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Sample Essay Titles

 

Documentary

• A documentary is a negotiation between reality on the one hand and image, interpretation and bias on the other.
• John Grierson’s definition of documentary as ‘the creative treatment of actuality’ is no longer applicable to modern documentary texts.
• Documentaries can only give their viewers a media view of ‘real life’.
• Reality TV appeals to mass audiences because of the voyeuristic aspects of the genre.
• Reality TV relies upon the voyeuristic passivity of the viewer.
• The producers of Reality TV/Documentary are constantly pushing the boundaries of taste and decency in order to maximise the audience for their programmes.
• Audience participation is the main appeal of Reality TV.

News

1. News is not simply reported by the media; it is created by the media.
2. Reporting of the news tends to be partial, selective and biased.
3. Journalism is now contaminated by bias, campaigning, scandal and sensationalism.
4. The mass media uses fear to create a dependence on news.
5. ‘Tabloids spread moral panics which manipulates the fears and opinions of the audience. The anti-asylum seekers campaign, have been misinformed by hatred and exaggeration which has played on people’s fears and prejudices.’ (Roy Greenslade in The Guardian Media Supplement)
6. The media plays a central role in the amplification of deviancy and act as the starting point for moral panics.
7. Moral panics are the product of media hype and news management.

Representation

1. The mass media are primarily responsible for the production of stereotyped images of gender differences.
2. The mass media play a central part in the social construction of gender roles.
3. Outdated stereotypes are still being perpetuated by modern media and are evident in advertisements.
4. Outdated gender stereotypes are still being perpetuated by modern media and are evident in advertisements.
5. It is naïve to believe that television and/or radio news is ‘a window on the world’. It is as much a result of selection and construction as a work of fiction.
6. Gender representations are more positive in 2008 than ever before.
7. Current representations of women now challenge previously dominant ideologies.
8. Current representations of the family unit now challenge previously dominant ideologies.

Soaps

1. Soap operas ‘have become our virtual communities; doing more to break down social and class boundaries than any government leader can do. They unify the nation’ (Mal Young BBC drama producer).
2. The continuing fascination with British television soap operas is due to escapism and passive viewing.

Power & Effects

1. The effects of the mass media vary according to the social characteristics of the audience.
2. Television news is produced from within a limited and partial world view.
3. It is the role of the mass media to transmit a dominant ideology.
4. The content of the mass media simply reflects the pattern of ownership and control in the industry.
5. Whoever controls the means of mass communication has the potential power to influence the ways in which society works.
6. Events that occur in popular culture can affect political agendas.
7. It is no longer relevant to think of audiences as passive in the 21st Century.

Advertising

1. Causing a controversy is a guaranteed way to get your message heard, and advertisers have become particularly adept at pushing the boundaries.

Film

1. Quentin Tarrantino holds iconic status in the film industry and is an institution in his own right.
2. Alfred Hitchcock has had a significant impact on film making in the twentieth century.

Genre

 

1. Producers exploit audiences’ expectations of genre.
2. Genres adapt to changing social, economic and political contexts in order to survive.
3. Genres must adapt in order to survive.