adverting comp 1 section B revision Q

How do adverts you have studied appeal to a range of specialised and generalised audiences? (12 marker)

Water Aid

Tide soap

(kiss of the Vampire will not come up in Comp 2 section B)

1. knee jerk reaction 
2. Plan
3. DAC (definition, argument, context)
4. paragraphs 

Primarily the advert I have studied target a generalised audiences, through there are some concessions to more niche audiences 

Sociaohpistorical context

representation of women

mise-en-scene

Ideology

Binary opposition

reception theory (readings, Stuart Hall)

cultivation theory (George Gerbner) 

stereotypes 1950s

Fem theories 

Narrative

Pick and mix (Gauntlet)

Demographics 

Tide Soap

First impressions:

-Bright colourful and eye-catching

-old fashioned maybe 50s

-cartoon imagery and text

-feminine: curvy title, little hearts

-very wordy maybe in a magazine 

- too happy; ubiquitous (all the time) smile

-body language hugging the box 

-ad within an ad?

-not a single man in sight

-specific address with “you women”

Context:

-launched in 1946 in America, still a product today

-used print and radio adverts to build up familiarity with brand

-the main character is the housewife and became a popular icon

-the word ‘White’ is used almost in a racial way, all characters are white

-the words ‘you women’ creates community for women and gives them a sense of comradeship

-the use of superlatives ‘cleanest, whitest, brightest’ \hyperbole (very over the top language) ‘miracle’ 

-the lexis creates the ‘best product’ vibe

-the ‘sudsing whizz’ gives informality and women to women friendliness

Water Aid

Context- The charity water aid was established in 2008 asa response to a UN compassion for clean water, sanitation and water hygiene education.

dominate ideology/ preferred response: audience feels sympathy and believe that all kids in Africa need water (audience is British) give money and donate  

oppositional response: reading through that ad and not believing in the stereo type presented (entire country shown as poor)) romanticised poverty. presented Africa as a single country when its contains lots of country's, songs in English not in home language  

TIDE SOAP

• Close up of women hugging soap packet is connative of love and romance which indicates and reinforces the ideological persecutive that women should be housewives. 
• Reinforces hegemonic beliefs and ideologies, allowing it to appeal to target mainstream audiences. The mise-en-scene of the makeup further enforces this view as it connotes a stereotypical representation of women
• Audience are positioned in a friendly and relatable manner through the costume of the housewife. The symbolic connotations of the colour red appeals to audience through reference to the romance genre, specifically targeting middle aged, female house wifes most likely working class.
• Direct mode of address directly involves the audience alongside the comic book panel reinforces the adverts mainstream market potential 
• However by appealing exclusively to a working class audience, especially with the exclusive lexis 'no wonder you women buy tide more than any other washday product'. This additionally entirely admits men which is appropriate for the 1950s sociohistorical context of the advert.

WATERAID

• Appeals to a mainstream audience through the mise-en-scene of the establishing shot, an instantly relatable image of a drab rainy, British day from the interoir of a middle class house. Immediately afterwards a hard cut establishes the central Africa setting, positioning audiences in an escapist fantasy equaling a binary opposition between wet England and dry Africa.
• The diegetic sound of the radio is an intertextual reference further anchoring the white audience in their role. 
• The third shot, a low angled tracking shot of a young black woman positioned us with Claudia which is further anchorged by the sow and gental paced editing to sympathise with her. By following her journey to the water the audince feels the need to accompany/help her in her need. 
• Post colonial theory: Paul Gilroy, the choice is made to represent a small and rural representation of African community, tapping into the idea of the white audience being the 'saviour' and hero in the narrative.

advertising comp 1 section A revision Q

In what ways do these adverts create meaning?

Make reference to intertextuality, view points, ideology and media language 

Water Aid Claudia 

NHS- Quit Smocking 

1. knee jerk reaction 
2. Plan
3. DAC (definition, argument, context)
4. paragraphs 

subverts the normal conventions of charity adverts by showing the after effects of donating (cleaning running water and a happy community) 

Uses the conventions of a horror film to enforce the damage of smoking and allow the audience to visualise the effects on their bodies 

(it would be easier to argue that the Wateraid add is not guilt tripping and that the smoking advert is for comparison purposes)

binary opposition positive vs negative

shot types

mise-en-scene

music diegetic and non diegetic sound

semiotic codes

colour grading

setting

representation of characters

montage elements

genre conventions

stereotypes

D: Intertextually is where one media product references another in order to create meaning for the audience. This allows the  producer the opportunity to further demonstrate their ideology.

