Membaca Sinetron John Fiske Television Culture 1987 l

Membaca Sinetron

John Fiske – Television Culture, 1987 l l An event to be televised (or filmed) is already encoded by social and symbolic codes such as those of: Level one: “Reality” l Appearance, dress, makeup, environment, behaviour, speech, gesture, expression, sound, etc

John Fiske – Television Culture, 1987 l l These are encoded electronically (or digitally) by technical codes such as those of: Level two: “Representation” l Camera shots and composition, angles, editing, music and sound

John Fiske – Television Culture, 1987 l Which transmit the conventional representational codes, which shape the representations of, for example: l l Narrative, conflict, character, action, dialogue, setting, casting etc Level three: “Ideology” [discourse]. l Which are organised into coherence and social acceptability by the ideological codes, such as those of: l Individualism, patriarchy, race, class, materialism, capitalism etc

Narrative and The Sinetron (Putri yang Ditukar) l l l conflict character action dialogue setting casting

Discourse and The Sinetron l l Discourses of glamour, youthful freedom, romance… Representations of masculinity, femininity, youth, wealth… Cinderella Complex Stereotype reinforcement of dominant ideology

‘Soapies’ and television programming l The dominant ideological function of television programming is to draw in audiences with a view to maximising exposure to advertising l ‘Soapies’ (Soap operas (sinetron – sinema eletronik) are specifically formulated to address this ideological function l It is well understood that audience numbers can be increased through programming that involves sexual intrigues and it is no mistake that ‘Soapies’ occupy prime-time viewing slots to maximise this opportunity l ‘Soapies’ involve daily exposure and have a particular power because they become part of daily life – of lived experience (in contrast to weekly and series based ‘educational’ dramas)

Watching Si Doel: Television, language, and cultural identity in contemporary Indonesia, Klarijn Loven, KITLV Press, 2008 Languagescape: Betawi dialect; extension of bahasa gaul l Jakarta voices and the voice of Jakarta l

Active Audiences and the Construction of Meaning While it is true that the media influence what we think, it is not true that the media determine what we think. l Audiences are active interpreters. l Mass society theorists tend to argue that the emergence of a mass society and the forces of massification have led to mass indoctrination into dominant ideologies and myths. l These dominant ideologies serve the interests of elites. l This view downplays audiences’ ability to think for themselves. l 9

Active Audiences l The idea of audiences as “active” interpreters rather than “passive” receivers emerged out of several forces: l 1. Recent research. l 2. Rising populism (“power to the people!”) associated with the 1960 s. 10

Three basic ways in which audiences are active: l 1. Through individual interpretation of media products. l l Individuals have their own filters and perceptions linked to their unique lives. 2. Through collective interpretation of media products. Membership in social categories influences how we collectively see issues as Jews, Christians, African Americans, etc. l Interpretations are socially constructed. l l 3. Through collective political action. l Audiences make demands upon and give feedback to media producers. 11

Meanings: Agency and Structure l The notion of an active audience points to a central insight: Media texts do not have a singular meaning. They have multiple meanings, depending on who produces them and who interprets them. l Everyone uses filters to interpret meanings, so the same program or song may mean different things to different people and audiences. l l Polysemy: having multiple meanings or interpretations. l Media are polysemic. 12

Polysemy l The same TV show may be interpreted differently depending on who is watching and what they are looking for. The TV show Si Doel can be interpreted as ethnic bias or as Jakarta centered l Both interpretations are possible due to the abundance of possible meanings that are available. l 13

Where do meanings come from? They come from a mix of agency and structure. l l 1. Dominant ideology, core values, stereotypes, language, and cultural myths provide mainstream ways to interpret. We all learn and understand these mainstream interpretations, which are reinforced by the mainstream media. This is an aspect of social structure. 2. Personal experience. (An aspect of agency). 3. Subcultural and social category memberships, such as learned in family and among friends, peer groups, subcultures, etc. This is an aspect of both social structure and agency, because these meanings are negotiated. 4. Authority and structural institutions like school, church, government, media, etc. 14

The Commercial Media Prefers Openness of Interpretation Media texts, therefore, have at least some openness in their structure in which different meanings are always possible. l This openness of interpretation is a desirable characteristic in the commercial media because it allows a wider array of possible audiences. l l l Hence, greater profit potential. This is one of the reasons why most commercial media shun ideologues. They prefer the happy mindless chatter found on morning TV talk shows. It is more open. 15

