Contemporary Representation of British Youth

Dick Hebdige said that British Youth are portrayed as either:

"Troublesome youth"

The political representation of youth as posing a threat to society and the status quo. Youth are seen as dangerous and subversive of society's moral values.

"Fun-loving youth"

The commercial representation of youth as going through a rites-of passage style period in their life during which they may behave differently but don't threaten society. They have a need to belong which can be exploited by society for commercial reasons.

"Media Portral of Young People - Impact and Influences"

To view the whole research document that was published by National Child's Bureau, CLICK HERE

Below I have added a screen shot from the document explaining the purpose of this research project. 

I found this very interesting because it is saying that the only people that represent young people in the media is other peoples perception of them. Young people themselves don't represent themselves. So obviously the media is going to pick out all of the bad points of young people because thats what will sell with the audience whereas picking out the good things young people do that won't sell newspaper as much as a bad representation will. I think this is very shocking that Americans think that all young people are 'casually picking up fights, having sex and keeping the emergency services fully occupied' because most young people aren't doing that in fact they are doing the opposite and keeping their head down wanting to do well in life. Especially people from a bad background and they want to turn their lives around. 

Collective Identity - Past Questions

Below I have added screenshots of past exam paper questions. By looking at this, this has reassured me that I will know roughly what the question will ask me to do. This has meant that I can be well prepared for this media exam. I am happy that I now know what roughly will be in the exam. 

All of these questions are similar to each other. This has meant I can do some practise exam questions, so that I am better prepared for the real thing. 

1960's Youth Identity - A Different Representation

Let's go back in time to 1961, just 3 years before the media in Britain represented its youth as being violence driven hooligans who were a threat to the very fabric of society.

1961 saw the release of the film 'The Young Ones' starring, amongst others, Cliff Richard.

The story is about the youth club member and aspiring singer Nicky (Cliff Richard)  and his friends, who try to save their club in western London from the unscrupulous millionaire property developer Hamilton Black, who plans to tear it down to make room for a large office block. 

The members decide to put on a show to raise the money needed to buy a lease renewal. The twist in the story is that Nicky in reality is Hamilton Black's son, something he keeps keeps secret from his friends until some of them try to kidnap Black senior to prevent him from stopping the show. 

Although he is fighting his father over the future of the youth club, Nicky can't allow them to harm him, so he attacks the attackers and frees his father. In the meantime, Black senior has realised that his son is the mystery singer that all of London is talking about, after the youth club members have done some pirate broadcasts to promote their show. 

So, although he's just bought the theatre where the show is to take place, in order to be able to stop it, the proud father decides that the show must go one. At the end, he joins the youth club members on stage, dancing and singing, after having promised to build them a new youth club.

TASK

Here is the trailer for the film - how is the representation of British Youth different here to what you have previously seen? 

The british youth is represented differently from what I have previously seen because in this trailer the teenagers aren't violent and they're not causing trouble in fact they are doing the complete opposite. They are trying to save their youth centre by fundraising money by organising a show that they will be starring in, these teenagers are angry or aggressive they are happy and well mannered and they are trying to save something that means a lot to them which is the youth centre. 

 This to me shows a complete different side to the teenagers and that they are good people and they are trying to save something that means a lot to them and that something is being taken away from them when there isn't any real need for it. The previous representation of teenagers was that they are a bad influence and they are violent and disruptive. They don't like authority and they like to cause trouble whereas, in this trailer the teenagers love to dance, well spoken and have good manners. These teenagers all share the same common interest that is signing, dancing and playing musical interments, throughout the trailer they are happy and they just want to have harmless fun that won't effect or disrupt anyone. They like putting on performances and showing other people their talents that they have got. This shows that the community in general aren't scared of these young teenagers or they don't find them aggressive it is in fact the opposite they like going to see them perform and they think that they are a lovely and talented bunch of people. Even in the trailer it says 'its the gayest musical in years!' this trailer was made in the 1960's therefore the word 'gayest' has changed over the years but back then that meant happiest so even the trailer is saying that it is in fact a happy musical and its to sad or violent. The use of the colours and writings also give it away a lot as well  because they use bright colours if it was a sad or aggressive film they would be using dark colours and they would position the writing in a different way as well as using a different font. There is one person however who thinks differently of these teenagers which is Robert Murphy he says that the youth centre is just another place where the teenagers can cause mischief that is why he wants to buy the land that the youth centre is and destroy it and build something else there instead. I think Robert also believes that by doing this it would mean that it will cause a lot less mischief because the teenagers won't have a place to go to plan something. I however think that if Robert does take the land then it will cause a misbehaviour to happen because the teenagers won't have a place to go and do what they love which is dancing, singing and playing musical instruments and by taking away something that they love doing they might end up being distrumtive and causing trouble. 

