CRITICAL INVESTIGATION; mediaedu - mr bush

MEDIA EDU

1. http://media.edusites.co.uk/article/wjec-gcse-music-fan-websites/

2. http://media.edusites.co.uk/article/ocr-as-and-a2-media-studies-theorists/ - Theory's.

3. http://media.edusites.co.uk/article/understanding-the-music-industry-music-industry-websites/ - Music industry.

4. http://media.edusites.co.uk/article/gender-theory/ - Gender theory's.

CRITICAL INVESTIGATION; Media magazine - mr bush

1. http://www.englishandmedia.co.uk/mm/subscribers/downloads/archive_mm/mmagpast/Hiphop.html - "Arguments are put forward that American hip hop is one of the few acceptable faces of America: it's street music made by people railing against the establishment that often Black producers hate their Government as much as we do, right?" Shows different interpretations of how hip hop music is interpreted throughout America. Also, tries to show how black celebrities as well as all other Americans are the same.

2. http://www.englishandmedia.co.uk/mm/subscribers/downloads/archive_mm/mmagpast/mm42_hiphop.htm - "Through hip-hop is now a dominant force within mainstream youth culture with artists such as Jay-Z or the British Plan B finding success far beyond traditional rap/r'n'b audiences the stereotypical 'rapper' exists in a largely fixed form in the public consciousness" Hip hop/rap music may have not been the most popular before however, now hip hop music is one of the most popular and listened to music from youths and young adults. Also, hip hop artists are now moving further than just music e.g. Jay Z he has a record label as well as clothing line.
- "This representations remained the dominant stereotype throughout the 1990s and 2000s, as artists like Jay Z, Snoop Dogg and 50 Cent both adhered to the same stereotype and were portrayed using much of the same language." Shows the issues of representations in contemporary hip-hop. 

3. http://www.englishandmedia.co.uk/mm/subscribers/downloads/archive_mm/mmagpast/Anexplosionofgenres.html - Talks about how certain media music genres have changed and have become less popular than before. For example, jazz is less popular where as hip hop is becoming more popular in society and youths would rather listen to rap and hip hop rather than spending time listening to classical music or jazz.

4. http://www.englishandmedia.co.uk/mm/subscribers/downloads/archive_mm/mmagpast/MM45_read_rap.html - This article focuses on how people interpret music especially focusing on rap music. Also goes in depth of the meanings of music and whether music can be emotionally felt or is there further meaning behind the words that are being said. This is significant to my case study as I am studying the importance of the ways the black music celebrities are being represented and how this impacts audiences. Therefore by looking deep into how audiences interpret music I am able to view the impact that the music has on them as well as how they are influenced by it.
- "Most of the people who listen to the music nowadays can't even construct a proper sentence, nobody cares about the intricate stories you put into your songs."


5. http://www.englishandmedia.co.uk/mm/subscribers/downloads/archive_mm/mmagpast/MM32_eminem.html - Eminem is not a black music celebrities however his music does fall into the same stereotypical genre - Hip Hop and R n B. Eminem is the prime example of equality through music as he is also known as one of the best rapper and composers in the hip hop industry despite being white. The representations of Eminem are shown as good as well as bad however he still has a huge influence on audiences
- "According to Bakhtin, every person is influenced by others in an inescapably intertwined way, and condequently no voice can be said to be isolated." 

6. http://www.englishandmedia.co.uk/mm/subscribers/downloads/archive_mm/mmagpast/MM34_Change_music1.html - I am able to  relate this link to my critical investigation as it focuses on the change in the music industry over the years. There is music more paparazzi and press coverage on black music celebrities as the black music industry is increasing drastically. This means that there is more in the news, especially over the internet on black music celebrities therefore  showing many different representations of them and impacting audiences opinions.
- "In the last decade the music industry has faced the most complex set of changes in its history. The conventional industry models have been challenged largely due to the emergence of new technologies and new ways for music lovers to listen to, and own, the music they love."

7. http://www.englishandmedia.co.uk/mm/subscribers/downloads/archive_mm/mmagpast/MM36_Collab_Music_Politics.html - This article allows me to view the political side of music, this includes the tension between the industry and street culture. Many individuals do not view street music and hip hop or RnB as actual music however, there are strong views against this as people as there is deeper meaning behind a lot of street music. Audiences are seen as the main people that make the music and give the mu meaning or not
- "Pop music is often seen as a disposable product which has a limited lifespan, with no more cultural meaning than that created by the audience members."

8. http://www.englishandmedia.co.uk/mm/subscribers/downloads/archive_mm/mmagpast/mm23_black_press.html - This article talks about the representations of black people in print media. Although my critical investigation focuses mainly on the ways black music celebrities are represented this article still helps me as it is still giving me an insight of how black celebrities have now become more common in America as well as UK and the influences that black celebrities have on audiences and others in general.
- "Supermodel Naomi Campbell has recently launched a campaign to highlight the lack of role models in the media. Black models rarely feature on the front cover of mainstream magazines; financial arguments are used as reasons for exclusions."
- "Another problem is that some Black British publications still hanker after African American stars rather than Black Britons. In their defence they argue that these stars are the once whom audiences want to know about."

