June Mock Revision - Q2

Component 1B

Question: Explore the ways in which production, distribution and circulation have shaped the newspapers you have studied. Make reference to The Daily Mirror and The Times. [15]

• James Curran & Jean Seaton 
• Conglomeration
• The media is controlled by a small number of companies primarily driven by the profit and power. Media concentration limits variety, creativity and quality. More social diverse patterns of ownership can create more varied and adventurous media productions.

• Sonia Livingstone and Peter Lunt
• Regulation
• The increasing power of global media corporations, together with the rise of convergent media technologies and transformations in the production, distribution and marketing of digital media, have placed traditional approaches to media regulation at risk.

• David Hesmondhalgh
• The Cultural Industries
• Media producers try to minimise risk and maximise audiences through vertical and horizontal integration, and by formatting their cultural products (eg. through the use of stars, genres and serials)

Trinity Mirror owns Daily Mail and recently has been rebranded as 'Reach'.

• Production
• The process of making a media product. Every industry has its own forms of production.

• Distribution
• The process of making a media product available to audiences so that they can consume it, which includes aspects of marketing such as creating an advertising campaign.

• Circulation
• A count of how many copies of a media product are distributed. This can include physical distribution and subscription.

Daily Mirror is a tabloid and The Times is a broadsheet, the main difference between the two is the size of the newspapers, tabloids are more popular than broadsheets.

Broadsheets are easier to understand with middle class citizens, as the broadsheets used jargon and assumes the audience will understand the current events and the 'slang' used as it is more of a formal upper class speech.

Daily Mirror costs 50p

The Times costs £1

The price difference between the tabloid and broadsheet is double, so more middle class citizens would buy The Times due to cultural capital.

Daily Mirror is left-wing and follows the labour party.

The Times is right-wing and follows the conservative party and is owned by Rupert Murdoch.

• Technological Change
• Newspapers circulation is decreasing as more news is becoming available for free on websites so everyone is viewing the news for free on websites rather than going out and buying a newspaper.

Print-Based Media vs Online Media

• Print Based Media
• Disadvantages
• Inconvenient, have to leave your house.
• Generational issue (new generation isn't buying print based media)
• Can only see one opinion
• Advantages
• Can be seen anywhere, no battery no wifi.
• Employs much more people than Online Media.

• Online Media
• Disadvantages
• Need internet to read.
• People get made redundant as they dont need as many people.
• Advantages
• Can see many opinions in the comments section of a post.
• Allows newspaper producers to target people who do not normally buy newspapers.

IPSO regulate the newspapers, IPSO is not fit for purpose, and they can twist the rules and get away with it especially when it comes to online media. The comment section will not be regulated as citizens will use offensive comments that are discriminating others, yet they will get away with it as it is all online.

15 MARKS

Power and Media Industries - James Curran and Jean Seaton

Power and Media Industries - James Curran and Jean Seaton

• 'Diversity is in the public interest - but modern societies suffer from collective attention deficit disorders[...] the public interest has to work harder to be noticed, and we need agile but resourceful media to do that.' - James Curran and Jean Seaton

• In this day in age, we get distracted by our phones, and constantly check them throughout the day, it is digital technology, they in which have connection to the wifi therefore resourceful, attracting the audience.

• Monopoly - The exclusive ownership or control of something.

Who owns UK newspapers?

• Conglomerate - a large corporation consisting of multiple smaller companies.
• Subsidiaries - a smaller company owned by a large corporation.

Curran and Seaton on Monopoly

• Advantages to forming a Monopoly
• reduces competition
• audience manipulation
• 'It [extends] their range of business and political connections, [increases] their corporation's prestige and, through audacious editoral appointments, [contributes] to the maintenance of public opinion favourable to private enterprise.' - James Curran and Jean Seaton 
• It is essential to remember that conglomerate are primarily driven by the logic of profit and power.

• Issues with conglomeration
• Not much diversity
• Make their products look great
• e.g News Corp own 20th Century Fox and The Sun so when 20th Century Fox release a new movie they'll use the Sun to give it good 'fake' reviews.

• Key Facts with conglomerates and monopoly
• Having a monopoly means domination of multiple media industries
• If the focus on creating profit, generally conglomerates dont take risks with the media products that they produce.
• This often results in limited variety, creativity and quality.

• 'Anti-monopoly media regulation is needed not only to maintain fair competition but also to prevent the distortion of democracy.' - James Curran and Jean Seaton 

 What are the alternatives to conglomerate ownership?

• Partnership opposed to ownership
• Limit on how many companies you can own
• Boycott
• Make our own media

• 'Media policy should seek[...] to create the conditions of greatest possible competition, thus enabling consumers to exercise sovereign control. This produces media that people want, a wide range of choice, and media independence from government.' - James Curran and Jean Seaton

• Independent Producer
• free from outside control

• Institution
• A media industry with its own identity. 

• Industry
• The whole media industry