Everything you need to know about the component two exam in 2022

If you are reading this in 2023 or beyond, hold your horses! This information ONLY applies to the June 2022 version of the component 2 exam! Check out elsewhere for information, because this will just confuse you!

General

• Your exam is in the afternoon of Wednesday 8th June 2022
• This exam is called component two
• It is two and a half hours long. That's 150 minutes
• There are four questions in the exam
• There are three sections in the exam, one for each industry:

A: Television (two questions)

B: Magazines (one question)

C: Online media (one question)

 

• You should spend 50 minutes on each industry
• Each question is on a different aspect of media (media language, representation, industry and audience). You should make sure you are talking about the right thing in the right question. ALWAYS LINK EVERYTHING BACK TO THE QUESTION
• However, this paper is SYNOPTIC. This basically means that you can and should refer to things outside of the question to back up the answer you are making. For example, for the representation and Les Revs question, you may argue that Les Revs presents challenging REPRESENTATIONS of gender, further anchored with challenging genre conventions (MEDIA LANGUAGE) in order to specifically target a niche AUDIENCE. This allows Canal + to target audiences it would normally not have reached, thus ensuring financial success (INDUSTRY)
• One question will ask you to evaluate a theory. The theories you could have to evaluate are listed for each question below
• Underline the key terms in each question
• Do a plan for each question and put it on your answer paper. You get marks for the plan!
• This is a standard, 'seen' exam. You will be given nothing apart from the question paper

Section A: Television

• This section is split in to two questions, one on Humans, and one on Les Revenants
• Both the TV questions will be worth 15 marks each
• You should spend 25 minutes on Humans question and 25 minutes on the Les Revenants question
• A good way to revise the TV questions is to watch the key scenes a few times, and work out which scenes are your favourite (and therefore which scenes you will talk about). You should also look at the marketing for Humans, for example the Persona Synthetics trailer we viewed as a class

Humans

• One question is on Humans, and it will be an audience question
• Audience questions are about how the audience uses or takes pleasure from a media product, and how producers target or construct these audiences
• The theories you may be asked to evaluate are Stuart Hall's reception theory and Henry Jenkins' fandom theory
• Spend 25 minutes on this question
• A good argument to make with Humans is that it uses science fiction conventions to target a niche audience, as well as an exciting and experimental advertising campaign to encourage audiences to use social media to help the show go viral.

Les Revenants 

• The other question will be on Les Revenants, and it will a representation question
• The exam will refer to Les Revenants as 'The Returned'. Please refer to it as Les Revenants in your answer (or just 'les revs' or even 'lr' after you first write it)
• The theories you may be asked to evaluate are Stuart Hall's representation theory, Liesbet Van Zoonen's feminist theory and bell hooks' feminist theory
• Spend 25 minutes on this question
• A good argument to make with Les Revenants is that it uses atypical representations to create a niche and challenging product. It subverts Van Zoonen's theory frequently!

Section B - Magazines

• This section will have one question, on Woman and Adbusters, and will be a media language question
• Media language questions are basically always 'how does media language combine to make meaning', but you may also be asked to consider genre, narrative, codes and so on
• This question will be worth 30 marks
• You should spend 50 minutes on this question
• Yes, you definitely should compare and/or contrast these magazines!
• A good way to revise the magazine questions is to simply go through the case studies on the blog, and pick out about three pages you will definitely talk about for each one. Once more, I strongly recommend that you discuss the front cover for each magazine
• The theories you may be asked to evaluate are Roland Barthe's semiotic theory (codes, eg proairetic, hermeneutic, etc), and Caude Levi-Strauss's structuralist theory (basically binary oppositions)
• A good argument to make in the magazine question is that Woman magazine is simple, straightforward and sexist. This reflects the time in which it was made, and is done to reinforce patriarchal hegemony. However Adbusters is atypical, subversive and anticapitalist. It is deliberately upsetting to reflect the challenging and awful world in which we live in (!). So it also reflects the time in which it was made (now!)

Section C - Online media

• This section will have one question, on Zoella and Attitude Online, and will be a media industry question
• Industry questions are basically about how media products are made and how they make money. A big part of this is minimising risk ad maximising profit
• This question will be worth 30 marks
• You should spend 50 minutes on this question
• Yes, you definitely should compare and/or contrast these two products!
• A good way to revise online media is to check out the websites for Zoella and Attitude Online. Additionally, you should look at at least two videos from Zoella, from her different accounts, as well as links to her social media accounts and various books and other products. For Attitude Online, it's all about the website, though there are some social media accounts. You should also point out that Attitude online is a spinoff from Attitude, the magazine
• The theories you may be asked to evaluate are Sonia Livingstone and Peter Lunt (regulation, remember the regulation of online media is SPECTACULARLY ineffective, and is essentially self regulated!) and David Hesmondhalgh (the cultural industries, for example vertical integration and so on. Both Attitude and Zoella utilise digital convergence and multimedia integration to minimise risk and to maximise profit)
• A good argument to make for this question is that both of these priducts are simple, straightforward and appeal to a straightforward demographic. For example, Zoella has shifted her focus to slightly older women aged around 30, but her audience is still heterosexual, female, working class, and white. She uses very stereotypical representations and website layout to target these audiences. Attitude ONline is also nothing like the more sophisticated print version, and it uses straightforward and arguably stereotypical representations of gay identity to appeal to straightforward white working class gay audiences. The reasons why both of these websites 'play it safe' issssss (drum roll) to minimise risk and to maximise profit!

Revision: Ideology and The Secrets Of Dumbledore

 1. Compare the ideologies conveyed through the poster for The Secrets of Dumbledore and the poster for Kiss Of The Vampire you have studied

 consider how representations convey ideologies

 consider the similarities and differences in the ideologies conveyed

 make judgements and draw conclusions about how far social and cultural contexts affect the representations. [30]

Point - One way in which the KOTV poster conveys ideologies is through the highly sexist representations of women.

