Timed Essay Question 6

Timed Essay Question 6

Discuss how the representation of gender, class or age would appeal to a target audience in one of the media products you have analyzed this year.

The representation of class would appeal to two different target audiences in the music videos Billie Jean (Michael Jackson) and C.R.E.A.M. (Wu-Tang Clan). Billie Jean is of the pop music genre so the target audience will be fans of pop music on the other hand, C.R.E.A.M. is of the hip-hop music genre so hip-hop fans will be their target audience. The class for the music video C.R.E.A.M. would be of a lower class, as the iconography of the music video is urban and gritty and the costumes in the music videos are just basic baggy clothing which look like hand-me-downs which relates to a lower-class audience as this could also be their way of sourcing their own clothes. The setting is also of a neighbor mainly focusing on the streets and apartment buildings this also relates to the lower-class audience as they way of income will be low so not many would be able to afford houses so apartments would be what they could only afford. On the other hand, the audience for the music video Billie Jean would be of a middle/higher class as Michael Jackson is wearing suit in the music video which is the type of clothing middle/higher class would wear especially the higher class. Also, in the music video, Michael Jackson throws a penny in a homeless man’s cup which then changes the man’s life as he also then seen wearing a suit which emphasizes the representation of a middle/higher class. The music video is also not urban and gritty as the music video C.R.E.A.M. is, it is a lot more loud, bold and vibrant which would appeal to a middle/higher class.