LESSON 4:

DO MEDIA AND INFORMATION

SPEAK IN CODES? HOW CAN
UNDERSTAND THEM?
 LET’S EXPLORE!!!!!

Form groups of 5, then tackle

one of the given advertisements.
Prepare an explanation on what
you can say about the
advertisement.
CORN FLAKES
COCA COLA
IPHONE 5S
 Information serves different purposes. Proper use of
information depends on how well you can identify the
information you need and your ability to locate,
understand, and evaluate available information.
WHAT IS THE INFORMATION FOR?
 Media and other providers of information play different roles to meet our
different information needs. We often heard that the role of information is to
inform and to educate.
In fact, there is a difference between the two:
To inform is to provide relevant data on specific subject. Sometimes, this
data is limited to a specific group of people.

To educate is to go beyond providing relevant information by helping

people gain a deeper knowledge through additional data, context and analysis.
 The roles of a sales brochure about a new smartphone is to inform
potential buyers of its features.
The roles of consumer website that compares different phones based
on price and features is to educate consumers about their choice.
According to the UNESCO Media and Information Literacy Manual,
the best sources of information are fair, objective, lack hidden motives
and show quality control.
Other roles of media providers are:

• To facilitate teaching and learning process

• To provide access to all types of information
• To serve as a gateway to informagion
• To promote universal values and civil rights such as freedom of expression,
speech and of the press.
• To serves as society’s collective memory
• To gather more information
• To preserve cultural heritage
• To entertain
 The word information is not limited to “serious news”. All forms of
content in media are considered information and all information is a
message.
MARSHALL MCLUHAN
 “The medium is the message”, a statement made by Marshall McLuhan way
back 1964, is among the first and most famous quotes in the study of media and
information. McLuhan was studying how culture and society are affected by the
means with which information is conveyed. According to McLuhan , media affect
us not only through the information that they deliver but also through their language,
codes and conventions. Think about how the advent of social media has changed the
way we communicate with the people around us and quickened the pace of
everyday life. In this sense, media are rendered with more power and more
significance and are hence worthy of being studied critically.
According to UNESCO, to be media and information literate one must know how
information, ideas, and meanings are communicated. This means being able to
understand the “language” or “grammar” of each medium or information provider.
In a way then, learning the “codes and conventions” used by the media practitioners
to communicate an idea or a message is like learning a new language.
TYPES OF CODES IN MEDIA

Technical codes- These includes Written codes- Some examples of

techniques and methods like camera written codes are healines, captions,
angle, shot type and lighting. titles and writing style.

TYPES OF CODES
IN MEDIA
Symbolic codes- These are codes that
Audio codes- These include codes are used to convey a symbolic rather
related to sound. Background music, than a literal meaning. One example
sound effects, and voice overs are is the way a characters emotions are
under this category. implied in a scene.
 These categories, however, are not mutually exclusive. In order to convey
power, for example, filmmakers make use of technical, written, audio, and
symbolic codes. Also, technical, written and audio codes are oftentimes used as
symbolic codes. Understanding how a media material utilizes codes in order to
communicate a message equips us with the capacity to evaluate information.

Media conventions are referred to as generally accepted ways of doing

something. Each genre in television, fil, and literature follow certain
conventions that distinguish them from other genres.
DIFFERENTIATE TV SERIES AND NEWS
PROGRAM
 The University of Minnesota defines media representation as “the ways media portrays particular
groups, communities, experiences, ideas or topics from a particular ideological or value perspective.”
In other words, media representation tells us that media reflect ideology, not reality. It makes us aware
of how media “construct” or“re-present” reality and affect our perception of ourselves and of our
surroundings.
Mediation- refers to the
process that a media material
Selection- refers to the
Construction- refers to the undergoes before reaching an
process of selecting content
way a media material is “put audience.
for a media material.
together”

Media Representation

Anchorage- refers to the

words used to give images a Stereotypes- refers to the Ideology- refers to the set of
certain meaning. oversimplified opinions or beliefs expressed
representation of person or through a media material.
thing.
 In terms of construction, what stands out in the advertisement
is the color, the lighting and the objects within the frame. This
advertisement, like most advertisements went through a rigorous
process of mediation, a lengthy transaction between client, an
advertising agency, a graphic artist, a photographer, a researcher
and the like.
A. On the blank before each number, write T if the statement is true and F if the statement is false.
______1. All symbolic codes are written codes.
_______2. Mediation plays a significant role in media representation.
_______3. The sole purpose of media is as to entertain.
_______4. “The medium is a message” is a statement made by Marshall McLuhan.
_______5. All media materials undergo a process of selection.
_______6. A stereotype is an accurate representation of a person or thing.
_______7. Captions are written codes.
_______8. All media reflect reality.
_______9. To be media and information literate means understanding the language or grammar of each medium.
_______10. Technical codes can be used as symbolic codes.