The Media and Collective Identity

We will be focussing on the ways in which the media represent the identity of British Youth.

Through the work we undertake you should be able to resopond to the following 4 prompt questions:

• How do the contemporary media represent 'British Youth' in different ways?
• How does contemporary representation of 'British Youth' in the media compare to previous time periods?

• What are the social implications of different media representations of 'British Youth'?
• To what extent is human identity increasingly ‘mediated’?

We will explore the representation of 'British Youth' across at least 2 different elements of the media and will develop a critically informed point of view on how British Youth is represented.

In order to be fully prepared for the specific requirements of the question, the material studied must cover these three elements:

Historical – the development of collective identity of British Youth.

Contemporary – examples from no more than five years before the examination. That is, in our case, from no earlier than 2010.

Future – personal engagement with debates about the future of the media forms / issues in relation to the concept of 'British Youth'.

Rules For The Exam

The majority of examples you refer to in the exam should be contemporary. However, theories and approaches may be drawn from any time period. 

If you refer to only one media area in your answer, the mark scheme clearly indicates that marks will be restricted to a maximum of the top of level 1.

If you fail to provide or infer historical references and / or future projections, marks will be restricted to a maximum of the top of level 3 for use of examples only.