Essay Plan
Introduction; 200 Words
- Lay out argument: Representation of Asians in British Film + TV is changing.
- Mention Primary + Secondary Texts.
Section 1: 400 Words
- Historical Texts
- Trace history of Asians on British Film + TV. Get some textual analysis in.
Section 2: 500 Words
- Primary Text: Citizen Khan
- Explore both sides of this text, look at Criticisms as well as positives.
- Textual Analysis used to support points
- Research
Section 3: 500 Words
- Wider contexts + academic research
- Why this is important
- Solid academic research on topic
- Bring in web research
- Islamaphobia
- Post 9/11
Section 4: 300 Words
- Media theory: Stereotyping + Representation
- Alternative academic research
- Dyer, Medhurst, Perkins.
Section 5: 300 Words
- Future of Diversity on British Film/TV
- Are things changing for the better?
Conclusion: 200 Words
- Do you still agree with your argument: that things are now better than they were.
Wednesday 17 December 2014
Thursday 11 December 2014
Critical Investigation Task 3
Yasmin
In this scene a very traditional family is shown - with a father who wears traditional clothing ie the hat worn by many Muslims and the long top and trousers (salwar kameez) worn with each other. Set in a quite old, worn and torn area which seems to be full of a Muslims. The young boy and father goes into the mosque taking their shoes off, and going to the microphone to go and pray. It is clear that the village is mainly dominated by Muslims as a lot of elderly women and young boys wearing traditional clothing is shown. On a hill, a young girl is shown removing her traditional clothing from a burka and long skirt to a pair of jeans to a jumper and removes her head scarf she then drives off. This portrays a sense of being a bad Muslim as she is going against what she should be doing and removing her religious headwear. Also creating a potential stereotypical point in some people's heads that all Muslims are bad and disrespectful. The young boy is then shown dealing drugs amongst a few other boys & when two girls come to collect they insist a deal by which they get discount if they gave them a 'b******. For a boy that has just come back from the mosque praying, this again creates a bad name as it makes people think that Muslim boys are bad too as he appears to have a deceiving personality; as does the girl.
Bend it like Beckham
In this scene it shows the mother of the young girl (Jess) telling her that she has to get married to a young Sikh boy of their caste. It shows the way the father says that she must start acting like a woman now and to stop playing football. Following her leaving the house with her football gear hidden in the bush! This portrays the way in which Sikhs are quite strict and the way their child's expectations are high. Not allowing her to play football purely because it is not considered as a feminine game leads to conflict and problems. Also forces her to hide her passion. This shows her going against her fathers will & in a sense creating a bad reputation for Sikhs as one could simply stereotype and say they are quite controlling, decieving and bas. Also the way in which the father and mother speak to her, who a lot of authority as she has her head down low and he seems to be sitting very straight up. Connoting that he is above her and shows that she should listen to him and not go against his will.
Tuesday 2 December 2014
Critical Investigation Task 1
Textual Analysis - Citizen Khan
In this scene from Citizen Khan, it shows Mr Khan being very prejudice and racist about Dave being the manager of the mosque. He insists that he can’t possibly be the mosque manager/leader as he isn’t brown like the rest of them and is ‘Ginger’. This portrays the way in which Muslims are represented in the wrong manner, and backs up the idea that the representation may create stereotypes of people thinking that all Muslims are the same. He shows a negative approach towards his daughter getting married, by doing a weird hand gesture which suggests that he’s not 100% okay about the pair of them getting married. The fact that Mr Khan requires and demands the mosque on the day of their marriage and Dave states that it isn’t possible as it is already booked, the way in which Dave is sitting down on the chair and Mr Khan is sitting down speaking to him, shows authority and shows the way in which Mr Khan himself is looking down at him and speaking to him, instead of speak to him on a level. Stating ‘you gingers are very different to the rest of us, not so calm, frickly freckly skin & scottish’. The clothes they are wearing also show a clear representation of the type of clothing that typical Muslims wear, including the hat on top of their heads.
In this scene from Citizen Khan, Shazia and her mother are both discussing the big day, what needs to be brought for it and the fact that a lot of money is going to go towards it. Mr Khan in the living room begins discussing the fact that they are using a lot of toilet roll and one should only use one piece of tissue, and two is way more than you should be using. Then he begins stating the fact that Shazia shouldn’t invest so much money into the wedding and should save up instead and Amjad (fiancé) would be happier if she saved it. He also said how it would be better if she had a small ceremony similar to the way in which white people get married and just serve tea and biscuits and say thank you, goodbye. This conveys the way in which Mr Khan is stingy and as Shazia suggests ‘A cheapskate’. All of a sudden as Shazia and Mrs Khan are both discussing the wedding, Mr Khan butts in and begins raising his voice, saying ‘Chup’ as they both continue speaking about the wedding, then all of a sudden shouts ‘I said CHUP’ with his hand raised in the air as though he was about to slap them, and quiets them down. Showing authority and making Mrs Khan, feel and look down, as though she had no authority over him. Again, they are wearing traditional clothes, ie the hat on top of Mr Khans head & the suit that Mrs Khan is wearing. However Shazia is not wearing a head scarf, which her sister normally wears, portraying that not all Muslims wear them.
Tuesday 18 November 2014
Tutorial
JUST met deadline – 1,500 words on Notes and Quotes, but plenty to do for next week to get it up to 2,500.
Struggling to find Media Magazine articles to research – however, there may be a couple worth looking at. Check MM42 – Representing the Other, it’s videogame based but could still be useful for a quote or two. MM48 Identities in the Media – again, see if there’s a race or ethnicity aspect.
Check Media Edu for case studies – there should be something on race and ethnicity. Worth reading Al Jazeera case study: http://media.edusites.co.uk/article/tv-news-al-jazeera-english-case-study/
This on collective identity also looks interesting: http://media.edusites.co.uk/article/a2-ocr-g325-collective-identity/
Major gap now is academic books and journals…
You’ve got two pdf academic journals and read and collect quotes from – that will start to fill the gap in terms of academic texts. Also check the Islamophobia book in DF07.
