Value Messages & Media Conventions PDF

Key Concept #5: Value Messages & Media Conventions  2 Concept Overview ✘ Media literacy is a process with 7 key concepts; each with a primary goal and opportunities for critical thought. ✘ Key concept #5 – “Media Communicates V...

Key Concept #5: Value Messages & Media Conventions  2 Concept Overview ✘ Media literacy is a process with 7 key concepts; each with a primary goal and opportunities for critical thought. ✘ Key concept #5 – “Media Communicates Value Messages” – is about how the media presents and reinforces social values. ✘ Our media is closely tied to expectation and convention, which tend to reinforce the values that are commonly accepted in a society.  3 What are Tropes? ✘ Tropes are common themes or patterns that appear repeatedly in media [e.g. genres like Rom- Com or character personalities like the ‘Damsel in Distress’ or the ‘Jock’]. ✘ Like stereotypes, a trope will give audiences a recognizable outline for what to expect in a story. ✘ These tropes can be problematic because they focus on ideas that have worked in the past, which tend to rely on stereotypes.  4 What are Media Conventions? ✘ Conventions are the common ways that producers use media platforms and structures to tell a story. ✘ They represent ‘rules’ that guide the creation and consumption of media texts, making them recognizable and understandable to audiences. ✘ For example, audiences expect certain things from horror or romance films. Messing with that formula can drastically change audience reaction.  5 Why should we Care? ✘ Media conventions – when tropes and stereotypes are present – can shape how information is perceived. ✘ Additionally, Impact is more important than intention; especially for media texts with abstract messages and themes [e.g. narratives in books, movies, and TV shows]. ✘ These messages are rarely spelled out, so we need to recognize when techniques are used to influence thoughts and emotions.  6 For Example… ✘ Disney’s Pocahontas was made in 1995 with seemingly good intentions; bringing mainstream attention to an overlooked Indigenous history. ✘ However, the 90s Era impact was not positive: the source material was biased, the culture was inaccurate, and the story was stereotypical. ✘ Both what the message is and how the message is framed need to be addressed when thinking critically. An Example of Convention ✘ The Good Doctor is a medical drama that is set in California. Here is a picture from a random episode. ✘ During its 4th Season Finale, the show takes us to Guatemala to support a hospital low on supplies. ✘ What do you notice about these images? How might this relate to conventions?  8 Conventions Gone Wrong ✘ This “Yellow Filter” is not unique to The Good Doctor: - It’s a convention meant to represent warmth, but often used for foreign locations. - It also signifies an increase in danger, which places an unfair judgement on these locations. - It creates a recognizable ‘difference’ in our minds that influences how we understand the location and its people in real life. https://medium.com/@mdheydt1/yellow-filter-and-representations-of- the-global-south-b7d3e725a1f5 9  10 Stuart Hall & “The Other” ✘ Stuart Hall, a cultural theorist and political activist, has written extensively on ‘the Other’ in popular culture. ✘ He explains that culture – especially as depicted in media texts – is a contest between a dominant majority and a marginalized minority. ✘ With key concept #5, we can decode certain techniques to reveal the perspectives and cultural attitudes of a producer. https://medium.com/@mdheydt1/yellow-filter-and-representations-of- the-global-south-b7d3e725a1f5  11 Asking Deeper Questions ✘ When analyzing media, think about key concept #5 as a lens for representation. Ask yourself: - Whose values are represented? Whose values are NOT represented? - Does the text misrepresent any values? How and why? - What is the message and how is that message being framed?