As Media April Booklet Wps

CONTENTS
1 Representation: Men
1.1 Life on Mars
1.2 Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace
1.3 Steve in Eden Lake
1.4 Simon Cowell
1.5 Full Metal Jacket
1.6 Terminator 2 Judgment Day
1.7 Sitcoms: Men Behaving Badly
1.8 Adverts: Men in adverts
2 Representation: Women
2.1 The X Files
2.2 The Simpsons
2.3 Scream
2.4 The Girl Next Door
2.5 Eden Lake
2.6 Whip It
2.7 Terminator 2 Judgement Day
2.8 Adverts
3 Representation: Race and Ethnic Minorities

3.1 East is East
3.2 Dirty Pretty Things
3.3 Coronation Street v. The Simpsons
3.4. Borat
4 Representation: Social Class

4.1 Secrets and Lies
4.2 Coronation Street
4.3 Wallace and Gromit and the Curse of the Were-Rabbit
4.4 Girls Aloud
5 Representation: Teenagers and Young People

5.1 The X Factor and Britain’s Got Talent
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5.2 Skins
5.3 Hollyoaks
6 Audiences
6.1 Categorising Audiences
6.2 Models of Audience Reception
6.3 Sample Question: Audience Responses
6.4 Sample Question: Uses and Gratifications
7 The Examination
7.1 Sample Exam Paper
HOW TO USE THIS BOOKLET
This booklet contains a lot of the information, presented in bullet-point form, that you will
need to pass the AS Media Studies exam. You should read the whole book carefully, at least
once, highlighting the most important ideas. Key points are highlighted in bold: when you
have finished reading the booklet, you should aim to list the things in bold without looking at
the booklet, and you should be able to talk (and write) fluently and confidently about all of
them.
The booklet does not deal with Question 1 of the exam, which will be a textual analysis
question. It provides detailed notes on audience responses and media representations, the
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themes for Questions 2 and 3 in the exam.
1.1 REPRESENTATION: MEN

Life on Mars
• Life on Mars is an interesting variant on the cop show: a 2006 policeman goes back in
time to the 1970s, a decade associated with famous police series (The Sweeney, for
instance).
• One of the series’ central relationships is that between Sam Tyler, from 2006, and
Gene Hunt, his DCI in 1973.
• Sam Tyler is sensitive and caring: he is from an era in which human rights are
paramount. In the series’ opening scene, he is interviewing a suspect who has a team
of 3-4 helpers and advisors — something totally alien to the police of 1973.
• Gene Hunt, on the other hand, is a tough, uncompromising alpha male. His
language is coarse, involving frequent sexism and even racism (certainly when
measured against what is acceptable today) and he is more than willing to use
violence to get a confession from a suspect. Hunt’s advice to Tyler on their first
meeting is as follows: “Don’t ever walk into my kingdom acting like king of the
jungle”. The language here, with its references to power and animalism, is very
traditionally masculine.
• Tyler’s clothing marks him out as something of a new man: he is more conscious of
his image than the other policemen, wearing a black leather jacket and a shirt which
is open at the neck. The absence of a tie is significant as it helps to establish him as
the maverick cop who is at odds with his colleagues and their methods yet still
manages to get results.
• The other policemen wear suits and ties which are not fashion choices but symbols
of the work they do.
• The police station of 1973 is a very male world. It is dark, smoky and uninviting; it
is untidy and not particularly well organised, and there are posters of football teams
and women on the walls. It is a tough and competitive environment, a proving ground
of masculinity.
• The men in the station, particularly Gene Hunt, speak disparagingly of women. WPC
Cartwright, the show’s main female character, is not granted the same respect as her
male colleagues. For instance, DI Skelton says that, if Tyler has a head injury,
Cartwright could “kiss it better” for him.
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• Gene Hunt has become something of a cult figure, with both Life on Mars and its
spin-off Ashes to Ashes, in which there is no Sam Tyler, proving successful. One
wonders if his no-nonsense approach, his narrow-minded racism, sexism and
penchant for violence, his total blindness to political correctness, has provided a
refreshing alternative for many male viewers to the sensitive, “feminised” male
who has become so familiar in the media today. In this sense he is almost a
retributive male (Rutherford).

Casino Royale (Campbell, 2006) and Quantum of Solace (Forster, 2008)
Also refer to my detailed handout.

• For many people, James Bond is the archetype of a certain kind of masculinity —
the suave, well-dressed womaniser, cool in a crisis in a very British way, who ignores
authority and plays by his own rules but always completes the mission.
• We have to remember that there have been different versions of Bond; the
character has changed with each actor. Roger Moore, for instance, was a little too
smooth for many aficionados.
• With Daniel Craig, the makers have really gone against the grain and created a
vulnerable, scarred character whose personal feelings are constantly weighed
against his professionalism (this is actually closer to what Bond’s original creator, Ian
Fleming, envisaged).
• The promotional campaigns for the last two Bond films emphasise this new side to
Bond, showing him with physical scars and wearing damaged clothes.
• In Casino Royale Bond actually falls in love with Vesper Lynd, who deceives him
before being killed.
• Quantum of Solace sees Bond trying to avenge her death while stopping Dominic
Greene, the film’s villain, from dominating the world’s water supply.
• Quantum of Solace is also notable for the fact that it features a Bond girl, Camille
Montes, with whom Bond does not have sex. This suggests that the character’s
relationship with women has changed: he is, at times, even quite sensitive with
Camille.
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• However, Bond has also become more ruthless. In Quantum of Solace, he kills two
men in a lift and the camera ensures that we see him kick the arm of one of them so
that the lift door can close. This is done with incredible coldness, especially when we
consider that the man is not an “enemy” but a member of the British Secret Service.
• Perhaps the smooth, unflappable Bond portrayed by Roger Moore and Pierce Brosnan
is no longer believable, and Daniel Craig’s version is a Bond for the modern world.

Steve in Eden Lake (Watkins, 2008)
Also use Jenny in Eden Lake to discuss the representation of women.
• Jenny and Steve (Michael Fassbender) are similar to Mulder and Scully in the X-Files
as they play against expectations of how men and women behave especially in times
of crisis.
• “Steve” is a play on “Eve” in the Garden of Eden to show the audience that he
is the “female” role in the narrative.
• On the surface he seems the stereotypical cool, masculine guy driving an
expensive four-by-four and enjoying outdoor water sports. Early scenes of
him in a wetsuit and shorts add to this image.
• The image is a surface image.
• Steve is caring and sensitive – he wants Jenny to enjoy the day by the Lake
and tries to stop the youths from causing a disturbance.
• Steve has no authority to control the youth’s and their anti-social behavior.
• Steve finds it especially hard to exercise any authority over the young female
when she gives him abuse.
• He is sensitive and feels embarrassed when Jenny mocks him for not being
able to sort out the youths.
• He is the most romantic of the couple- he talks of romantic holidays, wedding
rings and love.
• He is the one who needs protecting. Steve is vulnerable and Jenny is the one
who protects him.
• As a metaphor for his female qualities – he is literally emasculated by the
youths.
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Simon Cowell
• Simon Cowell is one of the key figures in the music industry. As strange as it may
seem, he classes as a “text” in a Media Studies exam.
• Cowell is associated with power and success. It is not just his own success that we
think of, but that which he can give to others.
• He is famous for his “Mr Nasty” image. On the various TV talent shows on which he
appears, he is always the straight-talking judge whose verdicts on contestants’
performances are often scathing and insulting. He is the one who is hard to please,
the one whose approval the contestants really want.
• It is precisely this image of authority, power and success that makes Cowell
attractive to women.
• Physically, Cowell is famous for his ultra-white teeth and hairy chest, the latter of
which is usually visible as he has the top few buttons of his shirt undone.
• The TV show Simon Cowell: Where Did It All Go Right? also revealed that Cowell has
quite an impressive level of fitness: apparently he can do a set of 50 press-ups on his
fists.
• Cowell was once quoted in a newspaper as saying that he had probably slept with
about 100 women, something which did not endear him to the male population.
However, in his autobiography he admits that this was a guess based on some quick
mental arithmetic and that if he had read it about somebody else he would think they
were an idiot.
• This is part of what is interesting about Cowell’s TV persona: the way he is perceived
is sometimes quite different from the way he is reported to be in his life away
from television.

