Theories Explained and Grouped

Media Language Theories

Semiology Barthes - Meaning is created by signs through connotation, which may naturalise dominant values and ideologies. Draws attention to the naturalising effect of ideology in any text – this applies particularly to newspapers, as headlines typically assume a shared view of the world with the readers in order to be easily understood.

Genre Theory Neale - Genre codes and conventions are established and evolve through repetition within media products and intertextual relay. The concept that genre is a shared code explains how genres can change (e.g. quality press becoming more like tabloids) and hybridise (e.g. the middle market tabloids such as The Mail that follows tabloid and broadsheet conventions).

Structuralism Levi-Strauss - Identifying binary oppositions (pairs of opposed forces) can suggest the ideology of a text. Particularly applies to newspapers that set up an 'us' and 'them' opposition, in which the audiences are invited to think of themselves as 'us', a common mode of address in newspapers.

Narratology Todorov - Identifying the different stages of a narrative helps to reveal the values and ideological messages it communicates. Enables us to think of news stories as a series of disruptions, each implying an initial equilibrium and a possible resolution.

Postmodernism Baudrillard - In postmodern cultures, representations are more powerful than reality, and representations themselves no longer relate to reality. 

Media Representation Theories

Theories of Representation Hall - Representation is the process of creating meaning; whilst producers may try to fix meanings, audiences can resist this.

Theories of Identity Gauntlett - Media representations offer us a range of diverse and contradictory messages about identity, with the media being used by audiences to explore and express their identities.

Feminist Theory Van Zoonen - Women are objectified in media representations in patriarchal culture; gender identity is determined by cultural and historical contexts.

Feminist Theory Hooks - Feminism challenges patriarchy, with Hooks arguing for an intersectional approach considering how identities such as race, class and sexuality contribute to oppression alongside gender.

Theories of Gender Performativity Butler - Gender identity is not something we are born with but something we express through the performance of it; Butler challenges the notion of fixed binary identities of sexuality and gender.

Theories around ethnicity and post-colonial theory Gilroy - The history of colonialism continues to influence attitudes to ethnicity in western societies.

Media Industries Theories

Power and Media Industries Curran and Seaton - Media ownership is the most important influence on the media, with a small number of major conglomerates continuing to dominate the media industry despite the emergence of the internet. 

Regulation Livingstone and Lunt  - Media regulation is necessary to protect consumers and make sure media industries act in the public interest, however this is being undermined by the development of a global online media culture.

Cultural Industries Hesmondhalgh - Media industries are dominated by a small number of media conglomerates, who rely on the repetition of popular genres, stars and narratives to reduce risk.

Media Audiences Theories

Media Effects Bandura - Media representations can directly or indirectly influence audience values and behaviours.

Cultivation Theory Gerbner - The media can influence audience perceptions of the world over a long period of time through the repetition of similar messages.

Reception Theory Hall- Producers encode preferred meanings into media texts, which audiences respond to in one of three ways. Either accept it (dominant position), reject it (oppositional position) or partially accept elements with modifications (negotiated position).

Fandom Theory Jenkins - The development of online media has allowed audiences to participate in media culture, adapting media products to create their own content which is shared with online audiences.

End Of Audience Theory Shirky - Technological developments have changed the way in which audiences engage with media culture, leading to the rise of user generated content and reducing the power of media producers to act as gatekeepers.