9. http://www.englishandmedia.co.uk/mm/subscribers/downloads/archive_mm/mmagpast/MM29_Multiplatform.html - This article talks about how different media platforms go out to different audiences and the impact of it. Although this article does  not talk about Black music celebrities in particular I am able to relate it to my critical investigation. The way that I can do this is by looking at the way technology impacts audiences and how the different platforms: video, dvd and internet go out to certain audiences.
- "At the heart of multi-platform media are changes and development in technology. As technologies change they offer different ways for audiences to access texts; and so institutions change the way they make and promote their products."

10. http://www.englishandmedia.co.uk/mm/subscribers/downloads/archive_mm/mmagpast/MM35_Culture_Canon.html - This article focuses on the imprtance of culture and whether that is the only thing that influences the audiences like in music or tv. This relates to my critical investigation as I am able to view the things that actually influence audiences and also view many differen sociologist opinions. - "Bennett and others (2009) also concluded that age, gender and ethnicity are now important in determining what texts are 'essential' for 'culture captial'.

CRITICAL INVESTIGATION; Google scholar - mr bush

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1460-2466.1986.tb03042.x/abstract -This allows use to have an insight of the three success strategies used in order for black music celebrities to make the perfect music video for their target audience. This relates to my critical investigation as it allows me to see how and what black celebrities use and how they are represented just to attract audiences. As well as the representations in their music videos in order to attract and make an impact on their audiences. "Black musicians have created visual images through mixed casts and rock star associations to appeal to the target audience – and the record companies."

http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/15205430902865336#preview - This article looks into whether exposure to sexual hip-hop music videos influence the sexual attitudes of college students. This relates to my critical investigation as I am researching into the influences of representations on audiences. Therefore, by looking into whether college students are influenced or not it allows me to have versatile research into older audiences as well as the young also I am able to see what it is that influences young crimes and whether hip hop or the representations of black music celebrities play a huge part in young peoples life now. “Male participants who were exposed to hip-hop music videos of highly sexual content expressed greater objectification of women, sexual permissiveness, stereotypical gender attitudes, and acceptance of rape as posttest than male participants in the low sex condition.”

http://books.google.co.uk/books?hl=en&lr=&id=UaodId2CFDUC&oi=fnd&pg=PA3&dq=black+music+representation&ots=KpPI3QXULf&sig=5Pr68V0MgZQ8ImWFMBnpic2t0R4#v=onepage&q=black%20music%20representation&f=false - This Google scholar link shows the power of black music. this is both the positive as well as the negative effects of black music on all sorts of audiences - shows mainly the hip hop African american and rnb music affects.

http://books.google.co.uk/books?hl=en&lr=&id=_4AJ_StNwVUC&oi=fnd&pg=PP1&dq=hip+hop+music+representations&ots=JQ9KWCpDmY&sig=jpzgwMZsUAeutkQeIf1JJ0Z594U#v=onepage&q=hip%20hop%20music%20representations&f=false - talking about the race variations in rap music, this is quite a dated article however I am able to compare this to the latest day music for example miley cyrus showing the same representations through her music - black music representations can be shown through all races and colours now.

http://abs.sagepub.com/content/46/10/1346.short - "The author considers how African American youth use hip-hop as a form of cultural capital in everyday settings" the representations of black celebrities are shown in everyday life and are prime therefore would relate to my article as it shows black celebrities as affecting youths actions in everyday life. 

http://books.google.co.uk/books?hl=en&lr=&id=MhdD5B87rhQC&oi=fnd&pg=PR5&dq=how+is+beyonce+and+jay+z+represented&ots=ix1iETKM4S&sig=1lY7phii07BvFS9HJYCjj1GHrZw#v=onepage&q&f=false - This book "Jay z and the roc-a-fella records dynasty" shows the different aspects of Jay Z's life as well as his record label therefore it also gives an insight on how the hip hop industry works therefore also showing different views on how black music celebrities portray themselves as well as how they are portrayed by others. 

http://books.google.co.uk/books?hl=en&lr=&id=i_6KApL_5fcC&oi=fnd&pg=PP1&dq=how+is+beyonce+and+jay+z+represented&ots=bPqhzaJyjg&sig=-ZugjIc0s2T95XVJ4N3HXAuWuhs#v=onepage&q&f=false - Once again this book shows how Jay Z is mainly represented; this relates to my critical investigation as I am able to have different interpretations on how black music celebrities are represented and show a good representation (Jay Z) as well as bad. Early 1980s Rap/Hip hop music was all you would really hear blasting out of boom boxes. “As the years went by, artists such as Run-DMC began to rap more honestly about the tough neighbourhoods they grew up in.” ; therefore showing that black music celebrities are represented as truthful and as tough as many have gone through tough times are able to express themselves through their music and also entertain others.

