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WWW - You show very good focus on the question. I think technically this would be a D but that is only due to lack of examples/case study that we haven't studied yet.

EBI - You certainly need a wider variety of current examples - why use 1992 election when you're in 2015?!
I'd like a lot more on the idea audiences are not empowered and that institutions still hold power/influence.

Learner Response - It is definitely plausible to argue that with the advances in new and digital media audiences are not empowered but institutions hold the power. With the advances in new and digital media, audiences are given the platform to express their own views and opinions. However, thinking about Pareto's Theory, do audience's opinions and views actually get recognition? As audiences have online routines, institutions can still be argued to hold power and influence. This is because it is in the audience's routine to visit their website to get in with the latest opinions and news thus meaning that the audience's views aren't recognised. This therefore shows that although audiences are given the platform to voice their opinion and view, which can be interpreted as being empowered, the fact that audiences would still go to the big institutions for opinions and views, it expresses that the institutions still hold power and influence.

Audience&institutions

Blog task: Audience and Institution

1) Read this extract from the Ofcom 2014 report on the consumption of news in the UK. What are the key statistics relating to the influence of new and digital media? 

• In the UK (95%) say they follow the news. 
• 75% of UK adults saying they use TV as a source of news; 
• those who use any internet or apps for news, 41% doing so this year
• Between the ages of 16-34, the use of internet or apps for news has increased from 44% in 2013 to 60% in 2014
• 28% named BBC as the single most important news source.  
• Increase in the number of people stating a website/app as their most important news source (21% in 2014 vs. 14% in 2013).
• Almost half (45%) of 16-24s say their most important news source is a website/app, up 15 percentage points since 2013 (30%). 
• Each adult watched an average of 115 hours of national and international news on television  in 2013
• The majority of this (64%) was on BBC One or BBC Two and a further 12% on the BBC News channel.  
• 16-24 year olds consumed only 27 hours of news on television in the same period, 
• For those aged 55 and over they consume 196 hours .

2) Come up with an example of an institution that has benefited from the changes new and digital media has brought to the news industry. Explain how new technology has helped the institution and try to find statistics or financial figures that support your point.

An example of an institution that has benefited from the advances in new and digital media is the Sky. This is as they are an institution that has adapted very well to the changes, developing a website as well as an app. Through these developments, it has allowed the institution to remain relevant in and amongst the changes in digital media. This therefore results in Sky generating more revenue as they will remain competitive within the developments in digital media. Furthering this, as 60% of users accessing news via app and website are 16-24's it shows how the demographic of this institution's audience has widened because of the developments thus meaning that through the changes in digital media, the institution has crafted a wider audience.       

3) Find an example of an institution that has suffered as a result of the changes new and digital media has brought to the news industry. In what way has it had a negative impact? Again, try and find actual statistics or financial figures to explain your point.

An example of an institution that has suffered because of the changes in new and digital media is the daily telegraph. This institution is suffering because of the lack of sales they are making with their newspapers. This is because audiences are given a range of platforms to access the news such as, the internet, television and mobile apps. These alternative ways audiences can access news are more convenient for audiences therefore leading to the daily telegraph, who generate majority of their revenue through sales of newspapers, to suffer. 

4) Answer the following question in a mini-essay on your blog:

Who has benefited most from the changes new and digital media have had on the news industry - audiences or institutions?

There is no doubt that both the audiences and the institutions have benefited most from the changes in new and digital media however, the latter have arguably benefited more from these changes. 

The way in which the institutions have benefited from changes in new and digital media is that it opens and unlocks an audience where they wouldn't usually attract with traditional means of media. These are audiences aged 16-24. With news institutions such as The Guardian and the BBC providing their content online, it makes news more relevant as it available online. With this availability, the younger audience would more likely consume their service as majority of online users are between the ages of 16-24. Without this development in digital media, the BBC and The Guardian wouldn't have been able to provide their content online. This would limit their demographic leaving out the younger generation as, means of traditional media just aren't consumed by the younger generation. The developments in digital media therefore benefits institutions through widening their demographic.

