Background

Radio is an old media format that started commercially in 1900. Around this time WW1 was about to start as tension grew.

War of the Worlds began just after the: 1930 great depression, nazi uprising, rising of Stalin, rising of Mussolini.

10 Facts about War of the Worlds

• It was an American radio drama anthology series
• It was directed and narrated by actor and future filmmaker – Orson Welles – He directed Citizen Kane
• It was an adaptation of H. G. Well’s novel – War of the Worlds (1898)
• It first aired on 30th October 1938 between 8-9pm – it is estimated that 32 million people were listening in on radios
• It was broadcast from Columbia Broadcasting Building, 485 Madison Avenue, New York
• The executive producer was Taylor Davidson (CBS)
• The producers were John Houseman, Orson Welles, Paul Stewart (associate producer)
• “It was an anti-war show” – Debra Sanders
• It is a hybrid genre
• It was a halloween special (when they started it)

Useful People and Quotes

Andrew Crissell wrote a book called “Understanding Radio”. He says that “radio is a blind media”, so we have to imagine an image in our heads.

Fake news is not new however War of the Worlds was fake news. J. McDougall says “hard times are a breeding ground for misinformation” which basically says fake news is more accepted and spreads faster in hard times.

• “the same trajectory that manifests itself in the moral panic we are addressing here, in fake news.”

• “CBS broadcast a disclaimer prior to the narrative starting, stating clearly that this would be fiction, but a significant section of the audience switched channels too late and ‘the rest is history’ – a classic ‘moral panic'”

• Other media outlets exaggerated it – “with claims about evacuations, heart attacks and suicide attempts”

Stanley Cohen wrote a book called “Folk Devils & Moral Panics”. He said that ‘moral panics’ were all caused by the media.

SOCIAL, POLITICAL, HISTORICAL, CULTURAL

War of the Worlds can be considered in a historical context as it provides an interesting study of the power and influence of radio as a form during its early days of broadcasting. It is also useful to consider the product in a social, cultural and political context when considering audience responses to the programme. It was first broadcast on the eve of World War II and reflected fears of invasion in the US and concerns about international relations.

“I’ve always said you can’t understand the world without the media nor the media without the world” (Professor Natalie Fenton, quoted in Fake news vs Media Studies J. McDougall p.17 2019, Palgrave)

Useful Links

CSP 9: war of the worlds

Social, political, historical, cultural

News Values – a criteria that influences what is published in the news

Gatekeepers – are parts of the media structure, reporters deciding what sources are used for a story to editors deciding which stories make the cut, and includes media outlet owners and even advertisers.

Regulation – a rule that is maintained by an authority

Deregulation – the reduction or elimination of government power in an industry, usually used to create more competition in an industry.

Free Market – when governments have little or no control so businesses can produce goods/services based on demand.

Monopolies – when one business controls the supply in an industry

Mergers – when to businesses join to form one in order to achieve higher market control, better productivity and better economies of scale.

Media Concentration – a process where less businesses control increasing shares of the mass media

Conglomerates – a company that owns multiple companies involved in mass media enterprises

Globalisation (in terms of media ownership) – when businesses grow large enough to operate on an international or global scale

Vertical Integration – when one company owns multiple firms that can complete two or more stages of production

Horizontal Integration – when a company increase production at the same stage of production

Neo-Liberalism – the phrase given to polices that are used to reduce government control in a market

Alt-Right – an ideological grouping associated with extreme conservative or reactionary viewpoints, characterized by a rejection of mainstream politics and by the use of online media to disseminate deliberately controversial content. (definition for google)

Surveillance – close observation, typically of a suspected spy or criminal

Privacy – when you aren’t watched by others

Security – being free from danger or threat

GDPR – general data protection regulation – is a legal framework that sets guidelines for the collection and processing of personal information from individuals who live in the European Union 

The Leveson Enquiry – was a judicial public inquiry into the culture, practices and ethics of the British press following the News International phone hacking scandal, chaired by Lord Justice Leveson, who was appointed in July 2011

The Cairncross Review – was a sustainable future for high-quality journalism made nine proposals to save the news industry. The nine proposals are:

1) Online platforms should set out codes of conduct for commercial agreements with news publishers, which should be approved and overseen by a regulator “with powers to insist on compliance”.

2) The UK competition watchdog, the Competition and Markets Authority, should carry out a market study into the online advertising industry, taking a closer look at the different players, their “roles, costs and profitability” and identify whether the market is working and what remedies are needed, if any.

3) A regulator should supervise online platforms’ efforts to improve users’ news experience, including expanding efforts to identify reliable and trustworthy sources. “This task is too important to leave entirely to the judgment of commercial entities,” the report said.

