2IV077 Media Analysis Lecture 4: Content and Discourse analysis Dr James Pamment, 6 November 2012

Required Reading Gillespie, ch 4; Berger ch 4; Sturken, ch 4, 8, 10 Key Themes Discourse is a way of relating the contents of a text to the culture which produced it

Content Analysis? (1) Categorization of media outputs –What are current trends, comparisons over time & space, audiences How texts are constructed –Semiotics, genre, narrative, rhetorics, representations, themes, preferred readings The relation between media & reality –Reflection of society, culture, beliefs, norms, values, bias, ideology

Content Analysis?(2) Texts have meanings built into them –Predetermined or polysemic? Meanings can be decoded on the basis of shared culture, references, sign systems –Accepted, negotiated, rejected Meanings refer to shared socio-cultural practices & frames of reference

Content Analysis?(3) Political economy Non-preferred readings Practice over reading Visible and said over gaps, absences Who ever reads like this? Combination of methods

Content Analysis? (4) Qualitative or quantitative 1.Formulate a problem or question 2.Select a universe & sample 3.Select themes or categories 4.Code # occurences 5.Present data in relation to…

Content Analysis? (5) Validity: the degree to which a study accurately assesses the specific problem that the researcher is attempting to measure. Does this tool actually measure the problem? Reliability: the extent to which a measuring procedure yields the same result on repeated trials. Would another researcher get the same results using the same methods?

Content Analysis? (6) Strengths Inexpensive Easy to access material Unobtrusive Can be quantified or analyzed qualitatively Synchronic or diachronic

Content Analysis? (7) Weaknesses Is the sample representative? Defining the problem Finding measurable units Prove that content leads to behavior

Content Analysis? (8) Discuss the data in the example given in Gillespie & Toynbee pp Why is the problem important? Discuss weaknesses in the sample Discuss weaknesses in the coding Discuss problems with interpretation

Discourse Analysis (1) Discourse (Latin: discursus, “running to and fro”): The totality of codified language (vocabulary) used in a given field of intellectual enquiry and of social practice Key names Foucault Fairclough (Lancaster School) van Dijk

Discourse Analysis (2) The relation between the circulation of knowledge and power –What is doable –What is sayable –What is knowable In a time-space context Rules governing social interaction Role of language in exercise of social power

Examples Consider the discourse of… … mathematics, sports, music –What is doable –What is sayable –What is knowable Discourse analysis asks how the language available to us helps shape our knowledge and understanding of reality

Discourse Analysis (3) Fairclough: Social phenomena are socially constructed –people’s concepts of the world they live and act within contribute to its reproduction and transformation Social phenomena are socially constructed in discourse

Discourse Analysis (4) Analysis of media language (representations) to reveal sociocultural implications of media How is the world represented? What identities are established? What relationships are established?

Clip: The Day Today ”War!”

Discourse Analysis (5) Is not a method Different methods may be used Link between micro-meso-macro analyses Micro = instances in a text Mesa = context of production and reception Macro = relationship between the text and broader social processes and ideologies

Active or Passive voice –The use of an active verb gives a clear picture of who performed a particular action, and to whom, for example: "Police attack protestors". –The use of a passive verb states what has been done, and to whom, but does not blame anyone in particular for the action, for example: "Protestors attacked". –Alternatively, nominalisation can be used, where the noun form of the verb is used to create even more ambiguity, for example: "Attack on protestors". Naming –The ways in which people are named can also perpetuate ideologies. For example, the newspaper headline "five Asian youths involved in armed robbery" creates a very different picture than "five young men involved in armed robbery". –Similarly, the way people are described in texts, or after giving quotes can present two different pictures, for example: "Dr Sarah Jones" creates a different picture than "Single mother of two, Sarah Jones". Pre-modifiers –Pre-modified nouns can present varying views of a topic. For example, "gay marriage" or "same-sex marriage" implies that this is essentially different from hetero-sexual marriage. Indirect quotes –This is particularly common, when the results of a poll are being used, for example "poll shows 70% oppose gay marriage", however there may be no evidence of reported speech saying this.

Case Study 2004 Republican National Convention Consider the two main discourses in the video belonging to R & film maker –What are the main devices used by R? –What are the main devices used by the film makers? How is the world represented? What identities are established? What relationships are established? Consider the role of language in relation to social power

Clip: Republican propaganda

Case Study 2004 Republican National Convention Consider the two main discourses in the video belonging to R & film maker –What are the main devices used by R? –What are the main devices used by the film makers? How is the world represented? What identities are established? What relationships are established? Consider the role of language in relation to social power

Key themes Discourse is a way of relating the contents of a text to the culture which produced it –Master content analysis –What is doable –What is sayable –What is thinkable

The Seminar (1) In groups, select a type of analysis to specialize in: –Semiotic –Narrative/Genre –Discourse You can analyze a text of your choice –TV, film, advert, music vid, newspaper, magazine, book, image(s) You will give a 15 min presentation

The Seminar (2) Semiotic Analysis (see Berger p229) 1.Signifier/Signified 2.Syntagmatic analysis 3.Paradigmatic analysis 4.Metaphors 5.Synecdoche 6.Icons 7.Indexes 8.Symbols 9.Intertextuality 10.Codes

The Seminar (3) Narrative & Genre Describe the narrative in terms of its key elements (3 acts?) Discuss which of Propp’s 31 narrative functions you can identify in the text Discuss the character archetypes you can identify Place your text within genre tradition(s) and discuss its similarities and difference Reflect upon the positives and negatives of using formal categories to analyze your text

The Seminar (4) Discourse Analysis How is the world represented? –Time, space, power What identities are established? –Who is allowed to speak, who is spoken for –Experts, officials, representatives What relationships are established? Consider the role of language in relation to social power