On the contrary, a stronger argument would be that in fact audience are the ones who benefit more rather than the institutions. This is as through the developments in the media, audiences are able to access news on the go with such convenience. The developments of mobile applications allow audiences to get the latest news on the go. This means that audiences are constantly updated with the news from around the world. This benefits the audience because they are able to update themselves on the go and not to have to watch the television bulletin or buy a news paper in order to get the latest news. In addition to this, it allows audiences to access news live, this is done through the developments in online streaming. This means that audiences can get updates live to the second. With the developments of mobile applications, it also allows audiences to customise the news that is priority to them. This means that with the touch of the screen, audiences are able to get the latest news that they want.

News stories.

Netflix knows what episodes what episodes get you hooked on a series

The streaming service Netflix has analysed viewer data from 16 countries to find out at what point in several hit programmes someone is 70% likely to finish at least the first series of a show. 

The data in this research was pulled from accounts who started watching season one of the selected series between January 2015 and July 2015 in Brazil, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, UK and US and between April 2015 and July 2015 for Australia and New Zealand. A hooked episode was defined when 70% of viewers who watched that episode went on to complete season one. Hooked episodes were first identified by country, then averaged to create the global hooked episode. The hooked episode had no correlation to total viewership numbers or attrition. 

This study shows how the way in which people watch television is shifting to streaming. The fact that audiences are watching tv series' on demand shows how watching television is becoming something that was done in the past.

Mark Zuckerberg calls for universal internet access to combat poverty

Calling for efforts to ensure internet access for everyone globally by 2020, Mr Zuckerberg said internet connections are a dynamic tool for sharing knowledge, creating opportunities, lifting communities out of poverty and promoting peace. The connectivity campaign calls on governments, businesses and innovators to bring the internet to the some 4 billion people who now do not have access, organisers said.

• 4 billion people still don't have access to the internet 

With Mark Zuckerberg and the 193 UN Members trying to provide internet for those who still don't have access, it shows how the internet and these developments in technology are becoming our way of live and is a necessity in the world that we live in. 

New/Digital media stories

US government hack stole fingerprints of 5.6 million federal employees

The article is about how the US government got hacked and stole 5.6 million federal employees finger prints. The US believe it could be china as the one who's doing this as there is no evidence. However the US government have fired the director of security as to the fault of what happened. The theft of this information could find out about the spies and the secrecy of the United States.

This exposes how because of the developments in technology, people's privacy is being disregarded. As an astonishing figure of 5.6 million was hacked, it goes shows how noone is fully safe from online crimes. This also shows how America's federal government is under attack which shows the advancing in the ways groups of threatening the US.   

Therapists have developed a 12-week course to wean dependent people off their screens. 

This article talks about how therapists have developed a 12-week course to wean dependent people off their screens. Therapy website Talkspace has come up with a solution: a new 12-week plan to address social-media dependency. People are able exchange texts with a real therapist to talk through their dependence – not "addiction," to their phone. Created in 2012, the Talkspace app offers text-based therapy provided by 200 therapists to its current 150,000 registered users. But unlike texting a friend, a parent or a significant other, on the other end is a therapist.

I think through this development of therapy, it really shows how people in this modern age are so dependant on their mobile phones. This article goes on to say how certain people become anxious when they have no signal on their mobile phones. This therefore accentuates how internet, social media and other developments in new and digital media have grown to be a part of peoples daily lives.

News institutions

BBC 

• Publicly owned
• Founded 18 October 1922
• Founded by John Reith 
• The BBC website is Europe's most popular content-based site
• 13.2 million people visit the page
• BBC is the largest news operation in the world
• Addition of BBC mobile has improved the accessibility of news
• Provides news on radio and programmes BBC News, BBC parliament and BBC World News
• BBC Red Button is the interactive digital television, this provides news, weather and sport 24 hours a day

SKY

• Owned by Sky Plc
• Founded 5 February 1989
• Distributed by Fox International Channels
• Broadcast worldwide 
• 24 hour multimedia news operation based in Britain 
• Skynews.com is the official website
• The website provides news, sport, weather, showbiz and business 
• Blogs and forums are also written by staff to create an interactivity

