Assignment - Viewing Figures For All Programs

Viewing Figures

Misfits

Misfits in broadcasted on Thursday nights at 10pm. There are many reasons why the program is shown at this time, one being because of the content within each episode. In every episode, strong and offensive languages is used. Sexual and violent scenes are also shown, therefore the program has been allocated a late broadcasting time.
another reason why the program has a 10 pm showing time is because if its target audience of 16 to 20 year olds. This target audience often stay up for longer hours, therefore making 10pm a prime viewing time for that age group.
Also, prime time viewing for niche programs, which Channel 4 and E4 specialise in, is around 9pm to 11pm.
On the first episode for Misfits series two, viewing figures totalled to 477, 000. However, the following episode, one week later, dropped to 356, 000.
There are many reasons why viewing figures may have dropped, one being due to the fact that there was originally a lot of hype and advertisement for the series two opening episode, to try and draw people in to watch the program. Advertisement would have then lowered after, therefore decreasing people interest in the program.
Another reason may be due to the clashing with other programs, which are on other channels. This will be due to the fact that 10pm is prime time for niche programs.
It could also be because of first time viewers watching the first episode and thinking it was not as good as they expected. As a result of this, they don’t continue watching the series.
Another reason may be because people chose to watch the program online or, that people simply forgot to watch the program. This would be due to the fact that it had less advertisement that the first opening episode did.
The final reason why the viewing figures may have lowered is because viewers may realise that is clashed with a different series, on another channel, which they are already engaged and midway through.

East Enders

EastEnders is broadcasted every Monday, Tuesday and Friday, with starting times ranging between 7.30pm to 8pm. The program is broadcasted at these times because it is a family friendly program.
it is also aired at this time is it at time when most family have just finished their evening meals and are all sitting down together and watch the television.
It is also a TV program, that if you miss one episode, you can always get the gist of the different stories in the next episodes. Therefore, making it a perfect program to watch as a family.
In the week of the 22/11/2010 to the 28/11/2010, the average viewing figures on the Mondays episode counted as 10.5 million viewers. On Tuesday the figures averaged at 9.8 million and on Friday there was an average of 8.7 million viewers.
One reason why there may be more viewers on a Monday, is because there is always a cliff hanger in the Friday before episode. This then draws a large audience in, as they are interested and want to know the outcome of a particular story.
Reasons why the viewing figures may decrease through the week is because viewers may forget and lose track of time, therefore missing the episode.
It may also be due to the fact that the program airs at primetime, therefore clashing with a large number of different programs.
When Den Watts served Angie divorce papers on the Christmas episode back in 1986, there were 30.15 million viewers. One reason why the viewing figures may be incredibly high is because when a major storylines come to a conclusion, there is also major increase in viewing figures.
In the episode where the character Pauline Fowler died, there were 10.7 million viewers. This high figure may be due to the fact that people who don’t normally watch the program, will have tuned in because she was such an important and well known character and that wanted to see her departure from the show.

Hollyoaks

Hollyoaks is on every Monday to Friday at 6.30pm. One reason for this is because this time slot is primetime television. It is also just after when many families had their evening means and are just sitting down and watching their first program of the evening.
It may also be aired at this time because of the programs target audience of young teenagers as it is a prime time slot for them, as they do not or aren’t allowed to stay up late to watch more risqué programmes such as Misfits.
In the program, then have young teenage character, the same age as their younger teenage target audience. As a result of this, they program is put on at a suitable time for their viewing.

