MIGRAIN index

MIGRAIN index

1) Media consumption audit
2) Reading an image: RBK advert analysis & own choice advert analysis
3) Institution: major media institution research and presentation
4) Institution: brand values
5) Institution: CoolBrands research
6) Narrative: narrative theory YouTube clip analysis
7) Audience: psychographics
8) Audience: audience theory blog tasks/questions
9) Audience: audience theory - dependency theory
10) Representation: clip analysis - dominant and alternative representations
11) Representation theory: 500 word analysis on blog
12) Representation: Media Magazine articles and questions
13) Ideology: BBQ QT analysis and binary opposition
14) Ideology: Media Magazine reading

Blog task: binary oppositions and ideology

Blog task: binary oppositions and ideology

Examples of binary opposition:

• Working class and upper class
• Rich and poor
• Left-wing and right-wing
• UKIP and Labour
• Immigrants and UK citizens

Ideologies: 

• Immigrants are putting the economy under pressure and help contribute to the suffering of UK citizens
• UKIP predominantly use immigrants as scapegoats for the problems the state is facing
• Nigel Farage or UKIP as a whole are source of fear for the UK public
• There are corrupt collectives present in the country that use up resources within it unjustly 
• Britain in terms of population, is becoming overcrowded
• Distribution of wealth amongst the population tends to be quite unbalanced

Examples of binary opposition:

• Black and white people
• Black people and the police
• Young people and adults
• Police and the general public
• Rappers and the police force

Ideologies:

• Police are brutal in their force exerted on black people
• White people, particularly during the time 'Straight Outta Compton' was set in, were relentless with their abuse towards black people 
• Young people often get themselves in trouble, resulting in eventual police intervention

  

Ideology: further reading and tasks

Ideology: further reading and tasks

Page 34: The World Of Mockingjay: Ideology, Dystopia And Propaganda

1. In terms of The Hunger Games films, a dominant view of capitalist ideology is presented in that capitalism means that a society exists where wealth is distributed amongst a select few at the top of the hierarchy while the majority suffer in poverty. Not only this, but this ideology is presented negatively in the sense that an extreme variant of it is presented with the fact that Panem is a dictatorship. Things like propaganda work to ensure that the people keep 'in line' of the control of the Capitol, and not be able to formulate free-thoughts - something greatly discouraged in our present society.
2. The Hunger Games films suggest that the media have immense power in influencing ideological beliefs of the people. Particularly when looking at the propaganda in the films, it's seen that different forms of media can affect the way in which certain groups are portrayed to the people. For example, while it was used by the Capitol to help spread 'fear among the districts' to put off the idea of a revolution being staged, it was also used by Katniss and her team to help encourage rebellion - both of which were successfully done. The fact that the media could be used to perform these polar/binary opposites if intended, shows that the media has great power in informing not only people's actions, but also their beliefs/ideologies on certain things.

Page 48: They Live - Understanding Ideology

1. 
   

• Money - happiness
• Consumer goods - fulfilment
• Marriage/family/children - happiness
• Obedience/work - fulfilment

     2.

• Gramsci's theory of hegemony suggests that ideology within society can help maintain control of the people since rather than use (aggressive) force against the people, it is given the consent or acceptance of the general public. So unlike the rule in The Hunger Games films where the element of fear is present within the people, ideas can be brought about by elites/those in charge of the media in a much more peaceful manner.

     3.

• Louis Althusser suggests ideology is present throughout our everyday lives and that it also provides a great sense of power to whoever controls it. He says this is the case in not only major institutions within society such as the Government and police, but also more looser ones such as via the education system and media where norms are implemented which are subconsciously absorbed by the general public. This works hand-in-hand with the concept of consumerism which is commonly brought about in the media, and can be regarded as quite a prevalent/dominant ideology within society since material wealth is something endlessly being pursued as of now.

     

     4.

• I personally agree with the general idea behind the 'They Live' article since I feel that the media subconsciously informs our decisions and controls the ideology that we develop on parts of everyday life whether it be immigration or how a family should be.

