| THEME | NEWSBEAT | WAR OF THE WORLDS |
| OWNERSHIP | BBC, PSB, Government, BBC board of trustees ?? DG (Lord Reith), BBC multi-media / cross-media, transnational / transglobal, not a monopoly, concentration of ownership (ie small number of firms who own TV and radio even though there are lots of different stations) I think the BBC has a left wing libertarian ideology ??? | CBS, Private company, Multi or cross media Conglomerate, transnational / transglobal (??), monopoly (???), it is an example of concentration of ownership ie just a few companies own everything (oligopoly ?? / cartel ??), vertical / horizontal integration ??? |
| HABERMAS | Transformation of the public sphere – media is constantly changing BBC keeping up. BBC intention enshrined in their ethos to inform, entertain and educate. Not to make money or profit – they put money back into programmes so Quality is important. I think this fits into Habermas notion of transforming the public Therefore the BBC is more paternalistic – what you need not what you want (this is tricky) | Most private business are aimed at making a profit – I think private business don’t care about the public, I think they care about profit. so they are more concerned with entertainment than education. Just for profit is a commercial ethos – not in the spirit of Habermas |
| CHOMSKY | ||
| CURRAN | James Curran writes about the ideas that underpin The Liberal Free Press, but much can apply to transformation of Public Sphere (Habermas) which in turn connects to ethos of PSB | some general ideas: 1. concerns about the commercial interest of big companies (prioritising profits over social concerns) 2. concentration of ownership – although not monopolies, the small number of big companies is not good for 3. competition 4. Diverse range of voices (plurality) 5. audience choices |
| SEATON | Seaton makes us aware of the power of the media in terms of big companies who own too much. commercial Seaton also makes clear that broadcasters selling audiences to products NOT audiences to programmes (ie no adverts on BBC) therefore BBC not chasing big exaggerated stories Newsbeat seeking informed citizens who want knowledge accountability – ie who looks after the BBC and makes sure it does what it is supposed to do: Annan Report 1980 “on balance the chain of accountability is adequate” independence – ie keeping free from state control “without a commitment to public service, broadcasters are increasingly vulnerable to political interference” | Seaton talks about rise and inevitable need for competition with new technologies – which provides choice Provides more entertainment for wider audiences ??? WoW targets mainstream entertainment seeking audiences the allusion of Choice – “Choice, without positive direction is a myth, all too often the market will deliver more -but only more of the same” |
| REGULATION | Ofcom, BBC Charter governed by Parliament, license fee regulates BBC as well. BBC / PSB ethos ‘to entertain, to inform and to educate’ (Reith) New technologies mean BBC faced with more competition NO advertising! | Federal Communications Commission as regulator for private business ie not necessarily in the public interest |
| AUDIENCE (ACTIVE / PASSIVE) | The audience for the BBC are more active and are encouraged to engage with the speakers on the radio shows. The audience often respond to media and are able to question the message sent by the hosts. | The audience for the War of the Worlds radio show is passive and are accepting of what the radio hosts say without engaging within topics and stories told to them. However, the audience were somewhat active as many had strong opinions about CBS ‘tricking’ their audience. |
| AUDIENCE (LAZARSFELD) | ||
| AUDIENCE (HALL) | ||
| NEW TECHNOLOGY | ||
| SPECIFIC TEXTUAL EXAMLES | Prince William and Kate presenting a special newsbeat edition on mental health Kanye article | blurred codes of drama and news. Programme starts with title music, announcer introduction ‘Mercury Theatre Company presents . . . ‘ followed by Orson Welles prologue to War of the Worlds .. . |
| ? | ||
| ? |
