Identity Theory - David Gauntlett

The media provides us with tool/ resources/ ideas that we use to construct our identity (what we think we should be like, act like, look like, etc). In the past these ideas were very singular and straight forward (stereotypes) but now because of the internet and social media we have a great variety to choose from.

We can be influenced by such things as celebrities, influencer, characters in films/ video games etc

Exceptions:

• ‘Fair Use’

• Private Study (educational and not for publication)

• Criticism or Review

• Time-Shifting

• Parody and/or pastiche

• Paying for it

How effective is the regulation of the media?

There are many ways of getting around the regulations around copyright in the exceptions stated above

Copy right example:

Napster was a file sharing platform in the 90’s, and quickly grew to a platform where people could share music by popular artists for free without buying the album. As it was peer-to-peer, it technically wasn’t pirating. A&M Records decided to sue the company for loss of profits. Napster was forced to pay $26million in damages and the website was forced to close.

“The media effects debate is an outdated concept”. Discuss the statement in relation to a

media product you have studied. Use examples to support your answer.

I agree with the statement as there is little evidence to support the idea of media being responsible for peoples behaviour and actions however there is still some.

An example of evidence against media being responsible is that their is a lack of cases in which media has been solely responsible to