SACE Stage 2 Media Studies key terms

The system of signs, codes and conventions through which a media product creates meaning for an audience, including images, sound, words, editing and layout working together.

A learned system of signs and rules that audiences use to read meaning in a media product, such as camera framing, colour, music or headline placement.

A familiar, repeated way of doing something in a media form that audiences expect, such as a villain's low-angle shot or a news report's opening anchor shot.

A code where one thing stands for an idea or feeling, such as darkness suggesting danger or a wilting flower suggesting loss, read through shared cultural understanding.

A code produced by the equipment or craft of media production, such as camera angle, focus, lighting, sound level, editing pace or typography.

Words or sounds attached to an image that fix or steer its meaning, such as a caption, headline or voice-over telling the audience how to read a picture.

The literal, surface meaning of a sign, describing what is plainly shown or said without interpreting implied ideas or associations.

The associations, feelings and implied meanings a sign carries beyond its literal content, shaped by culture and context.

Any element in a media text that carries meaning, made up of a physical form and the concept it represents.

Everything placed within the frame and how it is arranged, including setting, props, costume, make-up, lighting, colour and the positioning of performers.

The choice of what is included inside the frame and what is left out, plus how subjects are positioned, sized and angled within it.

How much of a subject fills the frame, from extreme close-up through close-up, mid shot and wide shot, shaping intimacy, emphasis and information.

The height and tilt from which a shot is taken, such as low, high, eye-level or canted, which influences how the audience judges power and status.

The planned construction of a media product's audio, including dialogue, ambience, music, effects and silence, to shape mood and meaning.

Sound whose source exists within the story world, such as characters talking, a radio in the scene or footsteps on a floor.

Sound added from outside the story world, such as a musical score, narrator's voice-over or added sound effect, which the characters cannot hear.

Spoken narration layered over images, used to guide interpretation, supply information or reveal a character's inner thoughts.

A category of media product sharing recognisable conventions, such as horror, documentary or current-affairs news, which shapes audience expectations and industry production decisions.

The recurring visual symbols and images associated with a genre or brand, such as crosses and fog for horror, which let audiences quickly recognise what they are watching.

The mixing of conventions from two or more genres or forms within one product, producing something familiar yet new, such as a comedy-documentary.

The way a media product refers to, borrows from or plays on other media texts, rewarding audiences who recognise the reference.

A deliberate, often humorous imitation of a media text, style or genre that exaggerates its features so the audience notices the mockery.

The use of humour, exaggeration or irony to criticise people, institutions or social behaviour, aiming to provoke thought about the target.

The constructed way media products portray people, groups, places and ideas, always involving selection and omission rather than simply reflecting reality.

A simplified, generalised and often repeated portrayal of a group, which flattens individual difference and can reinforce assumptions.

A portrayal that deliberately challenges or reverses a familiar stereotype, offering a different view of a group or situation.

The set of values, beliefs and assumptions a media product expresses or takes for granted, which can shape how audiences understand social issues.

The way a text invites an audience to take up a particular viewpoint, such as siding with a protagonist or accepting a news report's framing.

The style and tone a media product uses to speak to its audience, such as formal, chatty, authoritative or ironic, which signals who the audience is assumed to be.

The meaning a media producer most wants the audience to take from a text, encouraged through codes, anchorage and structure.

An audience response in which a viewer accepts part of a text's intended meaning while questioning or adjusting other parts to fit their own experience.

An audience response in which a viewer rejects the meaning a text intends and reads it against the grain, often for social or political reasons.

The specific group a media product is designed for, identified by factors such as age, gender, income, interests and location, which shapes content and style.

Statistical categories used to describe audiences, such as age, gender, occupation, income and education, often used by media industries to sell advertising.

Classification of audiences by attitudes, values, interests and lifestyle rather than simple statistics, used to explain why people choose certain media.

The collection of data about who consumes media and how much, using methods such as surveys, ratings panels and digital analytics, which informs industry decisions.

Estimates of how many people, or what share of a potential audience, watched or heard a program, used to set advertising prices and judge success.

The number of different people or households exposed to a media product or advertisement at least once within a given period.

The number of copies of a print publication distributed, or more broadly the spread of a media product among its audience.

The deliberate breaking or reversal of an expected convention, used to surprise audiences, create humour or challenge assumptions.

The circumstances in which a media product is made, including funding, ownership, technology, budget, regulation and the intentions of its makers.

The process of getting a finished media product to its audience, including cinema release, broadcast, streaming, retail and online platforms.

The marketing activities used to attract an audience to a media product, such as trailers, posters, interviews, social media campaigns and tie-ins.

The merging of previously separate media forms, devices and industries through digital technology, so one platform can deliver text, audio, video and interactivity.

Who controls a media organisation, ranging from public broadcasters to private companies, which affects the content produced and the perspectives represented.

The rules and bodies that govern media content and conduct, such as classification systems, broadcasting codes and advertising standards, balancing freedom with public protection.

The moral principles guiding media practice, including accuracy, fairness, privacy, consent and avoidance of harm when gathering and presenting material.

A media environment where audiences do not just consume but also create, share, remix and comment, blurring the line between producer and audience.

Material such as video, images, reviews or posts created by ordinary users rather than professional media organisations, often circulated through social platforms.