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Croteau, Media/Society, 6e
SAGE Publishing, 2019
Chapter 6: Media and Ideology
Test Bank
Multiple Choice
1. ______ is a system of meaning that helps define and explain the world and that
makes value judgments about that world.
A. Democracy
B. Semiotics
C. Ideology
D. Communism
2. The following describes a core concept often used in ideological criticism of media
contents: The elite’s control of consensus and promotion of dominant ideologies in
society. Exercise of power through cultural leadership. This concept is called
______.
A. hegemony
B. socialism
C. normalization
D. cultural imperialism
3. Which of the following best describes the definition of ideology?
A. Ideology is official dogmas of communism and fascism.
B. Ideology is an elaborate philosophy of language, symbols, and culture based on
the analytic distinction between signifier and signified.
C. Ideology is a subliminal set of messages secretly embedded in otherwise neutral
media messages like entertainment films and advertisements.
D. Ideology is the realm of taken-for-granted thoughts and ideas in circulation that
reflect the power dynamics at work in a society.
4. According to the text, why was there such a proliferation of Vietnam movies in the
1970s in the United States?
A. The U.S. government subsidized production of Vietnam movies.
B. It was American society’s ideological attempt to overcome the Vietnam syndrome.
C. The Vietnamese government pressured the U.S. film industry to produce more
Vietnam movies.
D. The United Nations recommended Vietnam movies to reconcile the conflict.
5. Ideological analysis of media focuses on ______.
A. whether images accurately reflect reality
B. the values and social definitions embedded in media images
C. the political views of the producers of media images
D. the power of media owners
6. Which of the following is not the common ideology implicit in Hollywood action
movies?
A. ideology of polarity (us vs. them)
B. ideology of the rugged individual
C. ideology of the American Dream
D. ideology of radicalism
7. The central concept that much ideological analysis revolves around is ______.
A. hegemony
B. truth
C. social class
D. race
8. Who is the scholar who introduced the idea of hegemony?
A. Karl Marx
B. John Dewy
C. Antonio Gramsci
D. Aristotle
Croteau, Media/Society, 6e
SAGE Publishing, 2019
9. The realm where hegemony operates include all of the following EXCEPT
______.
A. common sense
B. the “natural”
C. the taken-for-granted
D. expertise
10. Which of the following is consistent with an ideological analysis of media?
A. Media representations reproduce reality.
B. Media representations reflect reality.
C. Media representations help define reality.
D. Media representations have nothing to do with reality.
11. News of the economy is primarily from which of the following perspectives?
A. investors
B. workers
C. citizens
D. consumers
12. Action-adventure films implicitly suggest that cultural difference ______.
A. is a value in its own right
B. must be destroyed or incorporated
C. can never be overcome
D. is the highest value a society can achieve
13. We identify conventional forms of image construction as “realist” because
______.
A. producers claim they reflect reality
B. they mask the workings of the camera that creates the images
Croteau, Media/Society, 6e
SAGE Publishing, 2019
C. we often confuse these images with reality
D. these kinds of images appear in documentary films
14. The television “work-family” consists primarily of images of ______.
A. businesses that are run together as a family, and genuinely all get along
B. people who work at home
C. parents who bring their children to work with them
D. characters who develop a supportive community in the workplace
15. According to Tricia Rose, the “hidden politics” of rap are ______.
A. the content of rap’s lyrics
B. the political jockeying within the industry
C. the claim by Black youth to the right to use public space
D. political contributions by rap artists
16. Major advertisements address audiences as ______.
A. citizens
B. consumers
C. workers
D. neighbors
17. An example of the incorporation of oppositional cultural forms is ______.
A. television programs about students
B. news articles that quote prisoners
C. advertisements on the Internet
D. a Janis Joplin song selling Mercedes-Benz cars
18. Consumer ideology suggests that social problems ______.
A. are personal problems that can be solved by buying the right product
B. are too complicated to solve
Croteau, Media/Society, 6e
SAGE Publishing, 2019
C. are the result of an unwillingness by people to spend their money
D. can be solved by substantial government investment in remedies
19. The “covert advertising” in women’s magazines refers to ______.
A. the classified ad section
B. editorial advice columns
C. perfume ads
D. renewal notices to subscribers
20. Which kind of contemporary print ads present “foreigners” and Americans as
equal?
A. international business ads
B. international tourism ads
C. product ads
D. online ads
21. Which of the following explanations about the historical development of
advertising in the 20th century is true?
A. Ads were often a gateway to integrate society and erase differences among
people.
B. Ads were banned from radio for most of the early 20th century.
C. Ads using racial stereotypes were banned.
D. Ads were a chief tool for the masses to challenge the ruling class.
22. Which of the following is not a common portrayal of family life in contemporary
television?
A. introducing a “perfect mother” image
B. upper-middle-class lifestyle
C. secure and happy life
D. “trashy,” lower-middle-class worldview
23. Which of the following is considered the major ideology present in the original
rap music of the 1980s?