In the episode, where the character Warren Fox supposedly died in a major fire, there were 1.4 million viewers. This large number of views would have been due to that it was a major storyline which was built up over several episodes, therefore many people, who may not normally watch the program on a regular basis, will have wanted to see the outcome of the story.
Normal typical viewing figures for Hollyoak are averagely 850, 000 viewers. However, in the months of November and December, the figures fluctuate to up to one million viewers.  this could be due to the fact in the months prior to November and December, young  teenagers are often not and home and are out with friends. In the November and December months, the weather changes and gets colder, therefore more younger teenagers stay in and watch television, thus increasing the programs viewing figures.
In 2004, Hollyoaks had Channel  4’s highest viewing figure program. However it has obviously fallen out of fashion and been taken over by programs such as ‘Come Dine With Me’. This could be because more adults like to watch ‘Come Dine With Me’ and they are in control of the remote. Come Dine with me is now their top rated program. 
For the last 15 years, Hollyoaks has been known as the teenage soap.  They are moving from a teenage target audience to and adult target audience by making such programs as ‘Hollyoaks Extra’ which has much more risqué content and is broadcast late at night.  This is due to the fact that its viewing figures are dropping and it long dedicated viewers are getting older and wanting to see more adult themed content. 
‘Holllyoaks Later’ was a broadcast trial to see if a later audience would have more viewing figures than a teenage audience at 6 o’clock.

Lie to Me

‘Lie To Me’ is broadcasted on channel Sky One at 10pm, a prime time slot for Sky. One reason why it is air at this time will be because of its target audience. Older target audiences often tend to stay up for more hours, making 10pm a perfect broadcasting time for them.
The program will also be aired at this time because of the content and themes shown throughout it. Having adult content such as strong language and violent and sexual scenes are not suitable for younger children, therefore the program is put on late as night as most young children will be in bed.   
It may also be aired at this time as the content is not satiable for younger viewers, not because of its adult themes, but because it may have stories which and hard for them then understand, therefore making in uninteresting and not entertaining for them.
On the 14^th of November 2010, the viewing figures for ‘Lie To Me’ reached 586,000 viewers. This was a decrease in number, as in the previous week, the program had 615,000 views. One reason why here may have been a decrease in numbers is because of amount of advertisement for the program.
Another reason why there may have been a decrease in viewing figures is because 10pm is such a popular time slot to have niche programmes broadcasted. Therefore, it may have clashed with other popular programs, or with other series which people are already engaged in and do not want to miss them.
It may also be due to the fact that the viewers may have found the program to not be as entertaining as they believed it to have been, hence not watching the next episode the following week. 

Assignment - Target Audience for Hollyoaks

Assignment - Target Audience for EastEnders

Assignment - Target Audience for Lie To Me

Assignment - Target Audience for Misfits

Assignment - EastEnders Poster

Assignment - Lie To Me Poster

Assignment - MISFITS Poster

Assignment - Hollyoaks Poster

Assignment - 4 Different TV Programs

My Four Different Television Programs

Misfits

Misfits is a UK teenage drama series about a group of 5 young offenders, who are all doing community service. On their first day of their community service, they are caught in an electric storm, and all develop paranormal powers such as, time travel, mind reading, immortality, etc. The show then follows them on their journey and struggles of handling their new powers. The appeal of this program to me is that it is entertaining and helps with escapism, as it has realistic as well as unrealistic elements within it, such as typical teenage life but also mystical powers. There are 5 main characters in the program, who all portray different types of emotions/lifestyles/stereotypes. They cover, party life, shy and loneliness, comedian, chav and average teen. By having all of these, it makes the program more appealing to me as it helps me to relate to the characters on a more intimate level, as there are many different elements which I can empathize with. The program shows many different relationships, from sexual to love to parental. This is appealing to me as it shows how different types of relationships develop and how different types of people may handle them. Another reason why I have chosen this program is be cause of its comical element. The program has many comical moment and characters, which make the program more fun and entertaining to watch.
I have also chosen this program as almost all of the characters in the program are of the same, or near, age of myself. This makes it easy for me to connect with the different characters and makes the program more appealing to me.

Lie To Me

In comparison to this, Lie To Me is a US drama/crime series, about a corporation called The Lightman Group. The group specialise in reading peoples facial actions and body language; for the FBI and private clients; to find out if people are being truthful or lying. I have chosen this program as it covers 2 or more cases in each episode, making it interesting and more intriguing.
Another reason I have chosen this program is for its unusual and individual character. There is a very wide age range of characters in this program, making it feel more realistic and lifelike.
One other element that made me chose this program is because of its main character caller Dr. Cal Lightman. This character is very eccentric and laid-back, with a very sarcastic and abrupt approach to things, thus making him a very amusing and likable character.
I have also chosen this program because it is a fictional program yet it has very intelligent and logical content. This makes the program seem more realistic and also become more entertaining to watch.
Another reason I have chosen this program is because of its use of real life footage of famous people in different situations. In the program, when characters are talking about different facial expressions and their meanings, real life footage of famous people like, presidents, singers, famous criminals, etc. doing the same or similar expressions are shown. This element of the program makes it more exciting and captivating.

