Responding to Media Products (Assignment 4)

For this final assignment we have been asked to choose one specific media product (which can be a film, TV series or soap opera) and talk about the different aspects of it within the audience. I have to analyse the different parts of my chosen product, relating to why it is important in media.

The Big Bang Theory:

This is a live-action Sitcom genre which has been running since 2007. It was/is created and developed by Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady. There are currently 7 series of the TV program (150+ episodes) and each episodes run for about 20 minutes (25-30 with advert breaks).

The show has a laugh track when filming which creates the illusion of a real audience laughing at the jokes. The episodes differ each week as sometimes it is either a new storyline or continued, either way Big Bang is better compared to other sitcoms as it always has one main storyline running in the background of each episode (with other drama on top). For example Leonard and Penny's relationship is always on off, but is always running in the background (started from the first series to the 7th series), however the show may focus on Sheldon & Amy's for a while, but always links back to Leonard and Penny. This is very good as those who have watched the show from Series 1 understand what is going on, but also those new viewers are not confused and still enjoy the episode (making them want to watch more).

The show is mainly centred on five characters: Sheldon, Leonard, Howard, Rajesh & Penny, who all encounter different scenario's in the specific episodes. Others come into the different story-lines later on, such as Amy, Bernadette, Stuart and others but the main show focuses on the 5 above, as it has from the 1st episode. As the group of four friends are completely different (socially and mentally) compared to Penny it contrasts well. The storyline is addictive as the stereotype is that the nerd never gets the popular pretty girl, but throughout the different series the show gives you little hints about Leonard and Penny's future. Although Leonard is really smart, he has another aspiration in life, to marry Penny. Sheldon doesn't understand this and he is different to others, and focuses solely on his work. This is effective as it seems like Leonard & Sheldon couldn't be best friends, however they are.

The most viewed episode to date for Big Bang was shown on 26th September 2013 (The Deception Verification) it was the 2nd episode of Series 7. This brought in a huge 20.4 million views in one showing. Each new episode in the past few series has had 7+ million viewers each broadcast. Big Bang Theory is very mainstream now since everybody watches it. When the Big Bang was introduced in 2007 it was just created for a small audience, mainly people who enjoy scientific comedy. As the show episodes continued and developed it started to attract a different type of audience, because the show started to introduce new characters and another genre (romance between Leonard & Penny, Howard & Bernadette and Sheldon & Amy).

Narrative Structure:

Multi Strand-
The Big Bang Theory is classed as Multi Strand, this means that the narrative/script of each episode focuses on a central group of characters, and has a couple of others in the background. It tells a story from more than one persons view, for example Leonard could have a dilemma, but Sheldon would have his input, so would Penny and maybe others. Multi Strand is effective as the show can finish off one story and start another one the next episode without confusing the audience or new viewers.

Linear-
Parts of Big Bang can be seen as linear as it has a story which is always continuing just with other incidents on top of it. For example when Leonard&Sheldon are driving in the car it usually shows them setting off, then a clip of them having a conversation whilst driving, and then arriving at destination. Between these clips they can go to different scenes of the episode, for example between the girls (Penny, Bernadette & Amy) but then go back to Leonard & Sheldon travelling.

Non Linear-
The majority of Big Bang is non linear as it includes flashbacks and flash-forwards (future visions). Flash-forwards are good because it gives the audience a hint of what could happen, and leave them on a cliffhanger (especially when it goes to adverts or the episode ends straight after). Cliffhangers make the audience question what is going to happen next, leaving them attracted to the program. Most episodes/seasons continue a certain story throughout which can be seen as linear however if you took some episodes individually they would be non linear as they include a number of different story lines between the different characters. Flashbacks are part of non-linear, they are effective as it makes the audience feel like they are part of the characters emotions. They also give you a better understanding of the current story.

The producers use non linear for comedic value by showing parts of the past by flashbacks or just the character explaining them, for example Sheldon describing his dad who was an alcoholic and the difference between that and his mum who is a strong catholic. This is effective as the audience feel like they are part of the characters life when they are involved in a series, by including the background characters (family) you feel like you know everything which is good to keep the audience interested.

Open Ending-
Most of the episodes are open as they leave the audience on a cliffhanger and wondering what is going to happen next. They are mainly used in certain series to ensure that the viewers will watch it again the next time it's on. In the first couple of seasons of Big Bang the producers made it so you were always getting different hints on what was going on between Leonard & Penny. With the last episode they would do something like Leonard kissing Penny right at the end, this left the viewers having to wait till the next release to see if it went well or not.
With the newer series they always try to focus on either Leonard & Penny getting married or Sheldon & Amy becoming more of a physical couple. In mid-series Sheldon gives hints saying that it is a possibility of him and Amy taking the relationship further, but always leaves the audience uncertain. Final episodes always lead up to them doing something but it never shows you, for example after playing Dungeons & Dragons they went to Sheldon's room and Amy told everyone else to go away. This gives you the impression something happened but you don't know for sure.

