015 issue, the team, including then beauty editor Welteroth, engineered a shift. That issue featured three unknown black models on the cover, seemingly breaking all the rules (that you should have a famous person; and that having no Caucasian faces on the cover is a commercial risk).

4) How many stories are published on Teen Vogue a day? What topics do they cover?

This morning’s stories (the team publishes between 50 and 70 a day) present a typically mixed bag of fashion, entertainment and current affairs. Today’s hits are already at over 700k, with What Donald Trump Lied About This Week performing particularly well; there’s also a personal essay on the chemicals in hair relaxant, a roundup of Models Turning 19 Today, a story about Isis recruiting potential terrorists through social media, and an analysis of why Melania Trump chose to wear red for her first post-inauguration appearance.

5) What influence did digital director Phillip Picardi have over the editorial direction?

The editorial meeting is led by 25-year-old digital director Phillip Picardi. Picardi is dressed in slim-fit jeans and a navy shirt by Dries van Noten, his boyband looks dominated by luminous, aquamarine eyes. .Changing the editorial direction meant diversifying the backgrounds of the people in our newsroom.

6) What is Teen Vogue’s audience demographic and what does ‘woke’ refer to?

the team is a reflection of the title’s demographic, which “ages up”, in the words of Welteroth; in other words, they’re not all teens. “Our sweet spot is 18-24,” she tells me. Also describing her readership as “genderless”, she explains that “it’s more about a sensibility. This is somebody who is sophisticated, conscious. We say ‘woke’ here. We’re a woke brand, and our readers are woke, too.”

7) What issues are most important to Teen Vogue readers?

“Identity is big. We want to help make them feel better about themselves, whether that’s giving beauty tips, or empowering them with political information to have smarter conversations and feel they can stand up for themselves.” Career advice “is an evergreen topic”; above all, “young people are craving something real, craving authenticity”.

8) What does Tavi Gevinson suggest regarding the internet and ‘accountability culture’ with regards to modern audiences? Can you link this to our work on Clay Shirky?

She believes the internet has created an “accountability culture”, where the relationship with readers is closer and more transparent, and says brands have had to respond to that. “It is in their best interest to subvert expectations of teen girl magazines,”. It can link to Clay Shirky, as it Teen Vogue was a platform to communicate and create idea and arguments.

9) What social and political issues have been covered successfully by Teen Vogue?

In the wake of a summer of social and political unrest, Trump’s election created something of a perfect storm for Picardi’s new political agenda; the Teen Vogue news desk had already caused a stir with strong coverage of the Dakota Access pipeline protests and the Black Lives Matter movement. Instead of merely reporting them, Picardi says, they try to figure out what their readers will care about the most, and this often means finding the personal interest angle. One of the first stories Picardi went big on was the case of Freddie Gray, a 25-year-old black man who died of spinal injuries following a brief (unwarranted) stint in police custody. “Black male teens are 21 times as likely to be killed by police than their white counterparts – 21 times. Can you imagine that?” ran the opening paragraph. “Think about your brothers, cousins, fathers

10) What do Teen Vogue readers think of the magazine and website?

16-year-old Paige Wagner, who says truthfulness and trust are the main reasons she reads it, since “most of what I read on social media is unreliable”. For her, “The recent presidential election brought to the surface a lot of important issues that weren’t getting as much attention as they should have: women’s rights, LGBTQ+ community rights, immigration.” Like many young people, Wagner is galvanised by the election, in which she saw “a complete misrepresentation of the younger generation. It’s important now to educate young minds so they can form a political identity.

Teen Vogue: Factsheet Part 1

1) The Factsheet suggests Teen Vogue has successfully made the transition to an online, social and participatory product. Why? What platforms is it now available on?

It has made a successful transition due to Teen Vogue design and new ideology following on online platforms and articles. They have adapted to the new generation of rebellious teens facing social and political issues in this decade. And with articles which cause stirs and makes the audience question and get educated about social and political issues. It attracts more viewers and sets them up for the future. Teen Vogue can be found on every major online platform. Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter. 

