Moc Exam Prep

To what extent do Zoella and Attitude reflect the social and historical context of the time when they were made? [30]

Introduction:

Definition - What is Online Media? What is social/cultural context?
Argument - What social/cultural context are you focusing on?(representation, industry, ideology, viewpoints, etc) How will you develop this response?
Context - Zoella and Attitude

PEA Paragraphs - Point, Evidence, Argument/Analysis



Representation

Attitude:

• LGBT representation
• Stereotypes? (re-purposes/embraces gay stereotype)
• Conventional ideals of beauty
• Challenging traditional representations of masculinity ('boys' section/magazine front cover of Jake Shears)
• Stuart Hall (stereotypes)
• Paul Gilroy (Post-colonialism)
• Subversive(Magazine front cover of Jake Shears), gender binary, androgyny, challenging normatively, hegemonic...

Zoella:

• Stereotypical depictions of gender (Our Christmas Eve traditions video, reinforces domestic role of women, conventional depictions of femininity).
• Conventional femininity and masculinity
• Hetero-normative representation
• Domestic, conventional ideals of beauty (The Zoella Apartment video)
• Ultra traditional (Zoella=women are passive, domestic an dcultivate space for beauty and visual aesthetic/Alfie=men are active, dominant, and tae no part in domestic/beauty ideals)
• Lack of non-white representation (Gilroy?)
• Judith Butler (performative, constructive gender) (The Zoella Apartment)
• Lisbet Van Zoonen (objectification, sexualisation of bodies)

Industry

Attitude:

• Published by major publisher, Stream Publishing
• Launch of website in 2014 (digital convergence, synergy..)
• Twitter, social media accounts
• Curran and Seaton (limiting of variety, creativity - monopoly of power)
• Ineffective regulation (IPSO)
• Hesmonhalgh (horizontal/vertical integration)

Zoella:

• Monetization, commercialisation of YouTube - driven by financial interest, views and retaining advertising
• 'ad-pocalypse'/algorithms
• Upload compliance leading to self-censorship of videos by users - need to retain advertising and monetisation.
• Narrow, censored content that highly contrasts original 'peer-to-peer' ideology
• Zoella - highly cultivated and constructed media text - reliant on commercial, advertising
• Ineffective regulation (online media)

Ideologies and Viewpoints

Attitude:

• Inclusive, informative 'guide' for the LGBTQ community
• Attitude implies a challenge to hetero normative ideology and a confident stance to any discrimination, prejudice or homophobia - reflecting in online articles
• Aim to promote challenging, subversive representations of traditional masculinity that typically 'other' gay men.
• Adopts stereotypes of gay men in media - re-purposing of stereotypes in order to contstruct own identity, to appropriate and own negative stereotypes.

Zoella:

• Unmediated, 'spontaneous' content that is constructed to feel accessible and relatable.
• Direct mode-of-address and everyday aesthetic contruct homemade, relatable content
• Natural aesthetic (domestic setting) designed to reinforce realism
• Constructed, cultivated 'best friend' persona
• 'Aspirational' relatable content achieved through cultivated technical elements in videos
• Refects social/historical context of vloggers and Youtube content - highly contradictory ideology.