Stereotypes and Countertypes

      Top 10 Most Important Things

1. The definition of stereo-types which is a standardised, often simplified, mental pictures or attitude that is held in common by members of a group.
2. How we stereotype: As human we use our own unique storehouse of knowledge about people when we judge them
3. How we stereotype: we categorise people on different types to simplify the task of person perception e.g. workaholic, feminist etc.
4. Behaviour - typical things that people in this group do "grannies like to knit"
5. Appearance - this can include, physical appearance and clothing as well as the sound of the voice e.g. " all teachers wear dreadful old clothes
6. we have each a system of rules that tells us a characteristics go with other characteristics
7. Changing representation - counter-types
8. stereotype is constructed in ways that fit the particular medium
9. counter types is still very much a stereotype

Representation Of Age: Assessment Point

This extract constructs representations of differing age groups.At the very beginning of the extract a representation of middle-age is constructed through the character of the strict teacher.

 This representation is that of middle-age as possessing authority and power, with the character having control over other characters who are both teenaged and young adult.A sense of enigma is created on this character's first appearance as we see a tracking shot of feet walking through tables from a low level. The absence of non-diegetic sound allows us to focus clearly on the noise of the character's footsteps. A cut to two teenage boys clearly shows them as behaving in a suspicious manner before we cut back to the feet steadily approaching. This juxtaposition constructs meaning for the audience as it becomes clear that the boys are keen to hide from the approaching adult, suggesting that he has authority over them. 

A series of quick cuts adds pace to the scene before we see the middle aged teacher's face for the first time in close-up. The use of a close-up allows us to see an expression that has connotations of enjoyment as he passes judgement over the boys. He puts the boys under pressure by asking where they were as everyone else was 'suffering the screening'. This dialogue, an aspect of diegetic sound, helps to further construct his character as being a somewhat disillusioned and cynical representation of middle age. The composition of the shot where he questions the boys gives him power as he is anchored in the center of the shot with the boys either side of him.His character is developed through his use of sarcasm in the delivery of lines of dialogue such as when he finishes the first boy's sentence by saying 'holding his hair..' The actor's tone of voice, an element of mise en scene, is patronizing and this character is developing into a very negative representation of his age group. 

His use of non-verbal commands, such as the clicking of fingers, and commands using the imperative tense, 'Give it!', ensure that the audience are aware of his authority, a fact supported through the character's costume with his suit, shirt and tie having connotations of power. Further interactions between the character and a young adult teacher reinforce his representation as middle aged authority.

A different representation of middle age can be seen at the end of the extract through the character of the maths teacher. the maths teacher is the complete opposite to the older teacher simply because he cares what the others think about him and seems to have no control over the students to the point of taking ideas of them. you get the feeling that he is different to the other teacher from the long shot of him  dressed as a teenager which then makes it clear that it wasn't his ideas when he asked a girl student "are they meant to be like that".

 Non-diegetic sound was used when the maths teacher was first seen in his teenage costume which was like a music that teenagers listen to which gives us the impression that he is not a strict teacher towards the students and might sometimes act like them which then means they can behave anyhow they want towards him because of the way mise-en-scene is used and this was shown-ed when two female students started to laugh at him and making fun of the way he dressed because there fear from him is insignificant.

The maths teacher is a teacher that fancies a female teacher and he tends to look cool in front of her so she can feel the same way and this is what leaded him to taking advise from a student to impress the female teacher and it was showed that he really wants to be with her from the tracking shot of him following the teacher but turns out to be him making a fool of himself in-front of her when she told him that he looks ridiculous, it wasn't just the maths teacher that thinks he looks ridiculous when the janitor come to the scene saying "you cannot go to classroom dress like that", the maths teacher then get the idea that he is making a fool of himself.

What To Do Whilst The Extract Is Shown

Remember to follow the approach I have been through with you in class when watching the extract

 

Representation of Age - Extract From "Waterloo Road"

Watching The Extract - The Sequences Used InThe Exam

The 7 Areas of Representing

The 7 Areas Of Representation

Physical Disability / Ability

Disability tends to still be represented in terms of stereotypical characters.  For example:

• Physically Disabled / Disfigured – often shown as outsiders, unable to do normal things
• Mentally disabled – Often shown as strange, odd, childlike, outsiders
• Able Bodies / Minded – often shown as “normal” and “ideal”.

