Showing posts with label D. Facual programming. Show all posts
Showing posts with label D. Facual programming. Show all posts
Tuesday, 30 June 2015
Monday, 18 May 2015
The nature and purposes of research in the creative media industries.
Types/methods of research
Primary research
Primary research is any type of research that you go out and collect yourself. Examples include questionnaires, interviews, observations, focus groups, audience panels and participation in internet forums.
For my advertising project I had to send out a questionnaire, I created a survey using the website survey monkey. This allowed me to design a specifically tailored questionnaire that would be able to provide me with the information I required as well as creating graphs so then the information could be easily read and understood. I used this technique to find out peoples views on out advert I created.The questionnaire contained 9 questions (see below)
With the information that I had gathered back I was then able to correctly find out whether I achieved my aim with this task and whether my predicted target audience was what I was hoping for. I much prefer primary research over secondary research as this is able to give me more accurate answers, so I can get the little details correct and specific.
Secondary research
Secondary research involves the use of existing research rather than primary research. Secondary research can come from books, journals, reference-based books and directories, periodicals, newspapers, film archives, photo libraries, internet, CD Rom databases, audio material, ratings, circulation figures and government statistics. Although this form of research is most likely the easiest, it may also be the most inaccurate; this would be because it isn't always kept up to date.
In my project for my secondary research, I researched several different awareness sites for mental health and different charity pages such as Mind to find out the latest statistics and facts to show in my documentary.
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| http://www.youngminds.org.uk/training_services/policy/mental _health_statistics?gclid=CjwKEAjwm-aqBRD39YPqhbzthzYSJACFj-At _jY5ZbUjqftBh2RefxP3_yMjj8bjtFjt6mIbJ0eCBBoCnePw_wc |
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| http://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/types-of-mental-health-problems /statistics-and-facts-about-mental-health/key-facts-and-statistics/ |
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| http://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/help-information/mental-health-statistics/ |
Quantitative research
Quantitative research refers to data/research in the form of numbers and statistics instead of words. One example of this could be star-ratings, for instance if an individual wants to see how popular certain comedy films are they could visit a website like Internet Movie Database (IMDB) and see what other people around the world thought of the film in a numerical rating. Other examples of quantitative research could be readership circulation figures, hits on a website, box office figures, sales of CDs and DVDs etc.
One way that I personally used quantitative data was in a a few closed questions in my questionnaire that I produced for my advertising project to give me reliable quantitative data.
Another way I conducted quantitative research was by researching statistics surrounding my topic of interest within the certain project, in this case it was Mental health.
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| http://www.youngminds.org.uk/training_services/policy/mental_health_statistics |
Qualitative research
Qualitative research refers to data/research in the form of written word instead of statistics and numbers. Examples of qualitative research can be film reviews, game reviews, fanzine websites, attitudes to media products, responses to news coverage, responses to advertising campaigns, discussion.
Whilst watching the BBC Three documentary; Diaries of a Broken Mind I read several different opinions and views of mental health that other people had left in the comments as well as peoples own experiences. I used this to my advantage to see what other people want to see in a documentary surrounding this subject.
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| https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ATTbHvI-pVU |
Data gathering agencies
The BARB (Broadcasters Audience Research Board) is the organisation that complies audience measurement and television ratings in the UK, they are used to show a rough idea of the viewing figures for various different programs and is now owned by the BBC, ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5, BSkyB and the IPA.
They have a select team of people who will watch TV and be monitored and then do some calculations, which then allows them to get the numbers of people that watched a particular show. This proves to be an invaluable tool to people whom create media texts as this lets them know all about the popularity of certain programmes.
For instance if a media company wanted to create a new show they could see how popular the genre for shows are as well as which is a popular time for shows of that genre. Internet Movie Database, or IMDB, is also applicable here as they are a free online source of information. Any new film can be added and people can add data to it and they can leave a review and rating. This can be used much like BARB in that people looking to create a media text can look for what is popular and read reviews to see what people enjoyed and what people didn't like.
When I was looking on their website at the viewing figures ratings I was surprised at how high up documantaries were. After I had searched up the different types of media research agencies I had then found that there are many of them, and they are all different in their own way. They all take on new and different forms of research to help other non-profit and profit organisations.
Purposes of research
Audience and market research
Market research is where a company will look into what is popular and check on various different factors. For example in most cases timing is important, when something is popular in the media it is best to release something relating to that so that you get viewers to the media text. Some examples of research are things like demographics and audience profiling so that they can get lots of information about the people that will be watching the piece.
For my audience and market research I looked at the demographics, this is where my documentary would be able to appeal to the Mainly teenagers or anyone who is affected by these issues or what to learn more information. I felt that this range was a good choice to strive for as anyone can be affected by mental health disorders. It would also then appeal to both the males and females that could be working in any working profession or in education.
Production research
My production research consisted of my pre-production paper work. This had consisted with the content, placement in media, finance, costs, technological resources, personnel and locations.
For my locations I had to make sure that I had the correct times and dates, to ensure that I was going to get the locations owner to allow me to film during these times. Because I was able to do this all correctly I was able to get all of the paper work for this done fast and efficiently so I was able to get on with the project.
I had then created a synopsis to briefly cover what the project documentary was going to be about, so that the audience are fully aware of what to expect.
