So far we've looked at some general examples of the impact of digital media: the problems it creates for media regulation with cases like Natasha McBride or Ryan Giggs' superinjunction; the ways in which it can meet the 'needs' humans have (Maslow) by making us feel secure and enabling creativity, and finally the way social media is viewed (often by the media itself) from a dystopian or utopian perspective, either as a powerful force which will create a nightmare world or as a global village with no barriers to participation or freedom of speech.
You need to keep up to date with any developments in how digital media is impacting on society and changing the way we consume media products. This case study is wide ranging and it will also help you to answer Section A if you have as much knowledge as possible.
However you should also narrow your research down into a couple of areas which you should look at in more detail. This will make your case study independent and specific.
I've put together a list of 21 ideas and would suggest that you choose one or two. Remember that the headings you've put on your website are question topics for section B so you need to make sure you could answer a question on any of those topics with the two digital media case studies you've done.
Everyone in the class should choose something slightly different so try to decide by the end of this week so we can fight it out in a lesson.
You need to be able to evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of using each media platform to promote or listen to music.
Remember that in your case study answer you MUST refer to all three platforms. You don't have to refer to them equally, but each one must be explored at some level with examples.
We've looked at how the internet is fast becoming the preferred way for audiences to listen to music, watch music videos and find out about artists. It has many advantages for audiences, including the option of listening to music for free whenever you want, and also the advantage of allowing for interaction and UGC. However, some fans claim it has caused a decline in quality music, with anyone able to gain fame. For producers the internet provides a range of ways to promote music, often at a very low cost. However issues to do with piracy and copyright have lead to many record companies blaming the internet for destroying the industry. You have notes on this from class which you should learn.
The print platform is in decline and the music press has been one of the biggest casualties. The internet offers unlimited, free information on bands and solo artists so fewer people are willing to pay for it in printed form. The print platform offers little opportunity to interact or create UGC, so young, internet-savvy music fans may find it boring and object to being a passive audience member. However, print brands like NME have expanded into the digital platform, with a website which is densely packed full of information and more exciting content like videos. Some magazines are making use of increased opportunities for UGC, with readers contributing to output rather than just journalists. Augmented reality is another way print can be more exciting.
Finally, thebroadcast platform offers opportunities to promote music. However these are becoming increasingly limited with the demise of Top of the Pops, T4 and Saturday morning music shows. Live performances are limited to festival coverage or at the end of chat shows. TV and radio exposure will reach a mass audience but the exposure can be hard to get - acts need to have a proven following and success record to be invited on a show. TV adverts are expensive to broadcast. The radio 1 playlist is difficult to get onto. The new 'Vevo TV' was therefore met with a positive response by artists looking for ways to promote themselves.
However, there is one genre of show which claims to give unsigned 'nobodies' a chance to perform on TV and become recording artists. It is the TV talent show. The X Factor and The Voice claim to provide a platform for new talent to reach mass audiences. You should consider how far this is true.
Make sure you can write about The Voice or the X Factor in detail.
Notes from class on The Voice
Audience - get to contribute to the show by appearing on it. However, only features contestants who can sing, the BBC scouted for talent so not truly open to 'anyone'. Some contestants had previous record contracts or celebrity family members - the content of the show is restricted and shaped by producers. The contestants, if selected, have 'power' to choose a coach and the home audience get to vote later in live shows and play along online, they can compare their decisions to those made by the coaches and therefore experience personal identity. Sob stories also make up the show's narrative structure to get the audience to identify. The prime time Saturday slot suggests that the BBC are targeting families and young people.
Ideology - image is not important, only judged on 'voice' due to blind audition format. A serious search for talent, no novelty acts, no laughing at bad singers, though still humiliating if nobody turns round. There are 'Coaches' not 'judges' to emphasise the fact that nobody is being judged or laughed at. More positive ideology than X Factor.
Representation - wide range of groups - age, ethnicity, gender - blind contestant in episode 1. Coaches represent different genres and ages.
As you watch the trailer, consider how the codes and conventions of documentary are used to present Beyonce. Remember that Beyonce is the executive producer, co-director and co-writer of this and so the final product is what she wants us to see. Do you think everyone receives this text in the same way? How does the narrative follow Todorov's theory of disequilibrium and equilibrium? Does Beyonce do this intentionally to captivate the audience?
