newspaper: the guardian industry+audience

Question 1

industry: who was it founded by? what made him make it?

Answer 1

john edward taylor
after the 1819 peterloo massacre, in which 18 people died when cavalry charged into a crowed who demanded the reform of representation in parliament. this event outraged taylor so he wanted to form a paper that held governments to account

Question 2

industry: who is the guardian now owned by? what else do they own?

Answer 2

The Guardian Media Group (GMG) - also owns The Guardian Weekly and The Observer

Question 3

industry: what is GMG?

Answer 3

a global media group whose parent company is the Scott Trust Limited

Question 4

industry: what is the Scott trust limited?

Answer 4

a private company that owns GMG, the owner of The Guardian newspaper and website. Its purpose is to secure the financial and editorial independence of The Guardian. This means ensuring the newspaper is free from commercial/political interference, allowing its journalists to maintain their liberal values and investigative principles.

Question 5

industry: what kind of journalism does the guardian media group deliver?

Answer 5

fearless and investigative - giving a voice to the powerless

Question 6

industry: what was the scott trust originally created in 1936 to do to the guardian?

Answer 6

“secure the financial and editorial independence of the guardian and safeguard the journalistic freedom and liberal values of the paper from commercial or political interference”

Question 7

industry: how was the guardians ownership pattern designed?

Answer 7

so that no individual could benefit from the profits of the newspaper or have total control over it

Question 8

industry: how is the guardian funded?

Answer 8

its reader funded, meaning all revenue comes from readers

Question 9

industry: what are 4 values of the guardian according to CP Scott?

Answer 9

• honesty
• courage
• fairness
• sense of duty to reader

Question 10

industry: how is the guardian different from other papers in terms of regulatory boards?

Answer 10

each newspaper is free to write stories that put fourth their views but must not print lied because they could be sued or referred to a regulator. in the guardians case, they have formed their own regulatory board with The Financial Times and are not regulated by ipso

Question 11

industry: what does their independent ownership mean for them?

Answer 11

they are free from political and commercial influence and their values determine the stories they choose to cover

Question 12

industry: what kind of newspaper are they in terms of their tone?

Answer 12

a quality newspaper that adopts a formal tone. they are a highly respected global paper that has had some major journalistic scoops e.g exposing the phone hacking scandal and investigating uber for breaking laws

Question 13

industry: what else do the guardian have as well as their print copy? what they do and cost?

Answer 13

4 editions of the online newspaper that target different country demographics. they select/write stories according to the news values of that day for each country. digital edition a month is £14.99

Question 14

industry: how is the guardian online separated?

Answer 14

in sections for ease of selection e.g opinion, culture, lifestyle

Question 15

industry: what has happened to physical copy newspaper revenue? how has the digital edition helped them as a company?

Answer 15

despite the decline in physical copy newspaper revenue, subscription to the guardian makes up more than advertising revenue. the digital edition has increased in readership to cover a million subscribers, and digital revenue accounts for two-thirds of total revenue

Question 16

audience: what is the guardian political stance? what is the demographic of the readership? what percentage are male and what is the average age?

Answer 16

centre-left
the demographic of readership is ABC1
54% of readers are male
average age is 54

Question 17

audience: what are the people who read the paper and online interested in?

Answer 17

left-leaning politics and social issues, mainly social progressives (reformers) psychographic

Question 18

audience: what is the paper circulation and digital readership?

Answer 18

the circulation for the paper is 3.2million monthly, the digital readership is 18.4million

Question 19

audience: how big is the guardian online?

Answer 19

3rd largest individual newspaper website in the world, delivering news to over 1 million unique browsers every month, with two-thirds of these coming from outside the uk

Question 20

audience: how is their audience described?

Answer 20

“global audience that is affluent and well educated with a passion for arts, literature, film, sports and travel”

Question 21

audience: how many digital readers do they have from how many different countries?

Answer 21

1 million digital readers from 180 countries

Question 22

audience: which award did they win and what does this reflect?

Answer 22

“best public interest” produced for a uk audience - reflects the fact they listen to what the readers want to know and are reader funded

Question 23

audience: how do they involve their audience? (4 ways)

Answer 23

• comment sections
• can submit letters to editors expression opinion on events
• “call-outs” to gather personal stories
• social media

Question 24

theory: clay shirky (active audience)

Answer 24

the traditional passive audience has shifted to an active and interactive role in media consumption, due to digital technologies and social media. This means people are no longer just receiving information, but actively creating, sharing, and participating in the media ecosystem
- audiences can submit own stories

Question 25

theory: two step flow (active audience)

Answer 25

we are more likely to be affected by the media if we discuss it with others. our opinions are affected by the way those we socialise with have viewed the media - opinion leaders - we can comment and share ideas on articles

Question 26

theory: moral panic (passive audience)

Answer 26

an exaggerated reaction to a perceived social problem, often amplified by the media, which can lead to societal changes - wars and covid-19 coverage

Question 27

theory: gerbners cultivation theory (active)

Answer 27

media can shape perception of world. mass media is influential and has replaced the role of institutions. - the guardians strong left wing political views about ides like migrants and refugees may spark fear in audiences

Question 28

Katz and blumer - uses and gratification (active)

Answer 28

we use different media products for different reasons 1. surveillance - we want to find out more about society/world 2. personal identity - we watch tv for models for our behaviour e.g we may identity with a soap character/their situation 3. personal relationships - we use media to ind out more about circumstance of other people 4. diversion - enjoyment, relaxation, fill the time - we read newspapers in order to fulfil these different aspects

Question 29

theory: curran and seaton (industry)

Answer 29

media industries are dominated by a small number of conglomerates and media industries are all about profit+power, arguing that products are repetitive and similar with a lack of choice because its all about profit+power. - the guardian challenges this because they are independent and not owned by anyone like DMG or news corp they and listen to their audiences. they can do what they like.

Question 30

theory: hesmondhalgh (cultural industry)

Answer 30

work across a variety of media platforms & technology to make sure company/product is seen all around the world and diversify into different areas of the media - the guardian has print as well as online editions, which are global and reach a wide audience