britain through the eyes of media.docx

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Guiding teacher: Mirela Nasaudean

ATESTAT PAPER | Ciprian Berende

BRITISH

CULTURAL

STUDIES

BRITAIN THROUGH THE EYES OF MEDIA


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Foreword media as a tool of human interaction

Media...a complex, yet quite new concept standing at the very basis of human

societies as the main, and most probably single form of mass interaction andcommunication. It is the way human kind has enabled its race to make connections

between nations, cultures, concepts of all types or, at a lower level, to inter-connect

siblings that would otherwise be so individualised that a nation wouldnt have its own

identity ... Though, it is also the most powerful tool of mass-manipulation, and it plays

the most significant role in the globalisation phenomenon, which, at certain levels

has a series of disadvantages in what the cultural identities are concerned. That is

somehow a contradiction to what I have previously mentioned, but the media field

has such a complex structure, that it operates at different levels of approach, havingboth positive and negative impacts on our society.

These many ways of communication are the ones that enable people to share

information in a variety of forms. Communication means sharing information and

providing entertainment for an audience by different methods. It can be of two types:

the first one is personal communication, which happens when people make their

thoughts and wishes known to one another, by telephone calls, letters or more

recently via internet. This is the personal type of communication between individuals.

Its other form is the one that implies a large audience, which is informed orentertained, by means such as the written press, television, radio or the internet.

This is generally regarded as mass-communication, which operates at a national or

global level.


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Media psychology

Media Psychology seeks an

understanding of how peopleperceive, interpret, use, and respond

to a media-rich world. In doing so,

media psychologists can identify

potential benefits and problems,

and promote the development of

positive media.

The study of Media psychology emerged as an academic and professional discipline

due to a social and commercial demand for the application of psychological theoryand research into the impact ofmedia and emerging media technologies both

academic and non-academic settings. Psychology is fundamental to understanding

the impact on individuals and groups of the integration of media technologies in our

society. This field encompasses the full range of human experience of media

including affect, cognition, and behaviourin activities, events, theories, and

practices. Media include all forms of mediated communication, such as pictures,

sound, graphics, content and emerging technologies.

The emerging field represented a significant opportunity to use media in new and

creative ways by understanding how psychology and media work together.

Psychological theories can be applied to emerging social media, e-Learning, and

digital technologies in pioneering ways.

The foundation of this new branch comes from a variety of fields including sociology,

technology, media and communications studies, and psychology. Much of the early

media-related psychological research concentrated on negative effects of media, but

researchers are now exploring the positive aspects as well. Media psychologists

propose that although there may be negative impacts of media such as violence in

video games and films, false interpretations of reality due to intense television

viewing, and persuasion through advertising, there may also benefits, like the social

bonds formed in virtual worlds, therapeutic uses of media, and certain psychological

benefits of developing media skills.

These emerging areas of research offer an integration of positive and media

psychologies. Research showed that positive and negative traits are independent of

each other rather than opposites. For media psychology, this means that removing

negative media impact does not necessarily cause a positive influence. A growing
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mass_mediahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mass_media


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body of research is beginning to look at what interactions with the media offer to

those who use and create the media and in what ways media can be used for social

justice, education, and community building. As an example, although gaming

research historically

concentrated on violence and

other content-related issues, a

new wave of researchers are

looking into how gaming can

benefit the players. Books and

journal articles are beginning to

feature research on the potential

of gaming to enhance areas

such as social interactions,

relationship building, and skill

development. Online social

networking through websites and

interactive digital worlds is also

attracting new attention along a

similar line of

strength-based

research.


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British media a dynamic scene

(from written press to television)

Britain has an extremely diverse media with an almost

unrivalled number of outlets.

Of all the existing means of mass communication in the

country, it is only the press that has spawned a set

of 'theories' to explain and to justify its actions and

its purposes. Means of communication that have developed since the

inception of the press in the 17th and 18th centuries-notably, television and radio-

have tended to adapt these theories to suit their own special requirements. In some

cases, even the notion of 'the freedom of the press' has been transposed into other

contexts and used to defend practices in radio and television. Yet the press has

gone through many significant changes since ideas about 'press freedom' were first

discussed well over 200 years ago. New forms of journalism have developed; there

have been changes in printing techniques, changes in ownership, and even changes

in perceptions of the role of the newspaper within British society. Furthermore, the

press is now only one medium amongst many. Radios, and later television, have

usurped some of its duties.

