COMS 246
Individual Paper – Analyzing Media Messages
Overview:
The media influence our values, attitudes, opinions, and beliefs. Your task is to delve into some news media messages (print and/or electronic news; traditional and/or Internet news) surrounding one specific social or cultural identity group. Remember that the way that a social or cultural identity group is portrayed in media has
implications for how that group is perceived, evaluated, and treated in the real world. Studies have shown that media messages can resist and/or perpetuate stereotypes. As intercultural scholars, you are required to have an understanding on how media messages work. For this assignment, select a social or cultural identity group and
address how our media depict the group and consequently influence audiences perceptions of the group in our culture. Your example and media analysis should be thought provoking and provide insight into how we think about culture and media from a perspective of communication. You should demonstrate in-depth understanding
of the concepts you discuss, carefully connect them to the media messages, and in the end, propose what you can do as a media consumer to deal with issues of power, stereotypes and discrimination, and media influence.
Purpose:
Your task is to analyze between 5-6 news media messages from at least three media sources. The media sources include but are not limited to news broadcasts, newspaper articles/reports, online news, videos, and/or social media posts that either resist (disrupt/disconfirm/battle against) or perpetuate (increase/exacerbate) the stereotypes of a social or cultural identity group in order to understand medias influence on how the public
perceives, evaluates, and stereotypes this group of people.
Instructions:
-The first step in completing this assignment is to pick a social and cultural group you are interested in
studying and identify the commonly held stereotypes of this particular social or cultural identity group
that you are aware of (e.g., the stereotypes of this group you heard about or read about). You yourself
may not necessarily endorse or believe these stereotypes.
– The second step of this assignment is to gather news media messages from at least three media sources
(5 to 6 news messages) about the social and cultural group you picked in step one. Specifically, you
should read, explore, and analyze the news media messages and identify themes or characteristics of this
social or cultural group depicted in the news media messages as a whole.
– The third step of this assignment is to compare the stereotypes that are commonly held about this group
of people (Step 1) and the stereotypes identified from the news media messages about this group of
people (Step 2).
– The fourth step of this assignment is to identify a theoretical framework that can help you understand
how media in general portrayal certain social or cultural groups and how media portrayals of certain
groups may influence audiences perceptions, stereotypes, and prejudice toward them (e.g., cultivation
theory, intergroup contact theory or social identity theory).
– Finally, write a 4-5 page (double spaced) paper addressing the following questions:
1. Which social or cultural identity group are you interested in studying?
2. What are the major stereotypes (positive and negative) of this social identity group upheld by the
public?
3. How is this identity group typically portrayed in the media? You can recount media messages that
you selected (summarizing the content/themes) that are typical/normal portrayals of this social
identity group.
4. How do the media or media messages resist (disrupt/disconfirms) or perpetuate (increase/exacerbate)
stereotypes, prejudice, and/or discrimination? You can recount media messages that you selected
(summarizing the content/themes) that disrupt and/or perpetuate common stereotypes of the social
identity group.
5. Are Cultivation theory, Intergroup Contact Theory and/or Social Identity Theory useful in helping
you understand how the media depict particular social or cultural groups and how such depictions
influence audiences perceptions, stereotypes, and attitudes toward them? Pick at least one
framework and bold the theory or theories upon mentioning it or them.
6. You should discuss what you believe that you have learned from this news media message analysis
from a theoretical and from a personal communication standpoint:
a. As a media consumer and an intercultural communication scholar, what can you do with this
knowledge? What practical solutions can you come up with to better understand media
messages in relation to culture and intercultural communication?
Use standard APA citation/format style to complete this assignment.
Times New Roman (Font), 12 Point Size, Double spaced
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