Paper readership dips 5m in 15 years
Stephen Brook, press correspondent
Guardian Unlimited,
Friday December 21 2007
The number of UK adults reading at least one national daily newspaper on an average day fell from 26.7 million in 1992 to 21.7 million last year, according to research.
In 1992, 59% of adults read one or more national daily newspapers, compared with 45% last year, the figures from a National Readership Survey commissioned by the House of Lords communications committee found.
However, two national daily and three Sunday titles went against the trend - the Daily Mail, the Times, the Sunday Telegraph, Sunday Times and Mail on Sunday.
The Daily Express and Daily Mirror were hardest hit, as were the People and Sunday Express, according to NRS.
Readership of the Times, which boosted its circulation with an aggressive cost-cutting strategy in the mid-1990s, increased 69% and the percentage of the UK population it reached increased 59% over the period. Daily Mail readership increased 18% and its reach was up 11%.
The Daily Express's readership has fallen 54% over the past 15 years, the NRS survey found, while its reach fell 57%.
For the Daily Mirror and its Scottish sister paper the Daily Record, readership fell 49% while reach was down 52%.
The overall number of people reading one or more national Sunday newspapers fell 21% and their reach fell 26% over the period.
Bucking the downward trend, Sunday Telegraph readership has risen 6% since 1992, readership of the Sunday Times is up 2% and the Mail on Sunday grew by 4%.
However, no Sunday paper managed to increase the percentage of the population it reached.
The People's readership fell 70% over the period, while its reach was down 72%.
Readership of the Sunday Express dropped 59%, while its reach declined 61%.
The Lords communications committee commissioned the NRS research about readership of print titles as part of its inquiry into media ownership and the news.
NRS data showed that decline in national daily newspaper readership was steepest among younger adults over the past 15 years.
The overall number of 15- to 24-year-old readers fell by 37%, while the decline among 25- to 34-year-old readers was 40%.
However, the number of 55- to 64-year-old readers increased by 4%.
"With 45% of the population reading one of the top 10 national newspapers on an average day it is clear that ownership of the press remains an important issue," said Lord Fowler, the chairman of the communications committee.
"In the new year the committee will be looking in detail at whether media ownership is appropriately regulated and how the public interest can be upheld."
The survey did not include newspaper website traffic, or readership of free titles and of Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish papers
Friday 28 December 2007
Celebrity Big Brother ad revenue in peril from E4 switch
Monday December 24 2007
Celebrity Big Brother's move to E4 next month as a temporary "safety valve" to protect the programme following this year's racism row and could cost the programme at least 30% in ad revenue, according to media buyers.
The decision to move the programme to digital channel E4 in January and change its format was born from a need to "rest" the CBB format after the Shilpa Shetty racism scandal, but one media buyer has criticised the move as "landfill" programming in place of a more permanent solution.
Channel 4 wants to refresh the programme, avoid controversy, but also honour its three-year deal with Endemol to air two series per year.
Advertising on E4 is at least 30% cheaper than on the main Channel 4 network and audiences are guaranteed to be somewhere between 33% and 50% smaller, according to media buyers.
"Channel 4 will sustain audience decline year-on-year, it is inevitable because Celebrity Big Brother ironically did really well, for all the wrong reasons, but the reality is that Channel 4 wants to get the summer right," said the director of one media planning and buying agency.
"This is like a test, a safety valve, to protect a key audience year-on-year. However I think that it is a landfill rather than a solution, it is not an alternative [to CBB]".
In commercial terms, Big Brother on Channel 4 means mass audiences that equate to sizeable revenues from advertisers keen to reach the valuable, youthful fan base, but this scenario cannot be replicated by running a version on smaller digital channel E4.
From a narrow, commercial point of view, the Shilpa Shetty racism row in last year's Celebrity Big Brother was a success for Channel 4 - the departure of Carphone Warehouse as sponsor notwithstanding.
"Big Brother is a very important show for Channel 4 and the network, it is very popular with a core part of our audience," said a spokesman for Channel 4. "We felt that airing it on E4 is a good way to refresh the format and have more fun with it".
The programme will be refreshed partly by a change of team - the E4 version will have a largely different from the crew from the flagship summer series.
