Peer Assessment of Khushel's Narrative Essay

 Positives

• I think the essay was very good overall and clearly a lot of effort went into it judging by how long it was.
• Good range of theorists used.
• Good use of quotation in reference to Todorov's theory.
• Impressive linguistic skills and explanation of points.
• Great use of examples.

 Negatives

•  "I am certainly pleased with the final product and it could not have been achieved without Khushel or me and our own creative decisions and knowledge of real media texts fitting the genre of R&B." you mean "Yasmin or me" right?...
• Slightly random structure.

I think this is a top band answer and one which Khushel can be very proud of. Goodnight, and stay safe.

Discuss how you used genre in one of your products

For our advanced portfolio, my group and I created a music video for the song 'I'm 17' by Rizzle Kicks. The genre of our music video was a hybrid rap/indie video, but could mainly be recognised as an urban video.

We took inspiration for our video from similar UK based artists, and many comparisons can be drawn between their videos and our one. Artists such as The Streets and Ed Sheeran use similar low budget settings, typical of the grey streets of London. Their videos are far from glamorous but the audience relate to them as it helps the artist come across as genuine and part of their crowd. We also connected with the 'realness' of the audience by featuring home footage in our video such as the amateur-looking shot of our artist drinking a beer while relaxing in a lounge chair.

Although our video was more urban aesthetically to reflect our key inspirations, we also had to consider the fact that we had a dual audience, with the fact that as well as featuring rap lyrics and structure, the song featured an Arctic Monkeys indie/rock instrumental. We therefore did not conform too much to any urban stereotypes which could alienate our audience, instead portraying our artist as the most stereotypical teenager one could imagine; being a young man who appears rather rebellious with his drinking and partying habits which were mentioned in the lyrics. These activities were also portrayed in the video with the shot of the empty beer bottles at the end of the night in the house. We did recognise in hindsight however that we perhaps could have shown more narrative in terms of activities in various locations, rather than just the scene in the house with the alcohol.

This shows how our narrative was very fragmented and very limited, at the expense of more close up shots of our artist, such as the booth shots. We felt these shots were important again to make our artist feel genuine, but also because this genre consists much of performance. Most urban videos very much revolve around the artist and showing them confidently perform. We also thought about repeatability (would people want to watch our video more than once?) and therefore added some humorous shots every here and there such as shots of our artist dancing and the shot at the end of him running up the stairs like Rocky. This would keep people hooked to the end just to watch a particularly funny part they like. We looked into Goodwin's theory that music videos are an extension of the lyrics, which applies to our video in some aspects as we made some shots correspond to lyrics, such as the shot of our artist walking in with a box of beer when it says "6 o'clock already? Get the booze in!".

Our video mainly used the hybrid indie/rap genre as a way to appeal to both indie and rap audiences, however our video still mainly fits into the UK contemporary urban genre, as we used the convention as revolving our video around the artist and their performance. We also used many conventional 'street' shots such as those which can be seen in Jme's 'Sidetracked' video and The Streets' 'Fit But You Know It' video.

‘Media text rely on cultural experiences in order for audiences to easily make sense of narratives’ Explain how you used conventional or experimental narrative approaches in one of your production pieces.

 

As part of our work for our foundation portfolio, my group and I produced an opening sequence for a thriller movie; a piece which involved a combination of both conventional and experimental narrative approaches.

 

The first step was deciding which sub-genre of the thriller category we wanted our work to fit into. After researching the different sub-genres and discussing which ones would be appropriate, we narrowed our choices down and went with the 'man on the run' thriller idea. The narrative of these movies revolve around a person whom is on the run from other people (usually the law) and follows their journey as they try to escape, resolve the situation, or prove their innocence. 

 

This fits in with Todorov's theory, that a narrative consists of an equilibrium being established at the start, before a disequilibrium occurs to prompt the main storyline (in this case the man going on the run) before the equilibrium is restored at the end. We slightly differed from this conventional approach as our opening sequence starts right in the thick of the action; the disequilibrium, as our thriller begins with the man on the run being chased.

