Visual Media and the Politics of Meaning-Making

Abstract

Visual media play a central role in shaping how meaning is produced, circulated, and contested in contemporary societies. Images, films, advertisements, digital graphics, and social media visuals do not merely reflect reality; they actively construct social knowledge, identities, and power relations. This article examines visual media as a political and cultural force, focusing on the politics of meaning-making embedded in visual representation. Drawing on theories from visual culture studies, semiotics, cultural studies, and critical media theory, the article explores how visual texts encode ideology, normalize power, and enable resistance. It argues that visual media are key sites of symbolic struggle where meanings are negotiated between producers, audiences, and institutions.