1b.) Our audience's gender is hopefully going to be a mix, although it seems more likely that due to the video game content it will mostly appeal to boys. We have since improved our script to make sure that there are equal amounts of dialogue between the two hosts. This will attract both genders to the show as they will see that the hosts are a male and a female and relate with the host who they identify with based on gender. This equal gender setting between hosts not only allows for a larger variety in audiences but also discourages any allegations or sexism or gender preference, which would offend and cause for a loss in viewers. Equal screen time between hosts is evidenced in our highlighted script below, showing Vicky's dialogue (pink) and Jordan's dialogue (blue) being roughly equal as the stories transition between them.
It is most likely that due to the content being related to video games that the show will appeal to teenagers as they're more likely to play and enjoy the games mentioned in the show. Due to the age range, we have made the show more relatable for them being letting the hosts speak informally to the audience. The informality can make the speech more humourous as the hosts will make jokes based upon some of the news stories; an example of this can be seen in the extra of our scripted news segment below. The intended audience should hopefully enjoy this humour intended at those of this specific age demographic.
Our script has been written especially for the use of Games Corner, a product by Sheffield Live!. Due to this, we can confidently say that it is targeted locally at people within the Yorkshire area. We attempted to appeal to this audience by trying to include news stories that related to Sheffield in some way. As Sheffield Live! is a community radio, it is expected that the content featured is specifically for members of the community. Unfortunately, at this moment in time we were unable to find news stories about gaming that related to Sheffield in any way; this is something that we would have to improve in future when working on tasks such as this.
We expect that our targeted audience will be C2DE in terms of ABC1 demographics. We feel this way as Sheffield Live! is suited for and supportive of diverse and ethnic minorities of the community. As this show is intended for teenagers, it is likely from most teenage lifestyles that a majority of our audience do not have proffesion so instead collect income from their parents/guardians. Due to this low income, we can assume that although they may have a passion for video games, they may only have one game console, meaning that only some of our news stories will be relevant to them (exampled in the audience profile below). Matt and I feel that to improve our script would be to research which gaming consoles our viewers own, that way we could include more stories that are releavant and appealing to them as they will have a chance to play it. We would conduct this research via survey.
Audience profile - Harry is 15 years old. He is planning on starting working doing a newspaper round but currently has no job. Harry recieves pocket money from his mum and occasionally as a gift from his dad. Last year Harry recieved an Xbox as his birthday present from his mum, which he now plays on consisatently. He enjoys watching "Let's Play" videos on Youtube, as well Games Corner. His favourite section of the show is the news segment, but he preffered their section reporting on Halo and GTA rather than the report on Super Mario for the nintendo.
http://www.abc1demographic.co.uk/
2a.) When receiving feedback from Vicky, she advised us on how to improve our script. She helpfully recommended that we try to keep the dialogue between the two hosts to equal amounts, make the speech more informal, and collect a larger variety of news stories.
2b.) We understood that the recommendation of equal amounts of dialogue between hosts is to allow for equal air time for both hosts instead of relying on just one of them to do most of the work. By allowing for equal air time between hosts also shows the audience that there is no preference for a certain gender, discouraging any legal and ethical issues around sexism.
By making the speech more informal, we are creating a more relaxed and friendly atmosphere for viewers, encouraging people to watch; this is better suited for the teenage demographic we are trying to appeal to, so more informal speech makes the script more fit for purpose.
Vicky instructed that when looking for news stories, we should collect a variety of stories. She went on to explain that, although all the news stories had to be video game related, we should avoid having stories that all relate to the same premise. For example, our original script included multiple news stories that informed of video game release dates, whilst Vicky suggested that we could include stories about video game event, indie developers, technology news, etc.
Vicky also pointed out that are news stories could a mixture of local, regional and international video game news stories (e.g. ranging from Sheffield based game developers, like Team Cooper or Sumo Digital, to other established video game producers like games for Nintendo or Xbox).
