Evaluation of My Newspaper

I've now finished my newspaper and ancillary tasks to the best of my ability. So now I'm going to evaluate my coursework as a whole.

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

My media work follows the codes and conventions of local newspapers that I found from my research for my product in many ways. Newspapers have a general layout in which they all follow, this is how newspapers are recognised, and then each newspaper adds certain factors that makes their newspaper individual and memorable. Therefore, I've also done this with my layout, keeping it very similar to the general layout, yet a few aspects have changed, for example, the layout of my contents section down the left hand side of my paper, the majority of this section on papers is different. I learnt from my focus group that they like this general layout and see it as a good aspect of the newspaper, the style, the layout, the colour scheme and so on. So to make my newspaper realistic I also followed the layout of the local newspapers that I looked at in my research. Although, I added aspects that my focus group said would be useful and they would prefer, for example, my puzzle section on my second page and my contents bar. A large factor of my newspaper that challenged the codes and conventions was the 'Life & Style' booklet that is advertised in the banner on my front page. I added this factor to my newspaper and my focus group had said that they can find local newspaper boring and then same old stuff in there every week, so they believed this to be a good aspect to have as it will make the newspaper more interesting each week. When producing my poster for my ancillary tasks, I very much followed the codes and conventions of the posters that I found in my research section, my focus group also agreed that they're very satisfied with the layout and features of a poster, therefore, I chose to keep it the same, making it bold, eye-catching and easy to read. When it came to my radio advert I found that radio adverts for local newspaper don't in fact exist, therefore, I had no codes and conventions to follow, so I looked into the national papers and took ideas from there. Although, I challenged the codes and conventions that I found as my advert only included me talking, instead of having a background music, as I thought that this took the attention away from the voice.

How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary tasks?

My coursework as a whole works together to create a house-style making my tasks flow and link in with one another. My ancillary tasks support my main product by the way in which my newspaper and poster have the same colour scheme, news stories and style making my work more professional. My radio also supports my product through the way in which it links in the vital information of the newspaper, like the price and certain aspects, for example, the 'Life & Style' section and the puzzle, which are key aspects of my newspaper. I believe that through the way in which my products link to one another, they are recognisable in relation to one another and I believe this to be an important factor.

What have you learnt from audience feedback?

Throughout my production my audience feedback has been crucial to the making of my newspaper the final piece that it is. Earlier on in my blog I spoke about a focus group that I'd be using, I'd communicate with them through a group e-mail so that everyone as able to see everyone else's opinions so that we were able to have open conversations about others ideas. Having this focus group allowed me to get views from various age groups meaning that my newspaper is more likely to appeal to different age groups and genders, a way in which my newspaper appeals to a younger age group is through having the puzzles as they'll use them as a level of diversion. The focus group was also a key aspect to my work as it allowed me to follow the codes and conventions of the local newspapers that I researched as well as having different view points to make my work more up-to-date and what the audience want, as the focus group will be my audience so I needed to make my newspaper what they'd want to read. Having an audience feedback also allowed me to have various views points from all different age groups, allowing to know what the audience wanted let me have the upper hand in appealing to my audience. This focus group made my work a lot smoother, accurate and professional.

How did you use media technology in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?

Media technology has had a huge impact on my work, and I wouldn't have been able to make my work to this standard without the use of technology, from the use of the internet to Adobe Photoshop. I used various programs on the computer to make my product to the standard in which it is, the main program was Adobe Photoshop which is where I produced my newspaper and poster. Another program which I used to create my product was the word document, as this is the program in which I used to write out my articles. The main media technology I used was the internet, which I needed continuously through my work. I used the internet to research newspapers in general, the way in which they looked through ages, from newspapers from decades ago to the up to date newspaper to look at different aspects of the papers. I also looked on the newspapers website to look at articles that had been written in the past year, this helped me to choose what type of article to write, along with the way in which to write it, the language and grammar used. Another way I used the internet was to watch Photoshop tutorials on youtube.com to help with aspects of Photoshop that I didn't know how to use, therefore, being very useful in completing my product. The biggest way that I've used the internet is to write this blog, as it's caused me to be on the internet more or less every day throughout making my product so I'm able to update you on where my work has got to, this is the aspect of media technology that I've used to evaluate my work also. The internet has also had a large impact on me being able to contact my focus group as a whole, as it's a lot easier to contact my group as a whole through e-mail, compared to phoning each of them up separately or by trying to get everyone to meet up. I also used media technology when recording my radio advert. The final way in which I've used media technology is by the simple use of a camera to get my pictures for the newspapers. So in general, media technology is very much needed in my media product, as without the media technology my product wouldn't be the the product that it has been made in to. It also wouldn't be up to the professional standard, as all of the tasks needed the use of media technology.

