TV News Assignment - Window On The World

Is TV News a "window on the world"?


TV news is by law supposed to be impartial. This meaning that the news is not supposed to be covered up or any of it hidden. At the start of the news there is an intro, these usually show a world, clocks, rushing graphics and words in gold. The world and clocks are usually transparent, like the news is supposed to be. However the news isn't like this at all, they like to believe that they give a "window on the world", however they have people that select the news and usually pick between 5-10 stories that they pick from the start of the day, once these are chosen, the ones that are seen as "less important" and thrown into the "bin of history". This meaning that these stories will never be shown on the news. Things that happen in other countries are usually pushed aside a bit more than they are when the happen here, this is because people believe that things that happen over here are more current and don't necessarily want to see what happens in other countries. However sometimes stories come through during the day which can change the whole schedule and stories that would've been in the line up then would be left out and put into the "bin of history".


Galtung and Ruge have 12 news values that they formed:
Frequency - Short term events like murders are preferred over long-term developments like a famine. The recent terror events that have happened in both London and Manchester would fall within this category, however, because of the amount of deaths, and the affects that they have caused, they stay in the news for a lot longer, but start to gradually get less and less time on the news, usually until an anniversary. 

Threshold - Basically the size of an event indicates his importance.

Ambiguity - Events do not have to be simple but they must be accessible to the public - e.g. simplified by the media.

Meaningfulness - Divided into two categories after Galtung and Ruge’s "Familiarity": a) cultural proximity, in which the event agrees with the outlook of a specific culture; b)
relevance, where events will be reported and discussed if they seem to have an impact on the "home" culture, especially a threat.

Consonance - Or "correspondence" where the familiar is more likely to be thought than the unfamiliar. This would be where things that are usually terror events would be in the news, instead of things that happen within the community, or special events like children in need. 

Unexpectedness - Or "surprise" where it is the rarity of an event which leads to its circulation in the public domain. Due to notes, the "newness" of the event is usually processed through a familiar context. It has to work with 4 and 5. In the news recently there has been a weird story that wouldn't usually occur where an octopus took on a seal, which i have linked. 

Continuity - once a story achieves importance will be continued to be covered for some time.

Composition - This is to provide a sense of balance, gloomy news with good news, foreign with domestic. Because of the terror acts in the news recently and the fire and Grenfell Tower, there would have to have been a lot of good stories in the news to attempt to balance this out, e.g. there was an open farm day in around Norfolk for people to go look at the animals and walk around the farms.

Reference to elite nations - Events are more likely to be reported if they occur in the developed world; the threshold system would apply for developing countries’ events to be reported.

Reference elite people - The famous and the powerful are more newsworthy than ordinary people. After the fire at Grenfell Tower, Lily Allen, a singer who used to live in that area was interviewed, and slated the media for tying to hide the amounts of deaths there had actually been. However there wasn't many or any interviews with people who weren't "elite persons".

Personalisation - Events are seen as actions of people as individuals; an institution may be personalized by reference to a prominent person within that organisation.

Negativity - Bad news is good for the press and TV news; the threshold is much lower for bad news than for good news. Recently there has been a fire in London at Grenfell Tower, where the council or government didn't help out with clearing up and helping people, it was mostly the people who lived their and the neighbourhood coming together and helping each other. This was covered by the news and the council and government were shown up by this. 
The website i found this video on.


