Theorists- The Masterlist

Media language: 

-Levi Strauss' Narrative Theory of Structuralism-
https://georgialaymedia.blogspot.com/2017/10/levi-strauss-narrative-theory-binary.html

Binary opposites are presented in the media to emphasise the opposite
E.g. good vs evil, you need a good force to counteract the evil
This conflict is presented at the centre of the narrative

-Roland Barthes' 5 Code Theory-
https://georgialaymedia.blogspot.com/2017/10/roland-barthes-5-code-theory.html

1) The Hermeneutic code- the way the story avoids telling the whole truth to drop clues and add mystery to the story
2) The Enigma code- the way tension is built to have the audience guessing what will happen next
3) The Semantic code- parts of the text that portray a connotation or meaning
4) The Symbolic code- symbolism in the text which can show contrast, greater meaning or create tension
5) The Cultural code- looks at the audience's wider cultural knowledge, morality or ideology to give a greater meaning to the text

-Three Act Structure-
https://georgialaymedia.blogspot.com/2018/01/three-act-structure.html

A structure that reflects most media texts
1) The Setup- establishes main characters, their relationships and setting
2) The Confrontation- first attempt to solve problem, often don't have the skills required at that current time
3) The Resolution- an answer is found, moral purpose is presented

-Jean Baudrillard's Theory of Postmodernism-
https://georgialaymedia.blogspot.com/2019/01/jean-baudrillards-theory-of.html

The idea that in postmodern culture the boundaries between the 'real' world and the world of the media have collapsed and that it is no longer possible to distinguish between reality and the simulation
The idea that in a postmodern age of simulacra we are immersed in a world of images which no longer refer to anything as 'real'
The idea that media images have come to seem more 'real' than the reality they are based from (hyperreality)

-Tzvetan Todorov's Theory of Narratology-
https://georgialaymedia.blogspot.com/2019/01/tzvetan-todorovs-theory-of-narratology.html

The idea that all narratives share a basic structure that involves a movement from one state of equilibrium to another
The idea that these two states of equilibrium are separated by a period of imbalance or disequilibrium

-Steve Neale's Genre Theory-
https://georgialaymedia.blogspot.com/2019/01/steve-neales-genre-theory.html

The idea that genres may be dominated by repetition, but are also marked by difference, variation, and change
The idea that genres change, develop, and vary, as they borrow from and overlap with one another
The idea that genres exist within specific economic, institutional and industrial contexts

Representation:

-Judith Butler's Theory of Gender Performativity-
https://georgialaymedia.blogspot.com/2017/10/judith-butlers-feminism-theory.html

Idea that gender is simply a social construct of what we expect of each gender
E.g. girls= pink, makeup, dresses   boys= blue, fighting, cars
The media often portrays these conventions and reinforces them into our minds

-Liesbet van Zoonen's Feminism Theory-
https://georgialaymedia.blogspot.com/2017/10/feminist-theories.html

Idea that women's bodies are objectified in the media
Different narrative codes are used for men and women
The male body is constructed in the media to become a spectacle

-Laura Mulvey's Feminism Theory-
https://georgialaymedia.blogspot.com/2017/10/feminist-theories.html

The Male Gaze
The female body is objectified in order to provide erotic pleasure for the male viewer

-bell hooks Feminism Theory-
https://georgialaymedia.blogspot.com/2017/10/feminist-theories.html

Idea that within the hierarchy of society there is a hierarchy within the women
White women are at the top of this and other ethnicities are below
This is often represented in media when only white women are used

-David Gauntlett's Identity Theory-
https://georgialaymedia.blogspot.com/2017/11/david-gauntlett.html

Looks at media, gender and self-identity
Explains how we create our own identity through the use of media
E.g. what we post on instagram
How we appear online is not a realistic representation of ourselves but it's how we want to be viewed

-Stuart Hall's Representation Theory-
https://georgialaymedia.blogspot.com/2017/11/stuart-hall-representation-theory.html

Representation is shown through media language which produces meanings and codes
Representation creates stereotypes which allows us to describe people with very few characteristics and gain a greater understanding of their character