Here's an interview with Beyonce about the documentary - remember that by doing this interview for the HBO website she is promoting her moving image documentary by using e-media to connect with potential viewers. Beyonce also discusses the creation of the documentary and the editing process- she is very aware of how various things could affect the way she is represented and her particular 'brand'.
Another example of Beyonce's media savvy ways is the tumblr account which was set up on the arrival of her daughter, Blue Ivy. This allows her fans a sneak peek into her life but the information and pictures they are shown is selected. The same is true with her Instagram account which Beyonce has used to promote her fashion house and her recent appearance at the Superbowl.
Time to watch the documentary itself and see what you make of it. Compare it to Rihanna and Cheryl Cole's documentaries - Are they constructed differently? Do they promote the same messages or ideals?
Now for some reading! There are various articles about the documentary, some of them not so complimentary. Have a read to gather some information and see if they affect what you thought of the documentary on your first viewing.
Print platform: You should be able to analyse print products confidently using MIGRAIN now.
Basic notes would look like this:
Colours: Grey and white suggesting a serious or honest tone.
Simplistic font with a short tag-line 'In her own words' again suggesting that this is Beyonce's chance to 'speak' to her fans and get her side of the story across.
Beyonce (the subject) is positioned to the right of the poster which creates enigma codes as she glances at the title and the audience cannot tell what the documentary might reveal. She is pictured with minimal make-up and natural hair which again signifies that Beyonce is someone the audience can relate to personally but perhaps also aspire to.
It could be suggested that the gold chain is a nod to her r'n'b 'roots' and also suggestive of her link to rapper Jay-Z.
Make sure you are collating all of your documentary notes over Easter and that you will be able to refer to all three platforms in an extended exam answer. Mock exam time soon!
Even though our case study is based mostly on the Emedia platform, there is still an expectation that you make reference to all three platforms in your answer.
The main way to get the print platform in is to show some understanding of how it is trying to survive in the digital age.
The internet provides us with instant, up to date news which can often be interactive and accessed anywhere, and this has been blamed for the steady decline in newspaper and magazine sales.
Newspapers do have online versions, but they can only generate money through advertising as we expect to access news online for free. Is it right to have this expectation? James Murdoch doesn't think so. He said: "It is essential for the future of independent digital journalism that a
fair price can be charged for news to people who value it." In 2009 he accused the BBC of giving away news "for free" online. It's not surprising, then, that The Times, one of Murdoch's papers, was the first in the UK to place its content behind a paywall. Now, The Telegraph will follow suit. However, it will be a metered paywall, meaning you can view 20 articles for free before being prompted to subscribe to a digital package.
This comes in the same week that a teenager received £1million of investment in an app which summarises news stories: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-20181537 proving that there must be ways to make money from digital news, if you are innovative.
This is a developing trend which you MUST keep an eye on for your digital media case study - it's just one of the ways the print industry is attempting to survive. If other newspapers start to charge for online content, it will be interesting to see how audiences react. Will they start buying the printed version instead? Will they start to accept that news is something you should have to pay for? Or will there simply be too much other news available online for them to care? Can you use some audience theory to evaluate these reactions?
A negative
representation is better than no representation at all. Discuss this
statement with reference to the group or place you have studied. (48 marks)
Part of stereotyping is the attitude that all members of a
particular group are the same, or else fall into a very small number of
types. How and why is the group or place you have studied stereotyped? (48 marks)
June 2011
‘Constant media stories about gang crime create a depressing and unbalanced picture of black youngsters.’ (www.guardian.co.uk)
Using the group or place you have studied, consider whether media
portrayals are more complex than simple positive or negative
representations. (48 marks)
How does the representation of the group or place you have studied
differ across different media platforms or genres? Why do you think this
is the case? (48 marks)
January 2012
How are stereotypes used by media producers and why are they so popular? (48 marks) Audiences are now too sophisticated to be taken in by negative and stereotypical representations. Do you agree? (48 marks)
June 2012
There are a wide range of representations in the media and audiences are free to choose how they interpret them. Do you agree? (48 marks)
How and why do alternative representations of the group or place you have studied challenge mainstream values and ideology? (48 marks)
