Revision lessons for both Media AS classes

Here are the revision arrangements for the week of 18th May. This is study leave time so sessions are non-compulsory but we recommend you use them sensibly to make your revision effective.

Wednesday periods 3 & 4
No revision session but Ms Pollard will be available in S23 if you want to come and use laptops to revise, or ask questions.

Thursday period 5
Radio revision session for both groups with Ms Warrington in S24

Friday periods 1 & 2
Revision session targeted at the TV Drama part of the exam, for both groups with Ms Pollard in S23

Radio Institutions practice questions

Here are four sample questions like the one you will have in the second half of your exam: Media Institutions and Audiences. Practise writing answers under timed conditions (1 hour). Try to choose a question you have not attempted before - newest questions are at the bottom. If you want a marked answer please bring in your essay next week and hand it to your teacher / ask a teacher to put it in her pigeon hole in the staffroom.

• Discuss the issues raised by new technologies and the convergence of technologies for the media institution you have studied.
• You should refer to specific examples from your case study to back up the points you make.
  

• Discuss the ways in which media products are produced and distributed to audiences within a media area.
  You should refer to specific examples from your case study to back up the points you make.
  

• Discuss the ways in which a media institution targets its audience through content and marketing.
  You should refer to specific examples from your case study to back up the points you make.
  

• Discuss the issues raised for a media institution by the changing patterns of audience consumption.
  You should refer to specific examples from your case study to back up the points you make.
  

Mock Exam date & revision tips

Your Media AS mock exam will take place on Friday 8th May at 8.55 am (periods 1 & 2)

It is essential that you arrive on time to the exam and that you are fully prepared.

Revision tips:

1. Know your case study really, really well. The shows, the schedule, the target audience and how their needs are met, they ways it's distributed, its use of technologies and convergence Be ready to give specific examples from your case study for every point you make.

Know the 5 key areas well and be able to run through them in your head so that you remember to talk about all of them:

1. The BBC’s responsibility to its audience (the differences between public and commercial radio institutions - i.e. who pays for them and how; what does this mean about how they need to provide for their audiences?)
2. Convergence and distribution: how the BBC reaches its audiences; what new technologies have been introduced and how this has affected radio institutions like the BBC
3. Digital production and the benefits of this
4. Marketing: How the BBC markets specific radio stations and attracts specific audiences
5. Content: How the BBC targets the needs of niche audiences (e.g. people of a particular age, cultural heritage, region or interest group)

3. Know your terminology (technical words). These are listed below in green.

4. Get a revision technique for all this information. For example, try putting examples from your case study, the 5 areas, and the key words onto revision cards, or stick them round your room, or recite them outloud - whatever helps you remember.

Planning a Radio Institutions exam answer

Whatever the question in Section B of your exam, you will need to explain what you know about your case study (BBC radio) in each of the areas described in the Radio Institutions post below. You will need to make sure your answer covers what the question is asking, and refers back to the question enough. But the information you will give remains pretty much the same whatever the question. In other words, you HAVE TO KNOW YOUR CASE STUDY REALLY, REALLY WELL and when you write about it you MUST COVER ALL OF THE RELEVANT AREAS.

To test what you know right now, summarise your case study knowledge by writing notes under each of these headings. Remember to say what has changed over time, in each area, and how this has affected the BBC as a radio institution:

1. The BBC’s responsibility to its audience (the differences between public and commercial radio institutions - i.e. who pays for them and how; what does this mean about how they need to provide for their audiences?)
2. Convergence and distribution: how the BBC reaches its audiences; what new technologies have been introduced and how this has affected radio institutions like the BBC
3. Digital production and the benefits of this
4. Marketing: How the BBC markets specific radio stations and attracts specific audiences
5. Content: How the BBC targets the needs of niche audiences (e.g. people of a particular age, cultural heritage, region or interest group)

Once you've got that straight and your knowledge is at your fingertips, have a go at this exam question. Before you plan your answer, identify the key words in the question and make sure you know what you are being asked to write about:

January 2009 exam question:
Discuss the ways in which media products are produced and distributed to audiences within a media area.