Year 12 cover work: Representation

Year 12 cover work: Representation

MM50 

'The Female Gaze: Rethinking Representation' article regards how in advertising, women are often portrayed as straight, white ‘tiny waist’ models. This predominant campaign is quite a contrast to the actual average size (Western) women tend to be and this helps spearhead the theory of Laura Mulvey, in which women are presented for the benefit of men. 

The film that has sparked debate on body image and female representation is 'The Perfect 14.' It details the discussion as to how women are displayed in media solely for the spectatorship of male viewers.

Laura Mulvey's theory of the female gaze differs from the male gaze, as the male gaze describes how men are portrayed in the media as objectified for the spectatorship of women which is quite an alternative viewpoint to the more feminist one with Mulvey's theory.

In my opinion, the representation of women in advertising can be considered to be quite misleading not only to other women, but also younger girls who'll almost inevitably grow up to believe that what they see is what they're required to aspire to be. The media however doesn't currently feature women as size 14 because they're primarily occupied in fulfilling the satisfaction of male viewers, adhering to the whole concept that 'sex sells.'

MM51

Introduction - the concept of a representation is literally as the word says it: a re-presentation. They often, if not always are affected by someone's views or values.

Representations and the mass media - shows how the way in which something is represented can change the way we view it with things such as pictures and captions for used to accompany them. With this said photographers, news and picture editors can be referred to as 'gatekeepers.'

The how, who and why of representation - this discusses how the producers of things in the media often play a part in how exactly things are interpreted within it. Things like the expectations of the target audience, genre codes and intended narrative all contribute to how a representation can come across.

Another approach to ideology (the work of Stuart Hall) - talks about how interpretations of things within the media are affected by the experiences of the reader relating to oppositional and negotiated positions or more familiarly, negative and positive readings.

Representations and new media - goes into how we actually present ourselves in media with the recent emergence of things like social networks, e.g. Facebook, Instagram etc, whether that be sharing a video we watched or uploading a photo to Tumblr.

An example (representing national identity in old and new media) - here, it's talked about how digitisation has granted people with the opportunity to express their views on certain things and just represent themselves in general.

In my opinion I'd say I'm very well aware of how exactly I represent myself in the media. I know that sensitive and/or private information shouldn't be shared to a public audience or anyone for that matter and as a whole, that not everything should be posted online - digital footprint.

The people that generally have most of the power in the media are middle-aged white men as well as Jewish people. A standout example of this is Rupert Murdoch, who owns one of the largest media conglomerates in the world. With this, these people or more specifically the demographic in power don't tend to get negative representations displayed in the media. For example stereotypes of ethnic minority groups like black people tend to a lot more prevalent and easier to think about than that of white people. This shows how having power in media can affect representations people come to know.

Representation: Photoshop collages

Representation: Photoshop collages

Dominant representation

Alternative representation

Representation: Blog task

Representation: Blog task

• High school students
• Teenagers/youths
• Parents
• Adults

High school students - a dominant representation of students is used here as the students are presented as not being too focused on things inside school, e.g. studies, but rather external ones.

Teenagers/youths - a dominant representation of this group is presented since in most scenes the teens happen to be in more of a outdoor, street setting as oppose to indoors. Additionally the fact that some are aspiring to be musicians also plays on the stereotype nowadays that quite a large proportion of young people want to delve into the (music) industry.

Parents - a dominant representation is shown in this group with them acting as more of a reasoning/questioning force in the lives of their children.

Adults - in a fashion similar to parents, a dominant representation is implemented here as they act as provocations for reflection for their younger 'protégés.'

Stereotypes:

• Black people venturing into the music industry for a living
• People of ethnic minorities roaming around the streets
• Just the very, almost complete presence of ethnic minorities, particularly black people, in the South London setting

Dependency theory

Dependency theory

1. I tend to use media, predominantly as a means of entertainment with applications such as YouTube acting as a substitute to watching TV, with the occasional Netflix here and there, and also as a way of keeping up to date with current affairs whether that be on BBC News, or just updates on Twitter.
2. I personally believe that I am reasonably dependent on the media since it is our main and perhaps only source of information of occurrences taking place across the world. Without it we'd essentially be clueless of anything taking place except if it was from a more local level.
3. Our dependence on the media has changed over the past 10 years in the sense that has increased quite greatly. With the advent and more widespread use of smartphones across the world, we've become dependent on them particularly due to their easy accessibility to different forms of media.
4. The Telegraph article does support the theory since it shows that young people especially, find a sense of place when they have an Internet connection in which they can access various forms of winter. In terms of my opinion, I think that the article is quite factual since the young people of today have a heavy reliance on the Internet for things like leisure and research as oppose to age-old alternatives like books.

