1. Revision– media messages
Representation of gender:
Male = strong,dominant,breadwinner,smart,DIYhandy,angry,sportsman,businessman,father
Female =weak,inferior,homemaker,lessknowledgeable,caring,kind,sweet,mother
Representation of race– Alvarado’stheory:
Race = exotic,humorous, dangerous,pitied
Black = musician,sportsman,sociallydysfunctional,humorous,criminal,promiscuous,physical
Newspaperfrontcover– key components:
Masthead,sans-serif,serif font,headline,mainimage, boldtext,mode of
address,standfirst,copy,mainimage,colourpalette,hierarchy,anchor,
slang,informal language,formallanguage
Media language– hownewspaperscommunicatemeanings:
Throughthe selectionof specificandsignificantnewspapercomponentsthe producers
communicate meanings.Forexamplebychoosingabold,sans-seriftypeface foratextas the
hierarchythiscreatesan ideologythatithasimportance andauthorityandwill therefore be read
and reactedto firstbythe consumers. Picturesandimagesare alsoselectedtoanchortext meanings
as theyare oftenseenasproof and theycan alsobe usedto sensationalise.
Gilroy’s post-colonialisttheory:
o Colonialization –1500s – countriesinvadingandtakingoverandrun othercountriesas the
rulers(BritishEmpire)
o They didthisfor resources(e.g.spicesinIndia) andowninglandandpeople
o Colonizersgainwealthfromusingothercountriesresources,landandpeople
o Believesethnicminoritiesare oftenshownaspowerless,weak,dehumanised,marginalised
and “other”
o Believeswhitewesternpeople are oftenshownasmore powerful,successfulandimportant.
o White westernpeople canaffordtohelppowerlesspeople inotherpoorercountriesthatwe
colonializeddue tothe factthat Britainis wealthyandtherefore powerful.
Strengths Limitations
2. Van Zoonen’stheory –fouraspects:
o In patriarchal culture,the waywomen’sbodiesare representedasobjectsisdifferenttothe
representationof male bodiesasspectacle.
o Genderis performative –ourideasof femininityandmasculinityare constructedinour
performancesof these roles.Genderis‘whatwe do’ratherthan ‘whatwe are’.
o Moreover,genderiscontextual –it’smeaningchangeswithcultural andhistorical contexts.
How race is represented using PaulGilroy’s ethnicity and post-
colonial theory:
The white manin the article clearlythinksthatthe white
westernrace ismore powerful,successful andimportantthan
the supposedpoorer,lessable andpowerlesscountriesthat
the football playerrepresents(e.g.Brazil).Thismaybe due to
whenBritainhadan empire andcolonisedmanyeastern
countries,rulingovertheirlandandresourcesandeventheir
people.The white manmaytherefore havethe ideologythat
hisrace is superiortoethnicminoritieslike the Brazilian
football playerandtherefore thinksthathe candemonstrate racist
behaviourbydehumanisinghimbymakingmonkeygesturesand
throwinglightersathim.Thisact of racial abuse isrepresentative
of historical contextwhichhasspurredracistbehaviour.
Colonialism:control of countriesandtheirresources
Consequences:prejudice,racistbehaviourandattitudes