Despite the enormity of these changes, and the social, economic, and political

transformation of the British society within which these changes have taken place,

the concepts most often used to justify the existence, and role, of the press-and

latterly, the media-today still retain significant elements of 19th century (and

sometimes earlier) political thought.

Discussion of the roles and duties of the media Britains contemporary scene must

inevitably go beyond earlier and rather limited comments on the press. Nevertheless,

one must not underestimate the importance of earlier ideas about press freedom, nor

must one underestimate the extent to which these ideas still reside within more

complex statements about the mass media. The 1986 Peacock Committee, for

example, considered the future of television in Britain by invoking parallels with the

press and the abolition of pre-publication censorship in 1694.

Such ideas, and lessons of history, are clearly of fundamental importance and

should not be dismissed out of hand. Can they, however, satisfactorily incorporate

the changes in societies which now determine the existence and practices of the

present media?


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Broadcasting

Television

Television has proved thatpeople will look at anything rather than eachother.-Ann Landers

I find television to be veryeducating. Every time somebody turns on theset, I go in the other room and read a book.-Groucho Marx

Television is one of the most important

means of communication. It brings pictures and

sounds from around the world into millions

homes. Through television, viewers can see and learn about people, places, andthings in faraway lands.

The term television comes from a Greek word meaning far and a Latin

word meaning to see. Thus television means to see far. Many scientists

contributed to the development of television, so no one can be called its inventor.

Experiments leading to the invention of TV began in the 1800s, but progress was

slow. Television as we know it today was not developed until the late 1920s and it

had little importance in communication until the late 1940.

About three-fourths of television stations that broadcast in the world are

commercial stations. The rest are public stations. Factual programs of various kinds

predominate on television in terms of the number of minutes broadcast. They are

also the kind most watched overall. According to BBC survey, 88% of the total

population of Britain watched documentaries on BBC channels, the highest

percentage for any type of program. It has been found that TV is the greatest

disseminator of information amongst all the media. One survey found that 58% of the

British population said TV was their main source of news and no less than 68%

believed it to be the most objective source available.

All commercial stations broadcast brief summaries of local, national and

international news every day. Also, stations often interrupt their regular program

schedules to present extended coverage of special events, such as space shots,

political conventions, and important royal events. Many people say that commercial

TV shows too many programs designed only to entertain, and not enough programs

that inform, educate or provide cultural enrichment. Such kinds of channels are

BBC1, BBC2, ITV, C4, C5 and others.


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Radio

Radio is the theatre of the mind;television is the theatre of the mindless- Steve Allen

Radio is the perfect medium for mass

communication. If we compare it to other mass

media, radio consistently ranks as the most popular

means of disseminating information, regardless of the continent. What makes radio

particularly appealing to research projects, however, is its interactivity, its capacity to

provoke dialogue and to solicit the participation of local populations.

Before television, network radio was the epitome of mass communication; it

was national, live, available and listened to everywhere. Today it is difficult to think ofradio this way because the industry no longer works in the same manner.

Commercial radio stations depend on local and regional sources of advertising

income. Essentially all radio stations are programmed to attract a special segment of

a local or regional audience, and even when programming national entertainment

materials such as popular songs, stations emphasize local events, personalities,

weather, news, and traffic in their broadcast talk. Radio is an industry characterized

by specialized channels each attracting relatively small, relatively differentiated

audiences. But the average home in Britain has five and half radios, more than twicethe number of televisions. Cumulatively the British audience for radio is just as big,

undifferentiated, and anonymous as that for television. Is radio today, then, a

provider of mass communication? It depends on whether the concern is with the

industry as a whole or with the programming and audience of a particular station.

There are many hundreds ofradio stations in the United Kingdom, the most

prominent of which are the national stations operated by the BBC. Recent advances

in digital radio technology have enabled the launch of several new stations by the

Corporation.Also available nationally are three national commercial channels, namely Absolute

Radio, Classic FM and talkSPORT.

