AQA A-level Sociology (7192): Paper 2 – The media – Practice Questions

These are original questions written for Marlbridge, for revision and practice on this content. They are not reproduced past-paper questions, and they do not replicate the exam’s exact structure, question count or mark tariffs – examination boards hold copyright in their own papers. Use these alongside the official past papers from your board or school.

These questions cover section 4.2.7 The Media (shown as 3.2.7 in the specification’s at-a-glance list) of the AQA AS and A-level Sociology (7191, 7192) specification, Version 1.2 (14 October 2021). The Media is an option in Paper 2: Topics in Sociology, a 2 hour exam worth 80 marks. The specification places it in “Section B: one from option 2: 4.2.5, 4.2.6, 4.2.7 or 4.2.8”, with Section A being “one from option 1: 4.2.1, 4.2.2, 4.2.3 or 4.2.4”. All companies, places, people and data below are fictional.

Revise first with the study guide and the revision notes. Track your progress on the AQA A-level Sociology hub and the AQA A-level Sociology checklist.

Questions

1. Define the term “agenda setting”. [2]

2. Outline three features of the new media. [3]

3. Explain the difference between the ownership and the control of the media. [4]

4. Outline two news values and explain how each one affects which stories are selected. [4]

5. Read Item A.

Item A. Carrow Holdings is a fictional company. It owns two national newspapers and a radio station. It also owns a film studio, the streaming service that shows the studio’s dramas, and the firm that delivers its newspapers to shops. Last year, Carrow’s chair phoned one of its editors to complain about a story criticising a housing development that Carrow had invested in.

(a) Identify two types of integration shown in Item A. [2] (b) Explain how an instrumentalist Marxist and a pluralist would each interpret the chair’s phone call. [6]

6. Study the table. The data are fictional.

Westmere content analysis: 1,000 main characters in 400 TV adverts	Number of characters	Share of Westmere population
Women	390	51%
Aged 60 or over	70	24%
Visibly disabled	15	18%

(a) Calculate the percentage of characters aged 60 or over, and state how many percentage points this is below their share of the population. [2] (b) Using the data, explain two ways these findings could support the idea of symbolic annihilation. [4]

7. Outline two criticisms of the hypodermic syringe model of media effects. [4]

8. Read the scenario.

A researcher shows a TV news report about the closure of a fictional factory in Harwick to three groups. The report says rising costs made closure unavoidable. Group X, local business managers, agree that the closure was necessary. Group Y, shop workers, accept that costs were high but say the town deserved more support. Group Z, trade union members, say the report hid the profits the company made in the same year.

(a) Using Hall’s encoding and decoding model, identify the type of reading made by each group. [3] (b) Explain why findings like these challenge the hypodermic syringe model. [3]

9. Analyse two reasons why the new media may not have made the media more democratic. [10]

10. Read Item B.

Item B. In the fictional country of Lorvania, the three most-watched streaming series last year were all made in the USA. However, a Lorvanian band that mixes traditional folk instruments with hip-hop topped the charts in several neighbouring countries. Lorvanian TV channels also buy foreign game-show formats and remake them with local presenters and local humour.

Applying material from Item B and your knowledge, evaluate the view that the global spread of media is replacing local cultures with a single, mainly American, popular culture. [16]

11. Evaluate the view that media representations of social groups mainly reflect the interests of powerful groups. [12]

Answers

1. The media’s power to influence which issues the public thinks about [1], by choosing which stories to cover and how much attention to give them [1]. [2] Examiner insight: A definition earns both marks when it says what is influenced (the issues people think about) and how (selection and emphasis).

2. Any three: digital content that can be shared on any device [1]; interactivity, so users respond and create content [1]; convergence of several media on one platform [1]. Also credit: global reach, or constant 24-hour availability. [3] Examiner insight: Three separate features are needed; “it is online” and “it is digital” count as one point, not two.

3. Ownership means the legal possession of a media company, usually by shareholders or a proprietor [1]. Control means who makes the day-to-day decisions about content, such as editors and journalists [1]. Instrumentalist Marxists argue owners also control content [1], while pluralists argue control lies with professionals who respond to audiences, so ownership and control are separate [1]. [4] Examiner insight: The third and fourth marks come from linking the distinction to a debate, not from repeating the definitions.

4. Negativity: bad news is seen as more newsworthy [1], so stories about disasters or conflict are more likely to be chosen than stories of steady improvement [1]. Personalisation: stories about individuals are preferred [1], so complex issues may be told through one person’s story and the wider causes left out [1]. Also credit other values such as celebrity, unexpectedness or reference to elite persons. [4] Examiner insight: Each news value needs its own effect on selection; naming four values without explaining any gains little.

5. (a) Horizontal integration: owning several outlets in the same news sector, such as two newspapers [1]. Vertical integration: owning the studio, the streaming service and the delivery firm, which are different stages of production and distribution [1]. Credit cross-media (diagonal) ownership of newspapers and radio. [2] (b) An instrumentalist Marxist would see the call as owners directly using the media to protect their economic interests [1], here the housing investment [1], which shows that editorial independence is limited [1]. A pluralist would argue one complaint does not prove control [1], because the story had already been published [1], and readers who distrust biased coverage can switch to rival titles [1]. [6] Examiner insight: Application marks need Item A’s details, such as the published story and the housing investment, not a general account of each theory.

