Week 1 - Wed - Media Regulation theory

Task 1

Watch this and make some notes to use in your essay. 

- How has technology development made media regulation harder? 

 

Task 2:

read this article;

New chief censor: the times they are a changing

I want you to answer the following questions;

1. How does the article describe what the censorship process was like in NZ 100 years ago? 

2. In what ways has this changed? 

3. What does the writer of the article mean when they say, "A revolving digital landscape has changed the way Kiwis viewed their entertainment, and it's also changed the way censorship defines itself."

4. Who is the NZ chief censor? 

5. What 3 words describe how the chief censor sees his responsibility and role? 

6. What City does the Chief censor reside in and how many people work in his team?

7. What other content passes through the hands of the censors and why is it considered a 'dark' side to the job? 

8. What are they on the look out for in content that is being assessed? 

9.What are some of the things that might be outright banned in NZ? 

10. What medium is becoming the censor's main focus at the moment and what do they do to classify things of that medium in NZ? 

11. Seeing how Shanks describes the differences between regulatory standards in NZ and Australia, how do you think culture play a part in restrictions placed on content?

12. What is a good example of a movie that was rated M in Australia but got a reviewed rating in NZ

13. Explain how the digital era proves a challenge to the censors 

14. How does Shank imagine we might tackle this challenge? 

15. What model did the Government say streaming services would fall under? 

Week 1 - Tuesday - The argument for social media regulation

Hi guys,

Read this article

and this one 

We are going to discuss this in class. Understanding the current context of regulating media is very important for you to be able to write an essay on this in the exam. 

Write down a few key points relating to media regulation and we will discus this together.

Term 3 - Week 1 - Monday: Censorship / regulation in NZ

You are going to focus on answering the following questions IN A BLOG TOOL, with the heading,

"Media Regulation in NZ" and with the label - Research.

Task 1:

Choose 5 major censorship and regulatory events from the list in the link that impacted NZ media regulation in our history, that you feel are significant and write a brief summary of what they were;

https://www.classificationoffice.govt.nz/about-nz-classification/history-of-censorship-in-new-zealand/

Task 2

Use the following link to;

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Censorship_in_New_Zealand

-  write down some key points about who is in control of censorship in NZ

- write down what the first video game banned in NZ was and why

- write down the main points to note about the films, videos and publications classifications act of 1993 and how that changed things in NZ for media regulation.

Task 3 

 https://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/film/94349572/new-chief-censor-the-times-they-are-a-changing

Task 4

Have a look at the review that took place last year and make some notes 

Link here

Study Break Task 2 - Censorship Research

Hi guys,

We are going for a bit of a bigger picture view of censorship today for some study notes. Some of these things will be useful in your MEDIA REGULATION section as well as for POWER IN THE MEDIA. 

I want you to watch this clip and start making some notes on a blog post on the following;

1. Examples of censorship happening with Disney plus. What and why? 

2. Examples of censorship in other countries (include in this, notes from our China censorship studies in last year's study notes)

3. Points for / against censorship as presented in this clip - should art be censored? 

- if something is wrong but it is part of history, should it be cut out as to not offend people today? Where is that line in society? Who is making these decisions. 

4. What are some issues around censorship in our modern world and how we are consuming media? 

 

Study Break Task 1- 13 Reasons Why- Case Study

 Hi guys,

This task is now for your 2nd essay you'll write, on Media Regulation. 

Case Study

Create a Blog post that is labelled - Media Regulation: Case Study, "13 Reasons Why"

Write a review on what happened with this TV series using the links below as a starting base for your case study research;

- Details about the movie (who created it/ distributed it/ directed it/ when did it come out / what platforms was it available on?)

- Where was it released? What countries?

- What was the controversy about?

- What rating did the NZ classifications board give it? Why?

- What was the rating in other countries?

- comment on the challenge of regulating online content 

 https://www.classificationoffice.govt.nz/news/latest-news/chief-censor-applies-rp18-classification-to-13-reasons-why-season-2/

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/apr/28/13-reasons-why-new-zealand-bans-under-18s-from-watching-suicide-drama-without-adult

https://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/tv-radio/91956245/13-reasons-why-censors-make-new-rp18-rating-for-controversial-netflix-show

https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/358000/serious-conversation-needed-with-netflix-chief-censor

Friday Classwork - Social Media

  

Make some notes on the argument FOR and AGAINST online media regulation 

HERE IS OUR LAST CASE STUDY. SOCIAL MEDIA REGULATION, BUT IN THIS CASE THERE IS NO REGULATORY BODY! EXCEPT THE SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS THEMSELVES!

The problem stems from one significant difference between social media and our previous case studies. Social media companies are global organisations. So, whilst it’s relatively easy to regulate adverts and news within the borders of a country, global regulation is highly problematic.

The other essential issue which prevents social media companies from being regulated is, are they a publisher or are they a platform?

