Channel 4 News Case Study

Basic details

• When is Channel 4 News on?

Channel 4 News is on at 7 pm from Monday to Friday for 55 minutes.

• When was the programme first broadcast?

The programme was first broadcast in 1982

• What awards has the programme won?

The programme has won the International Emmy Award For News in 2003, the British Academy Television Award For Best News Coverage in 1987 and the British Academy Television Award For Best News And Current Affairs Journalism in 1993.

• What is the media institution that produces Channel 4 News?

The media institution that produces Channel 4 News is ...

Presenters

• Who are the presenters?

The presenters are Jon Snow, Krishnan Guru-Murthy, Cathy Newman and Matt Frei.

• What are the presenters wearing? What does this communicate to the audience?

The presenters wear sophisticated but colourful clothing for e.g. Jon Snow always wears a suit but is well known and famous for his colourful and unusual.

• Why might a TV News programme use a variety of presenters?

The TV News Programme uses a variety of presenters of different ethnic groups and sexuality and this is because when they first started the TV News Programme they told the Programme to appeal to small minority groups. Which is why they have different presenters.

• How are other reporters or presenters used in the TV News programme?

They are used for different ways to collect news such as Live On Location Broadcasts or going to Interview people.

• Is there a balance between male and female presenters? What about race/ethnicity? What effect might these aspects have on an audience?

There is a balance between the male and female presenters and between different race and ethnicity's. This is appealing to different audiences because it represents a variety of different sexuality's and ethnicity's and this is because the viewers are also different. 

Opening sequence

Analyse the opening 2 minutes of the programme.

• What is the very first shot?

The opening shot is the number '4' zooming in closer to the screen.

• How does the opening sequence use graphics or images to grab the attention of the audience?

The images are moving constantly which means that the news never stops running, that there is always new news. The pictures are usually presented as stories with a voice over to give the audience a little information about the upcoming stories.

• How is music used in the opening sequence?

The music is playing at the beginning of the TV News Show.

• 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?

In the opening two minutes you have a voice over and images or video's presenting to the audience the news that they will show. They also have the presenter standing up talking to the camera presenting the news and the soon after they cut away into the voice over. They give information about stories to keep the audience watching so they can find out the full stories.

Studio mise-en-scene

• What aspects of the studio can be seen by the audience? (Desk, cameras etc.)

The audience can see some of the cameras, the desk at which the presenters sit at, they can see the laptop that is always sitting on the desk besides the chair. They can also see the screen on the left hand side of the studio which is where a lot of stuff are presented on.

• Are the presenters standing or behind desks? Why do you think this is?

The presenters are always standing up when the show begins and they stand near the screen.

• Are journalists or technology visible? What might these things suggest to the audience?

They are visible behind the glass background which makes it quite hard to see them however they are still visible. This might suggest to the audience again that the news never stops there are always new stories to report and that the people working at Channel 4 News never stop trying to find out stories to tell the audience. This suggests to the audience that Channel 4 News is determined to give the audience good news feeds and new stories, also this makes the audience carry on watching the show because it makes the audience feel like the show actually cares about what the audience wants and will work hard all the time to get it.

• How does the studio use colour?

The studio has a lot of colour, the two main colours in the studio are white and purple for e.g. the sofa is purple whereas the desk is white. Channel 4 News has to contain the colour purple seeing as that is the colour which represents Channel 4 itself, whereas they use the colour white because the colour white helps the purple to stand out so when people watch Channel 4 News they know that the News Show belong to Channel 4.

How news stories are presented

• How does the news programme typically present a story?

Firstly we are presented into the program by a presenter who presents the news however there is a voice over of the presenter as images and footage show a bit more of what will go on the show later on, the news programme then goes back to the presenter who tells us more about the story. After we usually either get live on location interviews or footage. We the have the presenter talking back to the camera.

• What difference techniques does the programme use to present the news? (E.g. presenter to camera, reporter on location, interviews, graphics, images, video etc.)

Channel 4 News is different because it is the longest news show which currently runs for 50 minutes. This means that Channel 4 News can give more information to the audience and help them understand and get a better view of the different sides to a certain story. The presenters also usually tend to remain standing throughout the show unlike other news programmes where the presenters remain seated behind desks.This helps the presenters get more involved within stories. In interviews the presenters usually tend to sit down and this is because Channel 4 News pushes the boundaries therefore the presenters get quite worked up during certain interviews.

