Explain the impact of digitally convergent media platforms on video game production, distribution and consumption. Refer to Minecraft to support your answer

Explain the impact of digitally convergent media platforms on video game production, distribution and consumption. Refer to Minecraft to support your answer
The nature of the game and development in Java has meant that there are several rival and clones to the game Minecraft. 'Castle Miner' is just one example of a game with remarkable similarities and there is much scope for debate about how you go about copyrighting ideas if everyone is using open source software. Indeed, when Microsoft purchased Mojang there was a surge in clone titles for rival consoles, such as Nintendo (who did not officially receive versions of Minecraft at the time) including Battleminer for the Nintendo 3DS. Notice the slight variations in story narrative and the glaringly obvious similarities. One could argue that Minecraft was simply the right version of a block building game at the right time; it also highlights the importance of the emerging portable device market and capitalising on audience desires.

The development of Minecraft in 2011 came at a time when video gaming was increasingly focusing on online and multi-platform gaming, a response to the rise of gaming on a range of devices, other than consoles. Digitally convergent media platforms opened up opportunities for games distributors to reach a wider audience of non-traditional gamers who game on media devices such as phones and tablets. This is evidenced by the media convergence that enables digital distribution and global access which hitherto had not been available. This was exploited by Persson in the distribution and circulation of Minecraft, meaning fewer master copies of the game were needed. Minecraft became a multi-platform game aimed not just at PC gamers but those who own smartphones, Microsoft X Box consoles and handheld devices, for example.

Not only did Minecraft and its production company develop online distribution which saved costs, it also struck deals with Nintendo, the largest game software seller, and Sony, a hardware manufacturer and global conglomerate. By 2014 the intellectual property rights were acquired by Microsoft, an American multinational technology company. These gaming giants and technology companies had a vision for a product, Minecraft, which could be globally distributed and marketed through its community. In addition to the sales of hardware or software, Minecraft ‘gamers’, like any other media audience, could be sold games, add-ons and a whole range of merchandise including Minecraft magazine, t-shirts, mugs, calendars, backpacks, hoodies, ties-ins with Lego, Minecraft mini-games, and a proposed Minecraft movie in 2019 (with Warner Brothers film studio). This is an example of how Minecraft had multiple conduits of revenue for its product, not only in the gameplay but, also through merchandising, and in a very short space of time it was able to develop itself as a leading brand of computer game.

The Microsoft Minecraft market place allows users to buy other features of Minecraft online, such as a new realm, story mode or modification. This online marketplace is a virtual store making it easier for Minecraft’s community to shop for its products. Digitally convergent media platforms had a significant impact on the distribution of Minecraft and its promotion to an audience, allowing it to maximise profits. Recent additions include The Minecraft: Story Mode available via Steam. Steam is developed by Valve Corporation, which offers digital rights management, multiplayer gaming, video streaming and a social networking service. Steam can be considered the equivalent to an online video games store, comparable to the internet platforms iTunes or Amazon.

Online fan communities have enabled Minecraft’s audience to have an active voice in its on-going production through detailed feedback and commentary on modifications and also beta testing through social media such as Facebook and YouTube. In addition, Minecraft has a Twitter account which documents game developments for its users. Minecraft has tapped into the potential of the audience to ensure that the audience were engaged in its development. Minecraft allowed users to create new in-game content via beta testing processes, producing shareable, downloadable game modifications, called mods and producing texture and resource packs – such game development at the level of exchange is made possible by a cloud based platform where the transfer of data is now two-way and quick.

With digitally convergent platforms the biggest threat to the video games industry is piracy via leaked content that is playable across a number of platforms. However, video gamers are comparable to film fans in that they are willing to pay for game content, but will also share elements for free. As the cost of Minecraft is kept low and accessible to many audiences due to convergent media practices, and combined with the attitude of Minecraft that gamers will share and develop content – a philosophy that comes from the founder Marcus Persson - piracy of Minecraft is not as much of an issue as with other video games. Minecraft’s embracing of online distribution and exchange offers value for content for its users – not only in the gameplay and shareable features but in the presence of its community. It does not just sell digital copies of a game but also packages an online experience for them. Of course, with the backing of Microsoft and the development of Occulus as a virtual reality headset game, Minecraft is now being packaged as a premium games experience and one that cannot be copied digitally.

Minecraft now has a global mass market audience and the game is highly successful. The takeover by Microsoft enabled Minecraft to be delivered by the world’s leading technology company, reliant on providing instant and online access to the game, without the need for console-based technology. The success of Minecraft has been due to its ability to distribute and circulate engagement amongst its users – not just gaming fans but also non-traditional gamer audiences using digitally convergent media.

Explain why popular music radio programmes struggle to gain recognition as Public Service Broadcasting

Explain why popular music radio programmes struggle to gain recognition as Public Service

Broadcasting. Refer to The BBC Radio 1 Breakfast Show to support your answer.

