Issues in the industry is a huge aspect of media that must be known to all who work in it. My powerpoint includes aspects such as rating wars, technologies and regulatory bodies. Audience effect theories are also explained and applied.

1. Task 6 - Issues and
Debates in the TV Industry
Units 25 & 26
Millie West

2. Rating Wars
Rating wars are based on how many views a show gets. Companies such as the BBC and ITV compete with each other
to gain the largest audience. Audience numbers are dependant on a number of factors. Rating wars are an important
element of the broadcasting phase. Advertisers look at how many viewers a production has using ‘BARB’ and from
this, they decide where they want to advertise their product. They want the most people possible to view the product
they are advertising and so they choose the channel that receives the most views, to air their product on. Obviously,
advertisements are another form of income for corporations and so they want to show the advertisers their products
in order to increase their income. The deal works both ways.
‘BARB’ stands for ‘Broadcast Audience Research Board’ and is an organisation that deals with rating wars and what
programmes are receiving the most views. The research BARB fomulates takes into consideration a number of
factors, which include, who is watching? What are they watching? When are they watching? How are they watching?
what device they will watch it on and how did the content get to the screen? Advertisers do indeed want reports on
such information. They can receive information about the programmes that advertise on, to increase their target
potential. BARB creates audience profiles which advertisers can access.
Considering the BBC is a public service broadcaster, they do not have any commercial adverts in the UK. The public
pay TV licence fees, which enables them to view live TV and ensures that the BBC can run. Because the BBC have no
adverts compared to other broadcasters, such as ITV, and because it is a paid-for service, they should receive the

3. Rating Wars
According to BARB, approximately £7b is invested annually into the production and distribution of a commercial or
the content of a programme. The BBC receive money from a range of sources and this goes towards making the
productions they produce, the best that they can be. There have been many famous rating wars in recent years.
Companies have fought for their television programmes to receive the most amount of views and the key wars are
ones where media is aired at peak show time - between 7:00pm and 9:30pm on a Saturday evening. Both the BBC
and ITV air some of their flagship programmes between these times, such as Strictly Come Dancing. Flagships are the
most popular shows that they produced, which are intended to receive the largest audience of all the shows that they
produce. Some other channels have decided that it is not worth putting on their flagships shows at the same peak
time, because they know there is no point in competing as they won't receive the largest audience. Other channels
most popular shows are therefore aired at a separate day and / or time.
ITV decided to move ‘X Factor’ because BBC’s ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ was receiving more views, and therefore ITV
were losing out. ‘X Factor’ was postponed for half an hour later, to try and increase their audience capacity and up
their numbers which were being produced on BARB. Obviously losing out on viewers means the possibility of not
receiving income from advertisers and no company wants to be in that situation, so ITV altered their original plan to
boost their viewing numbers.

4. Rating Wars
The BBC air their daily six o'clock news in the order of national stories, followed by regional ones. In contrast,
ITV have decided to show the regional stories first, followed by the national ones, simply in order the
accumulate the most viewers possible. Having different types of news on, at different times, on different
channels, allows for a more equal spread of viewings. ITV due to the contrast to the BBC now have a much
higher chance of receiving a larger number of views, than if their content was produced at the same time as
one other.
BT and Sky are constantly in a ratings war battle when it comes to sports because they both want the largest
number of viewers to watch their chanel. As mentioned, the larger the viewing number is, the more money
advertisers are willing to pay to air their product - sponsoring a programme. This is an easy and effective
way for companies earning large sums of money. Therefore, TV broadcasters are in constant competition to
win viewers and advertisers or sponsors.
Netflix and Amazon is an example of a new kind of online streaming ratings battle. Both offer their
subscribers a range of exclusive programmes, which could potentially divide audience loyalty between the
two streaming services.

5. Technologies - The Internet
The internet is a global computer network that provides a variety of information and communication
facilities. It consists of interconnected networks using standardized communication protocols. The use of the
Internet has changed television and film promotion over the years in a number of ways. One of the many
ways in which it has done that is through marketing. In contemporary society, a large majority of TV and film
promotions are done through the use of online marketing. By marketing and promoting online, it increases
a product’s (in this instance being a film or television programme) or company’s potential audience. In
addition, the internet is a effective tool for the distribution of different types of media, including television
programmes and films. It acts as a source for people across the world to be able to view them. Moreover,
the use of the internet enables viewers to stream, download, buy and sell various forms of media. In
addition, the internet provides a source of communication, for people to be able to talk freely and discuss a
range of topics, including film and television, furthering its promotion.