6. (a) 70 out of 1,000 is 7% [1], which is 17 percentage points below their 24% share of the population [1]. [2] (b) Visibly disabled people make up 1.5% of characters but 18% of the population [1], so disabled people are largely absent from the screen, which is one form of symbolic annihilation [1]. Women make up 39% of characters but 51% of the population [1], so they are under-represented, which suggests their experiences are treated as less important [1]. [4] Examiner insight: Use the actual figures from the table in each point, then link each to the concept, or the application marks are lost.

7. It assumes audiences are passive and all react in the same way [1], but reception studies show people interpret media differently [1]. Its evidence often comes from laboratory experiments, such as Bandura’s studies [1], which lack ecological validity because real viewing happens in everyday settings [1]. [4] Examiner insight: “Outline” needs each criticism developed by one further step, such as the evidence or a reason, not just named.

8. (a) Group X: dominant (preferred) reading [1]. Group Y: negotiated reading [1]. Group Z: oppositional reading [1]. [3] (b) The same report produced three different responses [1], so the message was not simply “injected” into the audience [1]. The groups’ readings appear linked to their social positions, which suggests audiences actively interpret content [1]. [3] Examiner insight: Refer to the scenario’s three groups when explaining, rather than describing Hall’s model in the abstract.

9. The real exam marks extended answers with levels of response, not point by point. Indicative content:

Reason 1: the digital divide. Access to, and skill with, new media is unequal by class, age and region [1]. Those with fewer resources produce and share less content [1], so the voices online are not representative of society [1]. This links to the core theme of social differentiation and power [1]. However, smartphone use has spread access more widely than older technologies did [1].

Reason 2: platform ownership. A few large technology companies own the main platforms [1]. Their algorithms decide which content is seen, which Marxists see as a new form of gatekeeping [1]. Zuboff argues these firms profit by turning users’ data into predictions [1], so users may be the product rather than the controllers [1]. However, cultural optimists such as Jenkins argue that users still create and spread content that traditional editors would not have published [1]. [10] Examiner insight: “Analyse” rewards a chain of reasoning for each point, ending in a consequence or counter-point, rather than a list of more reasons.

10. The real exam marks extended answers with levels of response, not point by point. Indicative content:

For a single global culture. Cultural imperialism, from Schiller, argues global media spread US values [1]. Item B supports this, as the three most-watched streaming series were all made in the USA [1]. The Frankfurt School’s “culture industry” suggests standardised entertainment replaces local culture [1]. Neo-Marxists argue that transnational corporations own most global media [1], so consumer values spread with their products [1].

Against. The Lorvanian band shows hybridity, mixing folk and hip-hop [1]. Its success in neighbouring countries suggests contra-flows, as described by Thussu [1]. Remade game-show formats show glocalisation, where global formats are adapted to local taste [1]. Postmodernists argue global media increase choice and allow pick-and-mix identities [1]. Reception analysis suggests audiences decode foreign content through local culture [1], so watching US series does not mean adopting US values [1].

Analysis and judgement. Global culture may be uneven: it may be strongest among young, urban, online groups [1]. The digital divide limits how global any culture can be [1]. Even hybrid forms may still be distributed by transnational corporations [1]. Item B suggests a mix of global influence and local adaptation [1]. A justified conclusion might be that globalisation has created shared global products, but not a single culture, because local meanings persist [1]. [16] Examiner insight: Strong answers use at least two different details from the Item, each tied to a named theory, and reach a judgement that follows from the argument.

11. The real exam marks extended answers with levels of response, not point by point. Indicative content:

For the view. Marxists argue negative images of the poor serve ruling-class interests [1]; Jones’s Chavs (2011) argues the working class has been demonised [1], which can justify cuts and blame inequality on individuals [1]. Feminists argue representations serve patriarchy [1], using Tuchman’s idea of symbolic annihilation [1] and Mulvey’s male gaze [1].

Against. Pluralists argue representations follow audience demand, not elite interests [1]. News values, such as negativity, explain negative images of groups without any conspiracy [1]. Gauntlett argues representations of gender have diversified [1], and more disabled and minority ethnic presenters now appear [1]. Postmodernists argue audiences select from many images to build identity [1].

Judgement. Representations may reflect power through the background and outlook of media workers rather than owners’ direct interests, so the hegemonic view may be stronger than the instrumentalist one [1]. [12] Examiner insight: Cover more than one social group and more than one theory, and make the final judgement about the specific claim in the question.

Where marks are usually lost

• Defining a concept without the “how” part, for example agenda setting without selection and emphasis.
• Ignoring the Item or scenario in application questions.
• Using data from a table without quoting the figures.
• Writing about only gender when a question asks about social groups.
• Describing theories in turn without comparing them.
• Treating the hypodermic syringe model as current thinking rather than as a contrast.
• Forgetting the digital divide and platform ownership in new media answers.
• Ending an evaluation with a summary instead of a judgement.

Next steps

Check your weaker areas with our free diagnostics. Go back to the study guide for any topic you lost marks on. For media and crime, see the crime and deviance practice questions. For method evaluation, try the methods in context practice questions. If you would like a teacher to go through your answers, book a free trial class.

Official syllabus

AQA AS and A-level Sociology (7191, 7192) specification, Version 1.2 (14 October 2021), section 4.2.7 The Media, assessed in Paper 2: Topics in Sociology.