In the new format, Big Brother: Celebrity Hijack, celebrities will act as Big Brother for a group of 18- to 24-year-old housemates.
Scandal aside, the key audience who tuned into CBB last year was usually between 2 million and 3 million says the media buyer, and E4 will be doing well to capture 1 million per show in January.
One media buyer said that the move to E4 would help Channel 4's long-term strategic move to continue to build the star performer of Channel 4's digital portfolio.
"Being on E4 is part of a strategy to make E4 well developed in the digital world," argues Chris Hayward, the head of investment at ZenithOptimedia.
"It may not be as developed as the main channel but it is becoming increasingly important, over the next five years the strategy has to be to make the family of digital channels as strong as can be".
ZenithOptimedia predicts that the "digital offshoots" of ITV, Channel 4 and Channel Five will account for 21% of total ad revenues by 2012, up from 10% last year and just 2% in 2002.
E4's ad revenues have experienced near 20% year-on-year growth since 2006 climbing from £81.6m to a forecast £115m by the end of next year.
To underline the importance of the channel within Channel 4's overall digital portfolio, which includes channels such as More4 and Film4, total ad revenue is predicted to be £144m this year and up 20% to £171m by the end of 2008.
Monday December 24 2007
Celebrity Big Brother's move to E4 next month as a temporary "safety valve" to protect the programme following this year's racism row and could cost the programme at least 30% in ad revenue, according to media buyers.
The decision to move the programme to digital channel E4 in January and change its format was born from a need to "rest" the CBB format after the Shilpa Shetty racism scandal, but one media buyer has criticised the move as "landfill" programming in place of a more permanent solution.
Channel 4 wants to refresh the programme, avoid controversy, but also honour its three-year deal with Endemol to air two series per year.
Advertising on E4 is at least 30% cheaper than on the main Channel 4 network and audiences are guaranteed to be somewhere between 33% and 50% smaller, according to media buyers.
"Channel 4 will sustain audience decline year-on-year, it is inevitable because Celebrity Big Brother ironically did really well, for all the wrong reasons, but the reality is that Channel 4 wants to get the summer right," said the director of one media planning and buying agency.
"This is like a test, a safety valve, to protect a key audience year-on-year. However I think that it is a landfill rather than a solution, it is not an alternative [to CBB]".
In commercial terms, Big Brother on Channel 4 means mass audiences that equate to sizeable revenues from advertisers keen to reach the valuable, youthful fan base, but this scenario cannot be replicated by running a version on smaller digital channel E4.
From a narrow, commercial point of view, the Shilpa Shetty racism row in last year's Celebrity Big Brother was a success for Channel 4 - the departure of Carphone Warehouse as sponsor notwithstanding.
"Big Brother is a very important show for Channel 4 and the network, it is very popular with a core part of our audience," said a spokesman for Channel 4. "We felt that airing it on E4 is a good way to refresh the format and have more fun with it".
The programme will be refreshed partly by a change of team - the E4 version will have a largely different from the crew from the flagship summer series.
In the new format, Big Brother: Celebrity Hijack, celebrities will act as Big Brother for a group of 18- to 24-year-old housemates.
Scandal aside, the key audience who tuned into CBB last year was usually between 2 million and 3 million says the media buyer, and E4 will be doing well to capture 1 million per show in January.
One media buyer said that the move to E4 would help Channel 4's long-term strategic move to continue to build the star performer of Channel 4's digital portfolio.
"Being on E4 is part of a strategy to make E4 well developed in the digital world," argues Chris Hayward, the head of investment at ZenithOptimedia.
"It may not be as developed as the main channel but it is becoming increasingly important, over the next five years the strategy has to be to make the family of digital channels as strong as can be".
ZenithOptimedia predicts that the "digital offshoots" of ITV, Channel 4 and Channel Five will account for 21% of total ad revenues by 2012, up from 10% last year and just 2% in 2002.
E4's ad revenues have experienced near 20% year-on-year growth since 2006 climbing from £81.6m to a forecast £115m by the end of next year.
