case study

Running Head: CHANNEL 4 1
Channel 4: The need for diversity
Fabio Perrotta
July 17, 2016
CMST 4899: Senior Project

Abstract
This paper evaluates Channel 4’s main purpose as a broadcasting station in Great Britain.
Great Britain has always remained as a more conservative country when it came to producing its
media and the content that it would contain. Channel 4 went against the grain and produced
something out of the ordinary for the country. Channel 4’s main mission was to reach out to a
more diverse group of people and to gain a diverse audience. With the implementation of
culturally diverse television shows, Channel 4 was able to grow rapidly and gain popularity
based off of their media content. Throughout the paper, there will be discussion about the
concept of public broadcasting, how and when Channel 4 started, the key concepts, funding, and
legal issues associated with Channel 4 when it began, the main points that separate Channel 4
from other broadcasting stations in the UK, and how Channel 4 remains consistent in the media
and the risks the company continues to take. With much controversy associated when Channel 4
commenced, Channel 4 was able to break through the conservative barrier the British
government had established, and create something so great that still continues to provide their
diverse type media content. Each source was thoroughly examined to ensure this paper
contained the most accurate information needed to address the issues of Channel 4 and the
journey the broadcasting station has gone through in order to come out on top.
Keywords: multiculturalism, subculture, media law, copyright, permissive, empowerment, public
service, private service.

Channel 4: The need for diversity
Introduction
Diversity can be defined as the state of being diverse or a variety. Diversity ranges from
being a different race, different gender, different sexuality, or religious beliefs. Our world
contains a lot of diversity throughout the many different regions we live in. Channel 4
represented exactly what we needed to embody the diversity throughout the many nations of the
world. The best way for diversity to be spread was through the use of public broadcasting.
Public broadcasting is used to distribute news, information, and entertainment through the use of
different media systems in order to reach out to the public. Channel 4 in the UK went against all
of the normal regulations and created their own public broadcasting station in order to gain and
retain more diverse viewers. In order for Channel 4 to achieve the diversity they wanted, the
broadcasting station specifically displayed shows that would represent a different type of
audience.
For example, Channel 4 would retrieve movies and shows from independent producers
that would more likely address diverse groups such as: the black communities, Asian
communities, LGBT community, and younger viewers. BBC, which was one of the first public
broadcasting stations to be created in the UK, it was created as a more conservative public
broadcasting station therefore, Channel 4 wanted to create something different and approach a
more liberal view through media. Channel 4 has made such a huge impact and has reached great
milestones in the UK with the use of their diverse media broadcasting.
The concepts of Channel 4 were gathered from various resources that gave specific
information about how Channel 4 began and their main purpose as a public broadcasting station.

The main concepts that will be discussed throughout include: copyright, subculture,
multiculturalism, media law, permissive culture, empowerment, public service, and private
service. Each one of these concepts represents Channel 4 and the main goal they had set out to
reach in order to get to the top in the media world in the UK. Channel 4 wanted to reach out to a
more diverse group of viewers. Channel 4 has always taken more risks than any other
broadcasting station, even in the US. Channel 4 wants to keep this as their main vision for the
broadcasting station because they want to remain consistent for their current and new viewers.
The purpose of this paper is to educate the importance of Channel 4 and the impact it has made
on the UK and other broadcasting stations.
The importance of this study was to gather information about Channel 4 and the
concepts that were used in order to create the public broadcasting station. This study also
exemplifies the importance of why Channel 4 was created and how it differed from other
broadcasting stations. This is very important to the people and society because Channel 4
crossed that boundary line of having conservative views through media. Rather than sticking
with the mold already established by other broadcasting stations, Channel 4 was edgy, risky, and
had more liberal views through media. This allowed Channel 4 to reach out to a more diverse
group of people in the community.
The main points that will be discussed throughout the paper and research conducted is the
rise of public broadcasting and the key concepts of public broadcasting, legal and funding issues,
the second point is how Channel 4 was created and what it was created for, how Channel 4 was
different from other broadcasting stations and finally how Channel 4 still operates today and the
risks that Channel 4 takes.