You’ll also need to use the BFI trip to fill the academic gap in your research.
Post this up on your blog along with a plan for the next two weeks.
Tuesday 4 November 2014
Notes and Quotes
‘Recent
media emphasis on current Muslim identities devalues memory’s capacity to
illuminate the formation and renegotiation of identities’
‘Muslim identities are frequently subsumed under a generic ‘South Asian identity’ within stereotyped tropes of generational conflict or contrasts between ‘back home’ and ‘home in Britain’, while specifically Muslim identities are highlighted only in narratives designating Muslims as ‘problems’
‘everyday
presentation of British Muslims’ memory narrations confronts conceptions of
Muslim identities as defined solely by religion, subverts the constructed
binary between ‘Muslim’ and ‘British’ identities, and suggests the diversity of
identities within a population that is normatively homogenized.’
Citizen Khan – Primary Text
‘Viewers complained that the new BBC1 comedy stereotyped Muslims and insulted Islam.’
"tasteless
depiction of Islam".
‘Dr Leon Moosavi, a sociologist of race and religion, who specialises on Muslim communities in Britain, said: “It can be defined as racist because it reinforced stereotypes that exist about Asians and Muslims to a non-Asian audience. The constructs are in line with the way racists represent Muslims”’
‘Another,
Sadude, tweeted: “Caked in makeup, a sleeveless top & tight clothes? A
pathetic portrayal of a hijabi. The hijab defines modesty. This isn't it.”’
‘A BBC spokesman said: “New comedy always provokes differing reactions from the audience and as with all sitcoms, the characters are comic creations and not meant to be representative of the community as a whole.” The BBC had received praise from members of the Muslim community, the spokesman added.’
“This could be an Irish family, or a Jewish family or an Italian family,” he argued. “It doesn’t matter what religion you are or what background, we all have the same comedy mishaps.’ –Adil Ray
Yousuf
Bhailok, former Secretary General of the Muslim Council of Britain, said the show
was "the best thing the BBC has done recently". He said: "It is
good to change the stereotyped image of Muslims always being serious and
shouting that has appeared so often in the media.”
Muslim
anger at terror plot in TV drama 24;
'We are greatly concerned by the unremittingly hostile and unbalanced portrayal of Muslims in this series of 24 based upon a preview of the first five episodes that we have seen,' said Iqbal Sacranie, secretary general of the Muslim Council of Britain.
'There is not a single positive Muslim character in the storyline to date.
'At
a time when negative stereotypes of Muslims are on the increase we feel that
Sky - as a major UK broad caster - has a responsibility to challenge these
insidious views, not help to reinforce them.'
Homeland is brilliant drama. But does it present a crude image of Muslims?
Research conducted by social scientists in the 1990s in the US examined how exposure to fictional portrayals of both stereotypes and counter-stereotypes influenced how credibly a study group of 400 students believed real and high-profile cases then in the news.
Citizen Khan: who was offended by it, and why?
The jokes about ecclesiastical bureaucracy, parental hypocrisy and teenage cunning have a target and tone familiar from the genre's previous white British incarnations. On the evidence of the opening episode, imams will come off no worse than vicars have in laugh shows of the past, which may be considered a mark of equality.
Hideously diverse Britain: Are you laughing at me?
The key was collaboration, he says. "I make jokes about everything. And as a writer you need to be able to take risks. But I worked with a trusted group who will say, 'This is rubbish' when it is rubbish." Paul used a telling phrase. You need, he said, to be "respectfully disrespectful". And never lapse into stereotypes. They might have worked on Mind Your Language in the 1970s, but they won't in this day and age.
British Muslims, memory and identity: Representations in British film and television documentary
Recent
media emphasis on current Muslim identities devalues memory’s capacity to
illuminate the formation and renegotiation of identities. In fictional texts
where memories feature, Muslim identities are frequently subsumed under a
generic ‘South Asian identity’ within stereotyped tropes of generational
conflict or contrasts between ‘back home’ and ‘home in Britain’, while
specifically Muslim identities are highlighted only in narratives designating
Muslims as ‘problems’
BBC
receives hundreds of complaints and is accused of insulting Muslims with new
'racist' sitcom Citizen Khan
Viewers complained that the new BBC1 comedy stereotyped Muslims and insulted Islam.
The
corporation has received more than 200 complaints since the first episode aired
on BBC1 on Monday night.
Some claimed that the series, about a self-appointed community leader in Birmingham and his family, was a "tasteless depiction of Islam".
The comedy prompted a fierce debate on Twitter. One viewer asked: “Was Citizen Khan written in 1972? The Pakistani stereotypes are just painful.” Another wrote: “You guys mocked Islam and weren’t funny.”
Another, Sadude, tweeted: “Caked in makeup, a sleeveless top & tight clothes? A pathetic portrayal of a hijabi. The hijab defines modesty. This isn't it.”
A BBC spokesman said: “New comedy always provokes differing reactions from the audience and as with all sitcoms, the characters are comic creations and not meant to be representative of the community as a whole.” The BBC had received praise from members of the Muslim community, the spokesman added.
“This could be an Irish family, or a Jewish family or an Italian family,” he argued. “It doesn’t matter what religion you are or what background, we all have the same comedy mishaps. Ray who wrote Citizen Khan
Change and Continuity in the Representation of British Muslims Before and After 9/11: The UK Context
Muslims’ involvement in deviant activities threatens security in the UK, Muslims
are a threat to British
mainstream values and thus provoke integrative concerns,
there are inherent
cultural differences between Muslims and the host community
which creates tensions in
interpersonal relations and Muslims are increasingly
making their presence felt
in the public sphere
A reasonably common way to refer to a muslim community is
to describe how many members it has, particularly by using a number followed by
the word strong. Other collocates that denote the size of such communities are
large biggest largest sizeable substantial significant and vast. Further
examination of concordance lines reveals two clear discourse prosodies
surrounding the term Muslim Community. The first occurs with collocates such as
antagonise, offensive, upset, uproar, resentment and anger, and constructs the
Muslim Community as having the potential to be offended. While there are many
cases that portray the Muslim Community as angry or offended, a subset of these
stories is interesting in that they describe other people as attempting to ban
certain things in order not to offend Muslims.
