Evaluation

In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?


Our final media product most definitely keeps to the codes and conventions of a traditional local newspaper. We wanted to keep to the typical local newspaper layout as we thought that challenging the layout would be a bad decision, as from our audience research we discovered that the majority of the consumers prefer the layout of a traditional newspaper rather than challenging it and trying to change it.

However our masthead is positioned in the middle at the top of the page, this slightly challenges the codes and conventions as the majority of newspapers have placed their masthead in the top left hand side. Although ‘The Times’ have placed their masthead in the middle, so although we have not followed the majority of newspapers by the top left hand side, by ‘The Times’ also doing this layout this shows that we have kept to the codes and conventions but only to a certain extent. With the masthead we have used a constant colour scheme which is presented throughout our final products; which is mainly blue. The masthead is in a very simplistic and not in an overpowering font as from our research the masthead is a very simple element. We have used our logo of a dolphin, as it is easy to associate Poole with and felt that it was a very minimal yet effective item to include.

The skyline is a very important feature that is used throughout all newspapers, as this item presents the date and also the price. We felt that this feature was very important to include as this keeps to the codes and conventions of a newspaper, and we did not want to challenge our product too far as we did not want to overpower the layout and wanted to keep to traditions. The skyline is very simple which includes the colour scheme; blue and white. We have used these two colours as well as black, as the blue connotes a calming and relaxing atmosphere as well as being associated with the sea-side town of Poole. From our research and analysing our own local newspaper, the ‘Daily Echo’ we thought that the colour blue worked very well and incorporated this theme into our own product. The white and black acts as a barrier between each other and almost juxtaposes each other.. The white presents freshness and newness which connects with new and upcoming articles, as papers are always reporting the latest news, whereas the black shows authority and also formality as we wanted our newspaper to give out a professional and formal feel which we think we have achieved.

The banner is also a very constant feature that all types of newspapers have included, the majority of them have incorporated advisement and also other articles. We have used the school prom as the main theme for our banner as it brings a sense of community cohesion which we thought would entice the consumers into purchasing our product. The banner is also in keeping with the colour scheme as we wanted it to run throughout as colour schemes play a very fundamental role, as customers normally associate colours to certain brands, for example with supermarkets; green is associated with ASDA and blue with TESCO. This displays that colour schemes are very important. The banner helped us to keep with the codes and conventions as we did not challenge this aspect of our product, and instead kept to traditions.

Our whole article feature does not challenge the codes and conventions as the subheadings are keeping to traditions, with it being in lower case and black. Where as the main headline has been capitalised and we have also made it bold. The main headline is very short and brief with very limited amount of words as from our research the main headlines are more straight to the point whereas the sub headings give the readers a short sentence on what the article contains. We have used the typical layout and features of real media products as we have taken our research into consideration and have tried to keep with the codes and conventions as we wanted our products to come off as professional as possible.

The primary image that we have incorporated connects to the article, moreover we thought that the image links well with the word ‘end’ as the image is of the end of a line of a rail and though it connected and linked very well together. We have also used a caption as this was one of the main features that we noticed that are used, this feature briefly explains the image. We thought that by using one it would help make our product look more professional as that is our aim, and we think we have achieved.

Towards the bottom of the front cover we have involved advertisement, as from our research yet again local and national papers have included this. Advisement space is a key element for newspapers as they make capital this way which is fundamentally important to them as this is one of the main factors that they make capital from.

Overall our media product keeps to the traditions of newspapers, as we have not challenged them that far. The only item we have challenged to a certain extent would be the masthead, as it is not positioned on the left hand side on top. The headlines, primary image and also article keeps to the traditional layout of typical newspapers. We thought that if we challenged them too far then it would not look professional and aesthetically pleasing enough, which would not help us to achieve our aim. Our research played a very fundamental and important role when we constructed our final media products, as by doing in depth research we was able to gain a better understanding on what to construct and how. We learnt what to include on our products by the analysed existing media products and also the questionnaires, as this helped us to understand and to take in what the consumers expected. This led us to agreeing on designing a traditional layout, and therefore not to challenge the codes and conventions that far. 

