This is a blog to follow my progress of my A2 level coursework of making a newspaper, from my research to the evaluation of my product.
Friday 11 March 2011
Evaluation of My Newspaper
Thursday 10 March 2011
Analysis of Second Page and Poster
As you can see above I've analysed my newspapers second page and poster, just like I done with my research papers. I've highlighted the main aspects of my page that follow or challenge the codes and conventions of local newspapers. The aspects that I've changed, like the puzzle section are mainly due to comments in which my focus group has made to help make my newspaper better, more interesting and different. The way that I challenged the codes and conventions on my poster, is through giving it a bit more detail with the information about the free magazine inside at the bottom of the page.
Analysis of Front Page
Newspaper Stories
- Homophobic Attack on Teenage Boy
A teenager was left for dead after a homophobic attack at 2am on Thursday 20th August
JAMES Moore, 18, of Margate, was attacked by a gang of yobs the night of his A-level results. Just days earlier, James had opened up to friends and family about his homosexuality.
James and his friends had been out on a 6 hour drinking fest after receiving their A-level results and successfully getting in to their chosen universities. Their night finished in Margate and the boys made their way home, they had seen another group of lads from their school following behind, but thought nothing of it as they all live in a similar area. James then left his group of friends and took a shortcut down an alley which leads to his house, the other group followed Moore.
Margaret Smith, 48, was the next person to see James, at 8am the next morning. Although, her view of him was not what she’d expected, a bloody, beaten and bruised teenager lying in the middle of the alley lifeless. Margaret phoned for an ambulance whilst running back to her next door neighbours house to grab Moore’s mother.
Amy Moore, 39, ran round to the alley and dropped to the floor when she saw her sons’ body lying there, with blood covering his face.
Amy said “he was close to be unidentifiable, his face had been beaten that badly”. Mrs. Moore hadn’t been alarmed a the fact that her son hadn’t returned home as he often stays at a friend’s house after nights out, so she assumed this is what had (continue on page 5)
My side front page story...
- No to Tesco Superstore
THE residents of Arlington House are putting up a fight against the Tesco Superstore being built on their doorstep.
Over the years the housing block has turned into an eyesore for the public, just like a lot of Margate, with the near by shops all closed down and the car park falling into disrepair. Although the hopes were then raised for the lonely town when developers Freshwater revealed that they’d got plans to transform the empty shops into a set of modern looking shops, including a large Tesco Superstore.
At the beginning of the plans for the transformation in March, local residents and town planners were all for the scheme, however, those living in the housing block are angry about the rise in management fees and the loss of the their car park.
The residents of the housing block have began protesting about the change, starting with banners in their windows reading “NO 2 TESCO” and are also arguing that the build of the Superstore will put local shops out of business just like Westwood Cross has done and will also raise the traffic in the area a substantial amount.
Due to the disagreements between Freshwater‘s consultation firm PPS and the residents, they are now beginning new plans.
Your opinion? Thanetmessenger.net@BNnews.co.uk
Second page story (one)...
- Thanet drivers drive further for a bargain
THE people of Thanet are literally having their money stolen by the local petrol stations.
It has been found that it is cheaper for drivers to make the trip to Canterbury to fill up then it is for them to fill up in their local petrol stations.
The AA has said that Thanet has been labelled a 'problem area' on the local news. Locals have found a price difference of 7p per litre just a few miles apart in the next town.
This should not be happening; people should be able to get the same price petrol in close areas, instead of them having to travel a distance.
It’s been said that it is down to supermarket wars, where the big stores e.g. Asda, are fighting for lower prices and therefore other supermarkets have to battle with this.
It’s now said that this type of crisis is when people are scrutinised for where they live, as if you’re in a specific area
Locals have argued however, that the petrol stations are going to hit a problem soon as drivers are making the trip further so that they can get the cheaper petrol, instead of paying these high prices.
Your opinion? Thanetmessenger.net@BNnews.co.uk
Second page story (two)
Graffiti – art or mess?
YEAR after year the level of graffiti in Thanet rises. Last year 150 houses in Thanet were raided and graffiti equipment was found in over 100 of them, does this mean that this 'hobby' comes with a certain sub-culture of our society?
It is argued throughout society whether graffiti is art or mess, many people have different opinions on this matter and have different ideas of what can be done to lower the damage being done.
There are many people who believe that graffiti is art and should be allowed to be done, yet in specific areas. Ideas have been given are that the council should allocate certain areas for graffiti; lowering it in unwanted areas. or example, they could do their artwork in alleys, or places where it'll be appreciated by others by doing murals around town, therefore, putting their artwork to a good cause.
