Tv Drama

 Industries & Audiences: 06/01/21

To research the history, companies & regulators in the Television Industry

Paper 1: Section A​

You will be given an unseen extract from a TV drama to watch and analyse.​

You will be asked THREE questions about the extract and TWO about TV in general.​

You could be asked about:​

How MEDIA LANGUAGE has been used to create meaning​

How the INDUSTRY has influenced the meaning​

The AUDIENCE’s reaction to the extract​

The SOCIAL, CULTURAL & HISTORICAL CONTEXT

Terminology:

Publicly owned TV Channel: funded by government & license fees for the public service​

Commercial TV Channel: funded through advertisements​


Convergence: the process of joining different technologies into one device. E.g. mobile phone​

Watershed: times when adult content (15+) can be shown. Between  9pm & 5:30am​

Segmented market: audience divided into different groups depending on taste and interests.​

Self-regulating: not regulated by outside bodies

Franchise: license from the company of a product to use format/show/ideas 

​

Channel-surfing: changing frequently from one program to another on television, watching each 

one for only a short time

​

Scheduling: deciding which shows to show at which times​

Conglomerate: a company that owns several smaller businesses whose products or services are 

usually very different

Research Task:

When was TV introduced to the UK? 1955.

In 1965 how many channels were there and what were they? 3, BBC 1, BBC 2, ITV.

When did ITV start? Why was it different? 1955. It was independent of BBC who owned the monopoly of British broadcasting, therefore the name Independent TeleVision.

Which UK channels have to follow PSB remits? Channel 3 services, Channel 4, Channel 5, S4C and the BBC.

Who regulates TV now? Ofcom.

Who regulated TV in the 1960s? ITA for ITV and BBC was self-regulated.

List the differences between TV in the 1960s and now? 

• Different regulators
• Fewer programmes
• Fewer TV shows roughly it is stricter if a 

Ownership & Regulation: 13/01/21

To explore the ownership & regulation of BBC1 and ITV

Ofcom is the regulator of Tv and radio broadcasting setting standards for programmes to follow. If they breach these standards Ofcom can fine them.

Public Service Broadcasting:

"Public service broadcasting" refers to broadcasting for the public benefit instead of commercial gain. The BBC is the main PSB channel and it has a strict REMIT to follow.

REMIT- the task or area of activity officially assigned to an individual or organization

Ofcom regulates the BBC externally, however internally the BBC is regulated by a board of 12-14 members. They also have a Royal Charter which must be renewed every 11 years, setting the BBC's public purposes. The BBC has been a PSB since it first started in 1922, and in 1925, Lord Reith outlined the principles of a PSB, that it should "inform, educate and entertain" and that it should be free from commercial and governmental pressures.

Royal Charter- Something granted by the Queen which guarantees independence and outline its purposes/duties.

BBC's Values, Vision and Mission:

Their mission is to "act in the public interest, serving all audiences through the provision of impartial, high-quality and distinctive output and services which inform, educate and entertain".

Their Values are:

• Trust is the foundation of the BBC, we're independent impartial and honest.
• We put audiences at the heart of everything we do.
• We respect each other and celebrate our diversity.
• We take pride in delivering value and quality for money.
  
  
• Creativity is the lifeblood of our organisation

ITV:

Our vision is to be 'More than TV' building upon ITV's unique and winning combination of creativity and commercial strength. 

By the 1950's, many felt the "BBC represented a high - culture snobbery that many leftist associated with an oppressive class structure." There was a "desire for a playful commercial, anti - citizen address as a counter."

This came along in 1955 with ITV.

As a terrestrial broadcaster, it has a PSB remit to follow. ITV is a channel made up of lots of smaller companies. It is non-profit.

Part of its PSB remit is to:

• Broadcast items of national importance.
• Produce a variety of programmes for a wide audience.
• Produce accessible content. 

ITV Research Task:

• 6 Channels: ITV, ITV2, ITV3, ITV4, C ITV, ITV BE
• Strategy: "Our Vision is to be 'More than TV' building upon ITV's unique and winning combination of creativity and commercial strength."
• Other Platform: ITV Hub 
• Other Income: subscription video on demand services, competitions, live events, gaming, merchandise.
• Most Popular Programmes: I'm a Celebrity, BGT, Rugby World Cup Final
• Most Expensive Programme: I'm a Celebrity (15 million)
• Advantages of Being Commercially Owned: people trust the channel and provides scale and reach. And allows the ability to buy the exact amount of ratings or views that you needs.

