15) Public service broadcasting

 Ofcom review of PSB in Britain

In 2020 Ofcom published its findings from a five year review of public service broadcasting in Britain. Read the introduction to their report - pages 3-7. 

1) Look at page 3. Why is it a critical time for public service broadcasting?

Now is a crucial time for PSB as audience viewing habits are rapidly changing and there's been a huge increase in competition from global content providers such as Netflix and Disney.

2) How has TV viewing changed in recent years?

TV viewing has changed in recent years due to the rise in online on demand streaming services which allow viewers to watch content at a time that suits them best which is much more practical than TV which only shows shows at certain times. 

3) What aspects of PSB do audiences value and enjoy?

Audiences value and enjoy the trustworthy news and programmes that show different aspects of UK life/culture.

4) Find and note down the statistics in this section on how much TV audiences tend to watch and how they watch it.

PSB's provide 32,000 hours of new UK content which outweighs commercial broadcasters.
Between 2014 and 2018, net advertising revenue for the advertising-funded PSB channels has fallen by an average rate of 3.8% per year, equivalent to approximately £325m. In the same period, the BBC’s revenues from the licence fee have fallen by an average of 4% each year.Arts, religion, children’s and formal education programmes on the PSB channels continued to be relatively low over the review period. In 2014, there were 1,234 hours of these genres, falling to 1,148 in 2018.

5) Read the section on page 5 discussing the importance of PSB. Again, find the statistics and explain the value of public service broadcasting in Britain.

6) Look at the section on commercial challenges. How have revenues fallen for PSB channels?

There was a loss of revenue from advertising by 3.8%/year from 2014-2018 and in this Time there was also a decrease in revenue from license fees by 4%/year.

7) Read page 6. What services increasingly play a role in our media lives in the digital age?

Commercial broadcasters and on demand streaming services as they make it easier to watch media products and give us more freedom (time and choice of what we consume).

Goldsmiths report on Public Service TV

1) What does the report state has changed in the UK television market in the last 20 years?

In the last 20 years we've seen the development of new technology which has created competition for PSB and caused a decline in the consumption of public service media however it still takes up 71.9% of the TV consumed.

2) Look at page 4. What are the principles that the report suggests need to be embedded in regulation of public service broadcasting in future?

PSB channels should be guaranteed promotion ahead of all other programmes and should be promoted/accessible on the on demand streaming services which have risen to popularity.

Pay-TV platforms should pay PSB channels to show their content as they don't currently value their content enough.

Ofcom should do quality surveys of public service content to ensure its quality is of the correct standard.

Ofcom should monitor the independent media sector to prevent diversity being affected.

3) What does the report say about the BBC?

The BBC is the most important part of the television ecology but it is struggling due to new competitors and an outdated license fee funding model.

4) According to the report, how should the BBC be funded in future?

It says that it could be funded through taxes or a fee that changes based on the income of the household to make it accessible.

5) What does the report say about Channel 4?

Channel 4 is important as it creates content for a diverse audience however it doesn't produce enough for older children which has lead to criticism. It has also had to cut programme spending due to being threatened by competitors and privatisation.

6) How should Channel 4 operate in future?

Shouldn't be privatised, should increase content aimed at young adult and older children, should continue to innovate and experiment.

7) Look at page 10 - new kids on the block. What does the report say about new digital content providers and their link to public service broadcasting?

New digital content providers are increasingly producing content with PSB like qualities. It says that grants should be provided for those creating content which meets public service content objectives (educate, inform,entertain).

14)The Cultural Industries

 1) What does the term 'Cultural Industries' actually refer to?

The term refers to the production/distribution of  cultural/artistic products such as film and music.

2) What does Hesmondhalgh identify regarding the societies in which the cultural industries are highly profitable?

They're all competing for access to the same things which are limited making it a highly competitive industry. They compete for: 

• A limited pool of disposable consumer income
• A limited pool of advertising revenue
• A limited amount of consumption time
• Skilled creative and technical labour

3) Why do some media products offer ideologies that challenge capitalism or inequalities in society?

Media producers need to try and be different to their competitors and to do this they will sometimes challenge and go against social norms to shock the audience or bring in a new audience.

4) Look at page 2 of the factsheet. What are the problems that Hesmondhalgh identifies with regards to the cultural industries?

Risky business

Creativity versus commerce

High production costs and low reproduction costs Semi-public goods; the need to create scarcity

5) Why are so many cultural industries a 'risky business' for the companies involved?

