How much have things changed in the last ten years?
In Real Life (2013) Beeban Kidron - What is the internet doing to our children? Facts that have changed in the last four years - daily youtube uploads for example.
Teenagers today are more socially engaged than previous generations but feel that negative stereotyping is affecting their chances of finding a job, according to a report.
The Demos report, "Introducing Generation Citizen", says four-fifths of 14 to 17-year-olds think their age group is unfairly represented in the media, with "unemployment and access to work" their main concern.
The think tank polled 1,000 teenagers and their teachers and found that most of them believe young people are more concerned about social issues than earlier generations.
This finding chimes with the government's latest community life survey, which found that three quarters of 16 to 24-year-olds had volunteered in the past year.
Volunteering activities include helping out at primary schools and old people's homes and running campaigns.
Caring, not yobbish
When secondary school teachers were asked to define young people, the most common words they used were caring, enthusiastic and hard working, while they were associated in the media with binge drinking, yobbish behaviour and crime.
The report says young people are sceptical about traditional Westminster party politcs, with two thirds saying charities and social enterprises are more likely to achieve change than MPs.
They are also big users of social media, with 87 per cent believing this is the best way to achieve their goals. Teachers agree: 84 per cent say using social media is as effective as traditional means of communication.
Jonathan Birdwell, the author of the report, said: "Some have referred to the next generation - after Generation Y - as Generation C because they are the most 'connected' generation in history.
"Our research suggests that the Gen C title is apt for another reason - because the next generation could be the most active citizens we've seen in a generation."
The Demos report paints a positive image of teenagers, but one 19-year-old is facing the music on Wednesday at a court hearing in the US.
The pop star Justin Bieber, considered clean cut and wholesome by parents, was arrested in January for alleged drink driving and drag racing, which he denies.
More than 175,000 people have signed a petition on Whitehouse.gov calling for him to be deported to his native Canada on the grounds that he is a "terrible influence on our nation's youth".
A positive influence on British teenagers is Olympic champion
Jessica Ennis-Hill, who has been voted the most inspirational figure in the world by under-25s in a new survey.
He told Channel 4 News that while it was unclear why teenagers were volunteering in greater numbers, "past research into motivations suggest that a mixture of self-interest and altruism are important for young people - with key reasons for volunteering including learning new skills, being good for career and making new friends".
He added: "This isn't surprising given our research shows finding a job is the biggest worry of young people at the moment.
"But importantly, even if CV building has driven initial engagement, volunteers report a huge range of altruistic benefits - for example, over 90 per cent said it 'made them care more about others'.
No compulsion
"Although the government and schools do not 'force' young people to volunteer, elements of social action have been integrated into the curriculum in Scotland, for example."
With high youth unemployment, teenagers who volunteer, and their teachers, say they reap benefits in terms of wellbeing and employability.
Michael Lynas, chief executive of the National Citizen Service, which supported the report, said: "'Generation Citizen' is the true face of today's teenagers. Contrary to stereotypes, we have found a huge demand for opportunities to engage among today's teenagers, with over one million hours of service given by our participants so far."
SPORT Liverpool footballers
Ben Woodburn
Trent Alexander-Arnold
Jack Dunn
Adam Lallana
Jordan Henderson
Joe Gomez
Harry Wlson
Nathaniel Clyne
Chelsea footballers
Ngolo Kante
Eden Hazard
Thibaut Courtois
Ruben Loftus Cheek
Kurt Zouma
Nathaniel Chalobah
Nathan Ake
Alex Iwobi
Kieran Gibbs
Rob Holding
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain
Theo Walcott
Danny Welbeck
Calum Chambers
Jack Wilshere
Carl Jenkinson
- Ellie Simmonds
- Lewis Hamilton
- Tom Daley
Science
Entertainment
Ed Sheeran
Sam Smith
Labrinth
Emma Watson
Romeo/Brooklyn Beckham
One Direction
Millie Bobby Brown - Stranger Things
Stormzy
Ed Sheeran
The 1975 - Matty Healey - indie scene
The Vamps
Model
Ashley Graham
Jourdan Dunn
Cara Delevigne
Entrepeneurs
Youtubers - Zoella, Alfie Deyes, Dan Howell
Nick D'Aloisio - invented Summly, sold to Yahoo and became one of the youngest self made millionaires
These are 25 mark essays and we want to make sure you get as many of those marks as possible. Once they've been checked and you've got over 20 marks upload them.
