GLOSSARY
Media Studies Glossary
Here you will find definitions of many of the key terms and theories you will come across over your Media course. Please note the following things:
- This is not an exhaustive list
- You definitely do not need to know every term on this list, and definitely do not need to use anywhere near all of these terms in the exam
- These are definitions, not explanations
- All these terms relate to A Level Media Studies
- Action code - a visual code or technical code within a textwhich connotes to an audience that something is about to happen
- Active audience - The idea that an audience is proactive when consuming media products, choosing which products to consume and interpreting different meanings through a process of negotiation
Advert/advertising - An advert is an audiovisual, audio or visual product that attempts to sell a product to a target audience.
Amplification - Where an issue is blown out of proportion due to being overrepresented in the mass media.
Agenda - the ideological goals of a media product. Often a media product will attempt to change the ideology of an audience, for example in a party political broadcast
Anchoring/anchorage - The use of various visual codes andtechnical codes to 'fix' a particular meaning, or ideology
Appeal - The ways in which a media product can attract or give pleasure to an audience, for example through the use of genre paradigms or celebrities
Arc of transformation - The changes a character goes through in anarrative. Along the way, characters may learn, and improve, leading to a transformation be the end of the story. Also known as acharacter arc
Archetype - A type of character that crops up time and time again intexts. In teen movies, we often have the nerd, jock, cheerleader and class clown archetypes. Archetypes can be used as a shortcut to help producers establish characters and generic conventions quickly
ASA - The Advertising Standards Agency, in charge of regulating theadvertising industry in the UK.
Aspirational - Where a media text encourages an audience to acquire more money and a better social standing
Attract - How a media product creates appeal to persuadeaudiences to consume media products
Audience - The group of people who consume a media product.Audiences can be small and specific, or big and more generalised
Audience categorisation - The different ways in which audiencesare grouped by media producers. Examples of categorisation include by demographics, psychographics and/or by socio-economic class
Avatar - The image or graphic that represents a player's character in a videogame. Also known as a player character.
Back light - Where a light is placed behind a subject.
BBFC - The British Board of Film Certification is a non-government affiliated organisation the awards age certificates to almost all films commercially released in the United Kingdom. It is a legal obligation for a film to have a BBFC age certificate before screened in a public place. If a film is denied a BBFC certificate, it is effectively banned in the United Kingdom.
Berliner - A format of newspaper, somewhere between the size of atabloid and a broadsheet. An example of a UK paper which now uses the Berliner format is the former broadsheet The Guardian
Bias/media bias - Where the producers of a text demonstrate a prejudice towards a certain group, or favouritism towards another. A one sided perspective.
Binary opposition - Where two people, concepts, objects or ideologies are presented as the complete opposite of one another. Often creates conflict within the narrative, and one side of the binary is generally presented as being less desirable than the other
Blog - Abbreviation of 'web log'. A collection of articles, often by oneproducer, and often taking the form of a diary or informal news source. You're currently reading one.
Bricolage - Where a media product is constructed with iconographyand conventions from many other texts, creating entirely new meanings. Often used when discussing postmodern texts. An example of a text that uses bricolage is a 'mashup'
Broadsheet - Large format newspaper, typically targeted at more affluent, middle class audiences
Canted angle - Where the camera is tilted on its axis, creating a skewed image. Often used to disorientate or confuse the audience
Capitalism - a social system which puts value on competition, the exploitation of labour and an emphasis on profit
Celebrity - "The attribution of glamorous or notorious status to somebody in the public sphere" (Rojec, cited in Abercrombie & Longhurst, 2007:54)
Censorship - The control over the content of media texts. Where elements of a media product are removed that are considered obscene, harmful to the state, or harmful to the audience. Different countries have radically different censorship laws.
Character arc - The 'journey' a particular character goes through in a narrative. See also story arc and arc of transformation
Chronological - In the order of time
Cinematography - Everything to do with the camera
Class - A way of identifying audiences based on their 'place within society'. For example middle class or working class
Closed narrative - A closed narrative has a definite conclusion. The vast majority of films have closed narrative
Close up - Where the camera is positioned very close to the subject. This shot can be used to connote intimacy or even aggression
Code - any aspect within a product that creates meaning for the audience
Anchoring/anchorage - The use of various visual codes andtechnical codes to 'fix' a particular meaning, or ideology
Appeal - The ways in which a media product can attract or give pleasure to an audience, for example through the use of genre paradigms or celebrities
Arc of transformation - The changes a character goes through in anarrative. Along the way, characters may learn, and improve, leading to a transformation be the end of the story. Also known as acharacter arc
Archetype - A type of character that crops up time and time again intexts. In teen movies, we often have the nerd, jock, cheerleader and class clown archetypes. Archetypes can be used as a shortcut to help producers establish characters and generic conventions quickly
ASA - The Advertising Standards Agency, in charge of regulating theadvertising industry in the UK.