In your answer you must also: explain how political, cultural and economic contexts influence the status of popular music radio programming [15]

BACKGROUND KNOWLEDGE ON BBC1 BS:
The BBC Radio One Breakfast Show provides their 15-29 young adult to adult audience a diverse and varied selection of content, although its main focus is popular music. BBC Radio One has been branded the nation’s favourite station, and has historically has had popular music at the heart of its public service remit, which is to inform,educate and entertain. As of now, different BBC radio programmes have been operating under different remits , with BBC Radio One operating the remit to”entertain and engage a broad range of young listeners through a distinctive mix of contemporary music and speech”.

Popular music radio programmes such as the Radio 1 Breakfast Show struggle to gain recognition as a PSB as they normally only cater to what is popular at the time. This causes them to stick to the same music genres, which are typically only favoured by the same types of people for an extensive period of time. This then excludes the less popular and influential genres of that time period. This system is good for appealing to the masses however a PSB’s primary task is to appeal to almost all of the public as the  public are what pays for the whole of the BBC. As these breakfast shows do appeal to the masses, it could be argued that they should be recognised as a PSB because it is appealing to the majority of people as the music they play is the most popular. However, these pop music programmes do struggle to be recognised as PSB because they usually consist of a young host, in the BBC 1 breakfast shows case, Nick Grimshaw. These young hosts are usually only relatable to the younger audience while the older generations may struggle to understand why this host is appealing. This shifts the breakfast show slightly making it seem more niche towards the younger audience and ultimately drawing attention away from the fact that it is still part of a PSB. Another reason why the BBC 1 breakfast show could struggle to gain recognition as part of a PSB could be their strategic decision to exclude less favoured genres specific to the time period. For example, Rock/ Heavy Metal are almost completely excluded despite having a very large following in the UK. This suggests that BBC are not trying to appeal to everyone and just the stereotypical followers demographic.

...may struggle to gain recognition as Public Service Broadcasters. One reason why this may be so is due to license fee funding. All TV consumers are forced to pay for the licence fee through taxation, and some of those consumers may feel like they are paying for music that they don’t enjoy or may prefer only one genre of music. This can cause those audiences to switch to a competitor like Capital FM or Magic for a consistent niche genre of content which can reduce audience figures for BBC Radio One. Although license fee funding cause some audiences to switch to other radio stations, it allows BBC more modes of distribution, like livestreaming and podcasting on BBC iPlayer. For example, on BBC iPlayer every week on a Friday a new “Best Bits” of Nick Grimshaw’s BBC Breakfast Show is shown as episodes and is available to download.
Using digital convergence allows Radio One to successfully target their intended audience (15-29 year olds), as audiences within this age range are most likely to use online media to consume radio. This is proven by the official body in charge of measuring radio audiences in the UK, RAJAR who have said that over 60% of adults aged 15+ are listening to the radio via a digital platform in terms of weekly reach.

This leads on to my third reason for why popular music programmes struggle to gain recognition like BBC Radio One may struggle to gain recognition as Public Service Broadcasters; technological advancements. As times change, tuning into popular BBC radio stations traditionally has become less popular, with audience numbers reducing year on year for the BBC Breakfast Show since Nick Grimshaw took over as the host. This is proven by RAJAR's figures, which state that audience numbers have dropped to 5 million listeners in terms of traditional radio listening. This may be an example of how the addition of how the addition of a young host like Nick Grimshaw has caused the BBC Breakfast Show to lose its popular appeal. However, it can be argued digital convergence has helped increase the popularity and raise the online profile of popular BBC radio stations like BBC Radio One. This can be proven by audience numbers on social media platforms like YouTube and Facebook, with Radio One’s total YouTube views reach over 1.6 billion, and their monthly Facebook views reaching over 80 million monthly views. With the use of social media platforms and their BBC iPlayer website BBC Radio One has become the most popular radio station in the UK, proving BBC’s Radio Controller Ben Cooper statement that the station should not just be judged solely on RAJAR figures.

My fourth reason for why popular music video programmes may struggle to gain recognition as PSB’s may be due to regulations put in place by Ofcom. Since Ofcom is a government regulation service, BBC Radio will not be allowed to present or advertise their own views unless it’s in the government’s best interest. This makes popular BBC Radio programmes biased, and breaks one of the core PSB requirements , which is to benefit the public , as they are not exposed to a variety of unbiased beliefs on certain topics. However , by regulating the BBC , Ofcom can make sure that their content is safe enough for audiences to listen to. For example, if popular BBC Radio programmes like BBC Radio One to projecting musical content that contains inappropriate or offensive lyrics , Ofcom will regulate this by telling BBC to censor these lyrics , so that older audiences can make sure that their children younger are not exposed to inappropriate lyrics.