Friday, 17 April 2015
3MW:Mental Health Research
Mental health Research
Statistics
Mental Health disorders
ADJUSTMENT DISORDERS
-Adjustment Disorder
ANXIETY DISORDERS
- Acute Stress Disorder
- Panic Disorder
- Agoraphobia
- Social Anxiety Disorder (Social Phobia)
- Specific Phobia
- Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
- Posttraumatic Stress Disorder
- Generalized Anxiety Disorder
CHILDHOOD DISORDERS
- Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
- Asperger's Disorder
- Autism Spectrum Disorder
- Conduct Disorder
- Oppositional Defiant Disorder
- Separation Anxiety Disorder
- Tourette's Disorder
EATING DISORDERS
- Anorexia Nervosa
- Bulimia Nervosa
MOOD DISORDERS
- Major Depressive Disorder
- Bipolar Disorder
- Cyclothymic Disorder
- Persistent Depressive Disorder
NEUROCOGNITIVE DISORDERS
- Delirium
- Vascular Neurocognitive Disorder
- Alcohol-Induced Neurocognitive Disorder
- Neurocognitive Dis. Due to Alzheimer's Disease
-Neurocognitive Dis. Due to Another Medical Condition
PERSONALITY DISORDERS
- Paranoid Personality Disorder
- Schizoid Personality Disorder
- Schizotypal Personality Disorder
- Antisocial Personality Disorder
- Borderline Personality Disorder
- Histrionic Personality Disorder
- Narcissistic Personality Disorder
- Avoidant Personality Disorder
- Dependent Personality Disorder
- Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder
PSYCHOTIC DISORDERS
- Schizophrenia
- Delusional Disorder
- Brief Psychotic Disorder
- Schizophreniform Disorder
- Schizoaffective Disorder
- Shared Delusional Disorder
SUBSTANCE-RELATED DISORDERS
- Alcohol Use Disorder
- Amphetamine Use Disorder
- Cannabis Use Disorder
- Cocaine Use Disorder
- Inhalant Use Disorder
- Opioid Use Disorder
- Other Hallucinogen Use Disorder
- Phencyclidine Use Disorder
- Sedative, Hypnotic, or Anxiolytic Use Disorder
- Tobacco Use Disorder
The information I collected from these sources are useful pieces of research as I can use the statistics and facts within my 3 minute wonder and potentially educate myself and others further on mental health disorders.
Local authority
If you want to film on public land you will need permission from the appropriate local authority or council. They are responsible for public land, public buildings, roads and parking. The UK screen agencies can help you get in touch with the appropriate local authority contact.
Police
You will need the full co-operation of the local police force if you plan to film on a public highway or use special effects, explosives or fire arms (including replicas). You will also need permission to portray uniformed police officers or marked police vehicles on film.
You should inform the local police force in writing of any planned filming within its jurisdiction. The UK screen agencies can help you arrange this process.
Filming on public roads
Before filming on a public road you must contact the local police and the Highways Department of the local authority. Both will need to make sure that your plans are safe and pose no threat to road users. If you plan to stage stunts, a stunt co-ordinator should be involved in any planning discussions.
You will need details of the safety conditions covering any tracking vehicles you hire and also find out what permissions and rights clearances have been granted at the location.
Permission and Rights clearances
If you film an actor inside a store or restaurant, you need written permission to use the location and also to show the chain’s name or trademark. If you film outside a store or restaurant you do not need permission to show its name or trademark – however, if the location chosen is used to communicate a negative message in your film (for example, a film about ‘poisoned restaurant food’) you may risk legal proceedings. You do not need to ask passers-by for permission to feature their faces in a film. Under UK law, the copyright of film shot in a public place resides with the filmmaker.
(http://www.britishfilmcommission.org.uk/crew-facilities/locations/filming-in-public-spaces/)
Statistics
- About a quarter of the population will experience some kind of mental health problem in the course of a year, with mixed anxiety and depression the most common mental disorder in Britain
- Women are more likely to have been treated for a mental health problem than men and about ten percent of children have a mental health problem at any one time
- Depression affects 1 in 5 older people
- Suicides rates show that British men are three times more likely to die by suicide than British women and self-harm statistics for the UK show one of the highest rates in Europe: 400 per 100,000 population
- Only 1 in 10 prisoners has no mental disorder
- 9.6% or nearly 850,000 children and young people aged between 5-16 years have a mental disorder
- 7.7% or nearly 340,000 children aged 5-10 years have a mental disorder
- 11.5% or about 510,000 young people aged between 11-16 years have a mental disorder
- 3.3% or about 290,000 children and young people have an anxiety disorder
- 2.2% or about 96,000 children have an anxiety disorder
- 4.4% or about 195,000 young people have an anxiety disorder
- 0.9% or nearly 80,000 children and young people are seriously depressed
- 0.2% or about 8,700 aged 5-10 year-olds are seriously depressed.
- 1.4% or about 62,000 aged 11-16 year-olds are seriously depressed.
- 5.8% or just over 510,000 children and young people have a conduct disorder
- 4.9% or nearly 215,000 children have a conduct disorder
- 6.6% or just over 290,000 young people have a conduct disorder
- 1.5% or just over 132,000 children and young people have severe ADHD
- 1.6% or about 70,000 children have severe ADHD
- 1.4% or about 62,000 young people have severe ADHD
- Between 1 in every 12 and 1 in 15 children and young people deliberately self-harm.
- There has been a big increase in the number of young people being admitted to hospital because of self harm. Over the last ten years this figure has increased by 68%
- More than half of all adults with mental health problems were diagnosed in childhood. Less than half were treated appropriately at the time.
- Nearly 80,000 children and young people suffer from severe depression.
- Over 8,000 children aged under 10 years old suffer from severe depression.
- 72% of children in care have behavioural or emotional problems - these are some of the most vulnerable people in our society.
- 95% of imprisoned young offenders have a mental health disorder. Many of them are struggling with more than one disorder.
- The number of young people aged 15-16 with depression nearly doubled between the 1980s and the 2000s.
- The proportion of young people aged 15-16 with a conduct disorder more than doubled between 1974 and 1999.
- 1 in 10 children and young people aged 5 - 16 suffer from a diagnosable mental health disorder - that is around three children in every class.
