Eduqas GCSE Media Studies key terms

A large audience drawn from a broad range of people, rather than a small group with one specialised interest.

The newspaper’s name displayed in its recognisable style on the front page.

An organisation that owns companies operating in different areas of the media industry.

The social, cultural, political or historical circumstances in which a media product is produced and used.

The connections between media forms, technologies and platforms, allowing content and users to move between them.

The organisations and processes involved in producing, distributing, marketing and funding media products, including their ownership and regulation.

The techniques and codes through which a media product communicates meaning, including camerawork, editing, sound, costume and setting.

The people, organisations and processes involved in creating media products.

The process through which reality is shaped into a media product by choices such as selection, framing and editing.

A purchase of an item or service within a game, often involving a relatively small payment.

The elements arranged within a shot, including setting, costume, make-up, lighting and props.

Prejudice against, contempt for or hostility towards women.

A distorted or misleading portrayal of a person or social group, for example through a narrow stereotype that obscures its diversity.

A fictional programme that uses documentary conventions, such as interviews and direct address, often for comedy.

The way a media product speaks to its audience, for example through an informal tone or language that creates a sense of belonging.

Monitoring and responding to users’ content or behaviour to enforce rules, such as rules against bullying.

An edited sequence of shots brought together to communicate an idea, show connections or condense events.

A recurring element that develops a meaning or theme within a media product.

A narrative containing several storylines that develop alongside one another and may overlap.

A story constructed through characters, events and their relationships.

A character's ability to make choices and take actions that influence the story.

A character’s function in a story, such as opposing the hero, providing help or sending the hero on a mission.

An interpretation that accepts some of the intended meaning but questions or adapts other parts in light of the audience member’s circumstances or beliefs.

A criterion that helps editors judge whether a story will interest readers, such as timeliness, significance, conflict or cultural proximity.

A relatively small, specialised audience sharing a particular interest.

Sound outside the story world, such as background music added for the audience.

A narrative that presents events out of chronological order, for example through flashbacks.