Literature Review
The rise of Channel 4
Throughout this section, the main concepts of public broadcasting will be discussed and
how it originated in the UK, starting with the BBC and how Channel 4 branched off of them,
(Blanchard, 2013). This article discusses how Channel 4 was such a big deal and made a huge
impact in British culture because there was such a huge gap between the last broadcasting station
introduced to Great Britain, which was BBC2. The article also touches base on the wide spread
of the culture that was eventually reached out to when Channel 4 was created and how it still
remains the same today. Channel 4’s main goal was to create a broadcasting station different
from all the others. Channel 4 displayed diverse content in order to please viewers who
belonged to a different group in the British society. Channel 4 can now be considered historic
according to this article. Based on this article, it explains the importance of the introduction of
public broadcasting in the UK, and how all the stations were created and what they originally put
out on media.
With many different public broadcasting stations rising to the top, Channel 4 made its
way into public broadcasting in the 1980’s to present a different kind of station. Initially
Channel 4 was receiving their shows from independent film makers rather than broadcasting the
mainstream media that was shown by other public broadcasters like the BBC. One of the most
interesting facts about Channel 4 is that they shared a birthday with another broadcasting station
called S4C. S4C is one day older than Channel 4, and Channel 4 had the same approach as S4C
to produce more diverse television. S4C originated in Wales and the public broadcasting station
wanted to provide more shows that spoke Welsh because the country was not provided that
luxury by other broadcasters at peak times (Price, 2013). S4C wanted to reach out to those in the

country that spoke the native language and wanted the residents to feel more accepted within
their country and culture. Both of these public broadcasting stations reached great milestones in
the history of media in the UK because both of the public broadcasting stations presented
something different from the other broadcasting stations. The concept of subculture plays a huge
part in this section because that is exactly what Channel 4 wanted to do when they created their
broadcasting station, they wanted to reach out to a subculture. A subculture is a smaller cultural
group within a larger cultural group. For example, Channel 4 would broadcast specific shows
for viewers that are part of the smaller cultural groups. S4C was similar in this aspect because
their main subculture group that they reached out to were the Welsh speakers in Wales.
Multiculturalism also plays a huge part in the main goal for Channel 4.
In order to become something extraordinarily different from the other broadcasting
stations, Channel 4 needed multicultural shows on their station. Having multicultural shows
consisted of having content that included multiple cultures throughout the UK and the rest of the
world. Since Channel 4 was receiving shows from independent producers, media law in the
country allowed some conformity for Channel 4 to broadcast. Through media laws, although
Channel 4 was a bit risky, it was still regulated by the government to ensure that channel 4
remained diverse but still retained the framework that the government had originally
implemented for previous broadcasting channels.
How and why Channel 4 was created
Channel 4 was developed to reach a more diverse audience and remain consistent with
their original goals which were to have a diverse broadcasting station for their viewers in the
UK. Channel 4 remains the same since the start of the broadcasting company and they want to

continue to stay this way to ensure the happiness of their audience and to always create
something new with their television shows to ensure up to date entertainment. Through various
sources, there was much research and discussion in regards to how Channel 4 started and how
they received their funding in order to commence their initiation into the public broadcasting
field. Channel 4 was originally broadcasting mostly independent films that were related to a
more diverse crowd of viewers (Bock & Zielinski, 2014). (Malik, 2008), there is further
discussion of the multiculturalism used by Channel 4 to set them apart from other public
broadcasting stations. There is also a lot of history discussed in the article by (Price 2013),
which discusses the cultural exchange done by both S4C and Channel 4, and what they both
shared. Based on the evidence in this section, Channel 4 became a popular broadcasting station
in the UK following after the BBC to present a more diverse station for different viewers. Since
the beginning of Channel 4, the broadcasting station has always remained consistent with their
mission in order to keep them culturally diverse.
Channel 4 was specifically created to reach out to those of different cultures and wanted
to be different from the other public broadcasting stations. Channel 4 did not receive funding
from the government, Channel 4 received its funding from television advertisement, sponsors,
and selling product. Channel 4 is very culturally diverse with their content and this study helps
us understand that channel 4 has a submissive nature which means that they are not limiting
themselves to what they intend on producing to the public. This includes having a more liberal
view on sex, social, and political norms.
Multicultural programs are important to channel 4 because that is what the broadcasting
station originally was formed from. Multicultural programs can range to a variety of different
things that Channel 4 would broadcast. Multicultural means creating different cultural groups
within a society. It is important for Channel 4 to continue this trend and pledge to being a