By adding different video game news stories, we avoid the script becoming boring by focusing on the same subject. We are also able to provide more information to the audience by having a wider range of stories, which is what a news show/segment should attempt to achieve, meaning that by doing this also makes the script fit for purpose.
3a.) In her feedback, Vicky said that we had to change the following items to our scripts:
- Equal amounts of dialogue for both hosts. She feels that she is delivering most our written dialogue so we should share the scripted speech between her and co-host Jordan.
- Make the dialogue more informal. Vicky felt that one of the strongest parts of our scripts was the informal section and encouraged the rest of the script to be in this style.
- Collect a larger range of news stories. Vicky wanted to see different video game news stories other than release dates.
3b.) Based on the given feedback we shall take the following steps to improve our script:
- We shall attempt to make the dialogue between the two hosts equal, giving them scripted news segments in turns.
- We shall include more informal dialogue within our script, as well as making appropriate segments humourous.
- We shall continue researching video game related news stories and include them in our script, focusing on different stories other than one specific story type.
4a.) Based on the feedback and news scripts I looked at, I believe that our script is fit for purpose, as it includes all the appropriate camera angle instructions that a news script should feature, as I have noted from the example news scripts I studied. We have backed all our news stories with research on the subjects, and I also believe the deliverance (the way the dialogue has been set out) is also to a suitable standard.
4b.) In our original script, we tried to keep the language and dialogue formal most of the time as we were basing our news script on the other news scripts/shows we had seen, where they are mostly encouraged to deliver the news in an informative and formal tone. However, we did include some informal portions to the script to create humour, which we felt would suit the style of Game's Corner better; Vicky also felt this way, and encouraged that we make the script more informal when adding improvements to it, as she felt that the informal section was one the strongest sections of our original script.
4c.) The script has been formatted correctly, although the original did have some positioning issues, but we have corrected this when making our improvements to the script. The script follows the conventions of any script by being written in the fount Courier, size 12.
4d.) The script follows convention by including camera angle instructions and information on who is speaking and what they are saying.
4e.) Within our original script, the tone and mode of address was more of a teacher to pupil approach, as our purpose was to inform the audience. However, after we received feedback suggesting that we make the dialogue more informal, to mode of address became more peer to peer to make the show more friendly and welcoming.
5a.) Our script's content may cause some issues in terms of audience age regulations as it promotes and shows images/footage from games, such as Borderlands, which have been given a PEGI rating of 18.
5b.) As a result of Borderland's PEGI 18 rating, we (Games Corner, my teammate and I) would have to attempt to resolve this problem by deciding if this can be featured in the show. However, this decision doesn't just rely on our own opinions and views on the subject, as we must take the audience's opinions into consideration. One of the Ofcom T.V. regulations is that any show before watershed cannot contain content that is inappropriate for anyone under the age of 18. If this segment was permitted to air, the images/footage chosen would have to avoid showing any graphic and/or inappropriate content as to avoid offending any viewers and avoid breaking any Ofcom regulations.
5c.) Due to the format of the show, Games Corner is sometimes required to be biased as it is a review show. As a result of this, the hosts will express their own opinions on games. Most news shows cannot show any form of favoutism or dislike to the subject they are reporting as they are required to simply report informatively and not opinionated; this is where Games Corner news segment differs to the normal format of most news shows.
5d.) Due to our script, the show would have to gain copyright permission to permit them to air certain pieces of footage (e.g. Example of gameplay from one of the games mentioned). For example, at one point it goes to a shot showing snippets of the game Borderlands: The Handsome Jack Collection. For this, Games Corner will need to receive permission from 2K Games, Inc. to demonstrate this game.
5e.) It is essential that our news stories, other than those reported as rumours and speculations, are factual and liable. To clarify that the news stories featured in our script do not cause any libel issues we check that they are from reliable sources. If a reliable source has not yet reported on a story found, then we could back it up with muliple news souces reporting on the story. If a story is not located from a reliable news source and cannot be found on multiple websites, we would have to question the authenticity of the story and most likely remove it as we would not have enough evidence to support the story.