Audience theory: blog tasks

Audience theory: blog tasks

Hypodermic needle model

1. The article links to the model in that upon reading it, it appears that playing violent video games is the only thing that can actually result in increased rates of aggression amongst people, which obviously isn't the case as many external factors can also play a part in it. However since this comes from an established publication, readers may be lead to actually believe that this is the only possible factor affecting aggression as the title of the article can suggest.
2. The model also links to this front page since it brings about the idea or suggests that perhaps being from a home with a single mum, or where someone stays in a lot contributed to the hack that the teenager carried out. While there isn't a proper link here, some readers may believe there is and this is why the page can be criticised since it uses certain stereotypes such as having a 'single mum' as a way of reinforcing the headline.

Two-step model

1. I personally think that the two-step model is still very much relevant today since the increased use of social networks such as Facebook and Twitter, but more importantly the followings of celebrities on it where they're capable of voicing their opinions means that members of public are likely to be affected by their views.
2. The model fits for this YouTuber as by having over 2 million subscribers and also making videos based on his opinion on certain issues within gaming, it's inevitable that some people won't be influenced by his views, perhaps even changing their own after watching the video.
3. The two-step model also works in this case since it shows that as mentioned before, celebrities on it, who can arguably be referred to as 'media leaders', have even reached levels of influence which ascends that of actual politicians within nations.
4. Jamal Edwards links to the model as he has more of an inspirational influence, in that his personal story can spur on people within his audience to become distributors of actual content themselves.

Uses and Gratifications 

Diversion - The 007 series can be said to provide a sense of diversion from the everyday lives of people. With its globetrotting and action-oriented nature coupled with things like its sleek vehicles, the films can definitely be said to give a sense of escape to its audience.

Personal Relationships - Although it can be debated whether or not a video is an example of a media text, personal relationships can be said to exist within 'The Last of Us,' particularly with the characters Joel and Ellie. As they progress through the game, a sense of relatability and empathy is established for the characters through their misfortunes and shortcomings, and this is what allows there to be more of an emotional element to the game from the audience to the characters.

Personal Identity - 'The World's Strictest Parents' can be said to convey a sense of this as by seeing what the teenagers within it learn, the audience pick up on its certain morals and teachings as to how they should treat their parents.

 

Surveillance - BBC News along with numerous other channels such as ITV, can be said to do this since they provide essentials/basic information on things such as the weather in your local area but also travel updates for the audience.

Audience: Psychographics

Audience: Psychographics

Mainstreamers - Darni and Kat

Occupation/education

• They work the usual 9-5 office jobs
• Have both attended state high schools and finished education up till the point of 18 (sixth form)

Spare time

• May occasionally head out for a few drinks at their local pub
• Frequent the cinemas for the latest released films from time-to-time
• Go out for a meal at Nando's over the weekend

Print

• The Sun and BBC News (likely to access these online as oppose to actual paper just due to the easy accessibility that it offers)

Broadcast

• Watch soap operas such as EastEnders on BBC and ITV1 and documentaries on Channel 4
• Can sometimes access these on catch-up services such as BBC iPlayer and 4OD depending on where they are such as commutes back home on public transport 

E-Media

• Own smartphones, tablets and laptops within their household
• Access websites such as Amazon and Tesco for buying purposes and Facebook and Twitter for social media

Young and Rubicam test

The results from my participation in the Young and Rubicam test showed that my main value is 'Enlightenment' and my secondary one is 'Control.' I'd say that I generally agree with this since it reflects the fact that I believe materialism isn't something that should necessarily be indulged in and the awareness of things around you as a person are very important from an enlightenment standpoint. In terms of control I'm also in agreement with the result since I think that it's good to have set goals of what exactly you want to achieve in future and that only a solid work ethic will get you towards those goals.

