The Times - representation analysis comparison

 1. Compare how these newspapers represent issues and events. [30]
In your answer you must:
• consider the similarities and differences in how issues and events are represented
• consider how stereotypes can be used positively and negatively
• make judgements and draw conclusions about how far the representations reflect social
and cultural contexts.

Knee jerk reaction

Both of these newspapers represent issues and events in different ways, to represent their ideologies to the target audience, and ultimately to cultivate the ideology of the audience, to minimise risk and to maximise

SET TEXT - The Times - partygate

UNSEEN - The Daily Mail - labour strike action

Broadsheet newspaper Middle class target audience Right wing/centre right Conservative party Constructs a more balanced middle ground, with less emphasis on patriotism  Article is lightly critical of the conservative party, despite the newspaper’s political leanings, suggesting a more diverse audience Targets a specific, middle class, educated, conservative audience More copy, smaller font, formal lexis News UK, a subsidiary of News International, a multinational billionaire owned news conglomerate. Also publish The Sun. Conglomerate owns Fox news, part of 20th Century Fox and hundreds of channels and newspapers around the world. Vertically and horizontally integrated company Big emphasis on political news Big emphasis on hard news Soft news skybox, with a middle class target Social issues - post pandemic news stories, masks on planes, ‘pandemic puppy’  Exaggeration of issues and events in order to construct an entertaining and distressing narrative “Police investigate four lockdown audience” - a bland and somewhat sophisticate mode of address that does not overtly criticise the conservative party

Tabloid  Working class target audience A right wing newspaper Conservative party Critical of Megan Markle, yet supportive of the royal family, a patriotic mode of address Highly critical of the labour party, with a very clear ideology Targets a specific working class, conservative audience, less educated Less copy, bigger font, slightly less formal lexis Also conglomerate ownership Big emphasis on political news Less of a focus on hard news Gossipy news and celebrity news targets a working class audience The collapse of the labour party, interpersonal relationships, Megan Markle’s family  Exaggeration of issues and events in order to construct an entertaining and distressing narrative ‘Now Labour is facing a winter of discontent” - anchors target audience, reinforcing anti labour ideology - directly addresses an older target audience with winter of discontent  Highly critical of unions and strikes

Introduction - DAC

Representation refers to how a group, issue, event or place is constructed through codes and conventions by the producer of a media product, to demonstrate their ideology and to manipulate the ideology of their target audience. Furthermore, representations reconstruct a version of reality, that will appeal to the target audience, and further minimise risk and maximise profit. In this essay, I shall argue that both of these newspapers represent issues and events in different ways, to represent their ideologies to the target audience, and ultimately to cultivate the ideology of the audience, to minimise risk and to maximise profit. To explore this, I shall refer to The Times, a broadsheet, conservative/right wing British newspaper, targeting a middle class and middle aged audience. I shall also refer to the Daily Mail, a British Right wing tabloid

Top tip! The Daily Mirror and The Guardian and the only two MAINSTREAM left wing newspapers in the UK. 

• Representation of issues with the government…
• The representation of famous individuals…
• A lack of representation of the working class.. 
• The representation of soft news… 
• The representation of political issues… (a different reality is constructed for working class and middle class audiences…)
• Representation of gender and sexism

• Stuart Hall - representation. Producers construct ideologies through representations, in particular stereotypes 

• Curran and Sean - profit and power. Most UK newspapers support the conservative party, who ultimately tend to be the bigger party, but also will support the party that encourages privatisation, low taxes and so on 

• Davide Gauntlet - pick and mix - audiences construct their ideologies and identities. Buying the times allows the target audience to construct a middle class, educated and conservative identity 

• Paul Gilroy - postcolonial theory. Favours white middle aged middle class men 

• Van Zoonen - the male gaze and the construction of gender. Johnson is completely unsexualised, however Kim Kardashian is solely featured for being hegemonically attractive