Not every episode is open as sometimes the scenes continue through a couple of episodes, if every episode was open they would leave the audience on a huge cliffhanger each time but thy only really do this at the end of the series' when the audience has to wait a couple of month till the beginning of the next series.

Closed Ending-
Big Bang isn't really a closed ending yet as it is still in production for more series. If i had to chose a closed ending I'd say it was when Howard & Bernadette got married. Since they met it had built up to them getting married, including awkward scenes with Howard and Bernadette's dad. Towards the marriage Howard was offered his dream job at NASA being an astronaut. This really built up the suspense as you didn't know if he was going to choose this opportunity over his marriage, and if he did if he would make it back in one piece. Now they are married the Big Bang Theory doesn't really focus on them but they are still in the background of each episode.

Some audiences may see the Big Bang Theory as closed as the viewers are able to watch a specific episode one day and then not watch for the next couple of days. After that they are able to go back and watch without getting too confused, this is helpful with the use of sub-stories linked to the main story, but keeping the new viewers entertained.

Mise en Scene:

This is french for 'putting on stage' which basically means everything on stage is put there for a reason. The props are always the same for continuity within each episode and gives the audience a good feel and idea of what type of person each character is.

Setting and Props-

Most of the Big Bang is set in Sheldon & Leonard's apartment, the props used show a good understanding of what type of character each of them are. With the books, science posters/objects and whiteboards full of equations it shows that they are very smart and are in good earning jobs. Also around the room you sometimes see movie or game items, this could be anything from a Star Trek figure to a collectors Game of Thrones sword.

Characters: Costume, Hair and Makeup-

The costumes given in Big Bang really describe each individual character. Howard always wears bright colours to represent his bubbly and outgoing character. On the other hand Penny shows that she is outgoing by wearing a lot less clothing, it shows that she is not ashamed to get her body out to try and attract men's attention. From the 1st episode you could get an idea of Sheldon's personality straight away, with his clean-shaven face, simple haircut and older generation clothes you  know that he is not one to keep up with the certain generations fashion, as he is too busy focusing on his work. The cast have made Amy suitable to be the perfect match for Sheldon, with her old grandma cardigans and skirts, and with a passion for Science they made her and Sheldon match together tremendously. The makeup is important (for the female characters) as they show Penny as always wearing makeup trying to impress others, whereas Amy doesn't really bother. This shows the girls different personalities and suggests to the audience what they are trying to achieve.

Facial Expressions and Body Language-
This also determines the different characters personalities by how they act when with others, for example Sheldon doesn't really understand the common jokes or sarcasm, but he finds his own (science based) jokes hilarious. With body language he is always trying to avoid the nice gestures such as hugging, hand shaking and kissing. On the other hand Penny is the exact opposite as she is always hugging or cuddling into somebody. For example at her Halloween party (or other parties) she usually had a boyfriend, but always went to Leonard for advice and ended up kissing him. This shows the complete different personalities between the characters which is effective as they all seem to still get on well together. With body language you can see that Sheldon is a very formal character as he always sits upright in 'his spot'. He has the seat in the perfect place in the room to avoid any injury or interruption. With Penny she is usually slouched or has her feet up on the sofa. This shows that she is more friendly and open, she doesn't mind squeezing into someone where Sheldon would find that incredibly uncomfortable.

Lighting and Colour-
The setting is always bright and outstanding, this is to show that it is a sitcom and that it is a happy environment. If the show was a horror they could use lower lighting and shadows but that would not show the same effect for the script used now. With bright colours it gives a happy, warm feeling of the characters which makes the audience enjoy the comedy more. The lighting within Cal-Tech (Sheldon, Leonard, Rajesh & Howard's workplace) is usually pretty plain but bright colours, this suggests that it is a serious/formal yet quite relaxing environment. They all get along but the work gets done. For example in Howard's bedroom he seems to have fairly dark colours but contrasted with lights (his ornament lightsabers) to make it seem romantic. With his leopard print covers and silk pyjamas he tries to make him room a kind of love shack, hoping it will attract some women to sleep with him (it doesn't really work).

Positioning Characters and Objects-
This is how the cast decide to position each character between each other to give hints about certain relationships or story lines. As you can see in the picture below each character is set out between each other to represent the different relationships.
You have: Bernadette & Howard, Leonard & Penny, Sheldon & Amy, and then Rajesh on the other couch, which implies that he is single and lonely. With Sheldon in 'his spot' he is almost in the centre of everyone, which implies that he is seen as the leader of the group, and always gets his way. Also, with Penny in the centre of the girls it is like the others look up to her and do as she says.

