KONY 2012

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a_Vt9Mt7pik - First 3 minutes of the video

Codes and Conventions

Media identifies three categories of codes that may be used to convey meanings in media:

·         Technical codes, which include camera techniques, framing, depth of field, lighting and exposure

·         Symbolic codes, which refer to objects, setting, body language, clothing and colour

·         Written codes in the form of headlines, captions, speech bubbles and language style.

The Mise en scene for the extract was very dull and was very boring, this is good for the extract as they are trying to convey a message about a criminal. The extract itself is a documentary and the person that is the voice over records it himself, at the beginning it shows that how he had met one of his friends called Jacob. They show how they met in Uganda and he talks about how his brother has been killed by Kony. That part was record by a camcorder and it makes it look really realistic and from this it is able to see that it is a documentary. 

Representation

This represents Kony as a villain as he had made an army of children and had been bad. This extract represents all the evils in the world and it shows that there are problems in other countries without people knowing. With all the bad things that Kony has done it shows that people have it easy in countries such as England and America which means people should consider stopping things like this and should consider going to the country and helping out. Some people might feel that this sort of thing always helps in African countries which is stereotypical as it happens in other countries therefore people should not be stereotypical.   

Audience

This extract shows the audience all of the evils that are going on in the world. This helps the audience know what is going on around the world and what is going on in other countries. The audience can see what has happened and can help the country to which this has happened to by donating. The audience can see this extract in a variety of ways over the internet as this was shown on the news the audience can check it up on the internet. This extract will make people in other countries feel guilty as they could feel that they should have helped and should have been more thoughtful. They could also feel guilt as they wouldn’t want it to be their family and wouldn’t it to be anyone they know. 

Advert analysis

What techniques does the ad use to persuade the audience to consume the Guardian?

One technique that the advert used to persuade the audience is that it had clips of different people; which were different genders, age and background. We see this as it was a close shot to capture their racial identity; this shows the audience that everyone can receive this news and that it’s never biased. This is part of the uses and gratification; Maslow’s theories which is the social (belonging). This illustrates to them that their part of a news team, that is there to inform them and give them reliable and 24/7 news. Another technique is the editing, as in the pigs house there was a newspaper flash about the situation. This is a connotation of ‘breaking news’ which is the best news being delivered to the audience. As these types of news creates a moral panic, and this what people buy the news for to hear about the most outrageous stories ever. Also another editing made was when the worlds map was show with a news article fading through it. The map had red dots appearing on each country, this is affective as it represents that their news stories are spread around the world instantly. This is part of the uses and gratification also as the audience knows that they’re going to be receiving information about the world. This is satisfying their curiosity about the world; it could also be educating them about something new they might have learnt.

 As modernism is shown in this advert, there was flashed of many tweets by people made about the three pigs. These tweets were different people opinions all around the world as there was many different languages shown. This illustrates the fact that the guardian just releases the news in a non-biased way. But it allows the audience to have their own opinion about the news. While the tweets are flashing, non diegetic sound has been edited in with different people talking at the same time with different opinions about the same situation. It again shows the value of the news readers having their own opinion on the news and how they can share it viral. Also the three little pigs were chosen as the headline as it was there for the visual pleasure. As everyone once in their life did enjoy their story, so by changing the story into more modern version would definitely entertain people to watch the advert.

Representation: How is the news represented in the ad?

The advertisement represents the news by showing the diversity of receiving news through the guardian. The main way people used to get their news from the guardian was through the newspaper by going to the shop. As technology changed the way people are informed now, the guardian promoted how their news can be gained not only by newspaper. For example; when the women was sitting down at her house, looking through the guardian website, and was reading the news while at the same time watching videos. It showed that if reading wasn’t right for her then she could watch a video about that news with her demand. It shows the fact that these days news can be received anywhere you are and the specific news that is wanted by that person can be looked at too. Also this means that news is being represented as modern through technology. For example toward the end of the video there is a clip of 4 way in which the guardian news can be received on. These are the ipad, phone, laptop/computer and newspaper. These demonstrate that the news is everywhere, which means that whenever the audience want to know about ‘hard news’. All they have to do is go to the closest gadget or to the local shop. Another way news is represented is that people can express their opinions about certain news nowadays, this is because of the twitter and the comment boxes on the guardian. It allows people to get involved with the news by expressing their own opinion biased or not. This is also part of the uses and gratification theory as the guardian allows the news readers to connect with society, by expressing their thoughts and opinion with others.

