BBC case study

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?

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.

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.