This is my research on target audience.

1. B Y L U C I A M A N C I N I
GENRE TARGET
AUDIENCE

2. TARGET AUDIENCE
• Age: Soap operas are aimed for ages over
16+ as they often address issues that are not
suitable for younger viewers to watch and
understand. This is another reason why soaps
are shown during the day as children will be at
school or late at night when they will be
asleep. Despite this there are some soap
operas which are targeted at families.
• Gender: According To Hartley stereotypically
the audience is targeted for females as males
are usually seen to have less emotion and this
is why it is thought that females have greater
appreciation for topics in soap operas. This
engagement by females may lead producers
creating soap operas as a ‘diversion’ (Katz)
from their everyday lives. This is why most
soaps are shown during day time hours which
is typically where women are though to be
while a man is at work.
• Ethnicity: As for ethnicity, soap Operas are
usually set in a place that is familiar to the
audience so they can relate and emphasis
with the characters (Katz). For example
EastEnders is set in east London, so therefore
Londers would be interested to watch it.
The socio economic status is used by industries to dins the correct class
audience. For soap operas the class of the audience would be working class as
the characters in the soaps are also in a similar position so the audience can
relate and emphasise with them (katz). Soap operas are usually based around
one small community where everyone knows each other, just like a community of
people with a working class background would have. The audience would be
apart of C1-E group category.
Personal identification:
The audience identify themselves with the characters from the soap through
familiar locations and places.
They also feel connected by being the same class diversion as the charters
and relating their problems to their own.
Psychographics: Soap operas stereotypically attracts a older demographic
as they can relate to real life situations. This is also because older people
are often home all day if they have retired.
Easterners is on BBC 1, 4 times a week at 8pm, a time for when
younger children have gone to sleep and for adults to have time alone.
For when adults have just finished work and come home.
Coronation street is on ITV, 3 times a week at a earlier time of 7:30.
making it a more of a family based audience target.