6. Technologies - The Internet
There are two main advantages of using the internet. The first is that the public has easier access to media
material, through the use of streaming websites such as Netflix, BBC iPlayer and 4oD.
The second advantage is that it creates easy distribution for companies that are trying to promote their
project or product. With any advantages, comes disadvantages. One of these includes companies not
making as much money as they should. Different websites may or may not ask for a viewing fee. If viewers
are not asked to pay for the service, then, technically, companies are losing out on possible gains, which they
could receive if they had their material sourced elsewhere. Another disadvantage entails people breaching
copyright laws for online material. By illegally downloading or recording and distributing material, one who
commits this crime would be committing piracy, which can carry hefty fines and / or incarceration.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HmZm8vNHBSU

7. Technologies - The Internet
As this has been seen to be a reoccurring issue, some solutions have been sought. Some of these
suggestions include companies fighting back. As a result, this would mean that viewers won’t be able to or it
would be increasingly hard to pirate material, and it would be increasingly harder for the public to commit
copyright acts. In addition, as briefly mentioned, there has been the introduction of cheap and legitimate
sources to stream and screenwatch material. The introduction of such websites mean that a small fee is
required to use the service, but once you have paid, you have access to all of the material that the website
has to offer. One previously mentioned yet well known website that is highly popular for what is has to offer
is ‘Netflix’. Not only does it entitle you to TV programmes, films and specials, it also offers you exclusive
material, owned by ‘Netflix’ itself, such as ‘Orange is the new Black’, ‘13 Reasons Why’ and much more! This
solution is used to try and encourage people to legally stream material of high quality, yet for a small price.

8. Technologies - The Internet
The internet is also used as a form of democracy. As a society, we now have less reliance on television for news and
entertainment as we can watch things on catch up or on a portable device. This means that applications such as
YouTube, Netflix and Amazon prime have taken over television as audiences have realised that they can get such
media elsewhere.
Prosumerism has also changed the way that media works. The public - the consumers are now able to create,
produce and release their own content that can be widely popular amongst audiences and the rest of the public. This
is the way that independant movies evolved. Television for such reasons has had to change and adapt to meet
contemporary society and its needs. Technologies have changed and so the production of media has evolved.
Convergence has been a significant change in the media industry, this means producers adapt their projects and
products to suit their on demand audiences. Websites such as “FilmonTV”are examples of legal sites where audiences
can watch shows of their choice and are released by the producers of the shows themselves..

9. Technologies - Smartphones
Smartphones are a form of modern technology that have accessibility to the internet. This new form of
technology gives audiences the choice of what they want to view and where they want to view it. That
freedom of choice gives the audience a feeling and sense of power. They are in control of what they watch
and when they want to watch it, without having the pressure of missing a show or needing to rush to a cable
television to watch it. Instead, the power is literally in their hands.
Through the use of new technology such as smartphones, audiences are able to access a variety of media
through different sources and platforms. For example, audience members can use the BBC app to find out
current information and affairs, instead of having to wait to watch the news at 6pm. Releasing media
productions over different platforms helps both producers and developers gain an increased amount of
funding (from advertisers) as gaining large audiences not only from TV but other sources can help
advertisers be able to choose which corporate company they would like to advertise with and what platform
they would like to advertise on. BARB also takes into consideration viewers that watch productions from
devices other than the common television, and therefore, the audience numbers generated, include viewers
watching media via smartphones. The ability to have the media industry and all that it brings ensures that
audiences are happy and reliable to the service that they use.

10. Technologies - Smartphones
Social media which is accessed by a range of technologies that can generate an internet connection, such as a smartphone, is
also used to help promote certain shows. Social media sites are able to entice potential audiences by winning their hearts and
minds and give them the sense that they must watch the production. Twitter is a common social media site used to entice an
audience. Both production companies, their shows and in some cases, the shows characters all have social media accounts in
which aid to create a buzz. Social media can also be an effective way of bringing fans and audiences as well as channels and
productions themselves together, to allow them to talk about and bond over a common theme - a media production. Deadpool
is a great example of a production that has interacted with its audience. Deadpool is a citizen of society and has his own twitter
account. He comments on post and tweets about upcoming events regarding ‘his’ movie and creates excitement amongst
audiences.
Although having power in your palm is an amazing, trending and modern form of technology, are we as society becoming too
reliant and dependant on this ability to watch as show at the click of a button? Are we becoming increasingly antisocial due to
the pressures enforced by society of needing to be up to date with the newest programmes and films? If so, does this ability of
power need to change to help society for the better?
The biggest brands and newest forms of technology are both expensive and vulnerable. Society seen a need to have the best
technology possible but they are not all of the good that they are shown to be. They are increasingly expensive, and valuable.
They also use a large amount of memory and storage space. The use of GPS tracking and availability to find internet connections
and signal drains a piece of technologies battery quickly. Although new technology has many benefits, do the disadvantages
outway them?

11. Regulation - OFCOM
OFCOM stands for Office of Communications. They are the communications regulators regarding TV programmes in
the UK. They create a set of regulations that all TV programmes must follow. For example one of these guidelines
include the disallowance of racial, ethnic or cultural remarks - coming under the protection for members of the
public, and others against offensive or harmful material in television or radio. All shows must ensure, as mentioned,
that they go by Ofcom guidelines. The main set of laws that they abide by is ‘Communications Act’ of 2003. The act
says that OFCOM’s principle duty is to further the interests of citizens and consumers - meaning that each
organisation focus’ its material on what the public would want to see and where appropriate, promoting competition.
Regulatory bodies are organisations that supervise the content of specific media industries and aim to safeguard the
public from offensive material. They ensure that all media companies are publishing suitable material.
If Ofcom get a significant number of complaints about a particular TV programme then then there are concerns that a
channel may have breached the Ofcom guidelines. As a result, Ofcom will perform an investigation. This will be to see
if the initial terms and guidelines have been broken. Following this, if the programme has been seen to have
breached their contract, then they may be fined, or in a worse case scenario, the programme may be cancelled.