-Paul Gilroy's Theory of Ethnicity and Post-colonialism-
https://georgialaymedia.blogspot.com/2018/01/ethnicity-and-postcolonial-theory-paul.html

Explains why other ethnicities to white are often presented as lower in media texts
Other ethnicities are labelled as 'other' and are not presented as integrated within our society

Media Industries:

-Curran and Seaton's Power Without Responsibility Theory-
https://georgialaymedia.blogspot.com/2018/01/curran-and-seaton-power-without.html

Looks at ownership and how this affects what the company can produce
Explains how if one company owned everything the audience would not receive a variation in product and we would be fed one opinion

-Hesmondhalgh's Cultural Industries Theory-
https://georgialaymedia.blogspot.com/2018/09/cultural-industries-theory-hesmondhalgh.html

Looks at how products are distributed and marketed
Can be done throughout he use of stars, genre, etc

-Livingstone and Lunt's Regulation Theory-
https://georgialaymedia.blogspot.com/2018/12/regulation-theory-livingstone-and-lunt.html

Looks at how products are regulated
E.g. through Ofcom in the UK
How much harder it is to regulate products now with digital media
Each country has it's own regulations due to culture and what is excepted in society

Audience:

-Stuart Hall Reception Theory-
https://georgialaymedia.blogspot.com/2017/09/stuart-halls-reception-theory.html

Looks at how audience members interpret a text dependent on their mood, location, culture etc at time of viewing
Audience types:
Dominant- audience agree with the message portrayed
Negotiated- audience agree with some areas and not others
Oppositional- audience fully disagree and create their own meaning

-Hypodermic Needle Model-
https://georgialaymedia.blogspot.com/2017/11/audience-theories.html

The knowledge from the media goes straight into our brains changing the way we think

-Two Step Flow Model-
https://georgialaymedia.blogspot.com/2017/11/audience-theories.html

The knowledge from the media is interpreted from an influential person and then this influences how we think

-Uses And Gratifications Model-
https://georgialaymedia.blogspot.com/2017/11/audience-theories.html

How we use the media to fulfil our own personal needs
E.g. escapism, entertainment, relaxation

-Gerbner Cultivation Theory-
https://georgialaymedia.blogspot.com/2017/11/audience-theories.html

Theory suggests that our exposure to television changes our perception of reality
E.g. mean world syndrome where we see the world as worse than it is
Two main concepts:
1) Mainstreaming- people who watch more TV will be more influenced, especially if that person has little fit hand knowledge of the situation
2) Resonance- what we see on TV is intensified and does not reflect everyday life

-The 4Cs- Cross Cultural Consumer Characterisation-
https://georgialaymedia.blogspot.com/2018/03/the-4cs-cross-cultural-consumer.html

Features different types of audience members and how products must think about their audience and create marketing that will appeal to them
1) Mainstreamers- seek security, domestic, conventional
2) Aspires- seek status, materialistic, look at packaging more than contents
3) Succeeders- seek control, strong goals and work ethic, confidence
4) Resigned- seek survival, interested in the past and tradition
5) Explorers- seek discover, individualism and experience
6) Strugglers- seek escape, disorganised, alienated
7) Reformers- seek enlightenment, freedom of restrictions and personal growth

-Albert Bandura's Media Effects Theory-
https://georgialaymedia.blogspot.com/2018/05/media-effects-albert-bandura-audience.html

Looks at a study conducted with children and a bobo doll
Shows the effects of violence in the media on children
The children were seen recreating the violence they saw suggesting that violent media results in audience members increased violence

-Clay Shirky's 'End of Audience' Theory-
https://georgialaymedia.blogspot.com/2019/01/end-of-audience-theory-clay-shirky.html

Looks at how media has become fast and interactive and now we can create media as well as consuming it

-Henry Jenkin's Fandom Theory-
https://georgialaymedia.blogspot.com/2019/01/henry-jenkins-fandom-theory.html

The idea that fans are active participants in the construction and circulation of textual meanings
The idea that fans appropriate texts and read them in ways that are not fully authorised by the media producers (‘textual poaching’)
The idea that fans construct their social and cultural identities through borrowing and inflecting mass culture images, and are part of a participatory culture that has a vital social dimension