However, many others argue against this idea and see graffiti as ruining our town and making it 'ugly' and 'dirty'. A group of society believe that graffiti shouldn't be seen anywhere except on peoples private property.
This argument has been going on for years and still there is no consensus between the groups, the council need to decide one or the other before the problem escalates and the police become even stricter then they already are.
Your opinion? Thanetmessenger.net@BNnews.co.uk
Second page story (three)
New Plans for Westwood Cross
PLANS have been released for the latest developmental work at Westwood Cross shopping centre. The main works will be focused on Sainsburys, where they are going to be enlarging the supermarket. There are also plans to be building an additional 10 shops and a hotel in the Westwood Cross area. This developmental work means that there will be 150 jobs avaliable at Sainsburys, as well as a further 50 jobs at the other shops being built.
Along with this there is going to be two large shops, two resturants and a new road being built between Margate Road and New Haine Road. The plan of this road is to control traffic congestion at peak times.
After this set of development, there is plans to build another six shops and a hotel by Sainsburys.
Ross Castle said: "We are excited at the prospect of investing in a replacement store in Westwood Cross and creating new jobs."
Sainsburys have also made a new website www.sainsburys-thanet.co.uk. This website is dedicated to give the audience information about the new developmental plans, as well as giving the public a chance to give them feedback about the project. This allows the public to have a say in what happens in their local area and the changes that are made to their town.
Locals have complained about the fact that the traffic in the area is going to heavily increase, like it already has done with having Westwood Cross there. The workers have said the new road being built is going to level out the traffic out, although, locals are arguing that they said this about the road that’s been built behind there now, yet this has only just happened, so how can they trust the fact that this road is going to be built quick enough to level the traffic out when the shops open up.
There is also going to be a larger car park, to help with the high increase of attention that Westwood is going to attract.
A date hasn’t been released for when the project is going to be completed but is said to be worth the wait.
Your opinion? Thanetmessenger.net@BNnews.co.uk
These are the articles which will be displayed in my newspaper. The main story (Homosexual attack), second page story (graffiti - art or mess?) and second page story (plans for Westwood Cross) will also have pictures within the articles, allowing the audience to link the story to the place or issue.
My articles have followed the codes and conventions of newspaper articles due to the topics that I've written about, especially the Westwood Cross article and rise in petrol price articles. The articles have also followed the codes and conventions by the language that I've used through out them, as I've used simple and easy to read language, this allows anyone to be able to read my newspaper, as it's believed that working-class people have a less educated.
Also, when my articles are written on to my newspaper, they will include the journalists name and their e-mail, allowing the audience to know who has written the article as well as who to contact if they have any queries about the article written.
The articles will also include the newspapers e-mail address as this allows the audience to e-mail the newspaper to give their opinion on the articles that's been written in the paper this week. This will also make the audience feel like they have a voice and a say in the news of their local area. Having this feature will make the local people feel closer to their local news.
Choosing The Name
- Isle of Thanet Gazette
- Thanet Times
- Your Thanet
- Thanet Weekly
- Thanet News
- Thanet Messenger
Choosing My Masthead
Wednesday 9 March 2011
Radio Advert
Galtung & Ruge - News Value
- Negativity - Negativity has been used in my newspaper in various occasions. My main use of negativity is my front page story about a violent attack on a teenage boy, to add to the negativity the attack was a homophobic attack. This story will then attract the audience as they'll be worried about such violence in their local area. This story was then chosen as my front page story as this has the highest news-value as this is the news that the audience are going to want to read about the most. Another story in my newspaper that I've used the negativity factor is the article about the council going against what the local people want by building a Tesco superstore by their block of flats. Although, this isn't bad news for the whole of the local area, other locals may be interested in changes in their local area attracting the audience. My third article (on my second page) also uses the negativity factor of Galtung and Ruge's model. The story is about the rise in petrol prices in the local area, explaining hoe it's cheaper to drive to the local city of Canterbury to fill up. This story will attract the audience as they'll want to know the reason for this as it's highly affecting them.
- Closeness to home (proximity) - I've used proximity in my newspaper through my articles, I've done this as all of the articles are about what has happened in the local area, for example, the main story on front page is about an attack in a local town, therefore, this is going to be meaningful to the audience. This is a key aspect that news gatekeepers have to consider. Although, I've also used proximity for good news in local area with my article on the development of Westwood Cross shopping centre. This will then interest my audience as they'll be keen to know the changes happening in their local area. Adverts?
- Recency?
- Currency - In my newspaper I've got an article about the rise in petrol prices, this would be linked to the currency factor as this issue is continuously in the news as it's been going on for a long time now. So every time a little change occurs newspapers will update their audience.
