Research

- Analysis of Modern Newspapers

Potential target audience

Tabloid newspapers tend to be 11 inches by 17 inches which is usually about 5 columns across, which is narrower than a broadsheet newspaper. Since tabloids are smaller, their stories tend to be shorter than those found in broadsheets. While broadsheet readers tend to upscale suburbanites, tabloid readers are often working-class residents of big cities. Many city dwellers prefer tabloids because they are easy to carry and read on the bus. The social class for a tabloid newspaper is most probably a person within the working-class. This is because they are cheaper than the everyday broadsheet newspapers. 

Tabloid newspapers are usually cheaper in price as a marketing technique to get a larger audience. In addition to this, the newspaper's main audience will be of the working-class. It can be shown that they neglect paying more money for a broadsheet newspaper, when they can pay less for a tabloid. It can also be seen that the working-class are more likely to purchase a tabloid newspaper because they usually write about the lives of celebrities and/or dramatic stories. This gives the people of working-class escapism from the 'real world.' As tabloid newspapers don't write about political views, the working-class can escape from the everyday lives.

 

Potential target audience

"The Times" is an example of a broadsheet newspaper. A broadsheet newspaper is the most common format for a newspaper. It is typically 11/12 inches by 20 inches, which is bigger than the standard tabloid newspaper. Broadsheet newspapers are usually six columns across. Beyond their size, broadsheet newspapers tend to employ a traditional approach to news that highlights the in-depth coverage of the local news. Broadsheet readers often tend to be fairly affluent and educated , with many of them living in the suburbs. The target audience will most probably be middle/upper-class, this is because broadsheet newspapers usually write about political views. Broadsheet newspapers are generally more expensive than tabloid newspapers, this is because middle/upper-class people won't mind so much spending a little more money for their newspaper. This audience do not tend to look for escapism from reading newspapers, they usually want to know what's happening in the community. "The Times" have used a serif font which gives the newspaper's front page a very formal layout, which is neatly presented for their audience. I am going to be using a serif font in my newspaper also, because it is a typical convention for broadsheet newspapers.

Broadsheet newspapers are used to address the audience in a formal manner. My partner and I feel that this is the best way to approach our target audience, so therefore our local newspaper will be in a broadsheet format, because we feel that our audience deserve to be treated in a formal manner.

- Analysis of Local Newspapers

Bad news headlines

After analysing local newspapers, much like this one, news that can be seen as shocking or sad are often headlines. 'My ceiling could've killed me,' 'village estate under threat' and 'democracy has gone down the pan' are stories based around sad and depressing news. This suggests that newspapers do this because it increases the chances of 'moral panics' with news spreading about certain topics. Creating a local newspaper that gives nice, cheerful and happy news seems like a good idea, especially during the festive season.

- Archaic Newspapers

This issue of "News of The World" was made in 1954 which was 60 years ago. There is a clear contrast between this issue and the modern issues of "News of The World." One of the differences is that there was no colored printing in those days. 

Back when there was no photography, sometimes a 'scribe' who would literally draw what had happened whether they were, crime scenes, scandals, etc. then the newspaper would print it for the newspaper.
Regardless whether this is an old issue or not, they have still used the basic features that modern newspapers use, such as:
- Using bigger text for the main articles, and smaller text for the smaller ones
- They have justified the text which gives the newspaper a formal presentation
- They also used advertisements on the top left and right of the cover

This is a good example of an archaic newspaper which was made in 1898, 116 years ago, before photography. This is completely different to the modern newspapers, as they do not use many of the basic features that is used in today's society. There is a lot of text on the front cover, many people looking at purchasing this would not read the key information on the cover from where they buy it from as they do today, but they would buy the newspaper to then read at home. They have also used a variety of drop capitals to start off an article; which is not used as much in the modern "Daily Mail." They have also used boxes to separate the different articles, whereas in the modern newspapers, they make the articles look separate by leaving a wider gap between them.

It is clear that "Daily Mail" have tried to keep the original logo (with some minor differences) from which they first started with. This is unique, because it is unlike any other newspaper I have seen before. When the readers first started reading the "Daily Echo" the logo was still the same as then, this is great use of brand recognition for all of the original readers. "Daily Mail" have used a serif font which adds to the formality of the newspaper.

- Roles within a Newspaper

Assignment Editor
Assignment editors are those directly responsible for specific section of the paper, such as city news, business, sports, features, etc. They are the editors who deal directly with reporters; they assign stories, work with reporters on their coverage, suggest angles and leads, and do the initial editing of reporters' articles.