Full Metal Jacket (Kubrick 1987)
• As the title suggests the full metal jacket refers to the bullets fired by the
Marines and suggests destruction and violence – qualities associated with
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masculinity and warriors.
• A full metal jacket is also a bullet that has a soft metal centre but a very hard
metal outer shell. This is the perfect metaphor for the soldiers who must
suppress their sensitive and caring sides and adopt a tough, outer shell.
• It is a film that uses bullets and guns, flagpoles and batons throughout its
mise en scene – all phallic images that indicate that this is a film about
manhood and masculinity.
It is as much about how individuals are forced (through military training in this case)
to adopt and conform to certain masculine codes. These include:
o Toughness,
o To take responsibility for your own mistakes and own up to making mistakes.
o to be responsible as a team for another fellow-soldier who has “messed-up”
o not to complain
o Follow instructions without question.
o Show no emotion under stress
o Loyalty and duty to the Marine Corps and to each other
o Not to show any weakness or to cry even when being insulted, physically and
mentally abused. This is a reminder of the “big boys don’t cry” attitude that
many male children are told when growing up.
o A pride in appearance
o A pride in having a physically strong body and looking after it
o A pride in being neat and tidy
• Ironically, speaking to the Drill Sgt. In a way that will make him angry is
permissible, as it a sign of toughness – you are standing up for yourself - and shows
“leadership” qualities.
• Drill-Instructor Gnry Sgt Hartman (Lee Ermey) is seen as a bigoted,

tough, sadistic man. But it is his job to get these raw recruits battle ready
in order to give them a chance of survival. As his character name suggests he
is a “man with a heart” but must suppress (hide) such emotions and stick to a
tough and rigid code.
• The men must be obedient to the Marine Corp in a way the Marine Corps is
the recruits’ mother and Hartman is their father figure.
• However some people cannot be “molded” into being what they are not.
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Private Pyle ironically takes the logic of being a “killing machine” to its
logical conclusion. He kills Hartman and himself without any remorse.
Hartman in an ironic sense has done his job too well.
• Perhaps the film is saying that it is wrong to be expected to conform to

stereotypes (people we are not) and we should follow our own natures or the
consequences will be terrible – nervous breakdown, murder and suicide.
• In the first half of the film there is not one female which emphasises the
closed-in nature of the training camp and allows the audience to consider
what is
Films such as 300 have recently played on a representation of the male as a tough
warrior with perfect physique and unflinching bravery.
Also the character of Gene Hunt in Life on Mars is a man who is macho, masculine
and tough.
Terminator 2 Judgment Day (Cameron, 1991)
The Terminator machine played by Arnold Schwarzenegger although a robot has many
of the stereotypical male qualities.
• Tough and violent

• Fearless – walks naked into a bar full of tough guys and Hell’s Angels.
• Lack of emotion
• Dressed in leather like a tough guy and a rebel
• Armed with a shotgun
• Shades – represent coolness and being detached
• Drives a Harley Davison motorbike – an iconic machine representing freedom,
individuality and rebelliousness he is represented as a motorcycled cowboy.
Cowboys are stereotypical tough and individual.
• Note that in Terminator 3 Rise of the Machines the Terminator is replaced by a

female version called the Terminatrix who is stronger and more intelligent.
This could reflect the change in attitudes towards masculinity, indeed
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at the beginning of this film, in a similar bar scene to Terminator 2 Judgment
Day, The Terminator wears a woman’s pair of shades and “camps up” the
scene.

Sitcoms: Men Behaving Badly
• Gary and Tony represent lads and laddish behavior.

• Gary and Tony like drinking lots of beer, lazing on the couch watching TV or
playing computer games, eat take-way meals and TV dinners because they
don’t like cooking (that’s a woman’s job) while sitting on the coach and are
always “on the pull” – chasing women who they refer to as “birds”.
• Tony and Gary come across as “vulgar”, “flippant” and slightly pathetic.
This representation and lifestyle proved popular with the public as the series
became one of the highest watched sitcoms in TV history. Lads would like to
copy this lifestyle while women would be curious to see what their boyfriends
get up to when they’re with their mates. Gary and Tony can be laughed
with or laughed at depending on the audience.
• However they show that there are different distinctions between lads.
• Gary is the practical joker and can be insensitive – he makes fun of Tony
because he has to wear glasses – another stereotyping that men that wear
glasses look “nerdy” and “geeky” while women “look” intelligent and sexy.
• Gary is an exhibitionist – he likes an audience for his jokes – the two women
in the scene join in with his “Mickey-taking” of Tony but in a less explicit
(obvious) way.
• Tony is sensitive and cannot hide this when he is being ridiculed (laughed at)
by Gary.
• Tony is slim and looks after his appearance – his hair is styled and trendy –
Gary is overweight and does not care about his appearance.
• Tony is more caring – he asks the women if they’d had a good day – although
this could just be a ploy to get into their good books and a way of chatting
them up.
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Adverts
Adverts target all types of men so there are different representations of men in them.
The man in the Stella advert is a cool, smooth and a James Bond type. He is also has elements of a
chap/lad.
McCoy’s Crisps show the typical lads drinking beer in a pub and banishing one of their friends because
he has knowledge of ballet - a very un-masculine subject. The advert can be read as a humorous send
up of men.
The WKD adverts show men fooling around, playing practical jokes and enjoying a drink at the end of the
day with their “mates” preferring to do this rather than with a female. These adverts show men as lads
and indulging in laddish activities like in Men Behaving Badly.
Men in aftershave adverts are represented as ‘independent’ (CKFree) and enjoy a ‘fast paced urban
lifestyle’ (Hugo Element).
The representation of men in adverts has changed over the past 40-50 years as more products are aimed
at men. The Dolce and Gabbana represents men as sex symbols with chiselled features and well toned
bodies.
2.1 REPRESENTATION: WOMEN

The X Files
• The X Files was one of the most popular TV series of the 1990s and centred on two
FBI agents, Dana Scully (female) and Fox Mulder (male), and their investigations into
the paranormal.
• We could say that The X Files is inked to 1990s’ third-wave feminism, which
challenges the idea that there are basic differences between men and women.
• For centuries, women have been associated with emotional, irrational and
subjective ways of thinking, while men have been credited with rational, coolly
objective, scientific problem-solving skills.
• Mulder and Scully, however, are precisely the other way around.
• In the Season 4 episode called “Unruhe”, Mulder believes that a suspect is able to
project his unconscious thoughts (knowingly or otherwise) onto photographs of his
intended victims, making women who have been photographed normally appear
terrified, screaming and surrounded by ghostly images.
• Scully is unconvinced and searches for a scientific explanation — for instance, she
notices that the film is past its use-by date and speculates that the heating may be
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warping the images.
• This is the typical narrative structure of each X Files episode: Mulder is willing to
believe in alien abductions, vampires, ghosts, demonic possession, the occult, shape-
shifting monsters, telepathy and all manner of other outlandish phenomena, while
Scully maintains a detached, coolly scientific, rational view.
• Mulder is also the more emotional of the two characters, which again seems to
overturn popular ideas about men and women.
• However, the series’ challenge to stereotypical gender roles only goes so far: while
Mulder’s ideas may seem bizarre and even irrational, there is often a suggestion that
he is right — or, at least, that Scully’s scientific explanations are only as close to the
truth as Mulder’s more adventurous theories.
• Similarly, “Unruhe” is just one episode in which Mulder has to come to the rescue of
Scully, who has been taken by the kidnapper (although, admittedly, there are
episodes in which Scully rescues Mulder).

The Simpsons
• Another famous TV woman is Marge from The Simpsons. She is one of a number of
famous television mothers who have graced our screens over the years.
• Although she is a fairly modern example of the type, a close examination shows that
she has more in common with TV mothers of the 1950s than with more recent
versions like Mrs Cartman from South Park.
• For instance, she dresses conventionally; in one episode, we see her buying
clothes, which for her means picking up about six or seven identical versions of that
long green dress.
• She is also a housewife who does not work. Although there are numerous
episodes in which Marge does get a job, she invariably ends up back at home at the
end of the episode. It is implied that she loses her various jobs because she too
honest or naïve for the world of work, because she lacks the requisite competitive
streak, or because her work interferes with her relationship with Homer and with her
family.
• Relevant episodes include “Realty Bites”, in which Marge tries her hand as an estate
agent, and “The Twisted World of Marge Simpson”, which sees her start her own
pretzel business.
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• Marge is extremely patient: she has to put up with Homer’s ridiculous behaviour in
every episode, not to mention Bart’s mischief. But the makers of the show have given
her a voice (supplied by Julie Kavner) which verges on the annoying, suggesting that
women “nag” even when they are right. Many characters in The Simpsons have a
catch-phrase which defines them; Marge’s is her disapproving “Hmmm”.

