Post 1
In this blog, I will be writing about the job roles, structures in the print media industry and how a news article ends up in the hands of the readers.
There are plenty of major newspaper publishers in the UK such as the Murdoch family owning News UK also known as News international. This was founded by Rupert Murdoch in 1981; he owns plenty of well-known and successful corporations such as SKY. News UK publishes a lot of newspapers including the most popular paper in the UK, The Sun. They also publish The Times, Sunday Times and Sun on Sunday. Another example of a National Newspaper publisher is the DMG Media, which used to be known as Associated newspapers which publish newspapers such as the second largest selling daily newspaper in the UK, the Daily mail. They also publish Mail on Sunday, Metro and all this is owned by Lord Rothermere. Another example would be Trinity Mirror, owned by David Grigson, publishes major National Newspapers like Sunday Express, The Star, Daily Express and Star on Sunday are all published by Express newspapers which are a part of Northern and shell and is owned and founded by Channel 5 owner, Richard Desmond. Another major publisher of newspapers would be Scott Trust who publishes newspapers such as The Guardian and The Observer and is owned by the Scott family and was founded by John Scott in 1936. The telegraph media group is the proprietor of The Daily Telegraph and the Sunday Telegraph and is owned by the David and Frederick Barclay, also known as the Barclay bros. The remaining major National newspapers, the Independent, Independent on Sunday and they are published by Independent print ltd. This is fronted by Alexander Lebedev.
There are also a lot of Regional newspaper publishers in the UK. Some of the biggest Regional newspaper publishers include Johnston press, Trinity mirror, Newsquest and Archant Newspapers. Johnston press publishes newspapers such as Hemel Gazette, Northampton Chronicle and Halifax Courier which is owned by Ian Russell and the CEO is Ashley Highfield who has worked in high levels of companies, such as BBC and Microsoft. Trinity Mirror who also publish National newspapers, such as The Mirror, Sunday Mirror, People and Daily Record publish regional newspapers, such as Liverpool Echo, Birmingham Post, The Chronicle (Newcastle) and is again owned by David Grigson. Newsquest publishes newspapers such as the Watford Observer, Harrow Observer, Welwyn and Hatfield Review and is headed by Paul Davidson. Another Regional newspaper publisher is Archant newspapers and publishes newspapers, such as East Anglian Daily Times, Eastern daily press, Norwich evening press and Ipswich star that is owned by Richard Jewson.
An international paper is another popular paper which is sold all around the world and one of them is the New York Times which is classified as a Daily Newspaper. The New York Times is an American daily newspaper published and founded by New York City since the year 1851. This is also one of the most popular and viewed news sites. The New York Times is published by Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Jr. and became publisher in 1992 and is also the chairman of the board of its owner, The New York Times Company. Another example of an international paper would be The Bild newspaper which is a German tabloid newspaper published by Axel Springer. This is one of the largest multimedia companies in Europe and the third largest in Germany. Axel Springer was founded in 1946 by a journalist called Axel Springer and its current CEO and Chairman of the management board is Mathias Dopfner. The final international paper this essay will be talking about is a French daily evening newspaper, La Monde, founded by Hubert Beuve-Mery and is published in Paris since its very first publication back in the 1940’s. It reports and average circulation of over 300,000 copies per issue and published by Louis Deyfrus.
There are 13 main steps involving the process of how a story written by a journalist ends up in the hands of the readers, they are:
- Research,
- Write the story
- Checked by news editor and Sub-editor
- Pages designed
- Photos and text added to the adverts on pages
- Dummy copy produced
- Pre-press final check to make sure there are no mistakes
- Newspaper is printed
- Print finishing – Check as paper is being printed
- Published
- Distributed around country by lorry and rail
- Sold in shops/ delivered by paper boys/girls
- Bought by customers
Research is the first and most important step into writing a story and it is made up into two types of research techniques, Primary and Secondary. Primary research is when the writer uses his own knowledge and looking into resources, such as the internet, books and magazines and newspapers. Secondary research is in which the writer finds out the opinion of the public by doing questionnaires and vox pops, so the writer can boost the circulation views as the public are the people who will read and buy the newspaper. After doing all the research and having an idea what to write about, the next step would be to write the story to the very best standards as possible, which is suitable enough for everyone, the story is then checked by the news editor and sub-editor to read and correct the publication, draft and implement editorial policy, decide on the content of publications or news items and manage the production of publications and the staff involved, depending on the position they hold. After the publication is checked by the editor and sub-editor the pages are then designed to make them more flattering the reader, after the pages are designed, photos and text are added to the adverts pages so more people will buy the newspaper to look at adverts, such as holidays, jobs and houses, etc.
Job Roles
The first job role we will be looking at will be a journalist. A journalist is a person who distributes news to the public in a number of ways and variety like writing for magazines or newspapers, preparing a news broadcast on a radio or television and even being a presenter on a certain radio or television broadcast. Newspaper journalist research and write stories for national, regional and local press. They can report on anything such as sports, science, gossip, arts and culture, business and of course, news and politics. They also cover national and local events, entertainment and human interest stories. Broadcast journalist’s research, investigate and present news and current affairs for television, radio and the internet. Their aim is to present information in a fair, balanced and accurate way through news bulletins, documentaries and other factual programmes. Broadcast journalists can fill a number of roles within the media including editor, reporter, presenter/news anchor, producer and correspondent.
The next job role we will be looking at will be a photographer. Their job in the media industry is taking photographs for magazines, newspapers, broadcasters etc. and after they take the pictures, they do what they can to make it look that much better and appealing then finally processing them. A lot of photographer are self-employed and have work, such as weddings, family portraits, fashion, etc.
The next job role we will be looking at is the editor’s role. They’re role is the process of picking and preparing written stories, etc. videos to see if they are good and suitable. A written editor, for example, is responsible for the content and quality of their publication and ensures that the stories are the best it can be, making sure they are informative and engaging. Now a video editor on the other hand would be responsible for assembling recorded raw material into a finished product suitable for broadcasting. The material may consist of camera footage, dialogue, sound effects, graphics and special effects. This is a key role in the post-production process and the editor’s skill can determine the quality and delivery of the final product. The editor may be part of a team and they will usually work closely with the director to achieve the desired end result.
A sub-editor is another vital role in the media industry, especially print-based as they check the written text of newspapers, magazines or websites before it is published. They are responsible for ensuring the correct grammar, spelling, house style and tone of the published work. They make sure that the copy is factually correct and that it suits the target market. They also lay out the story on the page, write headings and may be involved with overall page design.
A graphic designer is responsible for creating design solutions that have a high visual impact. The role involves listening to clients and understanding their needs before making design decisions. Their designs are required for a huge variety of products and activities, such as websites, advertising, books, magazines, posters and computer games.
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