Evidence 

• Hegemonically attractive women not representative of all women 
• MES of the model's breasts are an example of sexualisation
• Classic example of the male gaze, presented as a sexual object for heterosexual men
• MES of the skin-tight and revealing by 1960s standards dresses 

Analysis

Through the combination of media language, a sexist ideology is conveyed by the producer. This is because these kinds of representations were typical in the 1960s, and it was more conventional for women to be more sexualised than men. These conventional and sexualised representations were included by the producers in the hopes of attracting a larger share of the target audience. Additionally, by reinforcing patriarchal hegemonic values, it guarantees that the producers are able to consistently construct a target audience who agree with their values

Point - On the other hand, the ideologies conveyed in Secrets of Dumbledore presents an atypical representation of women

Evidence

• Women constructed through MSs which emphasise their face over their bodies, and challenges the notion of the male gaze
• MES of all three of the women's body language is constructed through their assertive wand use. They all hold their wands in a casual and confident manner
• This is further anchored through their confident posture
• The smart, sophisticated costume
• and the direct mode of address
• Wands function as a proairetic code, that suggests that these women are about to go in to battle

Analysis

The women in this film have an active role in the action, This is partially because SOD targets a completely different audience, and a wider target audience to KOTV. Additionally, SOD is conventional in the way it coveys women in the poster as it is typical of modern society and changing hegemonic norms. By appealing to the largest audience possible, the producers guarantee their financial success

Point - Another ideology conveyed by the KOTV poster is how the producer does not include any representations of ethnic minorities, which opens accusations of racism and postcolonialism 

Evidence

• Every actor selected by the producer is white, and with either brown or blonde hair
• A binary opposition is constructed through the representation of white people and the lack of representation of black people
• A hierarchy is made between the aggressive brunette and the vulnerable blonde, which reinforces stereotypical ideologies
• Foreign setting is reinforced through the bleak, barren landscape, reinforces that foreign countries unusual, different and threatening. This reinforces the ideology that Britain is normal
• Eastern Europe is othered through it's bleak and depressing representation

Analysis

The producers have made the assumption that the white British target audience will only be interested in seeing the representation of white, western European actors. The complete lack representation of black people reinforces a patriotic and even racist British outlook in the audience. It establishes a postcolonial ideology where Britain is superior

Point -  However, the poster to SOD conveys a different and more diverse ideology

Evidence and analysis

This is encoded through the MES of two black actors, who are dressed in an identical style to the white actors, which helps to reinforces a diverse ideology This diversity is further anchored through the inclusion of one non-white man and one non-white woman, which  again is an inclusive representation of both ethnicity and gender. The inclusion of an ethnically diverse cast can help the film target a more wide and ethnically diverse audience. However, due to the composition of the poster, both the non-white actors are positioned lower on the hierarchy compared to the white actors. Additionally, there are significantly more white actors than non-white actors, which reinforces white postcolonial ideologies. While the producers of this film are not racist, by sticking to genre conventions, they reinforce postcolonial ideologies and hierarchies that exist between black people and white people. This is purely motivated by profit and power. 

Point  - another ideology conveyed by the producers of KOTV is related to genre conventions. By using tried and tested genre conventions, the producers are clearly motivated by power and profit

Evidence and analysis

Horror conventions including blood, gore, lust, violence, foreign countries, sexuality, MES of low key lighting, bats, create a conventional and even boring mode of address for the target audience. Simple and straightforward to make the most money possible

Point - Dumbledore also uses a completely straightforward presentation of genre in order to appeal to mass audience

Evidence and analysis

Wands, castles, fire, gold lighting, animals, fantasy font, lexis of 'magic' again appeal to the audience through their familiarity. Once more, the producers of SOD use a simple and straightforward ideology to appeal to the largest audience possible

Revision: what kind of questions can come up for the newspaper industry?

Knowing the keywords is the key (lol) to the newspaper industry section...

The following 'keywords' could come up for any of the questions on the newspaper industry. In fact, even more could come up. But if you're comfortable with all of these terms, you will absolutely smash the exam. Some you may just have to define ('Explain what vertical integration entails [2]'), and some may form the basis of longer questions ('To what extent is the newspaper industry a specialised industry? Make reference to The Times to support your answer [12]')

• Production (how something is made. Newspapers are made on an EXTREMELY tight schedule by specialised people in specialised roles. Journalists will investigate and research stories, editors will edit the stories, and senior editors will choose where a story goes. The slang term 'if it bleeds it leads' can be used to determine if something is 'newsworthy' 
• Distribution (how a product is given out. To keep things really simple: print or digital)
• Circulation (for print editions, how many copies are printed and distributed. For online media, this term has all kinds of meaning, but clicks and visits is often used instead)
• Specialisation (every media industry does something really well, and newspapers are no different. Newspapers work on a system of obtaining big, exclusive, and scandalous news stories that will appeal to their audience. Pretty much the second it's published, it's 'old news' ie worthless...)
• Technological changes (how technology has changed. Basically, for newspapers, a shift online has massively hurt paper circulation figures. Google this right now to find out how much the sales of both newspapers have dipped in the last decade!!!_ 
• Ownership (who owns the product. Being owned by a big, right wing multinational like News Corp. News UK clearly has created a biased product, but Reach PLC also create a simple, straightforward product for the purpose of profit and power)
• Conglomeration (the process of a big company buying out smaller companies. News Corp love to do this)
• Vertical/horizontal integration (how an organisation is structured. Horizontal means the organisation owns different companies in the same sector, vertical means different sectors in the chain of production and distribution. A good example of vertical integration is News Corp, who used to own everything, before Disney bought it off them)
• Economic factors (anything to do with CASH MONEY)
• Marketing and promotion (how newspapers are marketed and promoted. Sorry)
• Regulation (the rules and restrictions media products must follow. Most newspapers follow IPSO's voluntary guidelines, but they break them all the time, for example reporting on suicide and intruding in to personal lives of private citizens)
• Digital technologies (anything to do with computers. Websites for example)
• How newspapers are shaped by ownership (Reach PLC is a big horizontally corporation that owns many, mainly local newspapers. But News UK is a subsidiary of News Corp, a MASSSSSSIVE multinational conglomerate, that very much pushes a right wing agenda to keep taxation and government interference as low as possible!!)
• Digital convergence (the coming together of previously separate industries thanks to digital technologies, eg the hypermodal links from newspaper websites to social media accounts)
• Global issues (the issues that affect the world, eg financial crises and war. These may contrast with smaller, local issues)
• Individual producers (individual audience members making things, eg bloggers and commenters)
• Diversification (where a company branches out in to other things for the reasons of profit and power)

...but, everything needs to be backed up with examples from the 'Nazanin' case studies, and/or the websites for The Mirror and The Times (you can also use other select examples, for example The Daily Mail 'apologising' to Megan Markle, and the Daily Mail using their website to voyeuristically fetishize women to their target audience...)

How are newspapers shaped by ownership? Make reference to The Daily Mirror/The Times in order to support your points [12]

The masthead used by The Times establishes this as an exclusive product targeting a middle class and right leaning target audience. It is a conventional masthead that reflects a conservative worldview

Who owns each paper?

The Mirror - produced by Reach PLC - horizontally integrated newspaper company that produces a verity of newspapers including The Mirror, The Daily Star, and a whole range of local newspapers. They are a highly specialised company. Mirror is left leaning

The Times - produced and published by News UK, a subsidiary of News Corp. News Corp are a vast conglomerate who own a range of different media companies. Right wing newspaper. Supports right wing ideologies such as paying less tax and stripping public services 

Introduction 

The Times is a right leaning broadsheet newspaper targeting a middle class, middle aged and conservative target audience. It is owned by News UK, a subsidiary of of News Corp, who are a vertically and horizontally integrated international conglomerate. This has completely shaped how the Times is made.