Social Structure Constrains Meanings Given the notion of (1) active audiences, and (2) polysemy, does this mean that audiences are free agents who can derive any meaning they want, or that the meaning of texts is limited only by the number of people reading the text? l John Fiske tends to push the envelope here, but even he concedes that there are structural limits to how people are likely to interpret a media text. l Social structure limits the ways we are likely to interpret a media text. l 16

Social Structure Matters The social landscape of daily life influences how we interpret media messages. l Our personal filters are shaped by our social identities. These social identities include age, race, sex, social class and other social characteristics. l People tend to interpret media messages in ways that are consistent with their social locations in society. l Conservative Christians, for example, tend to use a particular set of filters to read media messages, just as rock’n’rollers use their strikingly different filters. (This explains why Christian rock music can be confusing to read). l 17

One’s Social Location Matters Social location refers to age, race, sex, social class, and other matters of social status. It matters because it helps shape our personal interpretive filters. l The task, then, is to be aware of the ways in which meanings are socially constructed – by socially located audiences under specific socialhistorical circumstances. l 18

Dominant Ideology meanings are easy to grasp. Some meanings are easier to grasp than others. l The easier ones draw upon widely shared values, stereotypes, and dominant ideologies – aspects of society we are all exposed to. l Other meanings are harder to grasp because they are not mainstream interpretations or they do NOT draw upon dominant myths and ideologies. l Note: This helps explain why advertising is a fundamentally conservative phenomenon. Ads must draw upon wider meanings (like stereotypes) to be successful in reaching mass audiences. l 19

Types of Readings: Preferred Readings vs. Alternative Readings l In most cases, there will be be one particular interpretation that will be the dominant interpretation of a media text. l l This interpretation is the mainstream reading of the text, otherwise known as the preferred reading, or the dominant-culture reading. If the interpretation is not a preferred reading, then it is an alternative, or oppositional, reading. l Alternative readings are less common, but are more likely to be made by alternative or oppositional groups. 20

Types of Readings 1. Preferred Reading – the mainstream or dominant culture reading. l Easy to decode due to their mainstream nature. We are all familiar with mass culture and its stereotypes. We all “get the point. ” l Emphasized by mass culture theorists (like Hal Himmelstein) as a key source of mass consciousness. l 2. Alternative Reading, or Oppositional reading. l Rarely considered by mainstream audiences. l To use an alternative reading means that one is “actively” rejecting the preferred reading. l Emphasized by John Fiske. l 21

Decoding Media and Social Location l Hal Himmelstein argues that the corporate media promote the dominant ideology of capitalism so thoroughly that capitalism acquires a taken-forgrantedness. l l Opposing economic ideologies are no longer even considered. When no other ideologies are considered, what does this suggest about whether audiences are active or passive? There has been some research into how active or passive audiences tend to be. 22

Social Status Matters This research suggests that one of the principle keys to how we interpret messages involves our social identities. l One’s social locations (ie white, conservative Christian, male, older) function as mediators of the interpretive process. They do not determine how we think, but they shape our thoughts. l We use our own social statuses to help decode media messages. l Media messages can be seen as ‘codes’ that emanate from certain social locations. l Understanding these codes requires knowledge of the assumptions and meanings used by the people in that particular subculture. l 23

Mainstream culture is easy to decode l Since we are all familiar with mass culture themes, our ability to interpret mass media messages is extensive. Decoding is easy here. Decoding MTV does not take a Ph. D. l Mainstream media messages draw upon cultural codes that do not need to be articulated – they are already taken for granted. We learn to see blond hair and blue eyes as “pretty” without questioning their underlying assumptions. l l Again, decoding preferred readings is easy. 24

Watching Dallas: Soap Opera and The Melodramatic Imagination, 1985, Ien Ang Dominant position l Oppositional position l Negotiated position l

Conclusion The pleasure of media use is often because we engage in a variety of interpretive strategies. Multiple meanings may be interpreted from the same text. l Our brains seem to love polysemy. The very act of interpretation is inherently pleasureful, as all comedians understand. l John Fiske argues that the act of interpretive resistance itself produces “popular pleasure. ” Resistance is fun because it empowers those who do not wield much power in their everyday lives. l There is pleasure to be had in both conforming to the preferred readings as well as in adopting an alternative reading of the same text. l 26