A. a revolt against an unjust social system
B. a praise of radical socialism
C. a praise of contemporary capitalism
D. a criticism against homosexuality
24. Which of the following is not a common ideological criticism of contemporary
advertising?
A. Ads celebrate and take for granted the consumer–capitalist organization of
society.
B. Ads normalize a middle- or upper-middle-class lifestyle.
C. Ads promote a worldview that stresses the community and the public life.
D. Ads promote a materialist culture.
25. Ideology is related to all of the following concepts EXCEPT ______.
A. worldview
B. belief system
C. fame
D. values
26. When Marxists speak of ideology, they often mean belief systems that ______.
A. help justify the actions of those in power by distorting and misrepresenting reality
B. often present a distorted version of the world
C. tells us about behavioral norms within ourselves and our society
D. refers not only to the beliefs held about the world but also to the basic ways in
which the world is defined
27. We can often be unaware of the ideological position of contemporary media
because ______.
A. it reflects our own taken-for-granted views of the world
Croteau, Media/Society, 6e
SAGE Publishing, 2019
B. personal problems can be solved by buying the right product
C. they can often present a distorted version of the world
D. they assumed that sharply defined, divergent, and unequal gender roles were
appropriate and desirable, usually with men as breadwinners and women as stay-at-
home moms
28. Media portrayals from the Old Western period reflect an ideology about ______.
A. unequal gender roles being inappropriate and undesirable
B. concern about what messages certain images send about the nature of the world
C. beliefs about who is and isn’t worthy of inclusion
D. all of these
29. The key for ideological analysis is the fit between the images and words in a
specific media text and broader ways of thinking about, even defining, ______.
A. society as a whole
B. ideology as we know it as a culture
C. social and cultural issues
D. none of these
30. What are “culture wars?”
A. Fundamental issues of morality are being fought, while the media is at the center
of it all.
B. The conflict between traditionalist and conservative values in the United States.
C. A term that is in reference to only the recent issues between conservative and
liberal political differences in the United States.
D. The battle for censorship of the media from American conservatives.
31. Popular media, particularly television and mass advertising, have a tendency to
display a remarkably narrow range of behaviors and lifestyles and deeming this
narrow range to be “normal” behavior. This results in ______.
A. media representing absolute reality
Croteau, Media/Society, 6e
SAGE Publishing, 2019
B. a highlight of the conflict between traditionalist and conservative values in the
United States
C. immediate protest
D. the marginalization and neglection of people who are different from the mediated
norm.
32. Media professionals generally have little patience with the argument that the
media are ______.
A. structural forces
B. purveyors of ideology
C. authoritative figures in terms of hegemony
D. culture warriors
33. Power can be wielded at the level of culture or ideology, not just through the use
of ______.
A. political power
B. force
C. economic influence
D. none of these
34. We generally associate ideology with ideas that are perceived to be extreme,
those in the middle are viewed as ______.
A. cynical rather than as ideological
B. pragmatic rather than as ideological
C. materialistic rather than as ideological
D. cynical rather than as materialistic
35. In striving for popularity, the television producers have often adopted the strategy
of least objectionable programming, whereby programs are intended to avoid
______.
A. controversy and remain politically bland
B. ideological claims
Croteau, Media/Society, 6e
SAGE Publishing, 2019
C. culture wars and controversial topics
D. all of these
1. Hegemony operates at the level of common sense in the assumptions we make
about social life.
2. Hegemony is permanent and unalterable.
3. “False consciousness” refers to the subordinate class’s acceptance of the basic
ideology of the ruling class.
4. In an ideological criticism of media, it is assumed that media have nothing to do
with the real world.
5. Mass advertising emerged in the 1960s to promote the civil rights movement.
6. In women’s magazines, editorial content often serves as convert advertising.
7. Early rap music began as a critique of the underlying ideology of mainstream
American society.
8. Television in the 1970s often depicted happy, middle-class families.
9. Economic news generally favors the perspectives of businesses and investors.
Short Answer
1. Explain the concept of “hegemony.” What is it and why is it important in the
ideological analysis of media?
Ans: Varies
Answer Location: Hegemony
2. What does it mean that advertising created a modern consumer culture? Which
values does advertising promote? Explain.
Ans: Varies
Answer Location: Advertising and Consumer Culture
3. What are “dominant” ideologies? What do you think the dominant ideologies of the
United States are?
Ans: Varies
Answer Location: Ideology and the “Real” World
4. Think of popular Hollywood action films such as Rambo, Die Hard, Top Gun, and
the 007 series. What are the common ideologies or values promoted in such
movies?
Ans: Varies
Answer Location: Movies, The Military, and Masculinity
5. Can media challenge the mainstream ideologies? Can you think of some
examples in which media criticize taken-for-granted ideologies and promote
alternative views?
Ans: Varies
Answer Location: Ideology and the “Real” World
