MEDIA LANGUAGE

THEORY 1: MEDIA LANGUAGE

MEDIA LANGUAGE is the way in which the meaning (conventions) of a media text is conveyed to the audience through media codes (signs and symbols) suggested by the way a scene is set up and filmed

CODES are a system of signs and symbols which are used to communicate meaning

CONVENTIONS are the commonly accepted meaning created by the codes

Example:

- Red traffic light tells you to stop

Code (sign and/or symbol): Red traffic light

Convention (meaning): Stop

MEDIA STUDIES is the study of the relationship between media producers and audiences

MEDIA PRODUCTS are made up of images, words, and sounds

Media producers use media language to create media products, and audiences use their understanding of media language to interpret and understand the messages being communicated

The media generates a message for us, therefore, media producers encode their text with meaning, along with the audience decoding the text to understand the meaning

Example:

- Stop. Open. Buy this. Do this. Think this (the media's message)

- Lighting to convey emotion, as well as, font, or clothes/costume for themes (producers' encoded message)

- Age, culture, income, or sexuality can change the way a message is decoded (audiences' decoded message)

Media products are put together depending on the platform used to distribute the product. Different forms use media language differently and we must be aware of the way platform and the form set up a template for production

Media Platform	Media language used	Examples of form	Specific media products
Print Media	Uses text and images only	Newspapers	The Daily Mail
Broadcast (audio)	Audio products use music, sound effects and the spoken word to communicate to audiences.	Music radio	Radio Folklore 90
Broadcast (video)	Video products use images as well as sound. Video can use the spoken word as well as word on screen as required	News reports	euronews.