Becca's Blog

Michael Jackson was an international superstar, and many in the black community herald him for breaking down racial barriers in the music industry. As the  Jackson 5 , Michael Jackson and his brothers "became a cutting-edge example of black crossover artists," said Mark Anthony Neal, a professor of black popular culture at Duke University's Department of African and African American Studies."Michael Jackson made culture accept a person of colour way before Tiger Woods, way before Oprah Winfrey, way before Barack Obama," said the Rev. Al Sharpton. "Michael did with music what they later did in sports and in politics and in television. And no controversy will erase the historic impact." "You basically had five working-class black boys with Afros and bell bottoms, and they really didn't have to trade any of that stuff in order to become mainstream stars," Neal said. Young  Michael Jackson  was the first black "bubblegum tee...

Mise En Scene - The black square hovering could reflect on how black people are treated as objects, they are exploited and not treated fairly. - At the very end of the music video, the black square is hovering outside which suggest that black people deserve freedom. it can also suggest that they are not free because back in slavery the black people worked in agricultural land. - The black drummer isn't facing the camera, which suggests that he wants to be  alone, he may be worried about of the white people would portray him if his face was put on the media.  - Some of the black people are not wearing shoes which reflects on the suffering they went through in slavery - At one point we see 'No Excessive Sound' which suggests that no one wants to hear noises coming from black people and there is a basketball net which is a typical sport that black people played, a lot of noise is made when playing basketball.  Ironic as there is a lot of loud noises in prisons i...

Mise en Scene - Use of colour when the mysterious man is in black and white and Michael Jackson is shown in colour. This is a good way to highlight both the protagonist and antagonist. - Two women on a billboard are 2D makes suggestion about fans, MJ is moving and being free, while the girls are watching him. - Special effects: Freeze close up on MJ eyes. Three split freeze frames of MJ  - Fake Hollywood background  Narrative - The narrative is consistent throughout, as Michael Jackson tries to persuade everyone that he is not the father. Followed by the camera (paparazzi), detective and police Jackson tries to flee. This is Jackson commenting on a past story where a girl claimed he got her pregnant. The claim was proven to be false. - Everything MJ touches is magic, makes everything better. - intertextuality: fake Hollywood background like in 'singing in the rain' music video. Reference to how MJ hates the paperazzi following and stalking his every move.  - ...

Music Video: theory There are a range of important theories we need to learn as part of our Music Video unit. Both our Music Video Close-Study Products contain representations of black Americans. We therefore need to study a range of theories that address the representation of black or minority ethnic people in the media. Notes from the lesson Paul Gilroy: The Black Atlantic Paul Gilroy is a key theorist in A Level Media and has written about race in both the UK and USA. In The Black Atlantic (1993), Gilroy explores influences on black culture. One review states: “Gilroy’s ‘black Atlantic’ delineates a distinctively modern, cultural-political space that is not specifically African, American, Caribbean, or British, but is, rather, a hybrid mix of all of these at once.” Gilroy is particularly interested in the idea of black diasporic identity – the feeling of never quite belonging or being accepted in western societies even to this day. For example, Gilr...