Lecture: Tabloids vs Broadsheets

Introduction

• Resources: Available on the lecturer's Google site.
• Lesson Context:
  • Tasks for first-time learners and for revision.
  • Focus: Deconstructing tabloids and broadsheets for exams.

Types of Newspapers

• Tabloids:

  • Smaller in size, focuses on soft news (celebrities, sports, sensationalist crime stories).
  • Known for star power and potential objectification of women.
  • Mix of fact and emotion, with biases and theot of language.
  • Short sentences, less complex vocabulary.
  • Targets lower working-class audience with less education.

• Broadsheets:

  • Larger size, traditionally bigger than tabloids.
  • Focuses on hard news (major national and international events).
  • Uses more fact-driven reporting with longer sentences.
  • Targets a more educated, upper class audience.

Language Differences

• Tabloids:

  • Informal language, puns, alliteration, slang, and colloquial language.
  • Exaggerated and chatty language with sexual overtones.
  • Focus on appearance and possible sexualization of individuals, including females in various domains.

• Broadsheets:

  • Formal language, uses metaphors and rhetorical questions.
  • Complex sentence structures with evidence and statistics.
  • Descriptions relate to social positions, with political commentary.

Media Theory

• Stuart Hall:

  • Media products are mediated and influenced by ideology.
  • Reception theory: different ideologies lead to different text interpretations.

• Political Orientation:

  • Left vs right, correlates with political landscape (e.g., Democrat/Republican, Labour/Conservative).
  • Ideology influences the portrayal in media.

Tasks and Considerations

• Analysis Tasks:

  • Deconstruct media products and think about representation.
  • Consider questions about mediated reality and representation differences.
  • Analyze concepts of nationality, race, and their representations.

• Moral Panic and Stereotypes:

  • Stan Cohen: Folk devils and moral panic in tabloids.
  • Richard Dyer: Stereotypes and power dynamics.

Conclusion

• Exam Preparation:

  • Analyze language and content in tabloids and broadsheets.
  • Consider theoretical frameworks for understanding media.

• Closing: Encourage viewers to engage with video content and study for exams.