4) The Government should develop a media literacy strategy, working with Ofcom, online platforms and news publishers and broadcasters, voluntary groups and academics to “identify gaps in provision” and opportunities to collaborate further.

5) A new Institute for Public Interest News should be created as a dedicated body, free from political or commercial obligations, that can “amplify efforts” to ensure the future sustainability of public-interest news.

6) The Government should launch an innovation fund to develop new approaches and tools to improve the supply of public-interest news which would ultimately be run by the Institute for Public Interest News once it is established.

7) The Government should introduce new forms of tax relief, including extending zero-rated VAT to digital newspapers and magazines as well as digital-only publications, and develop a new form of tax relief, under the Charities Act or along the lines of Creative Sector reliefs, to support public interest journalism.

8) The local democracy reporting service, managed by the BBC in partnership with the News Media Association, should be expanded (it currently employs some 140 journalists). Eventually the management of this should be passed to Institute for Public Interest News.

9) Ofcom should assess whether BBC News Online is “striking the right balance” between getting a wide reach for itself and driving traffic to commercial publishers, particularly local ones. The BBC “should do more to share its technical and digital expertise” to help local publishers.

Information from Google search pages and https://www.pressgazette.co.uk/cairncross-review-institute-for-public-interest-news-innovation-fund-and-tax-reliefs-among-nine-proposals-to-save-uk-news-industry/

The I is a British national morning paper published in London by Daily Mail and General Trust. It is distributed across the United Kingdom.

Its target audience is “readers and lapsed (no longer) readers” of all ages and commuters with limited time. This is why it is often given for free at popular travel places (airports, large train stations etc.). It has a circulation of 221,083 people.

The I was originally launched in 2010 as a sister paper to The Independent.

The I is tabloid-size and stapled. The first issue contained 56 pages; however the Friday edition of the paper, which contains the “Friday” section, has more pages in it, at around 65.

Oliver Duff is the (main) editor for The I, however there will be many more. The Independent supports the Liberal Democrats and as The I is was a sister paper so it is probably Lib Dem too.

The I newspaper increases its price by 10p, from 30p to 40p on weekdays and 40p to 50p on Saturdays. It generates £11 million in operating profit on £34 million revenue.

Habermas and The Public Sphere

Habermas came up with the theory of the ‘public sphere’ as we learnt to read and write we could communicate with people across the country and eventually around the world. This increased when media and the internet merged.

Before this we could not communicate with people from the other side of the world and we were told what to do by the government. After this we could talk to others about these issues and can form alliances to protest against it.

Before we communicated horizontally (people of the same class) whereas now we communicate vertically too (people talk to people that are controlling them and that they are in control of).

Habermas believes that democracy depends on a public which is informed, aware and which debates the issues of the day. This is why lots of us watch the news so we have our own opinions and can say why to others. It is also because we do not want to look stupid.

Habermas believes that the mass media and globalisation has reduced the effectiveness of the public sphere. He believes that the mass media has resulted in a reduction in plurality – there are fewer voices discussing the news.

“a public space between the private domain and the state in which public opinion was formed and ‘popular’ supervision of government was established”

“the public sphere and the role of the media in relation to it has to be “reconceptualized and reincarnated in a new form.””

Mass Media in the Public Interest – Denis McQuail

• “a fundamental presumption, that the media do serve the ‘public interest’ or ‘general welfare'”
• “that the media are obliged to conform to popular will or carry out some particular mission”
• “is in the public interest if it serves the ends of the whole society rather than those of some sectors of the society”
• You can have “public control” or “deregulation and the further extension of the free market”
• “the mass media are not the same as any other business or service industry, but carry out some essential tasks for the wider benefit of society, especially in cultural and political life.

Mass Media in the Public Interest (Denis McQuail)

Mass Media and Democracy in the Public Service – James Curran

• Curran suggests that in TV programs that have higher demand get peak-time space. Public services organisations run these channels as well as these highly demanded shows they will include the news as this is in the interest of society. They will also be cheap so they can be accessed by everyone.

https://hautlieucreative.co.uk/media2020/wp-content/uploads/sites/34/2018/11/Mass-Media-and-Democracy-James-Curran-Public-Service.pdf

In the extract: Mass Media and Democracy by James Curran there is a focus on Jurgen Habermas and his concept of the ‘Public Sphere‘,basically arguing that the developments in education and the mass media allowed for a greater access to information particularly with regard to government, authority and the exercise of control. Similarly, Denis McQuail argues for a media that specifically works in the public interest and not in a purely commercial interest.

Regulation: State or Free Market

We want a free media that works in the public’s interest. However, it has to be controlled so it doesn’t get out of hand. If the state (government) makes rules (laws) so the media doesn’t take stuff too far (racism, homophobic, sexist and invasion of privacy). But if the government makes these rules they then control the media, which is something we do not want.

