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According to imdb there are 270,341 documentary type productions from the year 1880 to now. In

that 270,341 there are 24,301 TV documentaries and in that are 1,541 short TV documentaries.

MBC quoted The television documentary is an adaptable form of nonfiction programming that has

served various functions throughout the medium's history: as a symbol of prestige for advertisers and

networks, a focal point for national attention on complex issues, a record of the human experience

and the natural world, and an instrument of artistic and social expression. Unlike other programming

on British television, documentaries have typically been sustained for reasons other than high ratings

and ad sales. Consequently, the health of the documentary form serves as an indicator of a network's

commitment to news and as a barometer of social, political, and economic dynamics.

The documentary thrived on public television in the 1980s. Cable television has made a substantial

commitment to noncontroversial documentaries since the mid-80s. The Arts and Entertainment

Network, formed in 1984, features documentaries, as does The Discovery Channel, launched in 1985.

To date none of the cable documentaries has attracted the viewership of their network counterparts,

nor have they tackled sensitive issues on a regular basis.

This conforms to what has been a recurring relationship in the documentary experience and suggests

another way in which the tone and frequency of documentaries reflect American culture: The greater

the national emphasis on marketplace, the less likely it is for commercial documentaries to excel as

craft or grapple with complex problems and suggest social action. The more the nation emphasizes

public service, the greater the networks' commitment to documentary art and its ability to be a tool

for social justice.

A mockumentary is a type of film or television show in which fictional events are presented in

documentary style to create a parody. These productions are often used to analyze or comment on

current events and issues by using a fictional setting, or to parody the documentary form itself. They

may be either comedic or dramatic in form, although comedy mockumentaries are more common.

Channel Average Daily Reach

000s %

Monthly Reach

000s %

Average Weekly Viewing

Hrs:min per person

Share

%

Research into Market and

Competitors

7/28/2019 Research into Market and Competitors

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From this data you can see that E4 alone has the most average daily views out of all the programmes

and if you add all of comedy central together E4 is still on top. Although on the monthly reach BBC 3

have more views singly than E4 and comedy central. BBC 3 and E4 are very similar but in this case E4

have a repeat programme that would boost my views instantly because people are bound to watch

it if they missed it beforehand. Therefore I am choosing to broadcast on E4 because I will have a

bigger and wider distribution than Trailer Park Boys did on showcase purely because I have the extra

channel that is proven to be watched a lot.

BBC 3 3,547 6.1 15,488 26.8 0:20 1.3

E4 3,602 6.2 12,186 21.1 0:20 1.3

E4 +1 1,753 3.0 7,217 12.5 0:09 0.6

Comedy Central 1,154 2.0 4,764 8.3 0:07 0.4

Comedy Central

+1414 0.7 2,001 3.5 0:02 0.1

Comedy Central

Extra290 0.5 1,270 2.2 0:01 0.1

Comedy Central

Extra +1 67 0.1 323 0.6 * *