Mediation and the effects it can have on representations essay

Collective identity is the term used to describe an individuals sense of belonging to a group,who share a set of traditions and values. This is not to be confused with representation, the two definitions are very different to each other. Representation is the way ideas , objects , people, groups  and life forms are depicted by the mass media, this is an objective view. The important point to pick out in that definition is that these views are depicted by the mass media, that is the main difference between collective identity and representation, the representation is the product of the collective identity once it has been mediated through the media. 

So why is mediation so important in the role of representation? Everything we are told on the TV, newspapers, radio, adverts are all mediated to make us think a certain way, the idea comes from the Hypodermic Needle theory. This theory suggests that audiences are a blank canvas that just sit in front of the TV and digest everything as being true, wholesome facts. If this is in fact true then the media has a greater effect on our thoughts then we think, and when mediation comes into play, it is hard to differentiate between what is a true representation and what has been made to make us feel a certain way towards a certain topic. 


Mediation is the process of selection and shaping, creating meaning from an original event. There are social, economic and political factors weighing on those who have to make decisions in the mediating process. Numerous decisions are made in this process, for example: the selection of material, the type of language, the framing and composition of shots, the style of presentation etc. So in summary, mediation is the way in which media edit what is being shown to us in order to create a specific opinion on the topic shown. For example, during the general election it turns out the newspaper you read at the time would depict which way you would vote. Newspapers are highly opinionated to fit the beliefs of the owners of the newspaper company, so if you read the Telegraph or Daily Mail you are more likely to have voted for Conservatives as that is a very right wing newspaper. Whereas if you were to read the Guardian or the Mirror you were more likely to have voted Labour as they're a very left wing newspaper.So therefore hegemony has a very big impact on mediation. Hegemony leadership or dominance, especially by one state or social group over others. Enforcing the beliefs of one dominant group onto the other. If we take the example of newspapers, mentioned previously, it is very clear to see that the beliefs of the head executives of these papers are forcing their views onto the readers. Rupert Murdoch is a great example of how your socio-economic status can give you such power to enforce your beliefs onto millions. 


To conclude, the mediation of a text can change the way that audiences perceive different groups of people. The collective identity and representation can be confused and the representation perceived by the media can be wrongly assumed to be the collective identity. For example, the representation of the youth after the 2010 London riots was depicted by the media as criminals. 565