A: The NHS advert uses the conventions of a horror film to enforce the damage of smoking and allow the audience to visualise the effects on their bodies while the Water Aid advert raises awareness through hopeful conventions and a subversively positive outlook. 

C: Water aid is a long established charity which focus on providing water to developing countries

Water aid
intertextuality, view points, ideology and media language 

media language - 
establishing shot of a steytepical representation of Brition from the point of view of inside the house looking out at the rainy weather. Use of lowkey lighting and the mise-en-scene of the rain hitting the window pain, allowing British middle class audiences to identify with the setting. Immediately cut to to another establishing shot of a dusty, yellow field in Africa creating a powerful binary opposition. This emphasise the lack of water in African countries in comparison to the target audience taking it for granted. 

The non-diegic musical soundtrack of the child, 'Claudia' singing presents a positive and realistic/relatable atmosphere. Clauida sings in English and sings a cover of the Bristih pop song 'Sunshine on a rainy day'. This means the audience would relate and recognise the tune demonstating the producer is targeting a large and mainstream audience. 

The use of close and tracking shots positions the audience with Claudia, following her on her journey to get water, frequent cuts to POV shots prevents the advert from being voyeristic. 

view points and ideology- 

The Anchorage of the optimistic soundtrack demonstrates to the audience the proffered reading. However is could be taken as patronising and irritating. 

The ad subverts the conventions of a normal charity appeal for example it shows the children laughing and being joyful over the ater tap, depicting the outcome of water the audience donations can achieve. Slow mo cinematography around the flowing water 

NHS
intertextuality, view points, ideology and media language 

view points and ideology-  
Establishing shot of steeytypical working class British household. The colour is washed out and demonstrated connoting misery, poverty and depression. A far cry from the glamorous representation of smocking in old films. 

Cultivation of the idea that smoking is bad by casting a hegemonically and stereotypically unattractive (although relatable) man in the central role. This explicitly targets a working class audience  

media language -

Extreme close up of cigarette and low key lighting combine to make reference to the horror genre. This combined with the mis-en-scen of fleshy cigarette functions as a proatic code suggesting the death of the male, working class protagonist protagonist. 

A lack of non-diagtic sound emphasise the boring and dull everyday life which builds to a subtle crescendo creating tension and symbolising bad outcomes 

To what extent do Zoella and Attitude reflect the social and historical context of the time when they were made? [30]

Social:

1. Interaction with brand/producer via social media/comment sections 
2. fandom- creates a community and a cult following plus Identity (pick and mix)
3. Escapism!! 

Historical:

1. new age of advertising- influences feeling more real than models (hyper reality)- Panorama documentary
2. Layout of website 2.0 white background and clean boxed in sections with clear labeling and san serif font 
3. Click bait and thumb nails 

Zoella: started making videos from 2009

1. Target audience young teenage girls conforms to female stereotypes- face full of makeup, obsesses over candles and puppies etc, subverts stereotypes- sexless in attitude, presentation and content (male gaze)
2. June favorites 2016- 1.8Mil views (editing) presenting products that over all come to over £400 'a small haul' plus 'Fuck Zoella' tweet (pick and mix and end of audince)
3. Zoellas tweets from 2009 calling someone a slag and a chav going aginst her presented ideology (fake news?)

Attitude Online: started in 2014 (magazine 1994)

1. target audience gay men specifically 20-30 (talk pink pound) includes multiple explicit images of topless men (not all gay celebrities) 
2. Tabloid feel compare with The Daily Mirror  
3. Dec 2017 subversive attitude cover with member of the Scissor Sisters (representation) 

Talk about:

Moderation 

Commodity fetishism 

Anchorage 

Synergy (online, print, products...)

lack of Black people represented

hyper modality 

To what extent do Zoella and Attitude reflect the social and historical context of the time when they were made? [30]

Both Zoella online and Attitude online are examples of hyper modality presenting hyper real worlds for their audiences which reflect the social need of our time for escapism. The ideology in both is stereotypical of the producer and targets a very specific audience, this therefore reinforces the fact that as the consumers need guidance. 

