This document summarizes how the author's media product uses and challenges conventions of real newspapers. The author's mock newspaper uses conventional elements like a masthead in bold text and a layout with columns. However, it also challenges conventions by using italics in the masthead and editing photographs. The content focuses on local crime stories, as seen in papers like the Salford Advertiser. Supplementary billboards and radio ads also draw from conventions of real ads while adding unique elements influenced by the author's research. Overall, the media product draws heavily from real newspaper forms but also innovates in small ways informed by research.

1. By Alix Kelly

2. Question 1
In what ways does your media product use,
develop or challenge forms and conventions of
real media products?

3. The newspaper that I analysed for my product
research include the Salford Advertiser, The
Manchester Evening News and the Tameside
Advertiser.

4. For my newspaper, I have used a conventional masthead that uses bold text which is similar to the
Salford advertiser that I looked at in my product research. However, I have challenged the
conventions as I have used an italic effect to make it standout to the audience. This will reflect on
the audience as looking professional and sophisticated. The context and location for my newspaper
is set in Manchester, this is similar to the Salford advertiser and it includes articles that will affect
local areas and communities such as Walkden and Little Hulton. The articles focus on the crime and
accidents in local areas in Manchester, this has been used in similar products such as the Salford
Advertiser and the Manchester Evening News. In terms of the design layout, I can apply Steve Neal’s
theory of repetition as it’s a conventional layout of a newspaper, using columns and photographs to
make the newspaper standout to the audience and appear interesting and direct. The text I have
used it typical, traditional black font, the house style is a colour scheme of black, white and a
primary colour of red. This was decided through my primary market research, I have also used this
because the colours can be decoded by the audience as professional, and the red stands out as an
important colour and symbolises danger or importance to read the newspaper. The danger
symbolism is linked to the genre of the newspaper which is mostly crime and accidents.
Below is my own masthead that I
have created on Photoshop, it is
clear that I have used a similar
typeface as the Salford Advertiser
and also the using the form of the
red colour scheme.

5. The camerawork and editing used on my newspaper has been professional and
detailed. I have used mainly landscape pictures so that the audience gets a better idea
of what the setting is like and if the can recognize it and it also keeps the newspaper
looking consistent. I have not done much editing on the pictures apart from editing
the lighting and contrast so that some pictures look more dull to add to the negativity
of the article. I have also used a black and white effect on the photograph of a thug on
the second page, this is to make the image seem it has been caught off a CCTV
camera. This is a conventional technique as similar products that I have looked at such
as the Salford advertiser have used this for example, the newspaper that I looked at
showed a landscape image of a house and also a landscape image of a firework,
similar to my newspaper, this allows the audience to see more of the image and create
their own idea of what is happening. However, the difference with my images and
images used in real life newspapers is the use of the editing, mainly pictures in
newspapers have not been edited in terms of colours, but they do crop the image.
My Images
Salford
Advertisers
Images

6. The narrative of my newspaper is following the theory of Todorov who uses the 5
stages of the equilibrium. My articles start with the disequilibrium which makes
the audience want to read on to try and resolve the equilibrium. One article does
not have a resolution of the equilibrium because the villain has not been found
and is still on the hunt to being caught, this is in the form of the Manchester
Evening News on the second page, the drug dealers have still not been caught.
Newspapers that I have looked at have a similar narrative to this have also started
with a disequilibrium in the first paragraph. Genre, my newspaper follows a
conventional role of looking at crime around the local area, this is similar to work
that I have looked at in the Salford advertiser; this involves the audience because
the crime took place in a local area that could have an affect on the audience. This
has a detective style to it and the audience will try to decode the articles by trying
to figure out where the criminal could be and why he is doing what he is.

7. In terms of the characters, I have used
conventional characters that are usually
noticed in real life newspapers. Looking at
Propps, I have used a victim in a crime and
the police as the hero’s because they are
trying to help solve the case. The article also
addresses the audience directly and asks
them to get involved to capture the
criminals. This suggest that the audience
could also be related as a hero. The criminals
in each of the articles are the villains, but
they are also the prizes as if they are caught
they can be brought to justice. The family of
the woman who tried to help save a shop
keeper can also be considered the donor as
they give information out to help try and
catch the criminals.

8. I can also relate my ancillary tasks 1 and 2 to similar forms and conventions
of other media text. Firstly, the billboards which analysed were very
conventional and used the same masthead used in my newspaper on the
board so that it was easily recognizable to the audience and created a
professional consistency. For my billboard, I designed a similar masthead
which would placed in the centre of the board, this is like the Sun and
Manchester Evening News billboards which I focused on. I used distinctive
colours which broke the conventions as they would not usually be seen
associated with a newspaper billboard, but this came from the influence of
the MEN billboard which used the colour yellow. This could be decoded by
the audience as a positive and happy colour, so for my billboard I used
orange and red. The red symbolized importance and also catches the
attention of the audience. I also used a warm orange colour to create an
interesting contrast. In terms of the editing on my billboard, I used circular
effects to make the product unique and to also keep a similar house style to
the newspaper. This is a conventional technique like the MEN used from my
product research, this is because they use the yellow in the billboard which
they use for their colour scheme in their newspaper. For my ancillary 2 task,
I made a radio advert, this was a conventional advert that remained 30
seconds long and used well spoken woman as a voice over. This is a form of
the radio adverts that I listened to and analysed, including Nandos and an
Energy drink advert. I included short, snappy lines that are directed straight
to the audience.

9. Above is my own billboard, you
can see how I have adapted my
text and layout to the products
I have research including the
layout of the masthead and the
positioning of the masthead.