 

However by beginning the movie in the middle of the action with an exhilerating chase, we support Barthes' enigma code theory, which refers to the idea that all narratives involve some kind of enigma (mystery) to keep the audience hooked and intrigued. This is very important to keep the audience guessing and keep them watching so that they can find out the information behind the events which are not explained from the start. The enigma in the case of our thriller is the fact that with the film starting in the middle of the action, the audience does not know why the man is on the run, who he is, or who is chasers are. By using no close ups of the man on the run, assured that the audience did not get a good look at the man, and therefore kept him as a strong enigma. This however could withdraw from our audience's ability to recognise the genre as they may not even note that he is a key character or is going to be the main man on the run. Another experimental approach is apparent through the way the narrative is set up, as it seems to follow the pursuers rather than the man on the run, with the camera work focusing especially on the menacing man with the weapon, and following his conversations and actions.

 

The fact that the chasers are also an enigma portrays another experimental approach we took. Whereas, as aforementioned, the norm in a man on the run thriller is for the law to be involved as the chasers, however in our sequence the chasers are plain clothed young men, one armed with a weapon, suggesting that they are infact most likely not even law-abiding citizens, let alone law enforcers. However although we did take creative risks, one of the few conventions we stuck by was having a hero and a villain, as the man on the run is the protagonist, although we do not see much of him in the opening sequence. The identity of the antagonists was more clear in our sequence however due to the lethal weapon possessed by one of the chasers, and his intent to use it.

 

Overall it could be argued that we used more of an experimental approach than a conventional one as our sequence goes against Todorov's narrative theory as we started in the disequilibrium stage, however we did stick by some conventions so that the piece could still be easily recognised as a man on the run thriller; most vital was the fact that we kept an enigma, as Barthes' theory suggests a narrative should.

Online Television - Match of the Day 3

Match of the Day 3 is a spin-off online television program of Match of the Day 2, which airs on Sunday evenings on BBC 2. The show consists of the Match of the Day pundits providing extra analysis and views on the weekends action and also features quizzes for the pundits. It began airing in August 2011, at the start of the 11-12 Premier League football season as a fresh feature of BBC's coverage.

The history of BBC iPlayer

BBC iPlayer went live on 25th December 2007. It is an online service which offers users the opportunity to watch BBC television shows at their own discretion and on their own schedule. If a viewer has a TV license they can also use the website to stream live BBC television. In December 2011, iPlayer received its highest number of program requests in a month; at 187 million.

BBC iPlayer can be accessed on many platforms including via web, Xbox, PS3, Nintendo Wii, Android, iOS devices, Nokias, Blackberries and other mobile devices. Since it started the screen size has expanded and it has become accessible on more platforms both via devices connected to the internet, and television services such as Sky and Virgin.

The iPlayer has had a big impact on revolutionising viewing habits as it allows viewers to watch TV on their own schedule rather than on the schedule assigned by the broadcasters.

Gauntlett and Wesch's ideas

Wesch on Youtube

1. Sum up Michael Wesch's main point about the web (or Youtube in particular) in one paragraph.

Michael Wesch holds a utopian view of web 2.0 and YouTube. He believes it has revolutionised the way he can socialise and connect with each other, and praises the way that YouTube can create online communities and bring people together. He describes the web as an ‘integrated mediascape’ of social media and networking sites, with us in the middle of the sphere. Wesch also notes the speed at which videos can spread over the web and become viral in a matter of days or even hours.

2. Write down your understanding of the following terms used by Wesch: "networked individualism", "the invisible audience phenomenon", "context collapse", and "connection without constraint".

networked individualism - This refers to how an individual can be alone yet connect socially with a network of other people through the internet.

the invisible audience phenomenon - This refers to the idea that one does not know who their audience will be when they are filming a video, and in the case of webcam videos are talking to no one, yet their video will later be viewed by an uncontrolled audience; ergo the invisible audience.

context collapse -This refers to the idea that videos can be taken out of  their original context and put into new contexts online.

connection without constraint - This refers to how people can connect via the web and there is no restriction to who can view their material, who they can connect with, and how they can behave.

3. On the whole, do you agree or disagree with Wesch's ideas? Why?

I agree with Wesch because I believe the internet and web 2.0 can be a superb outlet for people to socialise, create communities, make friends, and share their views and ideas with like-minded people. YouTube is a great forum for this communication in my opinion.

