Tutorial 12/10/17

  1. How does ''13 Reasons Why'' represent mental health issues and can it be argued that it glorifies suicide? 
  2. Research (UK ) adverts re: mental health (e.g Samaritans, Sane line...) and identify how they're similar/ different to 13 Reasons Why 
  3. Economic contexts: Netflix- institutional info, net worth, profits also cost of mental health to economy( Guardian) 
  4. Social media promotion of show (for teenagers) - what support does it give? 
  5. Moral panics: research Cohen &link theory to text, media amplification, does the media influence teens?, is the problem exaggerated? 
Improvements

1. Working Title: How does ''13 Reasons Why'' represent mental health issues and can it be argued that it glorifies suicide? 

2. Research adverts

Samaritans Suicide Prevention Advert


The advert is quite similar to "13 reasons why" as it targets a young demographic, however they have a male playing the victim. Also the advert shows the man trying to commit suicide in different ways e.g by jumping off a building or using a knife to harm himself, however it doesn't show him performing these actions. Instead, he is confronted with different messages that encourage him to not commit suicide and seek help e.g "Need 2 Talk" and "who cares?...we do...". This form of "intervention" is not seen in "13 Reasons Why"and could possibly be the reason why the show's message is quite misleading. 

Movember Foundation 


This advert is also quite similar to "13 Reasons Why" as it talks about suicide notes, which is similar to what Hannah used to tell people about the reasons for her death (she used cassette tapes but the idea of leaving messages behind occurs in both texts). However, unlike "13 Reasons Why", the outcome/message of the advert is quite positive as it goes on to reveal that the people did not commit suicide, and instead talked to someone about their problems. Furthermore, the advert is targeted towards a predominantly male demographic.

3. Economic Context:
Netflix Institutional Info
  • Available in over 190 countries- https://help.netflix.com/en/node/14164
  • Revenue- $8.83 billion (2016) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Netflix#cite_note-Netflix_Q416-4
  • "More than 5 million UK households, or 24% of the total, subscribed to Netflix at the end of 2015, compared with 14% in 2014" - https://www.theguardian.com/media/2016/mar/22/netflix-amazon-sky-uk-subscribers-streaming
Mental health/ suicide:
  • Mental illness is estimated to cost the UK economy as much as £100bn a year in terms of healthcare, lost jobs, unemployment benefits, homelessness support, police time and prisoner places. - https://www.theguardian.com/healthcare-network/2016/may/17/economic-cost-of-mental-illness
  • The report, Dying from Inequality, says there is “overwhelming evidence of a strong link between socioeconomic disadvantage and suicidal behaviour”. It says governments should place a stronger emphasis on suicide prevention as an inequality issue. It calls for national suicide prevention strategies to be targeted at the most vulnerable people and places, in order to reduce geographical inequalities in suicide. - https://www.theguardian.com/society/2017/mar/06/strong-link-between-disadvantage-and-suicide-says-samaritans
4. Social Media promotion- What support does it give? 

13 Reasons Why Twitter


Posted on "Suicide Prevention Day" with message "Take a minute, Save a life"- shows that they are supporting the cause an encouraging people to seek help if they are suicidal or depressed. 


https://twitter.com/13ReasonsWhy/status/864902816007020544

In this video, the cast explains 13 reasons why they love their fans, with some members claiming that they love how the community support each other and spread awareness on bullying and depression. 

Facebook 
https://en-gb.facebook.com/13ReasonsWhy/

This video posted by the show, encourages us to support for victims of suicide/depression and promotes friendship- it reminds us that there are ''reasons why'' people matter. 

5. Theories and Ideologies
  • Moral Panic (Cohen) - "the process of arousing social concern over an issue – usually the work of moral entrepreneurs and the mass media".- links to 13 reasons why as show explores bullying, violent/sexual behavior, cyber-bullying, depression, suicide, self-harm all of which are a major concern amongst the older demographic. 
  • Deviancy Amplification Spiral (Leslie T. Wilkins) -  "media hypephenomenon defined by media critics as a cycle of increasing numbers of reports on a category of antisocial behaviour or some other 'undesirable' event, leading to a moral panic." - Suicide is becoming a common theme on most tv shows and films. could lead to the spread of ideas; may be misleading. 
  • Sensationalism- "type of editorial bias in mass media in which events and topics in news stories and pieces are overhyped to present biased impressions on events, which may cause a manipulation to the truth of a story"- showing explicit imagery relating to suicide or depression 
  • Cultivation Theory (Gerbner) - "Heavy viewers of TV are thought to be ‘cultivating’ attitudes that seem to believe that the world created by television is an accurate depiction of the real world. The theory suggests that this cultivation of attitudes is based on attitudes already present in our society. Those who absorb more media are those we are more influenced." - representation of suicide in the show is therefore realistic; can lead to moral panic. 


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Moonlight Film Trip

Talk about it This film is about a young black man growing up in a poor area of an American city. Based on other films you have seen, what expectations do you have about its main character, and the sort of film this may be? I expected the film to be about the main character overcoming the obstacles he faced throughout his life and possibly even moving out of the "poor area" to pursue his dreams. However after watching the film it did not conform to the typical expectations and instead showed how Chiron grew up in a place that he's always felt uncomfortable with, but still managed to outgrow his fear of discrimination. Discussion points • Chiron is a character of few words. Why is this? How do the three actors use body language to communicate Chiron’s emotions to the audience? Why is he reluctant to make eye contact with people? Chirons character doesn't talk to people as he doesn't trust them. Also if he did he believes that they would not understand the
Read more

Critical Autonomy Task

How far does Beyonce's visual album Lemonade promote the views and values of Black Feminism? Word Count: 495 Black Feminism is a term referring to the empowerment of Black women, as a result of the oppression they have faced throughout the years. It first gained popularity in the 1960s, during the Civil Rights Movement in response to the sexism and racism they had faced. In today's society this term still remains relevant as certain inequalities are still being experienced by this particular demographic. In relation to this, Crenshaw's ''theory of intersectionality'' highlights the difficulties that black women face: since they experience race, class, and gender oppression simultaneously  if it quite difficult for them to differentiate between them. This therefore shows us that due these combined inequalities, the movement of Black Feminism, is used to ''stand up'' and fight against discrimination. Beyonce's visual album Lemonade, d
Read more

Task #5- Essay plan

Critical Investigation:    How does "13 Reasons Why" represent mental health issues and can it be argued that it glorifies suicide? Introduction briefly mention mental health and suicide in the media- issues with glorifying suicide Introduce texts- debates and issues Quotes ignores the relationship between suicide and the mental illness that often accompanies it. People often commit suicide because they are unwell, not simply because people have been cruel to them.-  https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/apr/28/13-reasons-why-new-zealand-bans-under-18s-from-watching-suicide-drama-without-adult   Section 1 - Primary text (13 Reasons Why) Institutional Information- Netflix and Background Info on 13 Reasons Why Textual Analysis- Suicide Scene (MIGRAIN) Issues and Debates- glorification, "vulnerable youth", theme of suicide in tv shows Quotes  "Available in over 190 countries"-   https://help.netflix.com/en/node/14164 "
Read more