Tv Audiences: 18/01/21

To explore how audiences consume Tv drama and the appeal

Target Audiences

• Both BBC1 and ITV1 need to be popular and appeal to mass audiences.
• BBC1 has to meet PSB remit and justify license fee.
• ITV1 has to attract advertisers to fund channel.

Ways Audiences can Access TV Programmes Today:

• Subscription 
• Online
• TV Licence (On the TV)
• Live TV

Effects of Technology:

• Despite being able to watch time-shifted programmes or stream TV, the majority of audiences still watch live TV on a TV set. The PSB channels are still the most popular - 85% of people in the UK with a TV watch PSB channel. 
• With this we can watch whatever TV when ever we want to why do people still watch live TV?
• One reason for watching live TV is second screening which is screenings that encourage audiences to join discussions on various social media during a live TV show. 
• Another reason could be audience interactivity which is when viewers are encouraged to vote to determine the outcome. This continued engagement increases their commitment to the programme and loyalty to the channel.

Theory - The Active Audience:

• This theory debates whether an audience is active or passive

Passive Audience - accepts and believes everything a media text tells them. They are easily influenced and don't question any messages conveyed.

Active Audience - interacts with a media text and makes its own decisions about whether to accept and believe everything, They question messages and may interpret meanings differently. 

The 1960s: 20/01/21

To research the social, historical and political context of The Avengers

Social and Political Context:

Who were the famous bands? The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd etc.

How was this music different? Now rock was socially accepted so it spread making a big majority of the 60s genre rock.

Which political party was in power in 1965? The Labour Party, Harold Wilson being the PM.

Were illegal drugs, according to media, a big part of the culture?  Yes

What scientific development changed women's lives? 

What significant historical events happened? Kennedy Elected, The cold war, Kennedy Assassination, Voting rights act, Marilyn Monroe dies, Beatles are born, Star Trek, First Super Bowl, The Moon Landing, First E-mail, Dr Martin Luther King Jr., " I have a dream..." speech, Dr MLK Jr. assassination. Black Panther Party founded, Native Americans take Alcatraz.

The Avengers (1965)

To research the Tv show "The Avengers"

1. Which institution (Channel) produced the show?

ITV

2. Who was the primary and secondary audience?

Mainstream Adult Audience

3. When did the first episode air?

7th January 1961

4. How many seasons were made?

Six

5. What date/year was the last episode aired?

21st May 1969

6. What was the budget for Series 4?

£56,000 per episode

The Avengers and Scheduling

How many channels were there in 1965? 

- three - BBC 1, BBC 2 and ITV

What did that mean about audiences and channel loyalty?

- as there were fewer channels people had less to choose from so they all just watched what was on TV at that time of day.

• The Avengers was scheduled on Saturdays at 9.05pm - peak time to attract a mass audience.
• The 4th series attracted audiences of around 7 million and was often in the top 10 ratings.

The Avengers: Town Of No Return

To explore the native, characters and appeal of Series 4, Episode 1

Narrative:

Steed and Peel get notified that many agents have been missing in a town and go investigate. In the train to the town, they meet a man who came to visit his brother. When they arrived they met the INN's housemaster, the headteacher, and the school investigator. They quickly realise that something is wrong and go investigate, Emma quickly find that the town's records have been stolen and finds one of the agents who quickly tells her that the people in the town are fake. Knowing this information Peel gets kidnapped by the town folks. Steed saves her and by putting the pieces together they learn that the town is making an army to conquer the UK.

The Characters:

 John Steed is the main protagonist in the series. Steed is an English secret agent working for an unnamed branch of British intelligence, however, in this episode, he is paired with what seems to be an old friend to him but a new character to us Emma Peel the female lead/companion. 

Context- The Avengers: Town of No Return

To analyse the influence of the social and historical contexts in Series 4, Episode 1.

What were the major concerns at the time?

• Cold War
• The threat of nuclear war
• The threat of foreign invasion
• Espionage

Intertextual References:

Fifth Columnists were a group of people who secretly support the enemy and undermine a country from within.

Who were the fifth columnists in this episode?

This episode references World War II films like Went the Day Well? from 1944. In both cases, the English country village is an illusion, as sinister intruders are impersonating stereotypical British characters. 

Who were these characters and how were they shown to be stereotypes?