Scream (Craven, 1997)
• Scream is a slasher, a sub-genre of the horror film. As such, it is worth considering

the role of women in horror films generally. Scream re-wrote the conventions of
horror films for the next decade and spawned a franchise. It works against many of
the horror conventions, for example a famous movie-star such as Drew Barrymore
being killed at the film’s start, although honours many others.
• In slasher films, attractive young women are often among the victims of the killer,
but there is typically one who survives (think about Jamie Lee Curtis in the Halloween
films). This figure is known as the Final Girl.
• Chillers, or psychological horror films, often explore the mentality of a female
character and build the terror around the ways in which she is most emotionally
vulnerable — Michelle Pfeiffer’s character in What Lies Beneath is a good example.
• Scream falls into this second category: Sydney (Neve Campbell) is vulnerable – her
mother has recently been raped and murdered and her father’s work takes him away
for long periods of time leaving her alone.
• Sydney shares many of the attributes of the Final Girl, being intelligent and
resourceful with a sound moral centre – she repeatedly rejects the sexual
advances of her boyfriend to go “all the way”. Only near the film’s conclusion does
she “surrender” to these advances but she is as much the instigator showing a
strength and equality in her character.
• She is also uncertain as to whether her boyfriend is genuine or fake in terms of his
love and faithfulness to her but also whether he is complicit (involved) in the grisly
murders.
• There are various moments in which Campbell’s sex appeal is blatantly exploited.
These involve scenes with her boyfriend.
• There is at least one scene in the film and, as she lies on top of the bedclothes in her
room and the camera pans slowly down her scantily clad frame. In the sex scene
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with her boyfriend Billy Loomis the camera lingers on her body far more than it does
his (what Laura Mulvey calls the male gaze).

The Girl Next Door (Greenfield, 2004)
• The very title of this film plays with ideas about female attractiveness and male
desire: the “girl next door” type is pretty but innocent — and is arguably a male
creation.
• Of course, Danielle (Elisha Cuthbert’s character) is certainly attractive but has a
mischievous streak as well as a past that would not readily be described as innocent
…
• Danielle is in a position of power throughout the film. Where Matt is trying to be a
diligent student, Danielle represents rebellion — she encourages him to skip school to
be with her and even takes him “skinny-dipping” in a pool which, it turns out, belongs
to his headmaster.
• She is largely in control of their relationship. When they first meet, she holds all the
cards as he thinks she is going to tell his parents about his voyeurism. To avenge the
fact that he saw her half naked, she makes him strip in the road and drives away.
• One of the film’s central ideas is that Danielle is “too good” to be a porn star —
but where does that leave April and Ferrari, two characters who we are supposed to
accept as porn stars?
• Whereas Matt is able to succeed due to his intelligence, moral fibre and
determination, Danielle’s chief weapon is certainly her looks (combined with a
streetwise self-confidence).
• The film uses many of the conventions of the romantic comedy but is geared
towards a male audience — as is made clear by the casting of Elisha Cuthbert and
the incessant sexual references.

Eden Lake (Watkins, 2008)
• This is a British horror film and deals with a fear in society today: that of unruly
teenagers, hoodies and chavs whom adults and society cannot control. The horror
element is not a monster or axe-weilding psychotic but the audiences underlying
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anxieties about knife-crime, teenage shootings and the “feral” teenagers and hoodies
that form part of the recent moral panics.
• The very title suggests that what appears on a surface about people can be
misleading. Our first impressions of Jenny (Kelly Reilley) are misleading.
• Jenny and Steve (Michael Fassbender) are similar to Mulder and Scully in the X-Files
as they play against expectations of how men and women behave especially in times
of crisis.
• We could say that Eden Lake links to 1990s’ third-wave feminism, which
challenges the idea that there are basic differences between men and women.
• In terms of female it could be argued that on the surface (like Eden Lake itself) there
are differences between men and women however in times of crisis there are none
and that women are just as ruthless and tough.
• This is shown in the way that Jenny is presented. She is dressed in a floral-patterned
dress suggesting old fashioned-feminine values. She is a primary school teacher – a
job usually associated with women rather than men. Her job shows us that she is a
caring nature and a protector and guardian of children. However, as the film
progresses we see that she is tough and capable of committing murder. This
transformation is shown by her pristine feminine clothes turning black. She turns
from being the protector of children to the killer of children.
• The film raises some interesting questions about how society views women-killers.
Even if the killing of the children may be “justified” in the circumstances as she is
acting in self-defence perhaps society views a woman killing a child to be more
terrible than a man committing the same crime. Myra Hindley a real-life female
child-killer attracted even more moral outrage by members of the public especially
by other women than did her partner in crime Ian Brady.
• The fact that Jenny is murdered by adults at the end of the film reflects that society
and audience expectations cannot allow her to get away with child-murder.
• Unlike in many horror films where the women are seen as vulnerable and need the
protection of a man, Jenny is represented as being strong and the protector of Steve
who is shown as the weaker in their relationship. Jenny becomes Steve’s protector.
In this respect Jenny’s character is like Sarah Connor in Terminator 2 Judgement
Day and Ellen Ripley in Aliens.

Whip It (Barrymore, 2009)
This is a drama-sports, comedy film. As a narrative it is a “coming of age “and “rites of
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passage” film in which women are the main characters. The film is also interesting because
it is directed by a woman and invites discussion about the “male gaze”.
This film can also be used in discussing the representation of youth.
• “Whip It” fits into the category of a rites of passage/growing up story.
• It is also important as there are far fewer films about women’s sports and
where the main sports characters are women. It has been argued that the
Women’s England cricket team did not receive the publicity and credit it deserved for
winning the World Cup as did the male cricket team for winning the ashes.
• Bliss is still finding her way in life.
• When we meet Bliss Cavendar (Ellen Page) is seen as a rather awkward character –
her life is one of conformity living up to the aspirations of her mother who wants her
to be ladylike. She dresses as stereotypical lady – dress, make up, coffered hair – she
is a “lady” is measured by qualities of deportment and rhetoric. She looks almost like
a Barbie doll. Even then we get the idea that she is a square peg in a round hole. The
opening scene which introduces her shows her “messing up” by having her hair turn
blue much to her mother’s disapproval. She can’t even be as good as her younger
sister who seems happy to conform to her mother’s expectations.
• Bliss’s mother Brooke is herself far-removed from being lady-like. She has a job as a
postal worker which is usually associated with men. We also see her smoke in the
house and in front of the children. We know she is naive and behind the times when
she mistakes a bong for a vase.
• Like most students in America she has a part-time job and has a close bond with her
girlfriend Pasha. A scene in the diner shows that she is not part of the school crowd
and those friends once close to her have moved on and have boyfriends especially
the high school “jock”. It sets out the idea that she is not a loner but like many
teenagers she is finding her way in life.
• The change in her life comes when she discovers roller-derby and the females she
encounters. We see roller derby women for the first time at in the head shop. They
are handing out flyers. We see that they are large almost butch but move with the
grace and skill of ballerinas.
• Through roller derby she finally finds something she is good at.
• On the surface they look tough and provocative –
• Names
• Dress
• Lifestyles
• They adopt a persona – almost a new identity – many are teachers, secretaries but
roller derby offers an escape from their ordinary lives.
• Maggie Mayhem is a struggling “single-mom” and holds conventional views on

the importance of family. She advises Bliss to sort out her problems with her parents.
• Smashley Simpson – dominates her boyfriend and is a tomboy character. She is

seen in many scenes nursing a new injury. She is the fighting spirit of the team.
• The roller-derby women dress in a sexualised manner – showing flesh, short skirts,
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school-girl looks, tattoos and make-up but this is for their own confidence – their
sexualisation is on their terms and not just for the male spectators.
• The “male gaze” theory could be used here as the camera does linger on the
female’s bodies but this is a physical sport and would do so anyway to emphasise the
physicality of the sport. There are no shots of semi-naked women in the changing
rooms and women are represented as vulgar and uncouth – swearing and belching.
• There are some sweet moments representing female friendship – Bliss and Pash
dancing together at the diner and the food-fight scene.
• Male figures are on the margin of this film. The team’s coach is male but is largely
ineffectual. Bliss’s boyfriend is a rather geeky, sensitive-artistic type who does not
get a second chance once Bliss doubts his loyalty. Bliss’s father lets his wife make all
the decisions and escapes into his own world of football. He does in the end respect
Bliss’s wishes and ensures she attends the final.
• However there are obstacles she must encounter – she must gain the respect of
other females – note they seem tough on the surface but are really even Iron Maven
her rival shows her respect at the end and we find out that she did not tell tales
disclose the fact that she was too young to take part in roller derby. This reconfirms
a view that there is to some extent a shared code between roller derby women, even
rivals.
• Bliss is physically small but fast and skilful and would inspire girls and women that
skill means more than physical strength and height.
• The women’s attitude towards winning is ambiguous. On a surface level it seems