SHOW HOW SKILLS DEVELOPED OVER TIME
'Digital Technology
turns media consumers into media producers.’ In your own experience, how has your creativity developed through using digital technology to complete your coursework productions?’
Explain how your research and planning skills developed over time and how these decisions contributed to your media productions outcomes. Refer to a range of examples in your answer.
Explain how far your understanding of the conventions of existing media influenced the way you created your own media products. Refer to a range of examples in your answer to show how this understanding developed over time.
Describe a range of creative decisions that you made in post-production and how these decisions made a difference to the final outcomes. Refer to a range of examples in your answers to show how these skills developed over time.
In this section you need to write about your work for the Foundation Portfolio and Advanced Portfolio units. You must answer both 1(a) and 1(b).
1 (a) “Digital technology turns media consumers into media producers”. In your own experience, how has your creativity developed through using digital technology to complete your coursework productions? [25]
(b) “Media texts rely on cultural experiences in order for audiences to easily make sense of narratives”. Explain how you used conventional and / or experimental narrative approaches in one of your production pieces. [25]
Section A Total [50]
Candidates answer two compulsory questions. The first (1a)requires them to describe and evaluate their skills development over the course of their production work, from Foundation Portfolio to Advanced Portfolio. The second (ib)asks them to identify one production and evaluate it in relation to one theoretical concept.
1) If we apply a basic effect model to the representations of youth, particularly the negative ones there could be detrimental implications. (Also some interpretations of the work of theorist Althusser believe that the power of the mass media resides in their ability to place a subject in a way that their representations are taken to be reality.)
If representations of youth seen in Eden Lake and Harry Brown are not decoded as being a selective representations then it could result in creating or perpetuating stereotypes (commonly held public belief about specific social groups, or types of individuals).
This could then lead to creating distance between social groups - which could in turn lead to ignorance and more fear. So adults (particularly vulnerable ones) will become afraid of today’s youth, will be reluctant to engage them and demonise them instead. It can also create tension within social groups with young people becoming afraid of other young people.
Have a look at the articles on demonisation to make notes on the consequences of demonisation. The bits in bold might help. Also here is an interesting article why some people think generating fear is useful in political sense. Here's a really interesting documentary of demonisation - the first ten minutes is worth watching to see how the public's perception of youth crime is so warped.
2) If we take David Gauntlett’s view that we use the media as ‘navigation points’ for developing identity, what are the consequences if the representations of youth are negative or unrealistic?
Stewart Lee believes that watching Skins as a teenager would have left him feeling lonely as it portrays a lifestyle that he couldn’t associate with. Do you associate with the representations of youth in TV and Film?
3) However, if we stick with David Gauntlett’s view and apply it to positive or constructive representations there can be benefits. Telling stories and showing lifestyles that youths can associate with is a positive – possibly so they can share the trials and tribulation of growing up, and allow them to put life in perspective.
How could Inbetweeners be seen as useful representation for UK youth?
4) Constructive or positive representation could do the opposite of demonisation, potentially breaking stereotypes and telling the stories behind the negative headlines.
So how does Misfits try to break the classic teenager stereotypes?
Where is the blame placed for the behaviour of the youths in Eden Lake?
What do we learn about the lives of the gang members in Attack the Block?
5) If the representations offered did not sit well with today’s youth they reject mainstream culture. This use to lead to creating subcultures, scenes etc. but now youths can partially control their own identity and representation in media with the use of the net – youtube rants, memes, Facebook pages.
6) A possible negative implication of forming an identity using Twitter or Facebook is that it is a templated format so you are limited in how you express yourself. Also there are many other consequences of Facebook defining your identity.