There is never a guarantee that a product will be successful as every media product must be somewhat different to others so even though there’s a template to minimise risk in some situations, it’s still a big risk.

6) What is your opinion on the creativity v commerce debate? Should the media be all about profit or are media products a form of artistic expression that play an important role in society?

I believe that media should be about art and be used to express people’s feelings about society. However, media products can be very expensive to produce. This means that there still has to be some way for them to make money so i understand why producers look to make media products that appeal to the masses and follow social norms.

7) How do cultural industry companies minimise their risks and maximise their profits? (Clue: your work on Industries - Ownership and control will help here) 

Companies do this through vertical and horizontal integration. Horizontal integration is when one company buys other companies to reduce competition and therefore reduce risk and Vertical integration is when the company owns the stages of production which helps maximise profits by reducing production costs.

8) Do you agree that the way the cultural industries operate reflects the inequalities and injustices of wider society? Should the content creators, the creative minds behind media products, be better rewarded for their work?

I believe that the way the cultural industries operate do reflect the issues of wider society as in the cultural industries we’ve seen multiple times where a female actress is paid less than a male actor, and this is despite her being a more popular/more professional actor. This reflects how in life more qualified women are being paid less than less qualified men just because of their gender. I also believe that the creators of media products deserve more as their work is undervalued despite the hard work put into their ideas. However, i do see why the investors are paid more as they’re the ones taking on the risk of funding these media projects and if the project failed they would also face a bigger loss so it makes sense for them to make a bigger profit when a product succeeds.  

9) Listen and read the transcript to the opening 9 minutes of the Freakonomics podcast - No Hollywood Ending for the Visual-Effects Industry. Why has the visual effects industry suffered despite the huge budgets for most Hollywood movies?

The visual effects industry has struggled/suffered due to increase in competition, outsourcing, costs and the unfair sharing of profits from media products which means they get a much smaller cut.

10) What is commodification? 

When a good is turned into something that can be sold

11) Do you agree with the argument that while there are a huge number of media texts created, they fail to reflect the diversity of people or opinion in wider society?

I somewhat agree, i believe media producers are so focused on making a profit that they’re too afraid to diversify and this leads to less voices being heard while simultaneously decreasing confidence in others and making them less likely to create their own different products in fear of not succeeding like the rest of the media. However, some independent producers do manage to provide different ideas but this is quite rare as these products don’t usually generate large profits which deters others from trying. 

12) How does Hesmondhalgh suggest the cultural industries have changed? Identify the three most significant developments and explain why you think they are the most important.

Digitalisation- Media products can now be accessed and produced from our phones which means that more people can create media products which has increased diversity 

Cultural Industries becoming an oligopoly- The ownership of the media is now highly concentrated which means that a few companies now control most of what we consume. This could be very dangerous if these companies decide to collude as they could cause major price increases and less innovation as they no longer need to compete with each other. 

Globalisation - Media is now accessible all over the world which means products now have a much larger potential audience which could increase the likeliness of the product succeeding.

13)Industries: Ownership and control

 Media conglomerate research

1) Research notes from the lesson - what did you find out about your allocated media conglomerate? Company: Viacom

Conglomerate ownership- Nickelodeon,CBS,MTV,Comedy central,Paramount network

Vertical integration- Film studios(paramount pictures), animation division (paramount animation) and distribution (paramount network) 

Convergence- shows added to paramount+ app can now be viewed from one device

Diversification- streaming services(paramount+ and Pluto TV), books(Simon and Schuster)

Cross media regulation-they got in trouble for copyright striking thousands of you tube videos that didn't have licenses for their products

2) Do you agree that governments should prevent media conglomerates from becoming too dominant? Write an argument that looks at both sides of this debate.

Even though I do believe companies should be able to make their own decisions without government intervention I think that media conglomerates should be regulated in some way as if one company monopolises the media industry they'll have a much larger influence on peoples thoughts/feelings and this might lead to scandals in the future.

Media Magazine reading and questions

1) Briefly describe the production, promotion and distribution process for media companies.

The production process focuses on creating media products that meet audiences expectations/desires to provide gratification.Then the promotion process is where they identify a target audience and use marketing strategies to advertise the media product to possible paying viewers. Finally, in the distribution process uses the most appropriate method to make it easy for the audience to access the good.

2) What are the different funding models for media institutions?

One example of funding is revenue from advertising, some media companies such as ones in TV will charge companies a fee to advertise their product in their media (e.g between TV shows).

