Untouchable, a comedy drama directed by Olivier Nakache and Eric Toledano in 2011, depicts an adaptation of a true story, exploring the lives of a young black man who lands the job of caring for an older, wealthy disabled white man.

The film portrays Driss, the young black man, as living in a run down area of town in a small apartment with his siblings - later found to be his cousins - and his mother - later revealed to be his aunt. There are implicit references to drugs, although no illegal drugs are ever shown on screen, in particularly in regards to his younger cousin which helps to portray a negative stereotype of black young people and their involvement in drug related crime. This negative stereotype is further explored with images of Driss associating with groups of hooded men, connoting his involvement with gang culture. This touches on representing the issues of gangs and drugs.

Philippe is portrayed as a widower who is desperate to find love in his correspondence with a woman who he is yet to have met and his insecurities concerning his disability prevent him from confidently approaching the woman. His ordeal concerning losing his loved one and then searching for a new love introduces the themes of both love and loss into the film, which is also explored in regards to Driss and Phillippe's friendship and the absence of Driss' biological family.

Philippe's impressive home, attire and staff of assistance directly juxtaposes the cramped conditions of Driss' home life, particularly within two separate scenes that denote the bathrooms of each home: Driss' bathroom is used by all of the family members, often at the same time, which means that he has little privacy within it's cramped conditions, whereas Driss has his own spacious bathroom within Philippe's house. This is a clear representation of the difference in class between the two men. The difference is class is also explicitly represented through the fact that Philippe is willing to pay thousands of pounds for an abstract painting that Driss feels unworthy when Driss and his family have to work tirelessly to afford a decent quality of life for themselves, which is shown through Driss' aunt working late hours as a cleaner but also through Driss' attempt to steal one of Philippe's ornaments to provide his family with something of value. This also presents the theme of struggle.

Disability is represented most obviously with Untouchable by being presented at all - relating to identification, as discussed in the Uses and Gratifications theory. However, Philippe is not presented as a man overly bitter regarding his disability, as those with disabled often are, nor is he represented as a person with a lack of love for life. He is shown as funny and compassionate and, most importantly, human, regardless of his disability. I think that this is an important positive stereotype to promote the concept that disabilities do not change a person.

Overall, Untouchable focuses on various key aspects of representation, specifically race and disability, and has a narrative driven forward through the use of juxtaposing scenes, themes and characters and stereotypes.

The society in which we live in is heavily influenced and manipulated by the media and, in an effort to control this, there are various governing bodies across media outlets that govern what the general public are exposed to.

There are a variety of different types of censorship within the media, and subsequently a vast array of reasons behind such suppression. Perhaps the most notorious form of censorship is the age rating for films, television programs, and games. In the UK, the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) is responsible for the national classification and censorship of films and it is their statutory requirement to classify videos, DVDs, and some video games beneath the Video Recordings Act of 2010. BBFC ratings are legally binding and British law imposes penalties on retailers who sell to under-aged customers. These age ratings are there to protect people below certain ages from being exposed to certain violence, sexual references, drug references, and other taboo topics. This is important because, often, children can struggle with differentiating between fiction and reality. If exposed to the likes of violence at too early an age, they may consider such behaviour to be "normal" or "socially acceptable" and adopt it.

A similar concept to age classification from the BBFC is the "watershed" which is a time period on live television in which programs displaying "explicit content" - for example, violence and sexual references -  can be shown. Currently, from 9pm onwards, films and television programs that are classified as suitable for 15 year olds can be shown. From 10pm onwards, this changes to films and television programs that are suitable for 18 year olds.



Just as certain things are restricted from being exposed to impressionable children, the representation of certain groups of people within society is something that has caused controversy within the general public, specifically in regards to what children are introduced to. A prime example of public back lash following the representation of a group of people is after Cerrie Burnell was introduced as a new presenter of CBeebies, a BBC brand.

Cerrie Burnell, third in from the left.

When Burnell joined CBeebies in 2009 as a regular presenter, the BBC received complaints from parents worried that Burnell's missing right hand and forearm would prove "frightening" to their children and beg questions that would be difficult for them to answer to their children. Despite these worried parents, there were no records of children actually being scared of the presenter and, six years later, she is still a regular presenter on the children's television channel. It seems, rather, that the parents were worried more of the questions their children may ask and the "difference" now displayed within popular culture than they were that their children might respond negatively.