 Analysing Representations:

 In Media products there are usually four different types of character representations, these are usually found in character(s), i will be analysing:

-Character Gender

-Character Age

-Character Ethnicity

In the Big Bang the gender is set out really well as it seems to be the opposite way round (counter type), you have the female leader Penny, who although she always looks and dresses well, is seen as the most masculine person on the show (compared to the group of scientists). As she was raised in Nebraska on a farm the group always go to her when they need help, for example defending them from bullies or killing a spider in their apartment. On the other hand, the scientists have spent their lives being bullied so are kind of used to being pushed around by others, and don't really stick up for themselves. They are usually just very passive characters (apart from Sheldon) but if there is a fight or some drama going on they seem to stay out of it.

With age in the Big Bang I think they are the perfect age as they are all settled and have moved away from their parents, I think the fact that Sheldon & Howard are still incredibly close to their mothers shows that they are both still more like children (compared to the others), even though they are in high earning, professional jobs. Big Bang producers use the childish age of the scientists for comedy as Howard has always had his way (with his mum) and then once he is with Bernadette he expects her to do it all for him too. With Sheldon his mum can make him do anything, he looks up to her which shows a deeper meaning of the Sheldon character, however also uses comedy as she can change his attitude completely (for example when he buys lots of cats). Again, Penny seems to be the most grown up as she has moved cities and started her life all on her own, she doesn't hear much from her dad although you get hints that she was close to her dad. She is seen as the mum of the group as she always ends up looking after the rest in some form and mainly makes the big decisions.

The different ethnicity's is important in Big Bang as they use it for comedy so it isn't seen as racist. The group are always joking about Raj as he is from India, his race is seen to workship different animals (cows) and every time he eats a burger at least one other character has something to say. With Howard being Jewish he always gets mocked for some reason or other, and they always tend to relate his mother (because of her weight and size). As Penny is from Nebraska Sheldon always portrays her as the more manly character, as she lived on a farm and he was a city child. For example when Sheldon breaks Leonard's Star Trek toy he tries to blame penny because of her 'man hands'. They always relate back to where Penny is from especially when they need help with something, they think that because she was brought up roughly she can reflect it in the presence of the show to help them out.

Violence in Video Games

Violence related with Video Games:

There are a lot of different opinions relating to if video games cause violence within the players. A number of games have been banned in different countries, for including racial content, too much bad language or too much gore/violence. To try and stop this many games now have an age rating.

The age rating of a game depends on the content of the game, depending what happens in the game this sets the age limit for it. The different ages are:

3+ for games such as sport and simple driving games (for example Fifa and Gran Turismo).
7+ this can be for a childish game with the odd swear word or bit of violence (Lego games)
12+ usually this rating includes a little gore, but quite a bit of fighting, or a game which doesn't obey the law. An example of this is a street racing game (Need for Speed) or WWE/UFC.
15+ this rating is usually for shooters, for example Call of Duty. This includes reconstructions of real events which have happened in the past, but toned down, with little bad language.
16+ these are usually the same as the 15+, apart from a bit more swearing.
18+ this is the highest age rating for a game. When games are rated 18 it usually means they include everything which goes against the law. For example Grand Theft Auto, this game includes a number of different weapons (guns, knives, grenades etc) and also drugs, and has different parts of the game which are only suitable for the older audience. For example nude characters and virtual prostitutes.

The image above explains the different warnings games include. This kind of relates to the age ratings above, but gives you a better description of what is included in the game. (These are usually placed on the back of the game box so you can see what's included before you buy it). As you can see the different symbols are for the different parts of the game.

Hypodermic Needle Theory:

This theory was created in the 1920s and was to determine how audiences receive different types of text. It believes that the majority of what the audience see it makes them want to copy and do it themselves. It is labelled as the 'needle' theory as the effects are immediate just like a medical needle. It is used on the passive audience, where they don't question what is happening, they just agree with it and take it in.  

An example of the theory is when Swine Flu was introduced. The media sent different news throughout the country and spread moral panic. Because of the exaggeration of one story more and more people started to believe it, and within a small amount of time people believed the same story, (that swine flu was going to kill them).

A high percentage of people still blame video games for violence even though there was still crime and violence before video gaming was introduced.

Bobo Doll Experiment:

A number of children (boys and girls) aged 3-6 years were taken from the Stanford University Nursery School as part of an experiment involving the 'Bobo doll' (set up by Bandura). The role models of this theory were one adult male and one adult female.
 The children in the audience watched the adults act aggressively and violently towards the doll. This included a hammer and pushing/throwing etc. A group of children were let into the same room as the Bobo doll and copied the actions of the adults.

