GCSE Media Studies

Exam Based Unit - Quiz Shows

Quiz Shows

1. Wikipedia states that ‘A Quiz show is a type of television program in which members of the public or celebrities, sometimes as part of a team, play a game which involves answering questions or solving problems for money and/or prizes.’. The key characteristics of a game show are mainly based on the idea of winning something which builds suspense for the participant and the audience. The main features of a Quiz show are that they usually have a host, participants (obviously), an audience and that they usually involve doing something to win a big prize (mainly money).

2. Listings for UKTV

The Weakest Link
Eggheads
Deal or No Deal
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
Golden Balls
Wordplay Plus
A Question of Sport
QI
Kerwhizz

3. The Key Conventions and codes of a Quiz Show

The Weakest Link

The Weakest Link is a game show in which nine contestants answer questions to collect money and then vote off ‘The weakest link’ at the end of the round. The main key conventions and codes to this game show is a portrayal of discipline, where the host is strict and serious and slightly belittling. A team of nine contestants take turns answering general knowledge questions. The object of each round is to answer a chain of correct answers to earn an increasing amount for a single pot within a certain time limit. However, if someone answers incorrectly, it wipes out any money earned in that chain. However, before their question is asked, a contestant can say "BANK" and the money they have earned so far is stored and a new chain starts from scratch. When each round ends, any money not banked is lost, and if the host is in the middle of asking a question, or has asked a question but the contestant hasn’t answered yet, the question is abandoned. The round automatically ends if the team successfully reaches the maximum amount for the round before the time expires, and the next person says, ‘Bank’. At the end of each round, contestants must vote one player out of the game. Until the beginning of the next round, only the television audience knows exactly who the "strongest link" and sometimes the "weakest link", unless there is a tie, in which case the strongest link is revealed, and they must decide who goes. After the revealing of the votes, the host will ask the players on their choice of voting, reasons behind their choice, and will usually insult the players. The player with the most votes is told "You are the weakest link. Goodbye!" and must walk off the stage in what is called the Walk of Shame. In the final round, there are two contestants left and they work together in one final questions round which is like the others only that their money is tripled at the end and added to the final pot and also, there is no elimination. In the final round the two contestants have to answer five questions one at a time until one has more right answers than the other. If this doesn’t happen, the game goes to Head To Head in which the players are asked questions until one of them gets the answer wrong.
This show usually has normal people on it competing for money and is studio-based, but sometimes, there are celebrity and novelty shows in which the contestants compete to win money for Charity.
In England, Anne Robinson is the host of the Weakest Link and she plays a cruel, ruthless person, which can be very entertaining.
I think that families watch this show as it is usually on around 5:00pm which for most families is a time to all sit down and relax, it also has no provocative or violent content and is something everyone can enjoy.

Prestige and Avant-Garde Quiz Shows

Prestige quiz shows are Quiz shows in which you don’t really win anything glamorous, but more have the honour of winning. Like ‘Mastermind’ in which you win the title of ‘Mastermind’ and a glass bowl. Or University Challenge where you win only the titles of being the smartest person.

The word avant-garde is a French word meaning ‘Advanced Guard’ but in English, it is used to refer to people or works that are experimental or innovative, mainly in art, culture, and politics.

Avant-garde quiz shows are shows which are not the typical type of quiz show, or a quiz show with a twist. Shows like ‘QI’ and ‘Never Mind the Buzzcocks’ which both have Celebrity contestants, are avant-garde. They both are mainly the purpose of entertainment and because of that, the scoring system is an afterthought and the questions and tasks executed in the shows are usually sometimes difficult and amusing.

In QI, the panel consists of four participants, and is hosted by Stephen Fry and he asks questions that are sometimes misleading or very difficult. Most questions have an obvious but wrong answer, and if the question is answered as such, a klaxon sounds.
The show expects that hardly anyone would be able to give a correct answer without help; so instead, it encourages interesting answers, which is how points are mainly scored.