Overall . I don’t think the BBC Radio One Breakfast Show are not struggling to gain recognition as PSB’s , as they are still adhering to PSB requirements through digital convergence(e.g. BBC iPlayer , social media platforms etc). Although they have deviated away from standard radio listening , BBC Radio One have been able to attract high numbers in their core target audience(16-25 year olds) through digital convergence. Through this BBC Radio has become the most popular radio station in the UK.

https://www.ocr.org.uk/Images/472318-evolving-media-candidate-style-answers.pdf

https://www.theguardian.com/media/2014/aug/07/bbc-radio-1-2-public-service-value-radiocentre

Radio 1 has been criticised that its audience is too old given its target listenership of 15 to 29-year-olds

Crafting Participatory Culture - Minecraft

1. What is Jenkins's theory that the author is referring to here? How might it apply to how audiences interact with the Minecraft game?
2. How is Minecraft different to conventional computer games in terms of narrative and what kind of experience this offers gamers?
3. How did YouTube respond to this trend? Have a look at what YouTube offers to gamers by going to the site. Watch a PewDiePie and Ali A video as part of your research.
4. Who is Herobrine and Steve?
5. Why did Mojang shut down Brandon Liatch's attempt to create a Minecraft 'film'?

Jenkins fandom theory refers to fans who act as textual poachers - taking elements from the media to create their own culture. this development of new media has accelerated participatory culture in which audiences are active and creative rather than passive. They shape the flow of the media. from this perspective, convergence is a cultural process rather than a technological one.

In terms of Minecraft, this theory is applicable to the lack of direction or instructions in the game -  the freedom allows them to be creative in the way they use the game world. 

Naturally, being fans of the game, consumers then wanted to become prosumers, and share the creative ways they’ve played the game with other fans. These videos soon became known as Let’s Plays and although they are not new in themselves, their popularity, along with the gaming industry in general has been growing in popularity, for some time coinciding with Minecrafts. 

'Lets play' allows gamers to use more blocks to create different and new environments. Every Let’s Play Minecraft on YouTube is a paratext to the game, this is how the game became so popular without any professional marketing and it is also for this reason; content owners are more lenient with fan made paratexts, because it’s free exposure.

The very first story to emerge from minecraft was about a mysterious character named, “Herobrine”, who would appear in people’s games without any reason, often scaring the players. he is a kind of anti-hero whereas steve is a hero. Steve is the character you use to go around the game, he can build just about anything

In 2014 Brandon Liatch, an invested petty producer of Minecraft wanted to create a part live action-part animation film based on the Minecraft world, “Minecraft is the perfect video game to adapt to a film … The reason is that it doesn’t have a character, it doesn’t have a story, which to me is a big benefit because we can come up with our own original story”. Using KickStarter he managed to get $60,000 before Mojang shut it down, saying “We don’t allow half a million kickstarters based on our ip without any deals in place. Despite Minecraft and Mojang being very open to the way you use it’s content they still have reasonable limits, and the agency of a prosumer is not breaking copyrights.

How is Minecraft marketed differently to traditional methods?

minecraft did not have a well-known publisher and no money was spent on advertising the game so to increase the popularity of the game, mojang relied on word of mouth between gamers and online sites such as the penny arcade web comic to generate interest among gamers. youtube played a big part in the marketing of the game as many existing minecraft players shared their game footage on this platform, increasing the game's exposure.

on 6 june 2012, lego minecraft was released. as lego is well-known by millions of young people, minecraft gained a tremendous amount of exposure. mojang then collaborated with Jinx, an online game merchandise store, to sell minecraft merchandise such as clothing, foam, toys and characters featured in the game. in 2013, mojang started producing minecraft books with the egmont group publishers. magazines, poster books were created for the use of children.

in 2019, minecraft the movie will be released as mojang have teamed up with warner brothers. this movie will be similar to the lego movie. trailers of the movie will be released so that more people can become familiar with the upcoming release.

considering mojang market minecraft in many different ways, all sorts of people are appealed. for example, people who like watching films will become familiar with the game, people who like gaming will be familiar with the game, people who like building lego will be familiar with the game,

Minecraft documentary

what are the uses and gratifications of minecraft? give specific examples.
minecraft enables people to identify with the different characters as the user is in full control of the characters life. it provides enjoyment and entertainment for the user as they are able to play and create a world to their imagination, with endless possibilities. Social interaction is a big part of the game as it is easy to communicate with other players from around the world. Many people have become friends in real life due to meeting on the game and then meeting in person. Minecraft provides an escape from real life for many people, as they can create their own life on the game and live it however they choose to. The game educates people as they learn how to build and control robots that have functions. active circuits can also be created on the game involving levers and buttons for certain purposes such as creating electricity. Minecraft can be used as a building tool to design communities in real life like in Kenya. It's an electronics tool, educational tool, programming tool because it is so modible

what are the advantages and disadvantages of minecraft being owned by microsoft?
access to the young engaged excited audience that office products dont have
microsoft can oversee and develop the future of minecraft
micro can offer support and infrastructure to the game
the people who make minecraft now have a more support in it's development phase as it moves forwards, meaning that things will be done quicker and more effectively.
should allow minecraft to become even bigger than it is rn
they will maintain the community that minecraft has
because minecraft is so big and popular, not many changes will be made initially but in the future microsoft may add in additional features to minecraft such as being able to share your world with your friends and themed extras
minecraft is intensly democratised and so well established that it is unlikely that microsoft will change it much

https://hcj1301.wixsite.com/sublime

Photoshoot of DJ

Publish a blog post evaluating your photo shoot and explain why you have chosen to include these original images on your website. 