There is support for the hypothesis that the London
bombings of 2005 caused the British press to turn more attention to the concept
of a reified, single British Muslim community – a community constructed as easy
to anger, disengaged from the remainder of Britain, home to a number of
extremists (who had the potential to become terrorists) and also at risk from a
blacklash (perhaps unsurprisingly, considering that list of qualities ascribed
to the community by the press).
The term Muslim world has been strongly criticised by
carpenter and cagaptay (2009), who write that it ‘is not only an analytical
error – it’s also a critical public diplomacy mistake… Muslim world unfairly
and singularly assigns adherents of Islam into a figurative ghetto. And
particularly in the post – September, this relegation carries a real moral
hazard. Extremists are the only Muslim group that strongly advocates tying all
Muslims together politically, in a united global community… Every time the
United States speaks to the Muslim World, then it inadvertently legitimizes the
extremists vision.
http://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/tvandradioblog/2012/aug/30/citizen-khan-who-was-actually-offended
Interestingly, the Daily Mail, which on Wednesday ran a piece claiming Muslim outrage about the show, today gives a full page to the broadcaster and former Apprentice runner-up Saira Khan, in which she argues that a mature community needs to be able to laugh at itself, and that the scene that has reportedly attracted most complaints – in which a teenage girl quickly puts on a hijab over western hair and makeup to appease her father – was recognisable from her own experience and observation.
The jokes about ecclesiastical bureaucracy, parental hypocrisy and teenage cunning have a target and tone familiar from the genre's previous white British incarnations. On the evidence of the opening episode, imams will come off no worse than vicars have in laugh shows of the past, which may be considered a mark of equality.
http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=FSmtEP2qmKgC&pg=PT139&dq=changes+of+asians+representations+in+media&hl=en&sa=X&ei=9CxKVKXhArGu7AaomIDoCQ&ved=0CDcQ6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=changes%20of%20asians%20representations%20in%20media&f=false
The images of Asians and Asian Americans found in entertainment television have essentially paralleled the depictions in film. Throughout television history most of the roles offered to Asian actors have been in supporting roles, especially as domestic help or action hero sidekicks..
http://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/tvandradioblog/2012/aug/30/citizen-khan-who-was-actually-offended
Interestingly, the Daily Mail, which on Wednesday ran a piece claiming Muslim outrage about the show, today gives a full page to the broadcaster and former Apprentice runner-up Saira Khan, in which she argues that a mature community needs to be able to laugh at itself, and that the scene that has reportedly attracted most complaints – in which a teenage girl quickly puts on a hijab over western hair and makeup to appease her father – was recognisable from her own experience and observation.
The jokes about ecclesiastical bureaucracy, parental hypocrisy and teenage cunning have a target and tone familiar from the genre's previous white British incarnations. On the evidence of the opening episode, imams will come off no worse than vicars have in laugh shows of the past, which may be considered a mark of equality.
http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=FSmtEP2qmKgC&pg=PT139&dq=changes+of+asians+representations+in+media&hl=en&sa=X&ei=9CxKVKXhArGu7AaomIDoCQ&ved=0CDcQ6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=changes%20of%20asians%20representations%20in%20media&f=false
The images of Asians and Asian Americans found in entertainment television have essentially paralleled the depictions in film. Throughout television history most of the roles offered to Asian actors have been in supporting roles, especially as domestic help or action hero sidekicks..
http://media.edusites.co.uk/article/tv-news-al-jazeera-english-case-study/
One teacher asked if online news is an acceptable medium for Collective Identity looking at the representation of Muslims post 9/11 using films and online Newws. This idea has been greenlighted so it must be OK. This seems an interesting way into collectie identity as it can explore different areas such as Collective identity through shard faith, as well as nationality, and the way these concepts are perceived through media texts.
Films could include Battle for Haditha (2007) is documentary maker Nick Broomfields first drama - a concise, lucid, devastating depiction of the Haditha massacre. The basic facts: November 19 2005; IED one Marine killed and two wounded; twenty four Iraqi men, women and children killed in response to fear, vengeance, and the inscrutable factors that motivate men under fire . The sequences that set this film apart from the other films and TV shows about the war in Iraq are the ones that follow the Iraqi family members through their days errands and routines.
This balanced and non judgemental film is a mature dissection of factors leading to the the insurgency in Iraq and the horrors of war.
From Aladdin to Lost Ark, Muslims get angry at ‘bad guy’ film images
Crude and exaggerated stereotypes are fuelling Islamophobia, says study A report by the Islamic Human Rights Commission argues that films as diverse as The Siege, a portrayal of a terrorist attack on New York starring Denzel Washington and Bruce Willis, the Disney film Aladdin and the British comedy East is East have helped demonise Muslims as violent, dangerous and threatening, and reinforce prejudices.
Many young Muslims have a common set of local and global grievances - and a small number are ready to express these grievances by joining the global jihad, or holy war, being waged by Al-Qaida and other radical groups.
Most of Europe’s Muslims, including the young, are non-violent and their core demands boil down to a need for respect and recognition. Failure to foster a minimum of dignity, however, will play into the hands of the extreme fringe.
Britain since the 1960s has pursued a mix of policies collectively known as “multiculturalism”. This rejects the idea of forced assimilation, and seeks to empower minority communities and enhance their sense of cultural identity.
https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B0i5diL3vrEiZVRKZE8wUGdLU1E/edit
(MM42)Orientalism and the ‘Other’
A distorted view of the Middle East and Arabs and Muslims has been a historical phenomenon, marginalising the representation of ‘ordinary’ Arabs/ Muslims. The influential and controversial literary critic Edward Said discusses this issue in his classic book Orientalism, published in 1978. He has said:So far as the United States seems to be concerned ... Muslims and Arabs are essentially seen as either oil suppliers or potential terrorists. Said argues that the Middle East and its people are presented as ‘other’, in a realm of ‘desert, camels, Bedouins and caliphs’. This concept of Orientalism and the Other is an excellent way of approaching representation issues for examination and coursework essays.