To underline the importance of the channel within Channel 4's overall digital portfolio, which includes channels such as More4 and Film4, total ad revenue is predicted to be £144m this year and up 20% to £171m by the end of 2008.
Tuesday 18 December 2007
The number of complaints to Ofcom from disgruntled viewers of The X Factor claiming they were unable to vote for their favourite contestant during Saturday's final has rocketed from 80 yesterday to more than 1,500 this afternoon.
It is understood that the vast majority of the complainants were from viewers of the ITV1 show who said they were unable to cast a vote for Rhydian Roberts, the favourite, who came second to Leon Jackson in a surprise result.
An Ofcom spokeswoman today confirmed the figure of 700 complaints, which is expected to rise even further throughout the day.
ITV was unable to confirm the number of complaints it had itself received at the time of publication.
"I must have tried calling in about 50 to 100 times by hitting the redial button to vote for Rhydian, but I didn't get through once," wrote one viewer on The X Factor website's talk board.
Radio stations in Rhydian's native Wales said they had been inundated with calls from angry fans.
A spokeswoman for Ofcom said the regulator would look into the complaints but declined to give a time frame for the investigation.
The show's producer, TalkbackThames, yesterday admitted that said some Virgin Media cable TV customers had experienced problems getting through because of high call volumes.
BBC NEWS TOP 4 STORIES 6 O CLOCK
- Nick Clegg is new Lib Dem leader.
- Rape inquiry after Man Utd party.
- Treasury's Rock aid reaches £57bn.
- The cost of having fresh fruit produce all season.
GALTUNG AND RUGE
Frequency- The first headline on Nick Clegg becoming the new lib dem leader lasted the longest then the other three headlines. this suggests that this is the main feature and the most important.
Threshold- this event is big has it effects the whole of the uk. it informs the public of the new political information.
meaningfulness- the stories in the headlines are meaningful to an extent as it tells the public of news that may effect them like northern rock and the interest of there customers.
unexpectedness- the man utd rape case is highly unpredictable therefore it is likely to make the news.
continuity- the northern rock story has been in the news for the while, the story of northern rock has been in the news previously and there developments.
reference to elite persons- the media are paying special attention to Nick clegg.
CHANNEL 4 HEADLINES
- Clegg new Lib Dem leader.
- Northern rock gets more help.
- Castro may step down.
- 'Pay' a visit to the UK.
GALTUNG AND RUGE
Frequency- the time span of these events are continuous especially the northern rock one there story has been building up.
threshold- similar to BBC news the first two headlines effects the public and therefore are seen as a big effect.
meaningfulness- the events are meaningful because it keeps us aware of news in the uk and the around the world.
continuity- the northern rock story has been continuously reported in the news because of there money problems.
reference to elite persons- the first headline plays particular attention to the new lib dem leader as he plays an important part in politics in the uk.
Thursday 13 December 2007
REPRESENTATIONS OF ASIANS!
Parminder Nagra
I choose to talk about the representation of parminder Nagra's character in ER.
Parminder Nagra
I choose to talk about the representation of parminder Nagra's character in ER.
- stereotype- because most Asian parents pressure there children to become successful doctors. Neela is continuous studying to do well in her career.
- however she is an independent successful women living away from home, it challenges the stereotype of the typical Asian women who stays at home, cooks and cleans.
- in the last image she is seen getting married to an African American, which is seen as not right, but she manages to keep her tradition and culture by wearing a sari.
- she does act out some sexual scenes which may be despised by the older generations, having sex before marriage.
Saturday 8 December 2007
Murdoch confirms News Corp shakeup
The News Corporation chairman and chief executive, Rupert Murdoch, confirmed today he had appointed his "uniquely qualified" son James as the chairman and chief executive of the company in Europe and Asia.
Murdoch also confirmed overnight reports that his "lifetime colleague" and chief UK newspaper lieutenant, Les Hinton, is to be the chief executive of Dow Jones, the New York-based publisher of the Wall Street Journal.
James will step down as BSkyB chief executive after four years and replace his father as the UK satellite broadcaster's non-executive chairman.The Sky chief financial officer, Jeremy Darroch, replaces James as the company's chief executive. News Corp is the largest shareholder in Sky.
