Dr Merris Griffiths

Lecturer in Media
BA (1st Class Hons); PhD; PGCTHE; FHEA Photograph of Dr Merris Griffiths.

Contact

Email: lmg@aber.ac.uk
Office: S.04 Parry Williams
Phone: 01970 622829
Fax: 01970 622831
Personal Web Site:http://www.merrisgriffiths.co.uk/

Responsibilities

Curriculum Leader for Film, Television and Media; Member of the University’s ALTO Steering Group; Member of the Departmental Learning & Teaching Committee


Research

Children's television and youth audiences; audience studies; media literacy (policy and practice); representations of social groups (especially children); sociology of childhood; gendered readerships of media texts; the advertising industry; media and everyday life; creative/visual research methodologies.

Biography

Merris Griffiths began her academic career in the School of Education and Lifelong Learning at Aberystwyth, as a Lecturer in Education. She joined the Department of Theatre, Film & Television Studies in 2002, lecturing primarily in Media & Communication. In 2005, she worked at the School of Education, University of Montana-Missoula USA, specialising in media literacy. Then, after briefly lecturing in Childhood Studies at Swansea University, she returned to TFTS in 2007. She is a member of the Wales Media Literacy Network, the Advertising Education Forum and the International Toy Researchers’ Association. Most recently (April 2010-12) she was the Academic Supervisor of a Knowledge Transfer Partnership project, with Boomerang+ TV production company, focusing on ‘7- to 13-year-old children’s television viewing preferences and multi- platform media practices’

Teaching

Module Coordinator:

FM21920 Advertising
FM32420 The Surveillance Society
FM32520 Children & the Media
FM36040 Dissertation (Film & Media)

Contributor:

FM10620 Studying Media

Dissertation Supervision

PhD Supervision

Also, for the School of Education & Lifelong Learning:

EDM7620 The Creative World of the Child (coordinator)

Publications

  • Griffiths, Merris (in progress): ‘Locating Commercial Media in Children’s Everyday Lives: A Comparative Study of Children’s Free-time Activity Preferences in the UK and the USA’
  • Griffiths, Merris & Helen Davies (Submitted for Review): ‘Bridging Academic Research and Industry Practice: ‘Tween’ Audiences, Television Production and Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP)’
  • Davies, Helen & Merris Griffiths (2012): ‘Cysylltu Methodolegau Ymchwil Academaidd i weithgareddau busnes: Cynulleidfaoedd ifanc, cynhyrchu ym myd teledu a Phartneriaeth Trosglwyddo Gwybodaeth (KTP) (Accepted for publication by Cyfrwng)
  • Griffiths, Merris (2011): ‘Favoured Free-time: Comparing children’s activity preferences in the UK and the USA’. Children & Society, 25(3), pp. 190-201 DOI: 10.1111/j.1099-0860.2009.00273.x
  • Griffiths, Merris (2010): ‘A critical review of David Buckingham’s ‘The Impact of the Commercial Work on Children’s Wellbeing’’ Participations 7:1
  • Griffiths, Merris (2009): ‘Small Town on the Big Screen: The Edge of Love and the Local Experience’, Participations 6(2)
  • Griffiths, Merris: ‘A Troublesome Sub-Genre – Advertising to Children’, in Creeber, Glen (Ed) (2008): The Television Genre Book (2nd Edition). London: BFI Publications
  • Griffiths, Merris & Tom O’Malley (2007): ‘Media Literacy in Wales: A Critical Review of Industry & Education Policies & Practices’. Cyfrwng 4, pp. 4-23
  • Griffiths, Merris: ‘Advertising and the Child – A Critical Overview of Key Theories and Debates’. In: Gruffydd-Jones, Elin (Ed). (2006): Astudiaethau Prifysgol: Ffilm, Teledu a'r Cyfryngau, University of Wales Press
  • Griffiths, Merris (2005): ‘Representations of Disabilities in S4C Welsh-Language Programming’, Cyfrwng 2 (28 pages)
  • Griffiths, Merris (2005): ‘Children drawing toy commercials: Re-imagining television production conventions’, Journal of Visual Communication Vol. 4 (1), Feb. 2005
  • Chandler, Daniel & Merris Griffiths: ‘Who is the fairest of them all? Gendered Readings of Big Brother 2 (UK)’. In: Mathijs, Ernest & Janet Jones (Eds.) (2004): Big Brother International - Format, Critics and Publics. Wallflower Press pp. 40-61
  • Griffiths, Merris & David Machin (2003): ‘Television and playground games as part of children’s symbolic culture’, Social Semiotics Vol. 13 (2), pp. 147-160
  • Griffiths, Merris: ‘Blue worlds and pink worlds – A portrait of intimate polarity’. In: Buckingham, David (Ed.) (2002): Small Screens. Leicester: Leicester University Press, pp. 159-184
  • Chandler, Daniel & Merris Griffiths: ‘Gender-Differentiated Production Features in Toy Commercials’. Journal of Broadcasting and Electronic Media. Summer 2000, pp. 503-520

Additional Interests

External Examiner (2011-14) – University of Chester, (BA) Film & Media

PhD Examination:

2012: Trinity St David – Topic: e-Communication

2008: Aberystwyth – Topic: Fear & Cross-Generation Audience Research

2004: Cardiff – Topic: Childhood & Animation