NEWS ASSESMENT 1

Representation Of Front Pages

The representations in this front page are of youth. This is from the outfit of the person on the front, he is wearing a tracksuit which is usually associated with young adults/ teenagers with lower classed backgrounds. It emphasises the idea that  youth and people that wear tracksuits cause danger, suggested by the fire behind the person. Also, the figure in the article is covered up with gloves and a mask, which gives the idea all people the dress like that are the same and do similar things. The use of the word 'spread' goes with the image of the fire, as fire spreads quickly just like the riots.

In this article, the representation is of Britain. In the image is the Mayor of London Borris Johnson, who is not being presented in the best way. Britain is being represented by Borris, and as this image is quite comedic, it (in a way) embarrasses the public. The language used is an apology which emphasises the idea Britain may be ashamed. Also, there are little words and only a small body of text to the side which suggests there is not a lot of positive things to say about this article. The audience would be the British public who may find this either funny or humiliating.

Being represented in this article is Nelson Mandela. It is a stereotypical representation because his body language is strong and powerful, just like the way people know him for. The image is in black and white with no colours to show respect to Mandela.  The use of the word 'Warrior' reflects how Mandela was seen as. Also, it is contrast with the phrase 'loses his final battle' as warriors are usually strong in battle but in this case, he died. The biggest text is 'Mandela Dead' which is not actually an actual sentence but is short and gets straight to the point. The Sun usually do this to main headlines.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Front Cover

Our task was to recreate a Daily Mail front page for the news the Meghan Markle has been cheating on Prince Harry. The target audience for the Daily Mail is C2, D and E which is the lower area of the demographic profiling. The research I put into this piece was to look up different Daily Mail front covers to make it as realistic as possible and I also had to take into account some typical conventions of the Daily Mail. These included something to be won at the top of the page with a main headline underneath in big font size. There was also a large image on the front. The Daily Mail cover I chose to copy was .....

This source was different to other Daily Mail covers which stood out for me whilst I was recreating it. The thing I found most difficult was trying to find similar fonts. The Daily Mail uses different fonts for their titles and articles and this I found hard to replicate. Once I had finished, others thought my front cover matched well with the real one, overall I think it was successful. Although the layout was very close to the real one, I think my work could have been improved if the fonts were even more similar. By completing this task, I have learnt that each aspect of the paper has to be done carefully in order to make it as similar to a paper as possible for a full effect.

Online News Language

	Daily Mail	Daily Telegraph
Who was involved?	There were 5 victims killed and 2 teenagers have been arrested.	Two brothers, a third boy and 2 men killed, 2 15 year olds have been arrested.
What happened?	They were killed when a Renault Clio hit a tree shortly before 10pm on Saturday night, on Stonegate Road in the Meanwood area of the city.	The accident occurred shortly before 10pm on Saturday night on Stonegate Road, around three miles north of Leeds city centre. Just one vehicle, a stolen Renault Clio, was involved but West Yorkshire Police said it was not yet clear whether the five victims and two suspects had all been in the car.
Where did it happen?	Stonegate Road in the Meanwood area in Leeds.	Stonegate Road, around three miles north of Leeds city centre
When did it happen?	Shortly before 10pm on Saturday night.	Occurred shortly before 10pm on Saturday night .
How did it happen?	They were killed when a stolen car crashed into a tree in Leeds.	A stolen car hit a tree, leaving a scene of "complete carnage".
Why did it happen?	The teenagers were out of control with the car and therefore caused it to crash.	There were 7 people in a car, which had been stolen which went out of control.

 

Newspaper Circulation and Readership

 

Online News

Advantages

• Free
• Easy to access
• Regularly updated
• Unlimited space
• More interactive
• Immediate access
• Easy to find certain stories/ categories
• Can comment opinions
• Can be edited at any time
• Easy to read in the dark
• Can get notifications when there is breaking news

Disadvantages

• Some people prefer to physically hold a paper
• Need Wi-Fi / internet to access it
• Need a device to access it
• Connection is  needed to access the website
• There is a chance of 'fake news'
• Site can be hacked, therefore it can be ruined
• There is a chance of troll comments, which can cause upset.
• The older generation may struggle as they probably prefer an actual newspaper
• Unhealthy to stare at a screen for too long
• Adverts on the website can become distracting

Online News vs A Newspaper ScreenCast

Biased Newspapers

How to Spot Bias in a Newspaper

1. Bias through pictures/ graphic- camera angles, caption

The producers of this paper have chosen an unflattering image of this politician. The image of him eating a burger goes with the caption of save our bacon' which creates a comedic effect.

