According to Marxist theory, society is in a constant state of class conflict, whereby the minority with power attempt to maintain their dominant position over the powerless majority, either through coercion or through consent. To coerce means to enforce certain behaviours or modes of thought by use of pressure, threats, or intimidation. The repressive state apparatus (RSA) of totalitarian regimes past and present would be an example of coercion in action. This method is ineffective, expensive and breeds distrust and rebellion.

In the modern western world, Marxists believe that the state maintains its power by use of the Ideological State Apparatus (ISA) which rules by consent rather than coercion. One powerful tool used in getting people to consent to their own subordination is the mass media; television in particular. To paraphrase Marx, in today's society, television is the opium of the people. It is the soporific enculturation agent that teaches us 'acceptable' behaviour, while discouraging discussion, dissension or debate.

A close analysis of any television programme targeting pre-school children shows clearly just which behaviours are valued in a given cultural context and which are not. We watched an episode of the new Noddy series, which in ten minutes demonstrated several important societal values in action.

The episode began with a ring of small balls having a bouncing contest. They took turns to go into the centre of the ring and then attempted to bounce the highest. Here we see two behavioural norms being validated by the narrative: competition and turn-taking.

The smallest ball bounces the highest, but fails to come back down to earth. All of the other balls immediately bounce off to find a policeman and ask for help. Here again, the television has a didactic function, reinforcing the 'correct' response to the scenario. Friendship, teamwork and social responsibility are being showcased, but more importantly, the target audience is being encouraged to rely on and to trust those in authority.

This trust is validated when the policeman immediately responds, encouraging all of the Toytown residents to search for the missing ball. Through the help of a range of characters (Noddy, the Policeman, the Garage owner, Noddy's dog, some passing birds etc) the ball is eventually able to effect his own rescue.

The narrative fulfils several of what Fiske termed bardic functions. We see an established cultural consensus at work, in that virtually all of the inhabitants acknowledge the necessity of finding the missing ball.

The successful outcome affirms and confirms their actions and highlights their combined skill in overcoming events thrown at them by an unpredictable universe. (The ball had initially not returned to earth, because it had landed on a cloud.)

The episode also affirms the message that the status and identity of each individual in society is guaranteed by the culture as a whole. Despite being the tiniest member of Toytown, virtually the whole community joined together in the rescue attempt. The narrative thus presents a community where each resident has been given a clear sense of cultural membership and promised security and involvement. This is another of Fiske's bardic functions.

However, not every member of the community took part. In the opening credits, we see Noddy delivering wrapped presents to many members of Toytown. While the policeman is catching his present, two frowning brownies take the opportunity to sneak out of the jail behind his back. They have clearly been constructed as 'the other' in that they alone fail to conform to society's expectations. (Golliwogs fulfilled this purpose in the original Noddy stories.) Later in the episode, it is these same two brownies who sit laughing and sneering on a bench while the rest of the Toytown residents search for the missing Tiny ball.

Their behaviour is consistently constructed as deviant, in that it clearly violates this society's norms and is therefore unacceptable. That they have transgressed and been punished in the past is evident by the shot of the jail in the credits. Their punishment in this episode comes when they are knocked off their bench and sent flying by Tiny as he bounces back to earth. As Underwood put it, "the media serve to legitimate the dominant ideology, which in fact serves the interests of those in power."

To summarise, this episode of Noddy is a very effective enculturation agent, reinforcing via its storyline, the importance of competition, community, authority and the sanctity of childhood, while at the same time, showing that those who deviate from societal norms must pay a price. The same themes are evident in another television programme we studied, the controversial pilot episode of the US police procedural series, "The Shield".