Analysis of a relevant live news item with a clear explanation of the contextual influence it has had on the rationale for your own live news piece
Analysis of a relevant live news item with a clear explanation of the contextual influence it has had on the rationale for your own live news piece
For this post I decided to cover a live news report by NBC News about Hurricane Ian which destroyed many parts of Florida. I did try and find a live news package which related more to my groups topic however this was hard, so I decided to go with this one.
This report is done by NBC. NBC is a subsidiary company owned by Comcast. Comcast corporation is a global media and technology company, it is regarded as one of the United States’ largest video, high-speed internet and phone providers (About Comcast NBCUniversal, n.d.). In a study done by Allsides, NBC received a media bias rating of lean left. This means that they hold predominantly left wing ideologies and beliefs which are then present in the type of news is presented and influences in what ways this news is told. Allsides found that NBC’s reporting often omits right-leaning perspectives and generally has a leftward bent, focusing on topics of importance to left-leaning Americans (Allsides, 2021). Based on this I would say that NBC has a conservative approach to news journalism as they see the news as a discourse that reflects a liberal or left-wing bias (Creeber, 2008). I found this accurate for this particular news segment as left-wing politics supports social equality and egalitarianism and gives importance to ideas such as freedom, rights, progress, and reform. They consider social welfare as the most important goal of government (Hasa, 2021). This report is covering the effects of hurricane Ian on the community which was badly affected, the report is very fact heavy and includes data such as “below 50% of residents still don’t have power” it is also stated that “people are asking why these evacuation orders may not have come in time” suggesting that with more care for social issues the devastating effects of this natural disaster may have been avoided. This emphasises their left-wing beliefs as there is a massive focus on the social effects of hurricane Ian.
It is important to monitor and be aware of the bias news channels can have and reproduce as the news is often referred to as a ‘window to the world’ and influences the way we perceive the world and ‘control’ what we see as ‘natural’ and ‘obvious’. Many people use their televisions as their primary source of local and World News and is the most trusted source of news information. Audience trust has been gained by the application of journalistic objectivity norms. Therefore, regulation of television news content has an important implication for audiences. It is important for news channels to remain objective and impartial when reporting to avoid biased opinions. Many of the criticisms of objectivity and impartiality in journalism are generally underpinned by the assumption that objectivity and impartiality are always relative (Creeber, 2008). The dictionary defines impartial as not being biased and as unprejudiced. It defines objective as uninfluenced by emotional, surmise, or personal prejudice; based on observable phenomena; presented factually (sga.appstate.edu, n.d.). I think this is relevant when analysing this news package as we already understand that NBC News has a left leaning bend. The growth of live news reporting on location (featured within this package) gives the appearance of more objectivity as the audience can see events unfold. The use of live TV is a device often used by reporters to argue that their reporting is unbiased as it shows that something is actually happening or has happened and shows reports packed with facts and figures(which is present in this text). However, the events may be confusing, deceptive or told out of context, therefore, it is important to consider factors like this when engaging with media tests. (Creeber, 2008).
I have analysed the list of news values created by Galtung and Ruge to base my opinion on whether this story has significant news value. I think this news package has news value because the audience of NBC are mainly American citizens and the proximity to home for this story makes it significant. NBC is based in New York and the story covered is in Florida, which is only a couple of hours away, therefore this story has news value. This news also features negativity, there are at least 100 people confirmed dead which was caused by a large natural disaster. This is all of massive interest to the audience. There is also an aspect of currency present in this report as the scale of the disaster generate enough news value for broadcasters all over the world to report on this story therefore, this story is already deemed valuble in the public eye. The size of the disaster and the knock on effects also generates news value (mediaknowall.com, n.d.).