At first we found it hard to find any newspaper jingle, and therefore difficult to analyse any existing newspaper jingles and with the few that we did find we analysed in as much detail as possible. We also analysed other jingles to see the main occurring features, by doing this we incorporated these into our own to try and make it as professional and effective as possible. With the codes and conventions of a radio jingle, we found it difficult to find any and consequently included as many features as possible, for instance, repetition, alliteration and music.

With the newspaper poster, we have most definitely kept to the codes and conventions, as although it is a very simplistic aspect, it did not need to challenge the conventions that far. We have tried to make it as enticing as possible, but as we are designing a local newspaper we had to keep to the main theme that run throughout. If we were in London then more crime would be involved within the news, as it is a more crime originated, but due to our low crime rate, we had to make something seem very realistic and believable, consequently leading us to a 'train rise' article, we have included a rhetorical question within or poster, to entice and interest the audience more. At the bottom of the poster, typically a boarder appears with either a competition  or another article. We have incorporated 'Thope Park' into ours, as we thought it would appeal to the younger audience and also the family. We kept it very basic and simplistic and therefore have kept to the codes and conventions.  



How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?


The combination of our main product and the ancillary texts is highly and successfully  effective, as each individual one is in keeping with the task. The final artefacts that we have created are most definitely effective, due to the audience feedback, as the majority of the final feedback that we received was very positive, therefore showing that our products are highly effective.

Both the front cover, single page, poster and radio advert are all highly effective and compliment each other, as all of them keep to a particular theme that runs throughout, this helps to create a familiarity approach.

 Both the front cover and the single page spread especially compliment each other as both of them follow the same theme. We have kept to certain codes and conventions, however we have gone against some for a more contemporary approach, which is what we wanted , as our aim was to reach out to the younger audience also. On the front cover we have included a range of themes, for instance, environmental, personal interest and advertisements. The personal interest article is the prom article as we wanted to portray  young adolescents into a positive light, as one of our main aim was to target this demographic group. We wanted to break away from the typical 'youth crime' and 'ASBO's' as we also have a low crime rate compared to other towns and cities, for instance London. We felt that it was unnecessary to put the young youth in a negative light and instead displayed them in a positive way, to create a sense of community cohesion and also proms are very successful and popular, so the readership would be higher, due to people wanting to look and even buy the pictures that the newspaper does.

The radio jingle itself is very effective, as we have taken many of the typical features and included it into our own one. By doing this we feel we have succeeded, as many of the jingles that we listened and analysed have very similar features, so if we have included similar features, therefore should be a successful and effective product. We have included repetition of the newspaper name, 'Daily Poole,' to assert our brand to the audiences, we have also included some of our articles that do feature on our main product, to display a 'teaser/taster' of what is included within our newspaper. We have constructed the articles that would appeal to a variety of audiences and some that may effect them, for example the train fare article, by including this within the jingle it may lead them into purchasing a hard copy to discover more information, therefore making it very effective.

The newspaper poster is very simplistic, which was the aim we was going for, as by our deep research and analysis we discovered that this was the norm and consequently lead as to our final outcome, which presents that our poster should be effective and sufficient.

Overall, all our final products and the ancillary texts all work together to achieve effectiveness and a professional approach. We have kept to many codes and conventions but have also broke some to make it more modern with a contemporary approach. Each of this products are effective, as it included our brand throughout, 'Daily Poole,' for a familiarity and safe approach. All of them have kept to the basic layout and outline, we have also incorporated the colour scheme throughout as much as possibly and also the masthead.  



What have you learned from your audience feedback?


The audience feedback was important to us, as it determined whether we were successful into designing our final artefacts. The audience have been a key fundamental element throughout this process, as at the beginning of this  we constructed two questionnaires asking for their opinions and expectation, which helped us into designing our final products.