Narrative blog task

Narrative blog task

The TV clip I've selected to analyse is: 'The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.'

Enigma and Action Codes - Roland Barthes

Enigma codes - Whether or not Will's dad is being 100% honest as to why he can't stay with him and also how long this will be delayed for

Action codes - The departure of Will's father for a relatively unexplained reason suggests that an emotional outburst from Will himself as a reaction to this will follow. Will also crying as part of the outburst gives off the idea that eventually him and the other on-screen character, Uncle Phil, will embrace each other as a form of comfort towards the situation

Todorov: equilibrium

Equilibrium - Will and his father about to properly reunite with by travelling together

Disequilibrium - Will's father letting him down by saying he can't possibly make it

New Equilibrium - Will realising that he still has a sense of family/father figure in Uncle Phil

Character theory: Propp

The Villain: Lou [Will's dad]

The Donor/The Hero: Uncle Phil

The Prince(ss): Will

The film clip I've decided to analyse is: 'Malcolm X.'

Enigma and Action Codes - Roland Barthes

Enigma codes - Why exactly a protest is going on outside the hospital. The motives of the protagonist [Malcolm X] in this scene in particular.

Action codes - The arrival of the police officer signifies that a sense of order and maybe opposition, in this context, will come about. The hand gestures of Malcolm X to show that the masses of people will be dispersed

Todorov: equilibrium

Equilibrium - The protest being well underway

Disequilibrium - The disturbance brought about by the policeman to call of the protest

New Equilibrium - Malcolm peacefully having the protest broken up

Character theory: Propp

The Villain: The policeman

The Helper(s): The protesters

The Hero: Malcolm X

The last scene I've decided to look at from a narrative standpoint is from the film: 'Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.'

Enigma and Action Codes - Roland Barthes

Enigma codes - Why Ron and Hermione are in that setting in the first place. Whether the invisibility cloak is being used for something else too.

Action codes - Malfoy's use of the derogatory term 'mudblood' signifying that a fight of a sort may occur. The throwing of a snowball also suggesting that a (snowball) fight will take place. 

Todorov: equilibrium

Equilibrium - Ron and Hermione by talking to each other by themselves

Disequilibrium - Malfoy and his 'henchmen' disturbing the peace between the two.

New Equilibrium - Harry sorting out all 3 of the boys, restoring a more friendly atmosphere

Character theory: Propp

The Villain: Malfoy and his henchmen

The Princess/The Dispatcher: Ron and Hermione

The Hero: Harry Potter

Institution: CoolBrands research

Institution: CoolBrands research

Apple

I have selected Apple as one of the five brands I admire out of the 20, simply because I have quite an interest in their ability to captivate people on a global scale through a technological means for what are arguably iterative improvements as oppose to actual innovation in their products.

From a brand value standpoint, Apple particularly operate in the self-importance and pride line of appeal. Just their very logo has developed as an icon in the technological world so just the sight of it brings about the notions of the perceptions associated with Apple which is simplicity and innovation. Also, another brand value is the line of appeal of successful careers in that people that use Apple products are often those in high-paying, lucrative jobs.

I believe Apple made the list simply due to the amount of market power they have in the technology field as the world's most valuable brand. Not only this but the fact that their devices are able to reach the hands of people of all age groups is representative of why the company can be referred to as 'cool.'

Nike

Nike is the second of the five brands I've selected and this is due to their manufacturing of quite appealing footwear.

With brand values, Nike implement a numerous amount of lines of appeals. One of these is dreams and fantasy. This is due to the idea that Nike products can aid people, more specifically those involved with sports, in reaching their aspirations and get involved in a sporting career no matter what the odds may be, also leading into the idea of successful careers being something Nike value. Additionally, they can also be associated with self-importance and pride since their logo is something frequently associated with the footwear market and if it's not considered to be the most popular brand, then it is definitely one of them.

Nike are likely to have made this list because of how universal their products are amongst consumers and how popular they are with sports teams throughout the world using their product as Nike sponsors them.

YouTube

I have chosen YouTube since it's my main provider of entertainment, research and education on a day-to-day basis.