that they are not bothered in the least about winning and have devised a chant “we
came second” much to their male coach’s annoyance. Ask would a team of males
act this way? It would be highly unlikely as men are usually represented as being
competitive and need to be seen as winners. However, deep down the women do
want to win and once they sample their first victory become focussed on winning and
beating their rivals.
• The women show a sense of camaraderie – they welcome Bliss to the team and she is
invited to parties. Also they involve her in the usual ceremonies by throwing her in
the swimming pool – almost like a baptism in joining the “sister hood”.
• Bliss also has her first steady boyfriend – she loses her virginity to him – again a rites
of passage moment.
• Bliss’s confidence increases through roller derby. When a former girlfriend makes a
crude suggestion that she is a lesbian, Bliss throws her down a flight of stairs. When
she is called before the Principal she shows no remorse at her actions and is
represented as a rebel.
• She suspects that he has seen other women while on tour and does not give him the
benefit of the doubt. She is shown as assertive and confident.
• Has the message that winning isn’t the objective and that winning isn’t everything –
compare this with a film that features a male team. Would the film have ended with
the men suffering defeat – hardly! It would not suit the male ethos that winning is
everything and that people who finish second are losers.
16
• Bliss’s father is immensely proud of her which makes up for the fact he wishes he had
a son. He proudly places Bliss’s name on a board on the front lawn to show her
sporting achievement and to show his gloating neighbour that his daughter is as
good as his sons.
• The film finishes with a visual metaphor. Bliss is sitting on top of the giant pig statue
and logo at the diner. She is on top of her world if not the world. Now the world
seems much smaller and she feels much bigger. The film ends on an optimistic beat.

Terminator 2 Judgment Day
Sarah Connor is the strong female protagonist in the film. Refer to my detailed hand-out.
Link her to Ellen Ripley in Aliens.

Adverts
Women’s roles in advertising have changed over the past

few decades. In the 1950s and 1960s women were
shown in the home as wives and mothers. During the
1970s the women’s rights movement made
advancements, some of the most significant changes for
women were the laws for equal pay and the introduction of
the birth control pill. Women became more sexually
liberated but, to the advertisers this just seemed to mean
that woman could be represented as available to men and
sex objects for men to stare at.
Stick-thin, air-brushed notions of female beauty have

become the norm in advertising. However, in 2003 Dove
launched its real women campaign with adverts featuring
‘ordinary’ women in their underwear. The campaign was a
huge success and sales of Dove’s skin firming lotion rose by 700%.
3.1 REPRESENTATION: RACE AND ETHNIC MINORITIES

East is East (O’Donnell, 1999)
• East is East starts with an overhead establishing shot of the Salford streets.
Surely the similarity to the iconic opening credits to Coronation Street is deliberate:
the director wants to suggest that Asian immigrants are a central part of British
national identity, just as Coronation Street and the values it promotes have been
17
since the 1960s.
• East is East combines comedy with a social-realist style. The mise en scène is
strikingly ugly: we see people urinating in buckets, raw fish being chopped to pieces,
and some of the most tasteless wallpaper imaginable. Perhaps the point is that the
film is also asking us to face ugly issues such as racism.
• The film is set in the early 1970s, when racial tensions were high in Britain. One
bigoted old man acts as a mouthpiece for the views of Enoch Powell, famous for his
“rivers of blood” speech. In one symbolic moment, Meera (George’s daughter) kicks a
football through a window which has on it a poster of Powell.
• The opening sequence’s multicultural parade through the streets of Salford.
George’s children are more than happy to join in, even carrying banners of the Virgin
Mary. They flee in terror when their father arrives: he would be furious if he knew
members of his family were participating in such non-Muslim activities.
• George is represented in a largely negative way. He is overbearing and
authoritative, reacting to his family’s questions with violence or threats of violence.
He struggles greatly to assimilate into the British way of life. In one symbolic shot, he
stands alone in a bedroom, his back to the window and by implication to the world
outside. When his wife makes tea, he mutters that he will take “half a cup” — a full
cup would perhaps be too British.
• George’s children deal in different ways with their father’s strict attitude. One
retreats into religion; another denies his Pakistani heritage, drinks, smokes,
socialises, womanises and calls himself Tony; the youngest, who is distanced more
than the others from his father’s culture, hides inside his parka out of shame. The
film explores hybrid identities — the Khans are not fully British but not fully Pakistani
either.
• One of the film’s most powerful scenes is that in which members of the family sit in
front of the TV after a violent argument. We are given close-ups of each family
member individually so that we can see the strain and, in some cases, the physical
bruises etched across their features. Then the camera shows them all together,
creating a cramped, unfriendly feel. They are watching The Clangers, and voice-
over on the television talks about a race of beings on a cold, hard planet, miles away
from anything they think of as home. Of course, the words refer to the Khan family as
much as to the animated characters they watch on the television.

Dirty Pretty Things (Frears, 2002)
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• Representations of immigrants in the media are largely negative. Popular ideas
include the immigrant as a benefit scrounger, dangerous criminal or bringer of
contagious foreign diseases.
• Dirty Pretty Things is a low-budget British film set in London. We see a very different
version of the British capital than that which is offered by largely US-funded British
hits like Notting Hill and Love Actually. This London is one of dingy backstreets
rather than iconic tourist attractions.
• When we see the film’s central characters, Okwe and Senay, they are often in
cramped spaces — cars, tunnels, narrow corriders, underground car parks, store
rooms and locker rooms — suggesting the restrictions on basic freedoms faced by
immigrants.
• There are also moments in which one or both characters are captured on CCTV,
indicating the level of surveillance to which immigrants are subjected, while the
recurring motif of ticking clocks reminds us that many immigrants are in Britain on
borrowed time, never knowing when their stay will end and they will be imprisoned or
deported.
• Okwe has two different jobs, challenging the perception of immigrants as benefit
scroungers. He has no time to sleep, and has to chew a stimulant in order to stay
awake.
• Okwe works as a taxi driver and a hotel porter. Both of these are “invisible” jobs;
we only really notice these people when they do their jobs badly. Perhaps the film
wants to show us that immigrants are often the oil that keeps British society ticking
over. In one memorable line Okwe tells a man, “We are the people you never see”.
• Okwe is actually trained as a doctor, but cannot practice as one in Britain due to his
status. Early on in the film he is asked to diagnose another man with an STI. When
the man pulls down his trousers, Okwe kneels before him in a visual parody of oral
sex, suggesting the indignity to which immigrants are subjected and foreshadowing
the moment in the film in which Senay, the film’s female immigrant, is actually forced
to perform oral sex on her boss in order to stop him reporting her to the authorities.

Coronation Street v. The Simpsons
• It took a long time for Coronation Street, Britain’s oldest soap opera, to respond to
Britain’s multicultural society by including Asians. When an Asian family did arrive in
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Wetherfield they, rather predictably, went straight into the corner-shop.
• It seems that the writers and producers simply placed an Asian family in a section of
society which would be “recognisable” to viewers.
• In The Simpsons, Apu Nahasapeemapetilon also works in a shop, the Springfield
Kwik-E-Mart. There are plenty of racial stereotypes exploited through Apu: for
instance, his rebellion against the arranged marriage (which he accepts when he
realises his betrothed is actually quite attractive) is one of the show’s comic
highlights.
• Whereas Coronation Street seems to have put an Asian family in the corner-shop out
of a sense of intented realism, The Simpsons has done it purely for comic effect.
• Often, racial stereotypes are exploited for comic effect in The Simpsons. For instance,
when Manjula, Apu’s wife, complains to Marge that her husband works too hard and
seems to be married to the Kwik-E-Mart rather than to her, Marge asks innocently
whether Manjula sees her husband at weekends. As if she has never heard the word
before, Manjula repeats carefully: “Wee … kends?”
• Similarly, the narrow-mindedness of other characters is the butt of many jokes
rather than Apu himself. When he protests about the unfairness of his arranged
marriage, Apu asks Homer: “Has the whole world gone insane?” Homer replies,
rather insensitively, “No, just your screwy country.”
• An interesting episode is that in which Homer catches salmonella from a hot dog he
bought from Apu. As a result, Apu loses his job at the Kwik-E-Mart and moves in with
the Simpson family to repay his debt to Homer. In a musical moment, he rejoices that
he no longer needs the Kwik-E-Mart, before going up on the roof and crying to himself
that, in fact, he really does want his old job back. Living with the white-American
family as a servant is not what Apu wishes to do: he yearns for the job which he
feels defines him.
• In the episode “Lisa’s Pony”, Homer’s financial difficulties cause him to ask Apu for a
job at the Kwik-E-Mart. Delighted, Apu gives Homer the job immediately and says
with relish: “Always I dreamed the day would come when one of you work for me”.
• The writers of The Simpsons know that Apu is a cheap stereotype — and that is
what he is supposed to be. When Homer’s bowling team, of which Apu is a member,
loses to another team called “The Stereotypes”, Apu complains: “They begged me to
join their team! Begged me!
• 3.4 REPRESENTATION: RACE AND ETHNIC MINORITIES
• Borat (Charles 2006)
Borat is a comedy that intends to look like a documentary. This is a genre called
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mockumentary. Borat is played by British comedian Sacha Baron Cohen.
Borat Sagdiyev, a popular Kazakh television personality, leaves his homeland of Kazakhstan
for the "Greatest Country in the World," the "US and A" to make a documentary film at the
behest of the fictitious Kazakh Ministry of Information. He leaves behind his mother, his wife,
Oksana, and other colorful characters of the town including "the town rapist", "the town
mechanic and abortionist", and brings along his producer Azamat Bagatov (Ken Davitian),
and his pet chicken, Buh-Kaw.
The film was denounced for having a protagonist who is sexist, homophobic, and anti-
Semitic (although the director, and both producers—including Baron Cohen—are Jewish),
and, after the film's release, some cast members spoke against, and even sued, its creators.
All Arab countries, except for Lebanon, banned it,[3] and the Russian government
discouraged cinemas there from showing it.
The village and the people are shown as crude stereotypes:
• The village is dirty and the houses are old.