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

As you can see from this analysis of my front page, I've followed the general codes and conventions of a local newspaper front page, making my newspaper look realistic and professional. Although, I've also challenged some codes and conventions so that my newspaper will be different from others and also as my focus group had many ideas that they believed would improve a local newspaper, therefore, I listened and used these ideas.

My Final Pieces

Newspaper Stories

I've now finished my newspaper articles, so here they are...

My main front page story...

• 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

It took me a while to decide on the name of my newspaper, I looked at the existing names of local newspapers and from this I decided that I was including 'Thanet' in my name as I saw this as a key aspect for a local newspaper - to have the name of the area in the title of the product. I also chose to have 'Thanet' in my name as this is following the codes and conventions as after doing research I found that local newspapers have the name of the area in the name, for example...

• Isle of Thanet Gazette
• Thanet Times
• Your Thanet

Therefore, after looking at these names I came up with a couple of idea for my own newspaper...

• Thanet Weekly
• Thanet News
• Thanet Messenger

These final three were the names in which me and my focus group had decided on, yet couldn't decide between them. There were split thoughts of each of the names for different reasons, a group within my focus group favored 'Thanet Weekly' as the newspaper is being sold weekly, therefore, this name demonstrated that, as well as being catchy. Each group within the focus group each had reasons for their favored name. So, to help make the decision I went and spoke to the editor of one of my local newspapers, and spoke to them about what was needed from a newspapers name and which one they preferred out of my final three.

The editor said that in their opinion the name of a newspaper has to be catchy so that it stays in the readers mind, gives a cross a message, has the name of the area it's looking at, to name a few.

After taking this into account, I spoke to the editor about which name they could see being on the front of a local newspaper, after I explained the reasons for each of the names, the editor gave her opinion. Her decision was 'Thanet Messenger', she thought of this one to be the best and most appropriate news as the name was catchy and memorable, it includes the areas name, has a certain ring to it, and gets across to the audience the way in which the newspaper passes on information about their local area.

After discussing to my focus group again and taking into account what the editor had to say about the names, I decided on...'THANET MESSENGER'

Choosing My Masthead

The top three pictures are of existing mastheads and the bottom image of the masthead that I made for my newspaper.

My masthead has followed the codes and conventions of the local papers through being bold, large and eye catching. I looked at various mastheads to look at the main factors that they use, as well as speaking to my focus group about the type of masthead that they like and find attracting.

My focus group said that they prefer plain and simple mastheads, yet still eye-catching. Examples that they gave were the 'Thanet Gazette' as it's simple, but still eye-catching due to the bold writing and the way that 'Gazette' is written in a different colour, drawing attention to it. My focus group also gave me examples of national papers, for example, 'The guardian'. So i took ideas from both of these examples to make something new.

From the gazette I took the way in which the masthead is on two lines, so I've taken this aspect of the masthead, by placing 'Thanet' and 'Messenger' on different lines. I've done this as it then allows me to have space for the symbol as well as it making my writing larger, so catches the audiences eye easier. Then from 'The Guardian' I took the style of writing that they use as I saw it to be a smart and formal font, compared to others that I've seen. I also took the comments that my focus group made about it needing to be larger, therefore, I also took inspiration from 'Thanet Times' by writing my masthead in capital. You can clearly see all of these aspects working together in my masthead above.

Radio Advert

This is an idea of what my radio script is going to be, although it may change when I put it all together...

"Ever feel like your local paper is always the same, old, boring stuff?

Well It's time for something new...

So pick up the Thanet Messenger today.

The new local newspaper for Thanet giving you all the local news and needed information for you!

As well as puzzles for those boring moments of the day and a Life & Style booklet for all you women, now that's no normal paper!

SO have a change and pick up the brand new local paper the THANET MESSENGER!"

Galtung & Ruge - News Value

Earlier on I wrote about Galtung and Ruge's theory of news-value, here I'm going to explain the ways in which I've used their factors within my newspaper.

• 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.

'Life & Style' Section

Inside my newspaper I've placed a 'Life & Style' booklet, this will tell the audience about fashion, advice on relationships, horoscopes and their inner self. This section is mainly for the women that buy the newspaper, I've used a female section as from what I've heard from my focus group is that women are more likely to buy a newspaper based on the extras that the newspapers are offering, therefore, by displaying the 'Life & Style' booklet on my front page.

I've placed the advert for the booklet in the banner section of my front page where you're more likely to find adverts for offers in local newspapers and more likely to find this type of banner in a national newspaper, for example, 'The Daily Mail' often does this.

Therefore, I've challenged the codes and conventions of local newspapers. I've done this as after talking to my focus group about what they want from a newspaper, I got comments like this...