Characters with disabilities are often portrayed in TV Dramas as being outsiders, strange, unable to do everyday activities, immature, weaker than “able bodied, able minded” characters, less attractive etc.  Traditionally in films, villains were often given a disability or deformity to make them seem scarier or more evil.  Although our association of disability with “evil” has since declined, society often still links disability to weakness and makes disabled characters objects to pity.

If you get “disability” as an issue in the exam, you should be thinking about the following things when watching the clip:

• Can I identify who is able / disabled in the clip?
• Are people with disabilities shown as different interests, personalities, attitudes, behaviours from people who don’t have disabilities?  If so, how?
• Is their disability represented as being important in their life?
• Are people without disabilities represented stereotypically as being normal / better / more powerful?  If so, how?
• Are people with disabilities represented stereotypically as being abnormal /weak/ pathetic?  If so, how?
• How do other characters in the clip treat the characters with disability?
• What is the message the clip is trying to portray about sexuality?
• Don’t ignore the able bodied characters as they need to be analysed too!

Ethnicity

The representation of people from different ethnicities has changed massively over the years.  This is probably because the population in Britain has become much more diverse recently and current society is much more used to mixing with people from all different cultures and backgrounds.  
Here are some examples of very negative generic stereotypes that used to be seen (and in some case still are) in film and tv:

• White people – often shown as good, pure, heroes, strong, or sometimes racist
• Black people – often shown as exotic, strange, tribal, criminal, poor
• Asian people (Chinese, Korean etc) – often shown mainly as intelligent, submissive (quiet and shy), nerdy, interested in technology
• Indian people – often shown as being poor, living in large families, very traditional, working in corner shops
• Middle Eastern people (arabs etc) – often shown as being terrorists, violent, aggressive, rich
• Immigrants – often shown as being a drain on society, criminals, illegal, bad for Britain, taking British jobs

People often note that in TV drama, people from particular ethnicities have storylines that all centre around their culture.  For example, Indian characters often battle with the clash between British culture and their traditional culture eg: arranged marriages etc.  They rarely have storylines that don’t have something to do with their ethnicity.  People also have commented that often people from minority ethnic groups (eg non white) are often portrayed in a very negative way.

If you get “ethnicity” as an issue in the exam, you should be thinking about the following things when watching the clip:

• Can I identify what ethnicities people are?
• Are people from different ethnic backgrounds shown as different interests, personalities, attitudes, behaviours?  If so, how?
• Is their ethnicity represented as being important in their life?
• Are people from particular ethnicities portrayed as being better, more powerful, than others?
• Are people from particular ethnicities portrayed as being abnormal /weaker/ more pathetic than others?  
• How do other characters in the clip treat the characters from different ethnic backgrounds?
• What is the message the clip is trying to portray about ethnicity?
• Don’t ignore the white characters as they need to be analysed too!

Sexuality

Sexuality tends to still be represented in terms of stereotypical characters.  For example:

• Gay Men – camp, feminine, funny, outrageous OR very attractive, and sleep around
• Lesbian Women – Butch, manly, blunt, man haters

Despite changing equality laws and a wider acceptance of different sexualities within much of society, TV has always remained quite conservative as they are scared of offending their viewers.  Heterosexual (straight) characters are represented as the “norm” and homosexual (gay) characters are often represented as being different, strange, or separate from mainstream society.  Some critics say that when TV does feature gay characters, they are never just characters that “happen to be gay.”  Their sexuality always plays a key part in their storylines and they don’t seem to have any issues outside of their sexuality.  

If you get “sexuality” as an issue in the exam, you should be thinking about the following things when watching the clip:

• Can I identify what the sexualities of the characters are?
• Are people of different sexualities shown as having different interests, personalities, attitudes, behaviours?  If so, how?
• Is their sexuality represented as being important in their life?
• Are particular sexualities represented as being normal / powerful / better?  If so, how?
• Are particular sexualities represented as being abnormal?  If so, how?
• What is the message the clip is trying to portray about sexuality?
• Don’t forget that “straight” is a sexuality too.  Don’t ignore the straight characters as they need to be analysed too!

Class and Status

The representation of people from different classes has changed massively over the years.  Up until the 1950’s, the upper classes were the class mainly shown on tv and in film.  This is because they were some of the only people able to afford to go to the cinema and own a television.  As more and more people from working class background watch TV, more and more TV programmes feature working class characters.  

