Researching
the client

BBC
The BBC was established in 1922 (celebrating its 100th year being broadcasted in 2022) by Lord John Reith as a private
corporation, in which only British manufacturers were permitted to hold shares. In 1927, the company was liquidated and replaced
by a public corporation, the British Broadcasting Corporation. When Lord John Reith created the BBC, he had very strong values
(commonly referred to as the Reithian principals) were (and still are) to inform, educate and entertain. Originally, Lord John Reith
used to ensure there would be no broadcasts by the BBC on Sunday mornings as he believed people would be at Church. In the
beginning, the BBC only used to do radio broadcasts however they expanded there broadcasts over time. The BBC's first
broadcast was on November 14th 1922 and following the closure of numerous amateur stations, the BBC started its first daily radio
service in London which was called 2LO
The BBC are largely financed by annual television licensing fees (£50 for black and white, £159 for colour), which are paid by those
who own TV sets or watch live television transmissions on devices like a computer. It offers several different radio networks in
Britain, ranging from music to news and information services, as well as national television channels. The BBC produce content
aimed at 16-34 year-old audiences. The BBC is a conglomerate therefore creates, develops, and publishes their own content in
house, they operate around the world gaining £200 million annually each year. The BBC is now a conglomerate which means that they
produce publish and exhibit everything it has in house.
John M. Cunningham. (Unknown). British Broadcasting
Corporation. [Online]. Britannica. Last Updated: unknown.
Available at: https://www.britannica.com/topic/British-
Broadcasting-Corporation [Accessed 7 March 2023].

BBC
The BBC have a lot of restrictions due to its TV licensing fee which is a yearly fee (£59 for black and white and £159 for colour) if a
household is broadcasting or recording any forms of live TV. This fee funds the BBC which is the main reason why the BBC does not
need revenue from adverts however they would be unable to show adverts anyways as they are not allowed to have sponsorship
bumpers along with gaining any ad revenue from ads as all the revenue made is put straight back into the production. The government
check to ensure that the money made is being spent wisely which is referred to as the PSB remit. As the BBC is funded by the public the
Government have a responsibility to monitor the spending and what is produced by the BBC to ensure it is in the interest of the public.
The BBC are also confined to not chase a mainstream audience as they have to aim for a niche audience with each of their channels.
OFCOM is the communications regulator in the UK. OFCOM are accountable to parliament and are supposed to act in the best interests
of consumers. They ensure that there is plenty of competition in the marketplace so then no company will charge absurd prices and that
companies act within the law. If broadcasters show programmes that break the rules, OFCOM imposes punishments to the broadcasters
which includes fines. Watershed rules state that the transition to more adult material after 9pm must not be unduly abrupt, and the
strongest material should appear later in the evening. But even then, OFCOM use watershed rules to protect younger viewers from
inappropriate content and protects viewers from harmful and offensive content. OFCOM’s broadcasting Code governs what can be aired
on TV and radio. These are rules for TV channels and radio stations as this sets standards for programmes which broadcasters have to
follow.

BBC Existing Products
The first BBC existing product that I wanted to use is called “Climate Change-the Facts”
which is an expository documentary as it focuses on David Attenborough looking at the
science of climate change and potential solutions to the global threat that is climate
change. It uses a variety of different camera shots and angles such as medium shots,
medium close ups, tracking shot and high angle. In the documentary, it uses voice overs
and interviews to showcase and state the facts about climate change.

BBC Existing Products
The second BBC existing product that I wanted to use is called “Cow” which is an
expository documentary as it focuses on Andrea Arnold's filming the daily chronological
life of a dairy cow in an attempt to help us develop a more empathetic relationship with
farm animals. It uses a variety of different camera shots and angles such as full shots,
medium shots, over the shoulder shots and extreme-close ups. In the documentary, it
doesn’t use any voice overs and primarily focuses on the life of a cow and what they do
visually rather than tell the audience what happens.

BBC Three
BBC Three launched on the 9th February, 2003. It began with a two hour simulcast with BBC Two, where terrestrial viewers were
introduced to Little Britain, music show Re:covered and Johnny Vaughan Tonight. BBC Three’s main aim was to target 24-35 year old
people, but its target audience got younger over time. BBC Three’s aims were to innovative and produce the highest quality
programmes. After 13 years on air, the decision was made to take the channel digital in 2014, with that decision being finalised in late
2015. BBC Three officially became part of the streaming service BBC iPlayer in February 2016. The BBC Three focus on streaming their
content is aimed at a younger audience as they don’t typically watch traditional TV.
Moreover, the BBC Three are under the same restrictions as the BBC (no adverts due to the licensing fee.) The BBC Three’s schedule is
that it starts at 7pm and ends at 4am but, after 9pm, “watershed” occurs which means that more edgier programs will be aired from
then on due to a younger audience typically not being awake at around that time. The BBC Three’s target audience are 16-34 year olds
which is why there schedule is the way it is so then they can showcase more mature content to them without harming any of the
younger demographics. Originally, the BBC Three was moved to streaming but currently it is back to broadcasting on TV again.
unknown. (unknown). BBC Three is launched. [Online]. BBC
Three. Last Updated: unknown. Available at: what plato
[Accessed 7 March 2023].