The other half of the children were introduced to adults playing nicely with the doll, and when they were let in the room there was no violence at all.

This proved that children like to copy what is seen, which is why they should not play violent games (or any games which are too old for them). When children see adults doing something they think it is correct, so they tend to copy and do the same.

Effects Debate:

It has been argued that the Media has negative effects on the audience with what they release and their input to certain stories. Media is seen as a form of propaganda to brainwash people into believing their way/story.

Orsen Welles' radio broadcast in 1938 caused a lot of drama as he was talking about War of the Worlds. He was going through the different processes of the film, and those who tuned in later on thought he was broadcasting some news. They believed that they were getting invaded by aliens and told everyone they knew straight away, this proved that everyone believed one person from what they had heard.

Uses an Gratifications Theory (UGT):

This is about how people seek out different types of media to satisfy themselves. This theory assumes that the audience are not just passive, they question what is going on. The audience has power on their media intake, with this UGT holds the audience responsible for what they decide to see/hear and believe. UGT is now related with the internet as there are hundreds of different ways to find out different aspects of media, with the numbers of search engines invented now it allows the audience to find a story/opinion that suits them. A lot of people have disagreed with this theory as they believe the public has no control over the media, and that the media is manipulative. This theory will be more relevant now as there is a lot of technology which allows you to have the freedom and your own choice to decide what you want to consume.

Examples of banned games (in the UK):

The Punisher (2005) - PS2/Xbox/Windows:

This was a third-person shooter game released by THQ. You would play as a character who lost his family so decided to kill/punish criminals (hence the Punisher). Violent actions include shooting, stabbing, throwing into walls/spikes etc, and the use of piranhas.

THQ was told (given a warning first) to have the cameras further away when the killing/torturing was taking place, and then given an 18+ instead of Mature (M) rating.

If children under 18 play this game they usually tend to copy what is happening. As the Punisher's storyline is killing criminals since he lost his family, younger children may want to do the same actions if they have lost someone close to them.

Manhunt 1&2 (2003) PS2/Xbox:

Manhunt was published by Rockstar (producers of GTA) which included a huge amount of Graphic Violence, as it was released over 10 years ago now the laws were very mild and it was seen as fine at first. Four years later, (2007) British censors banned the game in the UK (first banned game in a decade). To this date the manhunt games cannot be legally supplied or bought anywhere in the UK now. Later after the release the game was given an 18 rating, but this made no different to the players and the viewers. 

In February 2004, Stefan Pakeerah was murdered in a park in Leicester. The killer, Warren LeBlanc was blamed to be inspired by the game Manhunt for his violence. Warren said that robbery was the cause of the death to repay a £75 debt. The MP of Leicester (Keith Vaz) campaigned with Stefan's parents to ban Manhunt 1 because of this incident, and continued to ban Manhunt 2.  

Warren's mother said he had played the Manhunt game but was not a big fan of gaming (didn't spend many hours on it), however this made Stefan's parents think this was the cause and so they blamed him and the game. 

Grand Theft Auto:

Grand Theft Auto has caused a lot of violent offences and damage due to people under the age rating playing it. Many parents buy it for their younger kids without realising what is in the game.

In Louisiana, an 8 year old boy shot a 90 year old woman (Marie Smothers) in the back of the head, after finishing playing GTA IV. As the child was under the age of 10, he was not charged or punished. The child did not know the effects of what he had done, which forced the police to struggle to take the case any further. The boys father said he used Marie's gun to shoot her. The boy dodged murder offences but is still under police supervision.

In Los Angeles a Zachary Burgess, aged 20, was arrested for stealing a truck illegally with a passenger still inside. Zach drove the truck round and hit 9 other vehicles whilst he was behind the wheel. The passenger said she was forced to stay in the truck by Zachary's driving and actions. After this outburst he returned the truck to where he found it, and was arrested by the police. He claimed he wanted to know what it was like to play Grand Theft Auto for real, he was charged with a number of offences. These included, Hit and run, theft, and kidnapping.

Crimes for the game:

On the release of GTA 5 three teenagers (14, 15 and 17) from North London stalked a man (23) who was queueing outside Asda for his copy of GTA. Once the 23 year old had his game and left the store, they stabbed him and hit him with a brick on his way home. He was left injured on the street while they ran off with the game. The man survived and the teenagers were arrested eventually.

Another offence was in New York, a couple (with four children) hit a mentally disabled man who had saved up to pay for the collectors edition of GTA ($150). They left him injured on the floor and tried to take his game back to the store (Gamestop) so they could get the money. Unfortunately, before they were arrested they already sold the mans game for a lot less than its value. Once they were caught they became very sympathetic and offered to buy the man the game again, which was $150 they didn't have, putting them in debt. 





