Postmodern Media Section B

G325 th 10 June 2014

Postmodern Media Examination Topics
Postmodern Media

What are the different versions of postmodernism (historical period, style, theoretical approach)? What are the arguments for and against understanding some forms of media as postmodern? How do postmodern media texts challenge traditional text-reader relations and the concept of representation? In what ways do media audiences and industries operate differently in a postmodern world?

Candidates might explore combinations of: How postmodern media relate to genre and narrative across two media, computer/video games, virtual worlds, augmented reality and new forms of representation, postmodern cinema, interactive media, social media and social networking, reality TV, music video, advertising, postmodern audience theories, aspects of globalisation, parody and pastiche in media texts or a range of other applications of postmodern media theory.

Our Key Texts for Study: Music Video: 30 Seconds to Mars City of Angels (Cont) Lady Gaga (Cont) Rizzle Kicks Lost Generation Skip to the Good Bit(Cont) Queen Bohemian Rhapsody (Hist) Computer Games GTA V Second Life (hist) TV Flight of the Conchords Family Guy/The Simpsons Glee Modern Family Reality TV Black Mirror Film Inception (Cont) (500) Days of Summer (Cont) Memento (hist) Internet: Youtube Facebook Twitter

Examiners Reports: The most common reasons for candidates failing to reach the higher mark levels are constant from session to session - failure to engage with contemporary examples for the majority of an answer (texts, case studies, debates, institutional practices and / or policy from within five years of the examination); a failure to distinguish between the requirements for 1a (process, decisions made)

and 1b (textual analysis using media concepts); a failure to apply academic theory in section B (most commonly evident in answers on the online age and regulation) and failure to engage with alternative arguments within a debate, resulting in one sided answers (across all topics, this is an issue at the level 3 / level 4 borderline). There were interesting and knowledgeable responses to the questions on postmodern media and most of these demonstrated a strong awareness of the ideas from theorists such as Jameson, Lyotard, and Baudrillard as well as interesting perspectives on digimodernism. The concept of hyperreality was foremost of the postmodern thinking and analyses of The Matrix, reality TV and online gaming were often well handled. It was pleasing to see Lady Gaga replacing Madonna as a case study of choice. Some centres used spoof movies such as the Scary Movie franchise to useful effect. But the filmic examples chosen tend to be dated The Truman Show, Bladerunner, Scream, Pulp Fiction & Kill Bill. Inglorious Basterds, Kick Ass, Scott Pilgrim v the World and Inception were more contemporary examples that worked well. The high level 4 answers were able to present an argument around the theories of Baudrillard, Lyotard, Jameson, Derrida, Kirby and Marx, with excellent use of related theoretical terms. One centre also offered some interesting responses to Q11 how far do you accept the idea of post-modernism? Through discussing Lyotard and the idea of meta-narratives some felt that they couldnt accept post-modernism due to their religious views with some excellent debate and discussion about postmodernism as shallow, paradoxical and lacking a future. Complex texts such as The Wire, when utilised well, provided some excellent discussion. Some very good responses were seen which discussed the nature of hyperreality using Grand Theft Auto 4 and the Call of Duty franchise as the crux for discussion.

Candidates need to show a deep understanding of a debate, with application and assessment of theories, research and conflicting ideas, with a range of contemporary examples, at least one reference to the past and one projection for the future.

Advice from the Chief Examiner:

This part of the exam asks you to do three more specific things, whatever topic you answer on: 1. You MUST refer to at least TWO different media 2. You MUST refer to past, present and future (with the emphasis on the present- contemporary examples from the past five years) 3. refer to critical/theoretical positions So for 1. You might compare and contrast examples from film and TV or from games and the web. For 2. The main thing is to ensure you have a majority of material from the past five years. There were a number of answers last year which were dominated by older examples, so beware of this if you are writing about games or the web, you can be pretty up to date, but the same is true of examples from TV, music video or cinema. This is not to stop you referring to historical examples, just encouraging an emphasis on recent ones. For the point about the future, you could say something about how as we all live more of our lives online, more and more texts take on elements of postmodernism. For 3. You will hopefully have been introduced to some theory and your teachers will have tried to make it accessible- some key names are Baudrillard and Lyotard

Past Questions:
All contemporary media is postmodern. Discuss this statement in relation to examples you have studied.

Evaluate theories of postmodernism in relation to media. Assess the arguments for and against postmodernism, in relation to media examples. Postmodern media break the rules of representation. Discuss. Postmodern media manipulate time and space. To what extent does this definition apply to texts that you have studied? Define postmodern media, with examples. How do postmodern media differ from other media? How far do you accept the idea of postmodern media? Explain how certain kinds of media can be defined as postmodern. Discuss why some people are not convinced by the idea of postmodern media. Why are some products described as postmodern? Postmodern media blur the boundary between reality and representation. Discuss this idea with reference to media texts that you have studied. What is meant by postmodern media? Explain why the idea of postmodern media might be considered controversial.