2) Look at the screenshots and details on pages 3-4 of the Factsheet. What does Teen Vogue offer its audience?

Teen Vogue online media and presence offers education throught their articles and a ideology to be promoted to their targeted audience. In their online platforms they focus on the latest trends and issues, which links to their articles. It gives a mix of fashion, entertainment and current affairs. insight, the contemporary approach is diverse, political and critically engaged. Where as a previous fashion story would focus on the visual aspirational values (Style Secrets from Music’s Coolest Girls) now readers are offered a more diverse representation.

3) Who is the typical Teen Vogue reader?

The reader of TeenVogue in traditional terms is the 18-24 demographic, millennials with an interest in popular culture, current affairs and issues of identity and lifestyle.

4) Read the content analysis of the Teen Vogue website on page 5 of the Factsheet. Pick out three key examples of how meanings are created in Teen Vogue and what is communicated to the audience.

The background is white, with a black and red colour palette. It’s not ‘horror movie’ black, red, white, but more akin to inews.co.uk or The Spectator in its use of colour. This use of news website convention adds validity to the shift in focus of TeenVogue’s reporting. Here the conventions of news sites are encoded to position the audience to take that preferred reading (Hall).

The site has continued to evolve, with the menu tabs moving from ‘fashion, entertainment, beauty, my life, wellness, prom’ (2016) to ‘style, politics, culture, identity’. This change reflects the brand’s shift, and acts as a signifier of the ideological stance of TeenVogue.

The website is the where the most political content is published within the TeenVogue ‘universe’. The site combines both news and lifestyle webpage conventions. We could argue that TeenVogue is a postmodern text, using a bricolage of existing media products

5) Finally, look at pages 6-7 focusing on representations. What range of representations can be found in Teen Vogue and what does this suggest regarding Teen Vogue's values and ideologies?

We can see that TeenVogue are offering a range of representations. We see cultural stereotype portrayed in a positive way in the way images are mediated for various stories. For example, the report on 7 Young Activists uses indexical signs to encode the ‘activist’ narrative, the denim jacket and pin badges, megaphone, Capitol Hill building in the background. This image of the teen girl alone could be open to interpretation, however the syntagm of the three images positions the audience to decode a position representation. TeenVogue does offer a selective representation to both appeal to their intended audience, but also to challenge the dominant ideology – the establishment. There a number of articles that criticise or highlight problems with President Donald Trump’s behaviour, policies, finances, associates, social media. A search on TeenVogue using term ‘Donald Trump’ throws up a wide range of articles that construct representation of Trump that seeks to undermine his position. In this way, TeenVogue seek to destabilise the dominant ideology and challenge the hegemonic media coverage that Trump commands through his unconventional approach to politics.

Teen Vogue textual analysis and example articles

Homepage analysis

1) What website key conventions can you find on the Teen Vogue homepage?

Teen Vogue uses different key conventions to entice users to click on different articles. They split up articles into different categories to what they article is related to. Different categories like identity, culture, politics and style. They use big pictures and "clickbait" titles to make viewers click on different articles.

2) How does the page design encourage audience engagement?

The home page is designed to reveal first big pictures and titles to reveal their main stories. And other articles that aren't that of importance are smaller with less quality on the title. The more you scroll down, the more you can see different articles to different topics and advertisement and newsletter signups. 

3) Where does advertising appear on the homepage?

Once you enter the website, A banner of ads appears on the top of the screen below the search bar and categories. Once you start to scroll down, advertisements can follow you scrolling down or pop-up in the middle and on the bottom of the page.

4) What are the items in the top menu bar and what does this tell you about the content of Teen Vogue?

Style, Politics, Culture, Identity and Summit. Teen Vogue tries to change its content to fit into the new generation. These contents shows that Teen Vogues supports the 'woke' ideology. They shift their content to fit more then fashion, but to add different radical topics to fit in with the rebellious leading young females of today.

5) How far does the homepage scroll down? How many stories appear on the homepage in total?

