Representation in the Media
By definition, all media texts are re-presentations of reality.
This means that they are intentionally composed, lit,
written, framed, cropped, captioned, branded, targeted and censored by
their producers, and that they are entirely artificial versions of the
reality we perceive around us.
When studying the media it is vital to
remember this - every media text is a representation of someone's concept of existence,
codified into a series of signs and symbols which can be read by an
audience.
However, it is important to note that without the media, our
perception of reality would be very limited, and that we, as an
audience, need these artificial texts to mediate our view of the world,
in other words we need the media to make sense of reality. Therefore
representation is a fluid, two-way process: producers position a text
somewhere in relation to reality and audiences assess a text on its
relationship to reality.
Truth or Lies?
Media
representations - and the extent to which we accept them - are a very
political issue, as the influence the media exerts has a major impact on
the way we view the world. By viewing media representations our
prejudices can be reinforced or shattered.
Generally,
audiences accept that media texts are fictional to one extent or
another. However, as we base our perception of reality on what we see in
the media, it is dangerous to suppose that we don't see elements of
truth in media texts either.
The
study of representation is about decoding the different layers of
truth/fiction/whatever. In order to fully appreciate the part
representation plays in a media text you must consider:
- Who produced it (what culture/point of view)?
- Who for (Action films for Men, Romance for Women) and for what purpose (to sell, to create drama?)
- How is the representation constructed (MES, Camera, Edit, Sound)?
- What ideas or meaning does the representation carry (Women should aspire to be young, flawless and beautiful?)
Representation refers to the construction of aspects of ‘reality’ such as people, places, objects, events, cultural identities and other abstract concepts.
The term refers to the processes involved - that is how they are CONSTRUCTED
Our concern is with the way in which representations are made to seem ‘natural’.
What does 'representation' mean?
The easiest way to understand the concept of representation is to remember that watching a TV programme is not the same as watching something happen in real life.
All media products re-present the real world to us; they show us one version of reality, not reality itself.
So, the theory of representation in Media Studies means thinking about how a particular person or group of people are being presented to the audience.
look at the first 10 slides...
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