Copy Editors
Copy editors usually get given the reporters' stories after they have been given an initial edit by the assignment editors. Then they edit the stories and sometimes they write headlines or do the layout themselves.

Managing Editor
The managing editor is the one who directly oversees the day-to-day operations of the newsroom. More than anyone else, usually they are the ones responsible for getting the paper out every day, ensuring that it's the best that it can be. Again, depending on the size of the paper, the managing editor may have a number of assistant managing editors responsible for specific sections of the paper, such as city news, sports, etc.

The Editor in Chief
The editor in chief is responsible for all aspects of the news operation, including the content of the paper, hiring, budgets, etc. The editor's involvement with the day-to-day running of the newsroom varies with the size of the paper. On small papers, the editor is very involved; on big papers, most probably less so.

Advertising Manager
This role is for the person who has overall responsibility for the advertising department within the newspaper. There are two key types of advertisements:
> Display Adverts - where the advertisement appears alongside regular editorial content. Generally used by businesses or corporations towards the promotion of their goods or services, who are generally larger budget clients.
> Classified Adverts - Smaller adverts in columns, covering jobs, courses, holidays and announcements.

Graphic Artist
This role within the newspaper is to produce informative graphics, charts, maps and diagrams to help explain the story visually to the readers. They create more interest for the reader by supporting the story, making it easier to understand.

The Publisher
The publisher is the boss, the person overseeing all of the aspects of the paper on both the editorial side of things as well as the business side. However, they will often have little or no involvement in the day-to-day operations of the newspaper.

Designer
Their role is to design the layouts for the newspaper, making sure it is up to standards; to attract the audience. The layout needs to reflect the overall image of the newspaper, this ensures that the target audience don't suddenly dislike the newspaper because they think it has changed. The presentation needs to stay the same each time to ensure that the audience is happy.

Photographer
This role is to take all the photographs for the newspaper. It is usually managed by the Chief Photographer who oversees all of the photos. They usually then report to the Photography Editor who then chooses what photos to go into the newspaper.

Reporter
Also known as a type of journalist, they obtain information and write the stories to then be put into the newspaper. Some reporters cover all subjects, but some may be for specific features in the newspaper such as, sports, news, crime etc. They often interview people to gather their information, which I will explain further below.

- How Journalists gather Information

Journalists for local newspapers investigate and report on events, issues and popular trends. They do this to inform their audience on what's happening in their community. The media platforms they tend to use is print, broadcast and online media. They write news stories based on recent events within the local area. 

When the journalist researches these stories, they need to gather the information for the preparation of the writing. All writers have to do this and they use three main tools to collect information for stories;

- Interviews
This is known as primary research. They interview either people with knowledge of the subject, or they will interview people who have witnessed what has happened and can give first hand experience of the events.

- Observation

They will observe the events by attending speeches, lectures and public addresses. They will sometimes conduct experiments; depending on what story they have to write about.

- Background research
This section consists of them conducting some secondary research, they do this by researching the internet or going to the library and read books based on the main story. They can then use this information to support their or other people's views about the story.

- British Newspapers

The average British newspaper uses a black and white colour scheme. With this in mind, newspapers such as "The Sun," "Daily Star" and "Daily Mirror" use a white on red masthead. This means that these three newspapers look very similar, however in 2002, the "Daily Mirror" once decided to have a vote on whether they should continue to use the same colour masthead as their competitors, the vote was 'evenly split.' "Piers Morgan" said in a speech "I can't believe regular Mirror readers would stop reading us because of the colour of the masthead." Regular readers of "The Mirror" however, may not be able to recognise the new coloured masthead; therefore it would be a risky move for them to change the colour scheme.

- Advertisement history for Newspapers

This research is specifically for adverts in old and modern newspapers.

An advertisement is something that promotes a product or service to the public. The development of advertisements over the years. This can be seen with the first advert to ever appear inside a newspaper. An announcement seeking a buyer for an Oyster Bay, Long Island, estate, is published in the Boston News-Letter. In comparison, early advertisements were at a disadvantage in contrast to now because technology has inevitably developed over time, which means that in modern society, a company looking to advertise their product or service can take high quality photographs; showing the audience their product or service, which will make their advertisement appealing to the readers. Whereas in 1704 there was no photography which meant that companies would have to use words advertise their product or service.

(This information was provided by adage.com)

There is a clear presentation difference between this archaic newspaper and the modern ones. Because there was no use of coloured printing, the newspaper doesn't stand out to the audience as much. Also, there was no such thing as tabloid newspapers; only broadsheet. This shows a difference in society also, in these days, people would only buy a newspaper to read about the news in their local area. There was no 'celebrity gossip' which shows how the audience's interests have developed over time.