In what ways do the media texts referenced above create a representation of young people as being a danger to society?

The article above is showing teenagers in a bad way by saying that 75 people were arrested but what they don't say is what they were arrested for because it could be because of something small however the media is making things seem a lot worse than what they probably are. They say that there was a heroine that day called Mrs. Ellen Green a buffet cleaner that was 50. and apparently she routed 200 teenage youths and girls with a mop. This to me shows that if a 50 year old women can sort them out just by using a mop then that means they must not have been that much of a threat. Because if they were a massive threat then she wouldn't have been able to have done what she did. The media is showing that teenagers are bad people and then they are also showing the type of person that you should be like which is Mrs. Ellen Green this is to stand up to the youths that are causing mayhem. 

The image above shows some teenagers throwing some deck chairs, this isn't a bad thing they're are just throwing some chairs around trying to act a lot badder than what they actually are. This isn't the worse crime in the world so I definitely think that the Media are making a bigger issue out of things when a big issue doesn't need to be made at all. This image to me doesn't show that teenagers are a danger to society I think it just shows that these teenagers are immature and they're wanting attention by throwing things that doesn't need to be thrown. 

In this newspaper article and the top newspaper article they keep using the word wild. I think this word that is used is quite interesting because it is showing that they are out of control and they can't be stopped. Whenever I hear the word wild I always think of the jungle and the wild animals that you get that run freely and do whatever they please. the fact that they used this word they are basically referring to them as animals and that they are out of control and they are causing mayhem. So again it is representing teenagers in a bad way because they're saying that they are dangerous because thats what animals that are from the wild are they're dangerous. The word invade as well is a weird word to use because it seems as though they have invaded into a place that they shouldn't have. 

Mods Vs Rockers 1960's

The mods and rockers were two conflicting British youth subcultures of the early to mid-1960s. Media coverage of mods and rockers fighting in 1964 sparked a moral panic about British youths, and the two groups became labelled as folk devils.

 

The rocker subculture was centred on motorcycling, and their appearance reflected that. Rockers generally wore protective clothing such as black leather jackets and motorcycle boots (although they sometimes wore brothel creeper shoes). The common rocker hairstyle was a pompadour, which was associated with 1950s rock and roll — the rockers' music genre of choice.

 

 

The mod subculture was centred on fashion and music, and many mods rode scooters. Mods wore suits and other cleancut outfits, and preferred 1960s music genres such as soul, rhythm and blues, ska and beat music.

 

 

 

Dick Hebdige Subculture: The Meaning of Style

Click Here to see Dick Hebdige's wikipedia page.

"Members of a subculture often signal their membership though through a distinctive and symbolic use of style, which includes fashions, mannerisms and music" Hebdige (1979)

How to be a... Punk?

To be a punk it is all about the make up, hairstyles, piercing/jewellery and the type of clothing that they wear. There are different types of punks I have listed a few and what these types of punks dress like. . 

• Celtic Punk: They often mix hardcore, street punk, Oi! and skinhead fashions with traditional Irish or Scottish clothing styles, including elements of highland dress. Common items include boots, sneakers, jeans, work trousers, kilts, grandfather shirts, T-shirts, hoodies, braces, black leather jackets, peacoats, donkey jackets, football shirts, flat caps, tuques, Tam O'Shanter caps and Trilby hats. Hair is usually cut relatively short.
• Cowpunk: They  base their look on Southern United States poor boys: vintage western wear-like checked shirts, Perfecto motorcycle jackets, wifebeaters, overalls, trucker hats, work boots, acid wash jeans, and cowboy boots. Hair can be a short quiff, crew cut, long, or a psychobilly-style mohawk, and facial hair is acceptable for males.
• Dance Punk: This  includes day-glo colors, phat pants, glowsticks, leather studded jackets, chains and combat boots. Typical haircuts include spiky hair bleached blond, short mohawks and synthetic dreadlocks
• Glam Punk: This includes glitter, androgynous make-up, brightly dyed hair, drainpipe jeans, bright colours like electric blue, elements of leather fetish wear, and unusual costumes like leopard print, spandex, or satin shirts. Leftover baroque pop clothing like ruffled pirate shirts or brocade were also worn, together with more typical glam rock fashions like platform boots, tartan, kipper ties, and metallic silver clothing like jumpsuits
• Gothic rock, deathrock and horror punk: Deathrock and horror punk incorporates a sexier image, incorporating fishnets, corsets and elaborate make-up for men and women. The use of occult and horror imagery is prevalent on T-shirts, buttons, patches and jewellery. Other common adornments include band names painted on jackets or bleached into clothes, as well as buttons or patches indicating cities. The initials D and R (for Death Rock) is sometimes part of a crossbone logo, accompanied by other initials, such as C and A for California
• Hardcore: They normally wear plain working class dress and short hair (with the exception of dreadlocks) are usually associated with hardcore punk. Mute colors and minimal adornment are usually common. Elements of hardcore clothing include baggy jeans or work pants, athletic wear, cargo or military shorts, khakis or cargo pants, band T-shirts, plain T-shirts, muscle shirts, and band hoodies. Common sneakers include classic Adidas Originals, Puma, Pony, Nike, Converse high-tops, and Vans shoes. Boots are also somewhat common, especially Dr. Martens.