12. Audience Effect Theories - Moral Panics
The idea and theory of ‘moral panics’ was created by Stanley Cohen in 1972. The theory stated that a production
focused on the negative aspects of a subject or story and exaggerated upon it to create, what audiences thought felt
like a worldwide issue.
A key issue in the industry involves moral panics going too far. If the media portray issues that are occurring as
horrific, then it will be being used in the wrong way. The media is used to enforce a message, not scare its audience.
Moral panics occur quite often thanks, in large, to exaggerated reporting and responses to certain groups in society.
Key phenomena include the 2000’s ‘Millenium Bug’, 2012’s Swine Flu epidemic, 2015’s Ebola and the common
recurrence of terrorism.
In the 60/70s mods and rockers became the target of moral panics. Both groups were feared as they were said to
cause destruction. In terms of moral panics, a group of people are usually targeted and examples over previous years
include those with aids, black people, muslims and Nazi Germany ideologies including groups in society such as jews
and those who are disabled. Moral panics are created through propaganda and exaggerated reporting which in turn
can create havoc in society. Eastenders both intentionally and unintentionally create moral panics among its
audiences through the choice of storylines. In previous years, teen drinking, alcohol poisoning leading to death and
teenage pregnancies have been featured and in turn created panic in society. The news is another form of media that
creates moral panics through its use of exaggeration and possible bias opinion.

13. Audience Effect Theories - Encoding and Decoding
Stuart Hall's “Encoding and Decoding” is a theory that can be seen to create issues in the media industry. This theory regards
embedding a or multiple messages into a media text. The theory works on three ways that an audiences could take a message
from a media text; these three types include preferred, negotiated, and oppositional. ‘Preferred’ regards an audience who not only
understand the message embedded into a media production but also firmly agrees with it. ‘Negotiated’ refers to an audience who
are on the fence about a message embedded into a media text. Finally, ‘oppositional’ audience’s are those who completely
disagree with a message embedded into a text. Each individual can be any of the three types of audience member. A person's
choice of how they choose to receive the message is dependent upon their culture, class, life experiences, upbringing and many
other factors.
Holby City is a BBC 1 show that has aired since 1998. It is based around the highs and lows of hospital staff and patients in Holby
City Hospital. Personally I have a preferred reading of the show because I agree with the messages in the text and I feel as though
they are relevant in today’s society, especially since some of the messages in the episode regard mental health which have been a
major focus of the government and the media in recent times, and i believe that more needs to be done to tackle this subject, or to
raise awareness of it. The series also covers messages that include the tireless work that the NHS do, and how hard the job can be
which can educate the public on such issues. Other audiences may take a negotiated reading of the text and explain how they
agree with some of the messages, but not others or that the NHS work hard, but not as hard are the show portrays. Similarly,
Oppositional audiences may disagree completely with the messages that the programme has to offer as the believe that everything
is completely exaggerated and is completely blown out of proportion, making the messages shown, simply untrue. Although
audiences have to understand that it is a drama and so to make it interesting events are exaggerated. News programmes also have
the same effect on audiences, audiences may agree, disagree or feel negotiated about the readings that the news portrays, and
this again is all dependant on a person's upbringing.

14. Audience Effect Theories - Uses and Gratifications
Blumler and Katz’s Uses and Gratifications theory (1974) is one that can be applied to any media production. This
theory suggests that media is used to satisfy the needs of the audience. According to Blumler and Katz, there are four
main needs to satisfy and each media text could cover at least one. The four categories are diversion, personal
relationships, personal identity and surveillance. Diversion, means that a production is a form of entertainment to
distract people from the reality of society - a form of escapism into the surreal, or another world reflecting one’s own.
The second aspect is surveillance. Audiences want to feel safe or see what not to do to jeopardize their safety. The
third aspect is the use of personal relationships, and they are used to show how other people or characters interact
with each other. Finally, personal identity is used to ensure that films to be effective in capturing one’s attention.
Audiences should be able to identify with the characters and almost see themselves reflected within one of the
on-screen characters. In media productions, audience members should be able to connect with and identify with a /
or a few of the characters, as it can enhance the realism of the storyline and make it that much more thrilling and
believable. Each member of a production has a characteristic and personal trait that audiences should be able to
relate to. For example, you always have the characters that are popular, smart, sporty or nerdy.
Silent Witness is a great example of a show that includes off of the uses and gratifications aspects. Audiences may
begin the series as a form of diversion from society, yet this may evolve into surveillance as the show centres around
the deaths of citizens. It may educate the shows audiences about how to stay safe and how to help those in need.
Personal identity and personal relationships can also be related to the show as audiences may be able to identity with
some of the characters and/ or how they interact with others.

15. Bibliography
https://www.filmon.com/tv/bbc-news
http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20131003-new-tube-why-tv-gets-better
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7897212.stm