The more you scroll down, the more diverse the articles and stories get. You get a range of different topics that fits in the Teen Vogue new identity. There is a total of 28 stories.

Lifestyle section

1) What are the items in the top menu bar for the Lifestyle section?

Health, Sex and Relationship, Wellness, Horoscope, Lifestyle, Voices

2) How is the Lifestyle section designed to encouragement audience engagement? Think about page design, images, text and more.

There are 2 main headers that are spread out through the page. It uses big images and enticing 'clickbait' titles to attract the viewers. Then the other articles on the web page are mainly about tips and tricks you could use on your daily life, which could attract viewers because they can relate to the article they desire.

3) What do you notice about the way headlines are written in Teen Vogue?

Headlines are in bold text to catch the eyes of readers. As well as using 'clickbait' titles.

4) What does the focus on education, university and ‘campus life’ tell you about the Teen Vogue audience demographics and psychographics?

It shows that Teen Vogue is willing to appeal to the older audience, instead of young aspiring female teenagers..

5) Choose one story featured in the Lifestyle section and explain how reflects the Teen Vogue brand.

The Only Dorm Room Checklist You Need - by Kate Dwyer. This again relates to question 4 as it reflects Teen Vogue motive to change the brand identity and focus on the future of the brand. Trying to relate with the audience to gain more readers.

Teen Vogue: Five key articles

1) What do you notice about the content and style of these articles? What do they have in common? 

This article all have in common of including controversial topics. For example two of the articles speaks about Trump. Since Teen Vogue takes more of a liberal position this is not surprising. However, it is surprising coming from Teen Vogue, which nobody expects since Teen Vogue has an identity of representing fashion for adolescent teens, instead of these radical arguments.

2) How do the articles use narrative to engage the reader? Try and apply narrative theory here if possible - what makes the reader want to click or read more?

We can use Barth & Katz narrative theory. Different factors like personal identity, security and relationships make the narrative an engaging experience with the reader and educate the growing young female population.

3) Pick a quote from each article that illustrates the political, 'woke' ideology of Teen Vogue and paste it here.

Donald Trump is gaslighting America  - "so presumably that's another red-herring lie to distract from Trump treating the Central Intelligence Agency of the United States like it is some rogue blogger to be cast to the trolls. A foreign government's interference in our election is a threat to our freedom" 

the New Face of teen activism - "With an estimated two in five young adults engaging with social issues online, we've entered into the age of digital activism" 

Black teens have been fighting for gun reform for years - "Students from Stoneman Douglas responded powerfully to the loss of life in displays of courage that exemplified what kids are capable of."

Netflix and strong female leads - "Most of the time women are put in a category," Logan Browning of Dear White People explained at a recent Netflix press panel. "If you're prim and proper, you're 'good.' If you have a little sass about you, then you... 'have daddy issues,’” she adds as an example. "People like to label women and put them in two categories."

how to break away from the gender binary - "Stop labeling gender at birth"

4) What effect on the audience are these articles hoping to achieve?

To educate the new generation. This was stated in the media kit for Teen Vogue. Their mission to educate the new leaders of the world. So I believe that they want to bring these controversial topics to their readers so in the future, topics like these can be discussed openly and be shared amongst us.

5) How do these article reflect the values and ideologies of the modern Teen Vogue?

These articles reflect that Teen Vogue is shifting to fit with the new generation. Hiring new creative directors and staff to make it work. It trends towards the 'woke' ideology and hoping that it could make things comfortable in the future.

OSP Introduction: Clay Shirky - End of audience

Media Magazine

1) Looking over the article as a whole, what are some of the positive developments due to the internet highlighted by Bill Thompson?

Some of the key notes that helped positive developments is the way that internet allows a user to communicate and send / receive data to thousands of different computer users. And the way that we can send what ever data we want through the internet is a strength and a weakness at the same time. Networking these days are invisible and seamless, which allows users the ability to express themselves, social justice, rather then surveillance and control.

2) What are the negatives or dangers linked to the development of the internet?