EastEnders

EastEnders is a long running British soap opera. It is about life for many different types of families and people, who live in the East End of London.
I have chosen this program as it is hugely popular and diverse. This makes it more interesting and entertaining for me to watch.
Another reason I have chosen this program is because in its use on long running story lines. In the program many story lines often run for a number of weeks at a time. This helps to keep me interested and engaged in the program.
Another reason I have chosen to cover this program is because of the number of different stories going on in each individual episode. In each episode, there this over 4 different stories going on at once. I think this is good as it has a range of different subjects and lets me focus on more than one story at a time.
I have also chosen this program because of its unique and entertaining characters. Each character in the program has its own personality, making it seem more real and life like.
Another reason for choosing this program is because of the many different cultures within the program. I enjoy seeing how different cultures live and it gives me an insight on how they think and feel about different topics.
The final reason I have picked to cover this particular program is because of the many different social classes which are in the program. By having many different social classes ranging from upper to lower classes, it allows me to see how different people live and cope with the economy.

Hollyoaks

In comparison to EastEnders, Hollyoaks is also a soap opera; however, it is more for a teenage audience. A lot like EastEnders, Hollyoaks is about how different families and people live but in a small fictional village in Chester.
I have chosen to cover this program for many different reasons. One reason is because of the story lines used in the program. All the stories are very normal and life like. However, they also have exaggerated and unrealistic elements to them. This help to make the stories more fun and exciting to watch.
Another reason I have chosen this program is because of the amount of different, on running, stories played in each individual episode. This helps to make the program more interesting and keep me more engaged in what is going on.
I have also chosen this program as it is targeted towards teenagers. The program has mostly young and attractive actors and actresses in. This makes the program more appealing to me as I am able to relate and emphasize with the characters better.
Another reason I have chosen to cover this program is because it is set in a small village. By having it set here, it gives a better understanding what life is like living in a small community.
The last reason for why I have chosen this program is because of the way in which it shows what university life is like. The program shows what life is like for a group of young adults living in ‘halls’ and studying at university. This interests and excites me as it gives me an insight for what life may be like for me when I move away and go to university myself.

2 storys from different views

Barbaric Ban on Toy Pigs

A ridicules ban on a toy pig creates uproar in Brittan.

On the 16th November, a British store kicked out the harmless plastic toy from a small kid’s farm set in case it may anger and upset Jewish and Muslim people, as pigs are seen as dirty and wrong.

An outraged mother was extremely shocked when she found, or should we say, not found a toy pig in a Childs farm set and phoned The Early Learning Centre to get an explanation. The store said that the innocent little top had been wiped out of the set because of complaints made by Jewish and Muslim parent.

After the mother brought home the set for her little girls first birthday, her daughter was deeply distraught when there was no little piggy in the farm set and just a button that squealed when pressed left behind.

Fuming mother complained to the ELC’s customer services and was very frustrated when she got an email from the company saying that the toy had been abolished because it was offensive and insulting to Jews and Muslims because they think pigs and filthy and immoral creatures.

The email the mother got from the ELC said, ‘...due to customer feedback and religious reasons this (the toy) is no longer part of the farm.’

The outraged mum rightly argued that the shop was over reacting and talking nonsense. ‘This is political correctness gone loopy. Surely if someone has an issue with a toy, they don't buy it.’

This ludicrous ban spread rapidly and a huge amount of other mums and dad; even Jewish and Muslims!; were also furious with the claim that the ELC was using and thought it was out of order.