Subscriptions - Some companies use a subscription based model where they charge users a monthly/yearly fee to access their products (usually seen in streaming services and newspapers/magazines)

Sponsorship- Companies will often fund media projects in exchange for the product providing the company with brand visibility  (e.g. in sports: football teams are sponsored by companies and will wear the company logo on their kit and have it around the stadium) 

Government funding- some institutions such as the BBC are given funding by the government to produce their media products.

Crowdfunding- producers raise money from the public (independent media producers are likely to use this as they don't work for a big company with a lot of funding)

Pay per view- audiences pay each time they use/watch a product (e.g. buying/renting a movie)

Licensing- companies license their products to other institutions who pay to distribute that media on their own platform (e.g. TV shows will license episodes to streaming services such as Netflix)

Product sales/merchandising- some media companies sell products related to their media such as books/merchandise and hardware (e.g. Sony sells play stations that consumers buy to play their medi product on and amazon sell the amazon fire stick which allows consumes to have access to their media product.) 

3) The article gives a lot of examples of major media brands and companies. Choose three examples from the article and summarise what the writer is saying about each of them. 

BBC- use licensing,subscription and product sales/ merchandising

ITV - licensing and advertising

TheMailOnline- advertising and sponsorship

4) What examples are provided of the new business models media companies have had to adopt due to changes in technology and distribution?

Cinema- feared losing its consumers due to new TV so they invented 3d movies and 4d movies where electric shocks could be given to the audience through their seat.

1980s - VHS invented which meant cinemas were losing customers due to them being able to view at home so they created multiple cinemas that allowed consumers to have more choice

Music industry - companies feared that people would no longer buy CDs due to being able to download music from the internet so they sued Napster for allowing this and after this used new marketing techniques to sell people songs they already had but in different forms.

Spotify -used ads to fund free music service but also provided subscription based service that allowed customers to listen freely without ads

5) Re-read the section on 'The Future'. What examples are discussed of technology companies becoming major media institutions?

Google - purchased YouTube and massively improved the way we consume music and moving image media

Facebook - purchased the oculus rift technology which allows consumers to access media in virtual reality 

Amazon,Netflix and Yahoo- Produce and distribute their own media such as films and tv shows

6) Do you agree with the view that traditional media institutions are struggling to survive?

I somewhat agree as i believe through convergence we now have access to the majority of media in just one device which means we no longer need more traditional forms of media such as print and CD's and therefore companies that are focuses on these forms of media are likely to be losing money and eventually having to close (e.g. movie rental shops such as blockbuster which was forced to shut own its many chains due to advancements in technology that meant people no longer needed to physically rent/ buy movies)

7) How might diversification or vertical integration help companies to survive and thrive in a rapidly changing media landscape? 

Companies can use diversification to help them survive in the constantly changing media landscape where they need to constantly adapt to new technology/forms of media as they can use their current experience to expand to more modern forms of media, therefore preventing them from specialising in only one sector which could one day no longer be needed and then their entire company would fail. 

8) How do YOU see the relationship between audience and institution in the future? Will audiences gain increasing power or will the major global media conglomerates maintain their control?

I believe that because of new technology and social media, audiences will one day be equally as if not more powerful than media conglomerates as they're given the opportunity to produce their own content and upload it online freely. They also have easy access to their smartphone cameras which are improving massively in quality which allows them to produce high quality movie-style content.

12)Audience theory 2 - blog tasks

 1) Social learning theory has been criticised for simplifying the causes of violence in society. Do you think the media is responsible for anti-social behaviour and violence?

I believe that the media has a small impact on peoples behaviours and the violence we see in society however I don't think the media should take the full blame as I believe people are already naturally violent and the media doesn't amplify this as much as we think because violence can be found in many other places which makes it unfair to put the entire blame on media.

2) How is social learning theory relevant in the digital age? Are young people now learning behaviour from social media and the internet? Give examples.

I believe it's highly relevant and possibly even more relevant now than ever as people have easier access to social media all over the world. I also believe that young people are now learning a lot o their behaviour from social media as they spend more time than ever looking at videos on Instagram/TikTok where they see how famous people act and they want to recreate this in hopes that it will make them more popular. One example of this is the popular streamer 'Speed' who's known for having strange outbursts and behaving antisocially in public which has lead to a large amount of young people trying to replicate this by following his behaviour and acting like him in public.

3) Research three examples of moral panic from the last 50 years. To what extent was the media responsible for these moral panics? Was the concern in society justified? How have things changed as a result of these moral panics?