Many national concerns could be seen in some of the films released in the early 60s. Look at the list on the next slide – how could these have influenced The Avengers?

Influences from films/TV from 1965:

The Ipcress File: an unglamorous spy film with Michael Caine as a British agent. Influence coming from the spy aspect.

Thunderball: the fourth James Bond film. Influence of spy aspect.

The Spy Who Came in from the Cold: Cold War spy film. Influence of spy aspect.

The War Game: fiction film on the effects of a nuclear attack on Britain. A nuclear level threat to Britain just like in avengers.

It Happened Here: fiction film about the occupation of Britain by the Nazis. Just like the occupation of fakes in the town of no return.

The Man from U.N.C.L.E: American spy thriller TV series. Inspired by spy aspect.

The Cold War and Espionage:

The opening sequence of the episode symbolises the theme of the episode, which can be summed up as the attempted invasion of Britain supported by ‘The Enemy Within’. Saul, who apparently represents the stereotypical British fisherman (?!), is not alarmed by the strange arrival of the imposter Mark Brandon from the sea in a waterproof bag, but directs him to Lower Bazely as if a smartly dressed ‘English gentleman’ wading in from the sea were an everyday occurrence! 

This alerts the 1965 audience to familiar themes linked to spying: disguise and impersonation.

Reassuring the Audience:

As a light-hearted spy thriller, the show would need to reassure the audience that, while the threat existed, the enemy was not efficient enough to succeed.

This is shown in Episode 1 by the use of comedic relief scenes and characters to distress the audience from the posing threat. A good example is a scene where Emma Peel explains the planned invasion to Steed on the blackboard, whilst he sits behind a child’s desk. 

This is given very little screen time; Steed’s position adds humour; they both have a cool, calm response. 

All this helps to undermine the seriousness of the threat and reassures the audience that any threat is not as serious as the threat in the early years of WW2 and that the country is safe with agents like Steed and Peel.

Explain how social contexts influence television programmes. Refer to The Avengers from 1965 to support your answer

Social contexts have always influenced television programmes. An example of this is The Avengers from 1965 that uses social contexts like espionage, foreign invasion, nuclear war and other inferences in it's writing. For example, the scene where Steed walks around the deserted airfield and doffs his hat to his reflection is a salute to all those involved in WW2 and reminds the audience that Britain triumphed.

Television in the 2010s

To research the 2010s (UK) in terms of the social, cultural and political climate of the decade; research TV usage in 2015.

October 2015:

October 3 – A United States airstrike on a Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders) hospital in Afghanistan kills an estimated 20 people.

October 10 – A series of suicide bombings kill at least 100 people at a peace rally in Ankara, Turkey, and injures more than 400 others.

October 23 – Hurricane Patricia becomes the most intense hurricane ever recorded in the Western Hemisphere and the second strongest worldwide, with winds of 215 mph and a pressure of 872 mbar.

October 26 – A magnitude 7.5 earthquake strikes the Hindu Kush region and causes 398 deaths, with 279 in Pakistan, 115 in Afghanistan and 4 in India.

October 31 – Metrojet Flight 9268, an Airbus A321 airliner en route to Saint Petersburg from Sharm el-Sheikh, crashes near Al-Hasana in Sinai, killing all 217 passengers and 7 crew members on board. Later investigations revealed a bomb was likely responsible for the crash with Islamic State being the primary suspect.

Using the information you have found and your own knowledge of our culture today, explain the differences you would expect to see from a police drama in 2015 compared to one from 1965.

Consider:

Representations – sexuality, gender, religion, age, class

Threats/Issues

Potential storylines

In 1965 people would have seen more spy shows and nuclear threats because that's what was happening around the world at the time whereas in 2015 it would deal with terrorist attacks, climate change threats like earthquakes or hurricanes.

Television Industry: 2010s

L/O: to explore the TV Industry in the 2010s and the effect on TV shows and audiences.

Part of the winter schedule for 2015: aired October 2015, typically, a time aimed at wider family audiences. E.g. Apprentice & Strictly

Scheduling: broadcast 8pm on a weekday. Peak viewing time. 

Pre-watershed Cuffs targeted a broad family audience of 16-65, similar to that of Casualty & Waterloo Road.

Offered range of characters and storylines to appeal to as many segments of demographic as possible

Format/Appeal: Fits modern post 2010 populist series format – everyday relatable storylines with a consistent set of troubled characters with different issues.