The Sun

• Tabloid paper founded in 1964
• Largest newspaper behind Daily Mail
• Approximately 5.5 million readers
• 31% in ABC1 demographic and 68% in C2DE
• 41% of readers are female
• The Sun also has an official website
• Editior is Tony Gallagher
• Owned by News UK (News Corp UK and Ireland)    

Daily Mail 

• The publisher is DMG Media 
• Founded on May, 1896
• Owned by Daily and General Trust 
• Britain's first daily news paper 
• First newspaper to ever sell a million copies a day
• 55% of the readers of this newspaper is female
• Approximately 3.951 million readers per day
• 2.503 million of those readers fell under the ABC1 demographic 
• 1.448 million were in the C2DE demographic 
• Editor is Paul Dacre

BBC News App

• Allows users to personalise which news stories are priority 
• Available on ios as well as android
• Free to download on both systems
• Positive ratings on both ios and Android

1) Why has Google led to the decline of the newspaper industry?

Showing relevant and breaking from news sites on their homepage Google prevents newspapers from claiming advertising revenue. This is because people don't need to go onto their websites. Also, they are essentially sharing information from these websites and not actually giving credit or shares to the source of that information.

2) Do you personally think Google is to blame for newspapers closing and journalists losing their jobs? Why?

Google is in place to provide its consumers with a service and to make things more convenient. It's up to the audience to choose who they get their news from, hence it's not Google's fault that the consumers don't want to view their pages/papers. With services such as Google, I think inevitable that people would want to take the more convenient root, rather than go on multiple News sites for information, that Google could offer in one place. As technology advances, traditional concepts will essentially die down. So I don't think that Google is to blame.

New/Digital media stories

http://www.theguardian.com/media/2015/sep/16/amazon-prime-members-to-get-free-access-to-the-washington-post

Amazon prime members to get free access to the Washington post. This shows how traditional media are trying to branch out and get involved with digital media. By Washington giving their post for free for member of this streaming application, it shows how they are being involved and integrating in new and digital media.

•  Prime members can see first hand why more than 50 million people monthly choose the Washington Post as their source for news.
• Offering free access to new subscribers through Prime allows us to connect with millions of members nationwide who may not have tried the Post in the past

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/tv-radio/bbc-to-offer-its-staff-and-contentto-local-newspapers--reports-10489126.html

The BBC is to offer its staff and content  to local newspapers and allow rival shows to be seen on its iPlayer catch-up service in a bid to head off Government attempts to reduce its output.

BBC

Questions

1. How do you feel about the BBC supposedly cutting 1,000 jobs?
2. What sort of decisions and complications do you have to face as deputy director of news and current affairs?
3. Whats a typical day at work for you like?
4. Whats the favourite part of your job?
5. What is the current goal of your department?

BBC 3 to go online

.BBC trust approved plans to scrap the BBC3 TV channel and make it online-only. The move will save £30m. the trust rejected another proposal to launch a new BBC1+1 channel in place of BBC 3 because of its likely impact on commercial rivals including ITV and Channel 5. On average, 11.2 million people watch BBC3 every week, with fewer than 1 million of that total not watching any other TV service. Ofcom’s market impact assessment concluded that a BBC1+1 channel would have a negative impact on commercial rivals. Some of the £30m BBC3 budget will be redirected towards drama on BBC1, which currently has a budget of about £1bn. Under its original plans, BBC3 TV would have been switched off this autumn; this has been extended until January 2016, the last year of the current BBC charter.

BBC cutting jobs

Hundreds of jobs are expected to be axed by the BBC. A drop in the number of people paying the licence fee has hit BBC funding harder than previously expected and that the broadcaster must take radical action. The BBC need to find another £150m which ultimately makes decisions harder. They are trying to reduce everything to a bare minimum. The deficit has emerged because increasing numbers of people have become aware of a loophole that allows people not to pay the licence fee if they only watch catch-up television.