Media Codes and Conventions
What is a media code?
A tool used to create meaning in a story.
What does context mean in media studies?
The time, place, and situation that shape how media is made and understood.
What does agency mean?
The power to make your own media choices.
What’s the difference between ethical and legal?
Ethical is about right and wrong; legal is about the law.
What does the Agenda-Setting Theory say?
Media tells us what to think about, not what to think.
Give two technical codes used in film. film.
camera, lighting, editing, sound or mise en scene?
What is social context?
How people’s values, attitudes, and relationships affect meaning.
What does control mean?
When governments or companies influence what we see.
Who classifies films in Australia?
The Australian Classification Board.
What does the Spiral of Silence theory explain?
People stay quiet if their opinion isn’t popular.
What does the Sunken Place in Get Out represent?
What is the oppression and silencing of Black voices in society?
What is cultural context?
Shared beliefs, customs, and identities that influence media and audiences.
Give one example of audience agency.
People sharing content or starting movements online.
Give one legal issue in media.
Copyright or data collection.
How does Uses and Gratifications show audience power?
We choose what to watch for our own reasons.
How does lighting help build tension in Get Out?
Low-key lighting builds tension.
What is historical context?
The events or time period that affect how media is made and viewed.
How do algorithms affect agency?
They choose what we see and hide other content.
Give one ethical issue in media.
Privacy or using children for views.
Which theory links best to social media algorithms?
Agenda-Setting or Cultivation Theory.
How do codes and conventions work together?
Codes make the conventions clear to the audience.
How might a person’s context change their reading of Get Out?
Their background and beliefs affect how they understand its message.
What does the Uses and Gratifications Theory say?
We choose media to meet our own needs.
What was wrong with the DaddyOFive case?
The kids were exploited for entertainment.
What does the Cultivation Theory suggest?
Watching lots of media makes people see the world like the media shows it.