The layout of both websites 2.0 white background and clean boxed in sections with clear labeling and san serif font highlights their 'modern' audience however the two differ in ways such as advertising. With in Attitude Online there are various side bar adverts promoting gay cruises or party holidays. This reinforces the onlines presentation of gay men as it is assumed that they would be subjects of interests and taps into the idea of the 'pink pound' and that gay couples would have more money to spend on luxuries. We could apply Stewart Halls theory of representation on this as well as the adverts the clickbait additionally adds to this. However with in Zoellas website there are no clear advertisements and the only images are the thumb nails of the sections which in a simple attractive way present to the audience what the section is about. This look is likewise imitated on her youtube channel. The mise-en-scen of her thumb nails userly being her, center frame in a clean and pastel coloured bedroom, head tilted to the side emphasising her makeup and looking directly out to the audience for example her 2016 June favourites video. This depicts a very girlish, soft femenim friendly feel which successfully catches her target audiences attention (13-16 year old girls).  

This lack of explicit advertising on Zoellas channel, social media platforms and website raises many issues with products being promoted unknowingly. Many 'Influencers' have come under fire for promoting products without making it clear to their fans that they are being paid to do so. This totally reflects the social and historical context our time and became apparent very recently through the documentary 'Panaram' on the BBC. Comapines really on celebrities cult followings and fandoms and it has proven that many people would really far more on a video of someone they watch on tv recommending them a product that a glossy advertisement in a magazine. This is a perfect example of both henry Jekins fandom theory and Jean Baudrillard Post Modernism capturing the idea that the audience will believe whole heartedly that these people are more trust worthy. 

In contrast to Jenkins fandom theory in Clay Shirkys end of audience theory. She presents the idea that the audience is no longer passive and have been given the reasouces to respond. On the Attitude website unlike other newspapers online there is no comment section as unfornutly it is assumed that the website would be too much of a target to homophobic trolls. On the other hand both on Zoella Youtube channel and her website the comment section is over flowing with fans praising her lifestyle. The site however is not moderated as for example user named 'fuck zoella' comments abuse at the influencer accusing her of promoting a 'small haul worth over £400' and being a 'privileged bitch' This is an example of a totally oppositional reading. 

Attitude the magazine began in 1994 however it did not go online till 2014. This seems rather late however it can be assumed that the magazine did not feel the need to go digital until this time. We can also state that the online version offers a diffrent look to the paper back. Indeed it to could be directly compared to a redtop paper or like the Daily Mirror online with an almost side bar of shame and its gossipy and celebrity based headlines. It is also apparent that there is a lack of diversity on the website. On the tab labled BOYS there are multiple explicit images of half naked men majority being white and a couple mixed race. Paul Gilroy theory of Post Colonialism could connote to this lack of black people being represented and this brings forward the historical issues and questions the websites ideology or what they think the consumer would like to see. On the other hand the magazine is known to subvert its views and divide its readership. In its 2017 December issue the cover image was of a member of the Scissor Sisters in a camp pose wearing a grungy army jacket, red nail paint and heavy dark eye makeup. This mixed symbolism of the femenuim nail varnish combined with the aggressive outfit reinforced by the singers facial expression presently a new idea of what a gay man can look like and differs dramatically from what the website puts forward. Therefore this subverts the social context.....

Commodity fetishism has become more and more relevant in this digital age. Zoellas own brand highlights this trend effectively placing as much emphasis on the packaging her candles come in as well as the candle itself. This can been seen in her videos of her explaining and reviewing her own line of products in her videos. 

    

Attitude Audience

AUDIENCE

ACCORDING TO THE PRESS PACK:

Attitudes audience are 20-30 male, gay and middle class and are professionals  

saved money by not having children and spend their money on technology  

How does Attitude construct its audience? 

