Stereotypes

Stereotypes is a label and the short hand way to understand something.
-Stereotypes focus on certain characteristics
-Some stereotypes are negative. Eg men say woman are bad drivers... If so then why are womans car insurence cheaper?

How does media use stereotypes?
-They use stereotypes that already exist within cultures
-Is media reinforcing stereotypes eg, in soaps?
-Often the media is criticised for creating stereotypes, but they are usually part of the audiences way of thinking about the world anyway.

Some people argue that stereotypes can be truthful..

-Stereotypes are assumptions about all members of a particular group.
"All woman like to gossip" some woman do, some woman don't. Some men do, some men don't.

Tessa Perkins noted that stereotypes do have some truth that does make it plausable. Some woman may be more comfortable doing it as it is more culturally acceptable.

Butler argues that the boundaries are blurring. Stereotypes are negative.
-Gossip is a bad thing, a waste of time.
-See people in a group, not individually.
-Men would have power over woman by putting them down
-Stereotypes give a 'complete picture'

Stereotypes can be positive:

-Positive represtentation are called Corrective stereotypes or Counter types.
-Society is more aware of positive stereotypes
-Many media texts have attempted to construct new approaches to old stereotypes. Eg buffy the vampire slayer- despite being a young blonde female (typically the victim of a horror), buffy is the hero and rescuer.

What makes a stereotype?
-Appearence (physical appearence)
-Behaviour (Males being interested in football, Woman like to gossip)
-Attitude (Age) (Men don't like long term relationships)

Our task was to choose a well known stereotype..
We chose Barry Newton (newt) from the well know television series 'Hollyoaks'
-He has darkk hair, pale skin, dark makeup. Always assosiated with the colour black or dark colours, he typically has depressing views on the world. Emo's are often percieved as depressed and suicidal.