Having said that, there are still some stereotypes associated with different classes:

• Upper Classes (eg Made in Chelsea) – often shown as rich, clever, snobby, very posh
• Middle Classes (eg My Family)– often shown as “normal”, good family values, well behaved
• Working Classes (eg Coronation Street) – often shown as poorer, less happy, less intelligent, but with strong community links
• Lower / Under Classes (eg Shameless) – often shown as being criminals, no family values, no community links, bad parents etc

People have often noticed that in many TV shows, people of different classes, don’t mix.  And when they are shown together, they are often shown as clashing and being very different.  

If you get “class” as an issue in the exam, you should be thinking about the following things when watching the clip:

• Can I identify what class characters are?
• Are people from different classes shown as having different interests, personalities, attitudes, behaviours?  If so, how?
• Is their class represented as being important in their life?
• Are people from particular classes portrayed as being better, more powerful, than others?
• Are people from particular classes portrayed as being abnormal /weaker/ more pathetic than others?  
• How do other characters in the clip treat the characters from different classes?
• What is the message the clip is trying to portray about class?

Age

The representation of people of different ages has changed massively over the years.  Up until the 1950’s, there were really only two age groups shown in films and television (adult and child).  This was because that most children left school at a young age and went straight to work and became adults.  In the 1950’s more young people started staying in education and began leading very different lives from both children and adults and so developed the idea of the “teenager”.

Having said that, there are still some stereotypes associated with different ages:

• Children – often shown as being young, innocent, naive, pure, sweet, helpless, powerless
• Teenagers – Often shown as being aggressive, moody, lazy, criminals, hate school, 
• 20’s-30’s – Often shown as the ideal age for love, parties, fun, making money, being glamourous and attractive.  In films the heroes are often this age group.
• Middle Aged – often shown as being past it, unattractive, not aware of popular culture, uncool, boring lives, dominant over others, no real connection to their kids, grumpy.  In films the villains are often from this age group.
• Elderly – often shown as being unattractive, slow, weak, ill, confused, pathetic, powerless, not important, dependent on others.

If you get “age” as an issue in the exam, you should be thinking about the following things when watching the clip:

• Can I identify what approximate age the characters are?
• Are people from different age groups shown as having different interests, personalities, attitudes, behaviours?  If so, how?
• Is their age represented as being important in their life?
• Are people from particular age groups portrayed as being better, more powerful, than others?
• Are people from particular age groups portrayed as being abnormal /weaker/ more pathetic than others?  
• How do other characters in the clip treat the characters from different age groups?
• What is the message the clip is trying to portray about age?

Regional Identity

Regional Identity refers to the part of the United Kingdom someone is from.  It could refer to a general area such a “north” or “south”, a country such as “English” or “Scottish” or specific towns such as “London” or “Manchester.”

There are several regional stereotypes widely seen on television:

• Scottish – often shown as being money obsessed, won’t pay for anything, drinks a lot of alcohol, loves the outdoors, wears kilts, eats haggis, quite aggressive and violent
• Welsh –Often shown as living in the middle of the countryside, with people making jokes about them “shagging sheep”
• Irish – often shown as living in the countryside, working in rural areas such as farms, being very religious, being good at dancing and singing, very friendly but less intelligent
• English – often shown as being racist, obsessed with beer and football living in London.  Sometimes the stereotype goes in the opposite direction of showing English people as very rich, posh, happy, living in castles and being very “royal.”
• London – There are 2 main stereotypes of Londoners.  One is that they are often shown as being rich, posh, snobby, upper class, Hugh Grant types from central or west london.  The other is that they often shown as being from north, east or south London, poor, common, lower class, criminalistic, violent “Kidulthood” style
• Manchester / Newcastle / Liverpool – Often shown as being “chavs”, wearing fake designer labels, or tracksuits, drinking a lot, being aggressive, uneducated, criminals
• Essex – often shown as being glamourous but cheap, footballer’s wives, lots of partying, being quite stupid
• Yorkshire – Often shown as living in rural countryside, with rolling hills and cobbled streets, being quite old fashioned
• Cornwall / Somerset – Often shown as being “backwards”, living in rural areas, working on farms
• South England – often shown as being the centre of culture, modern, classy, clever, sunny, richer, doing middle class jobs such as managers etc
• North England – often shown as being poorer, bad weather, lower class, aggressive, less culture, less clever, doing working class jobs such as builders etc

If you get “regional identity” as an issue in the exam, you should be thinking about the following things when watching the clip:

• Can I identify where the characters are from within the country?
• Are people from different areas shown as having different interests, personalities, attitudes, behaviours?  If so, how?
• Is their regional identity represented as being important in their life?
• Are people from particular regions portrayed as being better, more powerful, than others?
• Are people from particular regions portrayed as being abnormal /weaker/ more pathetic than others?  
• How do other characters in the clip treat the characters from different regions?
• What is the message the clip is trying to portray about regional identity?