One theory each and you need to bring your own examples to the classroom from different media - three each please to present. You must:
Explain the theorist in simple terms and include any useful quotes then discuss your chosen texts and why they are interesting to you.
Some tips from the conference:
McDougall - chief examiner for this paper - says you should have a mainstream, niche and reflection from your own personal experience.
Who has the most power at the moment? PM, Cowell, Murdoch or your teacher? Who has the power, is the internet truly democratic look at what happened with Arab spring.
Both sides of the debate must be discussed in the answer. Think of your own media experience, good to use lots of I's in the essay reflecting on theory and texts first of course.
The internet is 'seemingly' more democratic but what if prevents artists from creating because they can't make money?
Each paragraph should be made up of a strand of debate with theoretical concepts and your own media examples. Twitch forum just as valid as In Real Life as a media text.
How are teenagers and young people in the media portrayed?
Who constructs these representations?
How do the representations influence young people's identity?
How do these representations affect adults' opinions of teenagers?
Is it possible for teens and adults to interpret representations of youth differently?
So what influence does the media have over us, how does it affect us? Accurate representations? Inaccurate or distorted portrayals. What characters may young people identify with in the media today, why? Do they aspire to be like those characters? Is it a mixture of the two?
Some conclusions, what do you think? Any examples to go with these statements?
Youth culture is created as an extension of a young individual's search for identity - to differentiate themselves from their parents, from tradition, and from other young people.
Young people express their collective identity through consumption: fashion, music, magazines, websites, film etc but...they can often appropriate these for their own ends eg. 'Beliebers' self-harming in protest at Justin's 'spliff' photo.
Media industries use representations of youth to target both teenagers (through their aspirations)...and adults (through nostalgia or fear of young people)
Many young people are conscious of the media's inaccurate portrayal of youth - and the commercial exploitation -and resist. eg. when an underground band become popular and 'sell out' Many young people create their own media text in response eg?
Advances in technology have given young people the opportunity to create their own youth subcultures. Punk - photocopiers, cassette tapes and today - camera phones, music software, social networking sites, youtube producers
Youth subculture can begin underground, alternative and DIY...but young people grow up and need to make money plus media industries spot untapped markets
Youth culture is not homogenous and monolithic. it's moved from being proliferate (mods vs rockers) to having PLENITUDE ie multiple youth cultures, happily co-existing 'UK Tribes' and CrowdDNA
So...what was underground quickly moves into mainstream culture eg Vivienne Westwood - 1970s punk fashion now respected brand.
The media Triangle - Audience- Institution - Representation and how they all meet and influence each other through forms and conventions.
Firstly, newspaper coverage. A look at the front pages during the week of the riots gives an overview of the way the story was told. As the disturbances on Saturday night happened after the sunday papers had gone to press, the first opportunities for the front pages did not come till monday- which is one reason that rolling news on TV and the instant coverage from social media was so important. here are some of Monday's front pages:
The Mirror and The Guardian go with the image of the burning furniture store in Tottenham, whilst the Sun suggests those involved may be of primary school age. The Telegraph takes the looting angle, with an emphasis almost on the comedy of it (a reference to British 'carry on.'. films) which of course defines the riots in terms of greed rather than anger and had already gained widespread coverage in this footage from Sky News:
On the Tuesday, after trouble had spread much more widely, almost all the papers went with an attempt to personalise the rioting with the iconic hooded figure:
As you can see, mob/yob and anarchy now become the by-words but the images used are strikingly similar, if not identical. The hooded or masked young male (black in most, white in two) strides triumphant in front of a burning vehicle. The exception is The Telegraph's choice of a dramatic shot of a woman jumping from a blazing building, which became another iconic image of the riots.
By Wednesday, with the Prime Minister and Boris Johnson back in the country determined to show themselves in charge, thousands of extra police on the streets and things calming down a bit, the front pages had shifted emphasis:
Now it's all 'fightback' with exaggerated notions of what weapons might be deployed by the police, but also the riot clean up (sweep scum off the streets) which seemed to embody Cameron's 'Big Society' idea. There is also now an emphasis on the individual hero (personalising the riot stories) which develops further from Thursday to saturday, with heroes and villains identified to add to public outrage:
finally, celebrity advice is offered in the shape of the Rooneys, who like Rio Ferdinand claim to know what life is like on poor estates and ask people to stop rioting...