culturally diverse and catering to minority groups. Specific minority groups associated with
Channel 4 may include the LGBTQ community, different races, religions, and genders. The
article focuses mainly on the black and Asian races and how those two races were promoted
through Channel 4’s broadcasting network. This is what Channel 4 meant by reaching out to a
subculture.
Current operation and risks
This section discusses the continuation of Channel 4 and how they keep up with their key
concepts in order to retain and gain a more diverse group of viewers. Franklin (2013), discusses
the struggle of Channel 4 and how they were able to survive through the hardships and difficult
times that were faced with Channel 4. Throughout this section, it was discussed how Channel 4
remained to stay consistent with their original mission and is still going strong today with
remaining diverse and keeping their diverse crowd. With the emergence of Channel 4, public
broadcasting has really taken a very strong standpoint with what the station puts out to the
public.
Permissive: Channel 4 provides a more liberal view on specific criteria, such as sex,
social, and political views. The concept, permissive in the eyes of Channel 4 means that the
broadcasting station is more open minded with the public. Channel 4 pushes to have a more
permissive culture in order to pursue their goals in the entertainment industry. Empowerment:
In turn, gives channel 4 more credibility and power to others because it opens up to the public
more. The concept of empowerment represents Channel 4 as a strong broadcasting station based
off of what they had put out to the public. Channel 4 gained its popularity through providing a
more diverse type of broadcasting to specific groups. Each of these terms are associated with
Channel 4 because they express why Channel 4 had negative reviews but also explains how

Channel 4 has gained its rightful place in public broadcasting. Currently Channel 4 has 2 faces
that the corporation operates using, which is the use of public and private service. Public service
refers to traditional broadcasting, and private service refers to a more corporate and commercial
ethos. With Channel 4 using these types of services, the broadcasting station is able to please
their viewers and also obey laws that are put in place for media to abide by.
Channel 4 still receives ill judgement from viewers and other politically strong members
in the UK. Channel 4 will continue to be strong in public broadcasting because they have
reached out to so many diverse viewers that the channel will remain strong in their main mission.
The risks that are associated with having such a diverse public broadcasting station is that their
shows do go against the beliefs of other people. Being edgy and risky is what Channel 4 needs to
continue to do because they do not want to lose the current viewers they currently have.
Synthesis and research questions
Is the portrayal of the shows on Channel 4 too risky in the UK and should be more
conservative, or does the US need to take more risks, be edgier, and let their walls down more
like Channel 4 in the UK?
This was the initial research question that was asked when the research was commenced.
Through various articles and a lot of research, the question was able to be answered when the
main reason was discovered why Channel 4 is the way they are and why they continue to stay
that way. Channel 4 wants to display the content to various cultures and viewers because it is
important to be different and keep the society open minded and up to date with current
entertainment.
All of the information and research gathered says that the main problem with Channel 4
was the initiation of the public broadcasting into a conservative government, and retaining