Each panellist has a buzzer, with the sounds often being based on a theme. They are demonstrated at the beginning of the programme, but are sometimes changed in some way for repeated use. Alan Davies's (Who is on nearly every show) buzzer is usually more humorous than the others.

In some episodes, the panellists are given an extra task to complete during the course of the game. Those who do the best are often awarded extra points. Past tasks have included drawing contests or looking for a specific hidden thing over the course of the show, such as a squirrel or a cuttlefish. In each episode, at least one of the answers is related to elephants, the panellists are told to wave an elephant on a stick when they believe it is the right moment.

The panellists on the show are sat behind a long podium with the host in the middle, as stated above, they each have a buzzer in front of them. The studio itself is lit fully (unlike shows like 'The Weakest Link' and 'Who wants to be a Millionaire') which show that this show is not about interrogation and getting the answers as quickly as possible, but more of a fun quiz, much like a pub quiz. There are TV screens at the back of the panellists and they show pictures which are relevant to the questions.

Stephen Fry as the host is very well spoken and obviously intelligent which matches the difficult questions he asks, and he seems to know everything (though I am not sure if this is because he has an earpiece in or whether he is actually that intelligent!)

The panellists are always celebrities, comedians and/or presenters (though perhaps not always well known). They do not play for any prizes but more for the entertainment value of the show.

You do not see the audience though you can hear them. They are not really involved with the show at all but more provide the laughter and are most probably there to be entertainted.

The theme tune to QI is very short and simple, it's played on the piano and is easily memorable so that if you heard it, you would know what was on TV.

Mastermind

In Mastermind, each contestant has two minutes per round. First, each contestant in turn answers questions on their specialised subject, and then they are given general knowledge questions in the next round.

The winner is the contestant with the most points. If two or more contestants have an equal number of points, then the contestant with the fewer ‘passes’ is the winner.

The winner goes through to the next round, where he must choose a different specialised subject; if he gets to the final he can offer his first subject or a new one. The winner of the final is declared "Mastermind" for that year and receives a prize, a cut glass engraved bowl.

The contestants all sit in a row together at the beginning of the show, but when they are called, they have to sit in a black chair, under a spotlight. This creates the tension and pressure of the show. The studio itself is very simple, and dark, probably to help contestants concentrate and to feel much like they are being interrogated.

The show is now presented by John Humphreys who asks questions quickly and sharply, to create the extra pressure on the contestant.

The theme tune to Mastermind is called 'Approaching Menance' and it is by Neil Richardson. It is very ominous and almost military sounding, to match the interrogation theme of the show.

Project Four

| at 03:56

Project Four

Part one

So Hot - The Wonder Girls

This video and song is performed by a Korean Pop Artist Group called The Wonder Girls, the song is called ‘So Hot’. (Translation of lyrics [HERE]).

The genre of this music video is definitely pop, portrayed with choreographed dance and the fact that they’re wearing fashionable clothes.
The video to this song very much matches the lyrics, in the video; the girls each have an individual story, and also have one scene where they are dancing in unison together and lip-syncing. Sunmi is in a town surrounded by adoring boys, as is Sunye. Ye-eun is a cheerleader with lots of male fans, Sohee is a celebrity on a red-carpet and Yubin is lounging by a pool, rating boys with little flashcards. In these stories the girls portray how burdensome it is to be ‘So Hot’ (With the exception of Yubin), and show themselves being ‘brought down a peg’ with these situations.
In this video, the music obviously affects dancing, and each girl moves with the beat. The camera work is all front view and close ups except for one point of view angle towards the end (2:16). The editing is mainly the splitting of the two different scenes, one of the stories and one of the dance, expect for one moment when a dance move is reversed (2:26).

I think the meaning behind this video is a slightly sarcastic one, ridiculing girls who call themselves 'Hot', by showing each girl being brought down, they show that everyone is the same, and nobody is better than anyone else.

Must be Dreaming - Frou Frou

This video and song is performed by Frou Frou, a British Electronic music duo composed of Imogen Heap and Guy Sigworth.