Paragraph frames

P - One way in which The Times is shaped by ownership is through its selection of stories

E - An excellent example of this is through it's focus on hard news, international and political stories. The front page includes a hard hitting and difficult to read story focusing on the invasion of Ukraine that will appeal to a middle class and middle aged audience...

Significant costs of international reporting 

P - Another way in which The Times is shaped by it's ownership is through it's funding 

E - The times website is blocked by an expensive, 26£/month paywall, which once more will appeal to a middle class audience. This significant price will appeal to a certain target audience through its exclusivity

P -A final way in which The Times is shaped through it's ownership is through it's right wing, conservative bias

E - An excellent example of this is how a hard hitting story about Boris Johnson flouting covid laws is buried on page 20 of the newspaper, which suggests that this story is somehow less important and is even soft news

Only a huge, international, conglomerate could fund a newspaper like this!

Everything you need to know about the component one exam in 2022

If you are reading this in 2023 or beyond, hold your horses! This information ONLY applies to the May 2022 version of the component 2 exam! Check out elsewhere for information, because this will just confuse you!

General

 

• Your first exam is on Friday morning
• It is called component one
• There are two sections in this exam, section A (media language and representation, UNSEEN), and section B (industry and audience)
• You should spend 90 minutes on section A and 45 minutes on section B
• Each question is on a different aspect of media (media language, representation, industry and audience). You should make sure you are talking about the right thing in the right question. ALWAYS LINK EVERYTHING BACK TO THE QUESTION
• Underline the key terms in each question
• Do a plan for question one and question two (music video and film poster), and put it on your answer paper. You get marks for the plan

 

Section A

 

Question 1

 

• You will be shown a music video you have never seen before, twice.
• This will link to a media language question.
• This question will be 15 marks and you should spend 30 minutes on it
• Good theorists to use here are Roland Barthes and Claude Levi-Strauss

 

Question 2

 

• You will be given a film poster you have never seen before.
• You will be asked to write about it and also the poster to Kiss Of The Vampire.
• You will not be given the Kiss Of The Vampire Poster
• This question will be a representation question, but you will also have to talk about media language (analysis)
• This question will be 30 marks, and you should spend 60 minutes on it
• Good theorists to use here are Liesbet Van Zoonen, Stuart Hall (representation), Gilroy and hooks

 

Top tips

 

• if the exam starts on time, then you should move on to section B no later than 10:30 am (10:50 if you have extra time)
• Don’t worry if you get through section A more quickly than 90 minutes, but don’t spend too little time on it. The examiner is expecting to see a LOT of writing!

 

Section B

 

Question 3

 

• This question is split in to lots of sub questions
• The questions will add up to 25 marks
• It will be on the newspaper industry
• You should spend 25 minutes on the newspaper industry
• The questions will be about industry
• You should spend one minute per mark
• You will be expected to talk about the newspapers we studied during revision (the ‘Nazanin papers’)
• You will also be expected to talk about the websites for both the Mirror and The Times
• A good way to revise for this question is to make flashcards for all the industry terms, to re-read the ‘Nazanin papers’, and to check out the websites for the Mirror and The Times (you can use any stories you want to back up your answers)
• Good theorists to use here are Livingstone and Lunt, Curran and Seaton and Hesmondhalgh

 

Question 4

 

• This question is also split in to sub questions, probably two
• The questions will add up to 20 marks
• You should spend 20 minutes on this question
• This question/s will focus on WaterAid and audience
• A good way to revise this question is to watch the WaterAid advert 10000000 times and make notes on how it appeals to it’s audiences and how audiences can respond to it
• Good theorists to use here are Stuart Hall (reception) and David Gauntlet (identity)
• If you talk about representations here, good! But Always link them back to audience, otherwise you won’t be answering the question

 

Top tips

 

• Be strict with timings in section B
• Don’t worry if you don’t write quite as much. The examiner is expecting to see ten minutes of work for a ten mark question

 

Revision - representation, reality and The House With A Clock In Its Walls

Compare how the poster for The House With A Clock In Its Walls and the poster for KOTV construct versions of reality. In your answer you must: 

• consider the choices media producers make when constructing versions of reality 
• consider the similarities and differences in the representations 
• make judgements and draw conclusions about how far the representations relate to relevant media contexts. [30]

Versions of reality - every media product makes claims about what is real. The ideology of a media product is encoded by the producer. However, the audience also comes to a conclusion by decoding the producer's ideology

DAC

Every media producer constructs a version of reality when making a media product. It is up to the audience to decode and to interpret the message of the producer. In this essay, I shall argue that that both of these film posters construct completely different versions of reality. Kiss Of The Vampire is a 1963 British horror film produced by Hammer, and is in the vampire subgenre.

Paragraphs 

Point - One way in which [X] makes claims about reality is through it's representation of...

Evidence - (media language)

Analysis - Why does the producer do this? What effect does this have on the audience? Any theory?

Example paragraph

One way in which The House Of Clocks makes claims about reality is through it's representation of women. In particular, it simultaneously subverts and conforms to stereotypical representations of gender. For example, Blanchett's warm and welcoming smile is indicative of a motherly figure, and indicates to the target audience that she is a comforting character. This is further anchored the MES of her grey hair, which has symbolic connotations of a stereotypical older person. This communicates a motherly persona that will appeal to a younger target audience. However, this is also a highly subversive representation. Older women are often not represented in this way, and by being given equal billing with Jack Black , this reinforces Blanchett's importance. Additionally, Blanchett is hegemonically attractive. The MES of her makeup, her stylish hair which is neatly presented and the elegance of her costume all combine to create a subversive representation of an older woman. 

However, in KOTV, the representations of women are significantly more stereotypical and straightforward....