Times editor Robert Thomson's move to New York to become publisher of the Wall Street Journal when it completes the $5bn acquisition of Dow Jones is expected to be confirmed later today, with insiders saying the paper's business editor, James Harding, will be announced as his successor.
"James is a talented and proven executive with a rare blend of international perspective and deep, hands-on experience in improving operational results," Murdoch said of his son, who with this move has effectively been annointed as the News Corp founder's heir apparent.
"He has transformed Sky, which is now not only Europe's most valuable television company, but also the fastest growing challenger in the much larger UK marketplace for entertainment, broadband and telephony.
"His experience at Sky, combined with his track record in Asia while running Star, and prior roles, make him uniquely qualified to take forward these exciting businesses that have grown so much over the last decade."
James Murdoch will take direct responsibility for all of News Corporation's television, newspaper and related digital assets in Europe, Asia and the Middle East.
These include BSkyB, in which News Corp is the biggest shareholder and News International - publisher of the Times, the Sunday Times, News of the World - and pay-TV broadcasters Sky Italia and Star TV.
James will report to Peter Chernin, the News Corp chief operating officer, and take over from his father as non-executive chairman of BSkyB. He will also rejoin the News Corp board of directors.
"News Corporation is the world's most global media company, made up of extraordinary and committed individuals that I am privileged to be joining," James Murdoch said.
"Media is fundamentally a business of ideas where top-quality, professional journalism and creative entertainment have an extremely bright future - significant value can be created by focusing on pace,execution and taking advantage of the sea change we are seeing in media."
Hinton, the executive chairman of News International, will become the chief executive of Dow Jones when the acquisition is completed on Wednesday. He replaces Richard Zannino, who said he was leaving the company.
"Les is one of the most respected executives in the media industry," Murdoch said.
"He's been a lifetime colleague and I've relied on his leadership and vision for decades. He has a great record of introducing innovations that have been replicated by other newspaper companies around the world.
"I have every confidence that his energy, dedication and foresight will enable Dow Jones and the Wall Street Journal to reach their full potential as the leading financial information source globally."
Hinton added: "Dow Jones and The Wall Street Journal have a great history and a great future. It is thrilling to have the opportunity to play a part in shaping them to adapt and thrive in the years ahead."
He has spent his entire career at News Corporation has run News International since 1995.
Hinton joined the company as a reporter for the Adelaide News and worked as a journalist and executive in Australia, the US and the United Kingdom.
He worked in the United States for 20 years, first as a correspondent later as an executive in the company's publishing and Fox television divisions.
The News Corporation chairman and chief executive, Rupert Murdoch, confirmed today he had appointed his "uniquely qualified" son James as the chairman and chief executive of the company in Europe and Asia.
Murdoch also confirmed overnight reports that his "lifetime colleague" and chief UK newspaper lieutenant, Les Hinton, is to be the chief executive of Dow Jones, the New York-based publisher of the Wall Street Journal.
James will step down as BSkyB chief executive after four years and replace his father as the UK satellite broadcaster's non-executive chairman.The Sky chief financial officer, Jeremy Darroch, replaces James as the company's chief executive. News Corp is the largest shareholder in Sky.
Times editor Robert Thomson's move to New York to become publisher of the Wall Street Journal when it completes the $5bn acquisition of Dow Jones is expected to be confirmed later today, with insiders saying the paper's business editor, James Harding, will be announced as his successor.
"James is a talented and proven executive with a rare blend of international perspective and deep, hands-on experience in improving operational results," Murdoch said of his son, who with this move has effectively been annointed as the News Corp founder's heir apparent.
"He has transformed Sky, which is now not only Europe's most valuable television company, but also the fastest growing challenger in the much larger UK marketplace for entertainment, broadband and telephony.
"His experience at Sky, combined with his track record in Asia while running Star, and prior roles, make him uniquely qualified to take forward these exciting businesses that have grown so much over the last decade."
James Murdoch will take direct responsibility for all of News Corporation's television, newspaper and related digital assets in Europe, Asia and the Middle East.
These include BSkyB, in which News Corp is the biggest shareholder and News International - publisher of the Times, the Sunday Times, News of the World - and pay-TV broadcasters Sky Italia and Star TV.