Gatekeeping is where information is filtered for distribution, whether it be for publication, broadcasting, the internet, or some other mode of communication. Gatekeeping is a mix of communication studies, journalism, political science and sociology. Gatekeeping was originally intended for mass media, however the gatekeeping theory has now been put into face-to-face communication. News sources come from all over the world, however are usually only within a specific area of what they believe is news worthy. This is usually things that are happening in the UK, and most first world countries. It would have to be quite big for something to get on the news from a less developed country, as this is seen as less important, as they (the people that select what goes onto the news) believe that it isn't current. This goes onto the next point of how news is selected and who it's selected by. In the morning, teams of editors, directors and news gathers, all go to one room and discuss what they believe is news worthy, and whatever is picked, goes into the news that we see, however, what we don't see goes into the "bin of history". This goes onto things like war. Because war goes on for long periods of time, it is not always on the news as it isn't current, and continues over a long time, there is updates throughout it saying about how its getting on and deaths, however they have to be careful and are monitored about what they say as they could give something away to the people that they are fighting. The people that usually select what goes onto the news are usually around there 50s-60s, white, British and would've worked in the news team for a long time. Because of this, the news would also be picked within their interests and what they like. One other thing that can affect what is put onto the news is late breaking stories. Depending on how severe the news story is, would depend on whether it would get into the news, e.g. recently there was a terror attack in Manchester, and the morning after, there was news coverage all over it, repeating themselves constantly, however providing new information when they received it. Because of something like that, things could be taken out of the news line up, that were previously in it, ready to be aired, would be taken out and put into the "bin of history". Finally one more thing that can affect what is aired would be technical difficulties. These could affect the line up as they would take time to fix, and the news is broadcasted over a certain length of time. So if they had technical difficulties, they would have to cut stories out to fit in other stories in, which they believe are more important.


Conclusion:

Overall the idea of TV news being a "window on the world" is false. The law states that the news is supposed to be impartial, however is biased towards things that they believe are more important. So to answer the question, "Is TV news a window on the world?", no, it really isn't. The news is covered up and gives you the information that they want you to see, there is some truth in what they show, however, it isn't truly impartial.

Connotations Of a TV Starting Sequence

The typical things used in a TV starting sequence are:

• Rushing graphics and camera movements - This connotes urgency, as the news has to be delivered to you quickly.
• Transparent objects and eyes - Unchanged, unbiased, gives you the news as it is.
• The world from space - Covering the entire world so it isn't seen as biased, and nothing is left out.
• Landmarks and cities - These show importance, but usually politics.
• Clocks - Represent time and how the news is given to you at certain times and quickly.
• Technology and satellites - Using all the available technology to deliver you the news as fast as possible.
• Fast paced music - Brass instruments are usually used to grab the attention of the audience.
• Male voice-overs - A male voice-over is seen as powerful and connotes authority, especially a man in the age between 50-60.
• Metallic blues and strong reds - This connotes offices over Britain, e.g. the conservatives are blue and Labour are red. 

Rushing Graphics: https://youtu.be/D-10C9n74J0

Transparent Objects and Clocks: https://youtu.be/06nLTjHlId4

The World From Space: https://youtu.be/rajwNwpZgpg

Landmarks and Cities: https://youtu.be/TK7nKfZX4HU

Technology and Satellites: https://youtu.be/eyNUHO7d3Oc









Male voice-overs: https://youtu.be/x5PUlWS8g14

Metallic Blues and reds: https://youtu.be/JFY-MHKbJ10









Presenters/Newsreaders are meant to deliver the news "transparently" to the viewers. They are supposed to be impartial, serious and subdued. They must have limited facial expressions and not give any form of opinion or be seen as biased. They must stick to the story. It must be a Standard English, Welsh or Scottish accent because other accents or ways of talking could carry the wrong connotations. They must look directly at the camera when talking to address the audience. The newsreader must also be ready sitting behind the desk, ready to deliver the news.

Documentary Formats

Introduction:

What is a documentary?
Using pictures or interviews with people involved in real events to provide a factual report on a particular subject - Google's definition. 
I would define a documentary as something where somebody does interviews and collects information from interviews and pictures, and puts them into a film, known as a documentary - my definition.

Expository Documentary:
An expository documentary is when the documentary speaks directly to viewer, providing information through a voice and subtitle. These films usually have a rich male voice. An example of an expository would be Planet Earth with David Attenborough presenting it, with a rich male voice.



Observational Documentary:
Observational documentaries are where the people film an event and have minimal interference with this event. They try to make it seem like the camera isn't even there, and if people are being filmed. Then for them to just completely ignore the camera. An example of an observational documentary is D.A. Pennebaker’s Don’t Look Back (1967).