I believe that the exposure of such disability, however, is actually a positive and should not be censored in fear that children may react badly. If children are not exposed to the diversities within society then these "differences" will never cease to be just differences and will never be normalised within society. Children are arguably the least judgmental generation, to corrupt them with negative attitudes towards people with disabilities or people who differ from the majority would be the greatest crime. Alienating groups of people is not the right, ethical thing to do in any circumstance and encouraging the younger generation to be more accepting and understanding of minorities is the key to creating a society with equal rights and equal attitudes, regardless of a person's race, sexuality, gender, disability, class, etc. Likewise, by exposing children to minorities, they are likely to feel more comfortable within themselves should they come across a person that they can relate to, boosting self-esteem.

Cerrie Burnell

However, the classification of entertainment products such as films and games and the representation of certain demographics are not the only ways in which the media we consume on a daily basis is controlled or censored. Often, the Government will regulate the information that we are exposed to through forms of media such as television news. A key example of this media censorship was during the anti-austerity protests of May 2015, following a General Election in the UK that saw a party with just 36% of the votes win. For over twenty four hours, one of the country's leading news broadcasters - BBC News - failed to cover the story. When they finally did, it was reported that there were "100 people" attending the march when, in reality, hundreds of people marched in force up and down Downing Street and around London.

Other mainstream media channels also failed to report the events until later that day, post-protest, or the next day yet European news stations were providing in depth coverage during the course of the day. Likewise, after the protests were exposed on social media, the Twitter hashtag #ToriesOutNow became a trending hashtag. Within hours, the hashtag had disappeared, which led to various conspiracies regarding the censorship of the media we consume by our Government.



This type of "media blackout" is not uncommon during situations where there are protests or riots for a number of reasons. Alerting citizens of the nearby area that there is a riot or protest may cause further damage that authorities become unable to control with more people arriving, for example. Likewise, if there is a situation that reflects badly on the state, the Government, or the authorities - such as in this case - it is unlikely that the state would be willing to raise awareness of this.

However, whilst there may be a variety of reasons that this type of censorship might occur, it is important to notice that this is a key example of how the media is constructed. The media that we consume is carefully controlled. If someone with a position of authority does not want the general public to be made aware of an event or happening, they possess the power to restrict any teachings of it through media such as television, print media, and social media. This is evidence that the media presents biased and skewed perceptions of events, poorly representing reality.

In my personal opinion, whilst I understand that much of the censorship within the media is related to public protection, I believe that information that may put the public in danger should not be an issue of discretion and should be disclosed to the public regardless of other factors. Whilst this may risk causing public chaos and panic, it is immoral to have such control over a person's life that they are restricted information that affects them; frankly, it's a breach of one's freedom to make choices for themselves.


There are various issues surrounding the concept of censorship. Whilst it can be useful to prevent inciting masses from turning on the state, among other groups and individuals, and it is important to protect people from being exposed from the likes of violence when they are not at an age that they can recognise fiction from reality, it is not ethical to restrict the information that audiences consume and manipulate them into states of ignorance, just as regulating the opinions and ideas of a person is a breach of the Freedom of Speech. It is not an issue that has a clear answer: to prevent censorship or encourage it? Largely, it is an issue that is dependent on specific situations and circumstances and, just like most politics, it is unlikely that any "solution" to such question will please the masses for opinions are so greatly divided.

It's true that we live in a progressive society where medieval attitudes are changing and equality is becoming a more realistic goal. Regardless, as this video highlights so thoroughly, we are still far from achieving some equalities - gender equality, for example.

A woman displayed wearing little clothing, which holds sexual connotations, and posed in a provocative position for the purpose of selling a brand of food. This relates to Mulvey's theory of The Male Gaze where women are displayed with the intention of entertaining a heterosexual male audience, which, essentially, is undervaluing them.

The media, whilst it could arguably be considered a mere tool, can be held responsible for many of the sexist attitudes and false stereotypes associated with the female gender.

Women's bodies are still used to sell products completely unrelated to the sexual connotations displayed and are still used to entertain a heterosexual male audience, hypersexualising and objectifying women.



Women are still expected to abide to a particular beauty ideal and they are criticised should they choose not to conform.

Likewise, women are still blamed in cases where they are sexually abused or raped by a range of people, most shockingly, high-profile personalities who use the media to convey messages such as "if a women's skirt is too short, they are asking to be raped".



It's evident, also, that the remains of a patriarchal society, in which men rank higher than women, still exists. For example, in a clip displayed at 2:21 of the video, the man addresses the women in an aggressive tone, saying "know your role and shut your mouth". This supports the ideal that men have a higher status than women for it would be an absurdity for a women to even suggest something similar to a man and distributes a message that women are second class citizens.

