'Hartlepool Mail' Friday 17th February 2012

'The good, the bad and the gnarly' Page 26-27

http://www.hartlepoolmail.co.uk/news/thrills_and_spills_1_4255241


What sensationalist or emotive language is used?

"Rad" "Gnarly"
The reporter uses these words to describe the types of people that will use the skate park and basically how society would see them. Rad is another word for cool, so this shows that if they use such positive words to describe the skate park and the people who want to actually hang around in it, it may encourage a large number of people to come and visit in the future. Also teenagers use these sorts of "slang" words on a daily basis, so if they spotted this in a newspaper article they are more likely to read into the story as they would know the story is being targeted at them in particular. Rad would be seen as the same word as cool, this means the news reporter is explaining that the skate park itself is a new and improved location, for teenagers of all ages to enjoy. Whereas gnarly means difficult and challenging, perfect for adrenaline junkies who like to take risk whether it be on a bike or a skate board, the park offers a range of choices and heights for people to work with and this shows they are meeting a variety of customers needs, again this is done by the news reporter to make people more interested in what the park offers and make them more interested in visiting.

'Flocked'

Using this type of word to describe how many people turned up to the opening of the skate park is trying to tell readers that it's a busy place and the people who turned up to join in the day of "fun and games" where overly excited about the prospects that were included. When I think of the word flocked in a situation I imagine a flock of birds all swooping down to catch food, however in this instance it's more about a large group of people (100) all coming together to experience a brand new skate park, the only one that is in Hartlepool, hence the reason why it will have caused so much excitement. Because the park is multi functional in the way that skate boarders, BMX's and in line skaters can all enjoy the space it means more and more young people will want the chance to visit Rossmere in the future. If this information wasn't included in a newspaper article like this one then nobody would know exactly what the park offers to young teenagers and it could have been a missed opportunity too. Overall though I think because of the hype this skate park has caused it's showing that teenagers are not causing trouble in the street they now have somewhere to go and enjoy with their friends without getting in trouble over it.

What images accompany the article?

There are no images that accompany this article, so there is not much that I can analyse. However there is a short video that explains an event has taken place in the skate park for the youngsters to show off their individual skills whether it be on a skate board or BMX, the park cost £400,000 to build but this hasn't been a negative point from the council as they are just happy that teens can develop their skills in a safe environment, where they can get support and help from other people their age.

Compared to the other article I have analysed this one shows youths in a positive light as they are all attending one place just to carry on with a hobby or ambition they may have without causing any trouble to anyone or anything. The camera shots used throughout the video concentrate mainly on the teens doing tricks, so mainly focus on their feet as they can all do something different, it also shows they have taken health and safety precautions very seriously as each person is wearing a helmet to ensure no serious damage can be caused if they have a fall.

What would the language and images suggest about the representation of youths and youth culture?

Overall in this newspaper article all the "youths" are talked about in a positive light, the town is proud to have created a place where a large group of people can come together and take part in something they enjoy, things they usually would do on the street but could cause trouble and disruption to other people, in this place it's not a problem as the park is ran under strict regulations to ensure all the people who enter the park are not in danger and are seen as normal teenagers, this is a huge point to discuss because the workers at the park will not know if the teenagers have had a negative attitude or string of bad situations in the past. So it can be a place where they all come together and turn over a new leaf as they know no one in the place is going to judge them as a violent youth they are just like everyone else.

The video reacts in the complete same way as all of the teenagers in the video look very mature but also look like they are enjoying themselves, so if the council can create a location where teenagers don't have to be getting into trouble to have a good time then they have done the right thing. Throughout the article and the video the children are called "youngsters" and "young people", no word of youths in sight, this shows compared to the other article they are being respected and seen as a group of young talented kids who just want to have a good time.

'The Sun' Friday 10th February 2012

"Yobs Give Drivers A Snowball Fright" Page 15

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/article4120824.ece

What sensationalist or emotive language is used?