In terms of brand values, YouTube can without a doubt be associated with the successful careers line of appeal since the video-sharing website has provided an avenue for people to establish a career for themselves where they can be making millions of dollars in a year. Additionally by being able to showcase a plethora of videos to users, YouTube can be associated with most of the lines of appeal since videos can be based around a variety of different things e.g. art, culture and history.

YouTube can be considered cool due to the vast amount of things it can offer different people and the platform it offers to those who want it.

Instagram

I've selected Instagram as it provides people the opportunity to showcase their photo and videographic knack to people across the world.

Art, culture and history is the line of appeal that strikes immediately with Instagram. As said before, with it allowing people to share their photos and videos all three of these elements are things shared on the social network, particularly art.

Instagram was able to make it into the list probably for its widespread use across the world and how it doesn't necessarily limit its users in what they can post, meaning your creativity is the only limit.

Sony

The reason I have opted for Sony as my fifth brand is mainly for their subsidiary, Sony Computer Entertainment, who are in charge of the PlayStation console series of which I own one of their consoles.

As said in one of my previous pieces of homework, the dreams and fantasy line of appeal is something that the brand can be said to value, at least from a PlayStation standpoint, since they allow players to become immersed in things impossible in life. They can also to some extent, be associated with elite people or experts since they were the first company in the world to ever develop the portable music player.

Sony can be thought of as cool as a result of the various innovations they have been capable of creating throughout their years of existence such as the portable music player as without it, some of the things we view as standard nowadays wouldn't be around.

Blog feedback learner response

Blog feedback learner response

WWW: What a great start to AS Media – consistently excellent points in lessons contributing and developing debate in class. Your blog also reflects this with thoughtful work so far on all the tasks set.

EBI: A few aspects to work on – firstly, think about paragraphing your analysis (e.g. the advert analyses) to encourage you to go into more depth on individual points. Secondly, from your media consumption post you’ll definitely need to watch more TV and film as the course progresses – hopefully that won’t be too much of a problem to resolve! Look for interesting art-house films and critically-acclaimed TV drama to expand your knowledge and interaction with the media.

LR: Reflect on your first month of AS Media. What is your strongest piece of work so far? What is your weakest? What specific skills or knowledge do you need to develop over the rest of the course?

Learner response

• I personally believe that my strongest piece of work so far in AS Media, has been the piece titled 'Reading an image.' I believe this since I was able to not implement newly-learned media terms, but I also was able to make detailed insights into why exactly adverts were designed in certain ways whether that be from a text standpoint or an image one
• My weakest piece of work in my opinion, is the 'Reading an image' piece since I believe that having not separated it into paragraphs, individual points that were made were not immediately distinguishable.
• A skill that I intend to develop over the course is the capability to to relate dominant and oppositional readings to an institution's actions and also values.

Brand values task 100-10-1

Brand values task 100-10-1

PlayStation

The PlayStation brand can come across as one that it treasured deeply in the hearts of people across the world. The dreams and fantasy line of appeal in particular is definitely one performed by the brand. With the range of video games offered by them which include Kingdom Hearts and Final Fantasy, the brand has been able to allow people to indulge in fantasies impossible with the boundaries present in real life. The brand also fulfils the childhood line of appeal since it lets people delve into nostalgia that they may have had as children when playing certain games.

The PlayStation brand is about providing entertainment to its customers.

Leisure.

Tropicana

Tropicana can be viewed as a brand which elevate themselves particularly on the value/line of appeal of nature and the natural world. With their frequent references about how their drinks are 100% pure fruit juice fresh from orange groves, high in vitamin content and count towards one of your 5 a day, the brand can definitely be said to particularly focus on the health aspects of their products. Not only this but they also use the history of the brand frequently in advertising, discussing how the brand has over 65 years of experience in the fruit juice industry.

Tropicana is about providing great taste whilst being healthy.

Nutritious.

Nando's

Nando’s is a Mozambican/Portuguese restaurant which heavily centres itself around the line of appeal of art, culture and history. With them playing what they refer to as ‘Afro-Luso’ music which is a fusion of (South) African and Portuguese music continually in their restaurants, it’s clear that the culture is a huge brand value of Nando’s with it even adding to the general atmosphere of the restaurants. This also carries over into art in which the pieces of artwork in Nando’s restaurants also follow this Afro-Luso fusion with both vibrant and experimental features.