- Continuity - Continuity has occurred in my newspaper with three of my stories. Continuity will occur with my main story on my front page as the audience will want to be kept up to date with information on the attack. They'll do this to see who done it, what will happen to the attackers and so on. Continuity also occurs with my article on the petrol prices rising, as already this story has been involved in many newspapers already as the audience want to be updated on the story. Another way that continuity is used in my newspaper is with my article about the development at Westwood Cross shopping centre. Again, the audience will want to be kept up to date with the changes as it's in their local area and may affect their day to day life.
- Uniqueness - My newspaper has uniqueness with my main story, as although it is likely to see an article on an attack on the front page, it's much less likely to have one about a homophobic attack. This is why i went for this story as my front page story. As it will catch the audiences attention when they see it on the news-stand.
- Simplicity - I've included the simplicity factor with a few of my articles. The main article to include this factor is my graffiti article which shows the debate of whether graffiti is an art or a mess. The article is written very simply and easy for the audience to follow. The subject is also a very basic subject that all members of the audience will understand and be able to relate to as it's part of their life. Therefore, with a story like this the audience will be able to relate to it and due to this they'll be more likely to buy my product.
- Expectedness (predictability) - The predictability factor of the model has been used continuously through out my newspaper. I've done this as the audience have these expectations for the newspaper, so these expectations need to be fulfilled so that the audience get what they feel they should out of their local newspaper. The predictability factor is used in my articles, for example, I've informed my audience of stories like James Moore's violent attack as this will be on the locals mind, due to the impact it would have on peoples lives in the local area. The article on the petrol prices rising is also a predictable story as it's a very popular story to be in local and national papers. Therefore, giving the audience what they want, as again it's having an impact on their lives. Giving these stories a high news-value.
- Size - With my main story the size factor is heavily used. This is because this story is a massive story for a very little area and will have a huge impact on a large amount of the local people, giving it a higher level of news-value. Another big story I have in my paper is the article about the Westwood Cross development work. This is a big story for the area as it's going to have a large impact on everyone that lives in the area for various reasons. Due to it having such an impact on the local area it makes it have a high news-value.
Tuesday 8 March 2011
'Life & Style' Section
- Danielle - "I buy a local newspaper every week, although, I can find them to be very bland and not give you anything to get you attracted to the paper and are very same, same every week"
- Michael - "My wife buys us both the local newspaper and the 'Daily Mail', she likes to gain the news from both papers, especially her local news, although, the feature that grabs her attention in the 'Daily Mail' is the way that they offer you features that you don't get in other papers"
Wednesday 2 March 2011
Newspaper Adverts
The Contents Section
Tuesday 1 March 2011
Story Plans
Monday 28 February 2011
Poster Draft
Saturday 26 February 2011
Radio Advert
Thursday 24 February 2011
Newspaper Draft
This is my computer draft for my newspaper front page. After looking at the codes and conventions of local newspapers, I've followed some codes and conventions, yet I've also challenged others. Some of the aspects are following codes and conventions of certain papers, yet aren't the most conventional. The reasons that I've challenged some of the codes and conventions is to make my newspaper stand out from the others, and hopefully making it a bit different will do this. Although some of the codes and conventions have been challenged, the newspaper is still recognisable to the local newspaper brand.
The Audience
Before I start producing my newspaper I need to take into interest who the target are going to be and what they're going to want from their local newspaper, this will then help me know how to design my newspaper and the type of news that will be inside it.
Analysis of Local Newspapers
Wednesday 23 February 2011
The Codes and Conventions
- The front page will include a masthead at the top, this will have the name of the newspaper in large, bold, capital letters. The masthead will be a way in whichthe audience can tell if the newspaper is a broadsheet or a tabloid by the colour that is (like I explained earlier on). The masthead will also include the date of the paper, the price (if it's being sold), thewebsite for the local news and the saying for the area (if the area has one). It's placed here as the audience's attention isdrawn to the masthead, therefore, they've placed the important information in this area as well.
- The newspaper will also have a house-colour, this is when the newspaper uses a specific colour/shades of one colour throughout the newspaper and all of it's issues. The colour used as the house-colour is often linked to the colour of the masthead, so very often in the tabloid papers that house-colour will be red, or a shade of red. The house-colour is a way in which the audience is able to recognise and notice the paper.
- Along with keeping the house-colour, the newspaper will also have a specific layout in which they follow in all of its issues, this is called the house-style, again, this is the way in which the audience can recognise the paper easily. The layout will include where the editor places the adverts, or the contents section for the newspaper, the place of the articles and other aspects of the newspaper. Along with this, the newspaper will continuously use the same font throughout the paper and the following issues.
