what are the main differences between Hall and Perkins theories? Hall believes that there is no true representation of people in the media but simply a encoded stereotypes which is usually limiting whereas Perkin believed that stereotypes where not necessarily a bad thing and that they was simply a way of categorising people. The advantages of halls beliefs were that there was space for interpretation between the audience and the piece of media which is quite similar to Perkins, within the stereotyped group there was space for interpretation which allowed people to make their own assumptions even though they was often quite heavily influenced by the stereotypes. In the article the author is expressing his opinion that even when a stereotype in intended to be positive it can still be negative due to the fact that not all groups of people fall under the stereotype and although for some it can be seen as positive, for others it can be used to degrade them and make them feel like outsiders