Consider the plot of the popular PS3/Xbox game, Battlefield 3, set in 2014. Here, a ‘Sgt. Blackburn’ leads a five-man squad on a mission to find and safely return a US squad investigating a possible IED (Improvised Explosive Device aka terrorist bomb) in Sulaymaniyah, Iraq, whose last known position was a market controlled by a hostile militia called the ‘PLR’. The game has been accused of promoting racism and violence with an unrealistic Middle Eastern worldview, which does not reflect the reality in Iraq at all.The representations exploit stereotypical generalisations and clichés. In the digital age, computer games are a very powerful form of mainstream media that shapes our comprehension and understanding of the world by constructing powerful iconic representations. Arab columnist Aijaz Zaka Syed, suggested that games like Battlefield 3 are dangerous:
Islamaphobia in the media since 9/11
'Our newspapers and television screens have again shown us images of Muslim men burning American flags whilst brandishing rifles, juxtaposed with angry young men shouting outside a north London mosque. Afghan women covered from head to toe in the burqha followed by women wearing the hijab protesting against military action outside the Pakistan embassy in London. And amongst all this, we are shown images of Muslim children holding placards bearing the face of Osama bin Laden on the streets of Islamabad.'
'So just how much truth lies at the foundations of the media's reporting? The French sociologist Jean Baudrillard states that media news is a hyper-realistic construct, where 'the real and the imaginary continually collapse into each other'.Considering those beliefs that are widely held about news reporting and the situation again raises further concerns.'
'What is happening in the media is that they are seeking out those with the loudest voices who fit their own agenda rather than fitting the agenda around the more significant voices, deliberately suggesting a cynicism where all Muslims have synonymous views. Not only that, but when the press are including in their reporting of these non-representative voices that they entered Britain as asylum'
'If a war materialises, whether against terrorism, Afghanistan, the Islamic world or indeed Muslims themselves, then as the saying goes, 'the first casualty of war is.
http://www.theguardian.com/media/2005/jan/30/broadcasting.religion
'The Muslim Council of Britain is so angered by the plotline, which takes place in 'real time' and stretches across 24 episodes, that it has asked the media regulator, Ofcom, to investigate the show, saying it breaches broadcasting codes by misrepresenting ethnic minorities.
A number of products of black and Asian culture have recently enjoyed widespread appeal both to majority audiences in Britain and audiences abroad. The 1990s saw an unprecedented success of Black and Asian British fiction on the book market, which has culminated with Zadie Smith's international best seller White Teeth (2000). And it is in the 1990's that black and specifically Asian British narrative films became a viable commodity on the cinema and television markets, complementing, in television, the noteable success of comedy and the airing of documentart programmes about the Black and Asian experience in prime time slots for the average television viewer. Foloowing the earlier success of Hanif Kureishi and Stephen Frears collaborations My Beautiful laundrette (1985) and Sammy and Rosie get Laid (1987), East is East (1999) and Bend it Like Bekham (2002) did extremely well not only on the national circuit but also internationally, where they confirmed 'Asian themes' as an area representative of 'British Cinema'. Parminder Vir notes 'the enourmous impact that the commercial and critical success of East is East has had on the UK Asian market, talent and production. In Britain alone east is East took £10.3 million and helped to establish the crossover potential of Asian led talent and stories. (Vir 2001, 05). The much maligned paucity of Black and Asian quality television drama was counteracted with multi part productions like the Buddha of Suburbia (BBC 1993), The Final Passage (Channel 4 1996), Baby Father (BBC 2001) and White Teeth (Channel 4 2002), which all adapted esteemed novels by Black and Asian writers (Hanif Kureishi, Caryl Phillips, Patrick Augustusand Zadie Smith Respectively) and which were all produced with considerable budgets.
In the 1990s and beyond then, Black and Asian media practitioners find themselves in a what may be described as a productive conflict of perspectives: they are faced with new and more production possibility and a potentially higher audience appreciation, but they work in a society still not devoid of negative stereotyping and essentialist views of race and ethnicity. Accessing and appropriating mainstream media and finding new ways of utilising and 'claiming openly self-critical positions indicate an awareness that latent and covert institutional barriers may exsist and require a self examination formerly demand unnecessary. Such awareness has been triggered by the inquiry into the death of Stephen Lawrence as well as the Race Relations (Amendment) Act of 2000, whcih required public bodies to demonstrate that their policies work towards equality.
One teacher asked if online news is an acceptable medium for Collective Identity looking at the representation of Muslims post 9/11 using films and online Newws. This idea has been greenlighted so it must be OK. This seems an interesting way into collectie identity as it can explore different areas such as Collective identity through shard faith, as well as nationality, and the way these concepts are perceived through media texts.
Films could include Battle for Haditha (2007) is documentary maker Nick Broomfields first drama - a concise, lucid, devastating depiction of the Haditha massacre. The basic facts: November 19 2005; IED one Marine killed and two wounded; twenty four Iraqi men, women and children killed in response to fear, vengeance, and the inscrutable factors that motivate men under fire . The sequences that set this film apart from the other films and TV shows about the war in Iraq are the ones that follow the Iraqi family members through their days errands and routines.
This balanced and non judgemental film is a mature dissection of factors leading to the the insurgency in Iraq and the horrors of war.
From Aladdin to Lost Ark, Muslims get angry at ‘bad guy’ film images
Crude and exaggerated stereotypes are fuelling Islamophobia, says study A report by the Islamic Human Rights Commission argues that films as diverse as The Siege, a portrayal of a terrorist attack on New York starring Denzel Washington and Bruce Willis, the Disney film Aladdin and the British comedy East is East have helped demonise Muslims as violent, dangerous and threatening, and reinforce prejudices.