Plan 

• Hyperreality
• positioning (audience)
• Historical contexts

Paragraphs

1 - KOTV - Representation of women - dominant, powerful, atypical, sexualised
2 - Clocks - Representation of women - dominant, powerful, atypical, not sexualised
3 - KOTV - Representations and genre - typical of their genre, sexualised women, bleak, foreign setting
4 - Clock - Representations and genre - typical of genre - dark fantasy/horror/family hybrid - less sexualisation, inclusion of child
5 - Representations of men - KOTV, atypical, challenging
6 - Representations of men - Clock film, typical, hegemonically unattractive, double standard

Media language and House Clocks

• Mid shot/2 shot of characters standing side by side indicate equal status
• Blanchett is softly smiling, which connotes a warm gentle friendly persona. Stereotypical representation of women
• Gender performativity: conform to stereotypes, and reinforces patriarchal hegemony 
• Conventions of family films: MES of golden sparks, typical of the fantasy genre
• Golden, high key lighting connotes family audience
• Iconography of magic, eg MES of golden light, the purple ball of power, MES of wand
• Intertextual reference to other fantast films eg Harry potter
• Horror conventions eg prop of skull, crescent moon, silhouette of branches etc
• Genre hybridity 
• Black's beard is neat and well groomed, which reinforces stereotypically masculine ideologies 
• MES of costumes: connotations of intelligence, status and power
• Binary opposition between active male and passive female 
• Proairetic code of fireball reinforces stereotype of active, aggressive male 
• Narrative codes: indicated through MES
• Established actors are larger and indicate their star power

Revision: Newspaper question run-through 2

 3. (a) Briefly explain what is meant by diversification in media industries. [2]

Diversification refers to the variety of different ways in which media industries make money. Previously newspapers used to come in one format: physical, paper copies. However now, the newspaper industry has moved online, for example through apps, subscriptions to websites, email notifications, TV news, free websites, social media. This is for the purposes of profit and power.

(b) Explain the impact of recent technological changes on the newspaper industry. Refer to The Times to support your answer. [8]

• Shift to online media by audiences has completely changed the newspaper industry
• Younger people now access news media through social media, apps and websites
• The Times 2020 - 365,000
• 2009 - 600,000
• This is a substantial decline in circulation!!!!!
• The Times website is hidden behind a paywall. £26/month
• Targeting a middle class audience
• Diversification
• Curran and Seaton, power and profit 
• Daily Mail sidebar of shame, sexualised soft news presents female celebrities in a scandalous way. Appeals to a massive new audience
• Comments on websites such as the daily mirror allow audiences to gossip about scandalous topics, and avoid some regulatory issues

In Question 3(c), you will be rewarded for drawing together knowledge and understanding from across your full course of study, including different areas of the theoretical framework and media contexts.

(c) Explain how the producers of newspapers ensure their financial success. Refer to The Daily Mirror to support your points. [15]

• The sole purpose of every media product is to make money, and The Daily Mirror is no exception.
• Lexis of headline functions as an hermeneutic code
• Mixture of hard and soft news, even in the same article
• Lexis of 'MP killer' is highly informal scandalous mode of address for the working class target audience
• Celebrity gossip and a focus on soft news
• 'William and Kate' creates a relatable mode of address to the target audience
• Focus on stories about royal family will appeal to the working class target audience
• Scandalous online stories, for example a Ukrainian refugee who 'ran off with dad" invites comments from audience, increasing audience engagement
• Mirror Online uses extensive clickbait advertising to make money. Audience engagement 
• Diversification, for example links to online Bingo and other forms of gambling make money for the publishers
• Reach PLC specialise in publishing newspapers, especially local newspapers, and are a horizontally integrated company. They do one thing, and they do it well
• Use of stereotypically hegemonically attractive women such as Kate Middleton and Nazanin Ratcliffe on the front cover is an excellent example of the male gaze theory 
• By presenting such a restricted lexis, and taking such an informal mode of address, the producers of the daily mirror maximise their revenue by cultivating the stereotype that working class audiences can only access basic, straightforward news. This mode of address is not only condescending and degrading, but also cultivates a self-fulfilling prophesy, where the working class audience are essentially told they are stupid, over and over again. By telling the working class audience that they can only understand a simple and straightforward lexis, Reach PLC ensure that the same working class audience will access their newspaper and website every day, thus ensuring maximum financial success. 

Revision: Comparing Woman and Adbusters 2

How does media language reinforce and cultivate dominant ideological perspectives? Make reference to the set editions of Woman and Adbusters

Dominant ideology refers to the generally accepted norms and ideas in our society. An ideology is a belief held by the producer. Media products typically encode ideologies through media language. In this essay I shall argue that woman magazine presents a sexist, stereotypical and straightforward ideology to it's target audience, while Adbusters uses media language to attempt to incite revolution.

Woman presents a manipulative mode of address to reinforce it's dominant ideology. One excellent example of this is the Are You An A-level Beauty makeup tutorial. The lexis used throughout the article is both forced and domineering, for example "brightens a dull complexation", which infers that the target audience are both dull and unattractive and must follow a tutorial to be hegemonically attractive. The repetition of the lexis 'A-level ' conveys and reinforces an ideology that the target audience are less educated, and will benefit from Woman magazine's education. This is anchored through the layout, which is simple, straightforward, but also packed with detailed information. This busy and full on mode of address makes a clear assumption that women require step by step guidance on how to look hegemonically attractive. 

• Condescending mode of address constructed through the lexis of 'A-level'
• Uses the term 'girls' to refer towards a middle aged audience
• Direct address of MES of eyes staring at the target audience: intimidating and manipulative

However, Adbusters presents a complex set of ideologies, which present a confusing and offensive mode of address. The Louboutin double page spread presents a highly polysemic mode of address that is simultaneously offensive and challenging. A clear binary opposition is constructed between high end fashion and absolute poverty. A black and white mid shot of screaming refugees behind the grim MES of barbed wire is set against a conventionally attractive set of catwalk model's legs. This is further reinforced through the rich, royal pink of the garment in opposition to the bleak black and white of the refugee camp. This binary opposition constructs a complex set of ideologies. The target audience are addressed as the greedy, selfish problem that is completely ripping apart our society. This aggressive and offensive mode of address constructs a highly anticapitalist and revolutionary ideology. Adbusters expects it's target audience to violently challenge the capitalist system in which we live in. In a recent tweet, the producers argue the audience should go out and deflate tyres as well as other forms of vandalism. 

The end.

Revision: representation, historical contexts and Jungle Cruise

In this session, we prepped a plan to the representation unseen question in C1A. I encourage you to check this out, and then to complete your own response to the question under timed conditions. 30 marks is one hour, or 75 minutes for students with extra time

How do historical contexts affect the representation of issues? Make reference to Kiss of the Vampire and the poster for Jungle Cruise (2021)

Issues

• Power
• Sexism 
• Horror
• Inequality 
• Racism

Media language - Jungle Cruise

• Hierarchy of characters and importance through size
• Atypical representations of men and women
• MES of costume
• Buttoned up safari shirt
• Non-sexualised representations
• Low key and high key lighting creates a binary opposition
• Makeup of Blunt is subtle 
• Makeup of villain is more extreme and exotic. Another binary opposition 
• Binary opposition between men and women 
• MES of Johnson's extremely muscular physique 
• MS emphasises binary opp between men and women 
• Low angle shot demonstrates power f the main characters
• Binary opposition between civilisation and wilderness 
• American vs non-American
• MES of painted composition presents a classic mode of address
• Tomboy, atypical representation