Fellow Muslim mums said, ‘Im Muslim and it doesn't bother me. It's just another animal. What are the store going to do next? Ban the Peppa Pig cartoon? Stop selling books with pigs in? This is a multi-cultural country.’

Yet another Muslim mum said, ‘Removing pigs from farm sets is like introducing 'Baa Baa White Sheep' and calling Christmas 'The Winter Holiday.' Please let common sense prevail.’

Alec Suttenwood; the chairman of the Anti-Political Correctness group; gave major criticism to the ELC, calling the ban ‘ridiculous’ and saying that ‘Pigs are kept on farms - it is a fact of life.’,

After much blast from the British public, The Early Learning Centre later admitted making a muck up of the situation and decided to lift the loopy ban and set free the piglets back into their farm sets.

A spokeswoman for the ELC then said, ‘The decision to remove the pig was taken in reaction to customer feedback in some parts of the world. We recognise that pigs are familiar farm animals - especially for our UK customers. We have taken the decision to reinstate the pig and to no longer sell the set in international markets where it might create an issue.’








Toy Pig Ban

A ban on the sale of a toy pig brings commotion among British public.

On Tuesday the 16th of November, a store removed the Childs toy from sales due to possible offence to Muslim and Jewish parents and children, because the animal is seen as unclear in their eyes.

A mother was startled to not find a toy pig in Childs toy farm set and telephoned store, The Early Learning Centre, to find that the toy had been taken off the market, due to religious reasons.

When a mother brought the set for her daughter, aged one, and found an empty space and a button that made the sound of a pig when it was pressed.

After writing to the Early Learning Centres’ customer services, she received an email in reply that stated the toy was taken out of the set, as it could have offered people with Jewish and/or Muslim beliefs because the pig is seen as a unclean animal.

The email read, ‘Previously the pig was part of the Farm. However due to customer feedback and religious reasons this is no longer part of the farm.’

The mother argued that the store was over reacting and, ‘Surely if someone has an issue with a toy, they don't buy it.’

When news spread of this ban, many mothers and fathers, of all religious beliefs, agreed that the ban was not needed. With fellow Muslim mothers stating, ‘If you don't want your kid playing with a pig toy, simply throw it in the bin. Other kids should not have to suffer.’ and, ‘I'm Muslim and it doesn't bother me. It's just another animal.’

After criticism from Alec Suttenwood, the chairman of the Anti-Political Correctness group, saying the ban was ‘ridiculous’ and that ‘Pigs are kept on farms - it is a fact of life.’, the Early Learning Centre decided to append the ban and return the toy pig back in its stores.

A spokeswoman for The Early Learning Center then released a statement saying, ‘We recognise that pigs are familiar farm animals - especially for our UK customers. We have taken the decision to reinstate the pig and to no longer sell the set in international markets where it might create an issue.’

Analyzing A Bias Story

Analyzing A Bias Story

On Thursday the 11th of November the tabloid newspaper, The Sun, published a story about Josef Fritzl, and how he planned to kill his family in an acid bath. The story is extremely bias towards the victims of Fritzl. The article used many different ways in which it is bias such as its use of capital letter. On the online description of the story the words, ‘SICKO’ and ‘ACID BATH’ are in capitals. This is done to catch the attention of the readers and to influence them emotionally. Having the word, ‘SICKO’ in upper case help to get a bad and horrible and disgraceful image across to the readers. Having the words, “ACID BATH’, is in capitals is it makes it seem more shocking, extreme and outrageous.

After clicking on to the link to read the whole story, the headline reads, ‘Fritzle’s plot to hide horrific crimes’. Using the word ‘horrific’ to describe the crimes Fritzle was planning to commit is very influential on the readers.

The buy-line which is in bold is also very bias reading, ‘SICK Josef Fritzl planned to kill the family he held in a cell as in an ACID BATH to hide his crimes’. Again, they try to influence the readers by putting certain words in upper case. They also use emotive words like, ‘kill’ and ‘crimes’. By using there words, it influences the readers to dislike and hate Fritzl.

The story first describes Fritzl as a, ‘…depraved dad…’. This presents Fritzl as perverted and immoral. This will deeply influence the readers, as it is the first line they read, therefore making the first impression.

