Intro to LO1

Why do media producers need to know there audience?

Media producers need to know their audience so when they make a film or a TV show they need to
know what type of people will like it so they can sell their production easily. If media producers didnt
know the target audience then how would they be able to promote their production or be able to sell it?
A good example would be the billboards at football games for betting and at half time when the adverts
come on, they are always betting advertisements.

Give an example of two media theories that explain how audiences respond to media
products

The Hyperemic needle theory is used to direct influences via mass media. This theory is very old and
useless for todays media. This theory proposes that we can inform a mass media group of people by
injected them with information and they believe every word.

The use of gratification theory focuses on the on the people rather than sending a message by asking
what do people do with media? People watch media to satisfy their psychological needs, people watch
xfactor to laugh and make judgment on other people in the show, and people watch media to get a kick
out of it to for fill their needs.

Which organizations discuss audience information?

RAJAR stands for Radio Joint Audience Research and is the official body in charge of measuring radio
audiences in the UK. The BBC and the Radio Centre on behalf of the commercial sector jointly own it.
The RAJAR do exactly what the BARB do but on the radio. The radios are exactly like television (Audience
wise) Different radio frequencies play different music/ have chat shows. For example, BBC RADIO 1
EXTRA targets a much younger audience and therefore an advert about hearing aids for example wont
play. However, statistics show older people listen to BBC radio 4 or the opera radio station, therefore an
advert about hearing aids will most likely play. Rajar collect there information using a 7 day listening
diary. Approximately 110000 people over the age of 15 are asked to fill one out over 50 weeks of the
year. They have been monitoring data since 1992 for both commercial and BBC radio Stations.



Audience Research Board (BARB) provides official viewing figures for UK television audiences. It
commissions specialist research companies Ipsos MORI, Kantar Media and RSMB to collect data that
represent the television viewing behavior of the UKs 26 million people. Studying peoples behavior is
crucial for TV because its important to know what interests your target audience. After doing this, you
can incorporate this into your own work meaning that you would have more chance of influencing your
target audience to buy or watch something. This is more powerful than having your advert scattered
around all channels, however repetition builds learning and if your advert is everywhere you are more
inclined to do what the advert is telling you.

List a variety of audience methods producers can use?
Newspapers
Websites
Blogs
TV advertisement
Billboards