Mental Health disorders
ADJUSTMENT DISORDERS
-Adjustment Disorder
ANXIETY DISORDERS
- Acute Stress Disorder
- Panic Disorder
- Agoraphobia
- Social Anxiety Disorder (Social Phobia)
- Specific Phobia
- Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
- Posttraumatic Stress Disorder
- Generalized Anxiety Disorder
CHILDHOOD DISORDERS
- Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
- Asperger's Disorder
- Autism Spectrum Disorder
- Conduct Disorder
- Oppositional Defiant Disorder
- Separation Anxiety Disorder
- Tourette's Disorder
EATING DISORDERS
- Anorexia Nervosa
- Bulimia Nervosa
MOOD DISORDERS
- Major Depressive Disorder
- Bipolar Disorder
- Cyclothymic Disorder
- Persistent Depressive Disorder
NEUROCOGNITIVE DISORDERS
- Delirium
- Vascular Neurocognitive Disorder
- Alcohol-Induced Neurocognitive Disorder
- Neurocognitive Dis. Due to Alzheimer's Disease
-Neurocognitive Dis. Due to Another Medical Condition
PERSONALITY DISORDERS
- Paranoid Personality Disorder
- Schizoid Personality Disorder
- Schizotypal Personality Disorder
- Antisocial Personality Disorder
- Borderline Personality Disorder
- Histrionic Personality Disorder
- Narcissistic Personality Disorder
- Avoidant Personality Disorder
- Dependent Personality Disorder
- Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder
PSYCHOTIC DISORDERS
- Schizophrenia
- Delusional Disorder
- Brief Psychotic Disorder
- Schizophreniform Disorder
- Schizoaffective Disorder
- Shared Delusional Disorder
SUBSTANCE-RELATED DISORDERS
- Alcohol Use Disorder
- Amphetamine Use Disorder
- Cannabis Use Disorder
- Cocaine Use Disorder
- Inhalant Use Disorder
- Opioid Use Disorder
- Other Hallucinogen Use Disorder
- Phencyclidine Use Disorder
- Sedative, Hypnotic, or Anxiolytic Use Disorder
- Tobacco Use Disorder
 |
| Screenshots of my findings of statistics and facts |
The information I collected from these sources are useful pieces of research as I can use the statistics and facts within my 3 minute wonder and potentially educate myself and others further on mental health disorders.
Filming in public
Local authority
If you want to film on public land you will need permission from the appropriate local authority or council. They are responsible for public land, public buildings, roads and parking. The UK screen agencies can help you get in touch with the appropriate local authority contact.
Police
You will need the full co-operation of the local police force if you plan to film on a public highway or use special effects, explosives or fire arms (including replicas). You will also need permission to portray uniformed police officers or marked police vehicles on film.
You should inform the local police force in writing of any planned filming within its jurisdiction. The UK screen agencies can help you arrange this process.
Filming on public roads
Before filming on a public road you must contact the local police and the Highways Department of the local authority. Both will need to make sure that your plans are safe and pose no threat to road users. If you plan to stage stunts, a stunt co-ordinator should be involved in any planning discussions.
You will need details of the safety conditions covering any tracking vehicles you hire and also find out what permissions and rights clearances have been granted at the location.
Permission and Rights clearances
If you film an actor inside a store or restaurant, you need written permission to use the location and also to show the chain’s name or trademark. If you film outside a store or restaurant you do not need permission to show its name or trademark – however, if the location chosen is used to communicate a negative message in your film (for example, a film about ‘poisoned restaurant food’) you may risk legal proceedings. You do not need to ask passers-by for permission to feature their faces in a film. Under UK law, the copyright of film shot in a public place resides with the filmmaker.
(http://www.britishfilmcommission.org.uk/crew-facilities/locations/filming-in-public-spaces/)
Friday, 27 March 2015
Introduction to the news
The News
The broadcast that I watched was BBC news live which was shown from 10am to 11am.
Within the title sequence of this broadcast it showed circles of different shades of red and white to form a representation of the globe as well as different titles of different countries and places to symbolize that they do global news broadcasts. The soundtrack for the title sequence is quite upbeat and quick, like a countdown and flows well with the images on screen. I think that the title sequence may be like this to
The main story was Ed Balls making a speech unveiling Labour's analysis of how Conservative plans would affect non-protected Whitehall departments and accused the Conservatives of planning "extreme" post-election public spending cuts of £70bn. He also claimed to show how non-protected departments, such as policing and social care, would face "catastrophic" cuts if the Conservatives were re-elected in May's general election.
Other stories included; David Cameron pledges 500 new free schools(even though that costs so much of tax payers money), Britain's anti-terror scheme is a "toxic brand" and "ineffective", Owners has "no doubt" crufts dog was poison, Solar plane takes maiden voyage around planet, Teenagers killed in horror crash named, Mother of alleged rapist in India lynched by angry mob, Syrian family of young girls seek apology from MET and Baby survives fourteen hours in Utah river.
The role of the presenters
News presenters tend to be middle-aged and one of each gender, this is to appeal to a broad audience. They introduce and host the show by reading the news, interview people and report on particular issues and events that have taken place during the day or that week. Presenters may specialise in a particular type, such as current affairs, weather, sport etc. There has to be a strict dress code so not to clash with the colours of the background and to come across presentable and intelligent; they look like they know what they are informing the audience about.
They are usually involved in the careful planning that goes into every programme, including rehearsals and research. They may write their own material and they also need to be able to memorise facts and improvise when necessary. They keep the programme running to plan whilst on air, working closely with the production team. This often involves following detailed instructions whilst reading from an autocue and/or script, and responding positively to any problems or changes that is informed to them via a earpiece.
Presenters work across national and regional television and radio, satellite and cable channels, and also in the non-broadcast sector, e.g. training and corporate productions. Most are employed on short contracts and the hours can be long and unsociable. The work may be studio based or on location.
The Order of Stories
One of the most important factors when it comes to creating a factual news bulletin is deciding where each of the news stories should go in the broadcast, or as it's known in the news - ordering. The term given to the list of stories likely to appear in the show is the billing. There is, much like in many other industries, a standard way that the vast majority of news channels follow. The first story is determined through an algorithm of relevance, the more relevant the story is to the potential audience the more likely it is to be featured first. Stories that are deemed to have a high level of relevance will be featured higher up on the list. Factors that are likely to affect this are things such as international, national or local events. Recent examples of big stories are things such as the Ebola outbreak. This story is selected as it will hopefully hook the audience and keep them watching. The other stories are selected through relevance, the least relevant coming further down the list. The final story in the news is called the finisher or the "and finally" which is often a much more lighthearted story to leave the audience feeling happy as opposed to worried or upset about the news they have just seen. In the broadcast I watched the "and finally" is likely the march for International Women's Day as it is a happy, good occasion and would leave the viewer feeling good that lots of people have gathered to support equality. An important skill in the news industry is the ability to act quickly. This is due to the fact that news moves very quickly and certain points often become invalid, or irrelevant by the time it comes to broadcasting. If a story about a court decision is planned to be broadcast on a certain day and the jury have not finished deliberation by the time it comes to broadcasting the news team have to quickly schedule a different story to fill the slot. There is a final term for the order of stories that is deemed a "slow news day". This is where there are very few stories that are of relevance to the audience, or stories that have very little international impact. In these situations news is shown to fill the spot, most likely very lighthearted.