Nando's provides an enriching, distinctive atmosphere to accompany its food

Artistic.

Beats Electronics

As an audio-based brand producing headphones and speaker, Beats Electronics can be said to definitely pride itself upon the self-importance and pride aspect of Dyer’s lines of appeal. Their logo over time has become particularly iconic and the sight of it brings about the perception that the headphones are some of ‘the best’ in the industry based solely on how popular they are. They also can be said to make suggestions towards successful careers since products from the brand are frequently worn by footballers and musicians themselves, both of whom can be regarded as particularly successful in their occupations.

Beats Electronics is about both sound and style.

Iconic.

Top Dawg Entertainment

As an independent record label, TDE in terms of brand values in particular would mainly be invested in the art, culture and history line of appeal (art in specific). With them taking an almost alternative, and different approach to the hip-pop genre by doing things such as amalgamating it with genres such as jazz, funk and spoken word, it’s evident that the label appreciate the music that they produce as art and not just a means of profit. Successful careers also fits into this since certain artists on the label are quite popular figures in the music industry.

TDE is about doing something different in terms of music.

Divergent.

Institution feedback and learner response

Institution feedback and learner response

• Video starter - usually works well but a little confusing
• Actually not needed because the memory starter is a great idea and really engages the class
• There is a little lack of planning/rehearsal - instructions aren't very clear but it is a good task
• Some of the class are more engaged in the task than others though the timing is done well
• Good to see a handout and I like the teaching of the historical details as they are given out
• Some nice teaching and the sheer size and power of News Corp is communicated well
• Brief mention of phone hacking but I'd have liked to see a lot more on this - it's THE big media story of the last 10 years

WWWs:

1. Rather than deliver a regular and monotone expression in our presentation, we were able to bring about enthusiasm through things such as our interactive presentation engaging all members of the class
2. We ensured that as we were speaking we weren't simply reading off of the board but instead, were actually talking to the class which you could say forced them to listen to what exactly we were saying as oppose to them just copying straight off of the board and not really taking anything we said in
3. We were able to provide a highly detailed handout as a compliment to our actual presentation to our peers to allow them to obtain the information they needed about the conglomerate without having to ask us during the presentation

EBIs:

1. We made it 100% clear what exactly the purpose of the intro video was subsequent to it playing just due with what appeared to be a lack of clarity with it all.
2. We expanded more into certain issues such as the phone hacking scandal involving Rupert Murdoch's 'News of the World' newspaper
3. We orchestrated our starter of the memory test a bit better ensuring every member of the class was involved and perhaps used things like an online timer to get across a sense of 'urgency' to the class

Trinity Mirror

Large British newspaper publisher which own and operate newspapers from a national front including 'The Daily Mirror' but also from a local one with the 'Ealing Gazette.'

BSkyB

British telecommunications company owned partially by Rupert Murdoch which operate in TV, telephone and broadband.

News Corporation

American multinational media conglomerate also owned by Rupert Murdoch created in 1979.

Sony

Japanese multinational conglomerate founded in 1946 operating in gaming, mobile phones and tablet computers just to name a few.

Vivendi

French multinational media company founded in 1853 owning assets which include global music corporation, Universal Music Group.

Time Warner

American multinational media conglomerate founded in 1990 which own (U.S) TV channels which include HBO and also entertainment companies like Warner Bros.

Viacom

American worldwide media conglomerate founded in 2006 owning television shows such as BET, MTV and Nickelodeon just to name a few.

The BBC

The BBC is a British public broadcasting company which have been broadcasting for 92 years. In terms of the number of employees, BBC can be considered to be the second largest broadcaster from a global standpoint, providing not only television services, but also radio and online ones. With the company being funded by the public themselves through things such as the television licence fee in particular which is paid annually by households especially, the BBC are able to remain free from any influence and/or control from the government and maintain or present a more centre-ground/unbiased viewpoint on different topics. In the 1920s while under the leadership of founder, John Reith, the company started off with a magazine titled the ‘Radio Times’ with it presenting radio listings. That would go on to be a far cry to what the broadcaster would evolve into though, with it screening TV shows such as ‘Eastenders,’ Waterloo Road’ and ‘The Apprentice.’

