How many of these social networks do you have an account with?

Using the green (agree) and red (disagree) cards, how many people have:

•‘De-tagged’ a photo?• Exaggerated the truth online?• Chosen specific words/images on their profiles to make themselves appear fashionable/moral/nice?•Said something deliberately negative about themselves?

On social networks sites, we have the ability to represent ourselves in any way we like. This is because we have ownership of them.

We can choose to make these profiles reflect our ideology (values, attitudes and beliefs) or we can present a different set of values.

Are the subjects of newspaper articles able to represent themselves? Or is this out of their control? Why?

Representation and The Media

Representation - Week 2Ideology, Bias and Ownership

To consider the role ownership plays in representation.

To investigate the ownership of The Sun newspaper.

To see to what extent the ownership affects the representation in The Sun newspaper.

Learning Objectives

Understand that everything in the media is constructed

Understand why and how representations are created. (How )

Be critical of representations, by deciding whether they are ‘fair’/unbiased or ‘unfair’/biased

Understand why familiar representations keep recurring. Is it to do with society or the media (or a relationship between the two?). Who's really in charge?

As Media Students, you need to…

What do you think affects the representations we see in The Sun?

E.g. time, place, popularity, audience, society, agendas, bias etc…

Individually write one example on your post-it-note.

Now, arrange these in order of importance (each side of the classroom is a group).

Collectively decide as a class what you think is the most important way representation is affected in The Sun.

Representation

There are 3 steps in the journey between the real world and the reality presented by newspapers: their representation.

Selection Omission Construction

Representation in Newspapers

News ValuesTarget Audience

Bias Agenda Audience

Bias Ideology Audience

Bias

Newspapers and reporters are supposed to provide their readers with:

Objective information. This means it should be free from prejudice caused by personal feelings.

Unbiased – represent people, events and ideas fairly.

Reliable information – from trusted sources.

Although the news is presents itself as an objective (non-biased) form of media, like any other media text it has its own agenda.

Fiske (1987) called this ‘The Transparency Fallacy' as the news is not objective or ‘transparent’ - the news cannot cover every event that happens in the world, therefore individual newspapers/stations select those that are ‘newsworthy’ and mediate them according to the producers/owners ideology.

However...

Look through a copy of The Sun newspaper Can you find a story that is biased? http://

www.wikihow.com/Recognize-Bias-in-a-Newspaper-Article Cut and stick article onto flipchart paper! Explain what the bias is towards. Identify photos/language/layout that supports the bias Also comment on:

◦ Selectivity – what has been left out?◦ Opinion – whose opinion is it?◦ Space – how much space is dedicated to the story? Why?◦ Sequence – where is information placed in the story? How does this influence you?

Why do you think The Sun has taken this particular viewpoint?

Feedback to class!

Task: 20 minutes

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/press/my-female-readers-persuaded-me-to-keep-page-three-topless-photos-says-sun-editor-8922320.html

Spend 5 minutes reading the article.

Do you think it is unbiased? Whose opinion is represented in the article? Who actually constructs this representation?

Page 3 example

If this is the answer....

RUPERT MURDOCHWhat is the question?

The Sun is owned by News International (also known as News Corp) which is a multi-media conglomerate company (i.e. own lots of media platforms across the world!)

Research News International and find out exactly what media outlets they own. Make a mind-map of your findings. Consider:

Newspapers Television Film Companies Publishing

Task: 5 minutes

Representation in newspapers can arguably be affected by who owns the specific newspaper.

The national, regional and local newspaper industry is managed and run by private firms.

Representation and Ownership

Doyle (2002) argues that that too much concentration of media ownership is dangerous and unhealthy because the media have the power to make or break political careers and have a considerable influence over public opinion.

More than 60% of the national newspapers are owned by two major companies

Trinity Mirror NewsUK What problems may come up with such exclusive

ownership of the press?

Write down one problem you think might arise from this in terms of values presented.

Ownership and Bias

McChesney (2000) argues we have the `appearance of choice' in various media lots of different products all selling much the same sort of (limited range) of ideas – in this way, dominant ideology of a range of representations (gender, age, ethnicity, nationality, religion, sexuality) are sustained.

‘Appearance of Choice’

What is ideology?

The Sun’s ideology is a ‘right-wing’ and therefore usually supports the ‘Conservative’ party as they are a political group with ‘right-wing’ ideologies.

What ideology do you think ‘right-wing’/ Conservative supporters have? You have 3 minutes to write this down on your whiteboards.

Consider: immigration, gender roles and values, social beliefs (the environment etc), religion, nationality, financial issues and class.

The Sun and Political Affiliation

Right wing (conservative) ideology tends to value:◦ tradition, ◦ order, ◦ patriotism, ◦ family values (heterosexual)◦ capitalism (promotion of money/private business for profit◦ they typically believe that business shouldn’t be regulated (own lots of business =

bigger profit). ◦ believe that every individual should “know their place” i.e. class division. Promotes

the ‘status quo’ The Sun newspaper generally represents ‘right wing’ ideology. I.e:

◦ patriotic◦ supports family values◦ anti immigration◦ anti benefit claimants◦ anti muslim◦ Capitalist-supports business

Right Wing/Conservative Ideologies

As the biggest selling newspaper in the UK, could this affect who is voted into government?

The Sun and Ownership

For the exam you may be asked to write about how an event has been represented

Look at The Sun’s article today on the representation of I’m A Celebrity

List all the ‘right-wing’ ideology the article contains and support with examples from the article. This might through images, layout or copy.

Could this article therefore be seen as conforming to ‘right-wing’/conservative ideology?

Extension: Consider how the article could have been written if someone else had won.

Representation of an Event

The Sun tries to represent social cohesion (champion the public mood/dominant ideology) but contradictorily believe that every individual should “know his place” i.e. class division. (Supports the ‘Status Quo’)

However, The Sun newspaper has a working-class stance and target audience (C1-E) means this position is usually dressed-up as standing shoulder-to-shoulder with the common man.

Contradictions in The Sun’s Ideology

What about journalists?

In 2012, 86% of articles in The Sun were written by men. This relates back to the BBC article from last week as ‘women as invisible’ in the media.

Has this changed in the past year? You have 3 minutes to check the number of

female by-lines: male by-lines. Write the ratio on your whiteboard.

Representation and Ownership

Representation in Newspapers

“The press is so powerful in its image-making role, it can make a criminal look like he’s the victim and make the victim look like he’s the criminal. This is the press. If you aren’t careful, the newspapers will have you hating the people who are being oppressed and loving the people who are doing the oppressing”.

- Malcolm X

Worst UK Newspaper Headline Ever?

Answer – ‘Straight Sex Cannot Give You AIDS – Official’

(From The Sun in 1989)

Ideology and Bias