In this music video it starts with a flurry of camera movements around and room, then stop on a metronome ticking, the needle of the metronome has an eye on it looking from side to side. The picture switches around and sees that the eye belongs to Imogen Heap, who is lying on a bed, then there is a series of layering of her on the bed and then the video goes into the dream sequence, in which she is running down a corridor, dancing while Guy Sigworth is playing the keyboard. Towards the end of the movie, Imogen walks through a door and then is underwater, the end of the video finishes as it starts, with the eye in the metronome. The genre of this music video is alternative; this is shown with the fact that neither of them is wearing clothes that are necessarily in fashion, nor are they using product placement or choreographed dancing which is usually popular in Pop and Hip-Hop videos. The video to this song matches the video in genre; it’s very alternative and different to most music videos. The lyrics themselves sort of match up to the video in the way that it starts off with her on a bed and then goes into a sort of dream sequence. The editing in this video is very well done, there are a lot of layering and ‘multiple mirror’ effects going on as well as some CGI (1:52), also the effect of the eye on the metronome looking left and right. There is plenty of lip-syncing in this video, and the showing of playing instruments, which is very popular with alternative videos, also, there is a small section in which Imogen dances.

I think that this video was intended as very artistic and different, the music itself is very different to a lot of music (especially other electronic music) and the video portrays it very well.

Empty Walls - Serj Tankien

Serj Tankian is a Lebanese-born Armenian-American singer, songwriter, poet, activist, and multi-instrumentalist. He is best known as the lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist and keyboardist of the alternative metal band System of a Down. He has a solo album too, Elect the Dead.

In this video, we are in a children’s nursery and they are ‘playing’ war, Serj Tankien is portrayed as the minder of the children. At the end of the video, the children stop their game and look out the window to see an American Soldier’s funeral. The genre of this video is definitely rock/metal, the genre is not really evident in the video however, it is only really evident through the song itself shown with the hard drums and guitar and the vocals.
The music is very jumpy, but this suits the very serious message of the lyrics and it matches the video very well.
The camerawork is very well done, it’s very shakily done to help portray the chaos and it helps to get the feel of the whole ‘playtime’, there is also a few P.O.V angles. The editing of this video is also very well done, the switching of scenes is very quick and jumpy (also to help with the idea of chaos), the video itself seems to be edited with the light, and when the child is looking through goggles, the camera becomes the goggles and has night vision.
The performance of this song is obviously completely done by Serj Tankien, he lip-syncs throughout and plays the piano on certain scenes.

I think there are many meanings behind this video, the first is very obvious, of the portrayal of war, and how damaging the war on Iraq has been on Iraq and America. Also, you could suggest that because it is portrayed by children, the video is suggesting that this is the kind of situation children will be born into and brought up in and therefore war will be completely normal to them. You could also suggest that by using children, the video has the suggestion that the whole idea of war is a silly and pointless as a children’s game and that the war is childish.

My Music Video

For my music video, I have chosen to use the song 'Ur so Gay' by Katy Perry. For my music video I plan to use the game 'The Sims 2' as it is quike lifelike, easy to direct and a bit of a different idea to most. I plan for a alternative genre to my video much like Katy Perry's original video to the song (directed by Walter May).

I got my inspiration from looking on Youtube and finding many different machinima. My favourite Sims 2 artist is a Youtuber called 'Jaydee227', her videos are very detailed and well done. (http://www.jd-movies.com/)

My Chemical Romance - Helena

By Jaydee227

My Music Video

In my video, I plan to tell the story in which Katy gets dumped by her Effeminate Boyfriend on myspace, so she gets revenge on him and then finally finds out that he is actually gay. I shall also edit in scenes with Katy singing and playing instruments to her song.

Script

Scene 1

Katy on the computer, is on myspace, is dumped by her boyfriend on myspace. She gets a little bit sad then goes to the phone and phones her friend, then hangs up and looks angry. All the while cutting to occasional scenes where you see Katy performing the song.

Scene 2

Effeminate boyfriend (EB) is getting ready for the day, doing lots of ‘girly’ things like adjusting his hair, picking out his outfit and staring into a pocket mirror. All the while cutting to occasional scenes where you see Katy performing the song.