What key terms should I use in my answer?
As a minimum, you should be able to use the words in bold (accurately!). The other words are important for higher level answers and will help you raise your grade if you learn to use them. They are divided into categories to help you revise:

The BBC as a public radio institution / compared to commercial institutions
radio institution
public - owned by the public
commercial - competing with other companies for consumers' money
licence fee payers - people who pay a TV licence in the UK (the public)
impartial (adjective); impartiality (noun) - not biased; giving both sides of an issue
independent (adjective); independence (noun)
responsibility to licence fee payers / the public

technological convergence
convergence
technologies
FM (frequency modulation) see wikipedia on FM broadcasting in the UK
digital radio have a look at this explanation of how digital and FM radio work
digital technology
internet
internet radio
TV
portable radio
DAB
mobile phone
iPlayer
podcast
iPod
download
listen again
we-media
MySpace
globalisation
proliferation (of content / technologies / radio stations) - rapid increase in the amount of

production and distribution
production
distribution
broadcast
analogue
FM
digital
DAB (digital audio broadcasting)
recording
signal
quality
availability

marketing and content
target audience
marketing
consumers
prosumers (consumers who produce the content themselves, e.g. posting own videos on YouTube)
advertising
attract
market share / audience share - how much of the total radio audience a particular radio institution gets

talking about the audience:
target audience
niche audience
regional
cultural
age
local
national
international / global
special interest group
listeners

ways the insitution tailors content and attracts its target audience(s):
content - what the radio station plays / broadcasts\
content that is relevant to/attractive to/appeals to/meets the needs of (a particular audience)
playlist
presenter
DJ
image
website
colour
design
style
radio station
local radio station
national
international
special interest radio station
radio show
programme
scheduling (which shows are on when)
interactive content
audience participation / involvement
we-media
availability - e.g. iPlayer / podcasts means availability of your favourite show whenever you want
accessibility - content is easy to get hold of wherever you are / through your chosen technology
convenience - content can be listened to whenever and wherever you wish

Statistics about consumption

You need to know this! Have a good look at the Statistics about radio consumption patterns from RAJAR (Radio Joint Audience Research Ltd) and see what they can tell you about:
- how consumers are listening to radio
- whether FM radio is still being listened to
- how much mobile phone radio listening is increasing
- how many people own a DAB (digital) radio
- how the BBC compares with commercial radio institution for share of audience

Include these facts in your case study.

What's the difference between distribution and consumption?

Radio distribution and consumption are linked. In fact, they are words for two sides of the same thing:
distribution means the ways a radio institution distributes (puts out) its content to audiences, for example by broadcasting on FM and digital radios, setting up a website and creating podcasts; making its shows available on iPlayer etc
consumption means the ways the audience ('consumers') actually 'consume' (listens to, read, watch, interact with) the content that the radio institution puts out. You need to find out about patterns of consumption and how they are changing. Often radio institutions will change their distribution methods to meet the changing habits of consumers. For example, if a lot of people want to consume radio via their mobile phones, radio institutions will distribute their content via mobile networks. You yourself are a consumer and you should include information about your own consumption habits in your case study of the BBC. For example, how do you prefer to listen to radio and why? (Even if you do not listen to radio, this is still an example of your habits as a consumer - i.e., if you get all your music from iTunes/downloads and your news from the internet, you are an example of the reasons radio institutions are having to change their distribution processes).

BBC London Radio

BBC LONDON RADIO
BBC London Radio is London's Local BBC Radio Station. The Station was launched on 6th October 1970 and later moved onto BBC Greater London. In the early days, it was a regular phone-in show and its output was provided by Radio 2 but as it progressed, developed a mix of local news, travel bulletins and phone-ins alongside specialist and popular music. It bought World Music to World Attention

Production

There are many different ways BBC London Radio is recorded. It is broad casted through these frequencies 94.9MHz and 95.8MHz. General Radio Broadcasters speak and anyone can phone in to request songs or ask questions. There are also celebrities involved which attract more audiences

Distribution
BBC London Radio can be heard using various types of devices. The main way is through FM Frequency but also can be listened to using car Radios. There also has been an website setup so audiences can go back to it if they want. It also can be listened through digital radio's and podcast. There is also the BBC iplayer setup so people can listen to it through the Internet

Consumption

Statistics show people listening to BBC Radio is on the increase for teenager. As the radio station is targeted to the adults over 25's, the station don't need to be bothered about distribution through mobile phone as the consumers are not consuming

S
Marketing
BBC Radio London is mainly targeted to adults over 25's. It does not hold much interesting stuffs for teenager and does not engage its audience in any activities. It has celebrities of older ages, many that teenagers would not recognise. So this radio station is for adults. In my opinion, i would not listen to this station as it does not hold anything interesting for me

Technologies
Throughout the years, new technologies have been introduced boosting up the stations distributions. These days, as a site has been setup for the station, any people who missed any shows can go back to it through the Internet, satisfying its customers.


Convergence

Content

Ownership and Globalisation

BY SAIFUR RAHMAN