RESIT - AUD and INST SLIDES

[AS] Final Tips and Good Luck!

As you wind up your revision be sure to remind yourself of the chief examiner's advice in these two previously shared posts:

• TV Drama
• Audiences and Institutions

Also, don't forget to use your revision booklets.

And remember! If you don't know it by 6PM tonight you will not know it at 9AM tomorrow. Get a good night's rest and don't forget to bring a bottle of water with you to the exam.

You are in the hall tomorrow. You should be out in the quad ready to go at 9:10AM.

Good luck!

Mr. Michie & Mr. Ford.

Reading and annotating an article [Screencast]

After today's revelation, that some of you are not actively reading and annotating articles as part of your preparation for the Audiences and Institutions section of the exam, I decided to create a screencast to show you how I expect you to read and annotate an article. It's a bit rough and ready but it does the job!

Link to the original article: http://www.economist.com/node/21556635

Where to look for articles about the Magazine Industry...

To help you get to grips with reading around the topic of the magazine industry, I thought it would be helpful to share a few websites that you can trust (to an extent).

MediaMagazine - Remember to ask me for the username and password.

Guardian Newspaper (Media Section)

Independent Newspaper (Media Section)

The Association of Magazine Media

The Economist

Wired

TechCrunch

Please remember that even sites like these are open to bias and should be handled critically.

Keep up with your case studies!

You must remember that the Audiences and Institutions unit is a case study and as such is an active, evolving topic. With that in mind, you need to keep up with events.

Playstation Magazine which I gave out as a case study has since shut down. This follows the closure of Nintendo Power, a long running Nintendo-related magazine. Both magazines were published by Future US, Inc.

A quick glance at Future's website suggests that they are concentrating their energies in the digital market, significantly updating GamesRadar, as well as launching a new weekly interactive digital tech magazine.

While I was looking through related articles I also came across this article about the fact that Newsweek is going 100% digital.

You have got to keep researching and reading. This topic is alive, kicking and is never not interesting. There is always something to learn!

G322: Audiences and Institutions - Awesome Revision Booklet

Need help revising for the Audiences and Institutions section of your AS Media exam? Then look no further.

Download this awesome revision guide, courtesy of Mr. Ford.

It includes a detailed glossary of key terms, an example case study, advice on how to revise and how to approach the exam.

Thinking through audiences and institutions...

Successfully responding to the audience and institutions section of the exam is about being able to link your case studies to the theory. This needs to be thought through. Here's an example...

NME is one of the longest running music magazines. It has expanded horizontally (Melody Maker merged with NME in 2000) as well as diagonally multiple times: 

• NME.com (1996)
• NMEVideo.com (2011) - replacing the defunct TV channel
• NME TV (2007 - 2010)
• NME Radio (2008)
• Social Media (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube) 

Each of these expansions can be seen to be in response to a number of factors including consumer demand for converged content, and the desire to turn NME (the weekly indie-music magazine) into a recognised Brand at the heart of the British music industry. 

Moreover, each of these expansions have caused changes in both production and exchange. 

Production has evolved moving from a concentration on written content even into the launch of NME.com but that soon changed as web technologies improved. With the move to high speed broadband connections  NME has sought to make the most of streaming audio and video online through their websites. Moreover, they have launched several apps that do the same. This suggests that they have recognised the power of these mediums. As such, NME as a production company has grown to include a diverse mixture of roles beyond the traditional journalists. Moreover, the magazine itself has become integral to promoting the online arm of the brand through intertextual referencing to the website and apps on every single page.  

Exchange has also certainly been effected. In their efforts to meet consumer demand they have developed a more direct relationship with their target audience. Events such as a Nirvana Nevermind Listening Party (2011) organised through Twitter shows how the company is seeking to leverage social media to keep readers engaged in the NME brand. In part due to the success of this event the magazine has continued to produce content related to classic albums including self-produced documentaries...

This is unstructured and would need to be presented more eloquently in your essay, but what I am trying to show you is how you need to be thinking this through... you have to connect the theory: expansion, convergence, social media etc, with the case studies, in this case NME.

You should be able to do this for three magazines to support different arguments within your essay.

I'm posting this because I care!

Part of me does not want to post this as it will only contribute to perpetuating dependency... but I guess some of you are not ready to think for yourselves. However, I only want to see you do well, so if this helps you take the next step...

Your current essay question is asking you what factors have affected institutions within the magazine industry and what decisions have they made in response to those factors that have affected the processes of 'production' and 'exchange'?

Discuss the issues raised by media ownership in the production and exchange of media texts.

What are those factors you ask? And my knee-jerk response would be seriously!? But alas... those factors are:

• Expansion (particularly diagonal expansion)
• Which is arguably a response to the continued growth and impact of multi-media convergence.
• Which has grown significantly because of the WWW
• Which has also seen the growth of social media

So in other words how have the above areas affected the magazine industry and how have magazine institutions responded to them? And specifically how have they impacted on the way magazines are produced and how have they impacted on the point of exchange?

Now, the next bit you have to do for yourselves. I am not going to do it for you. Your essay structure is there in the bullet points. You need to develop each of those points with 'secondary' and 'primary' (3 magazines and their owners) evidence that you explore and discuss.