Most local commercial stations in the United Kingdom broadcast to a city or group of

towns, with a second tier of regional stations covering larger areas such as North

West England. The predominant format is pop music, but many other tastes are also

catered for, particularly in London and the larger cities. There are also regional

stations, Real Radio & the Century Network, broadcasting in some main parts

ofEngland, Wales & Scotland.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radiohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BBChttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_audio_broadcasthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Absolute_Radiohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Absolute_Radiohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classic_FM_(UK)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TalkSPORThttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_West_Englandhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_West_Englandhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pop_musichttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Real_Radiohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Century_Networkhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Englandhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waleshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scotlandhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scotlandhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waleshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Englandhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Century_Networkhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Real_Radiohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pop_musichttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_West_Englandhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_West_Englandhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TalkSPORThttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classic_FM_(UK)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Absolute_Radiohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Absolute_Radiohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_audio_broadcasthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BBChttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radio


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Print

Newspapers

Newspapers are traditionally

categorized into two types in the United

Kingdom. Broadsheets which are larger

in size and are seen as being more

intellectual and up-market; and tabloids,

which are smaller in size and seen as

being more down-market than

broadsheets, containing more storiesabout celebrities orgossip. However, some

broadsheet papers, such as The Times and The

Independent have recently switched to a smaller size, preferring to call

themselves compact rather than be stigmatized by the tabloid label.

British press a brief history

The 19th century saw two significant changes in the newspaper industry which were

to have considerable impact on future developments. These were, first, the growing

importance of advertising revenue for individual titles and, second, the development

of the large-circulation daily press.

Advertising has always had a place in the newspaper; some of the earliest

newspapers were essentially means for communicating notices of events, such as

the arrival of ships. In the 19th century, advertising and, more importantly,

advertising revenue, became a vital ingredient in the make-up of the newspaper. It

contributed to the newspaper both in terms of content and also in terms of much-

needed revenue and so helped newspapers in their struggles to survive. This

connection between advertising, advertising revenue and the profitability of

newspapers could be found early in the 19th century in Britain.

News and the production of news

Every newspaper when it reaches the reader is the result of a whole series of

selections as to what items shall be printed, in what position they shall be printed,

how much space each shall occupy, what emphasis each shall have. There are no

objective standards here. There are conventions.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newspapershttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Kingdomhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Kingdomhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broadsheethttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Upmarkethttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabloidshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Downmarkethttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celebritieshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gossiphttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Timeshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Timeshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Timeshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Independenthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Independenthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Independenthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Independenthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Independenthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Independenthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Timeshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gossiphttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celebritieshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Downmarkethttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabloidshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Upmarkethttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broadsheethttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Kingdomhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Kingdomhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newspapers


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A detailed analysis of news must also take into account the social context of news

production. The production of news takes place in large, hierarchically organized,

technically complex and (except for the BBC) profit-making organizations. Journalists

are part of such organizations and their work will reflect, and sustain, the needs of

the 'profession' as well as those of their respective organizations. Indeed, the

economic and political 'needs' of media organizations-the need to survive, to

maximize profit, to increase sales, to increase advertising revenue, to maintain a

political line, to placate politicians-form an important backdrop to the study of the

production of all media content.

News organizations, like all other organizations, also have finite resources and this

has enormous consequences for their ability to carry out their work adequately. It

determines not only how many journalists are employed but also, as we shall see

below, where those journalists are placed and what news material is collected.

Furthermore, the production of news takes place with the interest of the audience

uppermost in the minds of the journalist, sub-editor, editor, circulation manager,

advertiser, and proprietor. Without sales, newspapers cannot survive and without

audiences television news broadcasts cannot exist indefinitely.

List ofnewspapers in the United

Kingdom:

Broadsheet format

Daily

The Daily Telegraph (est. 1855) Conservative;

Financial Times (est. 1888)Economically liberal,

politically conservative;

Sunday

The Sunday Telegraph (est. 1961)Conservative;

The Sunday Times (est. 1822) -Centre-Right;

Berliner format

Daily

The Guardian (est. 1821) Left-of-centre, socially liberal;
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newspapershttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newspapers


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Sunday

The Observer (est. 1791) Left-of-centre, socially liberal;

Compact format

Daily

The Independent (est. 1986)Centre-left, liberal views;

The Times (est. 1785)Centre-right, Conservative;

Sunday

Independent on Sunday (est. 1990)Centre-left, liberal views;

Middle-market" newspapers

Daily

Daily Express (est. 1900) Conservative;

Daily Mail (est. 1896) Conservative;

Sunday

Sunday Express (est. 1918Conservative;

The Mail on Sunday (est. 1982) Conservative;

Tabloid newspapers

Daily

Daily Star (est. 1978);

The Daily Mirror (est. 1903);

The Sun (est. 1964);

The Morning;

Sunday

Daily Star Sunday;

The People (est. 1881);

Sunday Mirror (est. 1915);


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Magazines

A bewildering range

ofmagazines are sold in the UK

covering most interests and

potential topics. Famous examples

include Private Eye, Hello!, The

Spectator, the Radio

Times and NME.

