The Portfolio of Assessment is worth 40% of your final mark. Students are required to produce an online learners record which engages and reflects on theories and practice acquired in the subject of Multimedia Communications.
The marking scheme of this learners record is as follows:
Charting the student's learning experience, whether in media, film or research 20
A reflection and evaluation of Communication Theory and practice 20
Here is a clip regarding how to create a blog through blogger
There are a number of models that students will need to familiarise themselves with in Multimedia Communications. Human communication exchanges information through a medium.
Communications theory
The word communication means to share, impart or make common. It comes from the Latin word communicaire. Communication is an active process that is continually changing and evolving. How well we communicate is often determined by how easily we can share or impart information or find common ground with other people.
Language changes overtime and someone like Shakespeare may have difficulty understanding “textspeak”. Everytime we speak we put together a selection of words we may have never used before. 2 people communicating with each other may have no idea where they will end up in conversation.
What Reasons Do We Have to Communicate?
-Survival
-Co-operation
-Personal needs
-Relationships
-Persuasion
-Power
-Societal needs
-Economy (buying and selling)
-Information
-Making sense of the world
-Decision making
-Self-expression
Discuss in class examples of the reasons for communication as highlighted above. Can you give a real world example as to why any of the points above are reasons to communicate?
For Communication to be Effective:
-Effective communication is about conveying your message to others clearly and minimising dangers for misinterpretation
Example of how information can be misinterpreted
-Effective communication is also about receiving information from others, with minimal distortion
What is the communication process?
The communication process is an important process by which humans communicate with each other.
There are THREE basic elements which are central to the communication process.
1. The audience
2. The Message you want to share
3. The Channel of communication
Communication Theory Definitions
Message: The information you want to communicate Encoding: The process of transferring info you wish to communicate into a form that can be sent and decoded at the other end. Encoding is is the process by which information from a source is converted into symbols to be communicated Channel: The method used to communicate eg face to face meetings, telephones & video conferencing, letters, emails, memos, reports Decoding: the process of transforming information from one format into another, usually information sent from the sender. Receiver: Must understand your message and is at the receiving end of the communication channel. They receive decoded messages or info from the sender. Sometimes, the receiver has to decode the message themselves
Example of positive feedback
Feedback: is the verbal and nonverbal reaction to a communicated message. Close attention to feedback can give the sender confidence that the message is understood. Feeding back part of the output so as to increase the input is positive feedback; feeding back part of the output in such a way as to partially oppose the input is negative feedback.
Context: the relevant constraints of the communicative situation that influence language use, language variation, and discourse. This may include the surrounding environment or broader culture (corporate culture, international culture). It can be the surroundings, circumstances, environment, background, or settings which determine, specify, or clarify the meaning of the message
A famous still image of John McCain taken out of context in the last US election
In order for the transfer of information to qualify as communication, the recipient must understand the meaning of the information transferred to them. If the recipient does not understand the meaning of the information conveyed to them, communication has not taken place.
Shannon and Weaver's communication model
As you can see in the example below, Communicator A is sending a message to Communicator B through a medium (channel). The message is transferred through the medium and received by Communicator B. Communicator B decodes the message, understands the message and sends it back to Communicator A. Meaningful communication has taken place if the information exchanged occurs in a common manner of language that both Communicator A and B understands.
How the audience, message and channel elements factor into the communication process:
The Communication Process
Lets say the person on the left in the diagram above wants to send a message to the person the right.The man on the left has to decide what language the man on the right will need in order to understand the message.Also the man on the left has to take into account societal factors such as the relationship between them and the context of the message These 3 factors of language, relationship with each other as well as the context of the conversation will influence the tone of their conversation. Next, the appropriate channel needs to be selected to communicate the message. Typical channels of communication include: Writing, face-to-face speaking, having a telephone conversation, video-call, email, fax, SMS or even through instant online messaging providers such as Instant Messenger.The man on the right may give feedback to the man on the left to further his understanding of the message and having more clarity regarding the appropriate response.
Here is a video which uses the model of a message sent through a paper aeroplane to demonstrate the communication process:
Berlo's Communication Model
In 1960, David Berlo expanded on Shannon and Weaver's model of communication. It takes into account the emotional aspect of the message. Berlo's model of communication operates on the SMCR model
S=Source
M=Message
C=Context
R=Receiver
Mise-en-scene refers to everything that appears before the camera. This can include arrangement sets, props, actors, costumes and lighting, as well as the positioning and movement of the actors (known as blocking). Every little detail can make your mise-en-scene more exciting.
An example of blocking can be seen in this scene from Citizen Kane here
A mise en scene of Hitchcock's Strangers on a train can be seen here if you click the link below
The Kuleshov Effect is a film editing effect demonstrated by Russian filmmaker Lev Kuleshov in the 1910s and 1920s.
It is a mental phenomenon by which viewers derive more meaning from the interaction of two sequential shots than from a single shot in isolation.
Produce a research assignment approximately 1500 words in length on one of the following topics:
(a) An analysis of mise-en-scene of a particular film or film scene
or
(b) Critical review of a news report/broadcast/television/radio item
Assessment Criteria:
Media or film 6
Alternative models of media communications outlined and examined 6
Key research skills are demonstrated 6
Various arguments are presented in one assignment, with key practical examples 6
Introduction, conclusion, references 6
Deadline Wednesday 24th March 2015
A useful link to videos on plagiarism and referencing correctly can be found at this link
Uploaded by movieclips on 30 Sep 2011
1.Describe some of the characteristics of Christy’s father?
2.Are there any similarities/differences between Christy and his father?
3.Would Mr Brown be considered to be a typical ‘Irish father figure’?
4.Does the relationship between Christy and his father evolve?
5.Has the concept of masculinity changed since the period during which the film is set?
6.Discuss the importance of social setting in the film
7. How are men and women expected to behave
8.Discuss society's attitude to disability and to the Brown family within this film
9. How does Christy, Mrs Brown and Mr Brown deal with Irish societal expectations of them?
10. How does our understanding develop as a result of the repeated reference to the fund-raising benefit?
Some of the main media theory and theorists can be found at this link. Download it and print it off to take notes. We will be working from it over the next few weeks: http://www.scribd.com/doc/11711855/Media-Theory
Adam Curtis is seen as someone who is respected in his criticism of mainstream media. Towards the end of this 6 minute clip he looks at moral panics which are discussed in your media theory notes.
Adam Curtis-Paranoia and Moral Panics (2010)
Uploaded by IfsPaul in 2010
Here is a look at how TV journalism will often look at picking a side in various conflicts or stories around the world as opposed to reporting.
Oh Dearism by Adam Curtis
This is a trailer for Adam Curtis' interesting series The Power of Nightmares
As we looked at in the previous post, there is a variety of ways that the media constructs stories. Sometimes the story is dependant on the medium used. The chosen medium to can constrain the effectiveness of the story by the media.
Can you apply Marshall McLuhan's idea of "the medium is the message" to any of these clips?
Can you apply any of the theory given in the handout to current media coverage?
Can you source any other clips, stories, articles or documentaries to back up media theory?
Here is a clip from controversial media analyst Charlie Brooker on the media coverage of the death of celebrity Jade Goody from his programme Newswipe. When analysing the story, focus on the manner of media coverage rather than the celebrity.
How is the media constrained by the medium chosen in these examples below?