Kiss of the Vampire - Media language

• Low angle shot connotes power
• MES of character levels, hierarchy
• Low key lighting, conventional of horror films
• Dark colours, night, threatening themes
• Light vs dark
• Innocence and corruption
• Sexual connotations
• Suits vs dresses
• Atypical sexualisation of men
• Typical sexualisation of women - skin-tight dresses

Paragraphs

1. Sexist representations in KOTV
2. Atypical representations of women in Jungle Cruise
3. Gender roles in KOTV - conforms to Van zoonen's theory
4. Gender roles in Jungle Cruise - challenges van zoonen's theory 
5. Postcolonial theory - KOTV, British people in foreign country
6. Postcolonial theory - Jungle cruise, Americans in a foreign country

Revision: comparing Woman and Adbusters 1

 To what extent does cultural context influence how magazines create meaning? Make reference to the set editions of Woman and Adbusters

This bathtub is over £5000 at retail. Adbusters present an anticapitalist ideology that challenges such excessive consumerism. But they do so in a deliberately confusing, atypical manner, that lacks any form of anchorage or even context. This makes Adbusters a highly subversive and challenging magazine!

Cultural context refers to the context that exists at the time a media product is made. In this essay, I shall argue that both magazines I have studied completely reflect the cultural context of the time in which they were made, through their own specific uses of media language. In order to argue this, I shall be comparing Woman, a woman's lifestyle magazine first published in the 1930's that was selling millions of copies in the 1960's, and is wholly sexist, stereotypical and straightforward, and Adbusters , an unconventional magazine that addresses niche political issues and completely lacks any form of anchorage or any paid for advertising.

One excellent and striking way that Woman magazine reflects the social and cultural context of 1964 is through it's paid for advertising. Roughly 1/3 of a magazine's revenue comes form advertising, and since woman magazine reaches such a vast audience, advertisers will pay a premium. The Breeze soap advert presents a heavily sexualised representation of a young, hegemonically attractive woman. This is reinforced through the MES of the model's slim figure and her lack of clothing. Her nudity is emphasised through her performance, with her legs playfully propped up, and her breasts partially covered by her arms. The suggestive placement of the MES of soap constructs a highly sexualised symbolic code, constructing an ideology that be be feminine, one must be clean and also hegemonically sexually attractive. This further anchored through the use of lexis "because you are a woman", which further enhances the ideological perspective that not only are the target audience clearly women, but they must listen to and accept a particularly demanding mode of address. The advert takes an explicit and sexualised mode of address in order to manipulate its easily influenced and less educated target audience. This ideological representation is clearly present to uphold patriarchal hegemony, and therefore can be seen as both highly damaging and sexist. This reinforces the attitudes towards women during the 1960s. 

However, Adbusters takes a completely different approach to the representation of women. In the Zucchetti double page spread, a striking similar image of a nude woman in the bath is used. However, remarkably, the nude woman in Adbusters is not even slightly sexualised. This is a surprisingly atypical representation of a woman.

• MES of bland, dull, desaturated colours
• MES of wrinkly hands suggests abundance of water
• MES of tattoos may have associations with poverty and a criminal lifestyle 
• A highly polysemic representation of women, which can be interpreted in many different ways
• bell hooks - feminism is for everyone: a challenging representation of a non sexualised woman
• A deliberate statemen and an attempt to challenge the sexualised representation of women 

Another way in which the cultural context influences meaning in adbusters is through it's complete lack of anchorage...

These elements of media language combine to construct a complex set of ideologies. This is important, as Adbusters reflects the cultural and social issues that are important in modern society. 

Revision music

 Maybe you work better in complete silence. But for me, I work better when I'm listening to music. Different genres of music produce different results. Personally, I prefer to listen to something busy, loud and repetitive, but something jazzy and improvisational works as well.

Here are a bunch of longer mixes on Youtube in a variety of different genres. It's mostly instrumental, but I'll issue a content warning for swearing.

If you are in the mood for Japanese jazz that sounds like it's
from an advert for yachts, look no further

UK techno 
'Intelligent' drum and bass
More drum and bass
Ambient videogame D&B
Ambient
Erik Satie: piano works
Vaporwave
Detroit techno 
Mid 90's videogames
German romantic classical
French impressionist classical
Jazz
Yacht jazz

Advanced media session 4: the newspaper industry

In 2022, we know the newspaper industry will come up. We also know that it will come up in component one section b, and the questions will be related to media industries.

What does this mean?

Media industry questions are all about HARD FACTS.

It's a part of the exam, perhaps the only part of the exam, which does NOT rely on media language to show knowledge and understanding. Any references you make to the newspapers should be simple, straightforward, and should be related to key terms.

You can find more information about the newspaper industry for 2022 by clicking here. 

And you can find the section b case studies that we used by clicking here.

Past paper walkthrough 

3. (a) Briefly explain what is meant by horizontal integration. [2]

Where one company owns other companies in the same media form/in the same sector. For example, Reach PLC specialise in publishing newspapers, in particular local newspapers, for example Cambridge news, and national newspapers, for example The Daily mirror. 

(b) Briefly explain the function of the IPSO in the newspaper industry. [2]

IPSO stands for the independent press standards organisation, and IPSO regulates the newspaper industry in the UK. IPSO are an independent regulator. IPSO is a voluntary code of conduct, which makes it ineffective. 

(c) Explain the role of regulation in the distribution of newspapers. The Daily Mirror [9]

• Regulations are rules that media products must follow. Digital convergence has made online regulation of newspapers much more ineffective. In order to explore this, I will be looking at The Daily Mirror.
• One rule set out by IPSO seeks to prevent libellous or invasive information being published by newspapers. An excellent example of an article which almost breaks this rule is the double page spread article on 'Putin's secret family'. This article releases private information on alleged family members of the dictator. This could have the effect of invading the privacy of the alleged family of Putin, which has ethical issues. However, the newspaper does not technically break any rules, as the word 'daughter' is included in quotation marks. Therefore it can be argued that IPSO is ineffective at regulating newspapers and protecting the privacy of private citizens. 
• Scandalous, invasive soft news story targeting a working class audience
• Simon Cowell on e-bike: invasion of privacy. However, it's in a public space/in the public interest
• Clickbait articles/adverts, manipulative of the audience
• Barely moderated comment section

In Question 3(d) you will be rewarded for drawing together knowledge and understanding from across your full course of study, including different areas of the theoretical framework and media contexts.

