The media environment

1. The media environment Lecture 2 Slides

2. Lecture content • Size and shape of the contemporary media industry • Regulation of the media • Current issues arising from a global media environment and • Ethics of journalism and PR.

3. Newspaper market • There are 1000s of newspaper titles in the UK. • This is split up between 12 national dailies, national Sunday papers and hundreds of regional and local papers. • Tabloids & Broadsheets • Current issues: • Decline in readership • Tabloidisation • Increased use of exclusives • Increased availability of freesheets • Newspapers are still very important media despite aforementioned issues

4. Television • Public Sector (funded by subscriptions) The BBC • Private Sector (funded by adverts and/or subscriptions) ITV, Channel 4& Channel 5 • Satellite & Cable TV (funded by adverts and subscriptions) 800 different channels available Issues important for PR: Increased fragmentation, 24 hour rolling news, digitisation

5. Radio • Split up into public broadcasting, i.e. the BBC and the commercial sector, both with national, regional and local stations. BBC: national radio stations: Radio 1, 2, 3, 4, and Radio Five live, many regional stations and more specialised stations. There are a few national commercial stations, the most important ones being Classic FM, Talksport and Virgin AM. Local radio: about 200 radio stations, each major town has a BBC station and one or two commercial stations. Good PR opportunities throughout, particularly in the talk/interview based stations

6. Magazines • In the UK alone: a wide range of specialist titles, bringing the magazine total up to about 15,000. • Characteristics: expensive, sturdier and have generally high production values then other print media • Longer shelf-life • More detailed and in-depth coverage written for a specialist audience. • Offer great opportunities for communication throughout the magazine market. • Check out Benn’s Media Directory and Media Guardian

7. Internet • Increasingly useful medium for news distribution • Newspapers’ websites, organisations’ website, specialist fora, blogs, discussion groups • Endless opportunities • But also plenty of negatives • Often lower standards, very fragmented audiences, little control • Internet is a pull rather then push-medium • More costly (time & money) then often thought Example: www.ukclimbing.com

8. Media Regulation “Although the media are fragmented, they are a very important part of our lives. They influence political and societal debates, set agendas and have an impact on culture and behaviour. The recognition of the power of the media has meant that there is also a need for regulation.” • Broadcast: Ofcom • Print Media: Press Complaints Commission • Internet: fairly unregulated

9. PR and Journalism Ethics Increased globalization of the media brings new ethical changes: • Questions of profit over public interest puts new pressures on journalists to get the job done quickly • Media now work across nations and so it seems almost inappropriate to apply only national codes of ethics. • Professional bodies from both journalism and public relations have updated their professional codes since the 1980s due to the profound changes in the global media environment. • The codes of National Union of Journalists (NUJ) and the CIPR can be found on their respective websites . I enclosed the links, please have a look!

10. PR & Journalism Ethics • The codes of National Union of Journalists (NUJ) and the CIPR have been updated to take into account the changing environment • Both emphasise ‘the public interest’. • E.g. The CIPR code of conduct suggests that the integrity of the profession lies ‘in the honest and responsible regard for the public interest’, the NUJ code highlights that the private lives of people are to be respected unless ‘there are overriding considerations of public interest’. • This move to aim to work for the greater good is very interesting – Both professions are often seen as representing a particular interest, e.g. the particular political slant of a newspaper, getting a scoop to boost circulation figures as far as journalism is concerned or obtaining as much news coverage as possible for a particular clients. • To what extent this is in the public interest is debatable, I’d be interested to hear your opinion!

11. Implications of global media environment for communications/PR work • Increased opportunities due to 24 hour news cycle • Greater opportunities for smaller media outlets and organizations themselves to communicated directly with their target publics • However, the fragmentation of the media also means that it is even more important to choose your media carefully to actually reach the people you intend to reach.

12. References and links • http://www.cipr.co.uk/Membership/conduct/index.htm • http://media.gn.apc.org/nujcode.html • Benn’s media directory (available in library) http://www.hollis-publishing.com/bennsmedia.htm • Media Guardian Guide (available in library) http://www.amazon.co.uk/Media-08-Essential-Changing-Landscape/dp/0852650914/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1222351160&sr=8-1