Broadcasting since 1973 on BBC Radio 1

• Newsbeat- radio service from the BBC
• The main focus is news towards teenagers and “twentysomethings”.
• Funded by the tax from the government, hypothecated tax, money from a specific tax goes towards the BBC for education.
• Launched on the 10th September 1973
• The name was taken from another radio program, “Radio Coraline”, this is because one of Radio Coralines workers “Roger Gale” worked on Newsbeat with the BBC
• Broadcasted on Radio 1, 1Xtra and Asian Network.
• 15-19, 84% listeners 12-15

Audience

1.Targets youth- talks about important and difficult matters that might make them feel understood (mental health which will draw in the young audience.)

2.An example of a transitional media product which reflects changes in the contemporary media landscape.

 3. Good values- talk about negative issues going on making it important

4. ‘Newsbeat promises its younger listeners all the news they need to know from the UK and around the world‘

5. To bring in the younger audience, Newsbeat changed the language and style they present in, bringing in teens by using street slang and making stories on popular, younger generation topics, like Tik Tok, Celebrities and Young topics.

6. Linking to Stuart Hall’s ideas on ‘preferred reading’: Dominant, Oppositional and Negotiated readings

7. Producers appeal to listeners- framing the content through an informal tone, quick overviews, upbeat links, and audience participation.

8. ‘it’s a myth that young people are not interested in news; the challenge is how to reach them’

9. Radio broadcasting is regulated by Ofcom

10. Newsbeat can be seen as part of the BBC’s remit to address diverse audiences – by age, location, ethnicity etc

11. Stuart Halls theory of encoding and decoding

Possible Questions

1. To what extent do historical contexts influence how audiences respond to media industries. You should refer to the close study Newsbeat to support your answer.
2. Did Newsbeat only develop because of the changes in new technologies?
3. To what extent is the BBC regulated.
4. How does Newsbeat support the ethos of the BBC? (entertain, inform, educate)
5. How does Newsbeat appeal to a young / younger audience?
6. ‘The relationship between producers and audiences has changed over time.’ How far do you agree with this statement? You should refer to the Close Study Newsbeat

10 facts

1. John Reith was the BBC’s first general manager when it was set up as the British Broadcasting Company in 1922 and he was its first Director-General when it became a public corporation in 1927.
2. Newsbeat was launched on the 10th September 1973
3.  BBBC is the largest broadcaster in the world by number of employees, with over 22,000 staff in total-approximately 19,000 are in public-sector broadcasting.
4. 15-19, 84% listeners 12-15
5. The ethos of the BBC was to ‘inform, educate and entertain’
6. Newsbeat is notable for the distinctive musical imaging it has used for most of its history. At first, this was a just jingle at the beginning of the bulletin, but in the late 1990s this expanded to music throughout.
7. The BBC was officially created on 18 October 1922.
8. Louisa Compton, editor of BBC, says ‘it’s a myth that young people are not interested in news; the challenge is how to reach them.’
9. This started in 1923, costing 10 shillings, then split 50/50 between the BBC and the Government.
10. Radio coverage was patchy in the UK, securing 94% reach across the UK.
11. ‘Resources have been switched from the Newsbeat radio programme to online and social media, with less polished, “super-produced” content and more immersive videos to reflect what its audience watches on YouTube’ – The Guardian article- Radio 1’s newsbeat rips up the rulebook to lure young listeners

What I Understand

1. Newsbeat is widely available online on places such as the BBC website or on radio 1 at times of 12.45 and 5.45 and after broadcast for streaming, meaning it is accessible to youth as they can access it at any time

Exclusive music news, big interviews, entertainment, social media trends and video from the news people at BBC Radio 1 and 1Xtra.

12:45 everyday

Newsbeat is the BBC‘s radio news programme broadcast on Radio 1, 1Xtra and Asian Network. Newsbeat is produced by BBC News but differs from the BBC’s other news programmes in its remit to provide news tailored for a specifically younger audience of teenagers and early twentysomethings

BBC Radio 1’s remit as a public service broadcaster meant it had to broadcast news. Newsbeat was launched on 10 September 1973 in response to the launch of a network of commercial radio stations across the UK which supplied a news service very different from the style of traditional BBC News. 

