Download Media Literacy

“The most powerful messages
are the ones we don’t know
are being sent.”
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Objective: not being influenced by personal
feelings, interpretations, or prejudices; based
on facts.
Subjective: existing in the mind; ideas
belonging to the thinker.
Bias: a particular tendency or inclination,
especially one that prevents unprejudiced
consideration of a question; prejudice.
Censor: any person who supervises the
manners or morality of others.
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Media Literacy: The process of making an
informed and critical understanding of the nature
of the media, the techniques used by them and
the impact of these techniques.
Audience: The group of consumers for whom the
media text was constructed as well as anyone
else who is exposed to the text.
Purpose: The reasons in which the media text is
constructed.
Construct: the process by which a media text is
shaped and given meaning. This process is
subject to a variety of decisions and is designed
to keep the audience interested in the text.
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Critical Thinking: the ability to view, question,
analyze and understand issues presented
overtly and covertly in movies, videos,
television and other visual media.
Deconstruct: To take apart, analyze, or break
down a media text into its component parts
in order to understand how and why it was
created.
Narrative: The telling of a plot or story. In a
media text, narrative is the coherent
sequencing of events across time and space.
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Negotiate: The process by which members of
the audience individually or collectively
interpret, deconstruct and find meaning
within a media text.
Representation: The process by which a
constructed media text stands for,
symbolizes, describes or represents people,
places, events or ideas that are real and have
an existence outside the text.
Text: The individual results of media
production (ex. a movie, a TV episode, an
issue of a magazine or newspaper, an album,
an advertisement, etc.)
Source: mediasmarts.ca
Advertising Strategies
Image
Ads based on image try to
convey the idea that we can
change our image by buying
something. They show
someone who looks cool, or
tough, or successful, or funloving, or whatever... and try
to make us think that will
become our image if we use
that product.
Scale
Manipulating the
product size to
make it more
appealing
Put Downs
A product is compared
to the competition
Excitement
Showing that an
object can be
exciting
Sounds Good
Catchy jingles
designed to make you
think of the product
Sing it!
Social Issues
The language or imagery
of social-change
movements
(environmentalism, civil
rights, etc.) are applied to
the product being sold —
for example,a pristine
wilderness scene being
used to promote nuclear
power.
In a related approach, the
company selling a product
offers to donate some of
their profits to a special
cause or nonprofit group.
Celebrity Endorsement
Famous musicians, actors,
sports stars, and other
celebrities get paid big bucks to
promote a variety of products.
The advertiser hopes that we’ll
transfer positive feelings about
the celebrity to the advertised
product. The product often has
no connection to the celebrity’s
claim to fame (such as when a
ballplayer promotes cars or
cologne).
Borrowed Symbols
A symbol is something that
represents something
else,like the mascot that
represents our school. Ads
based on this technique
“borrow” a symbol that we
identify with or have positive
feelings about. The intent is
that we’ll transfer these
feelings to the product in the
ad.
Expert Opinion
In this technique, an expert
or apparent expert promotes
a product related to his or
her supposed field of
expertise. The speaker may
be a real expert with real
knowledge. Or the “expert”
may not be an actual expert
but is just playing the role of
one — for example, an actor
dressed as a doctor in a lab
coat, promoting a drug.
Personal Testimonial
In an ad based on personal
testimonial, someone who
is not necessarily a celebrity
or an expert speaks in a
friendly tone. This actor or
actress plays the role of
someone we can relate to.
They describe a product
that they say has been
valuable to them.
Status
Some ads present the
message that their product
is used by a select few.
They imply that if we buy
the product, we’ll share this
special status. Status
appeal is often used with
luxury items, like expensive
cars.
Bandwagon
The bandwagon technique
relies on the fact that people
generally don’t like to feel
left out and do like to feel
part of a group. These ads
try to present the impression
that large numbers of people
are doing something or
buying something, so we
had better “jump on the
bandwagon” with everyone
else.
Humour
Everyone likes to laugh.
A funny ad that makes
us laugh is intended to
get our attention, make
us remember the
product, and associate
it with smiling,
laughing,and having a
good time.
Sexual Imagery
Many products are pitched
with ads that use seductive
poses, treat people as sex
objects, encourage viewing
the body as an object by
displaying isolated body
parts,or even incorporate
sexual images bordering on
pornography. Ads using
sexual imagery to attract
attention may use female
models, male models, or
both.
Self-image / esteem
Some ads try to make us
unhappy with our physical
appearance or our bodies.
Then they suggest that we
can improve our looks and
feel better about ourselves
by buying something. They
promote the notion that only
by using certain products
will our appearance —skin,
hair, teeth, body odor, etc.
— be acceptable.
Shock Response
These ads use shocking
images — often vivid, realworld photos — of war,
disaster, and even death. In
a world filled with
advertising clutter, these
images can demand our
attention and stimulate a
reaction.
Product quality or other
product features
Here we’re referring to ads
that emphasize a product’s
actual features or benefits,
such as a comfort or
convenience it provides, its
health benefits,quality and
durability, or new and
improved features. Whether
or not such qualities actually
exist in the product is often
debatable.
Ads disguised as regular programming
It is not unusual for ads to be integrated into regular
programming. This is sometimes done so smoothly
that it can be easy to miss the fact that we’re
watching an ad. It’s the deceptive nature of these
disguised ads that makes them effective: We’re
more likely to pay attention if the ad doesn’t seem to
be an ad. Hidden advertising can be found in many
forms…
Product Placement
This is the use of a specific
product, name, or logo in a
movie or TV show, or even in a
book or play. Product
placements can include
something an actor eats, drinks,
wears, or drives as well as
signs or buildings in the
background of an indoor or
outdoor scene. The company
that markets the product
typically pays the movie maker.
Infomercials
These super-ads mimic
the format of regular
television programming
or of standard features
in other types of media
including television talk
shows, newscasts,
movie reviews, radio
talk shows, editorials,
and newspaper or
magazine “articles”.
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Weasel Words – words that are telling the
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Omission – you don’t receive the full story
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Facts and Figures – when facts and numbers
truth, but mislead (ex. “Part of a whole
breakfast…”)
about a product
are used to convince you of a product’s value
(9/10 dentists recommend…)