Companies who are always interested in having their product or service advertised in a newspaper would do this by getting in contact with their chosen newspaper, and paying the amount required based on how popular the newspaper is. This is because, depending on how popular the magazine is, depends on how many people see the advertisement; therefore the newspaper will want more money for an advert to be placed in their newspaper if they have a large audience.

- Masthead Analysis

"The Sun" have used a white on red colour scheme for the masthead, which draws the audience's attention to the start of the newspaper. It is easy for the audience to see when the newspaper is on the shelves in the shops. They have used a bold, italic font which gives the newspaper a formal theme. They have used a sans serif font which gives makes the masthead look simple. 

"The Telegraph" have used a classic black on white colour scheme for their masthead. This already shows the audience that the newspaper is formal, this is highlighted by the use of serif font. This particular font looks archaic, which may suggest that their target audience are of an older demographic.

"The Independent" have used a serif font which gives the masthead a formal presentation. The use of all capital letters for their masthead draws the reader's attention. This draws the audience's attention to it which is an important aspect of brand recognition. They have also used a photograph of an eagle holding a copy of "The Independent" which is iconic.

"Metro" have used a white on blue colour scheme which again draws the reader's attention to the masthead; the use of all capitals highlight this. They have used a sans serif font which is bold. In the top left hand corner, they mention that this newspaper is free, this lets the reader know that they can feel free to take a copy free of price.

- Broadsheet Newspaper Masthead Analysis

Here I have analysed mastheads purely for broadsheet newspapers and what they have in common. The reasoning for me focusing on broadsheets is because I am interested in making my local newspaper a broadsheet because it provides information to an audience in a formal manner. This is important for a newspaper because it builds a rapport with the audience.

- Newspaper Demographics (Primary and Secondary Market Research)

     
It is clear that the average age of these newspapers shown are of the older generation (43-61). These newspapers have such a high average audience readership is because they are all broadsheet newspapers. (With the exception of 'The Daily Mail'). As broadsheet readers tend to be fairly affluent and educated; it is usually the middle-class/upper-class demographic that read these, and the older generations tend to take a greater interest into political views.

In this bar chart, "The Sun" and "The Mirror" have been added and they are both tabloid newspapers. This chart shows the percentage of newspaper readers who are under the age of 34 and unsurprisingly, the highest percentage are both of the tabloid newspapers. This is because tabloid newspapers show celebrity 'gossip' which appeals to a younger audience. My partner and I have decided that we are going to create a local newspaper that appeals to the younger audiences. Given that this bar chart provides information for audiences aged 34 and under, 34 is still quite a high age, therefore we think that going against the stereotype of newspapers being read by older people, we also believe there is a gap in the market for a newspaper for a younger audience.

Here is another chart, this one shows the audience's gender. Looking at the results, they show that the majority of the average reader are male; even if they are tabloid or broadsheet newspapers, the results still show this. My partner and I have acknowledged these results, as well as our primary market research; deciding that we should be aiming our newspaper at male and females. We feel that newspapers in today's society do this, we have decided this because the information we wish to give our audience shouldn't be aimed at a specific gender.

(These charts are provided by themediabriefing.com on the 14th August 2014) 

- How newspapers present their Material

In this issue of "The Sun" has used a medium shot of Nelson Mandela, which shows his hand clenching to make a fist. This is iconic for what he did by fighting for equal rights for different ethnic origins.The mise-en-scene of this photograph shows him wearing a suit which gives this cover a formal theme. The headline story is titled: 'Mandela Dead' which is arguable not the most respectful way to inform readers of his passing away, especially for someone who has done so much for this world. However this does highlight the fact that this is a shocking story. 

The "Daily Mirror" have used a medium close-up shot of Steven Sutton. A man who courageously fought cancer and raised £4,000,000 for charity. "Daily Mirror" have dedicated the cover of this newspaper to inform the readers of his death, in a kind and formal manner. This can be shown through the words such as 'inspired' and 'a credit to humanity' which is a very respectful way of informing readers of such a huge loss.

"The Sun" and the "Daily Mirror" are both tabloid newspapers. However there is a clear contrast as to how these newspapers present their material. "The Sun" have used the death of Nelson Mandela, a well-known figure, and presented it in a somewhat blunt manner. They have included a tribute to Mandela's death inside the newspaper but the audience will only read that once they have brought the newspaper. Whereas the "Daily Mirror" have done the opposite of this and have made the death of Stephen not focused on him passing, but on what he did for the world.