(d) Explain the ways in which social and political contexts may influence broadsheet newspapers. Make reference to The Times to support your answers [12]

• The Times is owned by News UK, a subsidiary of a vast corporation. 
• This conglomerate is owned by the oligarch Rupert Murdoch
• Murdoch has far right ideologies
• Therefore Murdoch will promote and cultivate right wing ideologies in order to promote right wing ideologies to his working class and middle class audiences. This will in turn manipulate audiences in to voting for right wing parties
• News Corp owns a vast amount of subsidiaries, including Fox and Sky
• Publish a vast amount of newspapers, including The Sun
• Times is completely different from the Sun in order to keep the two brands sperate. This allows a completely different audience to be targeted 
• Brand identity 
• Times appeals to a right wing, middle class audience
• Sophisticated lexis
• Dense copy
• Representation of Nazanin: clearly middle class and with a white husband, which reinforces hegemonic norms 
• Selection of stories appeal to a middle class audience, for example taxation of expensive cars
• News story about Johnson breaking covid laws buried on page 20: clear example of bias
• Focus on hard news stories suggests that only middle class audiences can understand sophisticated political debates. This also suggests that the readers of the working class sun, cannot, and this reinforces hegemonic norms

I came up with these questions by going on the past papers tab on the blog, finding a bunch of industry questions 

A-level exam paper Autumn 2021

Component one

SECTION A: ANALYSING MEDIA LANGUAGE AND REPRESENTATION

Representation

Question 1 is based on both of the following:

• the audio-visual resource – an advertisement for ActionAid (2018)

• the set music video you have studied – Riptide (2013).

You will be allowed one minute to read Question 1. The advertisement will be shown three times.

First viewing: watch the advertisement.

Second viewing: watch the advertisement and make notes.

You will then have five minutes to make further notes.

Third viewing: watch the advertisement and make final notes.

Once the third viewing has finished, you should answer Question 1.

You can view the ActionAid advertisement by clicking here

1. Compare how the representations of gender in this ActionAid advertisement and the Riptide music video convey values and attitudes. [30]

In your answer you must:

• consider the similarities in how representations of gender convey values and attitudes

• consider the differences in how representations of gender convey values and attitudes

• make judgements and draw conclusions about how far the representations of gender relate to social contexts.

Media Language

Question 2 is based on the print resource, a film poster for Among The Shadows (2019). Study the resource carefully before answering the question.

2. Explore how genre codes and conventions communicate meaning in this film poster. [15]

SECTION B: UNDERSTANDING MEDIA INDUSTRIES AND AUDIENCES

3. (a) What is meant by commercial radio? [2]

(b) Briefly explain what you understand by a public service broadcaster. [2]

(c) Explain the effect of digital technologies on the distribution of radio programmes.

Refer to Late Night Woman’s Hour to support your points. [9]

In Question 3(d), you will be rewarded for drawing together knowledge and understanding from across your full course of study, including different areas of the theoretical framework and media contexts.

(d) Explain how radio programmes are shaped by the organisations that produce them. Refer to Late Night Woman’s Hour to support your points. [12]

4. (a) Explain how audiences use news products in different ways. Refer to The Times website to support your points. [10]

(b) Explain how social and cultural circumstances affect audience interpretations of newspaper content. Refer to a print edition of the Daily Mirror to support your points. [10]

Component 2

SECTION A – TELEVISION IN THE GLOBAL AGE

Option 2: Humans and The Returned

2. Steve Neale argues that genres may be dominated by repetition, but they are also marked by difference, variation and change.

Evaluate this theory of genre. Use the set episodes of Humans and The Returned to support your answer. [30]

SECTION B – MAGAZINES: MAINSTREAM AND ALTERNATIVE MEDIA

Option 1: Woman and Adbusters

4. To what extent do social and cultural contexts influence audience interpretations of magazines? Refer to the set editions of Woman and Adbusters to support your answer. [30]

SECTION C – MEDIA IN THE ONLINE AGE

Option 2: Zoe Sugg / Zoella and Attitude

8. (a) Explain the impact of the internet and online platforms such as YouTube on media regulation. Refer to Zoe Sugg / Zoella in your response. [15]

(b) Explore how the Attitude website challenges the misrepresentation of minority groups. [15]

Revision: Binary oppositions and Adbusters

Claude Levi-Strauss argues that our comprehension of the world is entirely contingent of a range of diametrically opposed concepts. Evaluate this structuralist theory. Make reference to the set editions of Woman and Adbusters

Knee jerk reaction: we make sense of the world through binary oppositions

DAC introduction

Binary oppositions are where two concepts or ideologies are presented against each other, as opposites. In this essay, I shall argue binary oppositions are an essential part of how we and how audiences make sense of the world. In order to explore this idea, I shall be looking Woman magazine, a 1964 women's lifestyle magazine which extensively uses stereotypical representations, and is typical of it's genre, and Adbusters, a progressive and confrontational magazine that combines a range of atypical genres including political ,anti capitalist and art and design.

Women magazine presents a series of highly stereotypical and straightforward ideologies to it's target audience, for the purpose of maintaining patriarchal hegemony. The front cover contains many examples of this...

Adbusters presents a confusing mode of address to it's target audiences, as it lacks any form of anchorage. An excellent example of it's atypical approach can be found on the 'homeless woman' double page spread

• Layout of magazine positions the homeless woman in the front and centre of the right hand page, She is constructed through a mid shot, which reinforces and cultivates the ideology that the homeless woman is small and vulnerable. 
• Additionally, the audience are positioned in in a direct mode of address, and additionally a relatable and uncomfortable mode of address. By being positioned as passer by, the audience are forced to make a choice; to either help the woman or not to help. However, since we are distanced from her through a lack of anchorage, which positions the audience is a simultaneously guilty and privileged mode of address. This deep and symbolic binary opposition constructs a highly confusing mode of address for the target audience. 
• However, on the other side of the double page page spread is a binary opposition of the homeless woman. A close up shot of a hegemonically attractive model. The model is addressing the audience directly, with a facial expression that connotes sophistication and drama. The model lacks stereotypical codes of either male or female identity, that makes them highly androgynous. It is not immediately clear what this model symbolises, or their relation to wither the homeless woman, the written extract, or even the lexis of '350 PPM. This constructs a highly confusing and atypical mode of address for the target audience. 
• However, a highly polysemic set of meanings are constructed. Some audiences may conclude that the model and the homeless woman construct a deep and symbolic binary opposition between absolute luxury and absolute poverty. The lexis 350ppm is related to pollution and climate change. However, a huge assumption is being made of the audience that they are engaged in political and environmental issues, and that they will implicitly understand what is being bought up here. 
• The Adbusters Media Foundation are therefore making a huge assumption of their target audience: that they are highly educated and will understand the issues being presented here. However, even less educated audience members will certainly understand the binary opposition between rich and power, and between wealth and inequality. This potentially allows adbusters to target a larger and more diverse audience. 