Channel 4, Blanchard (2013). It is very important for Channel 4 to remain consistent because the
broadcasting station was able to provide channels that would captivate a different and more
diverse audience. Channel 4 will remain this way because there is constant funding from
advertising, programs, and sponsors to help support the initial mission of Channel 4.
These are a couple of research questions that can be asked in regards to the content
Channel 4 broadcasts:
a. Is Channel 4 too risky for its viewers?
b. Should the US replicate Channel 4?
With these research questions being asked, much research was conducted to ensure that
Channel 4 is not too risky for viewers. Also, the US is starting to become more open with their
public broadcasting just like Channel 4 in the UK. The US has also purchased the rights to
produce the American version of the British shows produced by Channel 4.
Conclusion
Channel 4 was created specifically to reach out to a more diverse group of people.
Channel 4 went against the grain in public broadcasting and created something different that the
viewers in the UK were not used to. The BBC has always been stricter on what they would
broadcast on television, but Channel 4 has a more passive approach to the content they produce.
Channel 4 has reached great milestones in the public broadcasting field by providing shows that
other stations did not. Channel 4 continues to stay true to their main mission of producing and
having a more diverse group of viewers, and the channel continues to grow and prosper with
their main views on how media should be portrayed.

Narrative
Background.
RuPaul’s Drag Race is a competition based reality TV show that displays some of the top
performing drag queens all across the US. Each drag queen that is on the show auditions to be
casted in the new and upcoming seasons. Throughout the competition, the drag queens must
complete various tasks and mini competitions to eliminate the current competition. At the end of
each episode, two of the weakest drag queens are picked to go against each other in a lip sync
battle to prove themselves one last time before of them is eliminated. RuPaul’s Drag Race
Season 8 just ended and announced the newest winner, Bob The Drag Queen. RuPual’s Drag
Race signed on for another season to be coming the beginning of next year. Each drag queen that
wins in the current season wins $100,000 and many other prizes that are given by RuPaul
himself and makers of the show.
RuPaul’s Drag Race first aired in 2009 and was a huge hit after the first season,
(IMDb.com, 2016). The show became so popular that RuPaul even started an All-Stars season
which included the most memorable drag queens from other seasons and the All-Star season
gave them another chance to redeem their talents and another chance to win the competition.
The show gained more and more viewers each time the show renewed its contract to air another
season. The show is now onto season 9 and that will air the beginning of 2017. This show has
definitely revolutionized the way drag queens have been represented since the very beginning
when drag became popular.
Importance.

The importance of RuPaul’s Drag Race was to display a type of competition with a
different atmosphere. Drag queens are generally associated with the gay community, therefore it
was important to for this show to take off because not only did the gay community familiarize
with the show, but the show also gained many heterosexual viewers that really enjoyed watching
the show. The show also shows importance through the acceptance of being gay or doing drag.
There are many intense moments throughout the show that show the drag queens open up and
explain their stories on how they came out as being gay and started doing drag. The reason this
shows so much importance is because it helps the viewers not only understand the struggle, but
help them with their struggle in the gay community. At the end of every show, RuPaul always
ended with the quote, “If you don’t love yourself, how the hell are you gonna love somebody
else?” With this being said, RuPaul makes it a point that you should love yourself no matter what
your lifestyle may be.
Results
Results gained from the initial airing of this show have shown great significance in
awareness for the gay community. The show also donates proceeds towards aids research and
other foundations that are related to the gay community. As I watched different episodes of the
show, there were episodes that displayed how the show has benefited the gay community in
various ways and reached out to a more diverse crowd. From what I had gathered, the show has
really pulled the gay community and other viewers closer together to watch a TV show that
correlated with their lifestyle and what they were comfortable watching.
Concept 1: Multiculturalism.