Below are some images of Punks and the fashion that they would wear. 

UK Tribes

What is UK Tribes?

 

UK Tribes was created by Channel 4 and Crowd DNA 4 years ago, it is a study of British Youth Culture.

 

 

To visit the UK Tribes website you can do so by clicking here.

 

Below is an image of what the UK Tribes identified in 2013, this is what represents the British Youth Culture.  There are five main segments that the UK Tribe split them up in and these are Mainstream, Alternative, Leading Edge, Urban and Aspirant. Smaller groups are surrounding these main groups as well.

 

 

 

 

I went onto YouTube and had a look at some of the UK Tribes videos, I have embedded a few. The first one is about being Mainstream, I found it interesting that they said that all teenagers first start of being in the Mainstream Tribe, I didn't think this was the case. I agree what they say about being Mainstream it is all about fitting it and I have noticed certain trends developing on the highstreet.



The second video I looked at was where they talk about the Urban segment. I was interested to see what they said about this and most things they said were accurute that they do sell T-Shirts, and they're not afraid to do some grafting also the type of music that they listen to.

 

 

 

Another video that I looked at was, the Leading Edge segement. On some things I was quite suprised what was said, on others I wasn't. The one thing that I wasn't suprised about was the fact that they are very cultural and they like making their own musics and some of that is mainly guiter. The thing that I was suprised about was that they are looking for inspiration and that they are plugged in and connected. I didn't know this and i was suprised.

 

 



The Media and Collective Identity

We will be focussing on the ways in which the media represent the identity of British Youth Culture.

Through the work we undertake you should be able to resopond to the following 4 prompt questions:

• How do the contemporary media represent 'British Youth' in different ways?
• How does contemporary representation of 'British Youth' compare to previous time periods?
• What are the social implications of different media representations of 'British Youth'?
• To what extent is human identity increasingly ‘mediated’?

We will explore the representation of 'British Youth' across at least 2 different elements of the media. For film this will include theories of film representation and realism in relation to the history of British cinema, a range of British films from recent years, funding, Government and industry practices, and discussion of a critically informed point of view on how Britain is represented to itself and to the wider audience at the present time.

In order to be fully prepared for the specific requirements of the question, the material studied must cover these three elements:

Historical – the development of the media forms in question in theoretical contexts.

Contemporary – examples from no more than five years before the examination. That is, in our case, from no earlier than 2009.

Future – personal engagement with debates about the future of the media forms / issues in relation to the concept of 'British Youth'.

Rules For The Exam

The majority of examples you refer to in the exam should be contemporary. However, theories and approaches may be drawn from any time period.

If you refer to only one media area in your answer, the mark scheme clearly indicates that marks will be restricted to a maximum of the top of level 1.

If you fail to provide or infer historical references and / or future projections, marks will be restricted to a maximum of the top of level 3 for use of examples only.

What is the A2 Media Exam?

In A Nutshell The purpose of the exam is to assess your knowledge and understanding of media concepts, contexts and critical debates, through your understanding of one contemporary media issue and your ability to evaluate your own practical work in reflective and theoretical ways.

Logistics

The examination is two hours.

You will be required to answer two compulsory questions, on your own production work, and one question from a choice of six topic areas.

The unit is marked out of a total of 100, with the two questions on production work marked out of 25 each, and the media theory question marked out of 50.

Section A : Theoretical Evaluation of production

Section B : Contemporary Media Issues (Media and Collective Identity)

During Term 3 we will be learning about the contemporary media issue of COLLECTIVE IDENTITY in preparation for Section B of the exam.

During Term 4 we will be preparing for Section A of the exam in which you will be evaluating your own completed production work.

Completion of Work

You should have set up your A2 Exam Blog by now - if you haven't done so already you should, in the words of Jean-Luc Picard 'Make it so.'

Your blog will be your place of work. This will be a vital part of your preparation for the exam and essential for future revision. Take pride in it. Be proud and keep up to date.