• It is a patriarchal society.
• The women are ugly or prostitutes.
• The men are ugly and deformed.
• The men and women are all idiots because they are all in-bred through incest.
• The men and women are dirty and scruffy in appearance and dress fifty years behind
other western countries.
• Incest and rape is common and not really punished.
• The children are wild and the villagers are bad parents letting their children play with
guns as though it is the normal thing to do in Kindergarten.
• The technology is old and there are few cars just horses and carts.
• The villagers hate Jews (they are anti-Semitic)
It is not surprising that the people of Kazakhstan were offended by the representation of
their country and people. Is it right to represent a country and its people this way even if it
is for laughs?
Refer also to “Hostel” and its depiction of the Slovak Republic as a country full of sadistic,
psychopathic killers.
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4.1 REPRESENTATION: SOCIAL CLASS
Secrets and Lies (Leigh, 1996)
• Social realism is a genre or style which dominated British film-making in the 1950s
and 1960s. It uses documentary-style techniques, such as hand-held cameras, and
tries to present a slice of “real life”.
• Two of Britain’s most famous and successful directors specialise in social realism: Ken
Loach (Kes) and Mike Leigh (Vera Drake).
• Social-realist films often focus on the working classes and on domestic, family
struggles; as such the genre is often nicknamed “kitchen-sink drama”. The mise
en scène of social-realist films is typically gritty and unglamorous. Typical
locations include tastelessly decorated suburban houses, factories, laundrettes and
pubs.
• There are various criticisms of the social-realist tradition and its place within British
cinema. Alex Collins argues that British cinema is restricted by the dominance of
social realism, and that funding agencies are too quick to concentrate on social-
realist projects at the expense of other kinds of film. Collins also claims that social-
realist films are anachronistic: they no longer teach us anything we don’t know
about the lives of the working classes. Another common criticism of social-realist
films is that they patronise their working-class characters: we laugh at them rather
than with them.
• Director Mike Leigh’s Secrets and Lies is a critically acclaimed example of the social-
realist genre.
• The opening scenes to the film are typically social-realist. We see grimy streets, the
inside of a factory, and a family living room in which a woman sits with her bare feet
on the coffee table.
• The film has been praised for its rich characterization. It is the story of Hortense,
an intelligent, middle-class black woman who finds out that her mother is white and
working class. The mother, Cynthia, works hard to keep her other daughter, Roxanne,
from making the same mistakes she does. In an early sequence mother and daughter
argue in Essex accents. Roxanne criticises Cynthia for not having “kept her knickers”
up.
• The film also explores the tensions between middle- and working-class people. Actor
Timothy Spall plays Cynthia’s brother, who has married into money. Cynthia dislikes
his wife, who she refers to as a “toffee-nosed cow.”
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• Spall plays a photographer. In his newly privileged life, he is able to see into the
reality of people’s lives: though they smile for their camera, they often argue
immediately before the picture is taken.

Coronation Street
• Britain’s oldest soap opera is worth looking at for the way in which it seems to have
changed over the years from a gritty presentation of working-class life to a
sentimental, comic version. Sturdy “battleaxes” like Ena Sharples and Hilda
Ogden have given way to cuddly old folk like Emily Bishop and Norris Cole.
• The programme has worked hard to include “minorities” such as homosexuals
(Sean), trans-sexuals (Hayley) and Asians (Dev and family), but they often seem to
be lazy, one-dimensional stereotypes rather than believable members of a
community.
• The more realistic Coronation Street tries to be, the less convincing it becomes:
moments which involve characters being drunk or, worse, watching and discussing
football are overly contrived and do not strike us as anything like our own
experiences of such things.
• The idea that soap operas like Coronation Street sell to us is that working-class life
revolves around key locations like the Rovers Return and Roy and Hayley’s greasy
spoon café, places in which most of community life occurs. There are few secrets:
everyone’s business is everyone else’s.
• The programme is full of “salt-of-the-earth” northern types like Fizz, Kirk and
Janice Battersby.
• Family life is focused on characters such as the Websters and their marriage
(threatened so many times by the infidelity of both partners) and, of course, pillars of
the community Deirdre and Ken Barlow.
• Perhaps the programme’s sponsorship by Cadburys in the 1990s co-incided with its
decline into saccharine sentimentality. The programme has since been sponsored by
the similarly homely Tetley Tea, and is now sponsored by Harveys Furniture.

Girls Aloud
23
• Girls Aloud are Cheryl Cole, Nadine Coyle, Nicola Roberts, Kimberley Walsh and Sarah
Harding. Four of the girls are from Northern England and one is from Northern Ireland.
This “northern-ness” has been a major part of their appeal since their inception on
2002’s Popstars: The Rivals.
• Girls Aloud are marketed towards a mass audience and it is probably fair to say that
they have fewer fans among the middle classes than they do among the working
classes. They appeal to aspirational young females who look at the five members
and want to be like them — and those northern accents seem to make this dream
that little bit more attainable. The video to “The Promise” plays with this idea of
aspiration, with the girls watching themselves at an American-style drive-through
cinema.
• The media image of Girls Aloud is one of battling underdogs. Cheryl Cole in
particular has been followed by controversy and adversity almost since the beginning
of her career, from her nightclub assault on a toilet attendant (and subsequent
accusations of racism) to the breakdown of her marriage with footballer Ashley Cole.
• In late 2008 Attitude magazine featured the girls. The writer of the article
compared them to “every lairy northern bird you have ever met”, adding to the
image of Girls Aloud as five ordinary twenty-somethings whose lives are strikingly
similar to our own.
Notting Hill (Michell, 1999)
Richard Curtis wrote this film following on from the success of Four Weddings and a Funeral
which also starred High Grant and centred on middle-class people in London.
• The film’s location is in an area known for its annual carnival that celebrates ethnicity
and muitli-culturalism. It is also only half a mile away from the broken down housing
estates and fractured family lives of the characters in Kidulthood. Yet to watch
Notting Hill there is no sense of this.
• Notting Hill is represented almost as a village within London. A community of care
owners and book-shop owners. This was once a working class area into which
middle-class people have settled – this is called gentrification.
• William describes Notting Hill as ‘a village in the middle of the city,’ and in
representing its private, walled gardens as wide open spaces the film conveys the
image of a rural idyll. The shot at the end of the scene in which William and Anna
climb high angle into a garden gives the impression of an expanse of green, English
countryside, and the wall that surrounds the garden cuts this space off from urban
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London.
• All the leading characters are white the only British ethnic in the film is Spike (Rhys
Ifans) who is Welsh.
• All the characters are employed in professional jobs or offer specialist services –
William Thacker (Hugh Grant) owns a book shop that specializes in travel writing.
• Honey Thacker: Will's younger sister is an artist and designer.
• Bernie: A failing stockbroker and a friend of Will. He does not recognise Anna Scott
on meeting her.
• Spike: dreams of being an artist.
• Bella: a paraplegic lawyer and Will's ex-girlfriend. She is married to Max.