Gender

Gender Identity refers to whether the characters are men or women.  It could also include transgender, transvestite, and androgynous characters.

There are several gender stereotypes widely seen on television:

Male Stereotypes

• Traditional masculine man – often shown as being muscly, strong, brave, heterosexual, working in manual jobs such as building, plumbing etc.  They are often aggressive, tall, and dominant over women, works to provide for family, does no cleaning, cooking or childcare
• New Man – Often shown as being less masculine but still heterosexual, very peaceful, looks after the family, stays at home to look after family, does cleaning and cooking etc, shown as equal to women
• Gay Man – Often shown as being very feminine, weak, working in jobs such as fashion or hairdressing, bitchy, etc

Female Stereotypes

• Traditional feminine woman – often shown as being girly, likes pink, wears dresses, does feminine jobs such as working in fashion, hairdressing or stays at home to look after the children, needs a man to cope, weak, scared of things, needs rescuing, pure and innocent
• Sexy woman – very flirty, dresses in a revealing way, more powerful than traditional women, uses men to get what she wants, no loyalty to other women, bitchy
• Lesbian Woman – Often shown as dressing in a masculine fashion, doing masculine roles, hating men, looking masculine

It is important to remember that not all characters will fit into these categories and you may have characters that are mixtures.  All you need to do is work out what the technical elements say about them.  If you get “gender” as an issue in the exam, you should be thinking about the following things when watching the clip:

• Can I identify what gender the characters are in the clip?
• Are people from different genders shown as having different interests, personalities, attitudes, behaviours?  If so, how?
• Is their gender represented as being important in their life?
• Are people of different genders portrayed as being better, more powerful, than others?
• Are people from different genders portrayed as being abnormal /weaker/ more pathetic than others?  
• How do other characters in the clip treat the characters of different genders?
• What is the message the clip is trying to portray about gender?

Television Drama Terminology

                                                          Camera shots

Establishing shot

sets up/establishes the context for a scene by showing the relationship between its important figures and objects.

Master shot

film recording of a dramatized scene from start to finish from an angle that keeps all the players in view. 

Close-up

Where the camera tightly frames a person or objects features

mid-shot

A shot taken at a medium distance

long shot

shows the entire object or human figure

wide shot

Camera is positioned to observe the most action in the performance

two-shot

two people can be seen together

aerial shot

shot taken from a height such as a plane, helicopter or a person on top of a building

point of view shot

Shows what the character can see

over the shoulder shot 

shot of someone or something taken from the perspective or camera angle from the shoulder of another person.   

 Movement

Pan

When the camera is being moved on a vertical or horizontal axis. Usually to film a panorama.

Tilt

When a camera is stationary and rotates in a vertical or 'tilting' plane. This camera movement is similar in a way of someone nodding their head.

Track

When a camera is following a character or object. Such as the camera following a moving car. It can be moved with a camera dolly, handheld camera operator or on a tripod.

Dolly

A dolly is a wheeled platform that pushed along rails for a smooth camera movement.

Crane

When a shot is being taken while the camera is mounted on a crane or jib. This allows for a shot from above to view a whole scene.

Steadicam

A steadicam is a type of camera stabiliser which helps for a smooth shot even when moving quickly or over an uneven surfaces.

Hand-held

When a camera is shooting while being operated by a cameraman as he is holding it in his hands as apposed to being on a tripod or any other base. This allows for a greater freedom of motion.

Zoom

When the zoom effect is used on a camera to get a clearer view of a target in the distance.

Reverse zoom

A reverse zoom is when the camera is zoomed out to get a clearer view of an object.

Composition

Framing

Framing is the presentation of visual elements in an image. This is to make a target the centre of attention to the audience.