News values
In 1965, media researchers Galtung & Ruge analysed international news stories to find out what factors they had in common, and what factors placed them at the top of the news agenda worldwide. They came up with the following list of news values. - a kind of scoring system - a story which scores highly on each value is certain to come at the start of a TV news bulletin, or make the front page of a newspaper. Journalists and editors also draw heavily on their experience - of what an audience expects, of what stories have had a major impact on public consciousness in the past, of what is important - and each news organisation will have their own system of setting a news agenda.
Negativity - Bad news - involving death, tragedy, bankruptcy, violence, damage, natural disasters, political upheaval or simply extreme weather conditions - is always rated above 'positive' stories (royal weddings, celebrations etc)
Closeness to home (proximity) - Audiences supposedly relate more to stories that are close to them geographically, or involve people from their country, or those that are reported that way(eg '12 Hong Kongers aboard Australia Crash Plane'). News gatekeepers must consider carefully how meaningful a story will be to their particular audience.
Recency - Newspapers are very competitive about breaking news - about revealing stories as they happen. 24 hour news channels such as CNN and BBC World also rate this value very highly. However, as we have seen with the events of September 11, stories may take a while to develop, and become coherent, so recency is not always the best value to rate.
Currency - This is almost opposite to recency, in that stories that have been in the public eye for some time already are deemed valuable. Therefore a story - for instance about the abduction and murder of a child - may run for weeks and weeks, even if nothing new really happens.
Continuity - Events that are likely to have a continuing impact (a war, a two week sports tournament) have a high value when the story breaks, as they will develop into an ongoing narrative which will get audiences to 'tune in tomorrow'.
Uniqueness - Any story which covers a unique or unusual event (two-headed elephant born to Birmingham woman) has news values.
Simplicity - Obvious, but true. Stories which are easy to explain are preferred over stories which are not (anything to do with the Balkan or Palestinian conflicts).
Personality - Stories that center around a particular person, because they can be presented from a 'human interest' angle, are beloved of newspapers, particularly if they involve a well-known person. Some say this news value has become distorted, and that news organisations over-rate personality stories, particularly those involving celebrities ('Kate Middleton Goes Shopping').
Expectedness - Does the event match the expectations of a news organisation and its audience? Or, has what was expected to happen (violence at a demonstration, horrific civilian casualties in a terrorist attack) actually happened? If a news story conforms to the preconceived ideas of those covering it, then it has expectedness as an important news value.
Elite nations or people - Any story which covers an important, powerful nation (or organisation) has greater news values than a story which covers a less important nation. The same goes for people. Barack and Michelle Obama are newsworthy whatever they do.
Also a major factor when setting the news agenda is that if a newspaper or news programme is the first and only news organisation breaking a story, then they will rate that very highly. The UK Sunday papers are very fond of exclusives, and will often break a story of national or international importance that no one else has.
The broadcast that I watched was BBC news live which was shown from 10am to 11am.
Within the title sequence of this broadcast it showed circles of different shades of red and white to form a representation of the globe as well as different titles of different countries and places to symbolize that they do global news broadcasts. The soundtrack for the title sequence is quite upbeat and quick, like a countdown and flows well with the images on screen. I think that the title sequence may be like this to
The main story was Ed Balls making a speech unveiling Labour's analysis of how Conservative plans would affect non-protected Whitehall departments and accused the Conservatives of planning "extreme" post-election public spending cuts of £70bn. He also claimed to show how non-protected departments, such as policing and social care, would face "catastrophic" cuts if the Conservatives were re-elected in May's general election.
Other stories included; David Cameron pledges 500 new free schools(even though that costs so much of tax payers money), Britain's anti-terror scheme is a "toxic brand" and "ineffective", Owners has "no doubt" crufts dog was poison, Solar plane takes maiden voyage around planet, Teenagers killed in horror crash named, Mother of alleged rapist in India lynched by angry mob, Syrian family of young girls seek apology from MET and Baby survives fourteen hours in Utah river.
The role of the presenters
News presenters tend to be middle-aged and one of each gender, this is to appeal to a broad audience. They introduce and host the show by reading the news, interview people and report on particular issues and events that have taken place during the day or that week. Presenters may specialise in a particular type, such as current affairs, weather, sport etc. There has to be a strict dress code so not to clash with the colours of the background and to come across presentable and intelligent; they look like they know what they are informing the audience about.
They are usually involved in the careful planning that goes into every programme, including rehearsals and research. They may write their own material and they also need to be able to memorise facts and improvise when necessary. They keep the programme running to plan whilst on air, working closely with the production team. This often involves following detailed instructions whilst reading from an autocue and/or script, and responding positively to any problems or changes that is informed to them via a earpiece.
Presenters work across national and regional television and radio, satellite and cable channels, and also in the non-broadcast sector, e.g. training and corporate productions. Most are employed on short contracts and the hours can be long and unsociable. The work may be studio based or on location.
The Order of Stories
One of the most important factors when it comes to creating a factual news bulletin is deciding where each of the news stories should go in the broadcast, or as it's known in the news - ordering. The term given to the list of stories likely to appear in the show is the billing. There is, much like in many other industries, a standard way that the vast majority of news channels follow. The first story is determined through an algorithm of relevance, the more relevant the story is to the potential audience the more likely it is to be featured first. Stories that are deemed to have a high level of relevance will be featured higher up on the list. Factors that are likely to affect this are things such as international, national or local events. Recent examples of big stories are things such as the Ebola outbreak. This story is selected as it will hopefully hook the audience and keep them watching. The other stories are selected through relevance, the least relevant coming further down the list. The final story in the news is called the finisher or the "and finally" which is often a much more lighthearted story to leave the audience feeling happy as opposed to worried or upset about the news they have just seen. In the broadcast I watched the "and finally" is likely the march for International Women's Day as it is a happy, good occasion and would leave the viewer feeling good that lots of people have gathered to support equality. An important skill in the news industry is the ability to act quickly. This is due to the fact that news moves very quickly and certain points often become invalid, or irrelevant by the time it comes to broadcasting. If a story about a court decision is planned to be broadcast on a certain day and the jury have not finished deliberation by the time it comes to broadcasting the news team have to quickly schedule a different story to fill the slot. There is a final term for the order of stories that is deemed a "slow news day". This is where there are very few stories that are of relevance to the audience, or stories that have very little international impact. In these situations news is shown to fill the spot, most likely very lighthearted.
