Using Ideology to create audience appeal

UK Tribes was born in 2005, when Channel 4 commissioned Crowd DNA (then called Ramp Industry) to run a project called TV Glue, which looked to measure how TV could remain relevant in the face of media fragmentation (audiences looking elsewhere for their media consumption).

The project looked at youth culture and offered a tribal breakdown based on the social glues (music, sport, fashion, technology etc) around which young people gather. Whenever presented to media and marketing people, this section proved a big hit; a real conversation starter.

UK Tribes was born, with a brief to extend this research; to explore youth in honest terms and as described to us by young people themselves; to acknowledge that whereas once it was about monolithic youth tribes that stomped on all before them (punk, rock 'n' roll, acid house etc) now it's more about fluidity, a menu of options.

The findings of this research is available for you to use as part of your pre-production research and planning for your own magazine. In today's lesson, you can look at the different groups categorised by the researchers and think about what kind of magazines would appeal to them.

Click on the image at the top of this post to find the UK Tribes website and then complete the tasks below:

1. Watch the clip at the website and read through the different descriptions of 'groups' of young people. 
2. Consider who you might identify with, based on your own interests. Create a moodboard of images that illustrate your own tribe, linked to the music, sport, fashion and technology that appeals to people like you.
3. Download the handout here to organise your notes. Match the magazine title with a group and explain why you think this tribe may consume this product. This can be part of your research work for your Making Media portfolio so include as much explanation as possible. 

Who reads Magazines?

You are part of the powerful 14-18-year-old audience, and media producers are keen to know what you like and what you want. Can you think why your age group is so powerful? The main reason is that, even though you don't usually earn large sums of money, what you do earn is virtually all disposable income - there is only you to spend it on. Producers also want readers with spending power to attract advertisers who subsidies the cost of production. The money advertisers pay for space in print-texts is used to reduce the selling price. Without subsidy, print-based texts would cost too much.

Why do people consumer media texts?

Some media theorists have suggested that media audiences make active choices about what to consume in order to meet certain needs (Uses and Gratification Theory).

Task: The X-Box magazine above is a specialist computer games magazine aimed at 16-35-year-old males. Look at the conventions on the front cover and how they might appeal to the target audience. Can you explain how the cover has been designed to appeal to its target audience, using media terminology? Working in pairs, discuss your ideas and label your copy of the image.

Here is an example of students work. They were asked to do the same task based on a different magazine.

Values and Lifestyle.

Values and Lifestyle - sometimes called ideology - are terms for the way people think about themselves, about others and about the world in which they live. Ideology is a system of values, beliefs and ideas that is common to a specific group of people.
Magazines reflect the values and ideology of their readers because they want readers to feel they can identify with the magazine.
Understanding ideology is helpful when it comes to investigated the ways in which magazines and other media texts are constructed to appeal to their target audiences, by offering them material that they will enjoy, understand and aspire to.

Here are two descriptions of the target readers of two lifestyle magazines as presented on the magazines' websites:

The Elle reader is spirited, stylish and intelligent; she expects to be successful at everything she does. She takes the lead and breaks the rules. Click on the image of the website to take a look.

The Sight and Sound reader is a film buff who expects to be given intelligent information on all film releases, not just Hollywood mainstream movies. Click on the image of the website to take a look.

Task: Look at the two front covers of these magazines and consider the following:

• typography (choice of font style, colour, placement)
• use of images
• how the page is laid out to attract the eye
• the use of language - look out for special words that the reader will understand, use of informal address 'you'
• promises connected to values, ideology and/or pleasure

Make notes in your book. Use each bullet point as a sub-heading.

Making Media

Copy down the details for your Making Media Production project into your books.

Making Media Project: You are going to create an original magazine extract of your own. You will make a front cover and double-page spread.