i believe my original photos are successful in getting across the fact that my model is a DJ. this is because i have used appropriate props such as the headphones and the mobile phone to make it seem as though he makes his music using his phone and other technology. the headphones around his neck make him look passionate about music as it portrays the sense that he listens to music often and he enjoys immersing himself in music. i am happy with the clarity of the shots because all the photos are in focus which makes them look more professional. i am also happy with the variety of shots because i made sure i didnt take all the images from the same angles/distance away from the model. as a result, when using these images on my website the audience may not be able to tell that they have all been taken on the same day in the same location. i intend to edit the images and put effects on them to add to the variety and make them look more interesting and different. this will also make them stand out on my website. Lastly, I am happy that i used the mellow, warm toned light in some of the shots to give a different effect.

i chose to include these original images out of all the ones i took because these have the most elements in them which tell the audience he is a DJ. for example, some of the images i took he was not wearing props such as the headphones and the guitar, and didnt have his mobile phone in his hand. therefore, this wouldnt get across to the audience that he was passionate about music. i believe that i have chosen shots that show different facial expressions, angles, props and positions so they dont all look the same as one another. 

On the contrary, i think i could have improved my original images by taking them in different locations, for example outside by a wall, in a field to show he's a free spirit, in the street at night or in a bustling city. this would have added to the variety of shots and would be more interesting for the audience to look at. i also could've taken photos of Zach wearing different outfits because then the audience wouldn't guess that the photos were all taken at the same time. furthermore, i could've put a coloured transparent film over the camera lens to make the photos look effective and different.

If i was to do this photoshoot again, i would put more thought into where the shadows would look best as i think some of the images look slightly less effective due to the shadows covering the DJ's body. also, i may find it difficult to edit the shadows out of the images if i wanted to. 

Storyboard

 explain your intentions and how the shots you have planned fit into your overall music video concept.

Shot list

-describe the shot
-why are you doing it?
connotations of the media language (meanings)
how will it appeal to your target audience?
is it typical to the genre? in what way?

slow motion of running along beach in shorts and short top

time-lapse of sun going up or down

shot of sunset
shot of water over my toes
shot of waves crashing
splashing/bombing into pool
throwing water up from pool in slow motion
riding along on a bike
walking/running up a hill/on dry land
handheld camera-work
hold camera to head and film feet walking along
point of view camerawork
film out of plane window/other planes flying by

STORYBOARD -
AIRPORT/FLIGHT:
walking through airport with passport out/film feet walking/suitcase/bags/loz smiling with sunglasses on
walking on plane/up the steps/out the window as it takes off/flying through the air/landing - do it in fast motion

TRANSFER:
film out of the window of the car/coach / walking off coach. filming outside car/coach window of trees going by/hair in wind/arms out window

ARRIVAL AT HOTEL:
walking through reception with suitcases, film walking up to/out of balcony of view, slow motion landing on bed

BY THE POOL:
splashing feet in pool, sunbathing, jumping in pool, ordering drinks? sipping drinks, throwing water up

ON THE BEACH:
splashing in sea, exploring rock pools, waves, water over feet, throwing water up,

BREAKFAST

LUNCH

DINNER

CAR RIDES

STATEMENT OF INTENT

I intend to make a 3-minute dance music video for a fictional dance artist called ‘Sublime’ who will be signed to Universal Music Group. The song I will be using for my video is called ‘Be Here’ by Duke Dumont. The intended audience of my music video will be those of the class AB demographic, aged 16-25 and more culturally sophisticated. Some of the target audience would be at university, so would be familiar with going out and enjoying themselves, which links to the escapism ideology of the dance music genre.

Editing my music video will be carefully done so that all of the shots are shown to the beat of the music, which is a convention of the dance music genre. All my shots will be short and have quick cuts between them to link with the fast paced nature of the genre. I have chosen to film on holiday for the video as this location has conventions of youth, socialising and enjoyment. This will reflect the hedonism of the young target audience who would also want to enjoy aspirational exotic holiday destinations and escapist experiences. A high angle shot of me jumping into the sea will be featured to show the depth and danger of the activity, which will link with the idea that youths are fearless and like to seek thrills. I intend to include a cross cutting sequence in my video between a DJ on the decks and inside a club. The young target audience would be familiar with enjoying dance music in clubs, so this sequence would appeal to them.

Instead of displaying a linear storyline in my video, I will use the chronological events of an exotic holiday to provide an anecdotal and cyclical structure to the song. To add to the ambiguous narrative arc, I intend to use voyeurism of a polished, aspirational lifestyle to allow the audience to escape through the music. The exotic element will be brought to life through a clear sense of branding, as I will include many shots of a real lime to reflect the artist’s logo. I will attempt to film a fruit vendor on the beach so that I have represented more than one social group. This adds to the diversity of the music video and effectively ties into the modern, non-discriminatory audience of EDM.