Narrative: Weekday winter pre-watershed formats are intended to be engaging but not threatening to mainstream audience values. Storylines tend to be covered superficially and lack depth of darker post-watershed series like Luther or Sherlock.

Tiger Aspect productions has a long track record in both comedy and quality drama: Peaky Blinders, Benidorm, Ripper Street, Bad Education, Robin Hood, The Vicar of Dibley, Gimme, Gimme, Gimme & Murphy’s Law. 

The BBC wanted a programme to replace Waterloo Road, whose audiences were declining. The slot – 8pm Wednesday – was pre-watershed prime time, so required family-friendly mass entertainment and was the one day when the schedule was not held up by Eastenders, putting extra pressure on the programme to deliver large audiences. 

Cuffs offered the possibility of reproducing the success of The Bill, a pre- watershed police drama that had been the mainstay of the ITV early evening schedules for many years. Cuffs offered the same combination of a soap-opera style ensemble cast in a character-led narrative with a mix of humour and serious drama, in a similar mould to the BBC’s successful serial hospital dramas – Casualty and Holby City. 

Conventions of police drama:

Usually police dramas follow a very conventional structure. They either follow a person/team of people who beat cases that are unbeatable by others, they often contain resistance of some sort to add tension to the story (like the chief of police or even being one step behind the criminal). 

In terms of characters it's usually the same type: the main character who's serious and a team leader, the comic relief, the analytical and serious one etc.

Cuffs: Series 1, Episode 1

To analyse the narratives and characters constructed in an opening sequence.

Main Characters: How Are They presented to you?

 PC Ryan Draper: Good hearted, experienced, 

PC Jake Vickers: New, not respected by other police officers cause he jumped in, good hearted, impatient, slowly gaining respect from others. Makes too many mistakes. Gay.

DS Jo Moffat: Caring, Has a crush on Robert, she tries her best in her job, anxious. Had an affair with chief

Chief  Superintendent Robert Vickers: Mean, cares more for family than duty, had an affair (?). Jakes dad

DC Carl Hawkins: Not allot that we know of.

DI Felix Kane: Smart, Understanding, helped someone not kill themselves.

PC Donna Prager: Funny

PC Line Moretti: Funny

Storylines:

3 main episodical storylines, 1 following Ryan and Jake in their first day, 2 following a little girl who was kidnapped by her father, and 3 a boy who was stabbed to death and its being investigated by Jo.

 

Setting:

 Sea Side Urban City. 

Overall Appeal:

Personal Identity: A range of different characters that anyone can relate to.

Information: Social realism.

Entertainment: Can be entertaining, dramatic etc.

Social Interaction: Build relationship with characters.

Cuffs and Social Context

To analyse representations and social and cultural context in Cuffs

How was the stereotypical English seaside town represented?

Characters:

Ryan

Men and Women on a beach

Props:

Viking hat gets thrown from someones head starting a fight.

Character interaction:

Ryan tries to stop a fight and gets punched

Dialogue:

Over radio conversation with the other police officers.

2 men fight over nudism

Ryan trying to calm them down

Robert's narration to new recruits juxtaposing the fight.

Stereotypes:

Football drunk man starts a fight.

Donna- She is powerful in her position, and equal to her male counterpart, Lino. We consider Lino and Donna as equals- and maybe Donna as even more powerful than Lino despite their same position, because she is physically fitter as displayed towards the ending in the training scene.

Misha- Despite being threatened by the criminals, she is brave enough to call out the crime on the radio- displaying how she is a powerful female role.

Jake- Naive, Dedicated, Weak, inexperienced 

Moretti- Comedic relief

    

Sexuality- Jake and the solicitor are both part of the LGBTQ community, jake is one of the main characters him being gay shows how tv has evolved through out the ages in terms of masculinity. He also goes again the typical stereotype of gay people in media, showing more of a masculine side to him. This aspect is brought up twice through out the episode once notifying Ryan about it and the other the solicitor hitting on him.

 

Multiculturalism- There is multiple ethnicities through out the episode, Ryan and his son or the boy who came to the UK to study. In Both cases the show deals with racism in metropolitan places. A racist man stabbing the boy and Ryan.

Analysing an Extract

To analyse the use of language in a Tv Drama extract

                                                                                        

Sea beach, seagull noise, non diegetic jazz very 60s, high key lighting parallel sound contrapuntal sinister sound juxtapositioning the beach showing that not everything is as it seems , zoom on man showing his expression, slow camera movement, establishing shot of the beach, hand held camera, point of view shot of him walking towards and away from the man bringing focus to the man. Dialogue of weather and umbrella after walking out of sea shows the light hearted and comedy relief of it.