Since networking is seamless and undetected, you can send any form of data to thousands of other users. Which doesn't stop users to send inappropriate or illegal data to other users. Spam and abuse is a main negative of the internet but as time passes users are more of aware and security gets more developed to protect users.

3) What does ‘open technology’ refer to? Do you agree with the idea of ‘open technology’?

The idea of ‘openness’ lies at the centre of this debate: I believe that if we want an open society based around principles of equality of opportunity, social justice and free expression, we need to build it on technologies which are themselves ‘open’, and that this is the only way to encourage a diverse online culture that allows all voices to be heard.

4) Bill Thompson outlines some of the challenges and questions for the future of the internet. What are they?

Regulation and openness is some challenges of the future of the internet. Openness comes with a price of how it easy it is to change the rule. Giving more privileges to user due to openness can face certain consequences. Ever since the internet started big company's tried to take over and regulate the internet. For example in China, the internet is regulated more then ever, with China trying monitor contents in the internet and what the population is watching. Bill Thompson does outline certain questions. so how can the network help there? We know you want to understand the world and engage with it, so how do we deliver news media that can operate effectively online and still make money? We’ve come a long way in the last 30 years, but we have a long way to go. It will be your choices that shape tomorrow’s network.
5) Where do you stand on the use and regulation of the internet? Should there be more control or more openness? Why?

My opinion is to give the users of the internet more control of their choices on what to watch and what to post. In today's internet, media is regulated with a strict guideline. And my opinion is that it should be more opened to users to post what they want but not upset or offend anybody in the process.

Clay Shirky: Here Comes Everybody

1) How does Shirky define a ‘profession’ and why does it apply to the traditional newspaper industry?


2) What is the question facing the newspaper industry now the internet has created a “new ecosystem”?

The web created a new ecosystem. We've long regarded the newspaper as a sensible object because it has been such a stable one, but there isn't any logi-

cal connection among its many elements: stories from Iraq, box scores from the baseball game, and ads for everything from shoes to real estate all exist side by side in an idiosyn- cratic bundle. What holds a newspaper together is primarily the cost of paper, ink, and distribution; a newspaper is what- ever group of printed items a publisher can bundle together and deliver profitably. The corollary is also true: what doesn't go into a newspaper is whatever is too expensive to print and deliver. The old bargain of the newspaper-world news lumped in with horoscopes and ads from the pizza parlor- has now ended. The future presented by the internet is the mass amateurization of publishing and a switch from "Why publish this ?" to "Why not?"

3) Why did Trent Lott’s speech in 2002 become news?

Trent Lott, the senior senator from Mississippi and then majority leader, gave a speech at Strom Thurmond's hundredth birthday party. Thurmond, a Republican senator from South Carolina, had recently retired after a long political career, which had included a 1948 run for president on an overtly segregationist platform. Two weeks later, having been rebuked by President Bush and by politicians and the press on both the right and the left for his comment, Lott announced that he would not seek to remain majority leader in the new Congress.

4) What is ‘mass amateurisation’?

Mass amateurisation refers to giving a form of media to non-professionals producers or media creators. They use these form of media to solve problems or unleash capabilities which is sought for in professional institutions.

5) Shirky suggests that: “The same idea, published in dozens or hundreds of places, can have an amplifying effect that outweighs the verdict from the smaller number of professional outlets.” How can this be linked to the current media landscape and particularly ‘fake news’?

This can tie to fake news since now with new technology, news media outlets and user discussions is occurred online. With more discussion and more arguments this can affect other outlets and reach to a bigger outlet.

6) What does Shirky suggest about the social effects of technological change? Does this mean we are currently in the midst of the internet “revolution” or “chaos” Shirky mentions?

Because social effects lag behind technological ones by decades, real revolutions dont involve an orderly transition from point A to point B. Rather, they go from A through a long period of chaos and only then reach B. In that chaotic period, the old systems get broken long before new ones become stable. In the late 1400s scribes existed side by side with publishers but no longer performed an irreplaceable service. Despite the replacement of their core function, however, the scribes' sense of themselves as essential remained undiminished.

