Section BExam Preparation: Mock exam Friday 28th PM

Assessment Feedback

You need to discuss audience theories and make

sure you name check them (you should definitely

be referring to the uses and gratifications theory

and Dyer’s Utopian solutions theory)

In your opening paragraph you need to explain

which channel the sitcoms are aired on and who

the target audience are

You need to be able to discuss how the profiles

of BBC1 and BB3 are different every though they are produced by the same institution

You need to discuss the implications of both

channels being part of a public service broadcasting company

Use should explain how BBC3 is planned to switch

to digital only and how this shows us who the

target audience are and how they ‘use’ the

media

You must refer to specific textual analysis

examples when discussing both programmes as

evidence for your points

Star appeal- Dyer’s theory of star persona is

important for both sitcoms, you need to explain

how the stars who both write and act in both

sitcoms appeal to a specific target audience

Key media terminology! You

must include the following

terms:

Watershed

Inheritance

Stripping

Channel ethos

PSB

Scheduling

Niche

Mass

Stereotypes

Representation

PRIME TIME

ZONING

STRIPPING

Task- Your Guide to Getting an A Grade in the Exam

You are going to look at the mark

scheme for the exam and write a

guide to what you need to do to

get full marks in this section of the

paper.

Question 1

Discuss in detail how and why two programmes

you have studied were scheduled on one or

more channels. State the day, time and channel

on which the programme was scheduled.

Institutional Information

Public service broadcasting

The UK has 5 public service television broadcasters. These broadcasters receive benefits like the licence fee (in the case of the BBC), guaranteed access to the spectrum (or section of the airwaves) they need for broadcasting, and prominence on TV electronic programme guides. In return they commit to providing services that give a benefit to the public, like news, local programming or cultural content. The public service television broadcasters in the UK are:

The BBC, a public corporation, funded mainly by the television licence fee

Channel 4, a public corporation self-funded by advertising

S4C, a public corporation broadcasting in Wales and funded by a combination of BBC funding, government grant and advertising

Channels 3 and 5, whose licences are held by commercial television companies funded by advertising (currently for Channel 3, ITV in England and Wales, STV in Scotland and UTV in Northern Ireland)

The BBC’s Royal Charter sets up their independence and defines what it does. The charter is reviewed every 10 years, with the current charter running out at the end of 2016. The BBC Trust regulates the BBC on behalf of the licence-fee payers. The chair of the Trust is appointed by the government. The current BBC Royal Charter says that the BBC should be funded by the fees paid for TV licences. If you watch or record TV programmes as they’re broadcast you need to buy a TV Licence.

Explain how BBC1 and BBC3 are funded and regulated

Channel Ethos

What is the channel ethos for BBC1 and BBC3,

find examples of programmes which fit the remit

of the channel

Who are the target audience for BBC1 and

BBC3?

What needs do these audiences have which are

met by these channels?

How is BBC3 changing next year? How does this fit the needs of its target audience?

How have the two texts

which you have studied

been scheduled?

targeting audiences

placement between texts

scheduling strategies (e.g. stripping schedules)

competition between institutions

repeating texts on related channels/stations.

Question 2

Compare the audience pleasures offered by two

comedy programmes. Give examples from the

programmes.

Brain storm your initial response to this question

Audience Pleasures

Big school & Bad Education. Compare and

contrast the following:

Target audience (who are they and what would be their main aim for watching the programme)

Uses and Gratifications

Dyer’s Utopian Solutions

Maslow’s Hierarchy