Aspirational - Where a media text encourages an audience to acquire more money and a better social standing
Attract - How a media product creates appeal to persuadeaudiences to consume media products
Audience - The group of people who consume a media product.Audiences can be small and specific, or big and more generalised
Audience categorisation - The different ways in which audiencesare grouped by media producers. Examples of categorisation include by demographics, psychographics and/or by socio-economic class
Avatar - The image or graphic that represents a player's character in a videogame. Also known as a player character.
Back light - Where a light is placed behind a subject.
BBFC - The British Board of Film Certification is a non-government affiliated organisation the awards age certificates to almost all films commercially released in the United Kingdom. It is a legal obligation for a film to have a BBFC age certificate before screened in a public place. If a film is denied a BBFC certificate, it is effectively banned in the United Kingdom.
Berliner - A format of newspaper, somewhere between the size of atabloid and a broadsheet. An example of a UK paper which now uses the Berliner format is the former broadsheet The Guardian
Bias/media bias - Where the producers of a text demonstrate a prejudice towards a certain group, or favouritism towards another. A one sided perspective.
Binary opposition - Where two people, concepts, objects or ideologies are presented as the complete opposite of one another. Often creates conflict within the narrative, and one side of the binary is generally presented as being less desirable than the other
Blog - Abbreviation of 'web log'. A collection of articles, often by oneproducer, and often taking the form of a diary or informal news source. You're currently reading one.
Bricolage - Where a media product is constructed with iconographyand conventions from many other texts, creating entirely new meanings. Often used when discussing postmodern texts. An example of a text that uses bricolage is a 'mashup'
Broadsheet - Large format newspaper, typically targeted at more affluent, middle class audiences
Canted angle - Where the camera is tilted on its axis, creating a skewed image. Often used to disorientate or confuse the audience
Capitalism - a social system which puts value on competition, the exploitation of labour and an emphasis on profit
Celebrity - "The attribution of glamorous or notorious status to somebody in the public sphere" (Rojec, cited in Abercrombie & Longhurst, 2007:54)
Censorship - The control over the content of media texts. Where elements of a media product are removed that are considered obscene, harmful to the state, or harmful to the audience. Different countries have radically different censorship laws.
Character arc - The 'journey' a particular character goes through in a narrative. See also story arc and arc of transformation
Chronological - In the order of time
Cinematography - Everything to do with the camera
Class - A way of identifying audiences based on their 'place within society'. For example middle class or working class
Closed narrative - A closed narrative has a definite conclusion. The vast majority of films have closed narrative
Close up - Where the camera is positioned very close to the subject. This shot can be used to connote intimacy or even aggression
Code - any aspect within a product that creates meaning for the audience
Connotation - the deeper meaning of a word, visual code or technical code
Construction - The ways in which meaning is created for theaudience through the process of making a media product. For example, the consistent representation of women in a subservient role may construct a representation of women as being inferior to men
Consumption - how an audience uses or engages with a media product. This varies wildly depending on the product. Additionally, digital technologies have allowed audiences completely new ways of consuming media products
Commodity - A product which is bought or sold
Commodity fetishism - Where an object is prized for its monetary value rather than its quality. An example could be a luxury clothes brand like Gucci, whose products function in the same way as other items of clothing, but cost many times more. Wearing a Gucci dress may therefore give an individual cultural capital
Continuity editing - Where a media product is edited to give the illusion of the flow of movement and time
Connotation - The deeper meaning of a word. A 'rose' is simply a plant, but when it is given as a present, it holds many deeper meanings
Contrapuntal sound - The deliberately use of sound which does not fit with the current visuals. Often used to disorientate the audience, or for comedy
Convention/conventional - A visual code or technical code that is typical of a certain genre or style. A conventional spots broadcast would include on screen graphics, slow motion replays and middle aged men discussing the sport in a studio. See also paradigm. If a product does not use the conventions expected, it is unconventional
Convergence - The coming together of previously separate industries, for example film, television, music etc. The widespread use of digital technology means we often access many different media on the same device
Cultural capital - Monetary capital refers to how much money somebody has. Cultural capital refers to the things which are notmoney that give us social mobility. Examples include knowledge of classical music, fine dining, world cinema and ways of dressing.