Many young Muslims have a common set of local and global grievances - and a small number are ready to express these grievances by joining the global jihad, or holy war, being waged by Al-Qaida and other radical groups.
Most of Europe’s Muslims, including the young, are non-violent and their core demands boil down to a need for respect and recognition. Failure to foster a minimum of dignity, however, will play into the hands of the extreme fringe.
Britain since the 1960s has pursued a mix of policies collectively known as “multiculturalism”. This rejects the idea of forced assimilation, and seeks to empower minority communities and enhance their sense of cultural identity.
https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B0i5diL3vrEiZVRKZE8wUGdLU1E/edit
(MM42)Orientalism and the ‘Other’
A distorted view of the Middle East and Arabs and Muslims has been a historical phenomenon, marginalising the representation of ‘ordinary’ Arabs/ Muslims. The influential and controversial literary critic Edward Said discusses this issue in his classic book Orientalism, published in 1978. He has said:So far as the United States seems to be concerned ... Muslims and Arabs are essentially seen as either oil suppliers or potential terrorists. Said argues that the Middle East and its people are presented as ‘other’, in a realm of ‘desert, camels, Bedouins and caliphs’. This concept of Orientalism and the Other is an excellent way of approaching representation issues for examination and coursework essays.
Consider the plot of the popular PS3/Xbox game, Battlefield 3, set in 2014. Here, a ‘Sgt. Blackburn’ leads a five-man squad on a mission to find and safely return a US squad investigating a possible IED (Improvised Explosive Device aka terrorist bomb) in Sulaymaniyah, Iraq, whose last known position was a market controlled by a hostile militia called the ‘PLR’. The game has been accused of promoting racism and violence with an unrealistic Middle Eastern worldview, which does not reflect the reality in Iraq at all.The representations exploit stereotypical generalisations and clichés. In the digital age, computer games are a very powerful form of mainstream media that shapes our comprehension and understanding of the world by constructing powerful iconic representations. Arab columnist Aijaz Zaka Syed, suggested that games like Battlefield 3 are dangerous:
Islamaphobia in the media since 9/11
'Our newspapers and television screens have again shown us images of Muslim men burning American flags whilst brandishing rifles, juxtaposed with angry young men shouting outside a north London mosque. Afghan women covered from head to toe in the burqha followed by women wearing the hijab protesting against military action outside the Pakistan embassy in London. And amongst all this, we are shown images of Muslim children holding placards bearing the face of Osama bin Laden on the streets of Islamabad.'
'So just how much truth lies at the foundations of the media's reporting? The French sociologist Jean Baudrillard states that media news is a hyper-realistic construct, where 'the real and the imaginary continually collapse into each other'.Considering those beliefs that are widely held about news reporting and the situation again raises further concerns.'
'What is happening in the media is that they are seeking out those with the loudest voices who fit their own agenda rather than fitting the agenda around the more significant voices, deliberately suggesting a cynicism where all Muslims have synonymous views. Not only that, but when the press are including in their reporting of these non-representative voices that they entered Britain as asylum'
'If a war materialises, whether against terrorism, Afghanistan, the Islamic world or indeed Muslims themselves, then as the saying goes, 'the first casualty of war is.
http://www.theguardian.com/media/2005/jan/30/broadcasting.religion
'The Muslim Council of Britain is so angered by the plotline, which takes place in 'real time' and stretches across 24 episodes, that it has asked the media regulator, Ofcom, to investigate the show, saying it breaches broadcasting codes by misrepresenting ethnic minorities.
'We are greatly concerned by the unremittingly hostile and unbalanced portrayal of Muslims in this series of 24 based upon a preview of the first five episodes that we have seen,' said Iqbal Sacranie, secretary general of the Muslim Council of Britain.'
While some woman of colour are praised for owning their heritage, other women of colour are admonished for appearing to fail to embrace their race or ethnicity. In season tow, April, An Asian woman is critisized by the judges for lacking personality which Banks later explains means that she doesn't embrace her heritage, but when April initially objects by explaining that she does not identify herself as an Asian American but as simply American, Banks replies that she will be percieved in the modelling industry as 'Asian' and that she shoudl work her exotic angle. In season three, Kelle, An african American woman who grew up in a primarily white gated community, self deprecatingly describes herself as a white girl with a tan and faults herself for having a monkey mouth.
In todays world, race and ethnicity have fallen into the category of precious ready to wear difference. To be profitable, racial and cultural diversity - global heterogeneity must be reducible to such common, reproducible denominators as colour and costume. Race and racial differences - whatever that might mean in the grander social order -must be reducible to skin colour, or more correctly, to the tint of the plastic poured into each Barbie mould. Each doll is marketed as representing something or someone as in the real world, even as the politica, social and economic particulars of that world are not only erased but, in a curious way, made the same.
In the 1990s and beyond then, Black and Asian media practitioners find themselves in a what may be described as a productive conflict of perspectives: they are faced with new and more production possibility and a potentially higher audience appreciation, but they work in a society still not devoid of negative stereotyping and essentialist views of race and ethnicity. Accessing and appropriating mainstream media and finding new ways of utilising and 'claiming openly self-critical positions indicate an awareness that latent and covert institutional barriers may exsist and require a self examination formerly demand unnecessary. Such awareness has been triggered by the inquiry into the death of Stephen Lawrence as well as the Race Relations (Amendment) Act of 2000, whcih required public bodies to demonstrate that their policies work towards equality.
Friday 24 October 2014
Critical Investigation Tutorial
Lots of potential in the title – but we probably need to
focus it in a little on one of the aspects. You can address the balance of
coverage within the essay (ISIS etc.) but I think for an essay title it’s a
little long.
Excellent start to research – some superb links that will
provide very good information and quotes for your investigation.
Primary and secondary texts look good – focus in on them and
as part of your Notes and Quotes document identify, analyse and make notes on
specific scenes.