Codes & Conventions of a Newspaper

How producers construct newspapers to appeal to the target audience:

The producers have to think of the codes and conventions, to relate to the newspaper (tabloid or broadsheet). The different parts of a newspaper is what attracts the audience (by making the stories and supplements appeal to them) and makes them buy it.

The following list is a couple of codes and conventions which are included in a newspaper:

Banner - this is what people know which brand is which, they will recognise the brand logo/image and figure out which newspaper it is. For example the Sun's logo is red and white (very patriotic and easy to read) and also refers to the England flag.
Compared to the Daily Telegraph formal it is very outstanding, the Daily Telegraph use a black font which looks upper class and a lot more formal, relating to the newspaper in general.

The Sun's banner is more appealing to the audience as it is eye catching and outgoing, instead of being plain black/white and very formal it relates to the stories inside the newspaper which are made to interest a younger target audience. I think the bright colours only appeal to The Sun and not The Daily Telegraph as the readers are completely different, with the daily telegraph it is about 90% text and the readers choose it because they enjoy text more than images, they want it to be simple and focus on getting the information across.
another difference is the suns banner can relate to England's flag which implies the readers take an interest of what happens in the UK only, whereas the daily telegraph readers like hearing stories that have happened in other countries too.

Masthead - these are on all newspapers and usually include names of the people involved in the certain edition of the newspaper (for example writer, publisher etc). Also it usually states the date of publication and title of the newspaper (like a certain sort of a banner).

Slogan - people can relate a certain slogan to a certain newspaper. For example, the sun's slogan is 'Britain's most popular newspaper'. When readers hear this they know which newspaper it is. Instead of a slogan for the Daily Telegraph they use adverts at the top near the banner saying 'Free tablet' or 'free tomorrow' making the audience want to continue buying it and get free items. The Daily Telegraph uses the slogan 'Newspaper of the year'.
These slogans relate to their specific audience as the Sun's is relating to Britain (the country that the stories are focused on) also it attracts a mainstream audience as it only uses relevant stories that they think would interest people the most. Also by stating 'Britain's' it is saying that all the readers are the same and share the same interests. With the Daily Telegraph they are suggesting that they are the best newspaper to choose for the news of the world, also with it being 'of the year' they are saying that they have beaten the others through all seasons.

Price/Date - each newspaper has a price and date on every day (the date to which day its on sale and the price in case there are any special offers etc) usually just the same price all year round.

As you can see the sun is 40p, and 60p on Saturdays. This is affordable for those who are lower in the socio-economic status (C2 and DE classes). Compared to the Daily Telegraph which is £1.20 on weekdays and £2.00 on Saturdays. This shows that those who have more money/better jobs can afford to pay this each day (class AB adults).

The prices of each newspaper link to the jobs of the buyers and readers, with The Sun only being pennies it means that people can afford it even if they are on the dole or have a low income job.
However with the Daily Telegraph being a couple of point daily it will eventually add up which can cost a lot to people with low salaries, to be able to afford this broadsheet the readers would have to have quite a high up job, for example an accountant.

The newspapers are priced depending on what content is inside them, for example the tabloid that is only 40-60p will have more informal content and sometimes content that a broadsheet wouldn't. It would probably focus more on the smaller stories and sport which is suitable for the specific target audience. With the Daily Telegraph they are a bigger newspaper and focus on more upper-class stories such as the royal family (compared to minor celebrities like in the Sun), the buyers of the broadsheet pay this extra money because they want to read more on the stories inside.

Main/Lead Story - this is usually the biggest and most important story which is put onto the front of the newspaper. When on a broadsheet the lead story is usually filled with a text and a small image, but on a tabloid it is usually 50/50. This is to be most suitable for the target audience.
With the Daily Telegraph being about 80% text it implies that the readers are more educated and can read better, compared to the Sun's lead stories as they are usually only about 5-6 bold words and a big picture.

Colours - on a Tabloid newspaper the colours are always brighter (red/yellow/blue etc) to make it outstanding and eye catching. Compared to a broadsheet (where the colours are dull such as black/grey/dark blue) they are also to suit the target audience.

Above you can see two lead stories from the Sun and the Daily Telegraph, they are completely different but both attract to their certain target audiences.

Also, with the colours you can see that tabloids have a lot brighter colours (red, yellow, blue) and how broadsheets are usually only black and white, with sometimes a little bit of dark blue.