Interactive Documentary:
An interactive documentary moves away from traditional documentaries and uses all media tools, such as: photos, film and audio. The director or interviewer is able to mold there journey through documentary, mostly showing what they want, and showing what the people being filmed, may not want to be shown, which might make them look bad, even it is the truth. An example of an interactive documentary would be Louis Theroux's "Weird Weekends". If you don't have access to a certain place, it may be hard to actually film for the documentary. Louis Theroux in his "Scientology" documentary, isn't allowed entry to the studios so tries to deliver a letter there, and is instantly denied access and is told to go away. He combats not being allowed access by interviewing people who used to be Scientologists. This gives him an insight into what Scientology is like. This interviewing people who used to be part of something. is a way of getting access to information, when you've been denied access to get into somewhere. However, with privacy, some things can't be filmed and you have to respect this, even if it would make your documentary worse or shorter as you can't legally do it.


Reflexive Documentary:
A reflexive documentary is where it shows the "behind the scenes" where they show you the truths behind the film making and and all the editing. The filmmaker is a part of the film, and performs a narrative for the film.  An example of a reflexive documentary would be "Stories We Tell", directed by Sarah Polley.



Performative Documentary:
A performative documentary links in with the emotional side of documentaries and subjective sides of a documentary, to present ideas in different ways for different people. An example of a performative documentary would be Jenny Livingston’s "Paris Is Burning (1991). Re-enactments are used because they didn't have the original clip at the time, but also the clip could be bad quality. This is why performative documentaries use re-enactments. Using these gives people an insight of what it was like to be there, but also gives people a video to go along with the a voice over.



Conclusion:
My documentary philosophy would be to always show and report back the truth, with no spin on ayhting, no hatred or any biased views towards something, i would like to show things how they are as if not, there could be things taken from the documentary in a bad way or could end up creating false information or new stereotypes, or even bring back old stereotypes. So if i were to make a documentary, I would report and show the truth as i believe thats what documentaries should be, and not create any false information. 

Pre-Production/Research Dossier Work For Football Documentary

For our production, our idea was going to be using the topic of football and the issues surrounding becoming pro. Our initial idea was that we would show the struggles and important factors that could influence someones success in becoming a professional footballer. We would interview some more successful footballers who we know and talk about the struggles which they are facing. 

For our primary research we have planned to interview one of my friends "Megan Bartlett" as she is currently suffering from an injury which is stopping her from playing professionally for Norwich FC ladies.We will also use some of the F2 Freestylers footage to show that it is very difficult to go pro, especially when they cannot go pro with how talented they are in football. We will start off the documentary with some slow motion skills and shots in a montage to draw people in and show an interest in the documentary. We have decided that we will be using Flegg High Schools 3G Football Pitch for our venue. We will not need a storyboard as it is a documentary. Injuries will be a huge part of this however, we will be showing the strain on people and the age they should go into professional football. We may include the hardships which people have been through to become a professional footballer; Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi. The photo below is an example of production research. https://www.youtube.com/user/F2Freestylers

Interviewees:
-Peter Macnaughton
-Billy Randell

Possible Interviewees:
-Billy Cousin

Approximate areas covered by level 8 of the League System. The Red shades cover the Northern Premier League; the Blue shades cover the Southern League; Green and Yellow cover the Isthmian League.

I went onto google to find out how many clubs were in English football, and it gave me a Wikipedia page listing every semi-professional and professional clubs in England, ranging from the Premier League (level 1) and all the way down to Southern Counties East League Division One (level 10). This would be secondary research. Wikipedia is also a data gathering agency. 

For footballers at the top of the professional game, the early weeks of a new season are a time of giddy excitement.

For some, the summer may have brought a dream move to a big club, or the expectation of one imminently as the final days of the transfer window loom. For others, promotion might have brought greater financial rewards and the chance to challenge for some of the game's biggest prizes.

These are the dreams young footballers nurture, but the reality - for the majority of professional footballers - is very different.