Examples of commodity fetishism and aspirational 

Also instructing the community in what to wear to present their sexuality 

Assumed knowledge the audience will know about fashion (SS and AW)

Basically constructs a gay mans taste

How does Zoella construct her audince?

creates a perfect aspirational hyper real utopia world that younger girls want to emulate and indulge in

Difference between website and magazine.....

WEBSITE:
simplistic ideology
aimed at a more working class audience
fits to stereotypes (not subversive) 
   



Comparison between The daily mirror online vs Attitude online, not that much difference!

There is no option to comment on the attitude website as it would be a massive target for abuses and homophobia 

Both Attitude and Zoella manipulate their target audience through using reductive and simplistic representations for the sole purpose of profit




Use web 2.0 (clean attractive website)
Thumb nails 
Menu bar so easy access to where to go
Social Media eg. fb, Instagram, twitter 
APP
You can subscribe
Able to get in touch 
digital download (PDF £5)
related adverts 

Is Attitude positive? 

Are stereotypes positive? 

Can we really interact with it?

Clay Shirky argues that digital technology has allowed the world to become more demographic and that we have more say and space to argue and present our opoion  

Is the audience actually dead? or are we juts being fans and not producers 

Rather than being the producers we are distributors as we act on free advertising by retweeting, sharing, liking on social media 

Attitude is a traditional online magazines as it conforms to the old media way of purely being read 

EXAM STRUCTURE

EXAM STRUCTURE

Sample timings

Component one a - 2 minutes per mark

Component one b - 1 minute per mark

Component two - 50 minutes for each industry

Component 2 Micro-management

Intro and argument - 7  minutes

Text one – 19.5 minutes

Text two – 19.5 minutes

Conclusion  - 4 minutes

Example question - Compared with the past, David Gauntlett argues that in the media today ‘we no longer get singular, straightforward messages about ideal types of male and female identities.’
Evaluate the validity of this claim with reference to the set editions of Woman and Adbusters and the historical contexts in which they were produced.

Step one - underline key terms

Underlining key terms forces you to engage with the concepts you actually need to cover in your response. You will be coming back to these key words time and time again in your response.

Compared with the past, David Gauntlett argues that in the media today ‘we no longer get singular, straightforward messages about ideal types of male and female identities.’
Evaluate the validity of this claim with reference to the set editions of Woman and Adbusters and the historical contexts in which they were produced.

This is a pretty beefy question! But if we break it down then it's pretty simple. "The representations of men and women are no longer simple. What do you think?"

Step two -  knee jerk reaction

In order to present a coherent structure, you need an opinion. For this question, it's clear you need to evaluate, but even if you do not get prompted like this, you will still need to demonstrate your own point of view.

Never change your opinion halfway through the exam. You simply do not have the time to contradict yourself. You need to come up with a point of view, and you need to do it NOW.

Hence the 'knee jerk reaction'. What's your instant, honest response to the question?

Knee jerk reaction: Adbusters presents complex representations of gender, particularly of women, while Woman magazine presents singular, stereotypical and sexist representations of women typical of the political climate of the mid-1960's

Step three - plan

Your plan can take many shapes. It's totally up to you what shape it will take. But what ever your plan looks like, make sure you include it in the answer paper. There are lots of reasons for this, and they all involve you getting marks for it. If you write it on the question paper, or scribble it out, then you cannot get marks for it! The examiner will very likely skim the plan before she starts to mark. And if she spots references to textual analysis and theory, she can already start to consider assigning you a 'C' grade.

Here's one way of 'doing' a plan: vomit all your ideas on to the page. What concepts, theories, ideas and examples pop in to your head when you see the question?

Here's an example...

Representation 
Sexism
Objectification
David Gauntlett
Pick and mix
Stereotypes
Patriarchial hegemony
Hegemonic norms and values
Van Zoonen's male gaze
Gender performitivity
Sociohistorical context

Step four - introduction

This can be divided into

Definition

Argument

Context

Using this structure, you would first define the key word of your question, including making brief explanations for why this is important to talk about. You would then make an argument or point of view. Finally, you would discuss the context of your chosen texts, including genre, year released, director, and how the text is interesting for your point of view.