Great to see internet links and books already on the
research plan – now we need to move all of this over on to N&Q blog post
and get the research and page numbers typed up.
Additional book – read Islamophobia (on bookshelf in DF07).
More books available online or BFI Library trip.
Internet links – some good ones already but also look in the
Guardian…
Journals – two attached but must be more out there, keep
looking and we’ll have a look in the next tutorial too.
Lots to be working on – this is SO much better and you’ve
got a great platform for a top investigation now.
Tuesday 14 October 2014
Proposal For Critical Investigation
Working Title
To what extent do texts like Citizen Khan suggest that the representation of Asians in British television and film is changing? Does comedy featuring Asians/Muslims help balance out negative media coverage in the news (terrorism, ISIS etc.) How does it impact the audiences?
To what extent do texts like Citizen Khan suggest that the representation of Asians in British television and film is changing? Does comedy featuring Asians/Muslims help balance out negative media coverage in the news (terrorism, ISIS etc.) How does it impact the audiences?
Angle
Positive impact on the audience as audiences feel more equal especially Asians- sense of being accepted in society and have a lot more connection with the characters. Kats and Blumler: Personal identity people are able to relate themselves to the actors on the screen,
Positive impact on the audience as audiences feel more equal especially Asians- sense of being accepted in society and have a lot more connection with the characters. Kats and Blumler: Personal identity people are able to relate themselves to the actors on the screen,
Stanly Cohin- Moral Affect IF negative..
Hypothesis
Watching texts like Citizen Khan make Muslims even more Islam phobic. In some of the scenes of the episodes there is racist content to white and black Africans, this is done in a serious of events when Mr Khan makes fun out of the black people, eg 'go eat your banana and rice' etc. This challenges the way other race colours. The theory of Saieed come to mind, civilised and uncivilised. Also a black race theory as they are being stereotypical of races. Other audiences watching it preferably middle class working as it is after Ofcom hours (after 9pm) non pre-watershed, they may develop different thinking and attitudes towards Asians as a whole. For example they may be looked upon as sly, and sneaky, as for example Mr Khans daughter is wearing a scarf in front of him, however behind his back she takes it off, ie when she’s going out. Another example is when she is always on her phone and she used the excuse that she is reading the 'Quran' or she is studying about her religion just to stay on the good side of him. However she is using her phone for social reasons.
Watching texts like Citizen Khan make Muslims even more Islam phobic. In some of the scenes of the episodes there is racist content to white and black Africans, this is done in a serious of events when Mr Khan makes fun out of the black people, eg 'go eat your banana and rice' etc. This challenges the way other race colours. The theory of Saieed come to mind, civilised and uncivilised. Also a black race theory as they are being stereotypical of races. Other audiences watching it preferably middle class working as it is after Ofcom hours (after 9pm) non pre-watershed, they may develop different thinking and attitudes towards Asians as a whole. For example they may be looked upon as sly, and sneaky, as for example Mr Khans daughter is wearing a scarf in front of him, however behind his back she takes it off, ie when she’s going out. Another example is when she is always on her phone and she used the excuse that she is reading the 'Quran' or she is studying about her religion just to stay on the good side of him. However she is using her phone for social reasons.
Linked production
For the
linked production piece, I have three different ideas. Firstly creating a news
report that covers all different aspects of how representations of Asians in
British Television and film is changing. Including others opinions about the
different programmes and films, ie Citizen Khan, Goodness Gracious me - having
several people speaking about how they feel when watching programmes as such.
The news reporter can start off each with an example and speak about the one
point consistently so the point of the report gets into the audiences head.
This idea however could be a bit too short as news reports can be quite short.
The second idea I have is creating a little show - similar to the first idea,
allowing different people from different backgrounds to express the way they
feel about programmes and films as such being broadcasted on British
Television. This would be a better option in comparison to the first one as it
is a lot longer and I would be able to work on it more. All these different
ideas link back to the question as those on the news/tv show would be able to answer
as to what extent they believe that the representation of Asians in British
television and film is changing? Allowing them to express their views. The
final idea I have come up with is an approximately two minute long trailer for
a documentary film called PROVOKED. The narrative will be an Indian girl who
gets married with a white guy and creates so much controversy with the
community and family, this shows the journey of how she overcomes it. But also
how there’s moral panic for younger generations who may follow her and Indian
families hate that, This will unfold traditions and voice Asian British woman’s
rights to marry whoever they want as long as they are happy without having to
do it behind their parents back. I will also show a clip of how her family
force her to marry a guy from India, this links to Citizen Khan because the
representations of women in today’s society are related to this, as in my
critical investigation I will be debating about Asian women and how they are
not allowed to do what makes them happy. There’s also a clip shown in Citizen
Khan which I will be discussing about. Therefore it links to my production.
Secondary texts:
- Yasmin (2004)
- East is East(1999)
- Four Lions(2010)
- Kumars at no 42(2001)
- Bend it Like Bekham(2002)
- Goodness Gracious Me(1996)
Media languages and Forms
The denotative meaning of
this would be a comedy created. This is evident from online as the director and
creator himself has stated that he did this to make a comedy for the audience
and no offence was intended, he himself is a Muslim too, which backs this up.
From the series itself it is quite evident looking at the way Mr Khan acts, ie
like a complete bimbo, with a constant throat full of flem and always raising
his voice and taking the mick out of people he doesn’t like.
The connotations however,
of Citizen Khan are that Mr Khan (Adil Ray) intends to offend and be racist
with the comments he says, and as a whole the way the narrative is of the
series. Such as the way in which the female girls are represented in it, with
Shazia always removing her headscarf when away from her father. This shows
disrespect and rudeness – as she is doing what she shouldn’t be doing. This
could potentially offend the audience as they may feel that Muslims are being
represented in the wrong way and because of what is being shown, they may think
more and more people who are watching it are going to be influenced and as a
result stereotype their behaviour.