Rule of thirds

This is a guideline which applies to the process of composing visual images. This helps to place objects in the right place for a tidy and ordered shot.

Depth of field

Depth of field is a characteristic of a camera that can be used to enhance the image composition of the photo. Depth of field means the sharp area surrounding the point of focus.

 

Angle

high angle

When the camera looks down on the subject

low angle

camera is positioned low on the vertical axis, a low angle is anywhere below eye line looking up.

canted angle A camera angle that is deliberately slanted to one side.

                                                                         Editing

Shot/Reverse Shot: 

Shot/Reverse Shot is a film technique where one character is shown looking at another character and then the other character is shown looking back at the first character.

Eyeline Match:

An eyeline match is a film editing technique associated with the continuity editing system, it is based on the premise that the audience will want to see what the character on screen is seeing.

Graphic Match:

A graphic match is a cut in film editing between either two different objects, two different space or two different compositions in  which objects in the two shots graphically match, often helping to establish a strong continuity of action and linking the two shots metaphorically.

Action Match:

An action match (match on action) refers to film editing and video editing techniques where the editor cuts from one shot to another view that matches the first shot's action.

Jump Cut:

A cut in movie editing that represents a momentary omission in a continuous shot, creating and effect of discontinuity or acceleration.

Crosscutting:

Crosscutting is an editing technique most often used in films to establish action occurring at the same time in two different locations. In a crosscut the camera will cut away from one action to another action which can suggest the simultaneity of these two actions but this is no always the case.

Parallel Editing:

Parallel editing is a technique whereby cutting occurs between two or more related actions occurring at the same time i two separate locations or different points in time.

Cutaway:

A cutaway shot is the interruption of a continuously filmed action by inserting a view of something else. It is usually followed by a cut back to the first shot, when the cutaway avoids a jump cut.

Insert:

An insert shot is a shot of part of a scene as filmed from a different angle and/or focal length from the master shot. Inserts core action already covered from the master shot but emphasise a different aspect of that action due to the different framing.

 

                                              Other Transitions

 

 

Dissolve - an act or instance of moving gradually from one image or scene in a film to another.
Fade-in - an image is made to appear gradually.
Fade-out - an image is made to disappear gradually.
Wipe - which an existing picture seems to be wiped out by a new one.
Superimposition - to put one image on top of another so that both can be seen
Long take - an uninterrupted shot in a film which lasts much longer than the conventional editing pace, usually lasting several minutes 
Short take - In filmmaking, a short take or oner is an uninterrupted shot in a film which lasts much shorter than the conventional editing pace either of the film itself or of films in general, usually lasting a few seconds.

Slow motion - the action of showing film or playing back video more slowly than it was made or recording, so that the action appears much slower than in real life.

Ellipsis and expansion of time - is the narrative device of omitting a portion of the sequence of events, allowing the read to fill in the narrative gaps and you are making the duration of the video sequence longer than real-time.

Post-production - post-production is part of filmmaking, video production and photography process. it occurs in the making of motion pictures, television programs, radio programs, advertising, audio recordings, photography and digital art. It is a term for all stages of production occurring after the actual end of shooting and/or recording the completed work.

Visual effect - In filmmaking, visual effects are the processes by which imagery is created and/or manipulated outside the context of a live action shot. Visual effects involve the integration of live action footage and generated imagery to create environments which look realistic, but would be dangerous, expensive, impractical, or simply impossible to capture on film. Visual effects using computer generated imagery has recently become accessible to the independent filmmaker with the introduction of affordable and easy-to-use animation and composition software.computer generated imagery

                                                                                 Sound

Diegetic and Non Diegetic- Diegetic sound is the sound that is in the scene whereas Non-Diegetic is the sound over the scene such as backing tracks.

Synchronous/Asynchronous- Synchronous sound is the sound that gets used for movement, an example being Footsteps represent a person walking. Asynchronous sound is the sound that is not matched with a visible source on the screen to try and represent emotion and can make the film seem more realistic.

Sound Effects- These are effects to try and represent an action such as a knife can represent a stabbing.

Sound Motif- Technique used to create a theme or mood.

Sound Bridge- Can be a carry over song from one scene to another.

Dialogue- Dialogue is where there is a conversation in the film.

Voiceover- This is where a person is narrating but the person cannot be seen.

Mode of address/Direct address- Modes of address can be defined as the ways in which relations between addresser and addressee are constructed in a text. Can also be a character talking to the audience.