7) Shirky says that “anyone can be a publisher… [and] anyone can be a journalist”. What does this mean and why is it important?

If anyone can be a publisher, then anyone can be a journalist. And if anyone can be a journalist, then journalistic privilege suddenly becomes a loophole too large to be borne by society. Journalistic privilege has to be applied to a minority of people, in order to preserve the law's ability to uncover and prosecute wrongdoing while allowing a safety valve for investigative reporting.

8) What does Shirky suggest regarding the hundred years following the printing press revolution? Is there any evidence of this “intellectual and political chaos” in recent global events following the internet revolution?

a period of intellectual and political chaos that ended only in the 1600s. This issue became more than academic with the arrest of Josh Wolf, a video blogger who refused to hand over video of a 2005 demonstration he observed in San Francisco. He served 226 days in prison, far longer than Judith Miller, before being released. In one of his first posts after regaining his freedom, he said, "The question that needs to be asked is not 'Is Josh Wolf a journalist?' but 'Should journalists deserve the same protections in federal court as those afforded them in state courts?" This isn't right, though, because making the assumption that Wolf is a journalist in any uncomplicated way breaks the social expectations around journalism in the first place. The question that needs to be asked is, "Now that there is no limit to those who can commit acts of journalism, how should we alter journalistic privilege to fit that new reality?"

9) Why is photography a good example of ‘mass amateurisation’?

As the costs of camera technology fell, more and more amateurs gained accessibility to photography technology. Now average people could shoot, develop and edit their own photographs in their own time. Previously anyone taking photographs would have to have relied on the institutional model.

10) What do you think of Shirky’s ideas on the ‘End of audience’? Is this era of ‘mass amateurisation’ a positive thing? Or are we in a period of “intellectual and political chaos” where things are more broken than fixed?

In today's society. I feel like things are more broken then fixed. Any un-professional producer, user, journalist can go to any outlet to share their ideas or go to social media and give their opinion. Depending on what it is it can offend people and cause stir. So unless regulations can help or technology change, its just going to a down ward spiral.

Advertising: Persuasive Techniques

1) What does John Berger suggest about advertising in ‘Ways of Seeing’?

John Berger in his seminal book Ways of Seeing (1972). Advertising offers us an improved version of ourselves, whether we are male or female.

2) What is it psychologists refer to as referencing? Which persuasive techniques could you link this idea to?

We refer, either knowingly or subconsciously, to lifestyles represented to us (through the media or in real life) that we find attractive. We create a vision of ourselves living this idealised lifestyle, and then behave in ways that help us to realise this vision. This could be linked to cynical manipulation. 

3) How was Marmite discovered?

German scientist Justus von Liebig discovered that brewer’s yeast could be concentrated, bottled and eaten. Marmite takes its name from the clay French stock-pot used for reducing foods into stews.

4) Who owns the Marmite brand now?

The product’s popularity prompted the Sanitarium Health Food Company to obtain sole rights to distribute the product in New Zealand and Australia in 1908. By 1990, Marmite Limited had become a subsidiary of Bovril Limited, which became Best Foods Inc. in 1998, and merged with Unilever in 2000; Marmite is now a trademark owned by Unilever.

5) How has Marmite marketing used intertextuality? Which of the persuasive techniques we’ve learned can this be linked to?

Marmite uses post-modernism to market their product. A common tendency in postmodern advertising is to refer to other media products. Marmite’s 2003 ad featuring Zippy from the children’s television programme Rainbow is a good example. In 2007 an 18-month, £3m campaign featured the 1970s cartoon character Paddington Bear. These adverts continued the ‘love it or hate it’ theme, but also incorporated nostalgic elements that appeal to the family member with responsibility for getting the grocery shopping done. Paddington Bear is shown trading his well-known marmalade sandwiches for Marmite sandwiches. He is shown enjoying the taste, while others are repelled by it. The ads are designed to encourage more people to use the spread in sandwiches – less popular than Marmite on toast. ‘Paddington has eaten marmalade sandwiches for 50 years. If he can change his habit, so can anyone,’ said Cheryl Calverley, Marmite marketing manager, on BBC News.