James Curran said “Once the media becomes subject to public regulation, it will lose its bite as a watchdog and may even be transformed into a snarling Rottweiler in the service of the state.”

The Liberal Theory of Press Freedom – James Curran

• Freedom to Publish
• Diversity and Chain Ownership
• Loss of Independence
• Competition, Choice and New Technology
• Reappraisal
• Social Market Flirtation
• Restriction on Joint Media Ownership
• Self-Regulation
• Uneasy Ambivalence
• Weak Reformism

• ‘the United Kingdom regards press freedom as an absolute freedom.’ The government leaves it to the market forces to decide which press products survive’ (1992: 53).
• In the case of the press, with certain limited exceptions, no legal restriction is placed on the right to buy or launch a newspaper. (This ensures, in liberal theory, that the press is free, diverse and representative (Curran and Seaton 2003: 346-7).
• In this view of freedom of expression, it is the interests of the press, not of its readers nor of the subjects of its coverage, which are fundamental. (‘Free enterprise is a pre-requisite of a free press’)
• Based on the assumption that democracy is best served by the free exchange of ideas, for which freedom of expression is vital. (‘the best test of truth is the power of the thought to get itself accepted in the competition of the market’)

https://hautlieucreative.co.uk/media21al/wp-content/uploads/sites/40/2019/12/Curran-Press-Freedom-2.pdf

Technology and Newspaper
Production	Distribution	Consumption
Camera	The Internet	Glasses
Computer	Social Media	Tablet
Word Processor	Shops	Website
Website Builder	Vehicles	App
Adobe Creative Cloud	Website	Paper
Printer	Emails	A Brain (able to read and understand)
Office	Phones
Pen/Pencil	Printing Press
Paper

Noam Chomsky and Edward S. wrote a book in 1988 called “Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of the Mass Media”. The book propose that the mass communication media of the U.S. “are effective and powerful ideological institutions that carry out a system-support propaganda function, by reliance on market forces, internalized assumptions, and self-concensorship, and without overt cocercion”, by means of the propaganda model of communication. The title “Manufacturing Consent” refers to the consent of the governed.

Sociology of News Production by Michael Schudson

• “Normally, news ‘coincides with’ and ‘reinforces’ the ‘definition of the political situation evolved by the political elite'”
• “Noam Chomsky’s Manufacturing Consent. This work offers a ‘propaganda model’ of the mass media, the view that the media ‘serve to mobilize support for the special interests that dominate the state and private activity”

https://hautlieucreative.co.uk/media2020/wp-content/uploads/sites/34/2018/11/The-Sociology-of-News-Production-Michael-Schudson-Chomsky.pdf

Manipulation or Persuasion

• Structures of Ownership – the idea that rich people know other rich people and will help each other out. E.G. An owner of a media conglomerate is good friends with Trump. Trump could say to the owner “if you say good stuff about me, I will give you a tax break or a new building”. This is persuading and manipulating what is shown in the media to support what the rich want.
• The Role of Advertising – media costs more to produce than they get back from sales. Because of this they put advertisements in the media to fund producing the product. This means that us (the audience) are sold to the companies that are advertising.
• Diversionary Tactics – ‘Flack’ – the idea that someone that speaks out against these big conglomerates will get beaten (flack) from the conglomerates. They will be shut down by the large media companies saying that they are lying.

Audience Reception Theory

Agenda Setting – the creation of public awareness and concern of the big issues by the news media. The media attempts to influence viewers, and establish a hierarchy of news importance. Two basic ideas underpin agenda-setting: 1) the press and the media do not reflect reality; they filter and shape it. 2) media concentrates on a few issues and subjects leads the public to perceive those issues as more important than other issues.

Framing – how something is presented to the audience (called “the frame”) influences the choices people make about how to process that information. The most common use of frames is in terms of the frame the news or media place on the information they convey. A form of second level agenda-setting – they not only tell the audience what to think about (agenda-setting theory), but also how to think about that issue (framing theory). Factors that influence framing: politics, gender, age, religion, culture/society (trends), economic issues and the influence of sponsors and money.

Media Myth Making – The influence of agenda setting and framing can create myths- common beliefs- in the media about how the world should be, the things we value and how we must act to become ‘correct’.

Conditions of Consumption – so we have media that has been framed and presented to us in order to meet an agenda or support a myth.

Other things that can affect our interpretations – daily lives, routines, upbringing, education, friendship groups and relationships.