Adverts (small ad / Display ad) - these are to advertise other companies/products, depending on the type of newspaper the adverts differ. For example on a broadsheet they advertise brands such as Pandora, Gucci etc (the more expensive brands) and on a tabloid they offer you coupons, vouchers, or different deals. They imply that if you buy a broadsheet you can afford the more valuable items.

This includes mobile phone adverts, in broadsheets they include adverts for the more expensive phone contracts (eg £40-£50 a month) and in tabloid they try to help you and advertise £20/month contracts, as they know the readers socio-economic classes are different.

Display ad - these are usually put next to an article to attract customers attention after they have read. Display ads are fairly large and usually promote something which have a larger budget (especially in broadsheets).  The bigger the advert the more cost the product usually is (as the businesses have to pay more for bigger adverts). Then the small ad are usually cheaper products, for example 2 for 1 tickets or a certain advertisement for a new TV show.

On this edition of the Daily Telegraph they are advertising watches and rings, as you can see they are made of silver/diamonds so they must cost a lot. By advertising products at this price it shows that the audience is better class than a tabloid reader.

Images - In tabloid newspapers the images for the articles are completely different (even if the stories are about the same topic). For example if they have an article about the queen the Sun would use a more humorous image whereas a broadsheet would use a simple plain picture of the queen.

This is an example of how the images differ in tabloids and broadsheets even if the storyline is the same. As you can see in the Sun they are using a picture that attracts the male audience (by showing more skin) compared to the Daily Mail where it is just focused on the dress. 

Psychographic profiles:

From the 4C's classification readers of the Sun are classed as strugglers, being people who are usually disorganised, little education, low earning jobs (for example people who spend most their salary on junk food, alcohol and lottery tickets). Jobs including mechanics or builder.

An example of this is the Sun where they focus a lot on sport as this would be relative for the job classes (builders), also they like to use minor celebrities which everyone seems to gossip about at the certain time.

For the Daily Telegraph the classification of the audience is seen as resigned, people who tend to live in the past, but have an interest for business and the economy. They have a higher income so can afford the bigger newspaper and more valuable adverts, jobs can include accounting, office workers or bank workers.

The Daily Telegraph uses this class wisely as they know that they can charge extra for their newspaper and people will still buy it because they can afford it and want to read the news. The job classes are very similar to the content of the broadsheet (for example Businessman) as the newspaper always includes stock levels/exchanges.

The different type of newspapers support political agenda and are usually split into two sections, left and right (depending on the contents of the newspaper, stories, adverts etc).

Depending on what type of newspaper it is defines it's category, below are some examples I have put into a table:

Left                                             Right

The Guardian                            The Financial Times
The Daily Mirror                       The Times
                        The Observer           The Sun
                        The Independent      Daily Mail
The Daily Telegraph                       Daily Star

             

As you can see the left section is more broadsheet, and then compared to the right where they are more or less tabloids. (and the ones that are in the middle have sections of broadsheet and tabloids in, for example The Independent).

How producers use audience feedback to improve their product:

It is easy for producers to receive feedback now as it is everywhere such as Twitter, Facebook, Survey-monkey. Many ways to receive feedback are short and free now, websites such as survey-monkey you can set up your own anonymous questionnaires or answer someone else's, this is very helpful for feedback as it is free, and doesn't take much of your time (depending on the length of the survey).

Producers should take feedback often as it will help them develop and make a better product. For example if they realise that their product has went in the wrong direction (people are complaining) they will have to find out what the audience/customers wants changing, so they can make these fixes and make it better for the target audience.

Defining Audiences

Critical Approaches - Defining Audiences:

Why is audience research important to Media producers?

For media producers audience research is very important because it shows the characteristics of the viewers, for example certain details of the audience such as gender, age etc. By researching you can figure out the audiences different habits such as what they enjoy listening to/watching, also what they dislike. This allows the producers to give a better estimate of how many viewers the product would get, also try and find out how to give it a better rating. For example if the Media producers were releasing a romantic product they would go towards the female audience as it would attract more viewers.

To figure out the audiences you have to use a different range of methods, this can be ways such as questionnaires, focus groups and comparisons to other existing products.

How audiences are profiled:

Socio-economic status - This is what you are classed as depending on  where you live or career/salary. It has different letters depending on the job type, such as:

A (Upper Middle Class) - Management, doctors, lawyers or other professionals.

B (Middle Class) - Management Assistant, teachers, graphic designers.

C1 (Lower Middle Class) - Supervisors, nurses, administrators.

C2 (Skilled Working Class) - Skilled manual workers, trades/sales people.

D (Working Class) - Semi or unskilled manual workers (apprentices)

E (Unemployed) - Students, pensioners or lowest grade workers.

They are profiled this way mainly by salary, for example if you are in Upper Middle Class you will get a lot more money than someone who is unemployed or in working class, therefore producers can see who they want to aim their product at so they make the most profit.



