What is Representation Theory?
Representation Theory is the theory used to explain how humans may visualize images in pictures and how the image in a picture may relate to previous knowledge that has already been obtained. The Representation theory is useful when trying to explain how an object and a meaning relate to each other. For example, if a person sees a portrait of their grandmother, their mind will automatically recognize that the portrait is the grandmother, but to a person that has never seen the grandmother in the portrait before, they will be unable to understand the significance of the portrait. Understanding the object in a scenario and the meaning behind it can vary from person to person because we all have different background knowledge. Most of the time, authors and artists may have various meanings in their works of paintings or photographs, so there is no correct answer on what the significance of the work is. However, in the world of journalism, although journalism is supposed to remain unbiased, people may find small hints of associative words and phrases to subjects in their work.
Why is Representation Theory important in Media?
In the media, the description of a subject may make it difficult to separate from the common stereotype of the subject. When the media publishes multiple stories concerning subjects with a specific gender, race, or ethnicity while using all of the same description of the subject, then people begin to associate that certain type of personnel with the description that is being used to describe the subject.
For example, racism has been a prime issue for decades, but it has especially escalated within the past few years after the wide range of “police brutality” incidents that have happened. Majority of the victims in these attacks are black males while the police officer is a white male. At the first report of the incident, people will either assume the police officer was acting in self-defense or that the police officer acted wrongly. The media paints an image of the scenario whether they mean to or not. The descriptions of both the victim and the police officer creates an image in a person’s mind. These images will not only appear again at the sight of another story, but also in reality too, which may lead to an escalation of an already heated incident.
The idea of the representation Theory can be seen in the article “A white cop shot an innocent man in his own home. The “Castle Doctrine” nearly protected her.” Amber Guyger, a white female police officer, shot Botham Jean, a black man, in his own apartment in September 2018. A week after the murder happened, police forces searched Jean’s apartment for marijuana, which many activists claimed was a “character smear.” There was also a claim of special treatment for Officer Guyger since it was released that the officers responding to the scene turned off their cameras and spoke with her in a police car instead of immediately arresting her. Although Guyger claimed she entered the wrong apartment and believed it to be her own, she was charged with murder.
As seen in the scenario above, there are multiple actions that took place due to the representation that had been previously associated with the subjects’ persona. For instance, after Jean was shot, police continued to search the apartment for marijuana. Why did they do this? Jean was not doing anything obstructive at the time that he died, but people have come to associate certain characteristics with specific personas. Along with the “character smear” of Jean, the police officers responding on the scene gave Guyger a relaxed treatment when taking her in. Most of the police officers most likely knew Guyger personally, so it was hard for them to arrest a friend.
Representation in media is a hard subject to control. The media’s job is to report on the event that occurred, and by doing so may create unintentional stereotypes that humans may use. The representation theory provides an explanation for why society uses stereotypes as a way to identify people. If we consistently see terms, words, or phrases associated with a specific persona, then we will subconsciously make the distinction every time we view that same persona.
© Jennifer McGowen 2020