In 1965, media researchers Galtung & Ruge analysed international news stories to find out what factors they had in common, and what factors placed them at the top of the news agenda worldwide. They came up with the following list of news values. - a kind of scoring system - a story which scores highly on each value is certain to come at the start of a TV news bulletin, or make the front page of a newspaper. Journalists and editors also draw heavily on their experience - of what an audience expects, of what stories have had a major impact on public consciousness in the past, of what is important - and each news organisation will have their own system of setting a news agenda.
Negativity - Bad news - involving death, tragedy, bankruptcy, violence, damage, natural disasters, political upheaval or simply extreme weather conditions - is always rated above 'positive' stories (royal weddings, celebrations etc)
Closeness to home (proximity) - Audiences supposedly relate more to stories that are close to them geographically, or involve people from their country, or those that are reported that way(eg '12 Hong Kongers aboard Australia Crash Plane'). News gatekeepers must consider carefully how meaningful a story will be to their particular audience.
Recency - Newspapers are very competitive about breaking news - about revealing stories as they happen. 24 hour news channels such as CNN and BBC World also rate this value very highly. However, as we have seen with the events of September 11, stories may take a while to develop, and become coherent, so recency is not always the best value to rate.
Currency - This is almost opposite to recency, in that stories that have been in the public eye for some time already are deemed valuable. Therefore a story - for instance about the abduction and murder of a child - may run for weeks and weeks, even if nothing new really happens.
Continuity - Events that are likely to have a continuing impact (a war, a two week sports tournament) have a high value when the story breaks, as they will develop into an ongoing narrative which will get audiences to 'tune in tomorrow'.
Uniqueness - Any story which covers a unique or unusual event (two-headed elephant born to Birmingham woman) has news values.
Simplicity - Obvious, but true. Stories which are easy to explain are preferred over stories which are not (anything to do with the Balkan or Palestinian conflicts).
Personality - Stories that center around a particular person, because they can be presented from a 'human interest' angle, are beloved of newspapers, particularly if they involve a well-known person. Some say this news value has become distorted, and that news organisations over-rate personality stories, particularly those involving celebrities ('Kate Middleton Goes Shopping').
Expectedness - Does the event match the expectations of a news organisation and its audience? Or, has what was expected to happen (violence at a demonstration, horrific civilian casualties in a terrorist attack) actually happened? If a news story conforms to the preconceived ideas of those covering it, then it has expectedness as an important news value.
Elite nations or people - Any story which covers an important, powerful nation (or organisation) has greater news values than a story which covers a less important nation. The same goes for people. Barack and Michelle Obama are newsworthy whatever they do.
Also a major factor when setting the news agenda is that if a newspaper or news programme is the first and only news organisation breaking a story, then they will rate that very highly. The UK Sunday papers are very fond of exclusives, and will often break a story of national or international importance that no one else has.
Broadcast about the Chowles
The report was about the effect of cuts in interest rates. They focused on a family of three; a mother; Christina Chowles, father; Pierre Chowles and their baby with another baby on the way. The other people involved in this report was the council worker and the individual doing the voiceover. The story stated that after a year of purchasing their first house, Pierre lost his job due to ill health leaving them unable to repay the rest of their mortgage which consisted of £6000. Pierre and Christina Chowles, were represented as quite weak people that needed help. The way that this was done was, for example, in the first scene Pierre was seen slipping in the snow, to show that he had trouble. Another scene which was intended for the audience to feel sorry for the people features in it is where there is a shot of their baby playing. Their worry is also very visible in the way that they talk and the way that they are seen in the shots given. I felt sympathetic towards the people represented in the story as they were innocent home-owners whom had managed to lose their home through no fault of their own. I personally felt sympathetic towards the unfortunate homeowners due to the way they were portrayed as well as the fact that they had lost their home. The news story was narrated by a voice-over to help the audience follow what was happening on the screen, otherwise it might not flow as well as it does.
Using a broadcast I have found
In this section I will analyse a broadcast that I found and watched. For this I will use the story of two British fighters joining the anti-Islamic state fighters. The story revolved around the fact that people from other countries were joining the Kurd fighters in helping fight against the Islamic state, and importantly two British citizens had joined. Involved in the story were the two British citizens whom were interviewed about their involvement, the reporter who was visible and active in the conversations and a third person who had joined the fight. The people in the story were represented fairly and equally, and overall impartially. The story was interesting and kept my attention throughout the whole piece and opened my eyes to something that I didn't know was happening. I felt quite sympathetic towards the people in the piece as they were fighting against something they didn't believe in, however I did feel like it was their choice to fight so I was not completely sympathetic towards them. The piece used narrative to help structure the footage and the reporter was also talking to the people therein, face-to-face and his presence was visible.
The report was about the effect of cuts in interest rates. They focused on a family of three; a mother; Christina Chowles, father; Pierre Chowles and their baby with another baby on the way. The other people involved in this report was the council worker and the individual doing the voiceover. The story stated that after a year of purchasing their first house, Pierre lost his job due to ill health leaving them unable to repay the rest of their mortgage which consisted of £6000. Pierre and Christina Chowles, were represented as quite weak people that needed help. The way that this was done was, for example, in the first scene Pierre was seen slipping in the snow, to show that he had trouble. Another scene which was intended for the audience to feel sorry for the people features in it is where there is a shot of their baby playing. Their worry is also very visible in the way that they talk and the way that they are seen in the shots given. I felt sympathetic towards the people represented in the story as they were innocent home-owners whom had managed to lose their home through no fault of their own. I personally felt sympathetic towards the unfortunate homeowners due to the way they were portrayed as well as the fact that they had lost their home. The news story was narrated by a voice-over to help the audience follow what was happening on the screen, otherwise it might not flow as well as it does.