Scene 3

EB meets a friend for lunch and gives her a kiss on each cheek. Katy and Friend are around the corner looking angry. They then sneak into the restaurant and tip the nearest waiter to mess with the food. EB eats food and is looks nauseated then you see him running to the toilets while Katy and Friend laugh loudly. All the while cutting to occasional scenes where you see Katy performing the song.

Scene 4

Katy performing song, cutting to Katy checking her myspace and seeing that EB is having a party at his house, she looks thoughtful then sends a comment saying ‘hey bbz, you can expect to see me there ;D’ She looks scheming.

Scene 5

Katy goes to EB’s place where a lot of people are hanging out and dancing etc. She tries to get EB to drink a spiked drink, but he doesn’t. Katy looks miserable then absent mindedly sips the spiked drink, she chokes, looks nauseated, then runs to the loo, where she finds EB and another guy kissing, the video cuts to Katy looking embarrassed and awkward.

The Finished Video

This is my music video, made with the Sims 2

I tried to portray the 'Alternative' genre by showing a story to the video, other than perhaps a dancing sequence or a band playing the song which is popular in a lot of videos.

I used Windows Movie Maker to edit the video.

Project Three

| at 04:56

Project Three

The Key Stylistic Figures of a Magazine are: the masthead, the lead article and the main sells. The Masthead is the name of the magazine and is usually situated at the top of the magazine cover. The Lead article is usually the story behind the main photo on the cover and so is usually of a celebrity whom is being interviewed by the magazine. The main sells are the smaller articles on the cover which tell you about things to read inside the magazine, usually other interviews or stories.

It is easy to spot the masthead, 'Mixmag', on this cover as the graphics show the masthead as the biggest font on the page and it is a bright colour which makes it very easy to spot and to recognise. The slogo is 'biggest clubbing and music magazine' and the lead article and image are on Calvin Harris, a Scottish singer-songwriter and record producer. The main sells are down the side that read 'Could Chewbacca fight a camel?' and 'A DJ set at Global Gathering'. Though a lot of this magazine cover is taken up by the advert for the free music CD that comes with it, which to me, seems unnecessary as though it helps sell the magazine, it ruins the colour scheme and the structure of the cover. This Magazine is obviously of Dance Music Genre and seems to be aimed at older teenagers and young adults of Eighteen to Twenty Nine.

On this cover the masthead, 'Kerrang!'; is a little hard to read because it is half covered by the graphics and the image which would make it hard to spot or recognise, unless you already know of it. The slogo is 'Life is Loud and the Lead Article and images are on Panic! At the Disco, a popular rock band. The main sells are on Within Temptation (with a photo), another popular Scandinavian Rock band; and other bands like New Found Glory and HIM. The cover itself is a little bit overcrowded but that seems to be the style that it is going for. This magazine is of Rock Genre and seems to be aimed at the Teenage and Young Adult community of Fifteen to perhaps Twenty Five.

The Masthead on this magazine, 'NME' is also easy to spot as the graphics are bold and outlined, however, the masthead isn't in the centre of the page which is usual for most magazines so it might be easy to miss at first glance, unless of course, you already know and recognise the magazine. The Slogo is 'New Musical Express' and the lead article and picture are on The Enemy, an English Rock Band. The main sells are on The Manic Street Preachers which also has a lure, Pete Doherty (with a photo) and The Last Shadow Puppets. The cover is well laid out with everything easy to read and it is not overcrowded. This magazine is of Indie and Alternative music genre and is probably aimed at Teenagers to Young Adults from say Fifteen to Twenty Five.

ABC Magazine Statistics

I went on http://www.abc.org.uk/, where I found many stastistics on Music Magazines. By searching for music magazines on the website, I found this information.