Cultural imperialism - The domination of one culture over another culture. For example, the music charts in the UK are generally dominated by US music, despite the geographical distance between the two countries. This is a form of hegemony
Deep focus - A shot where both the foreground and background is in focus
Diegesis - The world of the narrative
Diegetic sound - Sound which occurs within the world of the narrative, for example footsteps, dialogue, and music created by an on-screen source
Digital technology - Any technology that is encoded in a digital format, for example media products which are accessed online or created using digital means such as Premiere Pro. Most media technologies now are digital
Disequilibrium/disruption of equilibrium - The stage in a narrativewhere the equilibrium or balance is broken by the main events of the narrative text.
Distribution - The methods in which a media product is given to an audience. Examples include an album being sold on CD in a shop or digitally distributed online
Dolly - A device, often mounted on rails that a camera can be attached to. Allows for smooth tracking shots
Dominant ideology - The set of ideas or culture that is most common in society.
Dominant reading - Where the audience agrees with the ideology of the text. See also negotiated, oppositional and aberrant reading
Dutch tilt - See canted angle
Equilibrium - The state of balance that occurs in a narrative, which is promptly disrupted
Gaze - The way in which an audience looks at subjects within a media product. Different audiences will be anchored by media producers to look at media products in different ways
Effects model/hypodermic needle model - A theoretical framework, devised by German Marxists, which suggests that media products have an immediate and obvious effect on their audiences. There are many issues with this theory
Encoding/decoding - The idea that a producer will 'build in' theirideologies and bias into a media product. For example, a news broadcast may show a politician pulling a stupid face, encoding theideology that they are stupid and not to be trusted. However anaudience may interpret this as the politician being funny and approachable. Audiences can therefore decode texts in many different ways
Enigma code - A visual code or technical code which connotes mystery to the audience. For example a gloved hand covering a man's face, followed by a shock cut to the film's title, leaves the audience unaware of the identity of the killer, with an expectation the mystery will be 'solved' by the end of the film
Equilibrium - A state of balance in the narrative. Usually occurs at the start or even directly before a narrative begins, and is almost always disrupted by a disequilibrium
Establishing shot - A shot, usually at the start of a scene, which demonstrates to the audience the setting where the scene is occurring. Very often a long shot or extreme long shot
Extreme close up/ECU - Where the camera is positioned very close to the subject. For example, an eye may fill the entire screen
Extreme long shot - Where the camera is positioned a very long way from the subject. For example, a person may be a dot on the horizon in an ECU
Feminism - An ideology that works towards equality between women and men
Flashback - Where a narrative moves back in time to a previous event. Generally it is essential to signal to the audience that this has occurred, through the use of a filter or warp, for example.
Fill light - A weaker light which is used alongside a key light to avoid excessive shadows being cast on a subject
Gender - A particularly contested term, often used in Media to refer to how an individual identifies as, for example male, female, trans, agender etc.
Gender binary - The idea that there is a clear distinction between what makes a 'man' and what makes a 'woman'
Gender performativity - Idea attributed Judith Butler. The ways in which an individual 'acts out' their chosen gender. Some acts are seen as being typically male or female. For example, getting into fights, wearing trousers and sexual promiscuity are often seen as being typically 'masculine' acts, and may even be socially acceptable. However there are many men who do not live up to this gender role, and conversely many women that do. Therefore, Butler argues that gender is a social construct rather than a biologicalone.
Hegemony - The influence of power over one group over another.
Ident - A very short film which demonstrates the ideology of aninstitution
Ideology - A system of beliefs and values. Every media product has an ideology, even if it's very simple!
Internal diegetic sound - The sound heard in a character's head, often demonstrating the 'inner thoughts' of the character
Intertextuality - Where a media product or text makes reference to another media product or text.
Institution - An organisation which distributes media products and is recognised by audiences as...
