Timed Essay 2

Explain how media language in music video incorporates viewpoints and ideologies. Refer to one of the music videos you have studied to support your answer.

In this essay I’ll be looking into how Radiohead’s incorporates viewpoints and ideologies through the Burn the Witch music video. Radiohead are an English rock band formed in 1985 and led by Thom Yorke. They tend to include political messages in their songs and are left leaning in their political views.

Radiohead’s main target audience are people in their 40’s who likely grew up with the band or have followed them for a while, as well as those with similar political views to them. The music video itself is inspired by TV shows such as Trumpton and Camberwick Green as well as The Wicker Man, a movie released in 1973. The audience are likely to get these intertextual references as they would have grown up with the shows and the film or would at the very least be familiar with them. The music video is most heavily based off of The Wicker Man, and takes its main ideas from that film, with the middle class, white people being stuck in their ways and not seeing that what they’re doing is wrong. This can be connected to Radiohead’s political views as this would be how they see the right wing supports and the middle-upper class. The animation style of the music video is inspired by the Camberwick Green and Trumpton TV shows, and this was likely done to create a contrast between the ideas presented in the music video and the style of the music video itself. This draws a comparison to the actual music video in which the townspeople seem to be doing good things, but it is contrasted with the abnormality of the events. Older audiences are likely to identify with these TV shows and recognise the artistic style due to Radiohead’s target audience being a typically older demographic.

Reception theory can also be applied to this music video as the audience are likely to take different readings from it based on their political views. Left wing supporters as well as fans of the band are likely to have a preferred reading of this text as the music video and band itself share the same beliefs that they do whilst right wing supporters are likely to have a oppositional reading to this text as it goes against right wing views. Also, most right-wing supporters are likely to be white, middle class and middle aged and due to the music video demonising them, they will go against the text. People who live in towns like the one presented in the music video are also likely to take an oppositional reading to the text as it makes them look bad and presents their actions as abnormal and two-faced. People who take a negotiated reading to this music video are likely to be people who listen to the music but do not really have any political views or new listeners and people that didn’t really grow up with the band.

Fandom theory can also be applied to this music video as the band have been around since 1985, meaning they have a worldwide reach and appeal to a large audience, especially of people that would be the same age and share the same political views. There is also the possibility that cultivation theory could apply, as fans of the band could have had their views cultivated to match the political views of the band. Identity theory could also be applied here which connects to fandom theory as left wing supporters are likely to seek out bands that promote the same views as they support, meaning listeners may come across Radiohead. People that identify with the people presented in the music video aren’t going to be supportive of the band as they are being presented in a negative light through stereotyping and labelling.

In conclusion, Radiohead uses its music video for Burn the Witch to promote their ideologies and viewpoints. It presents the right wing, middle class, middle aged, white social groups as bad, which fits with their left wing political ideologies which their audience will also agree with.