From this information, I have found that the Magazine 'Q', a music magazine published monthly in the United Kingdom, is the magazine with the most Total Average Net Circulation, and also the most in the United Kingdom. This could be due to its alternative take to Rock music, and the fact that it is not solely dedicated to the Rock Genre, unlike say Kerrang! Who generally stick to Rock music and rock bands, also Q has been a Published Magazine for a lot longer than most of the other magazines and therefore is more appealing and has more income and can afford to advertise expensive products such as Watches and Cars. However, Q is not as popular in other countries unlike Mojo Magazine, which has sales of 47,969 Total Net Circulation in other countries. This could be because Q Magazine and Mojo magazine are very different in the way that Q advertise and interview many more 'mainstream' bands like Madonna and The Killers whereas Mojo tend to advertise and interview bands that are well known but not always the most popular like The White Stripes and Oasis, who are not everyone’s ‘cup of tea’ and also because the music Mojo advertises is more based in other countries like America where music artists are of greater quantity. Magazine’s like Kerrang! And Mixmag are not as popular as other magazines and this could be because they both stick to one genre and haven’t been going on as long as other magazines. Also, they both tend to advertise bands, singers and DJs that aren’t perhaps well known in the General Public, making both the magazines of acquired taste. However, they both sell quite well in the United Kingdom which could be down to the fact that nowadays, it is seen as ‘cool’ to like non-mainstream artists.

Representation

The word Representation means a presentation to the mind in the form of an idea or image. Representation is very important in Media Studies as Media is all about presentation in the form of image and/or sound. Without presentation there would be no Television, Movies, Radio or Advertisements as Presentation is essential for these things. In Television, representation is used in the form of images and pictures, music, camera angles and shots, for example to represent a Horror story in a movie, the director would have to consider darker lighting and costumes to match the genre, more eerie music and a creepier script, and perhaps more edgier camera angles e.g. first person to help the viewer feel more involved and to make it more real, or an overhead view to make you feel like you're actually watching in on what is happening.

Representation is very important within bands and groups as it shows many things about the band itself such as their genre of music, their preferances and their style.

My Magazine Cover

This is my Design for a Magazine Cover. The model in the picture is myself and I created the image with a Canon 400D D-SLR camera by slowing down the Frame rate and drawing around my own head with an LED light and editing the photo in Photoshop. I then added the Masthead, slogo and main sells onto it also with Photoshop.

Project Two

| at 05:12

Project Two

Part One

New Media Technology has had a huge effect on the way people listen to music. Nowadays, you can listen to music on practically anything: your phones, your computers, your TVs etc, and now you can buy MP3 players which don't require tapes or CDs, are light and small and can carry over 10,000 songs depending on make and memory space. Also, MP3s can be bought straight from the Internet, which means that it is easily accessible. This obviously makes MP3s very disirable. All this has led to bigger fan bases for perhaps less known bands or unsigned bands giving everyone in the music business a chance to get into the charts or to become popular, unlike thirty years ago when the only music that was advertised was music played on the Radio.

The internet has become an extremely popular way for bands to advertise themselves as it has websites such as www.youtube.com, www.myspace.com and www.bebo.com; which have made it easier for bands to advertise and sell their music without spending large amounts of money. The only repercussion of this is that it has made the music more accessible to illegal downloaders who steal the music and therefore stop the band receiving any money for their songs.

Most music labels have embraced new media technology and used it for their advantages. Most bands nowadays have their own websites to promote their bands like The Saturdays (http://www.thesaturdays.co.uk), Alphabeat (http://www.thisisalphabeat.com) and Tenacious D (http://www.tenaciousd.com). By looking on these websites, you can find out when and where the band goes on tour, when their new album/s come out and even look at Biographies of the members. This all helps towards promoting and selling themselves and their music in a way that couldn’t be done thirty or fourty years ago.

MySpace and Music

Myspace.com has by far become the most popular website in which to advertise bands and music. Bands put their music onto the playlists and from there; listeners can download the music itself, not to mention the lyrics and can put the song onto their own myspace profile which obviously advertises the song even more. Listeners can also view pictures of the band, read their blogs and even write to the band themselves by ‘Commenting’ on their page.

