Tasksheet+-+TV+Audiences

=TASK-SHEET- TV Audiences=

**TASK:**
The final essay is to be completed for homework.//**
 * //You have five class periods to complete this worksheet.


 * Open the mediamatrix12 wiki** ( http://mediamatrix12.wikispaces.com ) navigate to the pages: Media Audience - Audience ppt, measuring audience and ratings wars.

At the prompts in the questions open the wikipages and use the hyperlinks within the page to provide further information to add to that provided by the Audience Powerpoint. Make notes from this information.
 * Open Audience ppt** - read the slides and make your own notes answering the following questions.
 * Note**: //You will need to explore the hyperlinks to get access to all the necessary information. You will need this additional information to complete the task to the expected standard.//

QUESTIONS
1) What is a “media audience”? 2) Why is the identification of the audience crucial to the media industry? a) What are the key questions the industry ask about the nature of the audience? b) How will the answers to these questions affect the programming or presentation of content by the media? 3) The audience is measured in “ratings” - How are ratings defined and determined? 4) Why might community identification be more important for print media than broadcast media? 5) Define the different target audiences for each of the Television Channels broadcasting in New Zealand. 6) Why is Auckland regarded as a crucial audience by New Zealand broadcasters? (check wikipage: Ratings Wars) 7) Describe and explain the structure of the broadcast schedule used by TV broadcasters in New Zealand. 8 a) Identify the audience - How is the audience identified to provide data for Broadcasters? b) What five factors can be identified by the census data compared to the data provided by ACNeilsen? (check Measuring the Audience wikipage) 9) Why are the following census derived factors important for Broadcasters in determining their audience: Age, Gender, Income, Family structure? 10) Describe the profiles of the “major audience groups” as used by ACNeilsen. (refer Measuring the Audience wikipage) 11) The Ratings Wars wikipage has a series of clippings about the ways the ratings have affected the Television Broadcasters in New Zealand. How does the information from the clippings help you understand the extracts in the powerpoint that outline the way TVNZ presented the news in 2006? In what ways has TVNZ been influenced / affected by the ratings wars? 12) Why is Mike Latter’s comment about audience important to: (a) the Broadcaster (b) the Advertiser and (c) the audience? (Check Does Audience or ownership hyperlink on Measuring the Audience wikipage for more information.) 13) Describe and explain how ratings are measured (other than the census data ) and the problems associated with the measurement processes used. ( Check the wikipage Measuring the Audience for additional data ) 14) Describe and explain the importance of the audience ratings in developing and funding a TV programme by a New Zealand Broadcaster. 15) **Write an essay of between 500 and 750 words** using the information you have noted about audiences and broadcasting to respond to the following statement: //“ The mass media is supported and sustained by commercial entities. Corn flakes and Shakespeare are simply not kissing cousins. Leonard Bernstein and living bras are incompatible. You cannot sustain adult, probing, meaningful drama or programmes when proceedings are interrupted every eight minutes by a dozen dancing rabbits with toilet paper.”// (Rod Serling ) Describe, explain and analyse how audience ratings and the advertising dollar affect the programming decisions of a Television Channel. Support your answer with evidence from local "ratings wars."