2.Word choice and tone in body of text

In the body of text underneath, they writer uses negative words such as 'tore', 'embittered' and 'accused' which give the idea of victimisation. The Daily Mail is a right wing newspaper and support conservatives and they are also strong believers in Brexit.

3.Choice of journalist and sources- who is writing and their beliefs, who gave them the information.

This is Rowena Mason who is deputy political editor for the guardian. Her articles and way of writing will be to do with left wing opinions, since the Guardian is left wing for the Labour Party.  

4.Where is the article in the paper- prominent or hidden? Front page or far back?

This article is on the front page which suggests it is an important story to the newspaper. It is about the royal family and a christening. The Sun is neither more left or right wing and supports the Royal Family which is why this is the main headline for this newspaper.

5.Bias through omission or selection- whether an article is even published or not.

Some articles won't be published because it is not relevant to the newspaper's interests. For example, there is a gatekeeper who decides which parts of the story will be shown and if it is even going to be published.

6.Bias through headline

The headline for this article is relating a politician to a battle. This is emphasised by the word 'revolution' which suggests she is trying to get revenge or be bad which makes her sound very negative.
 

7.Bias by used of names and titles

 
This writer has given a nickname to Jeremy Corbyn. They have called him 'Jezza' which is a kind of insult as if they are not taking him seriously. 

8.Bias through statistics and crowd counts.

The writer has used an unspecific amount to describe the number of casualties. Instead of an actual number, they have used 'mass' which indicates a very large amount have been effected.

Newspaper Article Homework

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5091399/Missing-explorer-s-wife-s-relief-s-safe.html

Article on Missing British Traveller

Language- The average number or words per sentence is about 30-40. This article is a positive one, therefore the words and language used will be positive as well. For example, 'relief' , 'safe' and 'amazing were among the words used. 'Relief' being repeated a few times throughout. These type of words will make the reader and audience feel relieved for the family.

Content-  In this article, the first bits mentioned are where he was spotted. The next part talks about the reactions of his wife and close friends. Also, mentioned is the start of his travels and there are images included. There is also an image of his wife and kids which will make the reader/ audience feel sympathy for them for what they might have gone through. Towards the end of the article, there is a quote from the main person involved; the father who went missing.

Style- This article has a formal tone to it. However, towards the end of this article, the writer has put in a comedic tone from the missing travellers brother-in-law who quoted that relatives will give him a ‘severe ticking off’ once he is back in Europe for leaving without a phone or GPS tracker.

Values And Attitudes-  The daily mail is a right wing newspaper which support conservatives. There isn't any biasy in this article because there isn't any political parties mentioned or government mentioned.

Photos-  On this article there are many photos involved. The first one shown is of the missing traveller and his wife. This is to show that the wife and missing traveller are close and it gives the article a personal feel. There are a couple of pictures of Benedict Allen on other travelling holidays which involve a tribe and in an icy surrounding. This is to show his passion for travelling and show he has experience. At the end, we have a video of the traveller giving a talk.

Headlines-  Headline starts off as a quote which instantly makes the article more personal. It doesn't instantly say the traveller has been found, instead it says 'Missing explorer's wife speaks of relief' which instead emphasises the missing explorer rather than him being found. It links with the main value of continuity, the story is being carried on.

Introduction To News

 

Exam Info

Paper 1 Section A (45 marks):

News and Online

• An in-depth study of online, social and participatory

AND

• An in-depth study of offline, print newspapers

Broadsheet Features:

• Aimed at A, B, C1
• Longer, more detailed articles
• Plain layout
• Intellectual
• Small font
• Lack of colour
• Formal language and serious stories
• Few pages on front page

Tabloid Features:

• Lots of pictures on front page
• Little writing
• Lots of colour
• Big Titles
• Advertisements
• Aimed at C2, D, E
• Puns and jokes in headlines

The market

Popular: The Sun, The Sun On Sunday, Daily Mirror, Sunday Mirror, Daily Star, Daily Star Sunday

Mid- Market: Daily Mail, The Mail, Metro, Daily Express, Sunday Express, London Evening Standard.

Quality: The Telegraph, The Sunday Telegraph, The Guardian, The Observer, The Times, The Sunday Times, I, The Independent, FT

Main Values

Main Values:

Threshold- Big Impact, big story
Unexpectedness- A shock event, out of the ordinary
Negativity- Bad news
Elite Persons/ Places- Famous/ important
Unambiguous- No confusion/ straightforward
Personalisation- Personal/ human story/ relatable
Proximity- Close to home
Continuity/ currency- Updates to stories/ stories that are being continued.

Newspaper Terminolgy

News terminology from Great Baddow High School Media