- Newspapers use a theory called gate-keeping which is where they place the most important news (known through experience) on the front page, drawing in the audiences attention, as this is the news that they want to know. (If you remember, I spoke about this theory earlier on in my blog). The theory was stated by Galtung and Ruge, who came up with 12 factors to define news that was newsworthy, a few of these are...negativity, exclusivity, uniqueness and prominence. This is also described as news-value, tabloid papers have a lower news-value standard then a broadsheet, as broadsheets tell information that is seen as more important and newsworthy, like politics, compared to the news given in a tabloid, like celebrity gossip. Just like the way in which although news in a local paper is important and 'newsworthy' to the local people, the 'newsworthiness' changes from place to place in local papers.
- The headlines of the newspaper are written in bold, large writing to catch the audiences attention, although, they're not always written in capitals (varies between papers). The writing is made large and bold so that it stands out and catches the audiences eye, making them want to read it and then the full story.
- The front page of the newspaper will include one or two articles. One of the articles will be the main story of the newspaper, including a picture, and the other will be a small article either underneath or to the side. Having a large and small article will balance out the page. The articles that are written on the front page are not the complete article, yet teaser like articles which get the audience's interest, making them want to read on. At the end of the article, it will then say what page it will be continued on, for example - page 3. Also, at the beginning of the article it states the journalist that has written the article along with the journalists e-mail address. The articles of the paper very often have opinions from the local people, as the local paper is there to give the local people a voice. The language used in the articles are formal, straight to the point, question answering, and informal.
- Local newspapers have numerous adverts throughout the newspaper, especially on the front page. Local business' pay the newspaper to advertise their business' as this is the way in which the newspapers get their funds. The adverts then usually have their specific place on the page that sticks with the house-style of the newspaper.
- The newspaper will have contact details, so that people are able to contact the newspaper for various reasons, whether they have a story that they want to be published, a picture or an advert. (This can vary between being on the front page or the second page).
- The front page will also include a 'contents' section (will vary for different paper). This will include mini headlines for the story, as well as a picture for 1 or 2 of the stories. Having the contents section on the front page will give the audience a teaser of the stories that will be included in the paper, this may then attract the individual to buy the newspaper.
- Just like there was on the front page, there is another contents section on the second page. This again lets the audience know what else is going to included in the newspaper.
- On the second page there is very often a box/shaded area that includes contact information for the staff at the newspaper. I also mentioned this as a code and convention for the front page, although, it's more likely to be placed on the second page. This is the section that gives the audience an opportunity to call in/e-mail the newspaper, allowing them to have an advert in the paper, or to publish a story for example.
- The second page usually includes 1 or 2 articles. These can either be small articles, or large articles taking up a majority of the amount of the page. There will also be pictures to attach to these articles (a picture for one of the articles). The language used in these articles, is the same as the language used for the front page articles. The articles will also include the journalists name and e-mail at the top of the article, allowing the audience to contact the journalist is they have any questions about the article they've written.
- Local businesses will also be advertised on this page, again the local businesses will have to pay to have these adverts here.
- The house-colours will be continued onto the second page, this will be done through carrying on the colour used on the front page, either the same colour or a shade of the colour. Like the front page, the second page will also have a specific layout which is used in every issue, this will let the audience know where to look when they want to find something specific, for example, if they want to find a contact number for the editor of the paper, the individual will know where on that page to look for the contact number as it will be kept in the same place in every issue. The newspaper will also continue to use the same font throughout the newspaper that was used on the front page.
- At the top of the second page, like the front page, there is the page number, the date of the newspaper, the website and a phone number for advertising.
- The headlines of the articles on the second page are written in bold, large writing to catch the attention of the audience as they're flicking through the pages.
- The poster will have a bold, large, capital writing which takes up the whole poster, this will therefore catching the audiences attention as they walk past the poster. Having the writing bold and taking up the whole poster, means that the poster is very plain and simple, so that people are able to read the headline quickly and easily without having to fully pay attention to the poster.
- The name of the newspaper that the headline is from will be printed at the bottom of the poster, allowing the audience to know what headline the newspaper is from in case the individual wants to read the story matching the headline, then they then know which newspaper to purchase. The poster will also have the symbol/image of the newspaper if they have one, as this is another way the audience is able to recognise what newspaper the headline is from, if not then it will have the masthead from the newspaper.
- The poster will be placed outside a local news-agents in a poster stand, allowing people to see the poster as they are walking past the shop or from the other side of the work or from driving past. Therefore, with it sticking out it is able to catch more attention, compared to it being placed inside the news-agents.