I don't believe that correcting this wrong relies on placing women on a pedestal, by all means, but I do consider the right thing to do to change these attitudes and work for a more equal society where women are represented more accurately is to use the media to represent the ideals that women are equal to men; in power and in nature, the average women should be awarded with the same level of respect as the average man would and the way in which they are represented should not be showing them as lesser to men but as equal. If the media portrays a more positive representation of women then the attitudes within society will soon adapt.

“Crash”, directed by Paul Haggis, is a 2004 drama depicting the very different lives of a set of individuals from Los Angeles whose narratives cross throughout the film, giving the film a multi-strand narrative where there are multiple protagonists who, in some cases (for example, Anthony (Ludacris)’s involvement in Rick Cabot’s (Brendan Fraser) life), also act as antagonists.

Media plays a key role when it comes to creating and enforcing social norms and stereotypes, mostly due to the fact that it is so widely consumed and difficult - if not impossible - to escape in the modern age. 

Gender stereotypes, like all stereotypes, contain a truth that applies - or has applied - to a small minority of the people within the respective gender. Likewise, although they are perpetuated by the media, they thrive and exist because society chooses to accept them. 

These gender related expectations are introduced at an early age, with examples of them displayed in abundance through the use of media; in television, advertisements, and magazines to name a few examples. Within catalogues, young girls are seen to be playing with “Barbie”s and other dolls, as well as “playing house” with their easy-bake-ovens, and young boys are presented to be playing with toy cars and their “Action Man” or “GI Joe”. Through the repetitive exposure to these images, children often grow up to believe that dolls are “girls toys” and cars are “boys toys”, among other things. Likewise, it establishes the expectation that girls and women should be able to cook and look after the home later in life.

The problem with the media distributing and enforcing such stereotypes where it is easily consumed by children is that much of what young people learn is determined by indirect influences such as what they see in books and what they watch on television. At young ages, their mind is easily influenced and the media is one of their primary sources of knowledge. Before they even enter a world where they are free to choose the person they want to be, children are taught who they should be.

Furthermore, once these gender roles are established and the consumer is at a more mature age - as a teenager, perhaps, when their thoughts are just as easily influenced - the stereotypes of how each gender should behave, rather than simply what they should indulge in, are exposed within the media targeted at this demographic. Primarily within the use of print media such as magazines, the female gender is represented as usually one of two things: a housewife who is expected to perform domestic chores or a sexual object whose purpose is the service of men. Continuously, women are represented as weak and as a second-class citizen, especially in comparison to men who are portrayed as dominant figures, enforcing the concept of a patriarchal society.

Another example of the way that women are stereotyped as sexual objects can be found in the evidence of the famous “Page Three”, featured in newspapers such as The Daily Star and, most notoriously, The Sun. The page famously features women who have been hyper-sexualised, wearing little to no clothing and posed provocatively. This enforces the concept that women exist primarily for sexual purposes and to entertain a heterosexual male audience. This was described in the theory coined by Laura Mulvey, ‘The Male Gaze’, which explains how women are portrayed as objects whose main purpose lies to attract and serve a heterosexual male demographic and how this teaches women to undervalue themselves and men that they must be attracted to women who are portrayed like this. This same concept is presented throughout most magazines - regardless of the gender of the target audience. Likewise, the images displayed within such magazines create unrealistic, unhealthy expectations that form the beauty ideal within society. Women are taught through the media that they are not beautiful unless they adhere to a certain set of guidelines concerning their appearance and physicality.

Similarly, men are also stereotyped within media. Since appearing “vulnerable” or “weak” is considered to be a trait of women, men are often looked down upon following any sign of “weakness” or emotion. Men who display emotion are often made fun of. Although this is found most often within television and film, this is also expressed with the use of articles. For example, the headline from “Geekenstein” - an online blog - that reads “20 Movies That Even Real Men Cry At” enforces the concept that “real men” are not men who cry often or show signs of emotion. This emotional detachment is associated with masculinity, just as masculinity is also related to machismo, independence, aggression and violence. These expectations can force men to believe that they are not sufficient should they not live up to the macho stereotype. Within the media, this is supported within the number of models featured within magazines, advertisements, and on television who sport muscular physiques and appear strong and well-built.

These trends and expectations of each gender can prove very damaging, affecting the self-confidence of individuals and forcing them to reevaluate their self-worth if they do not fit into the defined gender roles.

There has been much criticism in the press over recent years concerning gender stereotyping - ironically, as they are the ones who are often found to be enforcing them - and even more criticism across social media. Because of this, advertisements that defy gender stereotypes have received considerable media attention. For example, the new Pot Noodle television advertisement that challenges gender stereotypes in terms of occupation.