The newspaper then describes his plans as an, ‘…evil scheme…’. By using these words, it makes the reader feel hatred and bitterness towards Mr. Fritzle.

Throughout the story; which mainly consists of quotes; strong emotive language is used. For example, ‘…chilling confession…horrors he inflicted… incest kids…’. These words and phrases can be seen as being bias as they strongly influences the reader into disliking Fritzl.

Another way in which this story is bias is the dramatic statistics it uses with in its story. The article reads, ‘Fritzl, 75, raped his daughter Elisabeth up to 3,000 times in 24 years…’. This statistic is very precise and high, and will shock and astonish the readers.

Yet another way the newspaper is bias towards the victum is the caption used below a photo of Fritzl. The caption says, ‘Evil…Josef Fritzl during his trial’. By using the word ‘Evil’ to describe Fritzl makes the readers feel disgust and spite towards Fritzl.

tabloid and broadsheet

There are two types of newspapers, one is a tabloid and the other is a broadsheet and there are many differences between both types of newspapers.
A Tabloid paper is generally small newspaper, where as on the other hand, a broadsheet uses a much larger type of format.

An example of a tabloid newspaper is 'The Sun' and an example of a broadsheet newspaper is 'The Times'.

There are many differences between these type of newspapers, one being the difference of tone and voice each newspaper uses. The difference can be shown within the recent story about the student riots in London. Within the tabloid newspaper (The Sun) the voice is very raw and common, using very demanding and emotive tones. Whereas in the broadsheet newspaper (The independent) it has a more sophisticated and clinical tones, creating a more trustworthy and formal sounding voice.

In the Sun Newspaper, throughout the whole story there are seven images in total. Whereas in The Independent there is only one in the whole story. This is because of the target audience that each newspaper appeals to. The Sun's target audience is for more working class citizens, who enjoy seeing more pictures than reading text. This would be due to their educational background and their general upbringing. The target audience for The independent is more for the middle class people, who enjoy a more informative and factual article. They also enjoy having more text than images.

Another difference within the usage of images, is the captions given to them. In The independent, the caption given to its only image reads, “A demonstrator kicks in window at Millbank Tower as students and lecturers protest again university funding cuts”. This caption is unbiased and very informative, letting the reader know the story behind the image. In The Sun, one caption given to its many images reads, “Mad Hatter.... Yob in police cap hurls chair at window in Millbank Tower”. This caption uses strong emotive words and biased language. Its usage of the words 'mad hatter','yob' and 'hurls', help to influence the reader in believing that all students are yobs and trouble makers. In contrast to this, instead of using the word 'yob', The independent uses the words like 'demonstrator' and 'kicks'. By using these words, it has no influence on the readers opinion and thoughts. The Sun also uses more graphic and violent images, whereas The independent uses more subdued and less shocking images.

Within a stories biased opinion, The Sun steers more towards being against students, describing them as yobs and giving them a bad image. On the other hand, The Independent comes across as neutral on the subject.

Another way in which broadsheets and tabloids differ, are the headlines and buy lines used. In The Independent, the headline reads “The New Politics... Student Riot Marks End Of Coalition's Era Of Consequence”. This headline uses non-emotive language and is not biased towards any partys. On the other hand, The Sun uses the headline “Student Demo Thugs Tory HQ Riot”. This headline is very biased and uses forceful language to help influence the readers view.

The Independent uses a very factual and informative buy line which reads, “Tory HQ wrecked in worst street violence since 1990 poll tax riots”. On the other hand, The Sun 's buy line is very opinion based with very little facts; “A Police chief admits last night that he was caught off guard by the mayhem that erupted after thugs hijacked a demo of 50,000 students”

Another big difference between the two newspapers is the textual structure of the article. The Independent uses lengthy paragraphs, whereas The Sun uses many short, two line sentences.

