Deconstructing Media Messages
| | Purpose: | As a result of this activity, students will be able to describe the different people involved in creating a media message. | | Related Standard & Benchmarks: | | Language Arts | | | Standard 10. | Understands the characteristics and components of the media | | | | | Level II [Grade 3-5] | | | | | Benchmark 3. Knows that a variety of people are involved in the creation of media messages and products (e.g., actors, directors, cinematographers, producers, scriptwriters, graphic artists, illustrators, news photographers) |
|
| | Student Product: | oral or written report | | Material & Resources: | a variety of media messages, such as newspaper articles, magazine feature articles, videotaped television shows, recorded radio commercials, etc. | | Teacher's Note: | No supplementary notes for this activity. | | Activity | The teacher begins the activity by showing students a variety of media messages (e.g., newspaper feature articles, news magazine articles, videotaped television shows, recorded radio commercials). Students are asked to consider the many people involved in the creation of these messages. Then the teacher helps students to "deconstruct" a media message in order to determine the different people involved in its creation. For example, a feature article in a newspaper may involve the following (and perhaps other) people:
- a feature writer (writes the story)
- a research assistant (helps to find information)
- interviewees (the subjects of the story)
- a copy editor (edits the writing for content and mechanics)
- a photographer (photographs subjects related to the story)
- a person in charge of page layout (makes the story look good in print)
- a printer (prints the story)
- a newspaper deliverer (gets the story to the public)
After students have considered the many people involved in the creation of a newspaper feature article, the teacher breaks students into groups of 3-4. Each group selects a different media message to "deconstruct" (students may need to do some research to find out the different people involved with their particular media message). Each member of the group should be responsible for investigating at least one of the people involved in the media message. Then the groups create an oral or written presentation in which they describe the people involved and their contributions to the selected media message.
| |