British magazines a brief

history

The Gentleman's Magazine, first

published in 1731, in London, is

considered to have been the first

general-interest magazine. Edward

Cave, who edited The Gentleman's

Magazine under the pen name

"Sylvanus Urban", was the first to

use the term "magazine", on theanalogy of a military storehouse of

varied materiel, originally derived from

the Arabic makhazin "storehouses".

The oldest consumer magazine still in

print is The Scots Magazine, which was

first published in 1739, though multiple

changes in ownership and gaps in

publication totaling over 90 years weakenthat claim. Lloyd's List was founded in

Edward Lloyds England coffee shop in

1734; it is still published as a daily

business newspaper.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magazinehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Private_Eyehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hello!http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Spectatorhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Spectatorhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radio_Timeshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radio_Timeshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NMEhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NMEhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radio_Timeshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radio_Timeshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Spectatorhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Spectatorhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hello!http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Private_Eyehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magazine


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The new face of media.PR through web pages

There are various tools that can be used in the practice

of PR. Traditional tools include press releases and media

kits which are sent out to generate positive press on behalf

of the organization. Other widely-used tools include brochures,

newsletters and annual reports.

Increasingly, companies are utilizing interactive social media, such

as blogs, Twitter and Facebook, as tools in their PR campaigns. Unlike the

traditional tools which allowed for only one-way communication, social media allows

the organization to engage in two-way communication, and receive immediate

feedback from their various stakeholders and publics.

One the most popular and traditional tools used by public relations

professionals are a press kit (also known as a media kit). A press kit is usually a

folder that consists of a promotional material that gives information about an event,

organization, business, or even a person. What is included would be a backgrounder

or biography, a fact sheet, press release (or media release), media alert, brochure,

newsletter, photograph with a caption, copies of any media clips, and social media.

With the way that the industry has changed, many organizations may have a website

with a link, "Press Room" which would have online versions of these pieces.

Thats not to say the departments of PR have abandoned other more

traditional marketing and PR media. Social media adds another weapon to your

arsenal to help get your clients message out. So while a two-page press release

might get buried in a reporters in box, they might see the 140-character Tweet with a

link.

PR through web sites has been providing a wide expanse of public relations

services including strategic PR planning, news releases, feature story development,

media placement, media coaching, newsletters, case studies, grand opening

management, product and service launch management, press tours, and press

conference management. In addition to public relations, the web pages are now the

mean through which agencies provide complete marketing services such as

brochure development, advertising campaigns, direct mail, and telemarketing.


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Conclusions

Writing my certificate paper about such a great and complex subject as media

is was a real pleasure, as it is quite a resourceful filed, on which one may approach

different problems at a global or national level. The thing I loved most when writingthe project is the fact that I feel that Ive assimilated a great amount of information on

this topic, and consequently, Ive enlarged my professional horizon if some day will

be the case of changing my career prospects.

As a conclusion, I would like to emphasize the general things related to mass

media and to mass communication. Communication means sharing information and

providing entertainment for an audience by different methods. It can be of two types:

the first one is personal communication, which happens when people make their

thoughts and wishes known to one another, by telephone calls, letters or morerecently via internet. This is the personal type of communication between individuals.

Its other form is the one that implies a large audience, which is informed or

entertained, by means such as the written press, television, radio or the internet.

This is generally regarded as mass-communication, which operates at a national or

global level.

Bibliography:

http://www.wikipedia.org

http://www.museum.tv

The media and globalization- Terhi Rantanen
http://www.wikipedia.org/http://www.wikipedia.org/


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Table of Contents

Foreword ..............................................................................................................................................2

Media psychology..............................................................................................................................3

British media- a dynamic scene ....................................................................................................5

Broadcasting .......................................................................................................................................6

Television.......................................................................................................................................6

Radio ..............................................................................................................................................7

Print ....................................................................................................................................................11

Newspapers...............................................................................................................................11

Magazines..................................................................................................................................11

PR through web pages .................................................................................................................12

Conclusions & bibliography .........................................................................................................13


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