Reception theory

  

1) What are the preferred, negotiated and oppositional readings for the RBK 50 Cent advert? 

One preferred reading for the 50 cent advertisement is that one should be grateful for what they have today as the quote says "tomorrow is not promised" which suggests that one should make the most of today rather than waste their time and efforts and procrastinate till another day.

One negotiated reading is that although 50 cent is attempting to promote a positive and inspirational message the finger prints in the background create a semantic field of crime which may give the reader a slightly negative impression of 50 cent.

One oppositional reading is that the media and more specifically RBK are using people of colour inorder to generate revenue, sales and attention to their platform; this could be seen as exploitation by many as they may be using 50 cent for monetary gain.

 

2) What are the preferred, negotiated and oppositional readings for the advert of your own choice that you analysed for last week's work?

One preferred reading is that one should be willing to put themselves out there and dedicate all their effort into achieving their dreams, this can be seen through the camera shot which is an upper body shot and it reveals that Serena is attempting to hit the ball, this shows her dedication and determination which the readers should take note of.

One negotiated reading is that although one should aspire to become the best version they can by pursuing dreams which are "crazy" one may fail as these dreams sometimes are illogical and unobtainable. Moreover one could try their hardest yet not be able to manifest their dreams into a reality.

 

One oppositional reading is that Nike is using black people to their advantage in order to sell their products and make a profit of people of colour. Moreover through this advert the agenda created is that by buying high priced, overvalued Nike products you will be able to be as successful as Serena who is in the image and this may manipulate people.

3) How useful is Reception theory when analysing media products? 

 

One reason why the use of reception theory is efficient in analysing media products is because it allows for one to gain a summary of the media product and the goods and bads about it for example in most instances media products are a form of propoganda and attempt to manipulate an audience whereas through Reception theory one can take a stand of how they perceive the information for example one could chose to accept the message a media product presents or they can chose not to. In most cases media products are seen with different meanings as colours or symbols can mean different things to everyone for example someone may react to the 50 cent advert above as an advert which promotes crime whereas someone else could see it as an advert which promotes a positive and inspirational message. Many people argue that they are free to make their own choices and viewpoints but in reality everything around us is designed to manipulate us including media products as for example in Nike adverts they use promotional messages to inspire one to purchase their products as the person becomes attracted at the idea of success and how this could be obtained through the purchase of Nike products. However sometimes reception theory becomes impractical as some forms of media products are pure instances of propoganda and are purely designed to manipulate one for example advertisements revolving the military or the navy which attempt to recruit young people into their program, this is done by casting a false reality or an illusion which intices a specific batch of people ie younger people who are jobless. However, a contrasting point to this argument is that reception theory allows one to stand back from an advert and see the advert for what it really is on a deeper level for example they would be able to pick up signs of propoganda or manipulation and this would allow one to form their own opinion which is considered an oppositional reading. I personally believe that reception theory is practical in most scenarios because by having an open mind and the ability to form your own opinions on media adverts you are less likely to be victim to manipulation and exploitiation by media products.