Universal Music Group will fund and promote the production in order to generate a profit, therefore it is an investment. By including the artist in the video, fans would recognise him and as a result his exposure will increase. To add to the digitally convergent nature of my production, I am going to distribute my video on many different social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Wix. This will ensure that the target audience get to see the artist's new music as industry led market research shows that 71% of young adults use Instagram daily and 73% use YouTube daily. Also, I have chosen to film my footage in a square crop ratio to reflect videos on Instagram. I chose Instagram to be the focal point because as shown in the statistics above, it has become as popular as YouTube in recent years. My target audience will be able to easily repost the video onto other social media platforms, such as Instagram, due to it being in a square form.

I also intend to produce a website that includes vibrant, eye-catching images of my artist to make him look attractive so that the target audience are likely to increase his exposure. To ensure that my two products link well together, the website will include an original title and logo for the artist, as well as the same exotic imagery that I used in my music video. My music video will be uploaded onto the home page of my website so that it is easy for the audience to watch it and share it on social media. From my pre-production research and planning, I have realised that a lot of other artists do this and it is effective. I will include tour dates for my artist to promote their recognition in society, as it will encourage people to see them live. I will also include merchandise that has the artist’s name and logo on that the audience can purchase to promote the artist as more people will see his name around the streets or on social media. Social media links will also be present on my website so that the audience can easily get involved with current news and gossip to do with the artist.

10 Years Of Dance Music Documentary

What state was the dance music industry in during 2003?

alexis petridis in the guardian said that dance music was in terminal decline. vinyl sales were falling, dance magazines were folding and clubs were closing. it was harder than ever to start up a label. very daunting and cut throat industry at the time. tough to get yourself out there. everything was expensive, you had to have a lot of money in the bank to start up in the dance music industry. people pushed on to do their thing though. 

What technological changes made an impact on dance music? What was the impact?

still playing vinyl. shift from classic djing with vinyl to digital age - laptops etc. digital music came about - tech became cheaper, acess to equipment was easier, musical production opened up to the masses
could afford to make records on the laptop and get them out to people. howeveer its made music more disposable. worldwide access to music.
everybody can access and express their artistic sense. you dont have to buy a studio. 
changed the art of DJing 

List some of the traditional DJs interviewed. What do you know about them? Do some research.

fatboy slim 
armin van burren 
hardwell
sub focus 
todd terry
dj sneak 

What were the seen as the traditional genres of dance music?

house, techno, drum and bass

What are some of the new dance genres mentioned in the film?

electronic dance music 

Why is there a conflict between traditional dance and EDM in America?

it used to be bad to dance in america - it was seen as gay. 

Research into existing media products: Media Language

PICK 3 VIDEOS

Dance video visual style/media language
Mise en scene:
costume
EXOTIC THEME - bright costumes, skimpy clothes, sparkly outfit that reflect many different colours/sequins, bikinis, loads of different outfits, all bright coloured (purple, blue, yellow), summer clothes
NIGHT THEME - neon colours in the dark
props
EXOTIC THEME - sunglasses, necklaces, high heels, dangly earrings, bicycles
NIGHT THEME - speaker that lights up, headphones on ears, bicycles, handheld video camera, handheld neon lights, confetti

nice car, boats
lighting
EXOTIC THEME - vibrant colours such as bright green/blue/pink/purple, sunset, infrared
NIGHT THEME - bright in day, dark at night, neon lights, flashing lights
location
EXOTIC THEME - sandy beach, tropical, water location, flowers, deserts, palm trees, clouds, dancing by a campfire, car ride with hair blowing in wind
NIGHT THEME - street lights/building windows lit up, on pavements, the strip, partying at night, walking through subway, underground car park, dark house party/fairy lights, standing infront of garage/elevator, walking into a shop at night, under a tunnel/bridge, basketball court, park at night
performance
dancing, flexible, break dancing
body language 
women look serious, sexy, moving their bodies
Camerawork
fast paced editing with some slow motion
handheld - distorting effect (reflects being drunk at parties). swivels round/upside down/passes people
close ups of faces
brief zoom into someones face
canted angle
coloured film over the camera/filtered lens
drone from above
Editing
fast paced editing

Sound
electronic


Narrative conventions
day to night
doing sports
woman being evicted from home
arguments with parents whilst child is getting fed up of hearing it
police getting involved
getting in trouble on the streets at night
boy discovering the fun of the dance music with all the lights attracting him to get involved

Representation of gender
women sexualised
wearing skimpy clothes
slow motion on women - more time to observe body
attractive women with good bodies


Ideology (system of belief)
freedom
spiritual

Dance Artists Websites

Representation: Using stereotypes to create meaning for audiences

Here, theresa may has been represented as clueless to the fact that she is causing 'dismay'. her smiling face suggests that she is happy about her actions and is not aware that she is doing anything wrong. in effect, the sun have represented her as a foolish woman who is not doing the right thing. they have described her actions as a 'disaster', making the audience believe that she is an ineffective, weak leader. the sun have used a list of three to emphasise the amount of problems theresa may has caused.