James will report to Peter Chernin, the News Corp chief operating officer, and take over from his father as non-executive chairman of BSkyB. He will also rejoin the News Corp board of directors.
"News Corporation is the world's most global media company, made up of extraordinary and committed individuals that I am privileged to be joining," James Murdoch said.
"Media is fundamentally a business of ideas where top-quality, professional journalism and creative entertainment have an extremely bright future - significant value can be created by focusing on pace,execution and taking advantage of the sea change we are seeing in media."
Hinton, the executive chairman of News International, will become the chief executive of Dow Jones when the acquisition is completed on Wednesday. He replaces Richard Zannino, who said he was leaving the company.
"Les is one of the most respected executives in the media industry," Murdoch said.
"He's been a lifetime colleague and I've relied on his leadership and vision for decades. He has a great record of introducing innovations that have been replicated by other newspaper companies around the world.
"I have every confidence that his energy, dedication and foresight will enable Dow Jones and the Wall Street Journal to reach their full potential as the leading financial information source globally."
Hinton added: "Dow Jones and The Wall Street Journal have a great history and a great future. It is thrilling to have the opportunity to play a part in shaping them to adapt and thrive in the years ahead."
He has spent his entire career at News Corporation has run News International since 1995.
Hinton joined the company as a reporter for the Adelaide News and worked as a journalist and executive in Australia, the US and the United Kingdom.
He worked in the United States for 20 years, first as a correspondent later as an executive in the company's publishing and Fox television divisions.
Tuesday 4 December 2007
Heat pays out in Jordan row
Katie Price - aka Jordan - has withdrawn her complaint about a Heat sticker mocking her disabled son Harvey after the magazine apologised in today's edition and made a donation to charity.
The Press Complaints Commission has now dropped a formal investigation into the sticker, which showed Harvey's face and was captioned "Harvey wants to eat me".
Today Heat published an apology headed "Harvey - sorry" on its letters page, admitting it had made a "mistake" by printing the sticker of Harvey, who is blind and has a hormone problem that causes weight gain.
"It was never our intention to cause offence to Harvey's family and friends nor to you, our readers," the apology said. "In particular, it was never our aim to make fun of Harvey's disabilities.
"We now accept that the decision to include this sticker was a mistake and we recognise that it has caused offence, not only to Katie and Peter Andre, but to a number of readers.
"Immediately following publication, we apologised unreservedly to Katie and Peter. We wish to apologise publicly to Harvey, Katie and Peter for any embarrassment and distress caused.
"Heat has voluntarily decided to make a donation to The Vision Charity, an organisation that Katie and her family have worked with over a number of years, as a mark of its regret."
Last week Price and her husband, Peter Andre, lodged a complaint about the sticker, one of 50 given away by the Emap-owned magazine.
They cited clauses 6 and 12 of the PCC's code of practice, which deal with the protection of children and discrimination.
A PCC spokesman said the complaint had been withdrawn and the matter was now settled.
More than 100 people also complained to the PCC about the sticker, while many angry readers made their feelings known on the magazine's website.
five words:
jordon
heat
complaints
sticker
pcc
Katie Price - aka Jordan - has withdrawn her complaint about a Heat sticker mocking her disabled son Harvey after the magazine apologised in today's edition and made a donation to charity.
The Press Complaints Commission has now dropped a formal investigation into the sticker, which showed Harvey's face and was captioned "Harvey wants to eat me".
Today Heat published an apology headed "Harvey - sorry" on its letters page, admitting it had made a "mistake" by printing the sticker of Harvey, who is blind and has a hormone problem that causes weight gain.
"It was never our intention to cause offence to Harvey's family and friends nor to you, our readers," the apology said. "In particular, it was never our aim to make fun of Harvey's disabilities.
"We now accept that the decision to include this sticker was a mistake and we recognise that it has caused offence, not only to Katie and Peter Andre, but to a number of readers.
"Immediately following publication, we apologised unreservedly to Katie and Peter. We wish to apologise publicly to Harvey, Katie and Peter for any embarrassment and distress caused.