The main difference between a broadsheet and a tabloid newspaper is the language used within them. In The Sun, it uses short and emotive words for example: “mayhem”, “slammed”, “destruction” and “stick wielding”. By using these sorts of words, the newspapers opinion is forced upon its readers, in a very strong and forceful way. On the other hand, The Independent uses more educated and informative diction such as: “demonstrators”, “perpetrators” and “confrontational”. By using these words, the newspaper becomes unbiased and seems more formal in its reporting.

In conclusion, a tabloid newspaper is very opinionated and uses strong emotive language. It focuses on celebrity stories and tries to catch people out, by portraying them in a bad light. They often leave parts of the story, information, facts and quotes out on purpose, to create their own stance on the story. They often only get involved in politics if they want something to be changed, or if there is a scandal in which they can gossip about. The stories are often short with little information, They also use many big images and racial slander in their articles.
On the other hand. A broadsheet chooses to cover more political stories and uses more educated language. They often have more information and use statistics in their articles. They are also mainly unbiased and try not to be opinionated with their word choice.

­­Research into a news report from the 1950’s and comparing it to one from the twenty-first centaury.

Research into a news report from the 1950’s and comparing it to one from the twenty-first centaury.

TV news reports have changed dramatically since the 1950’s. After studying a report from the BBC in February 1958. This report starts off will a short introduction. In this short introduction, it uses a very simple text animation and has music playing in the background. The animation has text in a circle, which moves around in a circle, and then text appears and fades in beneath the circle. The introduction also includes music. The music is very loud and consists of many different instruments. The music track only lasts for the duration of the introduction. In comparison to this, a BBC news at six report on the 23rd of February 2010 also has an introduction but it runs for a much longer duration. In this introduction it includes real life footage and special effects as well as a backing track. The live footage used within the introduction consists of video footage of news reporters going their job in many different locations as well as fast moving footage of vehicles. The introduction also uses animation in two different ways. The first being a light blast over the top of some live footage and other is a short animation of the BBC logo. The animation is very technical and colourful. The backing music used in the introduction is very long in duration and would have been made through technology (on a computer). Comparing these two reports together there is a huge difference. One main different is that the 1958 report is in black and white whereas the 2010 one it is colour. This is because technology has developed over time, allowing broadcasting to be in colour. Another main difference is the content of the introduction. In the 1958 report it only uses a very short text animation where as in the 2010 report is used both real life footage and special effects. This is mainly due to technology but may also be because people in the twenty-first century expect a lot more in a television broadcast. The final difference in the two introductions is the music used. In the 2010 is very techno based where as in the 1958 introduction is made up of real instruments. Another difference is the length of the tracks. In the 1958 report the music track is very short and only lasts for the duration of the introduction. However in the 2010 report the music track runs on into the introduction of the main headlines read by the news reporter.

In both of the reports, they both start with in introduction to the main headlines. However, in the 2010 report video clips of the particular headline are played, but in the 1958 report it is simply just the news reporter reading the headlines.
The set layouts in both reports are very different from each other. In the report from 1958 there is a simple and small layout with the newsreader at a desk and only an image of the county when talking about the weather. In contrast to this, the 2010 report has a large set with many TV screens. The reporter is also not at a desk and is standing up.

In both reports the newsreaders both have paper in their hand and are both dressed quite formally. However in the 1958 report the newsreader is a male who is fully dressed in a formal suite and looks very smart. In the 2010, the news reporter is a female and although is slightly less formally dressed as she is wearing a shirt and a skirt. Although her clothes are still formal, they give her a slightly casual feel.

Another major difference in the two news reports it the language and tone of voice used by the newsreaders. In the 1958 report the newsreader used very formal language. He also uses a high class and well-pronounced tone of voice, with no accent. In the 2010 news report the newsreader still uses formal language, however, her tone of voice has a slight accent and more relaxed tone of voice.

Another different between the two reports is the number of reporters. In the 1958 report there is only one reported in the studio. In the 2010 there is only one reporter in the studio however, there are additional reporter off site who cover more in-depth stories about particular subjects.

In the 2010 news report, the images and video clips are very clear and easy to see but the 1958 report the images and video clips are very un-tidy, unclear and are a bad quality image. The images and video clips show in the 2010 report are a more graphic and sensitive.