Hook's feminist theory may be relevant here as it is clear that they have not treated Theresa May with equality - they have compared her to jeremy corbyn who won the majority of votes.





van zoonen's theory is relevant here because they have clearly stereotyped women. the use of the imperative 'give me' conveys the idea that women are needy and impolite. the main visual image of theresa may is noticeably dark and distant. this creates the idea that she is not doing anybody any favours at the moment.







the onomatopoeia's used here create the idea that Theresa May is a witch with strange ideas and powers. the main visual image of theresa's face conveys a sense that she has tricks up her sleeve because she is pulling a sarcastic-looking smile. it is noticeable that they have edited the rest of her body out and put a black background behind her so that it makes it look like she is mysterious appearing out of the darkness. van zoonen's theory is also relevant here because they have created a stereotype that women are witches who have tricks up their sleeves.

Notes on exam question 3 about political context in news

Explain how the political context in which newspapers are produced, influences their ownership and regulation. (10 marks)

Refer to The Guardian and The Daily Mail newspapers you have studied to support your answer.

Notes on CNN video about Murdoch:
Murdoch owned 30% of the press - he had the two most popular tabloids aswell as the times and sunday times 
The inquiry is about the ethics of the press - phone hacking, email hacking and alleged payments to police. why did this abuse of power go on for so long?! this inquiry is trying to find the truth

murdoch (indomitable head of the News Corp. empire) was not happy this has been set up

this now questions:
to what extent are we getting the true news?
to what extent is a big media organisation like news corp determining politics?

Question 1) Explain the political significance of the concept of 'press freedom' and its relationship to representative democracy. Why do you think freedom of the press is important? How much influence do you think the government should have about the things reported in the UK press?

i believe that freedom of the press is important because it allows people to adopt an unbiased view towards what their reading. i believe the government need to have a significant amount of control over what theye publish so that none of it is going against our human rights.

We personally feel that the free press has both positives and negatives and therefore shouldn't be totally self regulated.
The invasion of privacy of those in the public eye is becoming more common. Reporters taking stories too far and gaining private information is happening due to the demand that the audience and readers give, responding well to stories that seem more exclusive.

The concept of "press freedom`' has political significance as newspapers are able to support any political ideology, printing stories hatching this ideology.
due to this, even though the government has little say or control of the press, politics remains one of the most covered stories.
This relationship between press freedom and its political significance helps to represent the democratic society in Britain; allowing readers to choose which ideology they may follow, without any regulation against them.
We personally feel that the government should oversee what is covered within the press.

Question 2) How are newspapers regulated and why do you think this is necessary? Can you refer to an academic idea we have studied in class?

The owners of newspapers can influence the editorial stance of a newspaper. The motives and agenda of newspaper owners and editors, and how they try to influence our understanding of certain events, is important when analysing how newspapers tell stories. Newspapers will also attempt to influence how the public vote in elections, with certain newspapers openly backing specific political parties.

With this much power, it is important that newspapers stick to a code of conduct or rules set out by independent organisations. This is known as regulation.

Regulation – Livingstone and Lunt studied four case studies of the work of Ofcom. Ofcom is serving an audience who may be seen as consumers and/or citizens, with consequences for regulation: consumers have wants, are individuals, seek private benefits from the media, use the language of choice, and require regulation to protect against detriment; citizens have needs, are social, seek public or social benefits from the media, use the language of rights, and require regulation to promote the public interest.

Traditional regulation is being put at risk by: increasingly globalised media industries, the rise of the
digital media, and media convergence.

The main organisations that regulate newspapers consist of: Editor's code of practice, Press Complaints Commission (PCC), and the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO). This is necessary so that newspaper companies are protected by these organisations so that stories are checked to make sure there is no obligation to those stories which could harm the company involved if there was a problem with story coverage.


Question 3) What examples of editorialised content would not fit 'impartial' television news (e.g. social or political opinion) from The Guardian and The Daily Mail print or online editions.

Editorialised content means that its not advertising based in the act that they pursue direct sales intensions. This is the reason in which customers purchase or subscribe to these news outlets. News outlets of this type manipulate and distorts news values in order to broadcast impartial judgments of peoples beliefs and what they want to hear.

Question 4) What examples of ownership models, e.g. The Guardian’s trust ownership and The Daily Mail’s proprietor model, could show the opportunities offered by the latter model for control by ‘press barons’.

Ownership models like the Daily mail’s proprietor model offer a prime example of how media can be controlled to influence public political views. Press barons like Rupert Murdoch, who controls most UK tabloids, can be seen to share his political opinions in each of his newspapers; this allows for an unfair opinion to be shared with the UK. 


Question 5) How much power does the press have to shape political debate, e.g. the influence of proprietors on politicians to support policies promoting cross-media ownership or holding back from regulation.

The press can develop power through ownership of newspapers which consequently can shape political stances due to their ideologies and therefore political debate through the widespread circulation which has the power to influence politicians in their debates. The owners of newspapers can influence the editorial stance of a newspaper. Newspapers will also attempt to influence how the public vote in elections. It is important that newspapers stick to a code of conduct or rules set out by independent organisations in order to avoid this. If one large business or one singular man owns a company their ideologies can filter down into the papers. This relates to Hesmondhalgh's theory on cultural industries as DMGT (owner of the Daily Mail) also owns multiple other companies as shown above. This therefore shows the integration and conglomeration of cultural industries which follows the normal capitalist patterns seen in Hesmondhalgh's theory.


