Year 13 20th March 2018

AND WE ARE BACK...COURSEWORK NEARLY NAILED..INDEPENDENT STUDY NEARLY COMPLETE...ONWARD TO THE EXAM...WHILE WE WERE AWAY...

Huge controversy linked to data being gathered from Facebook to influence democratic elections. Channel Four News/ The Observer/ The New York Times have uncovered a story that has yet to conclude. Here are some resources to digest:
https://www.channel4.com/news/impact-of-data-scandal-felt-across-world
https://www.channel4.com/news/cambridge-analytica-and-facebook-the-fallout
https://www.channel4.com/news/damian-collins-too-much-power-rests-with-the-tech-companies
WHISTLEBLOWER REVEALS ALL..This explains ALL...
https://www.channel4.com/news/cambridge-analytica-facebook-profiles-whistleblower-chris-wylie-election
BBC interview with Chris Wylie:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/video_and_audio/headlines/43472347/cambridge-analytica-planted-fake-news
Tim Berners-Lee..biggest threat to internet is Fake News and political manipulation... 
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/mar/11/tim-berners-lee-online-political-advertising-regulation
THIS IS HIS OPEN LETTER..
https://webfoundation.org/2017/03/web-turns-28-letter/

In other media issues and debates news....
Trailer for THE BIG SICK..Wonderful and intelligent approach to a hackneyed genre...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jcD0Daqc3Yw 
LADYBIRD TRAILER..directed by Greta Gerwig..challenging the male gaze..:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cNi_HC839Wo 
GET OUT..trailer..:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DzfpyUB60YY
The media issue here is that both these films are 'low budget' but have forced their way into the  filmic mainstream. The access to the means of production is allowing independent filmmakers to challenge the very narrow representations created by mainstream film producers. Access to affordable digital media to create and market a product is allowing the film industry to move beyond the simplistic, and mainly white middle-class, depictions of ethnicity and gender. It is also allowing genuinely talented artists to realise and share their creative talent.
Study that states that the mainstream film industry is institutionally racist..
This article refers to a 2017 study by The University of Southern California...
https://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/aug/01/hollywood-film-women-lgbt-hispanic-disabled-people-diversity 

.."The report, commissioned by the Media, Diversity & Social Change Initiative (MDSC) at the University of Southern California’s Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, analysed 900 popular films from the years 2007 to 2016 (excluding 2011, which was covered by a separate study). It found that there was little to no meaningful change in the representation of diverse groups in popular movie content, with “white, straight, able-bodied men remaining the norm on screen in film......

Analysing the top 100 movies of 2016, the report found that only 31.4% of speaking characters were women, while non-white groups accounted for 29.1%. Of these, 13.6% were black and 5.7% were Asian. Hispanic people (3.1%) were particularly underrepresented with more than half of the 2016 films studied featuring no speaking characters who were Hispanic. Only 2.7% of speaking characters were depicted as having a disability. Meanwhile, 1.1% of speaking characters were gay, lesbian or bisexual, and no speaking character was identified as transgender. Only one film featured a gay protagonist: Oscar best-picture winner Moonlight."

 More articles....
https://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/18/movies/hollywood-separate-and-unequal.html
 https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/jan/24/oscars-whiteout-racism-hollywood-film-industry-black-actor-white
Even Harry Potter believes the film industry is RACIST..and he should know..he's a wizard..
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-37406386

Brilliant BBC Radio 4 documentary broadcast on Saturday..DISINFORMATION
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b09vx0db
BBC Radio Series...THE DIGITAL HUMAN...Brilliant. Media Resource..
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01n7094/episodes/player
BBC Radio 4..The Media Show..Essential Listening..
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00dv9hq
A PORTAL INTO THE WORLD OF ADAM CURTIS...
https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p04b183c/adam-curtis-hypernormalisation 
Here is his BBC Blog... THE MEDIUM AND THE MESSAGE...
http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/adamcurtis
THE CENTURY OF SELF by ADAM CURTIS..I think this essential viewing if media students are to fully understand issues linked to ADVERTISING, MEDIA MANIPULATION, POWER and PROPAGANDA..it is not Emmerdale!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DnPmg0R1M04 
THIS A FOUR HOUR SERIES.....A very culturally significant series..


IT IS TIME TO STEP UP MEDIA KIDLETS.....ALLEZ!