In the next part, we will look at some of the TV coverage and the issues around social media that were raised by some politicians.
70s From glam rock to punk first woman prime minister
80s
Racial tension Brixton riots, recession, City boys and brick phones, Miners' strikes, privatisation and gradual loss of UK industry. Aids awareness, perms and fluorescence, gay acceptance, MTV launches - Michael Jackson, Madonna,Wham, Culture Club, Frankie goes to Hollywood, U2, Band Aid
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/interactive/timelines/british/index_embed.shtml
90s
Nirvana, Pearl Jam grunge as a rebuttal of 80s mushy sounds and electronic keyboards, to Oasis vs Blur 1995 election of Tony Blair, Manchester scene, Stone Roses and Happy Mondays, warehouse parties, Cool Britannia once again then girl power with Spice Girls and to a much lesser extent All Saints
560">
Britain in the noughties
Millenium Dome, Reality tv - Big Brother, Strictly Come Dancing, Slumdog Millionaire, Michael Jackson dies, Avatar, Titanic and Harry Potter. Arctic Monkeys and other independent bands cut out middle man, launch of youtube, facebook, twitter, social media...
Little Britain, youth films Bullet Boy, Kidulthood, This is England, Fish Tank, Harry Brown, Eden Lake all very negative representations - Angus Thongs and perfect snogging in 2008 one of the exceptions?
Britain 2010-2015 representations of youth in the media.
Good luck finding positive ones!
Fill in the blanks
TV/News
London Riots
Inbetweeners
Waterloo road
New Skins
Some Girls
Xfactor and celeb culture/constructed beauty
Gogglebox
Teens C4
Film
Selfish Giant
In Fear
Ill Manors
Attack the Block
Riot Club
Gone Too Far
Paddington
In Real Life
Wild Bill
My Brother the Devil
Web
Audience as producer
V-loggers and youtube channels - Zoella, Tanya Burr, Gabriella Rose
Amaira Hunter, Chloe Miles and Maisie Williams Print
Newspaper and magazine articles on teens to be analysed in class Music
Discuss ways in which music could be used as a method of identity and expression.
There are four
areas you need to understand in preparing for the exam:
How do the contemporary media represent nations,
regions and ethnic / social / collective groups of people in different ways?
How are
young people/ males/ females/ gay people/ Northerners/ any social group
represented? Discuss how the representations use stereotypes; are the
representations hegemonic/ reinforcing dominant ideologies; do they challenge
hegemony; are they represented as heterogenous/ homogenous; how could terms and
phrases like Female solidarity/ teen solidarity/ male solidarity, Constructed
certitude, Consciously cultivated (fe)male bond/ teen bond, Socialisation, Binary, Plurality, Femininities/
masculinities be useful in discussing the representations?; Who are
these representations aimed at, and how does this affect the way the group are
represented?; Who is creating these representations?; How are different social
groups represented in the media industry, as well as by the
media?; What is the purpose of these representations?; How does the media
construct representations of groups of people?; How is collective identity
constructed?
2 2. How does contemporary representation compare to previous time periods?
Compare
recent texts (last 4 years) to past texts in terms of the ideas in question
What differences/ similarities are there?
3.What are the social implications of different media representations of groups of people?
What
impact does the media have on audiences’ sense of identity?; How do audiences
respond to/ use media representations?; To what extent are audiences active in
constructing their own sense of identity?; How useful are Uses and
Gratification theory/ Hypodermic Needle Theory/ Cultivation theory in
understanding audiences’ responses to media representations?; Does the media
reflect or shape our sense of who we are?
4.To what extent is human identity increasingly
‘mediated’?
Does the
media reflect or shape our sense of who we are?; Is the media increasingly
important in how we shape our identity?; How powerful is the media in shaping/
helping us to shape who we are?