• What types of news does the TV News programme typically cover? Give five examples (e.g. politics, international, sport etc.)

• Give two real examples of how news stories presented to keep the interest of the audience.

Running order
Watch the first 15 minutes of the programme – as recent as you can find.

• What is the top story?

          900 people drowning in the Mediterranean sea.

• How long does the top story last for?

        This reposrt lasted for 14 minutes.

• What are the other stories the programme does or will cover? List them in the order they are presented in (the ‘running order’).

•  900 Drowning in the Mediterranean

•  900 Drowning in the Mediterranean 

•  Election trail - SNP - 'English voters have nothing to fear from the SNP'

•  David Cameron's views as Prime Minister 

•  900 Drowning in the Mediterranean

• How long is each story shown for?

       The first story was reported for 14 minutes, the election story was reported for 2o seconds and the david Cameron report was for 12 seconds.

• Why do you think each story was shown for the time it was?

Audience

• What is the target audience for this TV News programme? Research online – you should be able to find plenty of suggestions to the target audience if not the official target audience of the programme.

• 16-34 year Old
• Most likely to be living in the UK
• Adults of the class of ABC1
• Independent companies

• Why might someone choose to watch this TV News programme over others?

Certain people would prefer to watch this news show over others because it obtains more information, it pushes the boundaries of TV News and the presenters get involved with the stories. The show also contains investigative journalism which shows the audience that they like to give out true facts. This also makes the footage they show more interesting to watch.

• Is there an opportunity for the audience to get involved in the programme or comment?

During the show the audience cannot really interact with the show even though the show is very modern and quite futuristic. However the show has a YouTube account that has more information on certain stories and they have web pages on Twitter and Facebook.

• What audience pleasures (Uses and Gratifications theory – Blumler and Katz) does the programme offer?

Institution

• Who owns, runs or produces this TV News programme?

OFCOM own this TV Programme which is in agreement with the secretary of State for Culture, media and sport.

Which is shown on Channel 4 

• Does the institution own, run or produce any other TV News programmes, channels or newspapers?

OFCOM also, regulate other TV News shows apart from the BBC News which is regulated by the BBC Trust.

Channel 4 also present well known shows such as The Big Bang Theory, 2 Broke Girls and Big Brother.

• How does the programme fit the TV channel it is on?

Channel 4 was created as a Unique and different Channel there were many American Series that would show on Channel 4 and this meant that the channel would be quite pushy because the English viewers were so used to English series that when the American series started broadcasting on Channel 4 certain people started to complain, this meant that the Channel pushed their luck with the audience. Channel 4 News was also created to push the boundaries that OFCOM has set.

• What role does OFCOM have in making sure TV News is fair and accurate?

OFCOM play a huge role in making sure TV News is fair and accurate. It makes sure that explicit contect is always presented after the watershed. Nearly all programmes run under the regulations of OFCOM. In TV News there are other rules such as not being biased, they have be accurate when they deliver the news and they cannot make up stories, there have to be true facts.

TV News and New/Digital Media

• Does the TV News programme have a dedicated website?

Channel 4 News has its own website which also gives links to the channels YouTube account which has more information on stories and live footage, citizen journalism or investigative journalism.

• What does the website offer viewers?

The website offers the audience more details about certain stories and the headlines of the show.

• Does the TV News programme have a Twitter feed?

The programme does have a Twitter feed.

• How does the Twitter feed promote the programme?

The Twitter feed means that more people can interact with the show. The fact that certain people re-tweet, hash tag or tag Channel 4 News feeds means that their followers can see what has been said this helps Channel 4 promote itself and helps it get a wider range of viewers.

• Is there an opportunity for the audience to get involved in the programme or submit news stories?

During the programme there is no way for the audience to interact and submit certain stories because the stories they submit have to be looked into first unless they have evidence needed to prove an upcoming story or a story that has been broadcast however with not a lot of evidence. The fact that there is a laptop on the desk during the programme means that the presenter are aware of the viewers who interact and make comments or even re-tweet certain opinion or feeds about the show.