• Anna Scott – A Hollywood actress.
The world that these characters inhabit are homes – spacious Victorian and Georgian
terrace houses, café bars and fancy restaurants, up market hotels and a backdrop of
iconic London landmarks (St. Paul’s Cathedral, Houses of Parliament etc). This points
to the American audience who will expect to see these locations and view Britain in
this way rather than the London represented in Secrets and Lies or Kidulthood.
Apart from Spike and Anna all the people speak with Received Pronunciation (BBC
English) – there are no regional accents.
• Working class life and people are not seen here. Working class people are
seen only briefly working in hotels or driving taxis. This is a fantasy rom-com
and distinct from Secrets and Lies and This is England.
Perhaps this film underlines how the class system is firmly in place in Britain
and that middle-class and working class people still do not meet on a social
basis despite this being an “equal” society.
5.1 REPRESENTATION: TEENAGERS AND YOUNG PEOPLE
The X Factor and Britain’s Got Talent
• As we saw above with immigrants, teenagers and young people get a pretty bad
press in this country. An article in The Independent in 2009 argued that teenage boys
have become wary of each other because the vast majority of stories about that
social group in the media are concerned with violent crime. Words like “yobs”,
“thugs”, “sick”, “evil”, “feral” (meaning wild and uncivilized) and even “inhuman” are
typically used by journalists when talking about the young.
• The “noughties” were particularly bad for the young, with moral panics about
25
hoodies, knife crime, gangs and guns dominating the media. TV talent shows such as
The X Factor and Britain’s Got Talent have provided an antidote to these
overwhelmingly negative representations.
• In Britain’s Got Talent, the viewer often gets the impression that the judges, Piers
Morgan in particular, have been asked to be very positive about the younger
performers. As such, acts like George Sampson and Diversity (the last two winners)
have been told that they are “a credit” to the nation’s youth and “a shining example“
to the rest of the country that young people can actually put some effort into a
worthwhile goal.

Skins
• Skins is a controversial teen drama which represents the lives of a group of teenage
friends. Where skins differs from many of the teen dramas if that, despite the turmoil
and the problems, the program is also a celebration of youth, each episode featuring
scene set at gigs, clubs and house parties.
Consider the "moral panic" and hostility to Skins that arose when a teenager from Northern
England posted an open invite to "Skins party" on MySpace, using the subtitle from an
episode "let's trash the average family size house disco party". More than 200 people
attended and over £20,000 worth of damage was caused deliberately.
As the MySpace example here shows, Skins has been very successful in engaging its target
audience and either representing life as it is all life as the audience might like it to become.
It has been criticised for its stereotypical characters and storylines and has been
controversial for allegedly representing teenagers as more transgressive and "out-of-
control" than is realistic. For example, featuring a gay character, a character who cheats on
his girlfriend and another who sleeps with a teacher, and storylines involving a Muslim
character experimenting with drugs, car theft, eating disorders, suicide and a heroin
overdose, the central motif of the series is the recurrence of high octane, drug fuelled
parties.
It is the narrative element that has outraged older viewers (referred to as the "parent
culture") and delighted teenage viewers in equal measure.
Analysing the 2 Skins party" in terms of representation, the question to ask is whether the
26
program is merely representing accurately, for better or worse, the world as it is
(i.e. teenagers are like this and the program is accurate) or whether it is constructing a
version of teenage life which may lead to more drug taking and antisocial behavior.
• The characters dress well without conforming to mainstream trends and many of the
characters accents are standardised so that it is not that clear that the series is set in
Bristol and suggesting that these youths could be in any town in England or Britain.
• Their lifestyles are exciting, soundtracks play a mixture of alternative music, and
whilst not all the characters conform to the male or female gaze, the way they live
and their group of friends make them desirable and aspirational.
• The lives of the characters in skins are represented as constantly being disrupted.
Consequently the characters conform to stereotypes of youth, causing their
own disruptions by acting irresponsibly. Not only does Chris lose his girlfriend, he
also loses his job and his home because he moved into one of the flats he is
supposed to be letting. This is where we read Chris at the end of the episode, but it
isn't a state of equilibrium as his life is in turmoil.
• Ideological is the program challenges the belief that everything will turn out all right
in the end, and characters are left facing new conflicts and problems.
• The characters use of drugs is normal lives without the characters being demonized.
• In the episode involving Chris, when attempting to sell his first house, Chris paints an
idealised picture of life in the house, finishing with "imagine skinning up in the back
garden… with the kids". These customers are surprised rather than shocked, and buy
the house. T
• The narrative of skins lacks the binary oppositions conventionally found in teen
drama which are usually children versus parents, youth versus experience and
irresponsibility versus responsibility. This absence of these oppositions stems from
the representation of the adults who are as flawed as the characters: Chris’s ex
girlfriend was his teacher; his father and mother desert him; even the college
principal is foul-mouthed and expelled him because of the college's statistics.
• Characters are divided into those that are likeable and those that are not, regardless
27
of age. The middle aged estate agency manager bonds and supports Chris whereas
his young colleague is represented as annoying and aggressive.
• It is often claimed that programs like skin are more "realistic" and other teen
programs such as Hollyoaks (1995-). Chris is a complex character; he is
simultaneously likeable but cheats on his girlfriend, even while he genuinely wants
the relationship to work. These complex representations of characters and their
behaviour can be linked to discussions about realism, as this reflects our actual
experiences more closely than less-developed and more stereotypical characters.
• The question to ask is, does Skins represent the world as it is or does it actually
construct a version of teenage life that then becomes a reality?
• “The minority of teenagers who go out and get wasted has now increased
dramatically to a much larger minority because the show glorifies killing yourself
through drink, and gives the impression of ‘everybody’s at it, why aren’t I?’” — User
comment from www.thestudentroom.co.uk.
• Parents have been outraged and teenagers delighted in equal measures by Skins.
• The show was at the centre of a moral panic when a teenager from northern
England posted an invite to a “Skins party” on MySpace. More than 200 people
attended and over £20,000 worth of damage was caused deliberately.
• Tony Stonem and his sister Effy are the characters most representative of the
manipulative, hedonistic teen associated with Skins. Tony attempts to control
every character around him, mistreating his girlfriend and being generally obnoxious
to Sid. At the end of the fourth series Effy breaks the fourth wall by smiling into
the camera, representing her intelligence.
• Jal and Anwar, from Series 1 and 2, represent teenagers from different ethnic
groups. Anwar faces a moral dilemma when he tries to balance his Muslim beliefs
with his promiscuous and pill-popping lifestyle. He also has a homosexual friend,
Maxxie, and the two fall out when Anwar tells him that his religious beliefs clash
forbid homosexuality.
• Jal is probably the most level-headed and mature of all of the show’s teenage
characters. She is a supremely talented musician and abstains from sex. She is part
of a troubled family; her mother left years before, her father is a jaded recording
artists and her brothers aspire to be rappers but are frankly quite terrible. Where they
poke fun at black stereotypes Jal offers a challenge to the idea of the black person
as troublemaker or dependent.
• Cassie represents the idea of teenagers retreating into a “second self” or alter
28
ego in order to deal with problems. She is anorexic and manages to lie about it for a
long time, and she struggles emotionally over her relationship with Sid. Scenes
involving Cassie often have a dreamy, childlike feel, representing either the ruined
innocence of her childhood or her inability to deal with her problems in a more
mature manner.
• The adults in Skins are often poor role models: the father of Tony and Effy is a
laughing stock easily outwitted by his offspring; the teachers are dreadful
stereotypes who want to be friends with their students and even seduce, or be
seduced by, them; and Cassie’s parents have very little interest in her personal
dilemmas.
Hollyoaks
Hollyoaks, while less "shocking" also represents a range of "real life" social issues relevant to
the teenage audience. Because of the sensitivity of many of the storylines, and the youthful
nature of the audience, a full-time researcher is employed to the program, who acts as a
mediator between the script writing team and the audience during production. Scriptwriter
Ian Pike describes (in an interview in Media Magazine) the appeal of Hollyoaks in this way:
“Hollyoaks is totally unique. It goes out five nights a week, this film is considerably faster
than on a much smaller budget, yet still picks up wards alongside Coronation Street and
Eastenders. It is targeted at young people and goes out at 6:30 PM that is one of the most
successful home-grown programmes on Channel 4. And going on the feedback we receive,
it can make a difference to people's lives. Covering male rape and self-harming in the way
we did undoubtedly help teenagers who'd been through similar experiences. What makes is
completely different though is the humour. We often cut from something very heavy and
thought-provoking to something utterly silly and light-hearted in a way that no one else
does. Life is like that. In any street one family may be in the middle of a terrible crisis while
their neighbours are laughing and I think we reflect that.”
6.1 CATEGORISING AUDIENCES
• We can think about the categorisation of audiences in various ways. First of all, we
29
might divide audiences into mass and niche. Mass audiences tend to consume
widely popular media texts such as soap operas and big football matches and they
may read the tabloid newspapers, like The Sun and The Mirror. Niche audiences are
interested in more specialised media texts, such as late-night art programmes and so
on. Typically they read broadsheets like The Guardian. Though they are often quite
small in number, niche audiences can be very influential: they are important to
media producers because they tend to be very dedicated.
• More obviously, audiences can be categorised according to things like age (Songs of
Praise, anyone?), gender (women still tend to watch soap operas more than men do)
and socio-economic grouping. This last one is more complicated. It splits audiences
into groups known as A, B, C1, C2, D and E. In group A you would find society’s high-
earners — lawyers, doctors and so on; the C groups would consist of “white collar”
workers such as bank clerks; and groups D and E are made up of unskilled labourers,
students, the unemployed and pensioners. The idea behind this is that your socio-
economic position (i.e. your social class and how much you earn) is related to your
interests (and also your probable level of intelligence). This is problematic: students
and pensioners may be almost penniless, but surely students in particular might be
interested in similar media texts as the people in groups A and B? However, the work
of French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu suggests that more highly educated people
prefer “higher” forms of culture.
• The four Cs (Cross-Cultural Consumer Characteristics) present a further way of
categorising audiences. The issue here is to do with people’s psychographic profiles
(that is, the way they think and feel). Groups in this model of categorisation include
mainstreamers, aspirers, succeeders and the individual.
6.2 MODELS OF AUDIENCE RECEPTION
• There are various ideas related to the effect that media texts have upon audiences.
The Hypodermic Syringe Model is one of the older and most debated of these. It is
based on the idea that audiences are passive recipients of media texts. According to
this model, which is sometimes referred to as the Mass Manipulation Model or the
Magic Bullet Theory, we human beings are very heavily influenced by what the media
tells us, and we base many of our ideas and actions upon the messages conveyed to
us through the media.
• Theorist Marie Winn wrote a book called The Plug-In Drug in which she talked about
30
“the glazed look” which characterises people, and children in particular, when they
watch television. This glazed look implies an absence of active, critical thought. In
1938, whole families in the United States sat frozen in terror or even ran wildly into
the streets because a voice on the radio had told them solemnly that Martians were
invading the planet. This was a radio broadcast of H. G. Wells’ classic science-fiction
work, The War of the Worlds.
• It is probably safe to say that people are generally more measured in their response
to media texts than this model suggests. We live in a media-literate society, in
which people are prepared to question the ideas and values promoted by the media
rather than just swallowing them whole.
• Violence and the media is perhaps the major area in which audience reception is
discussed. To what extent are members of society, and children in particular,
influenced by the increasingly graphic depiction of violence in media texts? Can
violent crime be blamed at all on this phenomenon?
• Oliver Stone’s 1994 film Natural Born Killers saw its video release delayed due to a
spate of so-called “copycat” murders. The BBFC (British Board of Film Classification
— the people responsible for certifying films in this country) investigated ten of these
cases and found that only two of the culprits had actually seen the film — one of
those already had a record of violent crime and the other had previously expressed
his intention to kill.
• Opinions are divided on the extent to which media violence causes real-life violence
(this argument is known as “the effects debate”). One the one hand, Mary
Whitehouse has argued that “people learn from watching others” and, as such, “if
you constantly portray violence as normal you will help to create a violent society.”
You might say that video games go a stage further than preseting violence as normal
— they actually reward players for “killing” on-screen enemies. On the other hand,
Oliver Stone himself (unsurprisingly, for a film director) defends the role of the media.
For him, the media is the modern-day equivalent of the witch — something on which
we can blame society’s problems.
• An experiment conducted by Albert Bandura yielded results which suggest,
disturbingly, that young children will act violently if they have watched others doing
so. This is often referred to as copycat violence. However, his famous “Bobo-doll”
experiment was conducted in 1963 and is thus considered to be outdated. Critics
such as David Buckingham actually feel that violence in the media can help
children to learn about violence and its consequences, so long as they engage with
such texts in a safe and structured environment.
• Moral panics occur when the media reports an incident or spate of incidents and
31
links them to a perceived social problem, which is then presented as something we
are all to fear as a threat to our society and its values. In the 1960s, sociologist Stan
Cohen studied media coverage of the fights between Mods and Rockers and noted
that youths in general were being portrayed as unruly and dangerous. Famous
examples of moral panics include: fear of violent films and video games after the
murder of James Bulger in Liverpool and, again, after the Columbine high school
massacre in the United States; Islamophobia and fear of terrorism in the wake of 9/11
and the London bombs in July 2005; and the “hoodies” scare which has prevailed in
Britain this century.
• Moral panics generally happen in three stages. Firstly, an event occurs and is
reported by the media. Then, connections are made between the event and wider
problems in society as a whole. Experts are cited in the media as saying that this is
merely “the tip of the iceberg” and that society is under threat from this new
menace. Eventually, the public are gripped by fear and indignation, and may even
campaign for changes in the law to counter the dangers.
• The Uses and Gratifications Model finally starts to credit audience members with
some intelligence and individuality, and is therefore associated with an active
audience. According to this model, which was developed by theorists Blumler and
Katz in 1974, audiences engage with media texts according to what they want to get
out of them. You might want to watch The Lord of the Rings, for instance, to escape
for a while from the grey drudgery of the town you live in; this would be an example
of diversion (or escapism). Your love of romantic comedies might be attributable to
the fact that you wish your own personal relationships were as blissfully perfect as
those seen on television. Or you might construct your personal identity around the
look and characteristics associated with a particular celebrity. Lastly, you might
watch the news or the weather, or even a quiz show like University Challenge, in
order to gather information about the world; this is referred to as surveillance.
• In 1977, Richard Dyer expanded the idea of escapism. What does it mean to
“escape” from reality when, say, watching a film? For Dyer, this escapism can take
one of three forms. Sometimes, it involves the obliteration of our daily reality: a film
like Star Wars or The Lord of the Rings is set in a world or universe so far removed
from our own that we have to temporarily erase the everyday reality we know in
order to fully engage. Or we might contrast the world on screen with our own —
preferring, for example, the cosy storylines of romantic comedies to our own complex
and difficult lives. Lastly, escapism might work through the incorporation of the
ideas seen on screen into our own lives in an attempt to make the latter easier and
more enjoyable. Think about the (false) optimism you experience after watching a
32
“feel-good film” and you will understand this point.
6.3 SAMPLE AUDIENCE QUESTION: How do different audiences react differently to the
same media text? Explain using your own detailed examples.
• Audience readings of media texts come in three main categories. A preferred