6) What is the difference between popular culture and high culture? How does Marmite play on this?

Royal Warrants of Appointment are acknowledgements to those companies that provide goods or services to the British royal family; since 1840, this approval has been used to promote products, with a warrant entitling them to use the strapline ‘By appointment to Her Majesty the Queen’ alongside the royal crest. Unilever has spoofed this approach, with the Ma’amite series of advertisements, typifying the irreverent nature of their product – breadsticks form a crown and the Queen’s corgi dogs replace the lion and unicorn. The motto ‘One either loves it or hates it’ is a delightful comic conjoining of the familiar product slogan and the Queen’s idiosyncratic speech.

7) Why does Marmite position the audience as ‘enlightened, superior, knowing insiders’?

Postmodern audiences arguably understand that they are being manipulated by marketing. They understand the conventions that are being deployed and satirised. Postmodern consumers are simultaneously aware that they are being exploited, yet also prepared to play the game – if it brings them a sense of superiority and social cache. Postmodern consumers get the joke and, in doing so, they themselves may become promotional agents of the product through word-of mouth.

8) What examples does the writer provide of why Marmite advertising is a good example of postmodernism?

The answer lies in its adoption of the ideas and tropes of postmodernism. From the 1970s, Marmite was promoted as a family product, passed from generation to generation. The marketing phrase ‘The growing up spread you never grow out of’ underlined the company’s 1978 campaign. The television advertisement detailed a mother’s family history through a sequence of still photographs; one showed her father serving in World War II to give the product a sense of continuity across generations.

MIGRAIN: Ideology blog task

 Part 1: BBC Question time analysis

1) What examples of binary opposition can you suggest from watching this clip?

From analyzing the video we can read the main binary opposition is about the topic of immigration and overpopulation. Farage is a right activist, which means he is against immigration and multiculturalism. While on the other hand, Russel Brand proposes there is corruption against immigration, tax money and unfair distribution. Rich VS Poor, Immigration VS Rich corporations, Unjust VS Exploiters

2) What ideologies are on display in this clip?

Nigel Farage is a far-right-wing politician, which means as I said in question 1, he campaigns about immigration, multiculturalism and what problems it makes. He promotes tighter immigration laws and a conservative tax system for the rich to get richer and for the poor to get poorer, this does promote a conservative ideology. While Brand promotes information about corruption and the main problems we face. Brand recognizes the problems with over populating but he promotes the idea of adapting to it by giving more money to public resources.

Part 2: Media Magazine reading

Page 34: The World Of Mockingjay: Ideology, Dystopia And Propaganda

1) Read the article and summarise it in one sentence.

A dystopian, post-apocalyptic society of Panem send 2 11-18 aged children from 13 different districts to partake in a battle royale-style "The hunger games", one child needs to be alive to save their district with resources.

2) What view of capitalist ideology is presented in the Hunger Games films?

The ideology follows as those in power control ideas, as well as resources. The world is caught under the dictatorship of President Snow, a man who believes more in his own supreme leadership than the people of his country. He invests his creativity into The Games, he smells of blood and roses, and he purposefully aims to obliterate any hopes of rebellion.

3) What do the Hunger Games films suggest about the power of the media to shape and influence ideological beliefs?

According to Marxist theory, the people will always find a way to rebel and to resist power, often not through civic means such as voting and campaigning within the political system as it is, but through organising and connecting in other ways. Since Catching Fire, much has changed in regards to power, society and the media. The lines between the powerful and powerless are more blurred than ever, and although the Capitol still holds most of the power, it is slowly crumbling as people in the Districts begin to stand together and respond to the need to fight against the society that has been set in stone for all these years. 

Page 48: They Live - Understanding Ideology

1) Read the article and summarise it in one sentence.

The ideas constituting the dominant ideology in Britain are not fixed, but change as new ideas develop, and hegemony belongs to this concept of ideology.

2) What are the four accepted ideological beliefs in western societies highlighted by the article?