1.In 1983, Neil Postman wrote a book titled The Disappearance of Childhood (Postman, 1983). In this book, Postman argued that children are becoming adults too fast. Primarily, he put blame on visual media such as television which give children access to adult knowledge before they could even read.

4) Read this introduction to an academic paper on technopanics. What examples are given of technopanics that create fear in society?

5) Do you think the internet should be regulated? Should the government try and control what we can access online?

I don't believe the government should be able to control everything we see online however I do believe there need to be more rules put in place about what can be posted online and these rules should be enforced more and taken more seriously as people on the internet believe that they have the power to stay anonymous and say what ever they want without consequence so they say/upload misinformation or hateful things which ruin other peoples experiences using the internet.

6) Apply Gerbner's cultivation theory to new and digital media. Is the internet creating a fearful population? Are we becoming desensitised to online threats, trolling and abuse? Is heavy internet use something we should be worried about in society? Write a paragraph discussing these ideas.

I believe Gerbner's cultivation theory can be applied to modern technology and it could even be more impactful than television. I believe we see so much violence online and social media/the news focus so much on the negative things which makes people think that the world is so much worse than it actually is. In London, people spend all day looking at all the news about knife crime and robberies which makes them so afraid that they don't want to go out and tourists are deterred due to the fear of being a victim of said crime. However, London isn't actually as bad as the media makes it seem to be, if you go out you'll see that the crime isn't as frequent and major as they make it out to be.

I also believe that heavy media usage is definitely something to worry about as people see so much negativity online that it ruins their outlook on life and makes them think that life is a terrible thing as they see all these terrifying and depressing things online. At the same time they might start to think that the people they meet online is the same way people act out in the real world and as there's so much bullying online this makes people afraid of human interaction in fear of being met with the same people they see online who are extremely rude and say terrible things.

The effects debate: Media Factsheet

1) Complete the questions in the first activity box (beginning with 'Do you play violent games? Are you violent in real life?')

A. Do you play violent video games and/or watch violent films? Are you violent in ‘real life’?

I've played and watched "Violent video games and films" however I don't believe they've made me violent in my own life.

B. Do you ever see a product advertised on TV or on the internet and decide you want to buy it?

I usually see things I want to buy on social media rather than TV.

C. Have you ever seen a documentary which has drawn your attention to an issue which you now feel strongly about?

I don't believe any documentary I've watched has lead to a long term change in feeling but in the moment when I'm watching them I do think they have an impact on my thoughts/feelings

2) What are the four categories for different effects theories?

Direct effect theories,Diffusion theories,Indirect effect theories,The Pluralist approach

3) What are the examples provided for the hypodermic needle theory - where media texts have been blamed for certain events? 

Child's Play - The murder of Jamie Bulger
Marilyn Manson - The Columbine High School shootings
Natural Born Killers - a number of murders committed by romantically linked couples.

4) What was the 1999 Columbine massacre? You may need to research this online in addition to the information on the factsheet.

The Columbine Massacre occurred on April 20th 1999 at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado. Two students, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, carried out an attack on their school. Armed with firearms and explosives, they killed 12 students and one teacher, wounding over 20 others before taking their own lives. The attack sparked widespread debates about gun control and the influence of violent media.

5) What are the reasons listed on the factsheet to possibly explain the Columbine High School massacre?

The ease of access to firearms and the social

acceptance of gun ownership

The alienation felt by teenagers who felt as though they did not fit in
The hopelessness caused by living in an area where unemployment was high and was economically disadvantaged
The general desensitisation caused by access to a range of violent images: film, TV, the news, the internet

6) How does the factsheet describe Gerbner's Cultivation theory?

It says that Gerbner believes media has an effect on attitudes rather than ideas by teaching people how to behave through media. Media tells people what societal norms are and how they should behave.

7) What does the factsheet suggest about action films and the values and ideologies that are reinforced with regards to violence?

It suggests that action movies promote the idea of violence being okay if it’s for a good reason but if it’s for a “bad reason” it should be punished.

8) What criticisms of direct effect theories are suggested in the factsheet?

It criticises that the idea of direct effects theories suggest that audience are easily misled and aren’t able to think for themselves therefore just take in everything they see in the media. It also criticises how high art isn’t blamed for people’s actions whereas modern media is even though many of Shakespeare's plays contains heavy violence. 

9) Why might the 1970s sitcom Love Thy Neighbour be considered so controversial today? What does this tell us about Reception theory and how audiences create meanings?

10) What examples are provided for Hall's theory of preferred, negotiated and oppositional readings?