Sound Mixing- Where multiple sounds are mixed into one.

Sound Perspective- Sound that can create realism in a film.

Soundtrack- A recording accompaniment of a film.

Score- Musical notation with each instrumental and vocal parts also referred to as sheet music.

Incidental music- Music used to enhance a particular atmosphere and is used as background music.

Themes and Stings-  Themes are recognisable as a melody and can be the same song for a specific programme. Sting is a short segment of a piece of music that indicates a regular part of a show.

Ambient Sound- Background noise to represent a scene such as wind, water, birds etc.

 

                                                      Mise-en-Scene

 

Product Design: overall look of a filmed event and it is one of the key creative roles in the creation if motion pictures and television. 

Location: In media, the locations are the areas in which filming goes on and film sets are shot.

Studio: The studio is an alternative name for a film or television production company.

Set costume Design: The setting of a scene and the objects (props) visible in a scene. Set design can be used to amplify character emotion or the dominant mood, which has physical,social, psychological, emotional, economic and cultural significance in film.

Costume and Make up: Costume simply refers to the clothes that characters wear. Using certain colors or designs, costumes in narrative cinema are used to signify characters or to make clear distinctions between characters. And the Make up establishes the time period, reveal character traits and signal changes in character.

Properties:

Lighting: The intensity, direction, and quality of lighting can influence an audience’s understanding of characters, actions, themes and mood.

Colour Design: Early films were shot in black and white but the cinema soon included color images. These images were initially painted or stencilled onto the film but by the 1930s filmmakers were able to include colour sequences in their films. Apart from the added realism or glamor that a color image could provide, colour is also used to create aesthetic patterns and to establish character or emotion in narrative cinema.

Year 12 Media Studies Blog

50% of your final AS grade will come from a single examination in summer 2012. 

There are two sections to this paper: 

Section A: Textual Analysis and Representation (50 marks)

Section B: Institutions and Audiences (50 marks) 

The purpose of this exam is two-fold:

first to assess your media textual analysis skills and your understanding of the concept of representation using a short unseen moving image extract (AO1, AO2); 

second to assess your knowledge and understanding of media institutions and their production processes, distribution strategies, use of technologies and related issues concerning audience reception and consumption of media texts (AO1, AO2):

The examination is two hours long(including 30 minutes for viewing and making notes on the moving image extract) and you will have to answer two compulsory questions. 

The unit is marked out of a total of 100, with each question marked out of 50

Section A: Textual Analysis and Representation 

You will be shown an ‘unseen’ moving image extract with one compulsory question dealing with textual analysis of various technical aspects of the languages and conventions of moving image media. You will be asked to link this analysis with a discussion of some aspect of representation within the sequence.

We will start preparing for this part of the examination in January using a range of examples from British television drama. We will learn how to undertake a textual analysis of the following technical areas of moving image language and conventions in relation to the unseen extract you will get in the exam: 

1. Camera Angle, Shot, Movement and Composition

Mise-en-Scène 

Editing 

Sound

 Section B: Institutions and Audiences

One compulsory question to be answered by candidates based upon a case study of the film industry.

The exam board explanation of what should be covered are in italics below:

Through specific case studies of the centre’s choice, candidates should be prepared to demonstrate understanding of contemporary institutional processes of production, distribution, marketing and exchange/exhibition at a local, national or international level as well as British audiences’ reception and consumption. There should also be some emphasis on the students’ own experiences of being audiences of a particular medium. 

Some of you seemed a little unclear about what you have to learn in preparation for this part of the exam. Here is a breakdown:

In the exam, you need to understand and be able to discuss the processes of production, distribution, marketing and exchange as they relate to contemporary media institutions in the film industry. 

You also need to understand and be able to discuss the nature of audience consumption and the relationship between audiences and institutions in the film industry. 

You have to show knowledge of:

• the issues raised by media ownership the importance of cross media convergence and synergy, in production, distribution and marketing of films
• the technologies that have been introduced in recent years at the levels of production, marketing and exchange in the film industry
• the significance of proliferation in hardware and content for institutions and audiences
• the importance of technological convergence for institutions and audiences
• the issues raised in the targeting of national and local audiences (specifically, British) by international and global institutions
• the ways in which your own experiences of media consumption illustrate wider patterns and trends of audience behaviour.