Jump cut - an edit which cuts between the same subject in the same framing, creating a jarring 'jump' effect. Almost always a mistake, but can be used to create a disorientating atmosphere
Key light - A big, powerful light that typically provides the majority of light in a given shot. Usually balanced out with a fill light and back lights
Lighting - The act of providing artificial light or manipulating natural lighting. Cameras generally need lots of light to create a compelling image
Linear narrative - A narrative which progresses in a chronological, straightforward line
Long shot - A shot where the camera is positioned a long way from the subject. Often used to connote isolation
Long take - A shot which is uninterrupted by cuts for a long time. While there's no hard and fast rule, it's unusual for a shot to last for more than 20 seconds. Some films, for example Birdman, are a single extreme long take.
Majors - A producer, for example a film producer, that creates a significant amount of media products and is a market leader in their field,. Examples of major film studios include 20th Century Fox, Warner Bros. and Disney.
Marxism - A way of seeing the world first in part devised by Karl Marx. It assumes the working class and the ruling class are in constant conflict, and that the ruling class uses many methods, for example the mass media and hegemony to control the working class
Mass media - Media which reaches a particularly large audience.Marxist theorists are often worried over the effect that having such direct communication could have.
Media - The plural of 'medium'. A categories of products that disseminate some form of information, for example film, music, television and social media
Metanarrative - A system of beliefs that give a set of rules for people to live their life by. Examples include religion, Marxism,Feminism and so on
Middle class - A class group who are between the working classand the upper class. In the United Kingdom, middle class people are often (yet not always defined) as having a university education, working in a professional role such as a manager, teacher or doctor, and certain other lifestyle choices. Middle class people will therefore have a certain degree of cultural capital
Mid shot - A shot between a long shot and a close up. In general, a mid shot will show most of the subject and also include the setting.Sometimes used interchangeably with two shot
Mode of address - The way in which a media product 'speaks' to it'saudience
Montage - Where a series of shots are edited in such a way as to create meaning
Multi strand narrative - A narrative with many different stories or strands. Many sitcoms will have at least two simultaneous stories being told
MPAA - The Motion Picture Authority of America, in charge of the certification of cinema within the US
Narrative - The way in which a story is told
Negotiation - The process where an audience decides which ideologies they accept, and which they reject
Dolly - A device, often mounted on rails that a camera can be attached to. Allows for smooth tracking shots
Dominant ideology - The set of ideas or culture that is most common in society.
Dominant reading - Where the audience agrees with the ideology of the text. See also negotiated, oppositional and aberrant reading
Dutch tilt - See canted angle
Equilibrium - The state of balance that occurs in a narrative, which is promptly disrupted
Gaze - The way in which an audience looks at subjects within a media product. Different audiences will be anchored by media producers to look at media products in different ways
Effects model/hypodermic needle model - A theoretical framework, devised by German Marxists, which suggests that media products have an immediate and obvious effect on their audiences. There are many issues with this theory
Encoding/decoding - The idea that a producer will 'build in' theirideologies and bias into a media product. For example, a news broadcast may show a politician pulling a stupid face, encoding theideology that they are stupid and not to be trusted. However anaudience may interpret this as the politician being funny and approachable. Audiences can therefore decode texts in many different ways
Enigma code - A visual code or technical code which connotes mystery to the audience. For example a gloved hand covering a man's face, followed by a shock cut to the film's title, leaves the audience unaware of the identity of the killer, with an expectation the mystery will be 'solved' by the end of the film
Equilibrium - A state of balance in the narrative. Usually occurs at the start or even directly before a narrative begins, and is almost always disrupted by a disequilibrium
Establishing shot - A shot, usually at the start of a scene, which demonstrates to the audience the setting where the scene is occurring. Very often a long shot or extreme long shot
Extreme close up/ECU - Where the camera is positioned very close to the subject. For example, an eye may fill the entire screen
Extreme long shot - Where the camera is positioned a very long way from the subject. For example, a person may be a dot on the horizon in an ECU
Feminism - An ideology that works towards equality between women and men
Flashback - Where a narrative moves back in time to a previous event. Generally it is essential to signal to the audience that this has occurred, through the use of a filter or warp, for example.
Fill light - A weaker light which is used alongside a key light to avoid excessive shadows being cast on a subject
Gender - A particularly contested term, often used in Media to refer to how an individual identifies as, for example male, female, trans, agender etc.