• 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"

Due to these comments, I've given my newspaper a feature that will stand out from others, gaining the audience's attention that other papers wont be able to.

Although, this 'Life & Style' booklet links in with my local area, it does this through featuring opinions and fashion ideas form local shops, the well known brands, like 'New Look' and 'Topshop' and also the one of shops like 'Clothes Boutique', they will also run competitions to win outfits or pieces from their shops. Another way in which this booklet is going to be linked in with the local town is through comments from medians and psychics from Broadstairs, telling the audience horoscopes and other facts that could be affecting their lives. Along with the medians/psychics there will be competitions to allow a number of the audience to win a free session. Inside the booklet there will also be facts about the body, herbal supplement, essentials oils and other products to help and advantage your body, from your local 'Holland & Barrett'.

Each week this booklet will change contents, with tips from different shops about different aspects if life. This booklet will also vary between information for females and males, therefore, it will attract both genders.

Newspaper Adverts

As I've mentioned before newspaper advertise local businesses to fund their paper, as the businesses pay the paper for the space on the page. It's common for the newspapers to have the same adverts, in the same place weekly, as the paper and businesses form a good relationship. Also, by the adverts being used weekly they get recognised by the public and stick in the publics mind., The public also then know where to look when in need for say a window - 'The Window Workshop' is a local business advertised in my local newspapers. Due to these facts I've followed the codes and conventions and placed four adverts for local businesses at the bottom of my front page. I've designed all of the newspapers myself, althoughthey are very similar to the real adverts used in local newspapers. I've made them to look very similar as the specification was to make the newspaper, and the adverts aren't actually part of the newspaper (produced by them) as they are sent in from the business, so they don't technically act as part of the newspaper. Therefore, I've made them similar to follow the codes and conventions and make my newspaper look realistic. Here I've compared the adverts that I've made and the real adverts.

As you can see, the adverts are very similar, however, a number of changes have been made to stop them being copyright, yet still look professional.

(I apologize for the positioning of the adverts yet I wasn't able to make them go in line)

The Contents Section

In this post I'm going to look at the contents sections of newspaper and explain why I've challenged the codes and conventions.

As you can see from these examples there is usually a box on the page that includes the contents of the page, they will usually show you a few of the stories that are included in the newspaper. They're large and take up quite a bit of the room. The contents also includes pictures and the story lines from sections of the newspaper.

These are a few examples from numerous local newspapers.

However, instead of a contents section, I've chosen to use a bar style for my contents, as after talking to my focus group they told me that they find the contents sections incredibly useful, especially when they just want to flick quickly to a specific section. Although, they said that they'd prefer the second page to have more news then a contents box being there. They also mentioned that after having the main headlines of sections on the front page, they don't see why they also have to be shown again on the second page, once again, taking up more room. Therefore, to reduce the room taken up I've placed my contents into a bar design at the top of my second page, which gives you the names of the sections and the page numbers that they'll be on. This gives the audience the use of the contents section, yet takes up a lot less room, leaving room for the news.

This is what my contents bar will look like...

This contents bar will reach all the way across the top of my second page, although the size isn't shown here.

Story Plans

I've been keeping an eye on local newspaper stories so that I can write an article that is similar to the stories that are in local newspapers. Although, I'm planning to make my front page article to be out of the ordinary and to stand out.

Main front page story: the main story on my front page is going to be about a boy has been attacked and killed in my local town. This attack is going to be a homophobic attack on an 18 year old boy called James Moore, it will have happened the night that he received his A-level results. I have chosen this story as although it's against the codes and conventions as it is very rare that this sort of incident happens and I haven't seen a story like this, I have chosen to use it as these things do happen and people need to be aware of this. A photo will be included with this article.

Front page story (2): there are going to be two stories on my front page. The second story is going to be about the way in which a Tesco superstore may be getting built next to a block of local flats. The article will involve the views of the locals, along with quotes from professionals.

Second page story (1): on my second page there is going to be 3 articles. The first article is going the inflation of petrol prices in my area, as it was found that it is cheaper to drive to Canterbury and fill up then it is to fill up in a local petrol station. The article is going to include quotes from professionals. This story follows the codes and conventions and it is informing the audience of needed information about their area.

Second page story (2): the second page is going to be looking at both sides of the argument about whether graffiti is art or mess. In my local area, graffiti occurs regularly, some of the public see it as something good that can be used positively although others say that it's ugly. A photo is going to be included with this article.

Second page story (3):the third story on the second page is going to be about the developmental work that is going on in my local town, where 10 new shops are being built along with restaurants and a hotel. Again, the opinions of the public and professionals will be included in the article, this is following the codes and conventions of local newspaper articles. An image is going to be included with this article also.