*This is the last time I will help you in this way... The problem I fear for a number of you is that you simply do not know the content well enough. You need to read, digest, discuss and then read some more. If you were more confident with the content and the concepts you might not find putting the essay together such a struggle. Please think about that.

Mr. M.

Did you know 4.0

AS Easter Homework

Please respond to the following exam question:

Discuss the issues raised by media ownership in the production and exchange of media texts.

Additional resources:

Mind Map

Pete Fraser (Chief Examiner) Advice

AS: A&I Essay Planning

One of your peers emailed me unsure of how to get started with the Audiences and Institutions essay. If this particular student has questions, then I am sure that the rest of you do. So here is a copy of my reply:

---

Have you used the mind map to plan the structure of your essay? My first question if I was doing this essay is which parts of the mind map are going to go into my essay.

So, read the question. What are the possible answers?

Well, some magazines have fully embraced the use of 'converged media'. Some have had to in order to keep up with audience needs and changing tech. Some have not.

Therefore, my arguments are:

• Argument 1: Yes, media convergence is important. 
• Argument 2: In fact it is now integral to success for some parts of the magazine industry. 
• Argument 3: But there are some magazines that do not yet need to adapt 

Now I have a plan I need to use my mind map to flesh this out.

Arg 1: Convergence

• Pg 1. What is it? Why is it important? What case study can I use to illustrate that? 
• Pg 2. Can I build on that? Is there another case study? Another quotation? 

Arg 2. Some mags have no choice? 

• Pg. 3: Audience expectations - location, time, multi-media content... quotation? case study? 
• Pg. 4: Keeping up with the competition. Quotation? Case study? 

Arg 3: Not important. 

• Pg. 5: People's Friend - importance of knowing your TA 

Now, surrounding this I need an intro and a conclusion. 

Intro: In a few sentences set out the arguments. Don't mention any specific case studies. Keep it general.

Conclusion: What is your opinion? What does the future for the industry hold in relation to technological convergence? Hypothesise.

I hope this helps?

Completed Audiences & Institutions Mind Map

Audiences & Institutions: The Magazine Industry [Mind Map]

Here is a PDF of the mind map (as far as w got in the lesson). Your HOMEWORK is to complete the mind map adding more info to the various sections; in particular: Challenges, NMT and Synergy. 

I have added a few extra bits of info already so do look at the document carefully. I really want to see you add features from your case studies and also quotations from your wider reading on the topic. 

You need to be prepared to share and feedback what you have added in our first lesson after half term.

Magazine Industry Research

While we work through presentations, I want you to develop your understanding of the key issues through 'secondary' research.

Investigate and make notes on...

Magazine Industry

• How is it changing/evolving?
• What does the future hold?

Audience and Institutions

• How do audiences benefit from changes in the magazine industry?
• What challenges are magazines (and publishers) facing?

New Media Technologies

• How are NMTs impacting on the Magazine Industry?

Further to this, you need to find and analyse an article that comments on the current or potential future state of the Magazine Industry.

Investigate and analyse the article:

• Source?
• Who write it?
• What is the line of argument?
• Key quote? - This needs to be carefully critiqued.
• How does it link to the wider concepts in the unit and your case study?

Next, in groups of 4/5, share your articles making notes. This will give you a range of opinion on the topic.

AS/A2 Snow Day Work!

School is closed on Monday 21st January.

Please work on the following tasks...

Year 12

1. Continue working on your research/prep for your Magazine Industry presentations.

2. Take the opportunity to update your coursework blog.

Year 13

1. Read this article about the Coen Brothers: Coughlin, P., 2003, Joel and Ethan Coen, Senses of Cinema, Issue 26: http://www.sensesofcinema.com/2003/great-directors/coens/

2. Take the opportunity to update your coursework blog.

AS: Audiences and Institutions Practice Assignment 2

Here is your next essay title; due in Monday, 16 April.

"Discuss the ways in which media products are produced and distributed to audiences, within a media area, which you have studied."

Please make sure you read through my comments on your previous essay before attempting this one.

Have a great Easter,
Mr. M.

AS/A2: Cover Work from Mr. M.

Year 12

Please complete the following essay: 

‘What significance does the continuing development of digital media technology have for media institutions and audiences?’ (50 marks)

Year 13

Please complete the following tasks:

1. Read all the material you have been given with relation to ‘criticisms of postmodernism’.

2. Add further thoughts and ideas to the Kony 2012 wall. Link

3. Add to and edit the Postmodern Media Revision Google Doc . Link

4. Create a mind map – place the main theories / theorists related to postmodern media in the middle and then link them to the various case studies, adding key quotes, analysis, interpretations and your own thoughts about the topic.

 

Making is Connecting: The 4-minute presentation (2012)

David Gautlett kindly replied to an earlier post via Twitter and has pointed you towards the following (more recent) video. It develops the ideas discussed here in more detail focussing more intrinsically on the way modern media audiences are engaging with and interacting with Media.

AS and A2: Media and Everyday Life (David Gauntlett)

Watch the following video, make notes and consider how it relates to your current module:

The video was created by David Gauntlett. A2 students, you should know who he is already!

AS: Half-Term Homework - TV Drama Revision

Read through and make notes from the following slides:

View more presentations from petefrasers

They are from Pete Fraser. He is the chief examiner for A-Level Media Studies.

Also, complete your audience survey analysis and finish reading the various articles you were given on Wednesday.