Stereotypes cannot be escaped and most likely will not be eradicated in the foreseeable future due to their ability to create a standard that is accepted throughout society. The use of stereotypes ensures that brands can effectively communicate with their preferred audiences and offer familiar material that they can relate with. Regardless of this, the use of gender stereotypes in particular can prove damaging to both men, women, and those who are androgynistic. It is oppressing the voices, opinions, and personalities of individuals who are afraid of defying these preconceived ideas of how they should behave and appear and creating unhealthy ideals that young men and women aspire to.

The way that society is represented within print based media texts relies considerably on the institution that distributes the texts. In almost each case, the way certain demographics and social issues are represented within such texts are heavily influenced by the political stance of the distributor.

For example, during the newspaper coverage of the 2015 General Election, British newspapers were found to endorse particular parties and candidates. The tone of their articles would therefore favour the party who shared their political ideologies, resulting in generally bias reporting across most popular newspapers. In previous elections such endorsements proved to affect voters behaviour and newspapers have become notorious regarding where they sit politically, attracting like minded readership. Notable examples of this would be when “The Independent” changed their political stance in the run up to the 2015 General Election from their traditionally centre-left ideologies and support of the Labour party to back a centre-right Liberal Democrat and Conservative coalition. Because of this, the paper lost many readers to competitor “The Guardian”. The paper’s new political stance heavily altered their representation of particular parties, demonising the Labour party and the Scottish National Party (SNP) in saying that “any partnership between Labour and the SNP will harm Britain’s fragile democracy.” Furthermore, they positively represented the Liberal Democrats and the Conservative party, stating that “another Lib-Con [Liberal Democrats - Conservative] Coalition would both prolong recovery and give our kingdom a better chance of continued existence”.

The use of stereotypes also play a vital role in representation and creating propaganda. Enforcing stereotypes within text is one method that many newspapers and magazines use to represent demographics, social groups and events. For example, an article in the British magazine “ShortList” used existing stereotypes to represent the demographic that music festivals appeal to. Since print based media is often at the disadvantage of being unable to use moving image and sound, relying mainly on text, imagery is created using such stereotypes that the reader is already aware of. In a recent article ShortList relied on the stereotype of festival-goers being irresponsible, somewhat dangerous but fun and entertaining: “[...] you’re climbing a tent pole, screaming at the top of your lungs and drinking pint after pint of scrumpy [...]”. The use of this stereotype enforces an easy image that is familiar and relatable to the reader.

Stereotypes are also used to represent more generic demographics, such as gender, age or race. Young people are often misrepresented within media by using an array of different stereotypes. Particularly the portrayal of teenage boys as “yobs” or “ferals” within newspapers act as a stereotype that affects reality. Because of such negative representation, many adults and fellow teenagers are directed into being intimidated and frightened of teenage boys, particularly when arranged in groups. The stereotype of teenage boys perpetrating crimes and smoking and drinking on street corners have negatively affected people’s initial perceptions of the entire demographic, regardless of the truth. Likewise, this stereotype can also be applied to all teenagers - although not so prevalently. This is evident in a number of ways, including how many shops allow only two students in at a time. The way that newspapers represent teenagers can be somewhat to blame for the social stigma regarding young people. For example, during the 2011 London riots that took place across England following the death of Mark Duggan, a man who was shot dead by police, the coverage portrayed many of the looters and rioters as teenagers yet there was found to be a range of ages, genders and races involved in the riots. This is an example of how the media affected the public’s opinion regardless of the facts.

Women have also suffered from a number of representations within media. Often, they are portrayed in domestic situations such as being a housewife or mother. Alternatively they are objectified as sexual objects with the purpose of entertaining a (mostly) heterosexual male audience. Laura Mulvey coined the phrase “the male gaze” in her essay “Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema” which discusses this. The male gaze refers to how men are made to view women and how women are made to view themselves. She also constructed the theory of fragmentation which describes how, through the use of cinematography, women are objectified as pictures of women used in the media display only parts of their body, rather than their whole body, and often exclude their face. Although Mulvey’s theory originally referenced film media it also relates to print based media such as magazines and advertisements.