Revision: Adbusters Cover analysis

 

• Adbusters presents a deliberately confrontational mode of address, which is emphasised through it's total lack of anchorage 
• MES of the costume of the cover model has militaristic connotations, due to the camouflage colours and the utility pockets. This has significant connotations of war, death and threat, which are potentially highly alarming to the target audience. 
• Unconventional positioning of the masthead creates a confusing and atypical layout for the target audience. By changing the masthead every time, Adbusters not only lacks consistency, it also lacks brand identity. Adbusters brand identity is trashy, confusing, and contradictory. By changing the masthead every issue, the magazine is committing a significant financial risk. Adbusters presents an anticapitalistic, anti profit ideology that goes against hegemonic capitalist ideas in our society.
• Not for profit, makes enough money to keep making the magazine
• Adbusters presents a progressive range of ideologies and a desire to change society. This is symbolically encoded through the constantly changing house style of the magazine. Adbusters asks the audience to reject capitalism and brands, and other hegemonic conventions. 

Adbusters is
Complicated
Challenging
Atypical
Deliberately confrontational
Polysemic

• The MES of the brown 'dirt' covering the model and the masthead has many polysemic interpretations. Some audiences will decode that this is mud, and this will reinforce connotations of war, death and barbarity. Other audiences may see it as film grain, which has connotations of damage and age and general degradation. However, the dirt effect is actually an attempt to make the front cover look badly and cheaply printed, which obscures several key elements. This may simply be to capture the audience's attention and provide a unique selling point. However, this cheap looking printing also constructs a deliberately trashy punk ideology, that challenges the viewers expectations of what a magazine should look like. Additionally, it reminds the target audience that we live in a dangerous, complicated and dirty world filled with danger. 
• The cover model is screaming towards the audience in an angry and direct mode of address. This further anchors the magazines confrontational status. Additionally, the combination of the model's middle eastern ethnicity, combined with the lack of anchorage constructs him as a stereotypical terrorist. By forcing the audience through the lack of anchorage to come to a stereotyped and even racist conclusion, the magazine is positioning the audience in a deeply confrontational and unpleasant mode of address.
• The main and only cover line uses the lexis post west, which presents many polysemic meanings for the target audience. One interpretation is that it refers to the destruction of the Western world, and the state of the world that we know will soon end. This is clearly highly confrontational, and extremely unpleasant for the target audience.
• We live in a confusing and difficult to understand world
• By using the term west, the magazine is using deliberately confrontational and othering language language, that forces the audience to confront their prejudices
• Adbusters presents a nihilistic ideology to it's target audience that suggests that nothing matters, and there is nothing that we can do to change anything While this may in fact be true, it limits the usefulness of the magazine, and arguably positions the audience as the problem. this condescending mode of address arguably desensitises the audience to real problems

Revision: Analysing the front cover to the set edition of Woman magazine

R block 

How have the conventions of the genres of the magazines you have studied changed over time? (sorry this question is a bit wonky but you get where I'm coming from...)

Genre refers to a type of media product. Genre is important as it allows the producer to use conventions to target a specific audience. I shall argue that both the genres of both the magazines I have studied have changed wildly over time. In order to make this argument, I shall be looking at the 1964 edition of Woman, a highly conventional women's lifestyle magazine targeting a very straightforward audience, and Adbusters, a highly atypical magazine that broadly targets an activist and countercultural audience. 

• One way in which Woman conforms to the genre conventions of the woman's lifestyle magazine is through it's highly typical for the time sexist representations of women. 
• MES of the light purple background has symbolic connotations of femininity, and reinforces stereotypical expectations of the female target audience
• Lexis of the word kitchen makes a strong assumption that 'all women' are interested in cooking, and reinforces stereotypes
• Lexis of the term 'lingerie' as opposed to a more neutral term like 'underwear' implies that the middle aged female target audience should be living up to expectations of sexual attractiveness. This reinforces hegemonic norms and objectifies the target audience
• Lexis of 'A-level beauty' helps to construct standards of hegemonic beauty norms. Conventional of the woman's lifestyle magazine, as it is a standard feature
• Lexis of the term 'A-level' suggests a level of expertise obtainable by older teenagers. By using this term, the producer is insinuating the target audience is naïve and must 'revise' their knowledge of beauty. Highly patronising mode of address
• Lexis of 'British women' suggests that British women are more significant and more capable than other women, which reinforces nationalistic ideologies
• Font of masthead is serif, which has connotations of informality through resembling handwriting. This presents an informal, even childish mode of address. This infers a less educated, working class audience. This reflects the realities of being a woman in the 1960s, where typically women would have less of a standard of education
• MES of floral dress reinforces sociohistorical expectations that women should appear beautiful for the gratification of the patriarchy. By conforming to the genre conventions for the women's lifestyle magazine, the producer of Woman is constructing a straightforward identity for the target audience to identify with. 
• Performance of the warm and friendly, yet simultaneously uncomfortable smile of the front cover model is highly conventional of the genre. The excessive, over the top nature of her smile is typical of the expectations that women face in society. The excessively smiling woman therefore reinforces patriarchal hegemonic values of the producer, and helps the magazine to target a basic and straightforward female target audience. 
• Direct mode of address constructed through 'for your kitchen' suggests a straightforward and easily influenced target audience. 
• Minimal use of makeup on model, which reinforces ideologies of 'natural beauty', and an expectation that women should be beautiful if they are to have any societal value 
• Lexis of Alfred Hitchcock suggests a patriarchal hierarchy. Despite the mag being called Woman, the name of a man is given top billing...

T block

To what extent are the magazines you have studied typical of their genre?

Genre is a way of categorising media products. Genre is important for audiences as it allows them to identify different products. In this essay I shall argue that one of the magazines I have studied is typical of it's genre, yet the other is completely atypical. In order to explore this, I shall compare the 1964 edition of Woman magazine, a woman's lifestyle magazine which appeals to a highly stereotypical audience, and Adbusters, a highly subversive magazine which appeals to extremely niche audiences.