Money= Happiness

Consumer goods= Fulfilment 

Marriage/ Family/ Children= Happiness

Obedience/ Work= Fulfilment

3) What does Gramsci's theory of hegemony suggest about power and ideology in society?

He argued that the power of ideology derives primarily from ideas and structures that support and  serve the ends of elite social groups that can rule through ideas rather than military force or fear.

4) What does French theorist Louis Althusser suggest about ideology and consumerism?

His point is that ideology is the greatest material force and governs daily life through two main forms of control. 

 Ideological State Organization Church, education system, family, media, etc. These systems control and implicitly rule the people's thoughts through 'common sense' and acceptance of social norms rather than fear. 

 Repressive State Organizations These institutions, dominated by elites such as the government, military, police and courts, regulate social behavior and oppress the public through physical coercion and punitive laws.

5) Do YOU agree with the idea behind They Live - that we are unthinkingly controlled by the media which is run in the interests of the economic elite? These are the big questions of A Level Media!

I agree with the idea of ​​"they live" that we are mindlessly controlled by the media, which operates for the benefit of the economic elite. Because the bourgeoisie is constantly being exploited by the elite  to maintain the domination of capitalism, an economic system in which a certain minority of the means of production are privately owned.

Advertising: Narrative in advertising

 1) How does the advert use narrative? Apply at least three narrative theories to the text, making specific reference to specific shots or key scenes in the advert.

Todorov theory is can be viewed in this ad. The equilibrium, disequilibrium and the new equilibrium keeps changing but all have the same concept. The equilibrium is the character itself. The disequilibrium is the problem that they face, going to school with a heavy school bag, running for 2 miles, being the only ice hockey player in London. The new equilibrium is Nike. With their trainers helping the people to make life easier.

Propp's theory also linked with this ad. The evolving narrative of the ad helps give each of the character a character code. They add focuses on influential people and their struggle. They are given a unique heor code. They all go through a type of struggle and a goal they want to achieve, which links up with the hero code. 

Barthes theory and different enigma codes and action can be linked as well. There are multiple narratives with different actions and references. For example, a famous footballer sitting in the cloud, sending lightning to a player from the football field, transforming him into a national football player. But then starts to struggle against another player that dribbles in front of him. It allows the audience to ask a question and make them more interested.

2) Read this BBC feature on some of the people in the advert. How does the advert use celebrities and less well-known people to create stories in the advert?TH

There are a lot of cameos appearance by famous celebrities. e.g. Micheal Dapah, Skepta, Harry Kane, Mo Farah, Alex Iwoni. Most of the appearance are from nike sponsored athletes but also icons that represents London. The actor represents youth in London as it appeals to a broader audience and its the main target audience for Nike. The message it mainly wants to promote is if you buy our Nike gear, you can make it through any struggles or problems if you have hard work and dedication.

3) Read this AdWeek feature and interview on the Nike London advert. [Note: this may now be behind a paywall - you can find the text from the article here]. How did the advert use technical codes (camerawork, mise-en-scene, editing etc.) to help create narratives that could connect with the audience?

This article goes in-depth with the french director's point of view of what went in to make the ad and what it considered. It celebrates the spirit and competitiveness of real-life Londoners by featuring 258 of them. The talent narrates by talking directly to the camera, and each scene features different types of camera moves and tricks—some of them as wild as anything Nike has put on film. Furthering the playful sense of competition, even the music changes for each scene, offering everything “from a classical​ ​score to grime to a Wurlitzer organ,”. The directors also had a hard time working on the script since they want to appeal to the younger audience and needed a variation of street talk knowledge.

4) What representation of London does the advert offer?

The ad represents a clear image of how London life is in rural areas. It's not an exact representation but it did handle the job of representing youth in London. This represented that the young people of London have goals and dreams but comes with struggles which they overcome with Nike gear.

5) Why might this advert appeal to an audience?

This appeals to the younger audience which is the primary focus group of Nike. Nike wants the ad to relate for the younger audience, giving the message that they can achieve their goals with Nike gear.

