LO6: Dark knight- audience theory

starter task

• The main point of view of this article is that the BBFC have wrongfully given a 12A certificate for the Dark Knight, this is because it contains strong violence, disturbing content and psychopathic themes.  
• I do agree with the article because it can affect and influence young minds but the BBFC justified their decision based on superhero content

Audience impacts – media effects

A)    Active and passive

Passive audience: they do not challenge content and take everything in.

Two schools of thought :(Theodore Adorno 1930s) hypodermic syringe- media has a negative impact. Mass audience believe everything they see/hear. In the 1940s-50s the mass audience were perceived as an extreme influence towards audiences adapted behaviour.linked to advertising. throughout the 1930s a example of that audiences do believe everything they see/hear  In the media was in the war from the Nazi who influenced people.

-          Issues about violence?

-          Issues about sexual content?

-          Issues about representation?

Vance Packard 1957 (passive audience theory) - the relationship between advertising and media effects in his book ‘hidden persuaders’. He believed the media were conditioning people to want products and services with the rise of consumerism

‘moral panic’ is when the mass media create a fuss about violence and media. (Stanley Cohen 1972). Moral panic demonises a group ‘folk devil’.

Criticised media product for violence/negative impacts creating moral panics:

-          GTA: criticised for violence and depiction of women. Influences street life, prostitutes/strippers, drug use and glorifying murder of prostitutes.

-          Clockwork orange: contains amoral violence.

-          Pokémon Go- interactive game working on GPS, blamed for people getting into dangerous situation, disruptive behaviour, harassment.

-          Twitter- blamed for hate, racism, trolling.  

-          Natural born killers- blamed for copycat crimes, blamed for murders by Nathan Martinez after he watched it.

violence in the media: Anderson (2007) fast-paced violent games can lead to changed in the brain function when processing violent actions and images therefore we become desensitised to the violence.
 Ferguson (2012)  there is no long term link over 3 years.

Representation

Hall (1980)- All representation is mediated

Perkins (1979)- not all stereotypes are negative.

Mulvey (1975)- women are objectified

Earp and Katz (1999) -equation of masculinity with pathological control and violence.

Butler (1993)- representation of gay people, they are stereotypical.

Alvarado (1987)- ethnicity, seen as exotic/dangerous/humorous/pitied.

Turton (2014)- hooligans, trouble causers. black/Asian boys.

Lloyd (1995)- girls as 'double deviant'- trouble causers but shouldn't be because they are women.

Poltergeist

According Theodore Adorno (hypodermic syringe) which states people believe that see/hear which can influence the audience,  my film could include violence against children and promote this violence. Although this film is rated 15 it still includes violence between the little girl (when possessed) and the parents which can influence the passive audience.

b) Active theory
other school of thought: We are able to film adapt to content in media (Gauntlett 1995)

we have uses and gratifications (McQuail 1972) theory: people use media for their own purpose.  This provides a more positive outlook on media

Hall (1980) encoding/decoding material (audiences understand text by their personal background/beliefs/ identity:

    -Preferred reading- by audience depending on their background but accepts the dominant viewpoint/story.

    -Negotiated readings: partially agrees with the meaning

    -Oppositional reading: meaning understood but don't agree and think opposite

    -Aberrant: gets the completely wrong meaning entirely

Poltergeist
My film could be seen to have some positive effects such as a theme of a family bonds and sticking together because it shows that if you d