• Lexis of Seven Star Improvements For Your kitchen anchors the audience to the opinion that this magazine is luxurious and glamourous. However, this mode of address reinforces a sexist hegemonic norm. 
• MES of calligraphy/handwritten typeface of the Masthead 'Woman' emphasises the stereotypically feminine feel to the composition of the front cover. It also has connotations of luxury, and a classic, old fashioned feel even in 1964. An established brand. 
• Masthead font is in serif, which has connotations of femininity and an informal mode of address
• MES of the gold highlights to the featured cover lines is symbolic of love, luxury and femininity
• Lexis of "lingerie" has connotations of luxury, but also of sexualisation. This reinforces a then popularly held hegemonic norm that in order to be successful, women must be hegemonically beautiful. This in turn reinforces patriarchal hegemonic beauty standard of women. 
• MES of the makeup of the cover model constructs an ideology and hegemonic norms that women should look flawless. This is a classic example of the male gaze, and reinforces sexist stereotypes
• Cultivates hegemonic patriarchal norms through repeating ideological perspectives
• Lexis of the cover line 'A-level beauty' reinforces the ideology that in order to be successful, women must conform to beauty standards, eg makeup
• A-level is an 'advanced' level exam, and explicitly ranking women is an example of dehumanisation, and considers only 'advanced' level 'beauties' as being important
• Lexis of 'A-level beauty' example of infantilization, and compares the adult target audience to a much younger teenager. Additionally, this reinforces the ideological perspective that in order to be attractive, a woman must look significantly younger
• Direct mode of address made by the model staring directly in to the camera. The preferred reading of this gesture is to cultivate a friendly mode of address, which is further anchored through the personal feel of the handwritten masthead
• The combination of stereotypically feminine elements cultivates and constructs a target audience which is highly stereotypical, and will agree with the ideology of the producer
• But why is Woman magazine so sexist and straightforward? Partly because of the time in which it was made, but there were many societal changes happening in the 1960's, including access to contraception and the struggle of the women's liberation movement. 
• By presenting a simple, straightforward and easy to understand ideology, Woman magazine is able to appeal to the largest audience possible, and therefore make the most money. Therefore it's sexist ideologies are purely motivated by power and profit. And, by reinforcing patriarchal hegemonic values, Woman magazine helps to construct a simple and basic world where men are in charge, and women are subordinate. 

P block

How do the magazines you have studied use media language to convey their genre?

• Cover model is stereotypically hegemonically attractive, and will function as an aspirational role model for the target middle aged audience. The model selected is in her late 20's to early 30's, which is younger than the target audience, and constructs the hegemonic value that in order to be beautiful, the audience must look as young as possible. 
• The MES of the purple backdrop is a highly stereotypical 'feminine' colour, lilac, the colour of flowers and this reinforces the ideology in order to be stereotypically feminine, a woman should be associated with certain colours. Additionally, purple has connotations of luxury. which is further anchored through the selection of gold for the boxout/highlighted cover lines at the bottom. To the working class audience, this constructs an aspirational mode of address. 
• The lexis in the headline associated with the famous film director Alfred Hitchcock directly addresses the target audience. The selection of language "British women have a special magic" functions as a symbolic code, and suggests underlining sexual connotations. Once more, for the target working class audience, to be sexualised by Alfred Hitchcock is an aspirational goal. Furthermore, the lexis "British" is clearly an address to the nationalistic British audience. 
• The makeup of the model is bold and heavy around the eye, which anchors the lexis 'special magic'. The makeup functions as a proairetic code, and suggests a future romantic engagement. This is an excellent example of Van Zoonen's notion of the male gaze, and situates the model as an object of male desire. 
• The MES of the model's piercing eyes and forced and even creepy smile positions the audience in a potentially uncomfortable mode of address. In fact, the cover model looks somewhat uncomfortable to be on the front cover, which creates a relatable mode of address for the target working class female audience. Unlike the representation of glamourous actors on the front cover of Vogue, the cover model for woman magazine, will typically be hegemonically attractive in a realistic and relatable manner. This allows the magazine to target a mass audience of impressionable working class women 
• The masthead uses a bold, flowing serif font which resembles handwriting, and constructs a relatable and and non-threatening mode of address for the target female audience. Additionally, the mastheads forms the start of a z-line in a highly conventional way, typical of the women's lifestyle genre, and creates a simple and straightforward mode of address for the target.
• Lexis of the term lingerie has highly sexual symbolic connotations, and reinforces highly highly sexualised hegemonic norms and expectations for the target audience
• The layout and design is simple, straightforward, and lacks a significant amount of text. This suggests that the target also lacks sophistication, and may not have a high level of education
• The combination of media language creates a highly leading and highly manipulative mode of address, which reinforces many sexist standards. However, n the 1960's many social changes saw increased social and sexual freedom for women. Yet Woman magazine barely acknowledges this. Instead, it clearly and deliberately reinforces patriarchal hegemonic standards. By reinforcing patriarchal standards, Woman magazine constructs both clearly differentiated gender roles, and a hierarchy of gender where men are in charge. By constructing a conservative ideology where the status quo is maintained, Woman magazine actively tells the female audience to be happy with their subservient role in society. And by constructing a stereotypical and conservative female audience who buy the magazine week after week, IPC ensure their financial success. 

Revision: Alfred Hitchcock on women for Woman

Lexis of 'simmering passion' has explicit sexual connotations that reinforce sexist, hegemonic ideologies that would have been popular and accepted at the time

The mid shot of Alfred Hitchock's emphasises his status as being hegemonically unattractive. However, his images is repeated a total of five times across the page, which reinforces his superiority and hegemonic power. The binary opposition formed between the unattractive Hitchcock and the attractive Kelly underlines a double standard that existed and frankly still exists that women are expected to be hegemonically attractive. This is an excellent example of Van Zoonen's assertion that women function as a spectacle for heterosexual men

The lexis of 'snow capped volcanoes' is an extremely sexist comment making reference to his opinion that deep down, British women are all sexually available to him. His highly offensive and discriminatory comments are given top billing in a magazine intended for working class women. In doing so, this reinforces patriarchal ideological perspectives, and cultivates a hierarchy where women are given impunity to act how they wish. It is no surprise that today Alfred Hitchcock is known as a historical sex offender, who terrorises his females actors

Revision: how does the Creme Puff advert reinforce ideologies and viewpoints?

• The lexis of "and now you're perfectly lovely again" holds symbolic connotations. Firstly, it reinforces the ideological perspective that in order to be fully functioning human beings, women require makeup. This is of course anchored by the hyperbolic use of the term "perfect", which once more reinforces hegemonic beauty standards. Furthermore, the word "lovely" has a range of polysemic interpretations. It connotes symbolic interpretations of purity and innocence, and reinforces the ideology that in order to live successful lives, women must be hegemonically attractive, without appearing overly sexual. 
• The MES of the stereotypically hegemonically attractive man is situated behind the female model. This composition constructs a binary opposition between men and women. The man is dressed in a suit, which has connotations of wealth, power, and a middle class identity. Conversely, the woman is dressed in a blazer and has pristine hair and makeup, all of which reinforces her status as a hegemonically attractive woman.
•  This combination of media language successfully constructs a straightforward ideology: that women's sole function in media products is to exist for the sexual gratification of a male audience. This is reinforced through the gaze of the male model, which is fixed firmly on the female model. This in turn reinforces the ideology that in order to have value, women must be looked at by men. This stereotypical representation of women reflects the time in which the advert was made. By presenting stereotypical and sexist representations of women, the Crème Puff advert is attempting to reach the largest audience possible; middle aged, working class, heterosexual white women. By presenting such a straightforward ideology, it also cultivates a patriarchal hierarchy, which cultivates a society where men are in charge, and women are subordinate.