weekly news

Spanish police have arrested a Russian programmer for alleged involvement in "hacking" the US election, Spanish press reports have said. ( BBC news)

Pyotr Levashov, arrested on 7 April in Barcelona, has now been remanded in custody. A "legal source" also told the AFP news agency that Mr Levashov was the subject of an extradition request by the US. The request is due to be examined by Spain's national criminal court, the agency added. El Confidencial, a Spanish news website, has said that Mr Levashov's arrest warrant was issued by US authorities over suspected "hacking" that helped Donald Trump's campaign.Several cybersecurity experts, including Brian Krebs, have also linked Mr Levashov to a Russian spam kingpin, who uses the alias Peter Severa.

weekly news

Ohio nightclub shooting: One dead, 15 injured in gunfight (BBC NEWS)

A "dispute" between several men escalated into a gunfight in the crowded venue, Police Chief Eliot Isaac said. A 27-year-old man died in the incident, which occurred early on Sunday. There was no indication the shooting was terrorism-related. Police Chief Isaac said a "couple of hundred people" were inside the "very large establishment" when the incident occurred. "Several local men got into some kind of dispute inside the bar and it escalated into shots being fired from several individuals," he said. The police chief said that despite security checks, several firearms had been brought into the nightclub. Investigators are still trying to identify the shooters.

I think that they need to increase the security checks as this has put may innocent people's lives in danger. It represents issues of gun violence and crime

Exam answer

with detailed reference to two or three examples you have studied, explore how media texts are constructed to position audiences and/or users (30 marks)

In contemporary media, the dominant ideology create most media texts and images such as on magazines and newspapers meaning that we only see what they want us to see and what they deem as important. However in recent years there have been some campaigns and videos on changing people's  stereotypes and perceptions.

Typically, women are seen to be objects in the media which is why there are images of half naked girls on magazine front covers. All these covers include girls with the dominant ideologies idea of a perfect body which makes other women feel like they're not good enough because they don't look like magazine cover girls. Even though most of those pictures are photoshopped or edited somehow, it gives women expectations that they need to look like that. Although, the This Girl Can campaign created by Sport England has changed they way some women see themselves and their bodies. The campaign was designed to show women that anyone of any race and body size can take part in sports whether they are stereotypically female or not. Also, upbeat music by Missy Elliot is playing for the duration of the campaign which is supposedly meant to empower women. This has positioned the target audience to realise they can be happy with their bodies no matter what shape or size it is and they can be happy and healthy while taking part in sports as it will make them feel good.

Going along with this theme of women being objectified, it could also be said that the yearly Victoria's Secret Fashion Show subliminally tells women they will only look good in lingerie if they have the bodies of models. As the show only has slim models with the 'ideal' body, it makes other women wish they had bodies like that even though it's very hard to maintain. It also makes males think their their girlfriend or wife can only look good if they have a body like those models. This makes women try to live up to a standard that is very hard to achieve.

Weekly news

Don't forget us, says Chibok schoolgirl as third year of captivity approaches (BBC News)

A Chibok schoolgirl who escaped from Boko Haram militants in Nigeria has called on the international community not to forget those still in captivity. Next month will mark the third anniversary of the abduction of more than 270 girls. The militants are still holding about 195 of the young women.

The pupil, speaking under a pseudonym, told an education conference in Dubai: "These girls are human beings, not something that we can forget about." The abduction of the schoolgirls in north-eastern Nigeria in April 2014 by the Islamist militant group caused a global outcry - and prompted campaigns about girls' right to education. But almost three years later most of the abducted Chibok schoolgirls are still being held by kidnappers.

weekly news

"German 'thrill-killer' posed with bloodied knife inside flat of second victim he stabbed 68 times as it emerges the 'military mad' teenager was rejected by the army for being unstable"

Marcel Hesse was arrested for luring a young neighbour called Jaden into a cellar in Herne, on Monday. He was stabbed 56 times. The teenager is believed to have taken shocking video and photos of Jaden's murder before posting it on the 'dark web' of the Internet and going on the run which caused a massive police manhunt.  He also shared messages and photos on WhatsApp and in online chat rooms and some of that material was later posted back on to the dark web. It has been shown that that Marcel Hesse, who had also rejected by the German army for being unstable, had sent an image to a friend showing him holding up a blade in the same apartment.

In one message on an internet chat room, he wrote: 'I have cut myself in the hand as I fought the 120kg beast'. Pictures show him washing a knife and posing for a selfie with blood on his hands while in another message he said: 'I know that people die slowly when you slaughter them.' Another note believed to have been posted by Marcel Hesse was translated as saying: 'I just killed the neighbour's child, doesn't feel bad tbh, my hand bleeds lil' which is the only thing annoying me' and 'I actually wanted to get a girl in here so I can rape her.'  

This story has representations of issues of the dark web, mental disorders and knife crime. It also has representations of age and gender.

Demographic VS Psychographic

A demographic audience profile categorises an audience from A to E according to their class, occupation and income. Categories A and B are the wealthiest and most influential members of society and are therefore assumed to have the most disposable income. Retired people used to be in category E because of their loss of income, but with the rise of early retirement, this group have moved to a higher category to reflect their disposable income.

A psychographic audience profile defines an audience by their values, attitudes and lifestyles. As the concept of class and income became a less appropriate way of defining and audience, advertisers considered different ways of categorising an audience. They came up with the categories of mainstreamers, aspirers, explorers, succeeders and reformers.

- Mainstreamers: they make up 40% of the population. They like security, tried and trusted brands and like to think they belong to a group of like minded people.
- Aspirers: this group wants status and prefer brands that show their place in society. They are happy to live on credit and will buy items like designer labels.
- Explorers: like to discover new things. They are attracted by brands that offer new experiences and instant results.
- Succeeders: these are people who already ready have nothing to prove. They prefer that are serious and reliable and believe that they deserve the best.
- Reformers: this group are defined by their self esteem and self fulfilment. They tend to be innovative and less impressed by status. They are not materialistic and are socially aware.

Review of Black Mirror

Black mirror is a British television series written by Charlie Brooker. This series has two main genres: science fiction and psychological drama. It is based around satirical themes that looks around modern day society and how we are controlled by new technology.  It scored an 8.9/10 from IMDb and 96% from rotten tomatoes.

Each episode has a complete different set of characters with a different story to tell. It also has different settings and different themes and ideas for each episode however it is supposedly all based on the way we live now. Each person has a different reality.

The first episode I watched was Season 1 Episode 1 called The National Anthem. I don't even know where to begin. I didn't understand the episode at all. It had too much swearing and it was vile. I didn't want to even watch the next episode after seeing the priminster have sex with a pig however it was 12:30am and I was bored so I gave the second episode a try.

The second episode I watched was Season 1 Episode 2 called Fifteen Million Merits. This episode wasn't too bad but it was just very confusing. It started off with a man sleeping and all four walls around him were digital screens. When it was time for him to wake up a rooster would appear on the screen and do its wake up call. He then had to swipe his hand to get rid of the rooster. Everything around his was touch screen or body movement sensitive. Every day the people would have to sit on a gym bike and ride it to gain points so they can buy food or buy toothpaste or whatever they needed. This shows how technology is taking over as we become more dependent on it.

Once they reach 15 million points they an decide to try out for a TV show called Hot Spot which is where they can show off their talents. One woman tried out for it and she had a beautiful voice however she couldn't move forward in any career unless she showed everyone her boobs. This shows how women in society are treated unfairly as all men want to do is use them for their body.