Create at least five original images (e.g. photographs, illustrations, art work),
however some found images are permitted in addition to the required minimum
of five original images.
Front cover:
• Original masthead/title.
• Strapline.
• Cover price, barcode, edition number.
• Original images: at least one main cover image.
• At least six cover lines one of which must link to the double page spread
article.
Double page spread article:
• Headline, stand-first and sub-headings.
• Original images: one main article image and at least three other images.
• Feature article of approximately 300 words that links to one of the cover lines
on the front page.
This project is worth 30 marks.

Task: Begin the pre-production research task:
You need to find five magazines front covers and create a powerpoint presentation.

1. Label the conventions of the magazines being used on each example.
2. Who is the audience for the magazine?
3. What is the magazine focusing on (subject content)?

The Avengers: Must See TV

Use the questions below to help structure your notes.

1. Which company broadcast the show?
2. What impact did the female character have on gender equality?
3. Why was the programme so popular according to this documentary?
4. What kind of plots were used?
5. What do you think it shows about the 1960s?

Avengers social contexts from Mrs Downie

The Avengers Revision

The Avengers Revise by Mrs Downie on Scribd

Analyse how far the extract depicts the police's point of view rather than the criminals' point of view.

To gain a good mark you must make judgements and reach conclusions about how far the extract constructs the police’s point of view. It is not enough to simply label the techniques being used in the clip.

Responses may analyse the extract in terms of media language:

• how choice of elements of media language influences meaning, including to create narratives, to portray aspects of reality, to construct points of view, and to represent the world in ways that convey messages and values.

And/or

Responses may analyse the extract in terms of representation:

• the choices media producers make about how to represent particular events, social groups and ideas
• the different functions and uses of stereotypes
• the ways aspects of reality may be represented differently depending on the purposes of the producers.

Task: Read the student's full-mark answer and consider why it is so successful. Once you have done this, re-write your own answer as a DIRT activity in your books.

In the opening sequence, the audience is immediately positioned alongside the police in the clip. As the ariel shot of Brighton tracks across the pier and beach, setting the location, the sound bridge is of the police radio linking the audience directly to the experience of the officers working in the city. 
It is important that the producers establish a link between the police characters and the audience to make the programme successful. The audience need to invest in the characters success to want to watch the television crime drama series. The police are shown in close up more than the stereotypical drunken stag party characters and the director uses over the shoulder shots to show the officer responding to the disturbances on the nudist beach. The audience know they are walking behind the police officer as if they are part of the force or experiencing things from his point of view. 
The narrative mostly follows the world of the police throughout the initial opening sequence clearly positioning the audience with the police's point of view. The director uses cross-cutting editing to link the police officers on the beat with what is happening back at the station. It is ironic that the sound of the chief constable's speech using dialogue about the valued position of the police in the local community. The nudist man who called the police for help responds to the officer in a critical way showing this lack of respect for what he tried to do. We do not however sympathise with the nudist man as he appears ridiculous speaking in an aggressive style to the officer when he is naked and lacking in basic kindness by not checking he is unhurt. He is portrayed as a stereotypical middle-aged man who is complaining but not willing to support the police himself.
When the officer is punched by the stag party leader, the sound of the contact is emphasised using special effects in post editing. this focuses us on the challenges he faces. Editing is also used adding slow motion footage to emphasise the danger of potential violence in challenging a large group of men on his own. There is also a close up insert shot of the policeman's hat on the sand. These shots help use to sympathise with the officer and question the public's opinion of the role of law enforcement in the UK in contrast with the representation of the reality of such a challenging occupation. 


To gain full marks you need to meet this criteria:

Level 3 (7–10 marks)
An excellent analysis of media language and/or representation.

AO2(1a) A sophisticated, perceptive and accurate analysis of relevant aspects of the extract supported by two or more examples

AO2(1b) Clear judgements and conclusions are reached and are fully supported by the analysis.

Excellent responses in the top mark band will typically explore how point of view is created using two or more well-chosen examples described accurately using Media Studies terminology.
Clear judgements may be evident throughout the analysis or in a conclusion.