No matter who you are, after a long day most people just want to sit down and watch a show or listen to music, however this act of escapsim is often then interrupted by the digital world lying on the sofa next to you, trapped inside a small smart phone. Media conglomerates are completely aware of the way in which modern day audiences are consuming media, glued to screens at all times with many of us even attempting to focus on multiple screens at the same time i.e putting a Netflix programme on your Tv and then opening TikTok to sit and scroll while the show just endlessly plays in the background.
As a result of this, media companies embed signs within media texts as a way to provoke a response from audiences and help communicate meaning Barthes (2007). For example, a woman wearing red lipstick (Denotation) may suggest that she is trying to seduce someone/behave in a sensual manner (Connotation).
However, the skill of simply scrolling is not as simple as one may think, as every piece of content we lay our eyes upon must be carefully deconstructed by our brain where we eventually land on a decision: Do we like it or not?… Or do we kind of like it?
The way in which we as consumers receive and respond to content produced by these large scale media companies can be deconstructed into three forms of coding: Dominant, Negotiated and Oppositional Hall (2006).
A Dominant reading refers to the way in which an audience receives and responds to a media text by accepting the message in the way in which the producers intended.
A Negotiated reading highlights how an audience may respond to a media text with mixed feelings, as they somewhat understand the message the way in which producers intended.
An Oppositional reading displays the way an audience can completely disagree with a media text as audiences embodying an oppositional reading do not understand or agree with the producers intended message.
For example, when looking at the way in which audiences may respond to Mean Girls (2004) audiences would adopt a dominant reading by believing the film proposes an accurate representation of life as a teenager in highschool and believe it to be quite relatable as they too have encountered someone like the antagonist: Regina George. A Negotiated reading would mean audiences would recognise that a lot of people have a similar highschool experience particularly regarding the different cliques highlighted within the film however, do not find it directly relatable to their experience. Finally, an Oppositional reading would suggest that audiences do not find the film relatable at all and belive that the way in which characters are represented in the film is problematic with the slim blonde, rich girl being recognised as ‘the popular girl’.
References:
Barthes, R (2007) ‘The Photographic Message’ Theorising Communication Illustrated p: 193
Hall, S (2006) ‘Encoding/Decoding’ Media and Cultural Studies: Keyworks, Revised Edition pp: 163-173 https://we.riseup.net/assets/102142/appadurai.pdf
Images:
Mean Girls Poster: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0377092/?ref_=tt_mv_close
Featured Image: https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-holding-remote-control-1040160/
I liked how you used Mean Girls as an example and applied the three different encoding techniques. I personally never thought of the oppositional, but that is probably because I identified with the other tactics.
Great blog post! This article provides solid facts and information about the relationship between media consumption and audience interpretation in the digital age. The discussion about escapism really got my interest as we are surrounded by a wide variety of media, yet somehow always end up with our phones. Including Roland Barthes’ semiotic theory provided a good theoretical foundation for analysis. A suggestion for next time would be to expand on real-world examples of each reading to strengthen the article’s practical relevance.
I like the precise way you write and incorporate examples into your explanation. The example of looking at mean girls is also enjoyable. I think I would be a part of the oppositional reading as I don’t find the film relatable, but I do find it entertaining, it may be because it is a very American film. I think films are a great way to show an understanding of Hall’s theory.
This post deeply resonates with my view on how media influences modern life. The habit of multitasking with screens—like watching Netflix while scrolling through TikTok—has become so normalized that I hadn’t fully acknowledged it. It’s fascinating (and unsettling) to realize that every piece of content we encounter is mentally processed, regardless of our feelings about it.
Applying Hall’s dominant, negotiated, and oppositional readings to *Mean Girls* is particularly engaging. It highlights how differently people can interpret the same media based on their perspectives. For instance, *Mean Girls* might feel relatable, neutral, or problematic depending on the viewer.
I also appreciated the discussion on how signs, such as red lipstick, convey deeper meanings. This serves as a reminder of the thought that goes into creating media and our ongoing process of decoding messages. This post has inspired me to think more critically about how media shapes my understanding of the world.