Using a broadcast I have found
In this section I will analyse a broadcast that I found and watched. For this I will use the story of two British fighters joining the anti-Islamic state fighters. The story revolved around the fact that people from other countries were joining the Kurd fighters in helping fight against the Islamic state, and importantly two British citizens had joined. Involved in the story were the two British citizens whom were interviewed about their involvement, the reporter who was visible and active in the conversations and a third person who had joined the fight. The people in the story were represented fairly and equally, and overall impartially. The story was interesting and kept my attention throughout the whole piece and opened my eyes to something that I didn't know was happening. I felt quite sympathetic towards the people in the piece as they were fighting against something they didn't believe in, however I did feel like it was their choice to fight so I was not completely sympathetic towards them. The piece used narrative to help structure the footage and the reporter was also talking to the people therein, face-to-face and his presence was visible.
Bias
The act of being biased is, in basic terms, being swayed towards a certain viewpoint or way of thinking through a number of different techniques such as through selection, order and placement, wording of a headline, camera angles, use of captions and overall choice of words. I will discuss the ways and techniques that news could be biased.
Selection
The first way in which news could be biased is through selection, the news network will choose what they want to show and what they want to omit from the programme. An example of this would be where certain stories would not make the headlines due to them not being deemed newsworthy or simply because they want to sway the audience a certain way.
Order and placement
A further technique of bias utilised by news networks is through order and placement, this is where the news network will decide where things are ordered, things that are higher up in the order will be top stories and will therefore get more coverage whereas stories that are lower in the order will get less airtime. An example of this would be in the news broadcast I watched in the previous section, stories of British men joining the fight against the Islamic state was given more airtime, as it was the first story, and further stories had less airtime due to this.
Wording of a Headline
Another way in which a news network may use bias is where they will choose the wording of a headline carefully as to sway an audience a certain way. An example of this would be the way the main headline was announced saying that "a teacher and a city trader, the Britons gone to Syria to fight against Islamic state". This is the first headline of the show and it is not mitigated at all, it jumps straight into the action.
Camera angles
A further way in which the media uses bias is the camera angles. The way in which different scenes are shot can affect how the audience interprets what they are being told. An example of this would be in the story about the British men going to fight in Syria where camera angles are used to show close-ups of their faces. This shows people their emotion in a close, intimate way that could sway their opinion of the men.
Use of captions
Another way in which news networks can be biased is through the use of captions. This would be where the description of experts used on the news could sway the public's opinion of some, if someone had the caption "paleontologist" they would be more respected than if they had the caption "dinosaur expert" as it sounds more professional. An example of this would be in the news broadcast I watched a police officer that was investigating alleged sexual abuse was described as "Former Officer, South Yorkshire Police". The use of this title makes him seem a more reputable source than had they used "Former Police Office" as it gives where he was a police officer, making it feel more authentic to the viewer thus potentially swaying their opinion.
Choice of words
The final way in which the news can be biased is through their choice of words. Nothing is as expressive as the English language, simply due to the sheer number of synonyms and words in the dictionary therefore the choice of words can have a huge impact on how something is interpreted. This can be seen throughout the broadcast as only formal language is used to make everything feel more professional. This could sway the audience's opinion as the way in which it is said, and the words used, can change opinions. A specific example of this, however, would be where the presenter says "A British teacher and former soldier has traveled to Syria to join the fight against so called Islamic state". This uses certain phrases and words that are seen as formal such as "former", "so called" and "traveled", where if it were in an informal setting the presenter could have said "a British teacher and ex-soldier has gone to Syria to join the fight against Islamic state". Therefore removing the formality, this would be exactly the same sentence but it would give off a much different message to the audience.
Selection
The first way in which news could be biased is through selection, the news network will choose what they want to show and what they want to omit from the programme. An example of this would be where certain stories would not make the headlines due to them not being deemed newsworthy or simply because they want to sway the audience a certain way.
Order and placement
A further technique of bias utilised by news networks is through order and placement, this is where the news network will decide where things are ordered, things that are higher up in the order will be top stories and will therefore get more coverage whereas stories that are lower in the order will get less airtime. An example of this would be in the news broadcast I watched in the previous section, stories of British men joining the fight against the Islamic state was given more airtime, as it was the first story, and further stories had less airtime due to this.
Wording of a Headline
Another way in which a news network may use bias is where they will choose the wording of a headline carefully as to sway an audience a certain way. An example of this would be the way the main headline was announced saying that "a teacher and a city trader, the Britons gone to Syria to fight against Islamic state". This is the first headline of the show and it is not mitigated at all, it jumps straight into the action.
Camera angles
A further way in which the media uses bias is the camera angles. The way in which different scenes are shot can affect how the audience interprets what they are being told. An example of this would be in the story about the British men going to fight in Syria where camera angles are used to show close-ups of their faces. This shows people their emotion in a close, intimate way that could sway their opinion of the men.
Use of captions
Another way in which news networks can be biased is through the use of captions. This would be where the description of experts used on the news could sway the public's opinion of some, if someone had the caption "paleontologist" they would be more respected than if they had the caption "dinosaur expert" as it sounds more professional. An example of this would be in the news broadcast I watched a police officer that was investigating alleged sexual abuse was described as "Former Officer, South Yorkshire Police". The use of this title makes him seem a more reputable source than had they used "Former Police Office" as it gives where he was a police officer, making it feel more authentic to the viewer thus potentially swaying their opinion.
Choice of words
The final way in which the news can be biased is through their choice of words. Nothing is as expressive as the English language, simply due to the sheer number of synonyms and words in the dictionary therefore the choice of words can have a huge impact on how something is interpreted. This can be seen throughout the broadcast as only formal language is used to make everything feel more professional. This could sway the audience's opinion as the way in which it is said, and the words used, can change opinions. A specific example of this, however, would be where the presenter says "A British teacher and former soldier has traveled to Syria to join the fight against so called Islamic state". This uses certain phrases and words that are seen as formal such as "former", "so called" and "traveled", where if it were in an informal setting the presenter could have said "a British teacher and ex-soldier has gone to Syria to join the fight against Islamic state". Therefore removing the formality, this would be exactly the same sentence but it would give off a much different message to the audience.
Documentary mini-task
A documentary is a factual piece of film that shows a certain person, place or event in a ideally unbiased way. A documentary sets out to show the truth on the particular subject as opposed to a certain opinion. There are five formats of documentary which I will discuss below.