'20 idiotic louts'

I believe this is said by the press to make the situation seem a lot worse than it is. Louts to me is a word that means out of control and as this story progresses that is definitely what this group of children are classed as. The fact that 20 people where involved

also makes it quite a serious situation because if the police approached them they would still get questioned due to why there w

as so many of them together. Also because none of them have been named they have all been targeted as a group of "bad people" which may not necessarily be true. However this always happens in the media as the press amplify things to make the situation seem more serious.

"It's Horrendous''

By using such a sensationalist word, this middle aged woman makes the sit

uation of the "yobs" throwing large snowballs down a hill which could b

e in the way of cars and passers by getting broken/hurt

seem 10 times worse than it probably was. I also think that only collecting one comment and opinion off a person who was involved in the incident is slightly unreliable as another person who was at the scene at the exact same time could have explained that the "yobs" may have been getting up to no good, but no serious injuries had occurred for example anyone getting hurt the children were just being rude towards them. Overall I think this is an example of how easy society today brand people without even knowing their background and only judging them on one specific event they were involved in. for example one of the children who were out with their friends on that day, but didn't actually make a snowball or get involved in any of the abusive language there should in no way be blamed for it.

What images accompany the article?

The images that came with this specific article, aren't really detailed enough but they do show the "yobs" throwing the snowballs and shows the aftermath where the snowballs are next to moving car which indicates the fact that they must have hit it.

The children's faces had to be blurred out for legal reasons, but you can see by the clothing (hoodies and tracksuit bottoms) why people who immediately label them as a negative group of people. However all I think they were doing was having a good time playing in the snow, but when people react to the snowballs being in the middle of the road that's why they will have started to get angry and use aggressive language to stand their ground.

What would the language and images suggest about the representation of youths and youth culture?

I think because this main news paper story is about badly behaved teenagers aka "yobs", then a certain definition is there that makes you think the children are all apart of a group in which they behave in a negative light for example (bad language and behavior agaisnt people's property and passers by), youths are seen as rogues and chavs and people who don't have respect for society and believe that everything they do is correct. So I do think this article has it's links back to the youth culture scenario.

Newspaper Activity

Positive

Hartlepool Mail 26- 27 Skaters boarders and riders show off skills in first contest

Daily Star page 20 40 cancer ops... dad'll do it for me

Daily Star page 24 sun bed ban on models in fight against cancer

Negative

The people 22 Pupils filmed road rage kill

Daily Star page 9 Casey murder suspect target of mob's hate

Daily Star page 16 - 17 Travellers 'fury at racist' gypsy ads

The Sun page 15 yobs give drivers a snowball fright

The Sun page 29 kids gloves - boys and girls of six fight for money

Daily Star page 4 and 5 I didn't believe there's so many nasty and bitter people out there

Daily Mail page 27 my boy fainted at the station and passengers just stepped over him

Historical Case Study

Stanley Cohen ideas relate to moral panic and deviance amplification. Moral Panic is when the mass media report on an issue that threatens social order in society and the frameworks that regulate it. The "folk devils" which were the deviants labelled in 1972, this label was created after reports found conflict between to groups; the mods and the rockers, these are the types of people that can be seen as "dangerous culprits" by the media as there actions can cause major upset for not obeying the law in the correct way. A contemporary example of these types of groups in society today are "chavs" they are stereotyped in this way because they wear tracksuit bottoms and matching hoodies and can be seen as groups of people who cause a lot of trouble by drinking illegally on street corners.

So it's quite simple to understand what deviance amplification means; Deviance is a word to describe people going against society's rules, for example the "folk devils" I talked about above are the type of people that believe what they do is socially acceptable. Amplification is when a story/event is made more noticeable or "bigger" by the media. For example newspapers tend to broadcast stories (mainly negative ones) at a higher level to attract people's attention, even though sometimes they may not always be true. So by putting this definition together it's when people who go against the rules in society are "advertised" via mass media for what they have done wrong, which I personally believe that it will only make them worse.