First set of questionnaires before:


From the newspaper questionnaire on what the audiences likes and expects it clearly shows that the majority of them with 54% like keeping up with current news and events, this also led us to writing an article on slow construction fears, as we have presented it as an on going worry and fear, which could affect them due to the dangers that it may impose. The articles took some long contemplating over, at first we was going to do either murder or missing persons article, however by looking deeper into our research  and analysing of existing local papers, this is a rare occurrence. The research came in useful, after looking over the feedback from the audience and also other newspapers, we decided to keep to something simplistic and effective. The questionnaire feedback states that regular consumers like articles that may affect them, the train fare article then was constructed based on their feedback. Although it may not be a very ‘enticing or interesting’ article it keeps to the codes and conventions of a local newspaper. As our area has a low crime rate we did not think that it was suitable for a local newspaper, but instead a national paper. It was at first hard to keep to local paper traditions and not national/broadsheet. As although it may have a similar formal layout it has many similarities and differences, which we thought was hard to steer away from national. For example the language, font, type of articles, the tone and many other factors, we had to keep referring to our local newspaper research to make sure that we did not fall into the wrong category.

In conclusion the audience feedback was a huge influence to us, as we took everything in consideration and kept referring back to this. We all felt that if it wasn’t for the audience feedback then our media products would not be as effective and professional as they are now. The majority of the audience feedback read newspapers on a daily biases, so their feedback and comments helped immensely, we have learnt a lot from them which helped us to designing our final products. Overall we have learnt a great deal from them; what they liked and expected, whether we should challenging the codes and conventions or not and what features they liked and read the most. The end result of everything was down to the audience as their feedback was hugely helpful and learnt a lot from. Once we analysed the data it was visually easy for us to see the feedback and easier for us to take it on board. Some key elements that we have learnt are the features that they like, about the headlines being enticing or not, the amount of money they spend on newspapers and also what they expect from them.


Final feedback after:

When we finally finished our final artefact, it was important to us that it looked professional and realistic as a newspaper. We each asked ten people each as this would give us a wide range of answers from different demographic groups, as thirty was a good number to gain this information. For each artefact that we constructed and designed we asked five questions on each section, we had different methods when obtaining this information from the audience, from structured interviews to questionnaires. We each found a different method easier and quicker, however it still allowed us to gain the data that we wanted. We then presented the final feedback data onto pie charts as we thought it would be easier for us to see the final results and see clearly what the audience thought.

We wanted the audience to be as honest as possible, and explained it would give a true reflection as we did not want the results to be biased. From the audience feedback we have learnt that the majority of the participants liked and agreed that all our final products were professional looking, as shown in the pie charts below.  88% of the audience thought our front cover looked professional and when we asked on how we could have improved it they gave us great and in depth feedback which is also displayed in the pie chats. The majority of  the results reflected us in a positive light as we have received great feedback. From the final feedback on the front cover we have learnt on how we could have improved on it and also what they liked and disliked, the critical feedback was helpful for us as we had a range of different opinions.




Sample audience feedback on the front cover from:

Jay Phelps, 28 

Single page spread:
Luke Thompson, 16

Radio jingle:
Suzanne Woodhouse, 45

This Powerpoint shows our final audience feedback on or finished products:

  

 

 

How did you use media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?

Research:

The research was a highly important role and we all thought that we had to go in depth with this, as the research would play a fundamental role for us. The research has helped us to design our final products. The audience research questionnaires especially helped us gain an insight to what regular consumers expect and what they liked and disliked, which we took into consideration. We designed the questionnaires on Microsoft word and distributed them to a wide range of demographic groups as we wanted to gain a deeper understanding from range of people. We then collected all the data and presented it on an Excel sheet as it was easier to analyse and spot any trends that may have regularly occurred, this would lead us to finding out what was popular among the audiences. After presenting the data onto charts we analysed the feedback in depth as we wanted to gain a better understanding and also to help feed back the final results.

We used the internet to find some other interesting and useful items that we have incorporated into our research as the internet helped us out very much. We have even presented some of this helpful information onto a Prezi, which we thought would be more aesthetically pleasing and also easier to access, rather than having endless amount of texts. We had to design a template for the Prezi’s but all decided to go for something that was very simplistic and not over whelming, as the information was more important than the colour scheme.