Newsbeat is an example of a transitional media product which reflects changes in the contemporary media landscape. Newsbeat is both a traditional radio programme with regular, scheduled broadcast times, but it is also available online after broadcast.
The broadcast itself and the use of digital platforms provides opportunities for audience interaction. Newsbeat also exemplifies the challenges facing the BBC as a public service broadcaster that needs to appeal to a youth audience within a competitive media landscape.

The BBC = Largest PSB cooperation in the UK

Their ethos is to provide “impartial, high-quality and distinctive output and services which inform, educate and entertain”

Cecil Lewis- ”opening up the world to people”.

• It has been broadcasting since 1973
• ‘Newsbeat promises its younger listeners all the news they need to know from the UK and around the world‘
• The main fifteen-minute Newsbeat programmes are transmitted live over digital audio broadcast (DAB) frequencies at 12:45 and 17:45 during most weekdays. The broadcasts can also be listen to, on demand, through the BBC Sounds app or BBC website. This encourages a younger audience who would most likely view content online, on a mobile device.

potential questions:

how does the newsbeat inform educate and educate

10 facts:

• • Newsbeat as a BBC News product with bulletins are broadcast on BBC Radio 1, BBC Radio 1 Xtra and BBC Asian Network
• • The funding of BBC Radio through the license fee, concept of hypothecated tax
• • Issues around the role of a public service broadcaster within a competitive, contemporary media landscape
• • The distinctive nature of the programme connected to its public service remit
• • Arguments on the need for addressing a youth audience already catered for commercially
• • The influence of new technology on media industries – Newsbeat as multi–platform media product. eg
• o Website
• o Twitter
• o Instagram
• • The regulation of the BBC via Ofcom and the governance of the
• BBC

• The techniques the broadcast uses to target a youth audience and create audience appeal, eg
o Presentation style
o News values
o Content selection
• The opportunities for audience interaction, participation and self-representation
• The way external factors – such as demographics and psychographics – are likely to also affect audience response and produce differing interpretations
• Cultivation theory including Gerbner
• Reception theory including Hall

argue that due to new technologys bbc introduce new concepts to newsbeat as people dont listen to radio as much

Media Industries

• Newsbeat is owned by the BBC

• Some details on mental health about 3 teenagers who died by suicide giving a important message to the youth bringing up very important issues
  • talks about the NHS in a negative way which shows their opposition to government
  • The regulation shows that they aren’t controlled by the government as they talk bad about the NHS negatively
  • They talk about se4rious issues so external factors can seriously affect how people interpret the things that they talk about

Media Audiences

• Targets youth as it talks about important matters that might make them feel understood and heard as it talks about mental health which will draw in the young audience.
• They sound like they have good values as they talk about negative issues going on in importance making it important rather than some other ones who may just ignore it they bring importance to it
• talks about peoples problems rather than being bias they taking the publics problems and bringing light to them
• Stuart Halls theory of encoding and decoding
• 845 of audiences are age 12-15

regulation

Newsbeat is active with their audiences letting them call in or message them about their problem that relates to the topic they are reporting on.

Newsbeats is produced by the BBC news and you can listen to it on Radio 1, extra 1 and Asian network. Asian network added newsbeat because of staff shortages as well as the BBC wanted to streamline the news about covid-19.

Newsbeat is targeted to young audiences aged between 15 – 29

Media Industries

• Newsbeat as a BBC News product with bulletins are broadcast on BBC Radio 1, BBC Radio 1 Xtra and BBC Asian Network
• The funding of BBC Radio through the license fee, concept of hypothecated tax
• Issues around the role of a public service broadcaster within a competitive, contemporary media landscape
• The distinctive nature of the programme connected to its public service remit
• Arguments on the need for addressing a youth audience already catered for commercially
• The influence of new technology on media industries – Newsbeat as multi–platform media product. eg
o Website
o Twitter
o Instagram
• The regulation of the BBC via Ofcom and the governance of the BBC

Media Audiences

• The techniques the broadcast uses to target a youth audience and create audience appeal, eg
o Presentation style
o News values
o Content selection
• The opportunities for audience interaction, participation and self-representation
• The way external factors – such as demographics and psychographics – are likely to also affect audience response and produce differing interpretations
• Cultivation theory including Gerbner
• Reception theory including Hall

“Presenters and reporters on Newsbeat have been told to steer clear of polysyllabic words and address listeners as if they were talking to a friend, the programme’s editor has revealed.” – Louisa Compton

Louisa Compton aims to use cartoons, games and digital media to deliver news to a generation turning off radio

To provide impartial news and information to help people understand and engage with the world around them

 “BBC’s switch to digital-first, using video, mobile and online to reach a 15 to 24-year-old audience who are switching off the radio in their droves.”