Gender binary - The idea that there is a clear distinction between what makes a 'man' and what makes a 'woman'
Gender performativity - Idea attributed Judith Butler. The ways in which an individual 'acts out' their chosen gender. Some acts are seen as being typically male or female. For example, getting into fights, wearing trousers and sexual promiscuity are often seen as being typically 'masculine' acts, and may even be socially acceptable. However there are many men who do not live up to this gender role, and conversely many women that do. Therefore, Butler argues that gender is a social construct rather than a biologicalone.
Hegemony - The influence of power over one group over another.
Ident - A very short film which demonstrates the ideology of aninstitution
Ideology - A system of beliefs and values. Every media product has an ideology, even if it's very simple!
Internal diegetic sound - The sound heard in a character's head, often demonstrating the 'inner thoughts' of the character
Intertextuality - Where a media product or text makes reference to another media product or text.
Institution - An organisation which distributes media products and is recognised by audiences as...
Jump cut - an edit which cuts between the same subject in the same framing, creating a jarring 'jump' effect. Almost always a mistake, but can be used to create a disorientating atmosphere
Key light - A big, powerful light that typically provides the majority of light in a given shot. Usually balanced out with a fill light and back lights
Lighting - The act of providing artificial light or manipulating natural lighting. Cameras generally need lots of light to create a compelling image
Linear narrative - A narrative which progresses in a chronological, straightforward line
Long shot - A shot where the camera is positioned a long way from the subject. Often used to connote isolation
Long take - A shot which is uninterrupted by cuts for a long time. While there's no hard and fast rule, it's unusual for a shot to last for more than 20 seconds. Some films, for example Birdman, are a single extreme long take.
Majors - A producer, for example a film producer, that creates a significant amount of media products and is a market leader in their field,. Examples of major film studios include 20th Century Fox, Warner Bros. and Disney.
Marxism - A way of seeing the world first in part devised by Karl Marx. It assumes the working class and the ruling class are in constant conflict, and that the ruling class uses many methods, for example the mass media and hegemony to control the working class
Mass media - Media which reaches a particularly large audience.Marxist theorists are often worried over the effect that having such direct communication could have.
Media - The plural of 'medium'. A categories of products that disseminate some form of information, for example film, music, television and social media
Metanarrative - A system of beliefs that give a set of rules for people to live their life by. Examples include religion, Marxism,Feminism and so on
Middle class - A class group who are between the working classand the upper class. In the United Kingdom, middle class people are often (yet not always defined) as having a university education, working in a professional role such as a manager, teacher or doctor, and certain other lifestyle choices. Middle class people will therefore have a certain degree of cultural capital
Mid shot - A shot between a long shot and a close up. In general, a mid shot will show most of the subject and also include the setting.Sometimes used interchangeably with two shot
Mode of address - The way in which a media product 'speaks' to it'saudience
Montage - Where a series of shots are edited in such a way as to create meaning
Multi strand narrative - A narrative with many different stories or strands. Many sitcoms will have at least two simultaneous stories being told
MPAA - The Motion Picture Authority of America, in charge of the certification of cinema within the US
Narrative - The way in which a story is told
Negotiation - The process where an audience decides which ideologies they accept, and which they reject
Negotiation/negotiated reading - The process of 'give and take' between an audience and producer, where the audience decides which of the producer's ideological perspectives to accept or reject. A negotiated reading involves the audience partially agreeing with the dominant reading of the text
Non diegetic sound - Sound which occurs outside of the world of the narrative. Examples include score music and voiceovers
Non linear narrative - A narrative that does not occur in chronological order. Non linear narratives often make use offlashbacks and flashforwards.
Objectification - Where a person is represented as an object, with no thoughts, feelings or power
Open narrative - A narrative with no ending in sight. Examples typically include soap operas and long running TV series. Open narratives generally still have story arcs and narrative conclusions
Oppositional reading - Where the audience goes against thedominant ideology of a text. An audience reading that contradicts thepreferred reading of the producer
Paradigm/paradigmatic - A visual code or technical code that shows the audience what genre something is. For example, pouring blood, screaming and a night time setting are all paradigmatic of the horror genre. The word paradigm can be used interchangeably with the word convention.
Patriarchy - A male dominated society
Player character - The character that the player controls in a videogame. See also avatar.