Clockwork Orange

The 1971 film is an adaptation from the Anthony Burgess 1962 novel which had the same name. It features a group of male actors known as the "droogs", they commit horrific crimes through the film which some people could find disturbing due to the high level of violence shown. The main character is a psychopath who visits rehab to try and make he's life better again however the fact that he is in a group ruins hes plans of starting again as he is dragged into the society where violence is seen as the correct thing to do. The overview of the film shows "youth gangs" at their best with the "droogs" trying to make a "bold statement" wearing white strades, thin braces and a range of bowler hats, which many people back in the day would have thought was unique and different as the typical male would usually wear Levis jeans and dr martin boots, however these were named the "swedeheads". Overall I believe the background to this film was to give an overview of how the future of Britain was going to turn out and in some contexts they have been correct.
Many different reports have been released by the press in recent years linking to attacks and how Clockwork Orange has been the main part of it. In 2005 a gang of youths where charged for manslaughter after the death of a bar manager in London. They were believed to have beat him to death and filmed it on a mobile phone, like in the film. Also in 2010, 2 girls on a drink fueled night out "attacked a gay man to death" because of he's sexuality. Onlookers said it was like a scene from a clockwork orange. Both of these articles show the film in a negative light, as if it has been the cause of many attacks as people could be looking up to the characters in the film as "role models". However the media can portray stories at a more interesting level than they actually are and some of the situations may not have been so severe but because the film has been linked to 2 major death accounts then most of society would see this film in a negative way.
However when youngsters of the time where asked how Clockwork Orange had affected them they all replied with the same answer. That it's nothing they haven't seen before, the reflection of the gang of Droogs just made the generation think of football hooliganism and being loyal to your friends and family by standing up for them in serious situations.
Overall the film links back to Stan's theory in the way that many headlines where created relating to the film in a "serious way", this may have been broadened a lot just by the newspapers and TV as they have to try and make the most money out of stories and by including a world known film in the title they know that it's going to be a story many people will read, even if most of it isn't true. They also created the "moral panic" for society to think that many teens in that age group where going to be apart of a gang, so would stereotype them which isn't fair as hardly any of the teenagers would believe acting like that would be acceptable. The good thing to come out of this controversy is that many of the younger generation are used to seeing violence all the time so this film was no exception as they just identified the representation of what happens in the modern day with group fights e.t.c.

Quadrophenia

The 1965 film was set in London and followed the story of Jimmy Cooper who was classed as a London MOD. He is seen to be disillusioned by he's parents and also he's job in the advertising firm as throughout the film you can see that Jimmy has a very negative outlook on both subject separately; he's relationship with hes dad especially is quite obviously negative as in one scene, Jimmy is watching he's favorite band on TV and he's dad comes in and asks what all the noise is and starts to ask a range of questions, to Jimmy's annoyance. This shows they didn't communicate much as father and son. Then when at work he begins to not turn up on time and even decide to stay off some days before finally quitting he's job near the end of the film because he cannot deal with the fact that someone he doesn't respect is telling him to do things.
Jimmy is very proud of the team that he is apart of as you can see through the film, the group identity is very important to him. I always believed that he saw himself as the "leader" as in most scenes he is walking in front of everyone else and always had the last word to say, this shows he wasn't afraid to fight for what he wanted. You could see that he was trying to have that individuality from all the other MOD's, however they all still looked the same and nothing that Jimmy did made the situation any different.
He was always seen as a serious character and never seemed to have a laugh with he's friends, mainly because of the situations with family life and he's job which I have talked about above he just wanted to get away from it all, things like the scene of Jimmy vomiting at work and the two workers of a higher class stood either side of him not offering to help. This shows how divided the classes where back in the day. It's also youths and adults which are seen as totally separate species because of how different they can be seen in the public eye.
Steph was seen as quite a feminine and confident character through the film, she seemed to have a lot of sexual freedom in the way that in every scene she could be seen with a different male, much to Jimmy's upset as she saw there time together as a small fling but you could tell secretly he was starting to endure feelings towards her. She had no loyalty inside of her, because the way she lead Jimmy on and then left him when she felt like it shows she is the confident and dominant one who decides what is happening. Although she dresses slightly masculine she can be seen as a strong feminine compared to the outfits the androgynous MODS wore. For example the parka coats and blazers, she wore leather and quite a lot of make up to give her the edge and make her stand out from the crowd.
The outfits worn throughout the film are a prime example of what "youth culture" can be seen like these days. No matter what the trend of clothing is it just means that all group members are wearing the same. So in this instance the Mods wore skinny jeans, parkas and had slick back hair. This showed that the group had a very clear identity which is very recognizable and linked instantly to the film itself. I believe this film more than Clockwork Orange reinforces elements of youth culture as many of the teens today wear parks again and skinny jeans just for fashion trends not because they are apart of a group, as the groups tend to try and come up with their own personal ideas.

