CODES AND CONVENTIONS OF FACTUAL PROGRAMMING Connor Mc

CODES AND CONVENTIONS OF FACTUAL PROGRAMMING Connor Mc. Callion

News

Codes and Conventions • Studio news readers • Field reporters • Links to studio • Mode of address to viewer • Interviewing • Experts and witnesses • Report structure • Actuality footage

Studio News Readers News presenters are important because they present the show. They are the main reporters/presenters that appear in TV news. They must keep the viewers engaged and interested at all times. If a news reader is dull and boring, the viewer will get bored and not want to watch. News presenters can appear on many different formats such as radio, television and on the internet. Examples of news presenters - George Alagiah - Philippa Thomas - Louise Minchin - Sian Williams - Bill Turnbull

Field Reporters are usually dressed formally, but this depends on their location. A medium close up of the reporter should be used with the object of what the story is about in the background. The field reporter carries on the story from the studio going into more detail about the story, followed by some footage of what happened.

Links to Studio Links to studio are good because they can show two different people in two different locations and have them talk about a certain topic. It is usually used for a conversation between the studio news reader and a field reporter about the topic or story, however it can also be used for a studio news reader to talk to another news reader or expert in another location. The field reporter, or expert, will give the studio news reader more in depth information about what is going on as they have first hand knowledge.

Mode of Address to Viewer • Mode of address is how to show is presented and making it appeal to the target audience, for example the 60 second news show is targeted towards younger people. It has music and interesting topics, such as celebrity news, to keep the younger audiences entertained. Another thing that makes it more interesting and fun to watch is the fact that it is edited with such a fast pace, there's a lot of cuts to these interesting topics as well as music playing over the top of it.

Interviewing Interviews are important as they get first hand information about the topic/story that is being discussed. They get expert knowledge and many different opinions and points of view.

Experts and witnesses Listening to an expert is always very important when it comes to news. They are experts in the specific field and know what they’re talking about. News shows will bring in experts to talk and ask questions to about specific topics, for example politics, crime, celebrities, food etc. Hearing from an eye witness is also very important. They have first hand knowledge of what is happening and were at the scene as it was happening, for example a crime.

Report Structure • This is how the show is laid out. • The structure of the show is vital as it is what can draw new viewers in and keep existing viewers entertained • If the first story of the show is very exciting then it will get the attention of the viewer and possibly get new viewers • Also, people will want to watch the rest of the show if the first story is interesting as it will make them believe that the rest of the show will be just as interesting.

Actuality Footage • Actuality footage is import as people are more likely to believe and understand a story if they see footage of it. • It can back up the information talked about in the news piece. • It can give a more in depth look at certain stories • It makes the show a lot more interesting and keeps the audience wanting to watch.

Documentary

Documentary formats • Expository • Observational • Interactive • Reflective • Performative

Expository documentaries speak directly to the viewer, often in the form of an authoritative commentary (heard and seen on screen), or voice of god (heard but not seen), employing voiceover or titles, proposing a strong argument and point of view. These films are rhetorical, and try to persuade the viewer. These types of documentaries are biased and objective as they only give information from one side or point of view.

Observational • Unlike the rhetorical nature of expository documentaries, observational documentaries tend to simply observe, allowing viewers to reach whatever conclusions they may come to. Pure observational documentarians proceeded under some bylaws: no music, no interviews, no scene arrangement of any kind, and no narration. The fly-on-the-wall perspective is used heavily, while editing processes utilize long takes and few cuts. This makes the footage appear as though the viewer is witnessing first-hand the experiences of the subject.

Interactive • An interactive documentary is one where the presenter can interact with the subject. For example Louis Theroux’s Weird Weekends, An Idiot Abroad etc. these documentaries are all interactive as the host or presenter interact with the subject. Louis interviews and talks to the subjects of his documentary to find out as much information as possible. In An Idiot Abroad, Rickey and Steve talk to Karl and give him different things to do and places to go.

Reflective • In a reflective documentary, the film maker acknowledges their presence in front of the camera and provides a narrative to the documentary. This style of documentary is usually associated with experimental documentaries, where the viewer is just as interested about how the film is constructed as they are the actual content.

Performative • A performative documentary acknowledges the emotional and subjective aspects of documentary and presents ideas as a part of a context having different meanings for different people and are often autobiographical in nature. It is still getting certain points across, however the filmmaker stresses certain points that back up their own personal point of view.

Dramatization • Dramatization in documentary films is when the filmmaker uses actors to recreate a scene. For example scenes of war in a WWII documentary. This is used for dramatic effect, it gives the audience a sense of what really happened and helps them to better understand the story/topic of the documentary. Dramatization can also be used to build arguments within the documentary.

Narrativisation • These documentaries try to communicate events/experiences in a narrative form to gain a greater understanding, for example documentaries that have a narrative of the holocaust.