EXAM STUDY PACK   Year 12 AS Media MEST 1 section B  ‘Cross‐Media’ ‘Cross‐Platform’ 

 Term 2A schedule 

wb    Exam Essay     Presentations & handouts– 

area of focus music/ sport/ soaps  

A) How have improvements in technology made a difference to the quality of audience experience   (Jan 2011) 

 

  Presentations & handouts Area of focus: Gaming, war & conflict  

B) Modern audiences are not just consumers of media but producers too – to what extent is this true? (June 2009) 

 

  Broadcast drama Sherlock sample case study Answer essay C with ref to BBC 

C) ‘It is not the strongest who survive but those most responsive to change. ‘How do successful media institutions adapt to change’ (June 2010)  

 

  Area of focus: Reality TV   

D) Explain the similarities and differences in codes and conventions across all three platforms for media products you have studied (Jan 2009) 

 

  area of focus: Lifestyle media ‐ airline & car ads  

E) ‘How do institutions use all three platforms to reach and grow audiences ? (June 2008)  

 

  Celebrity culture   

F) To what extent do media products you have studied inform, educate and entertain? Refer to all three platforms (Jan 2009) 

 

 

Other titles 

G) Audiences are becoming increasingly powerful in shaping media output – to what extent is this true (June 2010) 

H) Why are media products not equally present across all media platforms? Which is the dominant platform and why? (Jun 2011) 

I) Identify how media products from your case study make links with other media platforms. What are the reasons for these links? (Jan 2010) J) How are people and places represented in your case study? K) Has entertainment taken over as the main function of media at the expense of other roles? Is the media dumbing down in order to attract wider audiences?

 Mark scheme 

Level 4 (26-32 marks) • Thorough and precise cross-media study • Thorough application of knowledge and understanding of audience production • Thorough use of a range of detailed examples from three media platforms • Clear, well organised and appropriate communication. Engaged response with fluent use of media terminology At the top of this level candidates show confident understanding and application of media ideas/issues/theories/debates __________________ Level 3 (17-25 marks) • Clear and concise cross-media study • Sound application of knowledge and understanding of audience production • Satisfactory use of a range of examples from three media platforms • Clear and appropriate communication. Ideas are structured with consistency and media terminology is used accurately At the top of this level candidates show sound understanding of media ideas/issues/theories/debates ___________________ Level 2 (9-16 marks) • Generalised and sketchy cross-media study • Some application of knowledge and understanding of audience production • Adequate use of some examples from at least two media platforms • Communication of ideas may be inconsistent with some limited use of media terminology At the top of this level candidates make reference, possibly implicitly, to media ideas/issues/theories/debates ________________________ Level 1 (1-8 marks) • Vague and undeveloped cross-media study • Limited application of knowledge and understanding of audience production • Scant or generalised use of examples from perhaps only one media platform • There may be some confusion and imbalance within the response At the top of this level answers may show limited awareness of media ideas/issues/theories/debates and/or media terminology ________________________ Level 0 (0 marks) • No relevant/appropriate/suitable response

Examiners’ marking codes L Media Language R Representation A Audience Inst Media Institution G Genre N Narrative V/I Values and Ideology � Good point made �� Very good point made Eg Example/Illustration Eg� Good Example/Illustration Ex Explanation/Exploration/Expansion/Evaluation T Terminology used Th Theories/Ideas/Debates/Issues

Eg? Needs illustration Ex? Needs explanation/exploration/expansion/evaluation Rept Repetition I Irrelevant ? Query or Questionable Point Desc Description F Focus on question

Key terminology 

Red button / interactive TV    catch‐up TV ,   on‐demand services  interactivity Convergence  Cross‐platform / cross‐media presence Synergy    symbiotic relationship = cross‐dependency / interdependency Product positioning TV Ratings  newspaper circulation  website hits Institutional ownership and control  Regulation control and censorship Mediation Construction  Personalization Hypodermic model  (Blumler & Katz) Uses and gratifications model Oppositonal, dominant  & preferred readings (Stuart Hall) Active/ passive audiences BBC – PSB Hegemony vs pluralism   

Codes & conventions – visual, graphical.  typographical, textual codes   Cinematographic codes, mise en scene, camerawork (shot, postion, movement, framing),  Editing:  continuity, MTV style, rhythm, graphic match, match on action, diegetic, non‐diegetic   Iconography Genre  ‐ hybrid genre / pure genre Mass vs niche audience Fragmented audiences    audience fragmentation ABC1s  Demographic Upmarket, midmarket, downmarket Two‐step flow model Gatekeeping Propp – 8 character types Todorov –3  part narrative Binary opposites Moral panics Mediation  

 

RAILING checklist – apply relevant key concepts to your particular area of focus / case study 

Think about Representations – How do they differ across the 3 platforms? Why? 

Representations of people, places, groups (blacks, teenagers) professional groups – e.g. soldiers, police, teachers 

How are these representations constructed? Are they made to fit a certain audience?  

How do audiences engage with these texts? Active/ passive?    Which models apply:  Hypodermic model ? Uses & Gratifications?   Maslow?  

How do audiences receive/ respond to / create texts?  

Is audience response likely to be clear, unambiguous  due to effective anchoring (is there a clear dominant reading – intended by the producer ) or is there scope of oppositional readings?) 

Instutitions behind the product – are they private (commercial)  or public? Links to advertising. Merchandising, monetizing, synergy; how is the product positioned (scheduling, channel, magazine, newspaper) 

Think about other forms of advertising and promotion:  sponsorship product placement, celebrity endorsement 

Codes & Conventions – how is the product constructed to suit its platform? Camerawork editing visual graphical textual codes 

Generic codes ‐ & narrative aspects; iconography  hybridity,  convergence intertextuality. Narrative structure (Todorov).  Propp’s 8 character types 

 

Essay technique 

clear planning – 1 mins and keep the plan open (don’t jump straight in)  keep your plan open and add to it as you write your main essay  practise practise practise and pester your teachers to get it marked – do short practise paragraphs to begin with and build up  clear paragraph based structure :    intro point 1 2 3 4 5 conclusion  PEEL structure for each paragraph ‐Point Example  Explain/Expand, Link to title  Don’t just describe or tell a story – make sure you analyse, discuss, explore  Keep coming back to the essay question. Practise your paragraph openers – use the essay question as a guide  Include plenty of media specific terminology; Show off    don’t generalise. Show your knowledge (specific examples + terminology) and keep it relevant.   Think ‐ I am showing the examiner what I know about media products, institutions, key concepts and terminology. Am I answering the question.  End with a brief conclusion – refer back to the question and sum up.