Media Context

Question 1

What is Social context?

Answer 1

Refers to social conditions, attitudes, values and structures of the time

Impacts how audiences interpret a media text.

• Social issues: Poverty, immigration, racism, racism
• audience attitudes (how audiences react to a product)
• cultural norms and values: what society deems as “normal” or acceptable at the time (gender roles, race and class
• demographics (make up of society) age, ethnicity, gender, class

Question 2

what is cultural context

Answer 2

refers to shared beliefs, traditions, values, customs, practices and ideologies (focusses more on representation and identity)

• beliefs and values (religion, ideologies, moral codes- individualism vs collectivism)
• Traditions and heritage: Customs, national identity
• language: dialect or direct references
• Rep of race, gender, religion, gender, sexuality, class
• how a specific culture is represented in the media.

Question 3

How is social context different from Cultural

Answer 3

Social context focusses more on current societal issues (gender or inequality) whereas cultural focuses on long standing cultural beliefs and practises

Question 4

what is historical context

Answer 4

efers to the time period in which a media product was produced, set, or received, and how the events, attitudes, and conditions of that time influence its content, style, and meaning.

• time period: when the product was made
• key historical events: social movements
• historical attitudes: past views on race, gender, class
• censorship and regulation

Question 5

what is economic context

Answer 5

Economic context refers to how money, funding, ownership, and industry structures influence the production, distribution, and content of a media product.

• funding: how was the product financed- investors, advertisement or private
• ownership: who owns the media company- conglomerate or independent
• globalisation: Big companies create products to appeal to international markets and maximise profit.
  marketing amd audience target: Products are shaped to attract certain demographics for higher revenue.

Question 6

what is political context

Answer 6

Political context refers to how politics, power, government, and ideology influence or are reflected in a media product.

government policies: laws censorship or media regulations
political ideologies: Left wing vs right wing
Propoganda and influence

Question 7

what is the social context of the CSP: Score

Answer 7

It features a white male explorer emerging from the jungle, greeted and admired by scantily clad, racially stereotyped women. The advert reflects specific social and cultural attitudes of the 1960s.

1. Gender Roles & Masculinity: Patriarchal society: The ad reflects traditional gender roles — men as dominant, adventurous, and heroic, women as passive and sexually available.
   - Hegemonic masculinity: Promotes the idea that a “real man” is strong, assertive, and sexually successful.
   -Women are shown as rewards for male achievement — reinforcing male gaze and objectification.
2. Post-War Consumerism: In the 1960s, there was a boom in consumer goods — including grooming products for men. The advert sells a lifestyle and identity, not just a product — linking masculinity with success and desire.
3. Sexual Liberation (for men): While the women are sexualised, male sexual confidence is celebrated. Reflects the beginning of the “permissive society”, but still heavily biased toward male pleasure and dominance.

Question 8

what is the cultural context of score?

Answer 8

1. colonial and racial stereotypes: The setting and characters draw on colonial imagery: the white man entering the “exotic” jungle and being worshipped.
   - Women are portrayed using racist and sexist stereotypes, often presented as “primitive” or “savage”, reflecting the lingering colonial mindset.
   - Reflects a time when media lacked diversity and sensitivity to race and representation.
2. Representation of Women:
   - Women in the advert are barely clothed, nameless, and voiceless — shown purely as objects of male desire.
   - Reflects how 1960s advertising culture used sexualised female imagery to sell products, particularly to men.

The advert assumes the audience shares Eurocentric, patriarchal values. It reflects a time when these portrayals were normalised, not yet widely challenged by feminist or anti-racist movements.