For example, the clothing brand “American Apparel” have been repeatedly criticised for their hypersexualisation of women within their advertisments. The way the company represents women - in particular young girls - is often referred to as “The Lolita Effect”, the title of which originates from the book Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov. The term is used to describe the advertising industry’s exploitation of women at increasingly younger ages, setting unrealistic standards in terms of sex and sexuality for young girls. Much of the controversy around the American Apparel advertisements lie in the fact that many of their models are below the age of sixteen. The essence of these advertisements act as perfect visual examples of both the damaging ideals created by the media as well as of the male gaze and how women - including young girls - are over-sexualised.

A prime example of the media portraying women as sexual objects and enforcing the ideals of a patriarchal society where men “own” women can be found in this advertisement. Like Mulvey’s theory of fragmentation suggests, only certain body parts of the women in subject are displayed. The positioning of the male model above the woman suggests that men have higher rank over women and asserts a dominance which could suggest that men are entitled to women’s bodies. This is a common theme throughout the American Apparel advertisements and many have claimed that it “promotes rape culture”. Likewise, the little of the female model we can see adheres to the socially constructed beauty ideals with the hairless, clear skinned, long legs.

An example of how these advertisements enforce and conform to the expectations of both genders, and over-seuxalise woman, are in the way that they advertised this shirt. Whilst the shirt is the same - or very similar - the way each model wears it differs greatly. The male model wears the shirt traditionally - buttoned up - and his posture is what might be considered “normal”. The way the female model is positioned, however, is different in the way that it is far more suggestive. Additionally, this is portrayed by the way that the models shirt is unbuttoned.

Magazines are renowned for creating similar unrealistic stereotypes in terms of beauty. One of the biggest controversies regarding this is the way that many fashion magazines represent women. More often than not, the models featured within beauty and fashion magazines are young, slim, white and conform to the media depicted images of “beauty”. This is described in The Beauty Myth, written by Naomi Wolf, which suggests that images used by the media present a particular “beauty ideal” that women must live up to and men must desire. Wolf believes that “the gaunt, youthful model [has] supplanted the happy housewife as the arbiter of successful womanhood” which suggests that this stereotype is currently the most common in association to the female gender.

Take, for example, this cover of “FHM” - a men’s lifestyle magazine. The image displays the model (in this case, Diana Vickers) in a suggestive pose with the use of direct eye contact, tilted hips and her chest pushed out. Likewise, Vickers is wearing minimal clothing which again sexualises her. This relates to the male gaze and how females are being projected as a male fantasy rather than a realistic portrayal. It is also notable that the model fits in with the media dictated conventions of “beauty”.

Magazines are also notorious for airbrushing - or “Photoshopping” - their models to create such unrealistic images that define the social expectations of beauty which explains why the feminine ideal is seemingly so impossible to achieve; for it is fabricated itself.

Alarmingly, females are not the only demographic to be misrepresented, underrepresented or stereotyped within print media. Within mainstream magazines, African-American models are sorely underrepresented. Most models gracing the covers of magazines found on the high street follow the same conventions, one of them being that they are white. The magazines that have the highest visibility and are claimed to have the biggest impact on society’s beauty ideals show a majority of white models. Since most women’s magazines are targeted to the “average woman”, this suggests that those who are not white are not deemed as normal. Likewise, headlines and text support the connotations of these images - or lack of. White skin is considered “the norm” and this is promoted by headlines such as the one featured in the magazine “Essence” - targeted at African-American women - that states “Black is Beautiful”. Not only is this headline displayed on a magazine exclusively for African-American women, which suggests that it is not a common opinion among women of other races, the fact that it is needed to be declared further connotes that it is not an opinion of the masses. Furthermore, “White is Beautiful” would not be needed to be written on the cover of a magazine since it is taken for granted as white people are often portrayed as superior to black people. This underrepresentation shows that media representation does little for equality.

Many social issues are controlled by the representation of the media. In cases where all facts have not yet been released, newspapers use of stereotypes to aid the public’s opinions. Likewise, the institutions and organisations in control of distributing text plays a valid role in affecting the representation of social issues. For example, cases such as anti-austerity riots are often reported with minimal information as not to negatively represent the state and government. In the May of 2015, following the general election, the anti-austerity riots were not reported by most mainstream newspapers for over twenty-four hours with information being released via social media alternatively. This led to questions regarding how much control the Government has over the media we consume.

In conclusion, media, however informative and factual, usually always contains a degree of fiction or fabrication. This is evident in the way that institutions and distributors control the media and how stereotypes are used to affect the connotations of texts. Whilst there is much truth in print based media, it is important to realise that it is simply a portrayal of reality rather than real life written in black and white terms. Media is created with a purpose - to tell a story or share a message - and the use of both text and images in print media is a prime example of how the representation of events and demographics can aid the purpose.