Media terms Flashcards
(41 cards)
ACTIVE AUDIENCE
Audiences actively engage in selecting media products to
consume and interpreting their meanings.
ANCHORAGE
The words that accompany an image (still or moving) contribute
to the meaning associated with that image.
ARC OF
TRANSFORMATION
The emotional changes a character goes through in the
process of the narrative. The events in the story mean that they
will ‘transform’ by the end of the story.
BRAND IDENTITY
The association the audience make with the brand, for example
Chanel or Nike, built up over time and reinforced by the
advertising campaigns and their placement.
BROADSHEET
A larger newspaper that publishes more serious news, for
example The Daily Telegraph has maintained its broadsheet
format.
CIRCULATION
The spreading of media products to audiences/users - the
method will depend on the media form e.g. circulation of print
magazines, broadcast of television programmes etc.
CROSS-PLATFORM
MARKETING
In media terms, a text that is distributed and exhibited across a
range of media formats or platforms. This may include film,
television, print, radio and the Internet.
CULTURAL CAPITAL
The media tastes and preferences of an audience, traditionally
linked to social class/background.
DIEGETIC SOUND
Sound that comes from the fictional world, for example the
sound of a gun firing, the cereal being poured into the bowl in
an advert, etc.
DISCOURSE
The topics, language and meanings or values behind them
within a media text. The discourse of lifestyle magazines, for
example, tends to revolve around body image and narcissism.
ETHNOCENTRIC
A belief in the superiority of one’s own ethnic group or culture.
For example, a newspaper will be more concerned to cover
stories that are closely related to the reader and their concerns.
Tabloid and local papers only tend to cover international news
stories if they can relate them specifically to their readers.
ETHOS
The beliefs, values and customs of, for example, media
organisations. In television, for example, what the channel
believes in and what it sees as its role.
FLEXI NARRATIVE
A more complex narrative structure with layers of interweaving
storylines. This challenges the audience and keeps them
watching.
HEGEMONY
Hegemony is the dominance of one group over
another, often supported by legitimating norms and ideas. For
example, the dominant social position in society is taken by
men and the subordinate one by women.
HOUSE STYLE
The aspects that make a magazine recognisable to its readers
every issue. The house style is established through the choice
of colour, the layout and design, the font style, the content and
the general ‘look’ of the publication.
HYPODERMIC NEEDLE
MODEL
The idea is that the media product
injects an idea into the mind of an audience who are assumed
to be passive and as a result will all respond in the same way.
ICONOGRAPHY
The props, costumes, objects and backgrounds associated with
a particular genre; for example, in a police series you would
expect to see, uniforms, blue flashing lights, scene of crime
tape and police radios.
LUDOLOGY
The study of games and those who play them, relevant to video
games.
COMPASION FATIGUE
When you start to lose care for emotive media products
MEDIATION
The way in which a media text is constructed in order to
represent a version of reality; constructed through selection,
organisation and focus.
MMORPG
Massively multi-player online role-playing game.
NEWS AGENDA
The list of stories that may appear in a particular paper. The
items on the news agenda will reflect the style and ethos of the
paper.
NON-DIEGETIC SOUND
Sound that comes from outside the fictional world, for example
a voiceover, romantic mood music etc.
OPEN WORLD
In an open world computer game the player can move freely
though the virtual world and is not restricted by levels and other
barriers to free roaming.
