Assignment 7 – TV Channel Research!

By Gledis Dedaj

My Chosen TV Channels…

Channel 4 Channel 5 ITV

Channel 4 - Analysis

General Information:•Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster.• Began transmission on 2 November 1982.•Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned.•On 28 March 2007, Channel 4 announced plans to launch a music channel "4Music“.•Channel 4 is also available outside the United Kingdom where it is widely available in Ireland, Switzerland, Belgium and the Netherlands.•Channel 4 also makes some of its programming available "on demand" via cable and the Internet through 4oD.•Channel 4 is a "publisher-broadcaster", meaning that it commissions or "buys" all of its programming from companies independent of itself, and was the first broadcaster in the United Kingdom to do so on any significant scale.•During the station's formative years, funding came from the ITV companies in return for their right to sell advertisements in their region on the fourth channel.

Channel 4 - Analysis

TV Shows:

• Cartoons

• Documentaries

• Game Shows

• Sit Coms

• Channel 4 News

• Reality Shows

Channel 4 - Analysis

• Time Slots

• The morning starts with a kids program as children are normally up for nursery at this time.

• The comedy programmes then come on as this is around the time when people are getting ready for work or school.

• Then the day time shows begin.

• The documentaries are usually on at a later time when more viewers are tuned in as they are home from work or school.

• The more controversial shows that may have swearing in them are on very late as by this time children have been put to bed.

Channel 4 - Analysis

Target Audience:

Due to channel 4’s wide range in programmes, their target audience on a general basis remains quite broad.Depending on the time of day or week, their shows are aimed at different groups of people.

•For example:

On a Saturday morning channel 4 presents shows such as, ‘Gok’s Fashion Fix’ or t4 presenters will interview current music artists or actors from the latest films.These types of shows are aimed more at a younger audience as they are usually associated with topics such as fashion or current music.

Through this t4 is able to cater to different audiences and therefore keep their ratings high.

Channel 5 – Analysis

General Information:• Launched in 1997, it was the fifth and final national terrestrial

analogue network to launch (after BBC One, BBC Two, ITV and Channel 4).

• The station was branded as Five between 2002 and 2011.  • Channel 5 is a general entertainment channel, with internally

commissioned shows such as The Gadget Show and Fifth Gear appearing alongside numerous international programmes such as CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Home and Away, and Neighbours.

• Channel 5 Broadcasting Limited was licensed by the UK Government in 1995 after a bidding process that started in 1993 and lasted throughout 1994.

• The channel broadcasts sports events not covered by other broadcasters and also broadcasts its own news service, 5 News, which is produced by ITN.

• The channel airs documentaries and lifestyle programmes following the lives of so called '8 O'clock Heroes'.

Channel 5 – Analysis

TV Shows:

• Reality TV

• Soaps

• Documentaries

• Cartoons for Children

• News Shows

Channel 5 – Analysis

Target Audience:

• The target audience for channel 5 would be very broad as channel five cater to all age groups.

• For example, in the mornings they normally show kids cartoons, then in the afternoon they show soaps and TV dramas which will attract a young audience (teens-adults), then later on in the evening channel five will show their documentaries concerning ‘real life’ issues.

• E.g. ‘Worlds Toughest Prisons’.

Channel 5 – Analysis

What Types of Documentaries Does it Show?

• Channel 5 is very much concerned with informing people of real life situations and events.

• Hey show quite a lot of Medical Documentaries about people who suffer from certain illnesses.

For example: ‘Extraordinary People’ • Channel 5 brings new and interesting topics to viewers and might even shock some people with how graphic their documentaries really are.

• A sensitive issue such as a deformity is not often brought up but other channels apart from channel 4.

ITV2 – Analysis

General Information:

• In the period between the launch of Independent Television in the 1950's and the start of Channel 4 and S4C in 1982, the term 'ITV2' was popularly used to refer to an envisioned second UK commercial television network.

• ITV2 and its one-hour time shift channel began broadcasting 24 hours a day on 17 March 2008.

ITV – Analysis

TV Shows:

• Documentaries

• Game Shows

• Sit Coms

• Reality Shows

ITV – Analysis

Time Slots

Most Popular Programmes!

• This table shows that ITV2 is not popular for its documentaries but more so for its reality TV and game shows.

• ITV2 also has less variety in the shows they broadcast.

ITV – Analysis

Target Audience:

• Due to their popular reality TV shows such as ‘The Only Way Is Essex’, ITV2 cater more to a younger audience as these types of shows are mostly popular among teenagers in society or young adults.

• Their shows are very centred around pop culture or current topics in the media.

• However they also show programmes that attract an older audience.

• For example, ‘X Factor’ is very popular throughout all age groups.

How Do The Channels Compare?

• Its is safe to say the one of the more controversial channels is indeed channel 5 as they touch on sensitive and current issues more often that channel 4 or ITV2. E.g. ‘9/11 Press For The Truth’ documents the attacks and the establishment and workings of the 9/11 Commission.

• ITV2 seem more concerned with reality TV or game shows as they frequently show such programmes and don’t often show documentaries. They lack variety.

• Channel 4 shares some similarities with channel five in the sense that they both focus very much on Medical Documentaries and informing others about health risks.

• With that said channel five has a wider range of topics within their documentaries.

Which Channel would I choose for my documentary…

• I would like to use Channel 5 to broadcast my documentary on.

• This is because, out of all three channels that I have explored channel 5 has stood out as the most controversial and more varied with its topics.

• Channel 5 stands out from the other channels which I see as a positive.