Media Values and Ideology
The actual value that is
being presented in this is the representation of Muslims and the way they are
being conveyed throughout these series. And how they reinforce stereotypes of
how Muslims behave and act on a daily basis.
Genre
The genre for Citizen Khan
is Comedy. Based on a Muslim Family in Birmingham – always bringing problems
upon himself, he has to sort out. Creating a drama for the audience to view,
and with the costumes they are wearing, they represent the Muslim family
correctly, ie traditional dresses, hats, scarfes, etc.
The generic conventions
that present that Citizen Khan is a comedy is the fact that it isn’t conveyed
as a serious programme, however is split up to several hilarious scenes, which
do not fail to make the audience laugh. Therefore – bringing laughter to the
audience is a general convention.
Another generic convention that this is a comedy series, is the fact
that it is located in a very bright area with a lot of people in it and the
title sequence shows the scene of them in the car and Mr Khan parking the car
half in his alley way and half on top of the actual road. This is something
unusual however after this occurs he smiles. This therefore shows that it isn’t
a serious show/series, and conveys the fact that there will be humour to
extent. Also throughout the series, Mr Khan isn’t a very series character, and
neither are the rest of the characters, which again shows that it is a comedy.
This all fulfils the audiences expectations because with all these factors and
the correct costumes and the way in which one character communicates with
another is what makes it a comedy.
Media
Representations
Males in texts similar to Citizen Khan, are always
represented as the main person, and the boss of the place. They are shown to
have a stronger position in comparison to the Female. They are given much more
respect than the rest of those in the family. For example, in Citizen Khan,
Shazia refers to him as ‘Papaji’ which is a respectful way of calling him dad.
She also tends to do as he says most of the time, again showing more importance
and respect shown towards him. Women however are shown to have less power in
the house and represented as house wives, and never out of the house as they
are always cooking and cleaning. Citizen Khan itself shows the mother figure to
be in the house all the time, looking after the mother in law, cooking and
cleaning and only ever out when she is visiting the mosque. Women are also
represented with less freedom than the male in these kind of texts.
Media Audiences
Citizen Khan is mainly
targeted at those who enjoy comedy and understand it. The demographic target is
of females that are age ranged between 15 – 35 year olds, belonging to B, C1
and C2. As the BBC are a very well-known institution and there are millions of
people watching on there, I believe the target audience are mainstreamers.
The way in which the
viewers are most likely to receive this text would be in a good way as it is
something funny and full of humour and that is what the intending reading is. A
comedy for all and something to enjoy. However the possible reading would be
that it has been made in order to offend Muslims and the way they are. Due to
the representations of them in the series, and their behaviour. Despite the
fact that the director himself is a Muslim and he made it for the purpose of
enjoyment and not to create a conflict.
Narrative
The narrative for texts similar to Citizen
Khan are mostly about an Asian family or two based in the UK. As the audience
we watch these and get thinking and come to believe that what goes on in these
texts is true and is based upon how Asian families are in reality. This begins
the stereotypical views and thoughts of the audience. For example, audiences
could begin to actually believe that the way Mr Khans daughter removes her
headscarf when she is not in-front of him, is the way every Muslim girl is.
Each and every episode is based upon something that goes wrong for Mr Khan, but
then he resolves it in any and every way he possibly can, no matter what.
Linking to the equilibrium theory. The most important theme of the narrative is
the representation of Muslims as a whole.
SHEP;
Socially;
- How representations in programmes similar to Citizen Khan effect the audiences and how it is socially spoken about and spread. Negative/Positive representations.
Historically;
- Goodness Gracious Me is an example of a series similar to Citizen Khan, and was first aired on July 5th 1996, 18 years from now. This was shot with an Indian family, full of humour and portrayed what an Indian family would be like. There were 5 Series, 2 broadcasted through the use of radio and 3 of them through television. There were a total of 39 episodes aired, 19 being on the radio and 20 being on the television. They were 25 minutes long in total. Originally running from 5th July 1996 up until 19 February 2001.
Economic;
- BBC is paid for via television licence fees, if one is not able to pay these, or during periods of on going recession when one hasn't got the money to pay for it, it will result in not being able to watch it.
Politically;
- The issues are that representations of specific religions in the Asian backgrounds are being represented in a way that looks negative to its audiences, causing conflict and sending out the wrong idea. Citizen Khan to be specific, politically is believed to show the wrong side of Muslims therefore causing unhappy viewers and online debates.
Issues/Debates
Representations and Stereotyping - This relates to the issue with Citizen Khan, as it represents the way in which Muslims act, dress, and in general how they are. The way they are portrayed is what begins stereotyping, for example, throughout the way Mr Khan lies about small things, and the daughter Shazia lies about reading the holy book and studying her religion, could lead to stereotypes as the viewers may believe this is how every Muslim family is
Media Effects - as the audiences look at and identify the texts, it may change the way they think and do things. In programmes such as Citizen Khan, Shazia removes her headscarf when leaving the house behind her fathers back, this could give ideas to other muslim girls and could make them re-evaluate what they do and make them thing of this as an idea to get away with what they want, ie not wearing a headscarf. Additionally, the audiences could also change their view on Muslims, and label them as 'liars'.
News Values - this relates to Citizen Khan, because as soon as the first episode aired on August 27th 2012, it wasn't such a long time after when Adil Ray - the director, hit the headlines about having created an offensive series, aimed to offend Muslims. With debates going on every were online and news reports going viral this spread every were in the world.
Moral Panics - There are moral panics for more of the younger generations who watch the series and similar series, because the representations of the characters could impact one, the way they think and believe. This is because after watching the daughters behavior in the series and what they do and the way they talk to one another, shouting and screaming, could make those that belong to an Asian/Muslim family that it is okay to do this.
Theories
Structuralism
The relationship between objects and its meaning - a generic understanding used in all texts. This links to semiotics, for example the colour red has so many different meanings such as anger or love, and this is differently interpretated by the different people who consume and view the text.