 Age - They need to keep the age suitable to the audience so they feel like they are the same as the presenter or producer. For example for the children's channel cBeebies they have to make sure all the content is age appropriate and no harmful or bad language at all. Then for a teenage drama they could use slang and maybe some minor swear words but also have to make sure they don't take it too far.

If they were producing a 15 game they would have to make sure they firstly warn the buyer what the content includes and not have too much bad language/gore in, as that is what 18 games are for.  They would have it ensure it is classed as a 15 before they release it.

Another example more media related is when Radio 1 sacked Chris Moyles as he had gone past being right for the target audience (too old) As Radio 1 is mainly for teenagers/people in their 20's they had to replace Chris with someone who connected with the audience more so they still tuned in and were interested when listening to the radio.

Regional identity - this is another way to attract more viewers/listeners as it makes them feel more similar to the presenter. For example on BBC Tees you want a presenter who is from Teesside (or North East at least) instead of someone who is from London or South of England, this way they can recognise the Teesside accent and understand slang used or catch phrases that have been made up in the region. If a presenter from London started talking about different things that happen where they live nobody would understand or be interested.

Niche - these are smaller markets that work to provide for the little groups that are interested in them. For example a fishing magazine is only popular with a certain group (most likely older men) and isn't interesting for teens, so they only produce a small batch to sell to the audience who do buy it.

Gender - figuring out what audience will be most suitable for the product to attract the most attention. Most shows/channels on TV are for both all genders however some are more popular for males, and some others are more popular toward females. It is important to figure out which gender you will be making the product for, but usually it is better to make it suitable for both female and male, as then you will get more viewers.

Female:
For example soaps on TV such as Eastenders, Coronation Street, and Hollyoaks are more based at the female audience, as they are on pretty much every day the producers know they attract a lot of viewers as the storyline continues every episode.

Male:
Channels such as Dave are more based for the male audience as they play shows such as Top Gear, Man Vs. Food and Mock the Week. These channels are usually rude or mildly offensive but the male audience enjoy watching it and find it comedic. The slogan for the Dave TV Channel is 'the home of witty banter' which is more suitable towards men than females.



Sexual Orientation - this is the lifestyle someone chooses to be, for example Straight, gay or bisexual. This could effect what content they are interested in which could also relate to ethnicity. Depending on your race or religion you may be interested in other content/products.

Mainstream -this is when a product started off small not expecting a large audience but has become more popular over time and is now famous world wide. For example X factor, when it began the viewing numbers were very little as people didn't really know what happened on the show, however now millions in England alone watch it every time it is on, and is also popular in places elsewhere such as America, Australia and Holland.

The Big Bang Theory is another mainstream program, when it was set up and released series 1 they thought the fan base would be just sci-fi fans and the market would be very small, however it is still growing and they are now onto series 7. Again this is popular all over the world, firstly released in America and now has moved over to the UK, viewers worldwide enjoy this show.

Geodemographics - these are where the producers can recognise the type of audience by the neighbourhood/town the viewers lives in. This related to socio-economic status, as you are more likely to live in a better place if you have a better salary. They can also get a rough estimate about yourself from your postcode. Geodemographics sections include:

Commercial location - Somewhere that:
Has a good probability of buying the more formal newspapers.
Lots of applications for high earning careers.
Top end Fashion clothing/goods.

Public Sector - Somewhere that:
Has lower grades from school exams/college/university.
More common crime levels.
Applications for working class jobs.

The media can see and decide which audience they want to produce for by geodemographics, helping them find the best/biggest audience.

Psychographics:

When talking about psychographics it classifies the audience by their personality. They call this consumer categorisation. In total there are 7 types of people in 'Young and Rubicam's 4Cs'.

They are split into:

Resigned - seeking Survival:
Definition: Rigid, strict, authoritarian and chauvinist values, oriented to the past and to Reigned roles. Brand choice stresses safety, familiarity and economy. (Older audience)

Media examples: Online bingo websites, Daily TV Programs (such as Antiques Roadshow) and the Daily Mail newspaper.

Struggler - seeking Escape:
Definition: Alienated, struggler, disorganised - with few resources apart from physical/mechanical skills, for example car repair. Consumers of alcohol, junk food and lotteries. Brand choice involved impart and sensation.

Media examples: Daytime TV (Jeremy Kyle) and The sun magazine.

Mainstream - seeking Security:
Definition: Domestic, conformist, conventional, sentimental, passive, habitual. Putting big and well-known value money towards 'family' brands. (Average demographics)

Media examples: The Sun magazine again, TV programs such as X Factor and The Voice (family shows).