To analyse existing newspapers we also used Microsoft Word again, as it is a very simple programme that allows us to decide the layout to present our material that we went into depth with. We wanted the image in the middle with arrows and texts boxes as although it may be simplistic it is very effective to display our findings of the newspapers. We also used this programme to present our information that we felt was necessary, for example Types of newspapers and the Timeline. We also screenshot some of the information, so it was easier to present but also to source, this may include Circulation and Disputation statistics and information  and also the Rupert Murdoch documentary. By screen shooting it, it saved us time but also made it easier to display.

Planning:

For analyzing the existing mastheads we had to upload a picture of the newspaper and paste it into Paint, as this programme allowed us to cut and copy the masthead, which is the only part that we wanted and not the whole newspaper. We found it was easier to analyse and also appeared more appealing than a whole newspaper. This also allowed us to upload onto a computer by already being JPEG, as the only way to upload all our items was to turn them into a JPEG which we was only able to do on a laptop as the computers did not allow us and did not have the updated technology to allow us to do this. By using Paint which automatically did this, this saved a lot of time for us and was quicker to upload.

Time management was a huge factor for us, so we documented this, to display this we took screenshots of some of our arrangements, which we uploaded. Other than Microsoft Word we used Microsoft Powerpoint, to show our feedback from other people on our key ideas. We wanted to use a range of technologies rather than present everything in the same way, so the majority of programmes that we used to display our data are Microsoft Word/PowerPoint, Prezi, Excel and also Paint.

We uploaded the photos by an iPod which we had to use a lead and also the camera, we used both a camera and iPod to take the pictures as we wanted to see what came out clearer, so used both to see and decide. To create our logo; Dolphin, we used Photoshop on a MacBook as the technology was much more advanced and better quality on what we was using. We used a wide range of brush tools as well as a variety of shapes to help design the outline. Colour fill was also used to put our main colour of our colour scheme onto the logo, the logo took a lot of time and effort  to complete as although it may be a small item, it was very time consuming to get everything ‘perfect’ to us. The MacBook technologies helped us to design and construct all of our final media products, as the technology was more advanced and accurate for us, especially when doing the jingle. 
For the logo designing we brainstormed on a few ideas and even designed a mind map on Paint. We designed some of these ideas on two different programmes, idea one was a simple sailing boat to represent the heritage of our local area; however we come to the conclusion that it was too simplistic and basic, as although we wanted those two elements it did not look professional enough. The next programme we next tried was Serif PagePlus, and while it was far more advanced that Paint, we did not feel that was professional enough yet again. Once again it was down to the MacBook’s programmes to design and construct something far more professional looking. At the end result of the finished Dolphin, we feel like that this was achieved. On each programme we learnt something different, although we did not incorporate any of these designs into our final media products it was still helpful to see how we have improved ourselves.

Final Product:

When it finally came to designing our final products, we mainly did it on an Apple MacBook as we found that the updated technology and programmes was most definitely effective and useful. 

We used Photoshop and Garageband  for the jingle. The software we used for Garageband  allowed us to edit, add and takeaway certain aspects, as we felt that this programme was certainty very helpful to create a professional end product. Although we did not have enough experience or time, we do not feel like we have 100% achieved a professional jingle to the full potential, as we did not have enough experience on this programme, however we do believe that we have achieved a jingle to the best of our ability.

 We also designed the front page, single page and newspaper poster on the same programme, as each of these are very similar and thought it would be easier and quicker on the same software. Photoshop is a well known and used programme for us, so it was easier and quicker for us to begin our products. Although at the beginning we did try and use Microsoft Word, but felt that it was not professional enough and wanted to develop our skills from AS to A2. Photoshop allowed us to edit the products much easier, as we could change the colours of items, move items around and also inset text boxes to our preference.

Overall, we have used a variety of technologies for certain aspects of our overall media products.The majority of the time we knew what programmes were best for us, although we did experiment for some to get a range of software programmes as we wanted to test our ability and see how our skills have developed form AS to A2. Consequently we used basic programmes for research and planning and for contracting our final products we used different and updated software's to make our products as professional as possible as that was our aim throughout.