Pleonastic - A sound which has been emphasised (usually by volume but can also be through bass etc), either for the excitement or expectation of the audience
Polysemy/polysemic - Where a media product holds many different meanings. Different audiences may therefore come up with completely different interpretations of what the meaning of the text is!
Positioning - where an audience are placed within a media product. This affects which characters we identify with, which characters we hate, and how much of the ideology we accept. Producers canposition audiences using lighting, camera angles, shot types,soundtrack and so on
Postmodernism - A complex style of media which often breaks established rules (for example breaking the fourth wall), adopts a deliberately trashy aesthetic, blurs space and time, and favours style over substance
Preferred reading - Where the audience agrees with and accepts the ideology of the media product, as presented by the producer.See also dominant, aberrant and negotiated readings
Prime time - The period of time, usually in the late evening, where the most popular television shows are scheduled
Producer - The maker of a media product. This term is always used, regardless of the official title of the producer
Product - The end result of a period of production, for example a television programme, a film, or a website
Production - The process in which a media product is made. There are completely different production process for different media
Promotion - The use of advertising to increase the audience'sawareness of a product
Propaganda - The use of the mass media by the dominant class to sway the opinions of the subject class
Regulation - The rules and legal guidelines an industry has to follow when making media products. For example, when releasing a film in the UK, a producer must ensure their film complies with the guidelines of the BBFC
Repetition and difference - theory attributed to Steve Neale. Refers to how audiences seek media products which both repeat genre conventions, yet also offers something new in terms of genre. An example could be Shawn of the Dead, which contains the familiar, repeated features of the zombie subgenre and the comedy genre, yet gives audiences something fresh and different by combining them
Representation - The ways in which media products 're-present' a certain group of people, an event, an issue and so on. Representations are constructed from visual codes and technical codes and reveal the ideology of the producer. Representation often use stereotypes, and can affect the way the represented group is treated in society
Restricted narrative - A narrative where the audience is positionedwith a single character or group of characters, and only knows what they know. The majority of narratives are restricted. The opposite is an omniscient narrative
Scheduling - The specific time when a TV programme is show. Many things can affect when a programme is shown, for example how popular it is and what explicit content it may contain
Score - Music which is composed specifically for a media product
Sex - A widely contested term, in Media, we often use this term to refer to the biological categorisation of an individual. See alsogender and gender performativity
Shallow focus/shallow depth of field - Where one or more parts of the shot will be out of focus
Shot - An uninterrupted sequence of film
Shot/reverse shot - Usually used to depict a conversation between two people, the editor will cut between one person talking to the other person who is off screen. Sot/reverse shot montages in particular need to follow the 180 degree rule
Stereotype - A commonly held belief about a certain group of people. Often used in Media products to easily establish character types to the audience
Story arc- A narrative within a narrative that has a definite start and conclusion. Examples include Doctor Who, which often hasnarratives that are introduced and resolved over several episodes, though most episodes are self - contained narratives
Streaming - where data is continually and sequentially accessed to allow for instant viewing or listening of media products. Examples of streaming services include Netflix and Spotify
Subcultural capital - If cultural capital is the knowledge that allows us to get on in 'high culture', then subcultural capital is the knowledge, clothing and mannerisms that allow us to get on in asubculture. Examples of things which will give you subcultural capital in the rock/metal music genre subculture include wearing black band t-shirts, studded leather, and knowing a lot about obscure metal bands
Subculture A smaller group within a larger cultural group that has different ideologies to the 'norm'.
Subgenre - A 'genre within a genre'. Think of it like this: if the genreis the heading, the sub genre is the sub heading. For example, within the crime genre, we have the sub genres detective, gangster, true crime, prison and so on
Subject - The actor, prop or setting that forms the focal point of ashot
Subjective sound - Sound which is either only heard by one character, or is heard more clearly by one character. See alsointernal diegetic sound
Symbolic code - Where symbolism is encoded into a text. For example "the red wallpaper here functions as a symbolic code, suggesting that violence is inherent to the scene"
Synergy - Where two different media products are combined and work particularly well as a result. For example a music video, the combination of two previously separate industries, created an entirely new media form
Target Audience - The precise audience which a producer wishes to market a media product towards.
Targeting - The process where a producer makes a Media product relevant and accessible to it's target audience
Technical code - The ways in which a product is made that creates meaning for the audience. Examples include camera angles, special effects and and lighting.