It is impossible to regulate these American companies who have the protection offered by Section 230 of the American Communications and Decency Act 1996, which states platforms cannot be prosecuted for content posted by their users.

WHAT HAS BEEN THE IMPACT OF THIS? FAKE NEWS? HATE SPEECH? RACISM? A DIVIDED SOCIETY AND WEAKENED DEMOCRACIES?

Here is an opinion piece from Jennifer Cobbe in The Guardian, in which she explains how Facebook and other players in the, “surveillance economy”  have challenged the democracy we take for granted. It suggests:

“We need to confront their surveillance business models, their increasingly central position in digital society, and the power they now hold as a result.”

“As a result, some platforms’ algorithms systematically recommend disinformation, conspiracy theories white supremacism, and neo-Nazism.”

“At a minimum, behavioural advertising should be banned; other, less damaging forms of advertising are available. The algorithms platforms use to recommend content should be heavily regulated.”

A COUNTER ARGUMENT

As with news regulation, this is not a cut and dried argument. After all should we be allowing our governments to decide what ‘Truth’ should be available to us online?

The video below offers a counter argument to those demanding online regulation and quotes 17th century poet John Milton:

“Truth and understand are not such wares as to be monopolized and traded by tickets or statute, better to let truth and falsehood grapple”

He is suggesting we should not muzzle what we believe to be false or fake news, but allow argument and debate to flourish and in that process truth and greater understanding will come out.

Wednesday Classwork - Narrative

  

narrative

/ˈnarətɪv/

Learn to pronounce

noun

1. a spoken or written account of connected events; a story.

   
   

   
   

   
   

   In Media Studies narrative is how the story of a media text is constructed and how it relays its information to an audience.

   
   

   
   

   When we are looking at POWER IN THE MEDIA, and considering all media is telling a story, we can ask ourselves, from whose point of view is the story being told? 

   
   

   Narrative is powerful - the stories we tell ourselves about who we are, shape society's beliefs about themselves and others. 

   
   

   TASK 1. Read this article: 

   
   

   A Maori filmmaker and the fight for proper Indigenous narratives
   

   
   

   TASK 2. Answer the questions: 

   
   

   1. If the power to tell stories and shape narratives is only held by a few, what dangers lie in that? 

   
   

   2. Write a paragraph about Merata Mita. Why was her work important and how would you describe her efforts? 

   
   

   3. Why would you argue that it is important for Indi filmmakers, outside of the established institutions, to be creating media / telling stories? 

   
   

   
   

   Task 3: Read this article

   
   

   How Native filmmakers are restoring cinematic narratives

   
   

   Task 4: Answer these questions

   
   

   1. How are indigenous stories being funded? 

   2. What are some of the stereotypes that were perpetuated in early indigenous portrayals of the native Americans? 

   3. Who is one example of an indigenous voice in NZ who is succeeding at telling stories from an indigenous point of view and garnering the interest of the wider world? 

   4. Where do indigenous films have a platform to be viewed currently?

   5. What in your oppinion, is the future of more authentic portrayals and representations of indigenous people on screen, moving forward? 

   
   

Monday Classwork: Black Panther Case Study

  Hi guys,

Please watch these 2 videos, jam-packed with some great information and research for Black Panther as your case study. This will work for Power and the Media (in terms of representation) but also in Media Ecology as we talk about how audiences engage with media envoronments. 

Questions to consider - what audience trends did Disney make use of to market and advertise as well as deliver this film to its audience? 

Jenkins - Fandom Theory

   

Jenkins – fandom theory.

What is it?

Fans enjoy media texts so much that they create content based upon the text and form communities around it, which has been made even more possible due to the internet.

This is like the ‘prosumer’ term – a producer and consumer of content. It also links to media convergence – a coming together of lots of different media elements which can make a new product.

What is the advanced version?

Fans act as ‘textual poachers’ – taking elements from media texts to create their own culture. The development of the ‘new’ media has accelerated ‘participatory culture’, in which audiences are active and creative participants rather than passive consumers.

They create online communities, produce new creative forms, collaborate to solve problems, and shape the flow of media. This generates ‘collective intelligence’.

From this perspective, convergence is a cultural process rather than a technological one.

Jenkins prefers the term ‘spreadable media’ to terms such as ‘viral’, as the former emphasises the active, participatory element of the ‘new’ media.

Task

- Read the link below and include some points on fans of Stranger things in your essay

https://www.theguardian.com/law/2019/jan/19/how-stranger-things-preteen-fans-went-to-war-with-the-eu

- Read the link below and include 1 sentence on the Mandalorian fan who was hired by  Lucas Films after creating his own scene from the movie.

https://www.slashgear.com/lucasfilm-hires-star-wars-fan-behind-luke-face-fix-26684157/

Power + the Media - who owns all the media?

 Check out this article outlining who owns all the world's media!

Make some notes on how this relates to hegemony / power + the media. 

Monday - Youtube - Case Study information

 ARTICLE with information and stats on YouTube