Case Study Revision: Media

Set Texts That Must Be Revised:

PAPER 1:

TV DRAMA:

Characters, Setting, Camera, Sound

• Episode 1 Season 1 Cuffs
• Episode 1 Season 4 The Avengers

THE LEGO MOVIE:

Intertextuality, Narrative, Characters, Marketing

• Characters
• Narrative
• Marketing Campaign Material

PAPER 2:

NEWS:

• 3x 1960's Covers
• 2x Modern Covers
• 1x Website

MUSIC:

• Mojo Cover Grohl
• Content Page
• Feature Spread
• Mojo Cover of choice
• 1 Radio
• Set 2x Music Videos

News 1960's

Tabloids vs Broadsheets:

Mock DIRT

Question 1:

The sound within cuffs is used to create meaning, this meaning being action and suspense. As a police drama it is expected to have some adventurous  and action packed moments, and the scenes and sounds are used to aid that. This can be seen within the extract when the forklift ploughs into the front of the store causing a large diegetic crashing noise, which pulls everyone's attention to it. This aids in creating an atmosphere of suspense and terror as the crashing shows how destructive the criminals are, which we can use to denote that the criminals are incredibly violent, spreading terror throughout the audience. What also aids this is the non-diegetic beat which accompanies this, further adding to the terror and creating an atmosphere of action due to it's intensity. Thus causing a build up of adrenaline within the audience, and expecting to see something thrilling. Another way the music is used to create an atmosphere of action is through the use of diegetic speech, this is clear to see when at the restaurant when PC Draper exclaims "Jake come on!" showing that there is urgency and importance to the task which we can use to denote that Draper as a classic alpha-male character ready for action. One last way that depicts the meaning to be action fuelled is the the sounds of cars in the background, and screeching tires which shows us that Draper is driving at extreme speeds, such is common within action movies.

Question 2:

The extract primarily focuses upon the POV of the police, as we tend to see what the police see, and share bonding moments with them as well as key plot developments, such as when the group of 4 officers, including Ryan Draper, Jake Vickers, Lino Moretti and Donna Prager spend time in a restaurant in order to get lunch. Most of the time we see close-up's of the characters which lets us see them closer and bond with them and gain a liking for them.

History of the News Industry

Progression of News:

• The Printing Press - Made in 1440 and could be used to mass produce leaflets and pamphlets to the public and spread propaganda and news.
• The Typewriter - Created in 1874, and would push ink into a piece of paper in a certain shape, placing letters and characters onto the page. This could be used to easily write up stories or documents. 
• Telegraph Sounder - Invented in 1850, and would send messages over long distances.
• Camera - Would capture photographs of people and events, allowing them to spread widely. It was made in 1685.
• Radio - Would be used to spread news, which could be listened to freely at home to have all information sent straight into your room.
• Television - Would broadcast all news for free straight into any room in the house.

History of News:

What challenges have different forms of technology posed to newspapers and their survival? [10 marks]:

News was originally printed in large printing presses, being produced on mass and distributed for a significant amount. However, 240 years after the production of the printing press, telegraphs were introduced. These allowed news and information to be sent over long distances. This meant that not just national, but international news could be shared and then published in newspapers. This acted as more of an aide than a hindrance as this would then be put into newspapers, where it could be read by consumers. A few years after this the typewriter was produced for public consumers, this would then let those who made news be bale too easily type out their stories, and then retype it when making edits. This too was an aide not a hindrance. The camera would then have been able to produce photos, depicting the latest events and any person of significance, these could then be circulated but it wouldn't have been that good at depicting anything important that could threaten a detailed description by the news. So if paired with the news it would've been very good at outlining any story and adding extra detail to it. The biggest threats were produced later in the life time of the printing press and news, these mainly being the radio which could directly spread news to the masses in their very own homes, meaning they didn't have to go out and buy the latest edition of the news. Another threat was television, which would keep people up to date with the news. However it also had scheduled programming so people may be more interested in something else or be busy by the time the news came on. The biggest threat which is slowly killing the news today is the internet, letting anyone immediately have access to and read the news from any news source such as The Daily Mail, The Mirror or any other such source. This was all absolutely free as well.

How has technology shaped our access to news? [4 marks]:

Before what we have today we had to pay everyday in order to access the day's news, well we still have to in order to purchase the paper, however with one lump see purchase you could gain access to a radio or television, both providing immediate access to news and with the TV visuals are provided and it is easier to follow what is going on due to the video footage. Ho

News - The Purpose of News

What is the purpose of news?:

• Entertain
• Profit
• Influence/Persuade
• Educate
• Inform

Facts:

• Newspapers are NOT PSB (like the BBC) they are in fact commercial publications. Over three quarters (77.8%) of the British press is owned by a handful of billionaires. Over a quarter (27.3%) of the press is owned by Lord Rothmere and 24.9% is owned by Rupert Murdoch - between them the two of these men have over 50% of the printed press.
• Newspapers and their online publications (example of synergy/convergence) are not legally obligated to provide and un-biased public information service. There are ethical and moral codes of press conduct but the printed press is self regulatory industry.

The History of News:

• News used to be something that was only to be watched and witnessed, but now people can engage far much more. People can not only read news, they can also share news or create news.
• 150 years ago the French Revolution occurred, and they wanted freedom of the press so that the views and opinions of the common public could be spread freely without bias. England later adopted this.

Cuffs - Exam Question Practice 2 - Sound

How has sound been used to create meaning?

In the beginning a long non-diegetic beat is played signifying that the show will be exciting and new however it is then interrupted by a diegetic ambient sound of a radio and siren showing that the show will be a police crime drama. Over this plays diegetic speech informing the public that the police are an important part of the community that will protect and serve the public whilst being respectful, to contrast this an officer (PC Ryan Draper) is on a beach where a dispute is happening and then the victim says "Seriously! What is the point of you?" showing that the characters in this may be flawed and have to deal with several different issues.

Cuffs - Exam Question Practice 1 - Opening Scene Analysis

What do the opening scene and credits suggest/tell us about the genre, narrative and characters? What would the audience expect from this series?

The opening scene depicts a variety of graffiti being sprayed onto walls and in alleyways, something that is a petty crime and is most common among younger generations, showing that this crime drama wants to appeal to younger people, this breaks most common conventions established by crime dramas as they are most commonly depicted as being serious and aimed at elders. The opening also has very bright colours along with the font colour being yellow, yellow being linked to happiness which juxtaposes the concept that Cuffs will be about murders and deaths but is being opened with something about happiness. This could be due to the setting being Brighton, a wonderful holiday location, which is commonly referred to as the 'gay' capital of the England hinting to the appearance of gay characters.