Defining key words

Here are a couple of examples of how you could define key terms

‘Representation’

“Representation refers to the construction of reality. Representations are constructed by the producers of media texts in order to reinforce the agendas, ideals and ideologies of institutions”

‘Audience’

“Contrary to previous thoughts on audiences, both theorists and producers now agree that audiences are complex, and have a variety of different needs, tastes and ways of using media texts”

Argument examples

What argument are trying to make around your keyword?

Here are two potential arguments that you could make at the start of your essay.

‘Genre’

“Genre is primarily used as a shortcut by producers in order to target audiences in the most efficient manner possible. However, many texts can subvert audience expectation, while at the same time conforming to genre conventions”

‘Distribution’

“Distribution is undoubtedly important for the newspaper. However, I will argue that other factors, such as star appeal and modern digital technologies are more important for both financial and critical success in the newspaper industry”

here's an example of how an introduction could look:

In what ways can newspapers incorporate viewpoints and ideologies for their audiences?

[DEFINITION] The producers of newspapers typically incorporate a range of ideological perspectives when creating newspapers. This is for several reasons, including commercial, ideological, and audience related. Ideology itself refers to the beliefs and viewpoints of the producer. Through media language, audiences are invited to explore and negotiate a range of responses. [ARGUMENT] However, typically producers will attempt to anchor these responses through techniques such as captioning. In order to explore how newspapers incorporate viewpoints and ideologies, [CONTEXT] I shall be exploring the examples of The Daily Mirror, a British tabloid newspaper catering to a working class left wing audience, and the Times, a broadsheet targeting a middle class, right wing audience. I shall also be supplementing these examples with material from The Mail Online, a particularly popular online branch of the right-wing Daily Mail that primarily targets a working-class female audience.

Step five - The paragraph structure

One way you could structure the paragraphs within your response is by using

Point

Evidence

Argument

[Theory]

However, there are many other ways of structuring your responses. Just make sure to be consistent and clear!

In what ways can newspapers incorporate viewpoints and ideologies for their audiences?

P - The front cover of The Times, on the other hand, demonstrates an initially oppositional ideological viewpoint.
E - A mid shot double page splash wrap-around cover, saved only for the very most notable events adorns this edition. Trump gestures passively with his fist, eyes to the right of the camera, in front of the background of an American flag. The flag has clear connotations for the right wing target audience: of patriotism and of freedom and of victory. The headline, The New World is presented in a serif font, offering a sophisticated mode of address to the target middle class audience. However, the Times Does not openly ideogically support Trump in the same way that The Mirror opposes him. In an example of bias through selection, an image of Trump looking either smug or lost, depending on the negotiation of the audience is selected. His fist has symbolic connotations of power, but also functions as a proairetic code, suggesting violence ahead. This is further anchored to the sophisticated target audience through the lexis of the subheading demonstrating that Trump will send “shockwaves around the globe”.
A - The negative connotations of shockwave make intertextual reference to the disaster genre once more. However, the dominant reading is hard for the audience to deduce. The Times neither endorses nor rejects Trump’s ideology. Even the pull quote on the back cover, with its repeated use of you will be so proud” can by polysemically interpreted by the target audience.

MOCK EXAM- Zoella and Attitude question plan

2nd year mock exam - March 2019

Jean Baudrillard- Post Modernism (hyper reality)

Claude Levi Strauss- Structuralism (binary Opposition) 

Roland Barthes- Semiotics

David Gauntlett- Identity (pick and mix)

Livingston and Lunt- Regulation

David Hesmondhalgh- Cultural Industries (horizontal and vertical integration)

Stuart Hall- Representation 

George Gerbner- Cultivation 

Clay Shirky- End of Audience

Henry Jenkins- Fandom
Paul Gilroy- Post Colonialism   

Bell Hooks- Fem Theory 1 
Liesbet Van Zoonen- Fem Theory 2 (male Gaze)

 Time allowed: 50 minutes (w/ extra time: 62 minutes)A maximum of 30 marks can be awarded to your response
Please answer one question

Point

Evidence

Analysis / Argument

2) To what extent do Zoella and Attitude reflect the social and historical context of the time when they were made? [30]

Introduction:

Definition (what is online media? what is social and cultural context?)

