PSEB SS Media Studies cheat sheet

Media studies analyses the communication triangle: producer/institution, text, and audience; a full analysis names all three and the relationships between them.

Denotation is the literal, descriptive meaning of a sign; connotation is the associated cultural or emotional meaning. Analysing both is the basis of media language questions.

Saussure's sign = signifier (the form: word, image, sound) + signified (the concept evoked). Signs are arbitrary and depend on shared convention.

Barthes' levels of meaning: denotation (first order) and connotation/myth (second order), where myth naturalises ideology so that constructed meanings appear obvious.

Genre conventions operate through repetition and difference: repertoire of elements (iconography, setting, narrative, characters, style) plus hybridity and genre evolution.

Narrative models to apply: Propp's character functions (hero, villain, donor, helper, princess, dispatcher, false hero); Todorov's equilibrium–disruption–new equilibrium; Levi-Strauss's binary oppositions.

Technical codes: camera (shot size, angle, movement), editing (cut, dissolve, match-on-action, montage, continuity), sound (diegetic/non-diegetic, parallel/contrapuntal), mise-en-scène (lighting, costume, proxemics).

Audience models: hypodermic needle (passive), uses and gratifications (informational, personal identity, integration/social interaction, entertainment), Hall's encoding/decoding (dominant, negotiated, oppositional readings).

Institutions and ownership: public service broadcasting (universal access, funding via licence fee or state), commercial/private models (advertising, subscription), concentration of ownership and cross-media convergence.

Representation is re-presentation: media select and construct rather than reflect reality; analyse who is represented, how, by whom, and with what effect.

Stereotype = a reduced, generalised and often evaluative representation of a group; countertype challenges it; the Other is a group defined as different from an implied norm.

Gramsci's hegemony and Althusser's interpellation explain how dominant ideologies are reproduced and how audiences are 'hailed' into subject positions.

The male gaze (Mulvey) describes framing that addresses a masculine spectator; the female gaze and queer/intersectional readings contest it.

Ethical and legal frameworks: copyright and fair use, defamation, privacy, obscenity, hate speech law, right of reply, and the distinction between fact, opinion and advertisement.

Advertising persuasion techniques: unique selling proposition, bandwagon, testimonial, transfer, card stacking, plain folks, and emotional appeal; identify the technique, not just the advert.

Media effects and research: agenda-setting (what to think about), cultivation (long-term world-view shaping), two-step flow (opinion leaders), semiotics and content analysis as methods.

Regulation and self-regulation: broadcast content codes, film certification, press councils, platform community standards; note who regulates, what is regulated, and available sanctions.

Convergence and the attention economy: algorithmic curation, filter bubbles, echo chambers, virality, citizen journalism, and the shift from gatekeeping to gatewatching.