reading (sometimes known as a dominant or hegemonic reading) occurs when the
audience accepts the message intended by the producers (this is what is supposed to
happen with the target audience). An oppositional reading is when the audience
questions and even disagrees with this message and with the values promoted by
the media text. A negotiated reading is where something between the above
happens: the audience generally accepts the text and its values but audience
members play an active role in making up their minds about it. There is also an
aberrant reading, which is when the audience interprets a text in a way in which
the producers simply had not anticipated.
• Below are some suggested texts and some advice on how to talk about them in a
question like this. Notice that each text is explored from a different point of view (e.g.
age of audience, gender of audience and so on).
Life on Mars
• The age of the viewer is likely to influence his or her response to the series,
particularly its representation of 1970s’ attitudes.
• Sam Tyler is probably in his mid 30s, which helps to position the target audience.
• There are also jokes which will appeal to people who remember the 1970s.
• Men in their late 30s to early 40s (the target audience) may look back with nostalgia
at the 1970s, even preferring the dubious style of policing, the racist and sexist
attitudes, to today’s more liberated society.
• Younger viewers are more likely to be shocked at, for instance, the behaviour of DCI
Gene Hunt (even if they find him funny).
CSI
• The level of engagement of the viewer is likely to influence his or her response to
the series, particularly its representation of forensic science.
• The show’s narratives and use of scientific terminology appeal to audiences who will
have a primary engagement with the text (i.e. they will give it their undivided
33
attention).
• Such viewers are more likely to realise that the show’s representation of forensic
science is quite far removed from reality.
• The show’s glossy style (establishing shots of US cities, photogenic young characters,
sharp fashion sense) appeals to more passive viewers, who may have CSI on in the
background while doing other things.
• This is known as a secondary or tertiary level of response; such viewers may be more
likely to accept the show’s representation of forensic science as realistic.
• In the United States, there is a phenomenon known as the “CSI effect”: due to the
success of CSI, many jurors are so convinced of the reliability of forensic science that
it is influencing jury decisions.
The Girl Next Door