Text - Anything which is studied within media studies, from a music video or newspaper to a TV programme or an advert. Anything which can be read
Tracking shot - Where the camera follows the subject by being moved itself. This process is made easier and more stable by using a dolly
Non diegetic sound - Sound which occurs outside of the world of the narrative. Examples include score music and voiceovers
Non linear narrative - A narrative that does not occur in chronological order. Non linear narratives often make use offlashbacks and flashforwards.
Objectification - Where a person is represented as an object, with no thoughts, feelings or power
Open narrative - A narrative with no ending in sight. Examples typically include soap operas and long running TV series. Open narratives generally still have story arcs and narrative conclusions
Oppositional reading - Where the audience goes against thedominant ideology of a text. An audience reading that contradicts thepreferred reading of the producer
Paradigm/paradigmatic - A visual code or technical code that shows the audience what genre something is. For example, pouring blood, screaming and a night time setting are all paradigmatic of the horror genre. The word paradigm can be used interchangeably with the word convention.
Patriarchy - A male dominated society
Player character - The character that the player controls in a videogame. See also avatar.
Pleonastic - A sound which has been emphasised (usually by volume but can also be through bass etc), either for the excitement or expectation of the audience
Polysemy/polysemic - Where a media product holds many different meanings. Different audiences may therefore come up with completely different interpretations of what the meaning of the text is!
Positioning - where an audience are placed within a media product. This affects which characters we identify with, which characters we hate, and how much of the ideology we accept. Producers canposition audiences using lighting, camera angles, shot types,soundtrack and so on
Postmodernism - A complex style of media which often breaks established rules (for example breaking the fourth wall), adopts a deliberately trashy aesthetic, blurs space and time, and favours style over substance
Preferred reading - Where the audience agrees with and accepts the ideology of the media product, as presented by the producer.See also dominant, aberrant and negotiated readings
Prime time - The period of time, usually in the late evening, where the most popular television shows are scheduled
Producer - The maker of a media product. This term is always used, regardless of the official title of the producer
Product - The end result of a period of production, for example a television programme, a film, or a website
Production - The process in which a media product is made. There are completely different production process for different media
Promotion - The use of advertising to increase the audience'sawareness of a product
Propaganda - The use of the mass media by the dominant class to sway the opinions of the subject class
Regulation - The rules and legal guidelines an industry has to follow when making media products. For example, when releasing a film in the UK, a producer must ensure their film complies with the guidelines of the BBFC
Repetition and difference - theory attributed to Steve Neale. Refers to how audiences seek media products which both repeat genre conventions, yet also offers something new in terms of genre. An example could be Shawn of the Dead, which contains the familiar, repeated features of the zombie subgenre and the comedy genre, yet gives audiences something fresh and different by combining them
Representation - The ways in which media products 're-present' a certain group of people, an event, an issue and so on. Representations are constructed from visual codes and technical codes and reveal the ideology of the producer. Representation often use stereotypes, and can affect the way the represented group is treated in society
Restricted narrative - A narrative where the audience is positionedwith a single character or group of characters, and only knows what they know. The majority of narratives are restricted. The opposite is an omniscient narrative
Scheduling - The specific time when a TV programme is show. Many things can affect when a programme is shown, for example how popular it is and what explicit content it may contain
Score - Music which is composed specifically for a media product
Sex - A widely contested term, in Media, we often use this term to refer to the biological categorisation of an individual. See alsogender and gender performativity
Shallow focus/shallow depth of field - Where one or more parts of the shot will be out of focus
Shot - An uninterrupted sequence of film
Shot/reverse shot - Usually used to depict a conversation between two people, the editor will cut between one person talking to the other person who is off screen. Sot/reverse shot montages in particular need to follow the 180 degree rule
Stereotype - A commonly held belief about a certain group of people. Often used in Media products to easily establish character types to the audience
Story arc- A narrative within a narrative that has a definite start and conclusion. Examples include Doctor Who, which often hasnarratives that are introduced and resolved over several episodes, though most episodes are self - contained narratives
Streaming - where data is continually and sequentially accessed to allow for instant viewing or listening of media products. Examples of streaming services include Netflix and Spotify
Subcultural capital - If cultural capital is the knowledge that allows us to get on in 'high culture', then subcultural capital is the knowledge, clothing and mannerisms that allow us to get on in asubculture. Examples of things which will give you subcultural capital in the rock/metal music genre subculture include wearing black band t-shirts, studded leather, and knowing a lot about obscure metal bands
Subculture A smaller group within a larger cultural group that has different ideologies to the 'norm'.