Aspirer - seeking status:
Definition: Materialistic, acquisitive, affiliative, oriented to extrinsics  Image, appearance, charisma, persona and fashion. Attractive pack more important than quality of contents. (Younger, clerical sales type occupation)

Media examples: Vogue magazine, TV shows such as Gok Wan, shows about fashion and making people feel good about themselves.

Succeeder - seeking control:
Definition: Strong goal orientation, confidence, work ethic, organisation. Stability and support status quo. Choice of brands based on their reward, prestige - the very best. Also attracted to 'caring' and protective brands, also stress relief. (Top management)

Media examples: Upper class programs such as the Apprentice and Dragons Den, mildly going into politics.

Explorer - seeking discovery:
Definition: Energy, experience, challenge, new frontiers. Brand choice highlights difference, sensation, adventure. The first to try new brands. (younger - student)

Media examples: Travel programs, Eco-homes (environment related shows) and fairly new shows of all genres, such as Bad Education.

Reformer - seeking Enlightenment:
Definition: Freedom from restriction, personal growth, social awareness, value for time, independent judgement. Anti-materialistic but intolerant of bad taste, curious and enquiring, supports growth of new products. (High Education)

Media examples: Frozen Planet & Grand Designs TV Programs.

How/why producers carry out research into their audience:

Quantitative audience - producers should find out quantitative research to find out the most popular interest. It can be to profile a target audience by their personalities, for example behaviours and attitudes.


Pros -
If a huge group (100+ people) take a survey you will have a good amount of reliable results.
Data can be taken and analysed fairly quickly.

Cons -
To professionally make a survey you may have to hire a 'survey expert' which can be costly.

Uses - made to find out the best target audience for your product (especially in the Media industry).


BARB (Broadcasters Audience research Board) - BARB is joint with different companies such as BBC, ITV and Channel 5. Viewers who are part of these businesses have a TV Box on top of their TV which tracks what they watch.

 They provide audience data for most of the big/major TV companies. It shows the viewing levels of the shows and can break them down by regional and national. When researching BARB recruit a panel of workers to use primary research in different buildings (on average 5000 homes).

This shows the weekly viewing records on BARB (September 2013)

RAJAR - Radio Joint Audience Research.
They provide data for researchers who want to find out the most popular trends and biggest audiences in the Radio Industry. RAJAR provides data such as listing figures (monthly), survey updates, and certain release dates.
When finding new data they are in different categories such as postcode district and population. This can lead to helping the researchers find out the certain areas socio-economic status and salary.
RAJAR is jointly owned by the BBC and the RadioCentre. It was set up in 1992 with the aim to provide single audience research for other radio companies.

ABC - Audit Bureau of Circulation UK.
They provide a stamp of trust for people related in the Media industry, this can be media buyers, owners or printers. You can send some work into ABC and they have set standards which depends if your work is suitable and professional to meet Media industry standards or not. ABC verify data across a wide range of Media including print, online and certain events. ABC can confirm different businesses to say that they are capable to be able to print and publish certain work.
ABC is ran by a number of different companies to make one big company, the smaller businesses work on certain areas and different parts of the main website. Some businesses that make up ABC include:

Survey Monkey (surveys & questionnaires)
Howell Penny (brand redesign & site design)
Webtrends (website analytics)
and more.

Qualitative audience - methods for this way of research include focus groups, questionnaires face to face interviews and reviews. This is good research to have as it has the views and opinions from those who are actually experiencing it. They don't hold many surveys but the ones they do are usually in depth with many questions.

Pros - they can be extremely useful and reliable when finding out different types of research. Just have to use the right researcher to get the best questions.

Cons - can take a lot of time to set up different types of qualitative research just to find out different parts of an audience, with large surveys if someone isn't really interested they could give false information.

Uses - get the most developed answers for your research by using in depth questions related to the product.

Focus groups - this is getting a small group together to talk about a certain subject (most likely something about the product being produced). In the focus group the audience can open up and tell the others about what they like/dislike about the topic. This is a good option for research as it is a relaxed environment where you can get a lot of ideas as there is no arguing or disagreeing.

Questionnaires - these are helpful as they can be used anywhere, online, over the telephone, or in the street. They can be from 2 minutes to 30 minutes long depending on the length and number of the questions. Some people asked could give false answers which could affect your research however in comparison to the amount of people who take the questionnaires the percentage of false answers will be really small.

Face-to-face interviews - these can be classed as questionnaires but is probably the oldest and most popular form of research. They are to include questions related to a certain subject but can sometimes be quiet personal and sensitive. With face-to-face interviews you can see the one who is getting asked, and can most likely figure out what type of personality they have. These can be a good type of research as you can see what sort of attitude the audience has along with the answers they give.