Regulation

Regulatory contexts:
• Radio broadcasting is regulated by Ofcom
• Regulation focuses on content including use of language, impartiality, protection of under 18s
• PSB has very specific regulatory rules
• Ofcom is also responsible for awarding -and rescinding – licenses which gives its regulation force
• As radio has moved online and to podcasts, regulation has become more complex, in response the government launched a digital radio action plan and Ofcom produces a review each year
• The availability of non-regulated broadcasts via the internet poses a challenge both for the regulator and the regulated radio broadcasters.

possible questions:

To what extent does the BBC attract young audiences

what I know:

Newsbeat is produced by the BBC news and you can listen to it on Radio 1, BBC 1 Xtra and Asian network.

The BBC is regulated by Ofcom and they focus on content including use of language, protection of under 18s.

The produces hope to engage the younger generation to listen to the news in a more entertaining way.

Newsbeat was launched on 10 September 1973 in response to the launch of a network of commercial radio stations across the UK which supplied a news service very different from the style of traditional BBC News.

Argument:

My argument is that the BBC is trying to expand their audiences to the younger generation by

NEWSBEAT:

• Home station – BBC Radio 1, BBC Radio 1 Xtra, BBC Asian Netwrok
• Original release – 10 September 1973
• Newsbeat studio is based at Radio 1 in Broadcasting House in Central London
• Many of the stories produced by Newsbeat are reported by other programmes across BBC News
• Newsbeat is both a traditional radio programme with regular, scheduled broadcast times, but it is also available online after broadcast.
• Newsbeat is a 15 minute news programme which broadcasts at 12:45 and 17:45 during the week on Radio 1, 1Xtra and Asian Network
• Newsbeat had to compete against traditional print media and the conventions of roll news channels, but mobile-first audiences are now learning about important events through what is trending on their social networks and notifications of breaking news flashing on their screens.
•  Radio 1 reached just under 9 million listeners every week in the first quarter of 2020. Despite facing tough competition from other platforms, such as television, streaming services and podcasts, radio shows continue to attract a mass audience.

BBC:

• The BBC Charter is a royal charter setting out the arrangements for the governance of the British Broadcasting Corporation.
  • A Royal Charter is an instrument of incorporation, granted by The King, which confers independent legal personality on an organisation and defines its objectives, constitution and powers to govern its own affairs.
• BBC is regulated by Ofcom
• BBC ethos is to inform, educate, entertain

Newsbeat/ Radio 1 Audiences:

• Newsbeat is produced by BBC News which provides news aimed towards younger audiences of teenagers and people in their early twenties.
• ‘Newsbeat promises its younger listeners all the news they need to know from the UK and around the world‘
• Radio `1 aims towards an audience aged from 15-29. However a demographic profile states that the average age of the consumers are aged 30
• Newsbeat producers hope their short-term stories will engage the audience and keep them up to date about the latest events happening around the world, which is the preferred reading.
•  The producers hope to appeal to their listeners by framing the content through an informal tone, quick overviews, upbeat links, and audience participation.
• There are many factors which might influence our position to the programme, such as age, values and ideology, geography and even our mood. Importantly, we don’t always react in the way the producers intended.
• Stuart Hall:
  • Stuart Hall argued producers encoded meaning and values into their texts which was then decoded by the audience, but our reactions are shaped by our individual frameworks of knowledge. You should also consider the different modes of consumption, especially the ways we might listen to the radio.
  • Hall’s encoding / decoding model of communication offers three hypothetical positions – the dominant, oppositional, and negotiated readings.

Possible Essay Questions:

• How does Newsbeat use new technologies?
  How does Newsbeat appeal to younger audiences?