The Walt Disney Company

The Walt Disney Company is an American multinational media conglomerate founded in 1923 by Walt and Roy O. Disney. When revenue is looked at, Disney is the second largest media conglomerate in the world. The company is particularly known for its films which span from the 1930s up till now with them ranging from ‘Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs’ to ‘Toy Story’, television shows like ‘That’s So Raven,’ ‘Recess’ and ‘Kim Possible’ as well their Disneyland theme parks. With this said, the conglomerate has been able to establish itself as a global leader when it comes to family entertainment, with their productions being able to integrate and engage practically all age groups at once. This concept of the engagement of all age groups reaches across virtually all of their products, which also allows them to establish a sense of synergy throughout the conglomerate since no one is singled out whether that be when they’re watching a Disney television show, or going to a theme park.

Comcast

Comcast is an American multinational media conglomerate founded in 1963 by Daniel Aaron, Ralph J. Roberts and Julian A. Brodsky. The conglomerate outrival The Walt Disney Company in terms of revenue, therefore making them the largest media conglomerate in the world.  In terms of what they actually work to provide, Comcast is an Internet service provider (ISP), the largest one in the U.S. in fact, as well as a cable company through NBCUniversal. As is made apparent through their shared logo of a peacock, Comcast actually own NBC and happened to acquire them recently on January 29^th 2011. With this said, Comcast have assets under their subsidiary [NBCUniversal] which include television shows such as ‘E!,’ ‘USA Network’ and ‘CNBC,’ all particularly popular television networks when regarded from an American national standpoint.  Not only this, but the company have a share in the streaming service ‘Hulu’ and also in the ice hockey team, the ‘Philadelphia Flyers.’

Reading an image

Reading an image

In this advert, a black and white colour scheme is used perhaps as a way of making viewers immediately aware that 50 Cent is in fact an endorser of the Reebok brand. By doing this, it's clear that the main point they wanted to establish through the advert was 50 Cent's association with the brand since with his popularity at the time, it's certain he would've been capable of influencing consumers, particularly those listening to hip-pop, to begin purchasing Reebok products. If actual colours were used in the poster though, the focus of the advert [50 Cent] may not have been as initially striking as it is in black and white. This is further aided by the fact that the shot used of 50 Cent isn't a full body shot, but rather a close up of his face on an eye level as if he's looking directly at the viewer with a rather serious expression, adding to the more personal aspect of the ad. Not only this, but the quotations on the right side of the close up shots of 50 also add another layer to the personal aspects of it all. With the tagline in the centre reading 'i am what i am,' placed in front of a collection of fingerprints, it's apparent 50 is saying your identity isn't something to be ran away from and rather your individuality should be embraced by yourself. The fact that the font of this tagline is one that often be considered to be synonymous with gang affiliation, something 50 has in fact experienced himself, it's apparent that he's embracing exactly what the tagline says as oppose to denying it since it makes him who he is. This is again, further supported by the quote in the top-right as he refers to how things like life aren't always promised around where he's from because of things such as gang warfare, and so people should take the time to do whatever they need to do as soon as possible.

This advert for the iPhone 5 is a fair bit more simplistic than the previous one. The colour scheme first off is pretty simple, although not being black and white, with everything in front of a white backdrop. With the phone being displayed on the left at different angles side-by-side to showcase how they look effectively, and the title 'iPhone 5' being on the right of it, it's clear exactly what this product is. However it's the tagline in particular which stands out with: 'The biggest thing to happen to iPhone since iPhone.' With this being said, it's almost suggested that the iPhone 5 is a revolutionary device in its own right in a way similar, if not exactly the same in terms of new features, to the very first iteration of the phone. Whether this is done by new hardware or software isn't stated, but it's this obscurity of what exactly the phone brings new to the table that contributes to the drawing in of more customers. It's taglines like this which truly entice those who see it to purchase the product since they want to understand what exactly they're missing out on by not having the phone in the first instance. An oppositional reading for this though, could be that in reality the phone isn't revolutionary by any means and it's just a new paintjob for the phone glamorised by the iconic advertising of Apple.