It would be controversial to argue that, say, the Gulf War or September 11th terrorist attacks never happened, but it is unavoidable that our only access to such events, whether through ‘news reports’ or ‘amateur footage’, occurs through the filtering prism of multinational media representations, which are governed and driven by specific commercial and other interests. The media offer not so much a passive window onto ‘Truth’ as a smeared and fragmented active construction of all aspects of the world we experience.
If the window is shattering, it is casting shards into the deepest recesses of our minds. As we become increasingly engulfed by media forms and knowledges, shifting technologies and a culture of mediation, the study of the media becomes more interesting, wide-ranging and vital. The subject offers an introduction to languages of critical analysis for media forms such as: newspapers, magazines, TV, radio, film, internet and multimedia. We will interrogate such terms as ideology, representation and mediation and provide a theoretical framework for analysis of any texts you are confronted with.
We also put this theoretical work into practice with the production of, for example, short films, TV adverts, magazine articles or websites.
In relation to other A-levels, textual analysis overlaps with study of literature, film, theatre, history or art-history. Media ownership and institutions overlaps more with business, sociology or politics and the practical work with art, photography or design.
Media Studies is useful for further university study in the arts or social sciences and for practical work in the industry. You should be prepared to work hard as it is both academically and creatively demanding.