• The gender of the viewer is likely to influence his or her response to the film,
particularly its representation of women.
• This film is something of an oddity in that it uses many of the conventions of the
romantic comedy genre but is primarily aimed at males.
• The adolescent male audience is positioned by the high level of sexual innuendo, the
slapstick humour and the casting of Elisha Cuthbert, whose sex appeal is emphasised
throughout.
• Members of the target audience are likely to respond positively to the idea that the
nice, down-to-earth kid can win the affections of a highly attractive former porn star.
• Female viewers are more likely to be critical of the film’s objectification of women,
and particularly with the idea that, while Danielle is “too good” to be a porn star,
some women, apparently, are not.
The Simpsons
• The cultural competence of the viewer is likely to influence his or her response to
the series, particularly the humour.
• Matt Groening: “The more you know, the funnier it is”.
• Many of the jokes in The Simpsons require that the viewer understands fairly specific
references to film, television, literature, art and history.
• Similarly, a lot of the humour is very specifically American and so will be lost on
foreign audiences.
• Viewers who don’t understand these jokes are not necessarily stupid; they simply
don’t have the cultural competence to appreciate them (i.e. they haven’t read the
34
poem, or seen the film, or studied the aspect of history, to which a certain joke
refers).
• Example 1: Krusty the Clown, performing badly as Shakespeare’s tragic hero King
Lear, asks the critical audience to “Lighten up: it’s a comedy!” Those viewers who
have read King Lear will know that it is, in fact, one of the bleakest works of literature
ever written.
• Example 2: In one episode, former US President George Bush Sr. talks about the
importance of parental discipline. He claims that he himself was “spanked by Grover
Cleveland on two non-consecutive occasions”. Historians might know that Grover
Cleveland is the only US President to be elected on two non-consecutive occasions.
Hilarious!
Some other texts you might discuss:

• Sicko: How might a British viewer’s response differ from that of an American viewer?
• Skins: How might the response of teenage viewers differ from that of their parents?
• Slumdog Millionaire: Would Indian viewers have responded in the same way as British
and American viewers?
6.4 SAMPLE AUDIENCE QUESTION: Choose any media text and explore the gratifications
an audience may get from it.
Any media text would be valid here, although some will naturally give you more to talk
about than others. I have used the Tomb Raider games as an example. You could write about
any text you wish (a film, a TV show, a magazine), but I recommend sticking to a formula
like the one below.
NB This is a nice question but needs to be dealt with correctly. You must respond in an
informed manner — Media Studies examiners do not like “common sense” answers which
provide no evidence that you have been in a Media Studies classroom. You should, therefore,
get into the habit of using the appropriate terminology.
1. Introduce the theory of Uses and Gratifications. It implies an active audience with the
ability and intelligence to decide what they want from the media. The theory was developed
by Blumler and Katz in the 1970s.
2. Outline Blumler and Katz’s four main ideas: diversion/escapism, personal relationships,
personal identity and surveillance. Offer a brief explanation for each of these terms.
35
3. Discuss the pleasures of Tomb Raider which can be categorised under these ideas. For
instance:
• Female players may enjoy the positive role model offered by Lara Croft — she is a
brave, independent woman, striding athletically into such male arenas as action,
adventure and espionage: she is both Indiana Jane and Jane Bond. She takes on
all challengers without fear: rats, bats, lions, tigers, bears, wolves, gorillas,
crocodiles, genetic mutants, mummies, giant spiders and, of course, men (link to
personal identity).
• Male players (even if they would not necessarily admit it) may be attracted to Lara
on some level — the game designers went to great lengths to sexualise her,
transforming the conical breasts of the first game to a more convincing, rounded
shape, ensuring her legs and waistline are as slender as possible and working on her
clear skin and model-esque pout. Some of the camera angles seem to focus on Lara’s
“assets” with a regularity which just cannot be accidental. When the player
completes the second game, the heroine begins to undress for a shower. Just we
think she will reveal all, she turns to the camera and says, “Don’t you think you’ve
seen enough?“ at which point the screen goes black. Some lust-crazed male fans
have even been known to live out imaginary love affairs with Lara, sending her
letters and so on (link to personal relationships).
• It is arguable that things can be learned by playing Tomb Raider. The games are set
in a range of geographic locations (which may be unfamiliar to many players) and
appeal to the player’s knowledge of mythology, with levels referring to Thor,
Damocles, Neptune, Atlas, Midas and so on. However, this is not one of the main
reasons why the game has been so successful (link to surveillance).
• Surely the main attraction of playing Tomb Raider is the escapism it offers. Not only
can we control a character of almost superhuman athleticism and bravery, but we
can wander at will through a vast number of exotic locations: just in the first three
Tomb Raider games, the player visits South America, Egypt, London, Venice, China,
Tibet, the Nevada desert, Antarctica, the South Pacific, India and more. The game
designers worked hard to evoke the flavour of these locations, using different
textures and musical accompaniments to bring the settings to life (link to
escapism/diversion).
4. It might be worth pointing out here that the critic Richard Dyer expanded the idea of
escapism into three different types, of which the obliteration of reality seems perhaps most
applicable to Tomb Raider
5. There are also many attractions which are less easy to categorise under the Uses and
Gratifications framework. For instance:
36
• the mental work involved with solving puzzles, and the psychological pleasure of
doing so;
• the level of control enjoyed by the player: we are rewarded for skill and perseverance
with progress to the next stage (this may seem obvious but think about how different
this is from films or almost any other media form);
• the cinematic quality of the game: for instance, the intertextual links with the Indiana
Jones films, the incidental music which kicks in at moments of tension or suspense, or
the detailed FMV sequences.
6. You could use the above points to suggest that the Uses and Gratifications model is quite
a limited way of explaining why we like what we like — a media text offers any number of
pleasures, not all of which can be easily categorised.
7.1 SAMPLE EXAM PAPER
TIME ALLOWED: 2 ½ hours

Answer all questions.
The sequence is taken from __________.
1. Analyse the sequence, commenting on:

 symbolic codes
 technical codes
 narrative codes [40]
2a. Suggest two possible audiences for this media text and explain how they have been
targeted.
[6]
2b. Choose two characters from the sequence and explore the way in which they are
represented.
37
[9]
2c. With reference to your own detailed examples, explore the way in which
__________ are represented in the media today.
[15]
3. In what ways do different audiences respond differently to the same media text?
Explain using your own detailed examples.
[30]
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CONTENTS

3 Representation: Race and Ethnic Minorities

4 Representation: Social Class

5 Representation: Teenagers and Young People

HOW TO USE THIS BOOKLET

1.1 REPRESENTATION: MEN

1.2 REPRESENTATION: MEN

Also refer to my detailed handout.

1.3 REPRESENTATION: MEN

Also use Jenny in Eden Lake to discuss the representation of women.

1.5 REPRESENTATION: MEN

• Drill-Instructor Gnry Sgt Hartman (Lee Ermey) is seen as a bigoted,

• Perhaps the film is saying that it is wrong to be expected to conform to

• Tough and violent

• Note that in Terminator 3 Rise of the Machines the Terminator is replaced by a

1.7 REPRESENTATION: MEN

• Gary and Tony represent lads and laddish behavior.

2.1 REPRESENTATION: WOMEN

2.2 REPRESENTATION: WOMEN

2.3 REPRESENTATION: WOMEN

• Scream is a slasher, a sub-genre of the horror film. As such, it is worth considering

2.4 REPRESENTATION: WOMEN

2.5 REPRESENTATION: WOMEN

2.6 REPRESENTATION: WOMEN

This is a drama-sports, comedy film. As a narrative it is a “coming of age “and “rites of

This film can also be used in discussing the representation of youth.

• “Whip It” fits into the category of a rites of passage/growing up story.

• Bliss is still finding her way in life.

• Maggie Mayhem is a struggling “single-mom” and holds conventional views on

• Smashley Simpson – dominates her boyfriend and is a tomboy character. She is

• The women’s attitude towards winning is ambiguous. On a surface level it seems

2.7 REPRESENTATION: WOMEN

2.8 REPRESENTATION: WOMEN

Women’s roles in advertising have changed over the past

Stick-thin, air-brushed notions of female beauty have

3.1 REPRESENTATION: RACE AND ETHNIC MINORITIES

3.2 REPRESENTATION: RACE AND ETHNIC MINORITIES

3.3 REPRESENTATION: RACE AND ETHNIC MINORITIES

The village and the people are shown as crude stereotypes:

• The village is dirty and the houses are old.

4.2 REPRESENTATION: SOCIAL CLASS

4.3 REPRESENTATION: SOCIAL CLASS

• Honey Thacker: Will's younger sister is an artist and designer.

• Spike: dreams of being an artist.

• Bella: a paraplegic lawyer and Will's ex-girlfriend. She is married to Max.

5.2 REPRESENTATION: TEENAGERS AND YOUNG PEOPLE

5.3 REPRESENTATION: TEENAGERS AND YOUNG PEOPLE

6.1 CATEGORISING AUDIENCES

6.2 MODELS OF AUDIENCE RECEPTION

• Audience readings of media texts come in three main categories. A preferred

The Girl Next Door

Some other texts you might discuss:

7.1 SAMPLE EXAM PAPER

TIME ALLOWED: 2 ½ hours

The sequence is taken from __________.

1. Analyse the sequence, commenting on:

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