http://www.michaelpjeffries.com/Jeffries_Can_a_Thug_get_some_Love.pdf - this talks about many different black music celebrities and the ways that they portray themselves through the media; "thug performances as 

sites for investigating love, sex, and gender in hip hop" the article talks about whether thugs need love, sex and gender and how this is shown through their music. This is relevant to my critical investigation as it has concepts of how 'thugs' represent themselves and what are the reoccurring representations through hip hop.

http://books.google.co.uk/books?hl=en&lr=&id=2zDluqhv-QcC&oi=fnd&pg=PR11&dq=hip+hop+representations&ots=wKdyj7WKzI&sig=1ZJwTiM6XVJ5y4Wdnr4kx_8UVP4#v=onepage&q=hip%20hop%20representations&f=false - these common representations of black music artists have been shown for so long that it is a norm in society e.g. women being degraded in music, expect is from black music artists. 

http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/07393180500342878#.Uosp28TIZA0 - "This article examines the strategies used by white artists such as Vanilla Ice, Eminem, and Beastie Boys to establish their hip-hop legitimacy and to confront rap music's representations of whites as socially privileged and therefore not credible within a music from where credibility is often negotiated through an artist's experiences of social struggle." showing that the common representations are not only shown through black music artists but are also shown through white celebrities in the hip hop/rap industry.

CRITICAL INVESTIGATION; Self evaluation - mr bush

Self evaluation - notes and quotes.

WWW:

• Notes and quotes has been going quite well as I have been able to find many different links and sources, 
• I have gotten specific quotes from books,
• Specific pictures or links that I am personally able to analyse and relate to my question,
• all research that I have done relates well with my question - "How do the representations of black music celebrities like Beyoncé and Jay Z impact upon audiences?",
• I have got detailed research.

EBI: 

• I can improve my notes and quotes for my critical investigation by considering violent representations (e.g. riots),
• I could also make my points much clearer and concise so it would be easier for myself when writing my critical investigation,
• I also need more links and academic books,
• I need to go onto Google scholar and get relevant books or quotes from there,
• I need to improve my use of theories and use a wider range of theories for example, expand on the hegemony theory,
• I also need to have a more detailed analysis on some parts of my research as certain areas such as the analysis on books are quite vague with limited quotes.

CRITICAL INVESTIGATION: advanced google search - mr bush

http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=QYHUExudAdoC&pg=PA252&lpg=PA252&dq=%2B%22representation+in+black+music%22&source=bl&ots=exp4WtUlq3&sig=YZil2F-WGKZpWTr1UNMD9i1ptsg&hl=en&sa=X&ei=K--AUtuuFsWM7AbCiIH4Dg&ved=0CCwQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=%2B%22representation%20in%20black%20music%22&f=false - Academic book on the 'Love of Music'

http://www.essence.com/package/red-carpet-black-women-hollywood/ - Black women in hollywood
* Over the years the representation of black women have changed as there is no longer as many dark skinned black women in the music industry.

http://raprehab.com/images-of-black-women-in-music-videos/ - images of Black women in music videos
* The promotion of black women as body parts with a particular emphasis on the buttocks has a painful place in our history

http://raprehab.com/rap-video-voodoo/ - This is to beware of rap video voodoo, meaning that there are different messages given through the music videos;
* some is obvious where as many of the messages through the videos are indirect. 

http://raprehab.com/ - has a variety of different articles, messages, blog posts on rap as well as hip hop music.
* Would help my critical investigation as I will be looking into the lives of black music celebrities as well as the different ways that they are represented. 

http://wgs101.wordpress.com/2011/12/06/representation-of-black-women-in-music-videos/ - representations of black women in music videos
* In this “Candy Shop” video the women are walking around in lingerie, writhing seductively on beds, and giving 50 Cent lap dances

* Media representations of gender

KEY POINT - Almy et al. (1984) argue that media representations of gender are important because they enter the collective social conscience and reinforce culturally dominant (hegemonic) ideas about gender which represent males as dominant and females as subordinate. Sociologists argue that media representations not only stereotype masculinity and femininity into fairly limited forms of behaviour, but also provide gender role models that males and females are encouraged to aspire to.

However, Gauntlett (2008) points out that sociological analysis of media representations needs to be cautious, because of the sheer diversity of media in Britain.

CRITICAL INVESTIGATION: Tutorial targets - mr bush

TARGETS

- Read the Guardian for references to Beyonce and Jay Z (done),
- Audience theory research (done),
- Consider violent representations (e.g. riots),
- Apply the Post colonial theory (done),
- Pick out specific quotes from books and academic papers (Done)
- For the books on Amazon; read inside. (Done)

Monday 4th November 2013