Argument (What social and cultural context are you focusing on - representation, industry, ideology, viewpoints etc - How will I develop my response?)

Representation:

Attitude - 

LGBT Representation

Stereotypes

Conventional ideals of beauty

Challenging traditional representations of masculinity

Stuart Hall (stereotypes)

Paul Gilroy (Post-colonialism)

Subversive, gender binary, androgyny, challenging, hetero-normativity, hegemonic

Zoella - 

Stereotypical depictions of gender, conventional femininity and masculinity

Hetero-normative representation

Domestic, conventional ideals of beauty

Ultra traditional

Lack of non-white representation - could mention Gilroy

Judith Butler - Gender Performativity, construct

Liesbet Van Zoonen - Objectification / sexualisation of bodies

Purposefully infantile

Evidence Of Representation:

Attitude -

'Positive' Representation

Online magazine articles

'Boys' section - promotes arguably reductive representation of mascullinity - reinforcing stereotpyes and hegemony

Why? Re-purposing stereotypes as a reaction to constructing gay identity / othering - embracing stereotype

Magazine front cover of Jake Shears - subversive, challenging rep of masculinity that challenges stereotpye

Zoella - 

Our Christmas Eve traditions -hegemonic roles of woman

The Zoella Apartment

Zoella - Women are passive, domestic, and cultivate space for beauty and visual aesthetic

Alfie male stereotypes

Reinforces heteronormative, hegemony of whiteness, limited non white representation

Industry

Attitude:

Published by Stream Publishing

Launch of website on 2014, synergy, digital convergence

Twitter, social media accounts

Shift in production from industrial to information

Press pack

Curran and Seaton - limiting of variety, creativity, monopoly of power

Ineffective regulation - IPSO

Hesmondhalgh - horizontal and vertical integration

Zoella

Youtube

Monetisation, commercialisation of YouTube

Driven by financial gains, view, retaining advertiser interest

Algorithm and the Adpocalypse

Upload compliance

Narrow censored content that contrasts her original uploads

Zoella is highly cultivated and constructed, reliant on advertisers and retaining her fanbase

Ineffective Regulation,

Hesmonhalgh (power of bigtech led to a passive audience that doesn't fight back)

Ideologies and Viewpoints

Attitude:

Inclusive, informative 'guide' for the LGBT community

Attitude implies a challenge to heteronormative ideology and a confident stance to any discrimination, prejudice or homophobia - reflected in its online articles

Aim to promote subversive content that challenges traditional representation

Adopts stereotypes to construct its own identity

Somewhat contradictory ideology press pack

Zoella:

Unmediated, spontaneous content that is constructed to feel accessible and relatable

Direct mode of address and everyday aesthetic

Natural aesthetic

Constructed, cultivated persona

Aspirational content through cultivated technical elements

Reflects social / historical context of vloggers and YouTube content

Social:

1. Interaction with brand/producer via social media/comment sections 
2. fandom- creates a community and a cult following plus Identity (pick and mix)
3. Escapism!! 

Historical:

1. new age of advertising- influences feeling more real than models (hyper reality)- Panorama documentary
2. Layout of website 2.0 white background and clean boxed in sections with clear labeling and san serif font 
3. Click bait and thumb nails 

Zoella: started making videos from 2009

1. Target audience young teenage girls conforms to female stereotypes- face full of makeup, obsesses over candles and puppies etc, subverts stereotypes- sexless in attitude, presentation and content (male gaze)
2. June favorites 2016- 1.8Mil views (editing) presenting products that over all come to over £400 'a small haul' plus 'Fuck Zoella' tweet (pick and mix and end of audince)
3. Zoellas tweets from 2009 calling someone a slag and a chav going aginst her presented ideology (fake news?)

Attitude Online: started in 2014 (magazine 1994)

1. target audience gay men specifically 20-30 (talk pink pound) includes multiple explicit images of topless men (not all gay celebrities) 
2. Tabloid feel compare with The Daily Mirror  
3. Dec 2017 subversive attitude cover with member of the Scissor Sisters (representation) 

Talk about:

Moderation 

Commodity fetishism 

Anchorage 

Synergy (online, print, products...)

lack of Black people represented
hyper modality