Preliminary Task - Media Key concepts

The media holds so much power over our daily lives and the way we think and act. Media is communication information to the masses and there are many different types of media. In my case I am creating print media which will be a school magazine for pupils to read and enjoy. To create this school magazine I needed to conduct research so that I know what to include in my magazine which would lead to it being a success. Before I can begin the research for the task It is crucial that I am aware of what media is about and the key concepts so that my piece of media ticks all the boxes to ensure that it is effective and does the job intended.

When constructing a piece of media there are a few key concepts that I need to ensure I use that will make the piece be most effective and achieve what it is intended to do. For my school magazine it is important that I follow these concepts as I want it to appeal and be a success. The first key concept is code and conventions. I need to ensure that I understand what my audience expect to find in a school magazine. For example on a school magazine cover you would expect to find a headline and photograph amongst other things. There is a way in which I could take a risk and break convention. For example when conducting my research with school pupils many boys said that they would enjoy a page three model in the magazine. Of course there are boundaries that would be broken and im certain that many people would not share their enthusiasm for this idea. By placing a page three model in a school magazine it would  be breaking convention - as you would not expect to find it. On one hand it could attract many boys to read the magazine. However it would involve huge risk as parents, feminists and im certain the head teacher would not agree. Although this is a good example of breaking convention.

The next key concept is understanding Institutions. For example I am now part of an institution as I have produced the school magazine which is a piece of media. An institution is anyone who is involved in the distribution or production. Each piece of media has a genre. For example I could have made the decision of making a school magazine which had the genre of music. However this would not appeal to audiences and could restrict the success of the magazine. Audience is a huge concept that a creator of a media text needs to consider as you need to understand who your audience are and what they want. Every piece of media is produced to fit a market. For example I had to make the decision of whether to make my school magazine for the students , teachers , governors etc. I believe that they are all part of the school however my main target market will be the students. I want to create a magazine that can spread the success of the school yet be something that students enjoy reading and is not a ‘constant reminder of work and homework’. After speaking to some year 9 students they have told me that the magazine should be ‘fun , easy to read and informative’. Therefore to attract my target audience I would not include a four page of ofstead report as they would find it ‘boring’. However if my target audience was the governors I am sure that they would find it important to know aspects such as of stead reports.

Representation is the way in which media portray people, events or in general life styles. For example I could use the school newspaper to portray Epsom and Ewell high school as an outstandingly sporty school but centreing the magazine or sport. Or perhaps I could portray Mr Russell as a bad head teacher by publishing photographs of him shouting at pupils. In contrast  I could portray him as a kind caring head teacher by publishing a picture of him talking to a pupil with a smile and the sense of concern in his actions. The media holds huge power when representing people. The reason for this is media is used to communicate to the masses which means that many people will see and speak about it so if a school magazine with a photograph or mr Russell shouting at a pupil was distributed to all pupils and staff then he would be seen as a head teacher who shouts a lot which may give him a bad reputation. The school magazine could also deal with wider issues and connect. For example the magazine could debate on whether adultery is wrong which at this moment in time could be linked to the wider issue of Wayne Rooney being adulterous.

There are also differing ideologies. This means that the school magazine would have to be aware of diversity and how everyone thinks differently. For example if I was to publish an article on The war against terrorism being wrong I would have to be aware that different people have different views. For example somebody member of family may have died whilst fighting for their country whilst another person may believe that it’s a  war not worth fighting. It is important that in media I am away of the differences in individuals ideology and approach issues with awareness. Each piece of media has a narrative in my case it’s the articles within the school newspaper. I also need to be aware of other perspectives when creating my school magazines as I do not want to upset or discriminate against an idea or belief.