Technology and News Production
Production	Distribution	Consumption
– Camera	– The Internet	– Phones
– Audio Recorder	– Social Media	– TVs
– Computer	– Broadcasts (Satellite or Terrestrial)	– Computer
– Adobe Creative Cloud	– Adverts in between TV shows.	– Tablets
– Word Processor	– Emails	– Headphones
– Drawing Tablet	– Website	– Website
– Website Builder	– YouTube	– USB Type-C Charger

Marshall McLuhan

Marshall McLuhan proposed in 1964 that the “Medium was the Message”. This means that what we look at media with (the medium / the technology) is more important that the actual media; or anything else (i.e. over companies, organisations, governments, individuals, representation, texts etc. He wrote a book about it called “The Media is the Massage”; though it was meant to be called The Media is the Message the publisher got it wrong but he liked the name so much that he kept the mistake

Media Terms – New and Old

Story – Old – a narrative in a book – New – watching a narrative through a film or TV show

Conversation – Old – talking to someone face-to-face – New – messaging someone on your phone via text/email/apps messaging system

Active – Old – someone that does a lot of sport – New – someone that spends a lot of time on social media

Re-Cap of the Video

The Network Effect (by Theodore Vail) describes how the value of a good or service increases as more people start to use that good or service. I.E. a smartphone is not as valuable if no one else has one as you can not text your friends.

The ‘feedback loop theory’ (by Norbert Wiener) is how we base predict what will happen in the future by analysing the past. With new media we can track the audience’s behaviour as now we can look at what time they looked at it, how many people looked at it, what they like and look at first. From this we can change what we produce to get the best possible product.

The Dunbar number (by Robin Dunbar) is the number of people we talk to. Maximum is 150 people but realistically we talk to around 10. However, on social media we often have over 500 ‘online’ friends.

These all link together as we have the possibility of connecting to millions. However, we really connect to about 10 people. Though businesses do connect with thousands. Businesses like this because companies can sell the population’s data to companies to the audience that sell this product so the companies can target them. Though Zuboff says that companies used to do this but now they can place ads about stuff you are interested in to get you to buy these products.

Who really benefits from a digitally networked society? Big business or individuals?

I believe that both big businesses and individuals benefit from a digitally networked society as individuals get a more personal web browsing experience, as they get adverts based on their interests or previous activity. However, big businesses also benefit as they can sell out data and make large profits from it, and they can show us adverts that we are more likely to buy which means they get more customers and a larger potential customers.

Positives and Negatives of Social Media

Benefits	Negatives
Freedom	Data is sold
Possibility to earn money	You can be tracked
Possibility to become famous	You lose your privacy
Easier to market products	Online bullying is more common

Teen Vogue has an active following on twitter; as this recent post has 40 comments, over 175 re-tweets and over 1,000 likes. This also tells us that they are posting about the right content that their followers want to read about. They also talk about topics that are often overlooked such as disabilities and negative events that happens in the world. It informs teens (the target audience) about these topics in a way that they can relate to; such as new released TV shows and movies etc. The tweet has a quote that is in the article from an interview with George Robinson asking about his new character in “Sex Education” season 2, while also looking at his past and his acting plans for the future. The tweet then links to the article on their website (link below). Tweeting the link with a powerful sentence from the article is a good way to draw people in and is a quicker way of finding a good article to read. Also the picture is about double the size of the caption above it.

https://www.teenvogue.com/story/sex-education-george-robinson-isaac#intcid=recommendations_default-popular_8f0b148f-1152-446d-bef7-c74b3c85563a_popular4-1

Teen Vogue does talk about superficial issues that its target audience (teenage girls) would like to read as well as more genuine issues. This article about Lili Reinhart’s favourite blush is definitely a more superficial issue. The reason Teen Vogue include articles like these is to let their readers escape from “proper” issues. This is because we consume media for different reasons, as the Katz, Gurevitch and Haas theory. This talks about how we consume media for personal needs (understanding self, enjoyment and escapism) or social issues (knowledge about the world, self betterment and strengthen connections with family and friends). As we can see this article is to for escapism and enjoyment as the readers will have an interest in this topic and it lets them escape issues around the world for a couple minutes; however, the other article is more for knowledge about the world.

https://www.teenvogue.com/story/lili-reinhart-beauty-must-haves-covergirl

Teen Vogue is a former US print magazine that has moved online. It started in January 2003 and it last printed a magazine in December 2017. It is a sister publication of Vogue and its target audience is teenage girls. Like Vogue it has articles about fashion and celebrities. Teen Vogue’s editor is Elaine Welteroth. Teen Vogue has an estimated annual revenue of $8 million (statistic from Owler.com).

Vogue and Teen Vogue are owned by the conglomerate Advance. Advance is an American media company that started in 1922. In 2016, it had a revenue of 2.4 billion USD and it employees over 12,000 people. It’s headquarters is on Staten Island, New York.