Signed Band

Alphabeat

http://www.myspace.com/thisisalphabeat

Alphabeat formed in Summer 2002 and were later signed a Danish record deal with Copenhagen Records in Spring 2005. That Summer, they moved to Copenhagen. In March 5th 2007 they released their selftitled Danish debut and from then until October 2007 they toured all over Denmark. In October 2007 they moved to the UK and started to re-record old songs and record new ones for their UK debut and went on tour in the UK from November to February In April and May 2008 they went on "THE WONKY POP TOUR", then on June 2nd they released their album "This is Alphabeat". They are currenty signed to Copenhagen Records EMI UK.

This band uses MySpace to advertise their music and Tour dates. On their page you can read about the band itself but not about each individual member, you can look at pictures of the band and read their blogs in which they talk about their tours and music. They also advertise their pages on different websites like Facebook, YouTube and Bebo, so you can watch their videos and add them as friends on all the other websites you are members of, which obviously helps advertise them more. You can download all their tracks on offer with ITunes but there are no external links that let you buy the actual album. Because they have a link to YouTube on their page, you can watch all their videos quite easily. They also have a link to a Merchandise Website so buying it is very easy. The band keeps in touch with their fans by writing to them altogether in their blog. I doubt that they write to their fans individually as they recieve over 10,000 comments a day.

Unsigned Band

My Last Mistake

http://www.myspace.com/mylastmistakeuk

My Last Mistake is an unsigned band with two members, Leah and Rich.
They come from a small town called Maidstone, in Southern England. Formed at the beginning of 2006 when Leah put a few songs together for a University project and asked Rich if he'd play the Guitar for her. After this they uploaded a few tracks from what they recorded to MySpace and by November that year they got over 30,000 plays a day on their MySpace page and then signed to Universal Publishing in November. They are now organizing their first ever international Tour for 2009 and are currently unsigned to a Record Label.

This band’s MySpace page advertises their music by putting up links to ITunes and to their YouTube Videos. You can buy their music directly from the band themselves and also their merchandise. They encourage people to add them to their friends in order to advertise themselves and post regular blogs to keep people interested in the members of the band. This bands MySpace page is very different to most, as their layout looks custom made and is very well layed out. They explain a lot about themselves, telling you where they came from, what they like and dislike and have plenty of pictures for fans to see. They also explain a lot about themselves in their blog which is updated regularly. You can currently download their entire track on offer from ITunes and watch all of their videos on YouTube. They keep in touch with their fans with the ‘Commenting’ facility in which people write to them and they write back individually.

Part Two

This is my attempt at an Album Cover that I made in Adobe Photoshop CS3.
The Genre for this Album is Emo/Rock/Alternative and I tried to convey that by making it Greyscale. I did this by Desurating the images, turning up the contrast and turning down the brightness of the images. I then used the lasso tool and the feathering tool around the eyes to add the dark lines around her eyes. I then downloaded a free font (http://www.draftlight.net/aeryn/evanescence/font.php) and called the Album 'Fairytale'.
The Model in the photos is my sister Dawn Boyd (http://www.purestorm.com/profile.aspx?id=YummyMummy) and the photos are by Marcus Booker (http://www.purestorm.com/profile.aspx?id=marcus).

Project One

| at 04:31

Project One

Advertising is a Public Promotion of a certain Product or Service. In 2006, spending on advertising had been estimated at $155 billion in the United States and $385 billion worldwide, and is expected to go up $500 billion by 2010.

Some typical Advertisements

Companies spend so much money on Advertisements because it is the only way to display their product where the whole country or even the whole world can see it. Advertisements play on people’s emotions whether it’s to make them laugh, feel insecure or make them feel guilty; in order to encourage people to buy the product or use the Service on show.

David Beckham in a Gillete Razor Advertisment

Britney Spears in a Pepsi Drink Advertisement

Nowadays, Advertisements use a lot of celebrities to endorse their products, whether it’s paying them to wear their brand or physically having them in advertisements. This is because nowadays especially, Celebrities are people who influence people the most. For example, a young girl may see an Advertisement with Kate Moss on it wearing a certain type of makeup and the girl will think that the makeup is the ‘cool’ thing to wear and go out to buy that type of makeup.