The ideologies/goals in this film are; sub cultural which means they have wanted to create this film for a range of different cultures/genders/ages to look at and make a direct link to in some way. for example the teens could see themselves being a part of one of the gangs, the adults would understand what they are going through as they can think back to their childhood e.t.c. Because Jimmy was so focused on changing he's life they wanted us to see that it's all about living for right now and not bothering about the future, this is true as these points can be thought about when that time comes, this would give the audience excitement and the confidence to enjoy every second of anything they seem to do as you only do live once. The dominance of being in a gang can also be seen and directors wanted to show the audience, each one of the group needs to be comfortable in what they are doing and have control over every situation, however some people maybe more in charge than others as it's exactly how people are it just depends on personality.
The main point shown is that it's them agaisnt us (mods agaisnt society) as they always broke the rules and regulations that the law put in place in some way but they always saw the positive and funny side to it, this point was introduced clearly as the mods were shown as bad people from the beginning and the story line throughout suggests the things they do they believe are right but the society (police, other groups) are trying to stop them. They wanted people to see each side equally however I believe more people nowadays would be on the society side as there is a larger amount of us and there are less and less groups around now.

Moral panic in this instance is shown by the mods breaking the law, exactly what I have explained above, but they never ever thought they were doing anything wrong which means they wouldn't have understood exactly why what they were doing was affecting a lot of people. However the deviance amplification of Stan's theory is again shown clearly through the amounts of newspaper and radio articles the fights and attacks between the mods and the rockers caused in the 60's, this was even seen as a "pat on the back" for group members as they would have felt like they had accomplished something successful, but they were being projected as bad people who didn't have respect for anyone and believed fighting is always the answer.

Overall I believe both films can link to modern day events as groups of all ages and genders are still around today, the films might give out the same message but overall I think the only message people will take from each of them is that they should have authority over any situation that may arise and they should react in the best way possible - this may not always be violence. For example world wide attacks and wars that are going on, these are seen on a much bigger scale but the terrorists involved are apart of a gang who rely on each other to come out with something positive at the end (in that case killing other people from other country for the countries conflict). Although I don't agree that violence is the answer to any situation, it's not going to stop a large amount of people in society today that do still fall back into it to get the revenge that they want, so both films will be memorable in that way. To me personally the message they give is not negative and any attacks that have happened cannot be in anyway their fault, its just the amplification from the press that make it all fire back.

Gouffman - Presentation Of Self

What is your identity?

My identity is very unique and I don't believe it's influenced by any specific thing/person, although I do look up to certain people, I do try and create my own interpretation or meaning so I can "put my own stamp" on things. To most people I am identified by my loud and quite forward outlook on things as I never keep things to myself. But other than that small point I don't believe I have a specific element that makes me stand out from anyone else looks wise for example making fashion statements by setting my own trend which people would follow or anything like that, but I do believe the elements like fashion,music,food do link back to me and could be seen by people as "one of michaela's favorite bands" e.t.c

How is this created?