Subgenre - A 'genre within a genre'. Think of it like this: if the genreis the heading, the sub genre is the sub heading. For example, within the crime genre, we have the sub genres detective, gangster, true crime, prison and so on
Subject - The actor, prop or setting that forms the focal point of ashot
Subjective sound - Sound which is either only heard by one character, or is heard more clearly by one character. See alsointernal diegetic sound
Symbolic code - Where symbolism is encoded into a text. For example "the red wallpaper here functions as a symbolic code, suggesting that violence is inherent to the scene"
Synergy - Where two different media products are combined and work particularly well as a result. For example a music video, the combination of two previously separate industries, created an entirely new media form
Target Audience - The precise audience which a producer wishes to market a media product towards.
Targeting - The process where a producer makes a Media product relevant and accessible to it's target audience
Technical code - The ways in which a product is made that creates meaning for the audience. Examples include camera angles, special effects and and lighting.
Text - Anything which is studied within media studies, from a music video or newspaper to a TV programme or an advert. Anything which can be read
Tracking shot - Where the camera follows the subject by being moved itself. This process is made easier and more stable by using a dolly
Two shot - A shot wide enough to feature two characters. Often used interchangeably with mid shot
Unconventional - Something that goes against what is typical of a certain genre or representation
Uses and gratifications model - The ways in which an audiencecan make use of or take pleasure from a Media product. This could be as the producer intended, or it could be a completely unexpected response, for example writing fan fiction
USP - 'Unique Selling Point'. The aspect which makes a product different from all others.
Verisimilitude - The 'respective realism' of a text. Each media product has it's own sense of realism. For example, magic wands and flying cars are acceptable for the diegesis of Harry Potter, but foul language is not. Therefore, Harry swearing would break theverisimilitude of the text
Vertical integration - A practice where a producer owns the methods of production, distribution, as well as rights to the performers and producers
Visual code - Something the audience can see that creates meaning in a media product. Examples include gestures, mise-en-scene and the use of colour
Voyeurism - The pleasure taken from watching someone else where they are unaware of being watched. It's a bit creepy, but this is a pleasure we take every time we watch a film or TV programme
Watershed - A time at which it is considered acceptable for television channels to schedule more adult programming. On many UK channels, this is traditionally 9pm. Many satellite channels, for example Sky 1 have an effective watershed of 8pm
Working class - A class group within society that falls between themiddle class and the underclass. In the United Kingdom, the working class are often typified through working in manual labour, often without a university degree, and perhaps lacking in cultural capital
Zoom - A process where the lens of a camera is manipulated to make the subject appear closer. Can also be done in digital post production
Unconventional - Something that goes against what is typical of a certain genre or representation
Uses and gratifications model - The ways in which an audiencecan make use of or take pleasure from a Media product. This could be as the producer intended, or it could be a completely unexpected response, for example writing fan fiction
USP - 'Unique Selling Point'. The aspect which makes a product different from all others.
Verisimilitude - The 'respective realism' of a text. Each media product has it's own sense of realism. For example, magic wands and flying cars are acceptable for the diegesis of Harry Potter, but foul language is not. Therefore, Harry swearing would break theverisimilitude of the text
Vertical integration - A practice where a producer owns the methods of production, distribution, as well as rights to the performers and producers
Visual code - Something the audience can see that creates meaning in a media product. Examples include gestures, mise-en-scene and the use of colour
Voyeurism - The pleasure taken from watching someone else where they are unaware of being watched. It's a bit creepy, but this is a pleasure we take every time we watch a film or TV programme
Watershed - A time at which it is considered acceptable for television channels to schedule more adult programming. On many UK channels, this is traditionally 9pm. Many satellite channels, for example Sky 1 have an effective watershed of 8pm
Working class - A class group within society that falls between themiddle class and the underclass. In the United Kingdom, the working class are often typified through working in manual labour, often without a university degree, and perhaps lacking in cultural capital
Zoom - A process where the lens of a camera is manipulated to make the subject appear closer. Can also be done in digital post production
No comments:
Post a Comment