How has sound been used to create meaning?

Sound has been used to create meaning through out the episode. The first example of this is as the episode begins a subtle non diegetic jazz music together with the parallel beach sounds like seagulls, waves, wind etc. This connotes that the jazz sound (which has subtle sinister notes) is very contrapuntal and juxtaposes the lovely beach telling us the viewer that little Bailey is not what it seems. Secondly, the light toned dialogue of the weather after walking from the sea in a rubbish bag(comedic relief) , gives un example to the viewer of the kind of show they're about to see. Finally the music ends in a very sinister tone as it zooms in, the unknown man's face connoting that the man is not good even after giving instructions to the town and that he might be plotting something.

The Avengers- Wednesday 21st

How has sound been used to create meaning?(2nd  Try)

Sound has been used to create meaning, this is evident from the contrapuntal sounds of sinister non diegetic sound to build tension on an idyllic beach setting. This sound connotes a foreshadowing of the episode, as the music warns that the beach is in fact sinister and not at all idyllic, just like Little Baisley was, furthermore this creates juxtaposition between the contrapuntal music to the parallel diegetic sounds, this again emphasising the previous point of foreshadowing and tension. We can also identify political inferences through the sound, like for example, the sinister sound represents not only the tension of the episode but also the tension of the cold war and the nuclear threat to all side creating a hidden meaning behind sound.

Explain how social contexts influences television programmes. Refer to The Avengers to support your answer.

Social contexts like threat of foreign invasion influence television programmes like The Avengers from 1965, since during this time the Cold War, and the Cuba Crisis creating fear for the english people. This is shown in the school scene where Emma Peel and Steed work out the plan of the imposters to secretly invade the country. This scene uses mise en scene to create comedic relief for such a heavy topic, this is suggested from the setting as they are in a classroom and Emma Peel is teaching Steed about the plan. The use of a classroom setting connotes that their plan is silly and Peel and Steed are not worried reassuring the British audience that the foreign invaders are no match for the British. Furthermore the gratification theory can be applied to this, as not only it is information to the viewer and obviously entertainment.

Context- The  Avengers

To analyse representation and influence of social and cultural context

How is gender represented in Episode 1?

Characters- Mrs Emma Peel- A powerful young woman who despite her era manages to be independant

                   School Principal- A woman in a powerful position who is overlooked and patronised by the                                                 school inspector

                   Steed- A man who is very much representative of men of his era, even though he is quite a                                   nice guy, he still does very sexist things towards peel, like undermind her and even                                   slap her backside. 

Setting- Little Baisley is representative of a normal British town.

Props- Her skin tight suit.

Stereotype- Women like the principal fits the stereotype of even though she is indeed a woman in a powerful position she is still overlooked and patronised. Where as Mrs. Peel even though she does break the stereotype this shown in scenes like the sword fighting or the class scene.

Context- What was happening, etc etc.

Audience-

1960s- Female roles and inequality

            Class structure

            Changing views on sexuality

            British manners/traditions

            Attitudes to outsiders/foreigners

            Patriarchal society

            Stereotypical ideas of rural life.

  How was gender represented to represent the attitudes and values of the 1960s?

Gender in Avengers is represented to reflect attitudes and values as contrasting throughout the episode. In the extract, we can see Mrs Peel being slapped in her backside (seen in the camera zoom in) by Steed, this is done to appeal to the male young audience between 16-25 (the biggest audience of Avengers) inferencing how it was okay in the 1960s to sexualise women. However, throughout the episode this ideology changes very much, just like it did in the 60s, Emma winning the fair sword fight, or Steed serving tea, or even just her finding out, the antagonists plans before Steed did, all of this are representative of the decade and how female roles in many industries were starting to appear, and how at that time the patriarchal society we live in was starting to be less. The 60s were a time of change for gender itself, we now had a woman as sovereign, the queen, the most powerful and popular person in the whole of the UK, things were about to change for women.

On the other hand, women were still being oppressed, we can see this in the mise-en-scene, Emma Peel is wearing a skin-tight catsuit, because of the male gaze. This show uses the male gaze quite a lot (as it is directed and produced my men) not only to attract more people to watch the show but to oppress women themselves.