Advertisements Around Norwich

Messages and Values

Both these Advertisements play on people's insecurities, the printed Avertisement does this by showing a 'Proper' man is one who is good-looking and muscled. The TV Advertisement by saying that an Effeminate man is not a 'Normal' man.

I showed these two advertisements to a few of my friends and here’s what they had to say about it:

(On the Print Advert)

“Well it makes me feel kind of low, because I know I don’t look like that. And the fact that it’s called ‘Man’ just makes it worse because it’s saying that this is what a proper man looks like.”

“I think it would be quite appealing to women and homosexual men obviously, but for straight men it just makes them feel inadequate and sad because that guy is so attractive and that’s what women want”

“It’s quite inspirational to me because it sort of gives you something to look up to and aspire to look like, but for the blokes who don’t look like that, it would make them feel pretty bad.”

(On the TV Advert)

“I personally do not find this video offensive, but rather the fact that people have decided that the speed walker is a gay man is the real offense. While he may be effeminate, there is nothing to indicate his sexual orientation other than stereotypes.”

“This advert isn't homophobic, and as a gay man I think it's funny. I don’t think anyone should take this seriously, and just get a sense of humour”

“I'm gay, and I can’t see what is so bad about this? I think it’s funny.
To all the sensitive souls out there...’Get some nuts!’”

Adbusters

Adbusters are a Media Foundation who are well-known for their “Culture jamming campaigns”. They promote ‘Real’ Freedom and Anti-Capitalism by making Advertisements that promote their views which are that the world should be less Consumerist and should stop buying ‘useless’ things. Adbusters constantly insult huge companies such as McDonalds, Nike, Coca Cola etc, saying that companies like this take over everything with their advertising and promote un-ethical and unhealthy lifestyles.

McDonalds Anti-Advert and Actual Advert

This is an Adbusters Anti-Advert against McDonalds. It is representing a McDonalds Big Mac as a fatty product in very few words yet still make the product un-appealing and disgusting. Comparing this to the real advert (below), it shows that the Real Advert seems to avoid the topic of Healthy eating and seems to run on the idea that McDonalds is Fast, Tasty Food and everyone enjoys it; whereas the Anti-Advert is simple, straight to the point and shows that Mcdonalds isn't as good as it makes out to be.

This is another AdBusters Anti-Advert this time spoofing The MasterCard Advert. It represents Mastercard as 'Debt Creators' and basically says that while it's nice to buy things, they will put you in debt if you are not careful whereas the real advert (below) practially says that if spending money makes you happy, then why not spend it and get all those special little moments in life. The Real Advert avoids the topic of debt whereas the Anti-Advert shows you the reality of spending large amounts of money on a Credit Card.

Homework: Christina Aguilera Skechers Advert

| at 05:15

Christina Aguilera Skechers Advert

Denotation: Christina Aguilera is both a Teacher and Student in this picture. Below her is the Skechers Logo and her name.

Connotations: Both the characters portrayed by Christina in this advertisement are posing provocatively which shows that Skechers are blatantly using Christina’s good looks and Sex Appeal and also her fame as a singer in this advertisement in order to sell it. To me, this advertisement is overly sexualised in a way that isn’t subtle or refined, which makes it quite offensive to certain people. It does however, make you remember the Brand and the product which is the overall goal of the advertisement.

Wayne Rooney Nike Advert

| at 02:39

Wayne Rooney Nike Advert

Denotation: Wayne Rooney painted to look like the English Flag, with his arms out, apparently screaming, with the Nike Motto at the bottom of the advertisement.

Connotations: Nike are trying to seem like the front of the English football team by being Patriotic and by using a famous footballer in this case, Wayne Rooney. To me, this seems like an advertisement that is trying to show what people want to see. Most English people are proud to be English and so, when they see this, will also think that Nike are proud to represent the English Team and therefore support and buy from Nike. But in reality, it just seems that Nike are just using people’s pride to advertise their merchandise.