BBC Case Study
Basic details
What do the letters BBC stand
for?
British
Broadcasting Corporation
How is the BBC funded?
The
BBC is funded by people purchasing TV licences
What is the BBC's famous
mission statement? (Clue: it's three words)
Inform,
Educate, Entertain
What is
BBC1's programme remit?
BBC One's
remit is to be the BBC's most popular mixed-genre television service across the
UK, offering a wide range of high quality programmes
How does the BBC News at Six
fit into BBC1's remit?
Presenters
Who are the presenters of BBC News at Six?
Fiona Bruce, Sophie
Raworth, Huw Edwards
What are the presenters wearing? What does
this communicate to the audience?
The presenters are wearing formal clothing
such as suits for men and dresses for females. This suggests to the audience
that they are professionals and that they care about their job.
Why might a TV News programme use a variety
of presenters?
TV news might use a
variety of TV presenters because it prevents the channel from looking the same
every day and every other presenter has different stories to tell than the
others.
How are other reporters or presenters used
in the TV news programme?
Other reporters in
the programme are used to be journalists and live interviews.
Is there a balance between male and female
presenters? What about race/ethnicity? What effect might these aspects have on
an audience?
BBC at Six presenters is all white; there are no black
people or no Asian people. This would re-enhance stereotypes. This would suggest that the BBC is known for
being middle classed and mainly white which would fit the white stereotypes.
Running order
Watch the first
15 minutes of the programme – as recent as you can find.
What is the top
story?
Tesco loosing £6 billion
How long does the
top story last for?
5 minutes and 40 seconds
What are the
other stories the programme does or will cover? List them in the order they are
presented in (the ‘running order’).
Images/video from the Hatton garden robbery is shown
Paedophile that has targeted babies and children
Europe has to help migrants from other countries more
Election
Migrants drowned in the Mediterranean
Nepal Earthquake
How long is each
story shown for?
Each story lasts around 6 minutes. Expect election which lasts around 15
minutes.
Why do you think
each story was shown for the time it was?
To give the audience enough information as they need to know and in that
time space so the programme can finish on time.
Audience
What is the
target audience for this BBC News at Six? Research online – you should be able
to find plenty of suggestions to the target audience if not the official target
audience of the programme.
The target audience for the BBC at Six is mainly for families and a wide
range audience as it is broadcasted at 6.
What are the viewing figures for BBC News at Six?
What are the viewing figures for BBC News at Six?
The viewing figures for BBC news at six are 4.3 million.
Why might someone
choose to watch this TV news programme over others?
Someone may choose to watch BBC instead because the BBC use more modern
technology which would allow the audience to understand the news more clearer
than the other news channels. Also the BBC broadcasts the news differently to
other news channels.
Is there an
opportunity for the audience to get involved in the programme or comment?
The BBC has a social media and a website where the audience can create
accounts and post comments, questions, improvements & complements.
What audience
pleasures (Uses and Gratifications theory – Blumler and Katz) does the
programme offer?
Opening sequence
Analyse the opening 2 minutes of the programme.
Analyse the opening 2 minutes of the programme.
What is the very first shot?
The
very first shot is the channel intro, with moving images and background music
How does the opening sequence use graphics or
images to grab the attention of the audience?
The
opening sequence grabs the audience’s attention because the tune in the
background is catchy and the moving images catch the audience’s eyes.
How is music used in the opening sequence?
The
music is used to show rhythm every time the moving graphics change and could be
used to show BBC goes worldwide.
How are news stories introduced in the
opening two minutes? Is there just one story or are the audience told what will
be coming up later?
The audience is told what news will be coming up later in
the programme.
Studio mise-en-scene
What aspects of
the studio can be seen by the audience?
The cameras, microphones, lights above the studio is shown when the
camera goes towards the main presenter on screen.
Are the
presenters standing or behind desks? Why do you think this is?
The presenter is sitting down at first to give the audience what news is
coming up and is standing up later to express them more clearly. And that they
can use the massive screen to show animated graphics.
Are journalists
or technology visible? What might these things suggest to the audience?
The technology is shown when the camera is moving towards the presenter
on screen, this suggests to the audience that BBC that they are about to go
live and to show the BBC is using modern technology.
How does the
studio use colour?
The studio uses red and white to show some brightness towards
the programme and to make stand out.
How news stories are presented
How does the news programme typically present
a story?
The
programme presents stories by slowly giving details and would use a big screen
to add more detail and to show animated graphics such as graphs.
What difference techniques does the programme
use to present the news? (E.g. presenter to camera, reporter on location,
interviews, graphics, images, video etc.)
They
use presenter to camera, reporter on location, live interviews, graphics and
images. They also interview members of the public to give their opinion.
What types of news does the TV News programme
typically cover? Give five examples (e.g. politics, international, sport etc.)
BBC covers
worldwide news, politics, sport, education & business
Give two real examples of how news stories
are presented to keep the interest of the audience.
The way they presented the Tesco loss, BBC at six used
interviews with the main CEO of Tesco to give his opinion of the situation,
they use modern technology so it is easy for the audience to understand what is
happening on screen. This keeps in the interest of the audience as it is easy
to understand and to keep up.
BBC at Six used modern technology to present the Nepal
Earthquake which killed around 7,000 people; they used drones to get a wide
shot to broadcast to the audience and show them the situation as if they were
there. This keeps in the interest of the audience as it is easy for them to
understand and is devastating news to hear about.
Institution
What other news
programmes and services does the BBC offer in addition to the BBC News at Six?
BBC one, BBC two, BBC three, BBC four, CBBC, CBeebies, BBC breakfast,
BBC parliament, BBC Alba, BBC red button, BBC London, BBC at ten, Newsnight,
BBC world news.
What role does
OFCOM have in making sure TV News is fair and accurate?
Ofcom is the TV regulator that makes sure all TV programmes follow the
rules set by Ofcom, if they refuse; their licence to broadcast will be taken
away. However the BBC doesn’t use Ofcom, they use BBC trust which is to make
sure the news is reported accurately and balanced.
The BBC has been
accused of 'dumbing down' the News at Six. What does this mean? Do you agree
with the accusation that the news is 'dumbed down'?
`Dumbing down` is meant by using more modern technology to
show the news and making it easier to understand. They also use more animated
graphics to make it more understandable.
I agree that the BBC at six has dumbed down their news. But
mostly so the audience can understand what goes on clearer. BBC at six is
mostly a family programme, so they would use more modern technology to
understand the news better.
TV News and New/Digital Media
Does the TV News
programme have a dedicated website?
No, BBC at six does not have a dedicated website but has an actual BBC
news website.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/
What does the
website offer viewers?
They have replays of the shows, pictures etc
Does the TV News
programme have a Twitter feed?
BBC at six does not have their own twitter feed but they do use the
normal BBC twitter
@BBCNews
How does the
Twitter feed promote the programme?
They show clips from the episode, stories and from other BBC channels
too.
Is there an
opportunity for the audience to get involved in the programme or submit news
stories?
Yes, the audience can comment on any post and they can see
the other feeds when the BBC post new things on their website.
