Tag Archives: newspapers

Newspaper Case Study Example

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I have assembled a selection of articles / items from various web sources to help with your answer for the newspaper question in G322 – the focus is the UK broadsheet The Guardian. There should be information on history, audience/readership, content (how the audience is sustained/maintained), past, present and future technologies and ownership – in short, enough for you to answer most possible questions in tandem with your own choice of National and Local paper.
Case study example Guardian
I have created this as a Word doc, so you should be able to download, read and if necessary print it out.

Useful links for researching newspapers

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National Readership survey– useful for statistical breakdowns of readers habits, and who reads what.
Nick Davies from the Guardian – the man who published info about the phone hacking scandal in his book “Flat Earth News” well before the lawsuits began to fly. Well worth a read.
A history of UK newsprint on Wikipedia.
The British Library – a brief history of UK newspapers with examples.
Richard Desmond – proprietor of Express Newspapers Wiki.
Rupert Murdoch of News International.
The Barclay Brothers of the Telegraph Group.
An opinion on the digital nightmare facing UK newspapers
Newspapers are dead! – from The Guardian.
How much does digital mean to Uk Newspapers? from paidcontent.co.uk – a useful looking website generally.

G322 – Audiences and Institutions Case Study – Newspapers

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This is how the OCR specification outlines the newspaper brief….

“A study of the contemporary newspaper market in the UK and the ways in which technology is
helping to make newspapers more efficient and competitive despite dwindling audiences. This
should be accompanied by study of a specific online version of a national/local newspaper and the
issues that are raised for the production, distribution and consumption of news.”
Candidates should be prepared to understand and discuss the processes of production,
distribution, marketing and exchange as they relate to contemporary media institutions, as well as
the nature of audience consumption and the relationships between audiences and institutions. In
addition, candidates should be familiar with:
 the issues raised by media ownership in contemporary media practice;
 the importance of cross media convergence and synergy in production, distribution and
marketing;
 the technologies that have been introduced in recent years at the levels of production,
distribution, marketing and exchange;
 the significance of proliferation in hardware and content for institutions and audiences;
 the importance of technological convergence for institutions and audiences;
 the issues raised in the targeting of national and local audiences (specifically, British) by
international or global institutions;
 the ways in which the candidates’ own experiences of media consumption illustrate wider
patterns and trends of audience behaviour.

As it is possible to select a case study from a number of different industries, the single question offered must be fairly open and generic in its structure and focus.

Here are the past questions….each followed by suggested content from the mark scheme.

Discuss the issues raised by media ownership in the production
and exchange of media texts in your chosen media area.

Candidates will be assessed on their ability to illustrate patterns of
production, distribution, exchange and consumption through relevant
case study examples and their own experiences as audiences.

Candidates may cover the following material in their responses to the
question:

 Production and exchange practices which allow texts to be
constructed for specific audiences
 Global, national and local production and exchange of specific
products or types of products
 Forms of exchange and the impact on institution and/ or audiences
 Audience strategies in facilitating or challenging institutional
practices
 Arguments for different/ alternative forms of media ownership and
the production and exchange of media texts

Candidates should be given credit for their knowledge and
understanding, illustrated through case study material, in any of these
areas; there is no requirement that they should all be covered equally.
Examiners should also be prepared to allow points, examples and
arguments that have not been considered if they are relevant and
justified.

What significance does the continuing development of digital media
technology have for media institutions and audiences?

Candidates may cover the following material in their responses to the
question:

 The impact of new technology on media industries
 The transformation of distribution and marketing strategies by
media institutions
 The use of new technology to facilitate more accurate targeting of
specific audiences
 How audiences embrace the use of new digital media technologies

Candidates should be given credit for their knowledge and
understanding, illustrated through case study material, in any of these
areas; there is no requirement that they should all be covered equally.
Examiners should also be prepared to allow points, examples and
arguments that have not been considered if they are relevant and
justified.

“Media production is dominated by global institutions, which sell
their products and services to national audiences”. To what extent
do you agree with this statement?

Candidates will be assessed on their ability to illustrate patterns of
production, distribution, exchange and consumption through relevant case
study examples and their own experiences as audiences.

Candidates may cover the following material in their responses to the
question:

 Production practices which allow texts to be constructed for specific
audiences
 Distribution and marketing strategies to raise audience awareness of
specific products or types of products
 The use of new technology to facilitate more accurate targeting of
specific audiences
 Audience strategies in facilitating or challenging institutional practices

Candidates should be given credit for their knowledge and understanding,
illustrated through case study material, in any of these areas; there is no
requirement that they should all be covered equally. Examiners should
also be prepared to allow points, examples and arguments that have not
been considered if they are relevant and justified.

Discuss the ways in which media product(s) are produced and
distributed to audiences, within a media area, which you have
studied.

Candidates will be assessed on their ability to illustrate patterns of
production, distribution, exchange and consumption through relevant case
study examples and their own experiences as audiences.

Candidates may cover the following material in their responses to the
question:
• Production practices which allow texts to be constructed for specific
audiences
• Distribution and marketing strategies to raise audience awareness of
specific products or types of products
• The use of new technology to facilitate more accurate targeting of
specific audiences
• Audience strategies in facilitating or challenging institutional practices

Candidates should be given credit for their knowledge and understanding,
illustrated through case study material, in any of these areas; there is no
requirement that they should all be covered equally. Examiners should
also be prepared to allow points, examples and arguments that have not
been considered if they are relevant and justified.
How important is technological convergence for institutions and
audiences within a media area which you have studied?