Media and collective identity key texts

Media and collective identity key texts

• 1.
  Rebel Without aCause (1955) Media representations of young people have always tended to be negative, and focus on the idea of ‘youth as trouble’ as Hebdige argues. Rebel Without a Cause was part of a cycle of JD (juvenile delinquency) movies that emerged during the 1950s. Giroux argues media representations of youth reflect adult anxieties, and this is seen in Rebel Without a Cause which reflects concerns about both juvenile delinquency, and a perceived post-war crisis of masculinity. In Rebel Without a Cause young people are associated with crime and violence, however the film is sympathetic in its portrayal of teenagers suggesting juvenile delinquency is the fault of the parents. Rebel presents an adult perspective on youth, and reinforces hegemonic values by both demonstrating the negative consequences of failing to conform, and showing the main character Jim moving away from his rebellious ways into adulthood. This relates to Acland’s argument that one of the functions of media representations of deviant youth is to reinforce hegemony and display moral boundaries. The adult perspective in youth representations identified by both Giroux and Acland suggests that representations construct an image of youth that may not relate to reality (it could be argued these representations have become hyperreal). However, the film’s iconic status does suggest that media does influence our understanding of youth identity (James Dean as the ‘first American teenager’). Hoodies or Altar Boys study (2009) Hoodies or Altar Boys (2009) was a study of the representation of teenagers in local and national newspapers in Britain over a year. The study found that over of newspaper stories about teenage boys were in relation to crime, and that the most popular terms used to describe them were sensationalised language such as ‘yob, scum, inhuman, feral’. These representations are so extreme they can be related to Cohen’s theory of moral panic, in which a social group (in this case teenager boys) are perceived as a threat to the social order. Sensationalised media representations lead to a deviancy amplification spiral in which the problem becomes exaggerated. The ultimate effect of a moral panic is usually to reinforce dominant social values by demonstrating what values are acceptable and unacceptable. This is similar to Acland’s argument that media representations of deviant youth have the social function of reinforcing hegemonic values. This also suggests that the media functions as part of what Althusser calls the ideological state apparatus, maintaining social order by creating consensus about hegemonic values. Gerbner would argue that the Hoodies or Altar Boys study suggests the sustained, negative coverage (over 4,000 newspaper stories about teenagers and crime in 12 months) is likely to influence people’s perceptions of young people as his cultivation theory it is the repetitive nature of the media which has the power to cultivate people’s views over time. Fiske would challenge this view arguing that the interpretation of media texts is ultimately down to the audience, and that media producers cannot enforce ideological messages. Similarly Stuart Hall argued that the audience are likely to use their own experience and values when decoding meaning and could take oppositional or negotiated positions in relation to the preferred reading of the text. Overall this suggests the media may have some influence on how people perceive identity, but their own values are likely to be the most important factor in their interepretation of media representations of social groups.
• 2.
  Misfits (2009-13) andAttack the Block (2011) Misfits is a television series which employs negative stereotypes associated with working class youth, representing them in relation to crime and ‘chav’ stereotypes. As such it initially appears similar to the negative representations found in newspapers and films such as ‘Harry Brown’ (2009). However Misfits can be seen as a direct attempt to challenge these stereotypes as it represents the young people as likable, funny, and gives them super powers. This is contrasted with the negative portrayal of adult characters, for examples Nathan’s mum who kicks him out, and the probation worker who describes them as ‘scum’. As such he represents the venomous was in which the media constructs representations of young people. Whilst Misfits attempts to challenge negative perceptions of young people, Sadie Wearing has argued that it has the potential to reinforce the negative stereotypes it tries to challenge, as it continues to associate working class youths with violence, and anti-social behaviour. Misfits is similar to Attack the Block (2011) which also uses negative stereotypes about working class youths, who are shown mugging a middle class female character in the film’s opening sequence. However, as the film develops the representations becomes more positive depicting the youths as heroes fighting against an alien invasion. This culminates in the climactic scene in which the middle class victim of the mugging describes the youths as her ‘neighbours’. Here the films can be seen to employ some of Dyer’s utopian categories such as community and energy to resolve the social tensions between middle class adults and working class youth. Both texts can be seen as a conscious attempt to challenge negative media representations of youth, suggesting the importance of the media in constructing our understanding of identity. However it also demonstrates that media representations of young people are complex and contradictory, thus unlikely to have a clear and direct effect on perceptions of identity. The Selfish Giant (2013) The Selfish Giant is similar to Attack the Block in that it focuses on working class youths and attempts to create a sympathetic representation of the characters. Whilst the film shows the young characters in a stereotypically negative way - being excluded from school, stealing, it ultimately suggests the characters are victims of their upbringings and the failings of society. The film depicts the failure of the state attempts to control the youths as both the ideological state apparatus (in this case the school) and the repressive state apparatus (the police) are unable to control Arbor, the young protagonist. As a result he is excluded from mainstream society, allowing him to be exploited by the scrap merchant which ultimately leads to the death of his best friend. The film suggests that there are groups within our society who will be unable to conform to the demands and expectations of hegemonic society, and challenges the ways in which these groups are demonised in the mainstream media (e.g. in Channel 4’s documentary series Benefits Street (2014). The film suggests that the mainstream media is influential in shaping our perceptions of social groups, linking to Althusser’s concept of the ideological state apparatus. However what the film demonstrates the plurality of media representations, suggesting that media representations of youth cannot be seen as one specific viewpoint.