Question 6) Explain the political affiliations of the two newspapers, e.g. The Daily Mail as a right wing newspaper is partly defined by its support for the Conservative party, The Guardian as a centre-left newspaper is partly defined by its support for Labour or the Liberal Democrats, and how this is clear from an example you have studied.

DAILY MAIL

• Right wing (capitalist) - partly defined by it's support for the conservative party. It evidently portrays these views through its conservative stories and layout.
• always tends to have a focus on money and prices in modern life - they do this because of its political affiliation, due to the wealthy being interested in the price of things. 
• the mail favours right wing people and the wealthy, which is clearly shown in their bias to some stories. An example of this, was the paradise papers coverage, which involved the queen being under fire for not paying taxes and also for the elites dodging tax. In this, the DM back up the queen and made it as if those lesser off were wrong and the queen was simply a victim. 

THE GUARDIAN

• adopts the left wing (socialist) ideologies because of its support for labour.
• The guardian is very much a hard newspaper and so what it conveys tends to be less biased and more factual. 
• Despite this though, there is a slight lean in what it has written towards the socialist side of things and so the rich tend to look worse.
• Interestingly, the guardian also says a lot about tax at the minute, though what it says is how rich rich should really help the poor and so they should be taxed a greater amount.

Analysis of dance tracks

1. What makes all of these music videos from the dance music genre?

from watching all three music videos, i have noticed that they all contain very similar features. For example, they feature thin sporty girls that are wearing a small amount of clothing so that they can show off their bodies. Sports activities such as roller skating and gymnastics are shown. there are frequent bright lights and bright colours in the videos. the scenes are often filmed on the street or in daylight, but there is also some features of club scenes. the dancers do lots of stunts and tricks, moving their bodies in weird ways. the shots in the videos are cut fast to create a fast paced feel to the video. the shots are very short, often less than a second, which adds to the fast paced feel. there is noticeably none singing in the videos, theres just a large amount of dancers suggesting that these songs are more suitable to dance to rather than to sing. 

1. Explore how the artists are using representation to appeal to their target audience in these three videos by picking out key frames from the video to analyse.

the people featured in the videos are all young thin, sporty people that like to dance. this suggests that the target audience for these videos would be teenagers or young adults that are active and like to go clubbing etc. 

1. What other music videos could you find from the same genre? Outline two and explain why you think they are termed dance.

my head is a jungle by MK, wankelmut - bright coloured outfits, clothes, surroundings, thin girl dancing, club scenes, fast shot cuts, lights 

daddy yo by wizkid - sexy dancers with legs bellies arms out, bright lights, club scenes, dance moves 

Preliminary H&M advert

Preliminary Production Evaluation (Moving Image)

Evaluate the success of your first draft product and your own production process by completing these evaluation tasks:

You need to complete an in-depth analysis of your final video by comparing at least four of your shots alongside the original you were trying to recreate.

The following areas of Media Language should be used in your analysis: Camera Shot / Angle, Location, Editing, Sound, Mise en scene, Lighting.

wear a hat indoors

i believe the shot we used is quite similar to the one used in the professional photograph as it is a close-up of the actors but with the background of the cafe shown. however, the positioning of the actors isnt quite the same as in the professional shot - our actors should've been more to the right and the camera shouldve been abit further away from them. the angle of the shot that we used is effective because it resembles the one used in the professional shot. the camera is on a slight low angle. i believe we used a suitable location for this shot as it is a cafeteria like in the professional shot. however, the location used in the h&m advert looks quite dark and it isnt lit by many lights whereas the cafeteria that we used is very well lit and has a bright white interior. the costumes that we used in our shot greatly resembles the costume and props used in the professional shot as we managed to use a red hat, sunglasses and leather jackets. 

short skirt after 40

i am happy with the shot that we used as we managed to use a high-angle shot which got everyone in it. however, the shot wouldve looked more effective if the camera wasnt directly over the actors, it needed to be more from the left side of the bed. i am very satisfied with the location of this shot because it is not noticeable that the shot wasnt taken in a bedroom - it was taken in an IT room! i believe the dark area surrounding the bed resembles the professional shot very well and the white bed that we created looks exactly the same as the one used in the h&m shot. i believe the lighting that we used was suitable as the bed area is bright compared to the background. however, to improve it slightly we could've made rob's face darker to make him look like he is more in the background. our use of props couldve been improved if we brought a black embellished dress for hannah to wear. instead, we tried to recreate the dress by wrapping a leather jacket around hannah's waist.