Expository documentaries:
The first style of documentary, according to the styles as defined by Bill Nichols, is the expository
documentary. The key features of an expository documentary is that the production features a voice-over which will inform the audience what is happening in the different shots. The voice-over will also supply facts to accompany the images seen on the screen as a form of explanation. The main idea of the piece is that an objective view of the situation is shown. This is usually seen as accurate,
however, in many cases this can be seen as biased as the voice-over may be used in a way to cause the audience to look at the images in a different way. An example of this can be seen in the documentary entitled Land of Dragons, which follows Komodo dragons and the wildlife of the island in which they live. This documentary is in the expository form as there are images of the various wildlife accompanied with voice-over. An example of this can be seen at 43:42 where the Komodo dragon is approaching its food and the voice-over is explaining what is happening. This text has all the key features of the expository type as there is an accompanying voice-over in which the facts are spoken to the audience.
Observational documentaries:
Observational documentaries are when the documentary maker is just following a person around in order to observe the events that happen in their everyday life. The camera will normally be hand held and will have longer takes, with no interviews and usually no voice over. An example of this could be ‘Life Story’ from the BBC with David Attenborough. Although in these documentaries David presents himself and also does the narration for the documentary, it actually looks at the life of the animals and this has been done by observing their live habits and routines. This is an example of observational documentaries and has been shown by the way that all of the animals filmed here are still acting naturally, considering there are a number of cameras surrounding them. Some people may argue that the animals may start acting a little different because of the cameras? With this we do also sometimes get a glimpse of when some of the animals are losing interest in the camera over time and because of this, they start acting more natural rather than acting as if they feel they are being pressured and watched. Normally these types of documentaries have no narration or view of the documenter/narrator on screen, this can be both real towards the audience as well as fiction. But the filming of the animals will all of the time get more screen time than any people that have helped with each series.
Interactive documentaries:
Interactive documentary is where the filmmaker's presence is plain to see as they are a participant in the production. There is often an interaction between the presenter and any interviewees, and with the audience. Arguments are presented and discussed, often with the presenter being impartial, listening to all sides equally despite their own opinion on the matter. There are criticisms of this type of documentary as it can easily be manipulated through editing, showing only the sides and opinions that the filmmaker wants to show to the audience. There are many examples of this, and it is possibly the most common type of documentary. The example I have chosen, however, is Ross Kemp on Gangs. This is where TV personality Ross Kemp talks to various different gang members of different gangs across the world to find out the truth about the gang and how the members became involved. Kemp is the filmmaker and presenter of the production and can be seen on screen interviewing people and addressing the camera as well as providing a voice-over in certain circumstances.
Reflexive documentaries are when the filmmaker is nearly always present on camera, as they like to be able to participate. These types of documentaries are usually made up of interviews making the audience participate within arguments and to become manipulated through the text of editing. An example of this would be the documentaries from Louis. His one named “When Louis met Jimmy” in 2000, this one is about when Louis had met with Jimmy Savile and in this series he had accompanied a British celebrity around on their day to day business. He would interview him with questions about his life and experiences. I felt that this interview was very realistic in the way that Louis was within the programme as well as being the voice over. This is evident in the way that there where straight up reactions for the questions being asked, but not only that there was also a shortage on questions for when Louis was put on the spot. This documentary, just like others have fast forwarded the dull parts. The way that will convince the audience that this isn’t like all of the others are with way that it is all mostly filmed with just the one camera, as this is evident with the camera and camera man are able to be seen in the mirrors.
Performance documentary:
The last format of documentary is performance documentary. A performance documentary is when the documentary is representing the world indirectly with the use of re-enactments, and then engaging camera positions and soundtracks to help to submerge the audience into the diegesis. An example of this would be a story called the ‘The Virgin Killer’ of when a British-born Elliot Rodger had killed six students in Santa Barbra before turning a gun on himself on the 23rd of May in 2014. It was a documentary that was aired on Channel 4. Here we see various different interviews with a few different people. These would be the witnesses and other professionals that join to each case. In order for this documentary to convince the audience that it is all real is with the names or each person they are interviewing, the use of newspapers and articles to bring forward the past and also the use of re-enactments from various different people’s views. The way that this type of documentary convinces the audience that it is all real is with the one camera that is being used while interviewing the people and then using more than the one for the re-enactments. However the documentary doesn’t all seem real to the audience and this is evident with the use of music over all of the serious parts of the documentary, perhaps therefore making it lose a little of its reality.
Tuesday, 24 March 2015
3 Minute Wonder
What is a 3 Minute Wonder?
3 Minute Wonder is a short Channel 4 television slot that broadcasts first time directors' three-minute TV programmes in the middle of the channel's weekday primetime schedule (broadcast at 7.55pm every weekday) It offers first-time directors and assistant producers the opportunity to air their work to a large audience, and in doing so, to take a first step into the competitive UK film industry.
The 3 Minute Wonder strand is part of the Channel 4's 4Talent initiative to help new talent break into the very competitive UK television industry. Other projects in the scheme include FourDocs and the Channel 4 Sheffield Pitch documentary competition. Channel 4 offers new directors £4000 and their assistance in making their shorts. The films shown on the series are primarily documentaries that generally highlight a current issue that may not be in the public eye.
The wall: Burning Candy
I enjoyed this 3 Minute Wonder as it gives you an insight on why these certain people chose to become graffiti artists and their personal life behind it as well as how it influenced their life choices as they grew older. The individuals
3MW: Last Supper
I like the truth in the man’s eyes I feel this documentary is informative in the way it shows the truth behind the death sentence .the man in the film is defiantly guilty so it doesn't tilt the story the reason why he did it and the way he talks about how it done might tilt your opinion this short film hasn't changed my feelings or opinions I still feel this is a good idea.
Karl Pilkington: Life
I liked this short film because it’s both funny yet informative. Karl’s way of explaining things are odd from the normal so give you a different perspective on things most of us know and haven’t thought as deeply into as he seems to within this documentary .I have learned very little apart from the fact of looking at things from a different way can give you a different opinion and thoughts on a subject.
TV listings
The red underlines programs are the ones in which I believe to be factual programming which make a large proportion of the programming on the main channels this is due to the need to show factual programs to educate and both fit adult and younger audience at peek viewing times .the programs can be show in groups and sometimes in a group of three if they are a series or a set of linked programs. Following are some figures of the stats of audience viewing a selected programme on the day.
Below you can see all of the documentaries at different times and on different channels such as; BBC One, BBC Two, Channel 4 etc.