Audience Theories
Hypodermic Needle is the way in which different texts in media injects messages into the audiences head. This is similar to the effect Citizen Khan had on its audiences, as it put in negative messages into some and positive into some. As people took it as something intending to offend, however some took it as it should be; humour.
Dyers entertainment and Utopia
This is the fact that audiences want to consume specific media texts as they are going through their own problems and are full of tension, but consuming this media - they recieve energy. And this is one of the reasons, audience watched texts such as Citizen Khan, as it was humorous and full of entertainment.
Post Structuralism - This totally rejects the idea of structuralism, ie nothing can be represented as the real or the truth, meanings can not be fixed; polysemic. So what has been shown isn't always how it is meant to be, as scenes are cut off and the script is all written.
Media Texts
Citizen Khan - Main
- Yasmin (2004)
- East is East(1999)
- Four Lions(2010)
- Kumars at no 42(2001)
- Bend it Like Bekham(2002)
- Goodness Gracious Me(1996)
Tv Documentaries
http://www.ejumpcut.org/archive/jc50.2008/reelBadArabs/text.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/11/arts/television/11redd.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
Internet Links
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/cifamerica/2011/nov/17/reality-all-american-muslim-reality-tv
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/static/in_depth/uk/2002/race/how_entertainment_changed.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/static/in_depth/uk/2002/race/how_entertainment_changed.stm
http://asiainstitute.unimelb.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0008/571625/akbarzadeh-islam-media.pdf
Academic Books/Texts
http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=FeOJAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA196&lpg=PA196&dq=representations+of+asians+in+british+television+changing&source=bl&ots=Z3xHnmXHzc&sig=xI5kKxOoodLJgG2zB_5qELuh9-Q&hl=en&sa=X&ei=l7Y9VN63FoHB7gam3IHABw&ved=0CCcQ6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q&f=false -
http://www.uk.sagepub.com/booksProdDesc.nav?prodId=Book211200 -
http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=vhWJaNs0DUEC&printsec=frontcover&dq=changes+of+muslims+representations+in+media&hl=en&sa=X&ei=wi1KVLfyJ4ON7Qbz6oGQDg&ved=0CCkQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=changes%20of%20muslims%20representations%20in%20media&f=false
Academic Books/Texts
http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=FeOJAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA196&lpg=PA196&dq=representations+of+asians+in+british+television+changing&source=bl&ots=Z3xHnmXHzc&sig=xI5kKxOoodLJgG2zB_5qELuh9-Q&hl=en&sa=X&ei=l7Y9VN63FoHB7gam3IHABw&ved=0CCcQ6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q&f=false -
Television, Ethnicity and Cultural Change
By Marie Gillespiehttp://www.uk.sagepub.com/booksProdDesc.nav?prodId=Book211200 -
Representing Black Britain
Black and Asian Images on Television
http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=FSmtEP2qmKgC&pg=PT139&dq=changes+of+asians+representations+in+media&hl=en&sa=X&ei=9CxKVKXhArGu7AaomIDoCQ&ved=0CDcQ6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=changes%20of%20asians%20representations%20in%20media&f=false - Diversity in US Mass Mediahttp://books.google.co.uk/books?id=vhWJaNs0DUEC&printsec=frontcover&dq=changes+of+muslims+representations+in+media&hl=en&sa=X&ei=wi1KVLfyJ4ON7Qbz6oGQDg&ved=0CCkQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=changes%20of%20muslims%20representations%20in%20media&f=false
Wednesday 17 September 2014
Ignite Presentation Feedback
- Good Question - Perhaps needs a bit of rephrasing
- Identifying male/female roles is appropriate for topic and question - need to link it to audience though
(how it impacts each gender)
- Some of those quotes were interesting - but too much text and no real discussion of them (particurlarly the critical comments)
- Mentioning secondary texts is helpful but needs to link to question and topic. Particurlarly stereotypes in mainstream shows like Eastenders.
- There is a lack of depth - tell us about those key scenes and how the link to question/audience
- Some big questions here about religion, comedy and stereotypes. Need to address these in much more detail in the essay.
- Question and Answer got good discussion going
- Question of whether Muslims are offended is a really interesting aspect - make this a major aspect of critical investigation.
What went well;
Created a good debate and an on going discussion.
Got the audience involved.
Chosen question got a lot of response, giving more and more different aspects I could write my critical investigation based on.
I managed to use at least one theory in my presentation to describe the narrative.
I used a range of examples that linked well with my chosen topic.
Even better if;
I had done more preparation and rehearsed.
Spoke about each section in more depth - in order to address my point clearer.
I had used more theories to relate.
Used more up to date examples in order to back up my argument.
Focused more on my question rather than other aspects of the topic.
In order to turn my Ignite Presentation into a top quality Critical Investigation, I need to make sure that I adjust my question and make sure that it
- Identifying male/female roles is appropriate for topic and question - need to link it to audience though
(how it impacts each gender)
- Some of those quotes were interesting - but too much text and no real discussion of them (particurlarly the critical comments)
- Mentioning secondary texts is helpful but needs to link to question and topic. Particurlarly stereotypes in mainstream shows like Eastenders.
- There is a lack of depth - tell us about those key scenes and how the link to question/audience
- Some big questions here about religion, comedy and stereotypes. Need to address these in much more detail in the essay.
- Question and Answer got good discussion going
- Question of whether Muslims are offended is a really interesting aspect - make this a major aspect of critical investigation.
What went well;
Created a good debate and an on going discussion.
Got the audience involved.
Chosen question got a lot of response, giving more and more different aspects I could write my critical investigation based on.
I managed to use at least one theory in my presentation to describe the narrative.
I used a range of examples that linked well with my chosen topic.
Even better if;
I had done more preparation and rehearsed.
Spoke about each section in more depth - in order to address my point clearer.
I had used more theories to relate.
Used more up to date examples in order to back up my argument.
Focused more on my question rather than other aspects of the topic.
In order to turn my Ignite Presentation into a top quality Critical Investigation, I need to make sure that I adjust my question and make sure that it
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