The Professional Footballers' Association (PFA) estimates that each summer, about 700 players are released by their clubs, causing upset and uncertainty.

"The biggest attrition rate is undoubtedly among young players," says Oshor Williams of the PFA's education department, which offers support and training to prepare them for a life outside professional football.

"Of those entering the game aged 16, two years down the line, 50% will be outside professional football. If we look at the same cohort at 21, the attrition rate is 75% or above.

"Most of these kids don't have a Plan B. It can be very unnerving to find yourself having to move into a completely different world."

A player must be at least nine years old to join an Academy, but many clubs - such as Arsenal - have development groups which cater for even younger players.

Yes. Strict new rules have been brought in to prevent clubs signing young players who live outside their catchment area.

Under 12's must live within an hour's travelling distance from the club, or 90 minutes for players aged 13-16.

At the Crystal Palace Academy, youngsters train three times a week - one and a half hours on Tuesday evenings and Thursday evenings and an hour on Saturday mornings. On Sundays, they play matches against other Academy teams. That could mean up to 28 games a season.

The average attendance for a premier league game is around 35,000 people, ranging all the way from 24,521-55,124. These statistics were all taken from http://www.worldfootball.net/attendance/eng-premier-league-2015-2016/3/.

For location recces we did our whole film in the college sports hall so didn't need to take photos, we also used another room in the college which is W16 to film our interviews. We spoke to the caretakers and sport teachers about using the areas and they said we could so didn't have any pieces of paper proving this. 

For our documentary, we needed: Camera, tripod, shoulder mount, football and SD card. We didn't have a schedule we were going by, we just aimed to get everything done before the date and this is what we did. 

If you want to film on public land you will need permission from the appropriate local authority or council. They are responsible for public land, public buildings, roads and parking. You will need the full co-operation of the local police force if you plan to film on a public highway or use special effects, explosives or fire arms (including replicas). You will also need permission to portray uniformed police officers or marked police vehicles on film. Before filming on a public road you must contact the local police and the Highways Department of the local authority. Both will need to make sure that your plans are safe and pose no threat to road users. If you plan to stage stunts, a stunt coordinator should be involved in any planning discussions. Also if you film an actor inside a store or restaurant, you need written permission to use the location and also to show the chain’s name or trademark. 

Production research and paperwork

Qualitative: This is the gathering of information in a non numerical form. This is usually descriptive data and is harder to study because of this. Diary accounts and questionnaires which you can't answer with simple yes's or no's are all examples of this. Qualitative research is also primary research, and is used to help understand underlying reasons, opinions and motivations. 

Quantitative: This is where you use numbers to gain data, which then be changed into statistics. It is usually used to record: opinions, attitudes and behaviors, and helps create an easier way to see how a larger group of people feel about it. Questionnaires are usually used, e.g. you could be doing a documentary like we were doing and ask people what they would think of a documentary about football, and ask them what they think about football as a whole. Another example would be if you asked someone what they think of a game and ask them to tare it out of 10. This would be quantitative, and asking them about what their favourite thing about the game is, this would be qualitative, however, after everything has been collected, it would  become quantitative.

Audience research: This would link into what I said about asking people what they thought about a game. You could ask people in a city and get them to fill out physical copies of questionnaires, or could send them out to people online to get them to fill them out. By gaining information from the public, would allow you to see what they like the most, and the sort of things they would be interested in. Audiences can be categorised demographically, through categories like age, class, gender etc, or psychographically, through their interests and opinions.

Market Research: This is where you talk about other products, within the market that you are looking at going into. Because we did a football documentary, it would only be fair to talk about the best footballer in the world, Cristiano Ronaldo. Cristiano has had a documentary about him, following his life, how he got to where he got, and his humble upbringing. From rags to riches. The Ronaldo documentary was released in a cinema in London a day early, where he attended the event, and a lot of YouTubers, particularly FIFA YouTubers where invited to go and see the movie early.  The documentary was filmed between January 2014,  and February 2015 and shows a ballon d'or win within the documentary.