Wear a short skirt if you're a man

the camera shot and angle that we used here was very similar to the one created by h&m. we made sure that we used a medium close-up of our actor and that the camera was facing straight on towards the actor. i would say the lightning that we used could've been improved because there are shadows over zach's body whereas in the professional shot there is clear bright lighting in the shot. i am happy about the location we used for the shot because there are lines in the background of our shot aswell as the professional one. we used appropriate props for this shot because we made zach wear a checked shirt and a skirt. we also recreated the sheet of paper that the actor is holding by writing the words in a blue pen. 

dont try at all

this shot has been recreated well in my opinion. the location is perfect as we have took it by a brown door, on a wooden floor with the rest of the background the colour white. the boy that we used resembles the actor used in the professional shot as they are of a similar age and are in the same body position. we used very similar props to recreate this shot, such as the yellow dressing gown, the blue shoes and the black bicycle helmet. the only element that we could've improved is the lighting. we could've done this by taking the shot in daylight rather than in artificial light. this would limit the amount of shadows that appear around the door. daylight would also illuminate the colour of the shoes which is hard to see and would make the white background more crisp and clear.

dress like a man

i am happy with the shot we used for the 'dress like a man' shot because the location looks realistic. The actor we used is crossing over a road and there are trees and a building in the background which is the same as in the professional shot. an improvement that we could've made would be to use a more professional camera that allows us to focus on the actor and blur out the background. this would focus the audience's attention on the action rather than what's happening in the background. also, if we used a handheld camera to create a shaky effect and followed the actor walking it would resemble the professional shot more. we made sure that we used a long shot. for this shot we could've edited it so that the camera has a shaky effect, like in the professional shot. the costume that we used for this shot could've been improved as it would've been fairly easy for us to find a full black outfit but we used navy blue and red instead. however, we managed to use an actor with short hair and made her wear white socks like in the original advert.

stand out

the location for this shot couldve been improved because it does not resemble the professional shot. however i am happy that we managed to create the shot on the corner of a building. in order to improve we couldve took the shot at a white house or building rather than at school. another improvement that couldve been made would be the outfit that the actor is wearing. i believe we could've found some pink clothes for zach to wear to resemble the outfit that the man is wearing in the professional shot. also, the pose that zach is doing does not resemble the one that is used in the h&m advert which couldve easily been replicated. despite the negative points, we successfully used a long shot here and made sure that zach was standing right in the middle of the shot.

blend in

Task 2:
How organised were you as a group? What elements of organisation were vital to you as a production group?
i would say we havent been as organised as we could be in our group. however, we did manage to get alot of shots done as a group by going out and finding props and suitable outfits to recreate the shots.

What technologies did you use and how did they serve to develop your skills as a media practitioner?
for the majority of our shots we used an iPhone 7/8 camera because none of us had professional camera.
How creative do you think you were during this process? What elements of the project required creativity and imagination, even though you were given a very structured brief to 'copy'?

How successful do you think your first draft video is? Use examples from the film to illustrate your evaluations.

In preparation for the next stage of your production work, what knowledge of experience will you take with you into the next project?

Evaluate my Initial Footage

Task: Paste your chosen frame from your footage next to the same frame from the professional footage. Complete the following tasks:

Framing - comment on the framing of your shot in comparison to the original. Could it be improved? Why do you think the professional shot is so successful?
i am very pleased with the framing of this image because it looks extremely similar to the professional photograph. the professional shot is succesful because the camera blurs out the leg in the background so that all attention is focused on the woman with the sunglasses on. also, the red sofa in the background matches with the hat the model is wearing. the wooden strip in the background links with the colour of the model's nose ring and earring. the black sunglasses link with the black leather jacket that she is wearing aswell as the black interior of the cafe seen in the background. 

Lighting - does your lighting work. What kind of set up have you tried to use or did you rely on ambient lighting? Why do you think the professional shoot used the lighting it has?
i think we could've worked on our lighting more to make it look more like the professional shot. our shot is too light and doesnt set the mood of the cafe that the models are supposedly in. we just used daylight for our shot whereas in the proffesional shot they have carefully dimmed the lighting to make the models look dominating and serious. this makes us think that they are intimidating. 

Mise en scene - comment on whether your costume choices were close to the original and what changes you could make to improve your shot.
i am very happy with the costume choices that we made. we made holly wear red lipstick and a red hat like the model in the professional shot. she is also wearing a leather jacket like the model and even has a nose ring in. the only thing about the costume that is noticeably different is the different coloured hair. to overcome this problem i should've asked holly to put her hair behind her shoulder so that less of it was in the shot. 

Camera - while impossible to see from one shot, you could comment on your camerawork. Did you use a hand-held camera or tripod? Is there any movement in the original shot which you have found difficult to match?
for this shot i used a hand-held camera on the iphone 7. i felt like this was the best option because i could get close to the actors in order to get her head in the right position. in the original shot the actress moved her head slightly upwards which is found difficult to replicate as the shot happened so quickly.

Actors - did your actors work well in front of the camera? Comment on how precise you need to be when directing others in a professional shoot context.
holly worked very well infront of the camera. she kept a serious face which resembles the model and had her hand in the correct position on her face. she was determined that she wanted to wear the nose ring, like the model, so made sure it would stay in her nose. i had to be very precise when taking this shot so that alice's leg in the background looked like the leg in the background of the professional shot. i had to make sure that alice's hand was resting on her leg, and that her leg was resting on the chair.