Uses and Gratification theory
The uses and gratification theory was first introduced in the 1940s as scholars began to study why
people choose to consume different forms of media. However, in the 1970s, researchers turned
their attention to the outcomes of media usage. The theory is often credited to Jay Blumler and
Elihu Katz’s work in 1974. As media technologies continue to advance, research on uses and
gratifications theory is more important than ever for understanding people’s motivations for
choosing media and the gratifications they get out of it.
It is a media theory that people use media to gratify specific wants and needs. It views media users as active and
motivated when they select the media they choose to use. Usin g this, this informs me that I should ensure the
product I make is enticing to watch and has an interesting subject matter.
4 principles (explain each one)
Diversion
Personal Relationship
Personal identify
Surveillance

BBC Three Existing Products
The first BBC Three existing product that I wanted to use is called “Mothers & Lovers |
Girls Living On The Streets Of Brighton” which is an expository documentary as it focuses
on homeless women and the experiences they’ve had. It uses a variety of different camera
shots and angles such as medium close up, tracking shot, close up, eye-level, high angle,
and low angle shots. In the documentary, it also amplifies background sounds as a way to
transition between people or be able to show valuable information (for example waves.)
This documentary primarily uses interviews as a way to showcase the struggles of
homeless women.

BBC Three Existing Products
The second BBC Three existing product I wanted to use is called “Young & Sterile: My
Choice | Extraordinary Bodies” which is an observational documentary focusing on Poppy
Begum going to be sterilised, even though they don't have any children of their own. This
documentary uses a vast amount of camera angles and shot sizes such as high angles, full
shots, 2 shot, long shots and tracking shots. Similarly to the previous product, it also
amplifies background sounds as a way to transition to get to a new location or person or to
be able to show valuable information. In this documentary, it is more represented as
someone’s life and what is happening before during and being sterilised.

BBC England Northern Voices
The BBC England Northern Voices was launched on the 25th April 2020. It is the
Factual Development Scheme for the North of England. The purpose of the Northern
Voices scheme is to allow local companies in the North of England to tell young,
unique and regional stories to develop a talent pipeline from the region. The main aim
was to reflect the life experiences of 16-24 year-olds in the region through the
independent production companies.
unknown. (2020). BBC England and BBC Three join forces
to launch the Factual Development Scheme for the North
of England. [Online]. BBC. Last Updated: 25 April. Available
at:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/latestnews/2020/bbc-
northern-voices-factual-development [Accessed 9 March
2023]

BBC England Northern Voices existing
products
The first BBC England Northern Voices existing product that I wanted to use is called
“1969: Has ENGLAND Embraced "EXOTIC" Food? | Nationwide | Voice of the People | BBC
Archive” which is an expository documentary which discusses what foods used to be
exotic back in the 19th century. This documentary uses archived footage and re-
enactments to help get there points and messages across through historically accurate
information. It uses a wide range of camera angles and shots such as long shots, medium
close ups, medium shots and high angles. This documentary uses interviews and voice
overs to show what foods were exotic back in the 1900s.

Existing documentaries
Due to my desire of wanting to do a gaming documentary, I decided to research into existing gaming documentaries so then I
understand the codes and conventions of a gaming documentary. Firstly, I decided to research a gaming documentary called “How Dead
Space's Scariest Scene Almost Killed the Game | War Stories | Ars Technica” which focuses on the Dead Space franchise and how it was
created. Immediately, the first thing I noticed was the more darker atmosphere which was done to align with the fact that Dead Space is
a horror franchise. In addition, I noticed the usage of archived footage in this gaming documentary which allows the consumer watching
the documentary to be able to understand what Glen Schofield was talking about through visuals which entices the consumer to
continue watching and not become bored whilst watching.
Moreover, the documentary makes use of a variety of different and unique camera angles and shots with effect behind it. A close up is
used at (relatively) the beginning of the documentary which was used to give off an uneasy atmosphere so then it still aligns with the
game and the franchise as a whole as it wouldn’t make sense to have a colourful and vibrant atmospheric background. The close up and
low lighting combination also allows the consumer to get a grasp of the themes of the games themselves.

Existing documentaries
Furthermore, the documentary uses a medium close up with a side view which is done to try and relax the audience and not scare them
away. This also makes it seem more informal which makes the consumer want to engage with the documentary. However, the lighting
brings a healthy contrast and allows the documentary to stay true to the games’ themes.
In addition, I noticed that whilst watching the Dead Space documentary, I noticed that it was very informal as it just seemed like
Schofield was having a conversation with the audience and explaining the game series that he loves and how it was created along with
the subject matter of the scenes themselves. This informs me that I can be informal in the documentary.

Existing documentaries
Also, the documentary takes advantage and uses diegetic and non-diegetic sound in the documentary. They take advantage of non-
diegetic sound through the cutaways as when there is archived footage of other games, they will use the sounds from them games for
the text as a prime example. They also did this for any movies footage they were permitted to use. Lastly, in regards to the third photo,
they framed Schofield in a similar fashion to the Dead Space games which was done to engage the consumer into the documentary. All of
the diegetic sound is from Schofield talking.