As you can see the mood board above includes images of people/things that are associated with me and my perception as seen by a range of other people, whether it be my friends or just strangers. I do believe anyone that knows me well would believe that the piece of work I have created reflects on my specific identity well as there is such a variety of things to see but they do all have a specific meaning to me personally. The musicians included in the image are Azealia Banks and Arctic Monkeys, my reasons for these 2 completely different artists was to show how my music interests can vary from indie rock to hip hop and r&b, I am not a person who listens to songs that are "in" at a certain time, I tend to follow my own trends and listen to whatever types of music I find most enjoyable to listen to. The lyrics in particular songs are also what I find most interesting about these 2 artists, Arctic Monkeys tend to tell stories in many of there songs and some are about love which I believe a wider audience can link too, whereas Azealia speaks the truth and doesn't mind what the consequences are as long as she is getting her point across because she is such a confident character, the main reason why I believe she is so interesting to listen too. Celebrities really intrigue me because some are really fake whereas what you see is what you get with some, hence the reason of the images of Fearne Cotton and James Corden as they are my two favorite celebrities around because they have so much likability factor mainly due to there outgoing and lively personalities and I think because they are so calm and collected about most things I believe they have inspired me to act the same way, because I believe if they are in the spotlight and they can brush off any harsh or rude comments e.t.c then so can I as the problem isn't seen on half as big a scale. Another reason why they have been used is because I think James is an attractive male, purely down to he's personality, this is a main element of how people can identify me as I do know a lot about him. I chose Fearne purely down to her fashion sense as she is very creative and wacky and doesn't care if people don't approve of what she is wearing which is exactly what I aspire to be like in the future. The vogue magazine and the pictures of the two models; Alexa Chung and Ash Stymest show how much I enjoy photography but also the portrait of models used in these glossy magazines and how there natural attractiveness can be seen clearly through the various shoots, but again it's down to the fashion why I have chose these two models. Although they do have very different styles I look at Ash because he is very attractive and the type of boy I would go for, but I look up to Alexa because she is so unique and she is seen as a "fashion icon". The magazine is something I have been collecting for years and because I study photography the images inside the magazines could in useful for research purposes in my work. The various travel related images are included because I study travel and tourism in college, but it's also what I hope will be my future career path as there are so many opportunities and travelling the world and trying out different cultures and ways of life is something that I am really passionate about. So that is one point that makes me stand out from most other people. Clintons logo is included because it's my place of work so I have the up most respect for everyone working there but because many people know it's my place of work it adds to my identity because they know where to find me if they need me. TV is very important in my life, I like anything to do with music, so the BRIT awards is one of the best nights of the year for me because I can see a range of singers who I enjoy collecting awards to appraise the achievement they have reached over the past year, this certain program gives me inspiration to work at the highest level possible for my future job role as nothing comes easily. Skins is a television show linking to a teenage group who enjoy living the lives of smoking, drinking, taking drugs and sex which is what type of things are linked to the society of young people today, so it was interesting to watch exactly how we are shown in producers eyes, I just think it brings out peoples personalities more as each of us want to show we are all different. Finally the black forest gateaux is one of my favorite deserts because of the large amount of sugar intake which I am commonly known for looking at in foods but also the sweet but zingy flavor of the cherries really give a kick which adds a slight bit of excitement when eating. This identifies me because I enjoy eating very sweet deserts e.t.c as I do think I am addicted to having salt/sugar e.t.c on most food items to give them a slight bit of taste and make them more appropriate to eat.

Is individuality just an illusion?

When I instantly think about this question I do believe that this question is wrong because everyone can be different in their own way if they really want to be, however with all the media impact on society in this present day, many of us do get influenced by big celebrity names and are intrigued about new trends and fashion that are advertised to us in many ways; via magazines, radio, internet and TV. So although some people may assume the clothes they are wearing and the music they listen to is something that no one else has worn/heard before then they will be sadly mistaken as every single one of us has a starting point from something we have seen on a celebrity or friend or even stranger, which has give us the overall look that we go for today. I personally wear a variety of clothing items, I usually go for dresses and tights but some days I go for jeans and a plain t shirt it always just depends on the mood I am in on that particular day. Whereas some people tend to wear the exact same type of clothing every day even in different colours and are afraid to try something new, which is all in aid of trying to be "individual" but really they are "following the crowd" of hundreds of other people on the planet with the same intention.
I don't think individuality will ever be true to anyone because without all of the advertising and marketing strategies around today, people would not be able to notice someone else's style and interest and decide that a particular blouse or band are something/someone they are really interested in. So overall I really do think the media are to blame and every single person is similar in their own way, they just put a unique stamp on it so they can be seen as individual.

Exam Content

15th June 2012

2 hr exam

Section A - Theoretical Evaluation of Production 50 Marks

Section B - Contemporary Media Issues 50 Marks