The live report used many of the expected codes and conventions of live news. The report started in the studio and is then introduced by the studio reporters before it cuts to the live reporter. The live reporter is framed in a mid-shot, at a location relevant to the story, doing a piece to camera which further introduces the story he is about to cover. As mentioned previously, he begins with facts and figures. The camera then zooms out and begins panning to the left as the presenter is walking and further discussing the damage caused to buildings by the hurricane. He is using his hands to punctuate what he is saying which is very conventional of the news (Brooker, 2010) . The report then cuts to a pre-recorded segment with the reporter doing a voice over. This includes interviews with search and rescue teams as well as b-roll of the teams searching, destroyed houses and streets, teams fixing the electricity. There is also the use of vox pops to get different opinions on situations. Although pre-recorded this is all coverage you would expect to see when covering this story. The report then cuts back to the reporter stood in the same place as he recites more facts and figures to the audience e.g., how there are “concerns from gas, to electricity, to school being used as shelter”. The reporter then allows the story to return to the studio. The type of language used is fairly simply and easy for many people to understand. All these aspects are conventional of live TV news.
The way they conducted this live interview is interesting. The interviewee begins stood on the beach in-front of all the rubble in the town affected by the storm, this immediately engages the audience as it shows the impact of the story which they are about to discuss and these types of stories do not happen often. The interview starts with facts and figures stating just how devastating the storm has been which accompanies the location. The live news presenter uses a very dramatic way of telling the story, using words like 'devastating' and 'rows and rows' to signify just how bad the damage is. The live presenter then has an interview with someone from a search and rescue team and asks "Where does this rank for you? Is this comparable to a Katrina?", this was asked to get the search and rescue team member to emphasis just how bad the storm was as the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina was very bad. I think this question is leading because I wonder whether the interviewee would have compared this to Katrina if it was suggested or prompted. They also spoke to a resident and asked directly about the governments role in this, as they asked directly the interviewee had no choice but to answer whether he thought the government was to blame for the lack of evacuations. The live segment ends back on the beach on a more positive note regarding the improvements to the electricity supply, however, the final part of the segment highlights the doubt the residents still have regarding schools. This was a clever way to end the interview as it will keep the audience interested in the story and possibly encourage them to tune back in to find out on any developments. I think the way the interviewer set up the interview definitely added to the story as the facts and figures he included made the story very dramatic and engaging for the audience.
I think this is similar to my groups work as we plan on using a ‘walkie talkie’ technique for the live segment of our news package to look around the Hi3 studio. Ideally we will try to avoid any bias however, I think there will always be some bias within news channels. In our case we are a channel for Maidstone TV Studios, we are promoting and supporting the studio. In one way they are our clients and bosses. or bias is not political but is favourable of the studios itself. The aim is to promote the studios in the best way possible which in-turn means leaving out some of the less favourable facts and figures as we need to support the studio.
References
About Comcast NBCUniversal. (n.d.). [online] Available at: https://www.cmcsa.com/static-files/be4b126e-155f-4660-a483-8ef6b1f3a7db.
AllSides (2012). NBC (Web News) Media Bias Rating. [online] AllSides. Available at: https://www.allsides.com/news-source/nbc-news-media-bias.
Brooker, C. (2010). Charlie Brooker’s How to Report the News - Newswipe - BBC Four. YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aHun58mz3vI.
Creeber, G. (2008). The television genre book. 2nd ed. London: Bfi.
Hasa (2021). What is the Difference Between Left Wing and Right Wing. [online] Pediaa.com. Available at: https://pediaa.com/what-is-the-difference-between-left-wing-and-right-wing/.
mediaknowall.com. (n.d.). GCSE Media Studies News Values. [online] Available at: http://mediaknowall.com/gcse/news/news.php?pageID=values#:~:text=In%201965%2C%20media%20researchers%20Galtung [Accessed 14 Oct. 2022].
NBC News (2022). Morning News NOW Full Broadcast - Oct. 4. [online] www.youtube.com. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hJ6JkXcBp3c [Accessed 14 Oct. 2022].
sga.appstate.edu. (n.d.). Objectivity and Impartiality. [online] Available at: https://sga.appstate.edu/pagesmith/550#:~:text=The%20dictionary%20defines%20impartial%20as.
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