- Representation of Gender and Bias

Gender

As we live in a patriarchal society, it is important to see the differences between how men and women are portrayed in newspapers. It can be shown within newspapers that men are portrayed as being the more dominant gender, with the females as the passive gender who are dependent on males. This is stereotypical for newspapers however there are newspapers who break tradition and go against these stereotypes.

This issue of "The Sun" is a great example of how there is still a gender divide through media institutions. It reveals two women, Helen Flanagan and Katie. They are both wearing revealing clothing, which stereo-typically appeal to males. This can also be seen by the "footie pullout" that's inside this issue. The top story for this issue is how Helen posed with a gun to her head which is coincidentally after a devastating incident at a school involving guns. "The Sun" have used this photo to give readers proof of her doing so. However they could have either used a close-up shot of the model, without revealing her chest, or they could have placed this story inside the newspaper because, to me, this story should never have made the headline. However tabloid newspapers usually inform audiences on somewhat 'unimportant' information, however it can be argued that they have used this story for an excuse appeal to the male demographic. Also, "The Sun" have used the word 'brainless' in a big, capital, bold font; which highlights the stereotype of blonde girls being dumb.

Bias

This issue of the "Daily Mirror" shows David Cameron in a negative light. A close up shot of David Cameron has been used, with the text "Prime Minister?"..."Really" which stands out to the audience, showing the readers that "Daily Mirror" don't think he is suited for his job. This is a tabloid newspaper which is targeted at the working-classes.

They also have included a fake Curriculum Vitae for David and show that he has no real-life work experience. Informing the public of the questions regarding as to why he is Prime Minister. Because it is questioning Cameron's suitability as Prime Minister, this potentially influences the reader's thoughts on whether they think he is suited for the job; this is also known as Media Bias.

- Billboard research

Modern Posters
I have looked at posters which are placed outside of newsagents to get an idea of how I should promote my newspaper on my billboard. 

"Daily Echo" and other newspapers put their poster on small billboards like these as a marketing technique to promote their product. They are placed outside of the shop where they are on sale, where members of the public walk past regularly. They do this effectively by having the title of the top story in a big, bold font so it is eye catching for the public. This one says 'knife attack shuts club' this may interest some audiences, because it is a broad headline, they might want to buy the newspaper in order to find out more information. Newsagents will change their billboard daily if it promotes the "Daily Echo" newspaper, as this is a daily newspaper. The local public will see a different a lot of the time when they walk past; this increases the chance of them seeing something that interests them. With this issue, they have offered a bird feeder for free, for anyone who buys the newspaper. This is another marketing technique which aims to get the public to buy the newspaper because they are offering free products.

Archaic Posters

This is an archaic photograph of a man holding a poster, which back would have been outside a shop. It reveals a man holding up a poster for the public to read when they walk past. It says 'Britain declares war' which is very important information, this information is shown because it involves all of the public that walk by. Similarly, quite a lot of modern billboards in today's society have used the same strategy. Their posters will inform the public of shocking stories such as disasters and crime.. This photo was taken in 1939, we can see this because Britain declared war against Germany at this time.

This is another archaic photograph which was taken just after the Titanic sank back in 1912. This photograph was taken 27 years before the 'Britain declares war' poster. They are again presenting shocking information, this one is about a disaster that killed 1,517 innocent people. The use of all capital letters and bold font on both of these posters show how back then, marketing institutions still used marketing techniques to grab the public's attention as they walk past. As it is clear to see, this photograph shows a young boy, selling the newspapers, a lot like today, however in modern society, a billboard is used instead of a young person.

Billboards

Billboards used to promote a newspaper have been advertised on a bus stop. The bus stop is next to a busy road , which means that anybody walking past or in traffic can see this advert, hoping to attract more customers. They have only used 5 words which is important, audiences don't want to spend time reading long adverts. Billboards being 'short and sweet' are important. This advert is for the "i" newspaper; which is made by "The Independent", however it is a smaller version and is slightly cheaper. This poster for "i" indicates that the customer would go to the shops to buy this newspaper to read when eating breakfast, or get it delivered to their house daily. "i" have personified the newspaper to show it eating breakfast with a smiling woman. This is iconic as it shows that reading this newspaper is enjoyable, and is part of a daily routine.

This is a clever advertisement because, they have described what their newspaper has to offer to the public, and have placed the words inside a big 'i' which, gives the advertisement a newspaper-like effect. Whilst researching online for examples of newspapers that have used billboards to advertise their product, the majority of the billboards shown are of the newspaper "i", which suggests this type of marketing isn't commonly used with the large majority of newspapers. This could also be "i's" ideal way of advertising, this seems to be a good marketing technique because other newspapers don't do this, "i" might dominate the majority of this way of marketing.

