An Introduction to the News

 

An Introduction to the News:

Part 1: (using the broadcast you have watched)

Watch a broadcast and state which one you watched

-          School for tired teens: BBC News, 15^th November 2015.

What stories were covered and in what order were they shown?

-          This news broadcast basically outlines that many young pupils are not able to get up for classes that are early in the morning and how it affects their mental and physical well-being. It starts by explaining the difficulty in getting up before nine in the morning for pupils who struggle to get up early for college classes. A school has decided to make some changes for pupils.

What happens in the starting sequence and why do you think the visuals and audio have been used?

-          The starting sequence doesn’t include any audio, it includes a voice over from the narrator/news reporter explaining the situation to the audience. This has clearly been used to attract a younger audience. Many pupils would agree that getting up early in the morning for classes can be difficult when not having enough sleep.

Part 2: (using a story from the broadcast you have found)

What was this story about and what was the structure of the report (lead in, main content, final comments)?

-          My chosen broadcast was about a young girl who has struggled in the past with getting up early to attend her college/school classes, the news reporter interviews her mother. The girl described herself as grouchy/ moody when her mother would come into her room to wake her up early. She then begins to explain how the later starts for her classes have had a positive impact on her mental and physical well-being.

Who is involved in the broadcast?

-          The broadcast included the young girl called Cassie, her mother. Her classmates and the principal of the institution.

How are the people in the story represented?

-          The people in the broadcast are represented as the ordinary people who have been affected by or caught up in the crisis that the news is addressing to the millions of people watching. So, others watching can have a sense of relatability to the situation.

How did you feel about the people in the news story? And Why? Use the following terms relevant: accuracy, balance, impartiality, objectivity, subjectivity, opinion, bias, access and privacy.

-          I think that the people interviewed in the documentary were bias because they were currently going through the crisis that the news were addressing, so of course they would be bias to the idea of a school or college changing early classes to later classes because it has a negative impact on those people. In their own opinion they think that later classes for older pupils is much more suitable than early morning classes.

Was the news story narrativized? i.e. was there a construction of a narrative to help the audience follow the news event.

-          the broadcast was narrativized by a news reporter, it was shown as a voice over other than the reporter interviewing these people on screen. There is a narrative that the audience can follow so they understand specifically what is being addressed on screen. The narrator explains exactly to the audience what the events are about.

Part 3: (referring to the news broadcast I watched)

Who are the newsreaders/presenters in the broadcast you watched? (name, age, gender etc)

-          The newsreader of this broadcast is called Graham Satchell, who is male and was born on 17^th October 1969 in Jarrow, Tyne and Wear, England, UK. That would make him 52 years old.

How do newsreaders address the audience and why?

-          News readers usually address the audience by using specific layouts and presentations throughout the broadcast to attract the type of audience they want to attract. So, for this news broadcast, the news reader is trying to attract a young age group because the broadcast is mainly aimed at a younger audience.

What is the role of the newsreader/presenter in a news broadcast?

-          The role of the newsreader is to address the viewers of the events that have happened recently over the world or locally depending on whether its BBC News or East Anglian news. So, these people know what is happening in the world and can feel connected to the society they are in.

What skills are necessary for newsreaders/presenters?

-          As a newsreader, you need the necessary skills to be able to perform well on a news broadcast. A strong command of language and public speaking are essential. They should be confident in both verbal and written skills with an excellent knowledge on matters such as current situations which include political issues.

What is a field reporter and what do they do?

-          A field reporter informs the local, national and international public about events that are currently happening, they perform their jobs mostly in the field gathering information by conducting interviews and investigating stories.

Who else is involved in a broadcast and what do their roles entail?

-          There are the news reporters who are explaining the current situations and the people being interviewed of course, but the filming crew are also involved. You have the producer who oversees the making of the broadcast. They make sure that everything is running smoothly. You also have the camera men/women, who film and record the broadcast.

Part 4: News Ordering – ‘What makes the News’? (research)

What is meant by the term news ordering?

-          News readers tend to go through the most important and sad stories first. Most likely to address the viewers of those situations because they are important. They then address the not so important and happier stories to lighten the mood.

What is the term given to the list of stories that will likely appear on the broadcast?

-       The term for the list of stories on a broadcast is called the running order, which is the list of importance in relation to the hardness of the news.

Which story is likely to be shown first and how/why is it selected?

-      The first story that is shown on a broadcast is most likely to be the most dramatic and most important in the present time. For example, a news report about Covid-19 cases in a specific area in England will most likely be shown first compared to a news report about the weather forecast.

Why is the ability to think and act quickly important in news?

-          It is important because when an urgent event needs to be addressed to the people that are watching the broadcast the reporter needs to be able to act fast and read the script effectively and quickly.

What is meant by the term ‘slow news day’?

-          A slow news day happens when there are no urgent events to address on the news, nothing needs to be reported because it isn’t important enough for the viewers to see.

What is the final story often called and what is its function?

-          The ‘and finally’ refers to the last part in the news broadcast, this is where they lighten the atmosphere for the viewers to leave it on a positive note compared to how it was presented in the beginning.

What is meant by the term ‘news values’ and which G&R wrote about them?

-          The media researchers, Galtung and Ruge, put into context several factors that help stories make the headlines. These can be identified as news values.

What is actuality footage and stock footage and why are they used?

The purpose of actuality footage is footage from real events, places and things. it generally provides factual information and give the viewer a sense of realism as if the event happened in front of them live. stock footage, if piece of video content. a clip or shot which is normally shorter than one minute inserted in a larger video production and that was not shot specifically for said production. these clips can be outtakes from other projects or archive shots. 

-