Revision:UK TV ChannelsTSR Wiki > Study Help > Subjects and Revision > Revision Notes > Media Studies > UK TV Channels
The institutions and instutional values of each UK TV channel.
Channel 4
- Now has the channels: 4, 4+1, More 4, E4, E4+1 and Film 4
- Under Mark Thompson, C4 became “a leaner, more focused, more modern organisation” He put more money into programme making. He went on to become Director General of BBC.
- Critics have said that C4 has now become more ‘mainstream’ abandoning the lofty cultural ideas of Isaac era and the ‘storms of the Grade era’
- “C4 exists to do things first, make trouble and inspire change”
- Public wanted an alternative entertainment… not an alternative to entertainment
- C4 est in 1982, as a ‘minority channel’ and was funded by ITV’s advertising revenue. Since 1993, it began to sell its own advertising.
- C4 attracts audiences that are valuable to advertisers. The young, the upmarket ‘light’ viewers and consumers who are most likely to be earliest adopters of new technologies and services
- C4 news has the youngest audience of any tv news programme. Part of the appeal is that it follows a self consciously progressive and inclusive agenda
- C4 news produced by ITN is one of the largest news organisations in the world producing news and factual programming tv radio
- “we try to take an innovative approach to news reporting, aiming to think more laterally”
- Channel 4 is a Public Service Broadcaster (along with the BBC) meaning it has to provide diverse programming for every kind of audience.
However, it's much harder for channel 4 to do this being a commercial channel, the BBC receives funding from license fee money whereas channel 4 have to rely on advertising. Results of this mean the channel 4 are starting to go against their remit of being innovative and water down their content so it's much more lightweight, thus appealing to wider audience in order to maximise profits.
Channel 5
- Now has three channels - Five, Five Life and Five US.
- Fifth national terrestrial channel
- It began with a reputation for lowest-common denominater
- Screened low budget “erotic thrillers” on Fri and sat nights
- It concentrated its output on entertainment and lifestyle at the expense of factual programming
- In the 2000s the channel has shown some signs of adding more upmarket programming, such as the cult American series, CSI, Prisonbreak and House
- Five won a bidding war with other terrestrial TV channels for the rights to show the then-new friends spin off Joey
BBC
- Largest broadcasting corporation in the world
- Motto=nation shall speak peace unto nation
- Public service broadcaster many programmes are expected to achieve high audience viewer ratings
- BBC1 and BBC2 are the BBC’s flagship tv channels
- BBC is also promoting new channels, BBC3 and BBC4
- BBC also runs BBC news24, BBC Parliament
- Two children channels, CBBC and CBeebies
- Since 1875, BBC has also provided it’s TV programmes to British forces Broadcasting service, allowing members of HM forces serving all over the world to watch and listen to their fav programmes.
- The t.v licence is often the subject of controversy. Some argue that the licence fee is a regressive tax, that the poorest of people are least likely to have the licence fee.
- Supporters of the licence fee claim that it helps maintain a higher quality programming on BBC compared to commercial rivals.
- Some people say it leads to better programming on commercial channels, to seek and draw attention from BBC’s output.
- Government regulation control it’s funding, it is able to provide domestic public service broadcasting to educate, inform and entertain free from commercial advertising
- March 05’ culture secretary Tess Jowell published a green paper and suggested proposals for the future of the BBC
- Maintenance of licence fee
- Abolition of BBC governors to be replaced by “BBC Trust”
- Increasing outsourcing of production (started by Mark Thompson)
- Reduced emphasis on “ratings for ratings sake” reality Tv.
- The BBC say they are free from political and commercial influence and only listen to their viewers and listeners. However some people may argue the government’s involvement creates bias?
ITV
- Now has 4 channels - ITV 1, ITV 2, ITV 3, and ITV 4.
- The UK's biggest commercial channel (relies on advertising for money making)
- Because of this, they take less risks in order to guarantee an audience
- "Dumbing down content" - to appeal to mass/mainstream audiences
Sky
SKY TV
- Sky Television was a four-channel satellite television service launched by Rupert Murdoch's News International on February 5, 1989.
- Sky Television merged with collapsed rival British Satellite Broadcasting in 1990 to form British Sky Broadcasting (BSkyB). The merger was effectively a takeover of BSB by Sky, although the latter was also suffering massive losses.
- In 1982 Rupert Murdoch's News International acquired 80% of Satellite Television UK one of the earliest satellite television channels which broadcast from the Orbital Test Satellite to a pan-European audience.
- The company was a lossmaking enterprise and Murdoch purchased the operation for the sum of £1 plus outstanding debts.
- It was relaunched as Sky Television on February 5, 1989 and was one of the first Direct broadcast satellite (DBS) services in the world to become operational.
- The service had four channels Sky Channel, Eurosport, Sky Movies and Sky News.
Sky News
- Sky News is Europe's first 24-hour television news channel, originally launched as part of the 4-channel Sky Television network in February 1989. Its main competitor in the UK is BBC News 24 since the ITV News Channel has ceased broadcasting.
- Elsewhere in Europe, it competes mainly with BBC World, Euronews and CNN International.
- Sky News was the only UK 24 hour news service until the launch of BBC News 24 in November 1997. In August 2000, this was followed by the ITN News Channel (changing to the ITV News Channel before it closed down in December 2005).
- In September 1999 the European Commission ruled against a complaint by Sky News which argued that the publicly funded BBC News 24 was unfair and illegal under EU law. The EC ruled that the BBC licence fee should be considered state aid but that such aid was justified due to the public service remit of the BBC and that it did not exceed actual costs of the channel.
- In March 2004 it was announced that Sky News had won a 5-year contract to supply news bulletins to the British terrestrial channel Five, taking over from ITN in January 2005.
- Sky News has been featured in many blockbuster feature films including 20th Century Fox releases; Independence Day, Mission: Impossible, Behind Enemy Lines, Shaun of the Dead and The Day After Tomorrow. 20th Century Fox is another News Corp.
Comments
|
|