Again, the newspaper "i" have used another poster which they would place on a billboard for the public to see. They have used a pun, 'food for thought' also that their news is 'digestible news.' "i" have used this poster to compare their news to food, in terms of everybody needing food to survive, "i" are referring to everyone needing the news the same way. This is why they have made their newspaper look like food. This is a clever marketing technique as it is representing their newspaper as if it's a daily routine.  My partner and I think that the use of a pun on our poster is a great way to get the audience's attention; especially if they enjoy the pun. We think that this is such a good way to market a product that we have decided to include a pun in our billboard.

- Radio advert research
For my research I thought it would be a good idea to spend my time analysing a current radio station. I did this to get a better idea of how radio stations work. I researched into 'Fire Radio' and listened for a couple of days during their morning radio breakfast show. What I discovered was that they used these conventions:

- pre-recorded music playing through the night time called 'Non-stop Fire'

- breakfast hosts announce themselves

- competitions 

- advertisements

- encourage listeners to send messages to them about topics such as most embarrassing moment, pet hates and strange habits.

- Dan and Maxine are the breakfast hosts who then talk to each other about those messages.

This is the website for the 'Fire' radio station. They have their own 'Snapchat' account where audiences are able to send photos to the staff who work at 'Fire.' Stereo-typically younger audiences will have this application as older people would tend to send messages by text or e-mail. They also have other social media accounts such as 'Facebook' and 'Twitter' this is so audiences can connect more with the radio station. This shows that this particular radio station has a young to middle aged people. This is highlighted by the radio show called 'Home time With Jules' from 3pm-7pm where audiences listen to her talk about news, gossip and trivial topics. This show is specifically for audiences who are driving home from work.

I listen to the radio quite a lot. I listen to different stations all the time however I have not found a radio advert for a local newspaper. This lack of examples only motivated my partner and I to make the best out of this situation. We listened to other people's examples of radio adverts in previous years for this coursework and we felt like we had a good idea of how to accomplish this task. 

Capital FM

From my personal experience of listening to the radio, I often listen to Capital FM. Their target audience are adults from 30-50. I know this because they offer more than just radio; they report on news and events also. The type of news stories they have are generally not aimed for young audiences, for example, one of the articles was about the royal baby. Contrasting Fire Radio's website, Capital FM have advertisements on their website, this is because they have more of a geographical audience as it's the 'UK's No.3 hit radio station.'


- Questionnaire Feedback

Question 1

We needed to know whether the respondents were male of female as this could have hindered what the results showed. We were lucky enough to have an equal amount of sexes respond because we now know that our primary research looks at an equal amount of sex.

Question 2

My partner and I needed to know the age of respondents because this shows us if what the results show, are showing these results because of their age. This is important for us to know roughly what age gap think what about newspapers.



Question 3

My partner and I needed to know this information because this helped our decision to create a broadsheet newspaper. This, along with other preferences, we decided to create a broadsheet newspaper because they provide news in a professional and formal manner.

Question 4

Due to 9 out of 10 respondents being 15-20 years old, this result shows us that younger audiences do not tend to buy or read newspapers. This had a huge impact on our decision to target younger audiences with our broadsheet newspaper because there seemed to be a gap in the market for students. We believe that audiences of a younger age do not tend to read newspapers because stories in newspapers they may not have any interest in. Which is why in my broadsheet newspaper I included a story about university fees decreasing.

Question 5

The results from this question show that the respondents would like to see all of the options suggested inside a newspaper. Although we only have to create the first two front pages of a newspaper, I wanted to know what mostly the respondents want expect from my newspaper.

Question 6

From this question, it is shown that most of the respondents get their news from the internet. This is why my partner and I are going to include links to our newspaper's social media accounts.

Question 7

From this we can see that their favourite newspaper is 'The Sun' which is a tabloid newspaper. We do not know why this is their favourite however this is the most popular tabloid newspaper.

Question 8

This tells us that our target audience are most likely to spend 40p-£1 on their favourite newspaper. This is why we made our newspaper £1 because it is a weekly newspaper. Daily newspapers have lower prices because they cannot expect their audiences to pay more money for a newspaper they get everyday. 'The Sun' sell their daily newspaper for 40p however we changed this price as we have a broadsheet weekly newspaper.

Question 9

It is clear that most of our target audience would prefer to share their ideas in our newspaper forums about trivial topics, student life and many more. This is important for younger audiences as they will feel like their voices are being heard. 

Question 10

The majority of respondents are of the younger generation and this means that they would like to hear what others are thinking. This is important because it shows there is a gap in the market for a newspaper that is aimed towards students.

(Questionnaire software provided by surveymonkey.com)