BARB veiwing figures
3 Minute Wonder is a short Channel 4 television slot that broadcasts first time directors' three-minute TV programmes in the middle of the channel's weekday primetime schedule (broadcast at 7.55pm every weekday) It offers first-time directors and assistant producers the opportunity to air their work to a large audience, and in doing so, to take a first step into the competitive UK film industry.
The 3 Minute Wonder strand is part of the Channel 4's 4Talent initiative to help new talent break into the very competitive UK television industry. Other projects in the scheme include FourDocs and the Channel 4 Sheffield Pitch documentary competition. Channel 4 offers new directors £4000 and their assistance in making their shorts. The films shown on the series are primarily documentaries that generally highlight a current issue that may not be in the public eye.
The wall: Burning Candy
I enjoyed this 3 Minute Wonder as it gives you an insight on why these certain people chose to become graffiti artists and their personal life behind it as well as how it influenced their life choices as they grew older. The individuals
3MW: Last Supper
I like the truth in the man’s eyes I feel this documentary is informative in the way it shows the truth behind the death sentence .the man in the film is defiantly guilty so it doesn't tilt the story the reason why he did it and the way he talks about how it done might tilt your opinion this short film hasn't changed my feelings or opinions I still feel this is a good idea.
Karl Pilkington: Life
I liked this short film because it’s both funny yet informative. Karl’s way of explaining things are odd from the normal so give you a different perspective on things most of us know and haven’t thought as deeply into as he seems to within this documentary .I have learned very little apart from the fact of looking at things from a different way can give you a different opinion and thoughts on a subject.
TV listings
The red underlines programs are the ones in which I believe to be factual programming which make a large proportion of the programming on the main channels this is due to the need to show factual programs to educate and both fit adult and younger audience at peek viewing times .the programs can be show in groups and sometimes in a group of three if they are a series or a set of linked programs. Following are some figures of the stats of audience viewing a selected programme on the day.
Below you can see all of the documentaries at different times and on different channels such as; BBC One, BBC Two, Channel 4 etc.
BARB veiwing figures
3 Minute Wonder Proposal
Initial ideas for our 3 Minute Wonder
1) Mental health
- Folding paper to reveal different disorders we will be talking about.
- Interviewing both sides of mental health.
- Showing people the true effect.
- Showing both facts and emotions.
2) Mental and physical health
- Folding paper to reveal different disorders we will be talking about.
- Interviewing both sides of physical and mental health.
- Showing people the true effect.
- Showing both facts and emotions.
3) Disabilities
- Folding paper to reveal different disorders we will be talking about.
- Interviewing both sides of disabilities.
- Showing people the true effect.
- Showing both facts and emotions.
Our favourite/chosen idea
Our chosen idea was mental health.
We have chosen this Idea we feel this would be the most accessible and most informative video to create for this project. We chose this idea as there is a massive stigma around mental health and most people aren't aware of the issues surrounding it.
- Folding paper to reveal different disorders we will be talking about.
- Interviewing both sides of mental health from the professional and unprofessional sides.
- Showing people the true effect that it can have on the sufferer and the people that surround them.
- Showing both facts and emotions from the sufferers and the people around them showing the effects that it can cause and the struggle some face to communicate.
The brief outline for the production
- Documentary / educational.
- All ages of both sexes.
- The aim of the documentary is to inform and educate the audience of the effects and truth behind mental illness. This will be done a way which is both dignified and truthful but not cold hard facts as this hides the people coping with them. Interactive and observational documentary will be the form. We will be filming within college with Lisa and Oz Osborn who are college support for students and also a suffer of mental health and her boyfriend. The crew will be made up of me and poppy I will do the majority of filming and we will joint edit and production.
Sample interview questions we may use
1) Why do you think there is a stigma surrounding mental health?
2) What do you think is the main problem is surrounding mental health?
3) Do you think there is enough support for people suffering from mental illnesses?
4) How does it affect the people who suffer from mental illnesses daily life?
5) Do people treat individuals with mental health illnesses differently to ‘normal’ people?
Equipment, props and costumes we may use
- Camera
- Tripod
- SD card
- Paper
- chair
Due to the facilities offered by the college we will not need a budget as we will not have to buy anything that we will require for our 3 minute wonder.
Pre production paperwork
1) Mental health
- Folding paper to reveal different disorders we will be talking about.
- Interviewing both sides of mental health.
- Showing people the true effect.
- Showing both facts and emotions.
2) Mental and physical health
- Folding paper to reveal different disorders we will be talking about.
- Interviewing both sides of physical and mental health.
- Showing people the true effect.
- Showing both facts and emotions.
3) Disabilities
- Folding paper to reveal different disorders we will be talking about.
- Interviewing both sides of disabilities.
- Showing people the true effect.
- Showing both facts and emotions.
Our favourite/chosen idea
Our chosen idea was mental health.
We have chosen this Idea we feel this would be the most accessible and most informative video to create for this project. We chose this idea as there is a massive stigma around mental health and most people aren't aware of the issues surrounding it.
- Folding paper to reveal different disorders we will be talking about.
- Interviewing both sides of mental health from the professional and unprofessional sides.
- Showing people the true effect that it can have on the sufferer and the people that surround them.
- Showing both facts and emotions from the sufferers and the people around them showing the effects that it can cause and the struggle some face to communicate.
The brief outline for the production
- Documentary / educational.
- All ages of both sexes.
- The aim of the documentary is to inform and educate the audience of the effects and truth behind mental illness. This will be done a way which is both dignified and truthful but not cold hard facts as this hides the people coping with them. Interactive and observational documentary will be the form. We will be filming within college with Lisa and Oz Osborn who are college support for students and also a suffer of mental health and her boyfriend. The crew will be made up of me and poppy I will do the majority of filming and we will joint edit and production.
Sample interview questions we may use
1) Why do you think there is a stigma surrounding mental health?
2) What do you think is the main problem is surrounding mental health?
3) Do you think there is enough support for people suffering from mental illnesses?
4) How does it affect the people who suffer from mental illnesses daily life?
5) Do people treat individuals with mental health illnesses differently to ‘normal’ people?
Equipment, props and costumes we may use
- Camera
- Tripod
- SD card
- Paper
- chair
Due to the facilities offered by the college we will not need a budget as we will not have to buy anything that we will require for our 3 minute wonder.
Pre production paperwork
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