4. How might Wesch's ideas be applied to the music industry (or, at least, the production of music)?

Wesch's idea that one can perform to an online audience comes into play when talking about the music industry, as YouTube has allowed many artists who would not get exposure or audiences to perform their music on camera, to be uploaded and viewed by audiences on the web. YouTube was the start for many artists including Justin Bieber and more recently the Bajan band; Cover Drive.

How might the influence of new media be said to strengthen or weaken the public sphere?

Web technology has the capacity for re-establishing the public sphere, giving the global public the possibility to freely and equally debate various issues. This new technology, including social networks, can provide a thriving forum for democracy through the new choice, plurality and freedom of speech. This social media was vital in the recent Syrian uprising, however some people still do not see this new social media in a utopian light, and do not believe this rechnology really strengthens the public sphere.

During the Syrian uprising, camerphones and other media tools were used during protests to offer a first hand, ground level view of the unrest, including angry people chanting outside a government buildings. Photos and videos of these protests could then be uploaded, shared and spread fast to other viewers. By recording the protests, the raw footage could be shared with those unaware due to censorship of protests by the government, whom did not want news of the protests broadcasted across Syria for fear of copycat behaviour. The internet was used as an outlet to share this suppressed information. Skype was also used to avoid monitored phonelines, again avoiding the surveillance of the repressive state. However censorship was continually used to counteract these breaches for example they shut down the internet across most of the country one day to stop Syrians from viewing videos of protesting, on websites such as Facebook. The speed of distribution through the web however did weaken censorship and the state's power, as it was practically impossible to hide evidence of the protests while everyone was getting hold of it so fast online. This citizen journalism conveys Gauntlett's idea that citizens now have similar powers to the traditional media 'Gods' in terms of their ability to decide what they publish and how it is interpreted.

The internet could again be seen as dangerous in this situation however, as people recording videos and uploading them could be tracked through the powers of the internet. Despite this clear risk, people still used the social media as a tool of freedom to express views and divulge information. Out of these issues arises the debate over whether the internet is more dangerous than it is democratic, as although it can be used for the aforementioned good causes, people with a dystopian view of the web would argue that it can be used as a dangerous tool, and also a superb tool for government surveillance. One example of the internet being exploited for deviance is the story of a man in Scotland posing as a gay Muslim girl on a blog before revealing his identity when the blog came to light. This shows how easy it is to create and distribute false information or profiles via the web. Although this particular case could be seen as some form of peace activism, it does show a danger of the web in the way that we can be fed lies through blogs or sites such as Wikipedia which anyone can edit. Although it shows democracy it also shows the web is misused often and these democratic tools present in web 2.0 can be taken advantage of. This weakens the public sphere as the reality and legitimacy of people and debates comes into question when the online medium is used.

Contrary to this negative aspect, there are also cases of citizen journalists disproving the legitimacy of the traditional media. For example; the Ian Tomlinson case, where the aforementioned man died during protests in London. The police and the media reported that attempts to revive the man were stopped by protesters pelting medics with bottles. However, one American citizen captured footage on his handheld device which proved that Tomlinson was in fact attacked (seemingly unprovoked) by the riot officers, which lead to his fatal injury. Therefore, from a utopian standpoint, this suggests that the internet and the coinciding democratic input from citizens, does strengthen the public sphere in our society.

Before the internet the public sphere could be seen as weak, as Habermas noted, because there was no forum which everyone could use for discussion. Opinions were formed based on what was fed to the people on television and what people discussed in small groups. The internet however has offered access to different realms of belief, and opinions which would not be heard as widely without web 2.0. This online discussion element therefore strengthens the public sphere despite coming with its downsides such as the issue of false identity. As the web continues to develop it is likely to become flooded with a wider range of views, values and issues than ever; and one wonders whether legislation will be enforced to censor or restrict access to who can publish what on this world spectrum. The case of Ryan Giggs' super injunction being broken by around 70,000 Twitter users, exemplifies the power the web gives people to expose whatever they want, completely uncensored. Putting the web on a leash could demolish the strength it has added to the public sphere through its new democracy, however putting no limitations on it could lead to the web's power becoming out of control.