Introduction to Media Studies 10 PDF

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This includes lecture notes from all lectures within the week number mentioned....

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Week 1 Media + Literacy ● All media are texts and can be read for meaning ● Reading skills are learned through media literacy - books ○ We recognize that people must learn how to decode the meaning of the written word ○ Reading requires an active process of interpretation ■ We’re always using literacies Media + Representation ● All media texts are representations ● We use these representations to help construct our understanding of the world around us ● We believes representations can have + or - impact individuals and society Media + everyday life ● A source of pleasure + routine ● Tools for learning and interpretation ● A form of connection + social currency ● An expense paid for $ or time or info CULTURAL STUDIES 3 common ways of evaluating media 1. Dystopian a. Believe that the medium, genre, or practice is bad. Or used to be good but is getting worse b. Argument they can make: TV is bad because it promotes consumerism through advertising c. BELIEVE: passive and active - it’s exhaustive. You know you’re wasting the day but you can’t stop i. They could argue that subject of critique is exploitative and formulaic ii. Can label media (ad supported) as consumerist iii. Are social ills iv. THUS: directly harmful to individuals and society d. CRITICS SAY IT IS: i. Totalizing: is it all bad? ii. Nostalgic: iii. Elitist: iv. Assumes passive consumption: 2. Utopian perspective a. Believe that the medium is good or it used to be bad and is getting better b. Could celebrate audience practices, that fans tweeting shows could turn TV watching into interactive experience

c. BELIEVE i. If you find it objectionable, there’s something else ii. It can act as an informational and educational resource iii. It’s a window to the experiences d. They don't deny that there’s bad stuff out there but say it is outweighed by the number of choices out there e. CRITICS i. Dismissive of social harm - content may not be for you but what effect does it have on people who choose to consume it ii. Ignores commercial interests iii. Ignores production hierarchies - audience has far less power in participating in media production iv. Employs ‘myth of progress’ there isn’t a straight line of straight to better but there are ups and downs with concern to quality and representation 3. Mirror perspective a. Believe that medium reflects reality or reflects audience interest b. BELIEVE i. Media mirror major social changes c. CRITICS SAY IT IS i. Media maker agency ii. The selective process of production 1. Greenlight some projects and not others because of economics and creative goals and biases iii. The reasons why audiences watch are assumed iv. Difference audience interpretations CULTURAL STUDIES APPROACH A. If you believe dystopian or utopian you believe media changes society. Mirror, that society changes media B. Examines interrelationship between media, everyday practice, and larger society C. Focus n an interpretive approach to media rather than through scientific data collecting CULTURAL STUDY METHODS Textual analysis - close reading an analysis of a text looking for themes, meanings, etc. Audience studies - study reception rather than the text // look for everyday interpretations and pleasures Political economy - examine the relationship between industrial media power and politics // focus on media conglomeration as a threat to democracy The power they have to shape political action

TECHNOLOGICAL AND CONTENT CONVERGENCE A. Two realities of TV a. Audiences have more choice in what they watch and how they watch it. They are fragmenting as a result of greater choice (more outlets for TV content) b. Internet delivered Tv has become a part of everyday experience for TV B. Two potential futures of TV a. Theatrical TV i. People say big screen TV isn’t going away b. Mobile c. Some people say we live in a 3 screen world - big TV, medium computer, and smart phone i. This shows different content outlets overlap with each other C. Convergence a. Blurring of boundaries between two or more previously separate kinds of media b. TECHNOLOGICAL convergence - single tech of performing the functions of multiple previously distinct media (smartphone) i. Highly customizable c. CONTENT convergence i. Content from one medium now available on another - the software and content that converges (TV show not limited to TV set) ii. Implications for the industry - collect fragmented audiences through many outlets iii. For audience - individualized consumption experience iv. Time shifting...