10 Newsbeat facts:

• Newsbeat is broadcasted through Radio 1, 1Xtra and Asian Network
• Newsbeat target a younger audience with a average age of 14-25
• They have a weekly audience of 8 million people
• Newsbeat was produced on 10 September 1973
• Newsbeat is a 15 minute new programme that broadcasts from 12:45 and 17:45 on week days
• The editor for Newsbeat is Danielle Dwyer
• Newsbeat is produced by BBC but differs from other BBC news outlets as it aims to provide news to a much younger target audience
• BBC is funded by a TV license (hypothecated tax)
• BBC is regulated by Ofcom
• Newsbeat is a multi-media platform

My argument:

I want to argue that the BBC are aiming towards younger audiences to attract new audiences. Newsbeat appeal to these younger audiences by introducing new technologies, making it easy and accessible, and presenting the news in an informal way.

• Newsbeat is a Public Service Broadcast (PSB) – The policy and standards board confront you if you break a bylaw.
• It is a multimedia production; there are stories written on the website as well as radios to tune into with video.
• Newsbeat is an example of a traditional media product which reflects changes

Media Audiences

• Newsbeat has its BBC News product with bulletins that are broadcast on BBC Radio 1, BBC Radio 1 Xtra and BBC Asian Network

How do they appeal to the younger audience?

• Target audience of younger people – teenagers and ‘twentysomethings’ [16-25 years old]
• 84% are 12 – 15 ages
• Not specific to either gender
• The fifteen-minute Newsbeat programme is broadcast at 12:45 and 17:45 during the week
• Newsbeat allows traditional broadcast times as well as being available viewing after the broadcast, which is relevant to the target audience who consume media online mainly.

The target audience is for young people, so it is interesting to note that the programme only lasts 15 minutes which is relevant as the younger generations consume media in short amounts otherwise they may not be interested in watching. Also the times the radio start is relevant as they both begin afternoon which is relevant as it shows how the radio is targeted to a younger audience, an audience that stereotypically do not like waking in the morning.

Social Media Marketing and Gen Z attention span apparently “the average attention span of someone born into Gen Z is about 8 seconds”

• Changed their sound and brought in younger hosts to relate to the audience more and feature more slang language
• Tries to show relatable stories that are more interesting, creative and exciting
• Less formal English speaking
• Using more social media platforms – new technology for the younger audience to interact with

• The stories Newsbeat include stories on things like TikTok, education and celebrities such as Stormzy and Kanye West. Clearly appealing to a younger audience.

Media Industries

• Newsbeat was launched on 10 September 1973 in response to the launch of a network of commercial radio stations across the UK which supplied a news service very different from the style of traditional BBC News

REGULATION – The question subject

• Since Newsbeat is targeted at a much younger audience, it arises the question about the regulations of the news radio and how different are the news reported on this radio. So even though the news being reported may be different to the regular radio it doesn’t really matter as they are feeding content to the younger audience in a way that still benefits them, it may be a different radio but it is still owned and regulated by the same people.
• As such it has it’s own governing body and is regulated by OFCOM. It’s the government-approved regulatory and competition authority for the broadcasting, telecommunications and postal industries of the United Kingdom

Mention:

Gerbener

Stuart Hall – Appeals to younger peoples dominant ideology to maintain interest for its target audience. Younger audience have different consumption patterns so the use of online streaming and websites appeals to this form of consumption.

Preferred reading – there is a certain understanding and idea Newsbeat wants the younger audience to take away

Possible Questions:

1. How does the BBC attract new audiences with radios like Newsbeat
2. Assess how Newsbeat appeals to modern media audiences
3. How does Newsbeat appeal to younger audiences
4. How is Newsbeat regulated

Facts about Newsbeat

1. BBC is funded by TV licences from the public through hypothecated tax
2. Newsbeat is a Public Service Broadcast (PSB)
3. Target audience of younger people – teenagers and ‘twentysomethings’ – 84% are 12 – 15 ages
4. The fifteen-minute Newsbeat programme is broadcast at 12:45 and 17:45 during the week
5. John Reith was the BBC’s first general manager when it was set up as the British Broadcasting Company in 1922
6. Newsbeat is also available to watch online afterwards
7. The stories Newsbeat include stories on things like TikTok, education and celebrities such as Stormzy and Kanye West. Clearly appealing to a younger audience.
8. Regulated by Ofcom.
9. Ethos of the BBC – To educate, Inform, Entertain
10. How new technologies are used to upkeep with modern social and physical advancements