Media Institution: What issues of new technology does this ad raise and what does it tell us about the values of The Guardian?

One of the issues that the advert showed about new technology is that by elaborating so much on the new technology and how news is being received now. It shows that the main ways newspaper institution used to get their money which was by selling newspapers is declining rapidly due to technology. For example when the advert shows the use of the website, different technology being used e.g. I pad, blackberry and also the use of twitter. Hardly any newspaper footages were shown as the audience these days would rather receive information through the World Wide Web. Some values that the guardian showed in the video is that it only releases non-biased news as its broadsheet newspaper and tackles the news from both sides. For example in the beginning it shows that the wolf was being convicted in the wrong and the guardian did explain this. But there’s always another side to the story, as there was news released about the wolf having asthma. So this shows that the guardian always publishes both sides of the story, by always being non-biased. Another value that the guardian has is for the audience to receive 24/7 coverage of news. This can be shown when that man is on his imac pro at night, and he wanted to know about a news story. All he had to do was to visit the website, this allowed him to receive the news he wanted to know.  

Audience: On the basis of this ad, who does the Guardian brand appeal to?

This advert had a wide range of audience, but on the basis of this ad there was one main target audience it was trying to attract. This is the young adults and teenage audience; they try to do this by expressing all the different technology that can be used to go on the guardian to receive news. As teenagers are the most frequent users to technology and hardly buy the newspaper, the guardian understands it could attract them if they show them there are better ways to receive news now. For example when there are 4 young people holding different gadgets surfing the news it could show them, that young people do watch the news but viral. This could be something which they might be interesting for them as it’s part of the uses of gratification as they are being educated or maybe even receiving advice. Also it shows them that by surfing the guardian news it could help them go into escapism as their finding out about the world. This just helps them leave the country were in and explore what’s happening around the globe. Another way the guardian appeals to younger people is the fact that the guardian when it was only a newspaper used to be only bought by people 21+. This is because the newspaper was much more reading and less interacting and watching videos. Now it shows that the younger people can interact through twitter by following the guardian and receiving information through there. This means that they can also interact by giving opinions and conversation with other tweeters about a topic. This is shows in the video when different people are tweeting about the three little pigs and how the situation is not fair on them. The guardian is doing this as they know this is the only way to intrigue as they enjoy social networking sites and twitter is number one at the moment for them. Another way the advert shows that the guardian is trying to reach the younger audience is that it shows a riot happening for the three little pigs. The connotation of this is that teenagers were also misunderstood and mistreated which impacted into the riots of summer 2011 to emerge. This is the exact same situation as the three little pigs and the guardian is expressing that it understand the injustice the younger adults are going through. Also the riot scene in the video could be a visual pleasure, as it looks dangerous and exciting for the young adult and the rest of the audience. 

film trailer analyses

What techniques does this trailer use to persuade an audience to see the film?

A film trailer is used to intrigue the readers By having the best parts from the films on there to make the audience want to watch more. One of the main media language used is the camera work being effective towards the audience. For example when the two main characters the rock and Dominic Toredo have their chasing scene. The camera is a long shot to capture the surrounding in where the scene is taking place, and the actors full body being shown showing their physicality. The clothing being used is to match the characters personality, the police are wearing the best police uniform, while the ‘criminals’ are wearing ruffed up clothes to show their struggles in the film. The facial expressions being shown in the trailer are serious and sarcastic looks. This is to show the funny and the serious side to towards the film as the audience always like to have a little laugh. The setting is the beautiful Rio de Janeiro which is a exotic place known for its scenery, so a film being set over here would add that south American mystery on their, as it’s part of the uses and gratification theory escapism. The props being used are the main attraction towards the film as this is what makes the film. For example the fast cars, gun and the favella’s being used make the film what they are. For the car races the lighting used are always dark to shows mysterious and badness towards the actors, and how they break the law. Also the sound used in the trailer are both diagetic and non- diagetic , the sound tracks of dubstep is used to pump up the audience about the film while watching the trailer. Also having some dialogue from the film bring in the feeling of actually watching the film, so they get a taste of how the film really is.