Marxism & The Media

Capitalism• Before we can look at Marxism, we have to look at

the capitalist system.

• In groups of 2, create a definition or diagram for capitalism

Marxist view of capitalism

Proletariat (working class)

Bourgeoisie (upper & middle

classes)

Marxism• Created by Karl Marx

• Reaction to the appalling working conditions suffered by many as a result of the industrial revolution.

• Conflict between Rich & Poor

• Essentially it is a call for equality.

• As workers become educated they will revolt.

The Frankfurt School

• Key theorists: Adorno & Horkheimer

• Witnessed the ‘failure’ of Marxism in Russia

• Reasoned that the workers failed to gain equality due to the values placed on them by the cultural institutions that they had been bought up with.

Gramsci1891-1937

& the concept of hegemony

Hegemony: Exercise• Find a piece of video journalism on BBC iPlayer.

• Analyse the following:

• The voice of the journalist - which class would you say it represented?

• How might the voice of the newsreader contribute to our perception of the world and does it naturalise class divisions?

Chomsky & Herman (1988)

• The media manipulates populations to prevent them from rebelling against the powerful or dominant classes.

• This is achieved by ‘manufacturing consent’ which entails filtering certain information out.

• Not deliberate but driven by the need for profit and to appeal to consumers.

Manufacturing Consent

https://youtu.be/RPdXJmKBX3g

News Filtering

https://youtu.be/xYnpJGaMiXo

Criticisms of Marxism• Assumes audience to be passive. Remember Stuart Hall’s

reception theories disagree with this.

• Big advertising budgets don’t necessarily mean that people will engage with your media text.

• Marx took no account of gender differences.

• ‘False consciousness’ Marx argued that the proletariat would not know that they were being exploited

• Texts are polysemic and there are often contradictions in texts.

Liberal Pluralism• Challenges Marxist approaches

• Society made up of competing interest groups not dominated by a collective Bourgeoisie.

• Media is subject to the wishes of the consumer.

• Media conveys a range of views and opinions and the audience select and reject a range of opinions, values and ideologies.

Many opinionsFreedom

• It also suggests that the media can operate as an element of democracy as everyone is represented.

• The media provides an essential information service e.g. the acts of government or changes to the legal system.

• Watch the following clip of the Channel 4 TV show Gogglebox https://youtu.be/9vbQoBpIqfI

• Does this support a marxist or liberal pluralist view?

Gogglebox - channel4.com

https://youtu.be/9vbQoBpIqfI

Case Study:• With a partner, write down all of the things that you

can think of that would make You Tube an example of Liberal Pluralism.

• Do the same again, this time, from a marxist standpoint.

Liberal Pluralism

• Audience comments enable dialogue with each other and producer.

• Gives a voice to those without access to the mainstream media marketplace.

• Can serve the marginalised.

• Audience can experience greater range of ideas

Marxist Perspective

• Sells advertising space. The more popular channels will be charged at a premium. Youtube recommends / promotes certain videos.

• Youtube and their channel owners could said to be representing the Bourgeoisie telling you what is good and what is not.

• Much of the content is purely entertainment related and therefore manufactures consent via autoplay and subsequent passive watching patterns of many audience members.

Comparison:

Splash Pages

Promoted Videos

Typical Videos & Comments

Adverts that can’t be skipped