Multiculturalism means the response given to a diverse culture or group. Within
RuPaul’s Drag Race, the responses to the show have been positive. Since the show reaches out
to the gay community, responses from the gay community have been positive in regards to the
content within the show. The gay community contains many different cultures because there are
different groups within the same community such as drag queens. Doing drag is a type of culture
associated with the gay community. It is very important for this show to express the awareness
of the drag community to its viewers and the struggle they go through in order to make it big as a
famous and well known drag queen.
Concept 2: Subculture.
Drag queens, the LGBT community and other affiliates with the gay community are all
considered a subculture. RuPaul’s Drag Race has viewers ranging from many ages, it is not
entirely appropriate for under 16 years old, but ages above 16 years old can enjoy the
entertaining reality show. It is important that RuPaul’s Drag Race does not only reach out to
those subcultures, but to other ones as well, such as the straight communities. Having such a
strong impact on these cultures, the show is able to stay very popular within the communities the
show reaches out to.
Discussion
Implications.
As RuPaul’s Drag Race continues to gain popularity, the implications provided from the
show really represent a positive image in the gay community. The show not only raises
awareness for the community, but also displays intriguing entertainment through a competition
format. Although the show is primarily for entertainment purposes, it also educates the viewers

on that type of culture and lifestyle presented by drag queens and the gay community. It is
always a risk when television displays something that is out of the ordinary and that is what
RuPaul embodies most when it comes to taking risks. The show is risky because there is content
displayed suitable for a culture that still does not have full awareness from society. With this
show, RuPaul is starting to become more accepted throughout society.
Answer to research question.
The importance and implications of this case answer the research question by providing
information in regards to being risky on television and reaching out to a more diverse crowd.
This is very important because Channel 4 in the UK has been taking risks since the broadcasting
station began in the 1980’s. The US started taking many risks when Logo TV was created
because it was the only station that would display a show like RuPaul’s Drag Race.
Limitations and Applications.
Future research should look into if RuPaul’s Drag Race will continue to present a positive
image in the gay community and how they will continue to raise awareness. The only limitation
from the show is that it does not represent the lesbian community within the LGBT community.
Although the show is on a network that constantly displays many different cultures within the
gay community, RuPaul’s does direct it more towards gay men. All in all, the show does reach
out to a number of members in the gay community and all of society to raise awareness and
benefit other aspects within the gay community, such as AIDS research and awareness which is
mentioned throughout the show within some episodes and during some commercial breaks.

Conclusion
Multiculturalism and subculture are two very important concepts that are very apparent in
the show RuPaul’s Drag Race. Each concept is utilized to ensure that the show is reaching out to
a specific audience in order to raise awareness towards the gay community and gain more
acceptance from other viewers not part of the gay community. Although Channel 4 has many
other concepts associated with the broadcasting station, the concepts, multiculturalism and
subculture are present within the broadcasting station of Channel 4 and RuPaul’s Drag Race.
RuPaul’s Drag Race and Channel 4 share a common interest and that is to reach out to a more
diverse community and culture in order to open the eyes of other viewers who are used to the
traditional way media has always been displayed. Without Channel 4 in the UK and RuPaul’s
Drag Race in the US it would have been difficult to raise awareness for communities that were
not entirely accepted by the public because the media chose not to display something within that
nature. It is difficult to conform to many different cultures, that is why it is so important to have
the risk taking television shows to reach out to the various cultures.

Works Cited
Blanchard, S. (2013). The two faces of Channel 4: Some notes in retrospect. Historical Journal
of Film, Radio and Television, 33, 365-376.
Bock, G., & Zielinski, S. (2014). Britain’s Channel 4: A TV provider caught between private
sector funding and cultural funding. Journal of British Cinema and Television, 11, 418-
439.
Franklin, L. (2013). Sex, youth & videotape: Turn It Up and the struggle to be heard. Historical
Journal of Film, Radio and Television, 33, 396-417.
IMDb.com. (2016). RuPaul’s Drag Race. Retrieved from
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1353056/plotsummary?ref_=tt_ql_stry_2
Malik, S. (2008). 'Keeping it real': The politics of Channel 4's multiculturalism, mainstreaming
and mandates. Screen, 49(3), 343-353.
Price, E. (2013). A cultural exchange: S4C, Channel 4 and film. Historical Journal of Film,
Radio and Television, 33, 418-433.

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