NEWSPAPER 
ADVERTISEMENT
CHANNEL 4 
In this newspaper advertisement mise-en-scene is particularly evident. The lighting in this advertisement is an 
essential part of character profiling, The left hand side has darker and more shadowed lighting therefore causing 
the person to portray aggressive antagonistic behaviour therefore signifying to the reader that he is essentially 
representing the ‘bad guy’. On the right hand side we see the lighting progressively becoming brighter and less 
shadowed. This, when combined with the facial composition of the actor allows the reader to acknowledge that 
he represents the victim, there is no heroic stance which indicates a protagonist but a submissive anguishing 
facial expression therefore allowing the audience to assume he going to be the potentially injured party. 
As well as this hand gesture represents the image of a gun, this emphasises that the show is in fact about 
‘disarming Britain as the web link suggest. It allows us to see how the a white man in a hooded jumper is the 
stereotypical representation of a gun owner. However this subverts from the dominant ideology; typically we 
would associate gun crime with gangs of young men in their late teens from a city background. Although the 
dirty wall and typical hooded jumper partially fits this profile we lack the image of a gang therefore allowing the 
audience to assume that it is a more serious issue than they may realise. It does not only exist in a city setting but 
also in unexpected environments.
FEATURES 
The red Channel 4 symbol is a key feature in this newspaper advertisement. It works to promote the show as 
specific to this channel, however is cleverly constructed to connote the situation presented. Red emphasises 
the violent imagery causing the audience to understand the severity of the shows contents. However also 
causes the 4 to stand out against the dull background emphasising that this is the show presenting it. 
Channel 4 uses this type of advertising throughout their promotion therefore they are recognisable simply 
through the symbol ‘4’. The simplicity in this symbol leads to a more complex idea ( representing blood on 
the wall) which simultaneously promotes the show as well as channel 4. 
As well as this they have a small tag line to show the website and name of the show. This minimal advertising 
allows the audience to focus on the imagery presented therefore causing it to become more effective. The 
singular word ‘disarming Britain’ is written in small text, this emphasises the idea that the imagery is supposed 
to do most of the advertising and the tag line simply defines where it can be found and what to look for on 
the channel. No more advertising is needed.
AUDIENCE 
This documentary advertisement is aimed at a more mature audience as it target their sympathetic 
parental natures. The explicit imagery intends to shock and scare the audience into understanding the 
reality of the situation, especially as it is called ‘disarming Britain’. These issues are often more prevalent 
within the late teenage to adulthood years of someone's life, therefore by targeting this audience as 
opposed to one of younger children they are forcing it upon an appropriate age to understand as well as 
facing an audience who may have to deal with such a situation themselves. The setting is one which 
would be recognised throughout an older society causing their message to have the necessary effect and 
bring in a wider audience base. The use of young male actors allows us to assume the target audience will 
be both male and in late teenage year to early 20’s. It allows us to recognise that this is the prominent 
group within society that gun crime is associated therefore by using them in their advert it will allow their 
target audience to relate to image, thus relating to the documentary, and making them more likely to 
watch it.

Newspaper advertisement 1

  • 1.
  • 3.
    CHANNEL 4 Inthis newspaper advertisement mise-en-scene is particularly evident. The lighting in this advertisement is an essential part of character profiling, The left hand side has darker and more shadowed lighting therefore causing the person to portray aggressive antagonistic behaviour therefore signifying to the reader that he is essentially representing the ‘bad guy’. On the right hand side we see the lighting progressively becoming brighter and less shadowed. This, when combined with the facial composition of the actor allows the reader to acknowledge that he represents the victim, there is no heroic stance which indicates a protagonist but a submissive anguishing facial expression therefore allowing the audience to assume he going to be the potentially injured party. As well as this hand gesture represents the image of a gun, this emphasises that the show is in fact about ‘disarming Britain as the web link suggest. It allows us to see how the a white man in a hooded jumper is the stereotypical representation of a gun owner. However this subverts from the dominant ideology; typically we would associate gun crime with gangs of young men in their late teens from a city background. Although the dirty wall and typical hooded jumper partially fits this profile we lack the image of a gang therefore allowing the audience to assume that it is a more serious issue than they may realise. It does not only exist in a city setting but also in unexpected environments.
  • 4.
    FEATURES The redChannel 4 symbol is a key feature in this newspaper advertisement. It works to promote the show as specific to this channel, however is cleverly constructed to connote the situation presented. Red emphasises the violent imagery causing the audience to understand the severity of the shows contents. However also causes the 4 to stand out against the dull background emphasising that this is the show presenting it. Channel 4 uses this type of advertising throughout their promotion therefore they are recognisable simply through the symbol ‘4’. The simplicity in this symbol leads to a more complex idea ( representing blood on the wall) which simultaneously promotes the show as well as channel 4. As well as this they have a small tag line to show the website and name of the show. This minimal advertising allows the audience to focus on the imagery presented therefore causing it to become more effective. The singular word ‘disarming Britain’ is written in small text, this emphasises the idea that the imagery is supposed to do most of the advertising and the tag line simply defines where it can be found and what to look for on the channel. No more advertising is needed.
  • 5.
    AUDIENCE This documentaryadvertisement is aimed at a more mature audience as it target their sympathetic parental natures. The explicit imagery intends to shock and scare the audience into understanding the reality of the situation, especially as it is called ‘disarming Britain’. These issues are often more prevalent within the late teenage to adulthood years of someone's life, therefore by targeting this audience as opposed to one of younger children they are forcing it upon an appropriate age to understand as well as facing an audience who may have to deal with such a situation themselves. The setting is one which would be recognised throughout an older society causing their message to have the necessary effect and bring in a wider audience base. The use of young male actors allows us to assume the target audience will be both male and in late teenage year to early 20’s. It allows us to recognise that this is the prominent group within society that gun crime is associated therefore by using them in their advert it will allow their target audience to relate to image, thus relating to the documentary, and making them more likely to watch it.