"Heat has voluntarily decided to make a donation to The Vision Charity, an organisation that Katie and her family have worked with over a number of years, as a mark of its regret."
Last week Price and her husband, Peter Andre, lodged a complaint about the sticker, one of 50 given away by the Emap-owned magazine.
They cited clauses 6 and 12 of the PCC's code of practice, which deal with the protection of children and discrimination.
A PCC spokesman said the complaint had been withdrawn and the matter was now settled.
More than 100 people also complained to the PCC about the sticker, while many angry readers made their feelings known on the magazine's website.
five words:
jordon
heat
complaints
sticker
pcc
Reception theory...
- audiences decode the text in individual ways.
- no text has one single meaning.
- extension of the uses and gratifications theory.
- concentrates on the audience itself and how it respond to the text.
- we decode the text that we encounter in individual ways.
- context of consumption- interpreting the text differently because you are watching it in a different environment.
- dominant- reader shares the same values and beliefs. it accepts the the preferred reading.
- negotiated- the reader partly shares the programmes code but changes it which reflects there view.
- oppositional- the reader does not share the programmes code and does not accept it all.
USES & GRATIFICATION THEORY
- ASSUMES AUDIENCES ARE ACTIVE.
- AUDIENCES CONSUME MEDIA TEXTS FOR THERE OWN DIFFERENT PURPOSES.
- AUDIENCES HAVE A CHOICE
- Blumler and Katz suggested four reasons.... Diversion, Personal identity, Personal relationships and Surveillance
- Denis McQuail made a detailed breakdown of audience motivation i.e. entertainment, self education, seeking advice and relaxing
SuMaRry Of eFfECts theOry!
- The Frankfurt school which was concerned with the impact of the rise of the media industries on society. the increase of the culture industry, saying culture is produced by the industry of media.
- Is seen as a passive thing (the mass audience) is being manipulated by society. ( the hegemony of the ruling classes.
- The hypodermic needle model- demonstrates the effects of the mass media has on it's audiences. injects the passive audiences with ideologies. eg- triumph of the will a Nazi propaganda film. the audience is seen as passive who accept whatever is said in the media.
- offensive things such as violence must be censored as it may influence the audience to do the same thing it is assuming that the audience is passive and will accept the ideologies that are being presented...creating moral panics although today's audience are more media literate.
- cultivation model which is when it is difficult to prove the effects of individual media texts has on an audience.
- films which were banned are now seen and are exceptional due to the social attitudes and expectations that have changed so much.
USe'S & grAtiFIcaTioNs.....& mE!
BluMler & KaTz
diversion- i like watching comedies to escape from busy life, i watch shows like friends and ugly Betty which is really funny.
personal relationships- erm....eastenders, hollyoaks and home & away sometimes these soaps have issues which i can sometimes relate to.
personal identity- hmm...not to sure if i use the media to identify myself with.
surveillance- the seven o clock channel 4 news or sometimes the 10 o'clock BBC1 mews which includes the weather....at times i flick through newspapers.
Denis McQuail:
information: things like the news, (channel4 & BBC news) is where i mostly get my information about the world. magazines.
learning: there are loads of shows which educate me like....documentaries on channel 4 they are interesting and i think that channel five even have some.
personal identity & social interaction: at times not to sure...
entertainment: ooh i love watching films all sorts like..chick flicks, scary films and funny ones.
BluMler & KaTz
diversion- i like watching comedies to escape from busy life, i watch shows like friends and ugly Betty which is really funny.
personal relationships- erm....eastenders, hollyoaks and home & away sometimes these soaps have issues which i can sometimes relate to.
personal identity- hmm...not to sure if i use the media to identify myself with.
surveillance- the seven o clock channel 4 news or sometimes the 10 o'clock BBC1 mews which includes the weather....at times i flick through newspapers.
Denis McQuail:
information: things like the news, (channel4 & BBC news) is where i mostly get my information about the world. magazines.
learning: there are loads of shows which educate me like....documentaries on channel 4 they are interesting and i think that channel five even have some.
personal identity & social interaction: at times not to sure...
entertainment: ooh i love watching films all sorts like..chick flicks, scary films and funny ones.
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