Introduction to feminism

 Introduction to feminism: blog tasks

1) Why did Laura Bates start the Everyday Sexism project?

Bates was subjected to sexism and groping over a course of a week. She experienced men staring at her body, catcalling, being groped in the train. Even though she publicly asked for help during her situations, Bates realised nobody will help her, thinking she was the problem. Later she communicated with other women who shared her experience and decided to make the Everyday Sexism website to help acknowledge the use of sexism every day by sharing stories from women and men-

2) How does the Everyday Sexism project link to the concept of post-feminism? Is feminism still required in western societies?

Everyday sexism links to post-feminism because it gives a platform for women to share their experience and expectations. All over the world, post-feminism has reached society yet. The world is changing to be more equal but women still experience this every day by looking at the data and stories shared.

3) Why was new technology essential to the success of the Everyday Sexism project?

Bates said she didn't have any budget for advertising and marketing but she if she could gather 20-30 women to share their stories, it will eventually start to spread throughout the internet. With the help of social media and online news articles, awareness started to spread gathering 75,000 women onto the website. 

4) Will there be a point in the future when the Everyday Sexism project is not required? What is YOUR view on the future of feminism?

At one point in the future, feminism problems will be solved and the Everyday Sexism project will be looked at as piece of history. No-one knows how the future will be, maybe men's behaviour will change to be better or to be worse. 

Media Magazine: The fourth wave?

1) Summarise the questions in the first two sub-headings: What is networked feminism? Why is it a problem?

Feminism can be divided into 4 different "waves". The 1st ewave starts in the 19th to early 20th centuries focusing on suffrage, 2nd wave began in the 1960s campaigning for equal pay, 3rd wave is the birth of post-feminism and the final 4th wave is known as networked feminism. Network feminism uses new technology to communicate and spread awareness of feminism. Using technology to make blogs, projects campaigns and hashtags.

2) What are the four waves of feminism? Do you agree that we are in a fourth wave of ‘networked feminism’?

Feminism can be divided into 4 different "waves". The 1st ewave starts in the 19th to early 20th centuries focusing on suffrage, 2nd wave began in the 1960s campaigning for equal pay, 3rd wave is the birth of post-feminism. For the 4th wave I do believe we are still in wave that we use technology to spread awareness. Using technology is a really good way to spread awareness and since it's so easy to get into and still being used every day, we are still in that era.

3) Focus on the examples in the article. Write a short summary of EACH of the following: Everyday Sexism, HeForShe, FCKH8 campaign, This Girl Can.

Everyday sexism was a project started by Laura Bates  back in 2012 as a website which posted examples of sexism that users faced every day. Laura set it up after finding feminism hard to talk about, saying: ‘Again and again, people told me sexism is no longer a problem – that women are equal now’. The response she received proved differently, with 50,000 entries of sexist experiences made by December 2013. Three years later, Everyday Sexism is one of the most high-visibility feminist digital campaigns, arguably due to its user-generated content and its well-used #EverydaySexism Twitter feed.

He For She campaign led by the famous actress Emma Watson. In a speech to the UN as a Goodwill Ambassador. Watson’s campaign focuses on male support for gender equality, highlighting the fact that feminism is not about promoting matriarchy, but solidarity. Her digital commitment means that you can pledge to help the women’s issue online, and has generated a huge response.

One of the most popular digital campaigns is the FCKH8 campaign. FCKH8 is a for-profit company that sells merchandise. This exploitation of feminism as an advertising tool created a huge backlash. In addition, the equation of swearing with ‘good’ feminism didn’t play well with a majority in the movement; and the digital aspect left the campaign open to numerous parodies and anti-feminist diatribes. 

This Girl Can campaign, which has been described as the first fitness campaign for women which doesn’t shame or exclude them, by sharing photos, videos and quotes of women without the usual sexual exploitation of a women’s fitness advert and without body shaming.

4) What is your opinion with regards to feminism and new/digital media? Do you agree with the concept of a 'fourth wave' of feminism post-2010 or are recent developments like the Everyday Sexism project merely an extension of the third wave of feminism from the 1990s?