Media Revision Bundle (for A-level Sociology)

Sociology of The Media Revision Bundle: Contents

This revision bundle is designed to help you revise for AQA A Level Sociology Paper 2: Topics in Sociology: Media option, although the content should also be of use to students of A-level media studies. 

The content is derived straight from the AQA specification and written by an experienced examiner and teacher with over 20 successful years’ experience of delivering A-level sociology.

This zip file contains:

1.   Sociology of media revision notes

34 pages cover the following topics:

• The New Media and their significance for an understanding of the role of the media in contemporary society
• the relationship between ownership and control of the media
• the media, globalisation and popular culture
• the selection and presentation of the content of the news
• media representations of age, social class, ethnicity, gender, sexuality and disability
• the relationship between the media, their content and presentation, and audiences

2.   Sociology of media mind maps

19 mind maps covering the following topics:

• Overview of the whole media module
• The neophiliac view of new media
• The cultural pessimist view of new media
• The pluralist theory of ownership and control
• The Instrumentalist Marxist theory of ownership and control
• The neo-Marxist (Hegemonic) theory of ownership and control
• The postmodern perspective on globalisation and popular culture
• The cultural imperialist perspective on globalisation and popular culture 
• The social construction of the news (overview of all factors)
• Organisational routines and the selection of the news
• The Marxist perspective on the news
• Moral Panics
• Media representations of social class
• The two-step flow model of audience effects
• The uses and gratifications model of audience effects
• The selective filter model of audience effects
• The reception analysis model of audience effects
• The cultural effects model of audience effects
• The postmodernist model of audience effects

3.   Sociology of education short answer and essay questions

There are three examples of each type of question in the exam: 3* 10 mark outline questions, 3* 10 mark analyse questions, and 3* 20 mark essay questions.

All questions are taken from the three existing AQA past papers, with model answers being derived from the mark schemes. Items are include and used where appropriate.

The nine questions covered are:

• Outline and explain two ways in which ownership of the media may affect audiences. [10 marks]
• Applying material from Item A, analyse two factors that influence which stories are selected for inclusion in the news. [10 marks]
• Applying material from Item B and your knowledge, evaluate the view that the media portray women in a stereotypical way [20 marks]
• Outline and explain two ways in which the new media may be creating a global popular culture. [10 marks]
• Applying material from Item M, analyse two reasons why the media often portray minority ethnic groups negatively. [10 marks]
• Applying material from Item N and your knowledge, evaluate the pluralist view of the ownership and control of the media. [20 marks]
• Outline and explain two reasons why the news may portray young people negatively. [10 marks]
• Applying material from Item M, analyse two ways in which the new media may affect the political process. [10 marks]
• Applying material from Item N and your knowledge, evaluate the view that the media have a direct and immediate effect on their audiences. [20 marks]

All resources are © Karl Thompson 2019.