Regulation Research

What is OFCOM?

The Office of communication or most commonly known as (OFCOM), is the government-approved regulatory and competition authority for the broadcasting, telecommunications and postal industries of the United Kingdom.

what do they do?

OFCOM's main legal duties are:

• To ensure that the UK has a wide range of electronic communication  including high-speed services like broadband.
• A wide range of high quality TV programmes and Radio stations are provided which would be appealing to different taste and interests.
• Television and radio services are supported by a wide range of different organisations.
• Audiences who watch Television or listen Radio are protected from offensive or harmful material.
• People are protected from being treated unfairly in Television and radio programmes and are protected from having there privacy invaded.
• A universal postal service is provided in the UK - This means that six days a week, universally priced delivery and collection service across the country.
• The radio spectrum - (The airwaves used by everyone from taxi fairs to boat owners to mobile-phone companies and broadcasters) is used in the most effective way.

What are the guidelines for media aimed at under 18s?

OFCOM has a statutory duty to ensure that under-eighteens are protected. This is one of fundamental aspects of the code and for OFCOM's regualation of standards in broadcasting.In most recetn months OFCOM has been informed that some cases involving material that was unsuitable to under eighteens or close too the limits of being acceptability before going by the watershed. OFCOM has now been considering carefully a number of issues relating to the compliance with the watershed.

How do the parent's feel?

Since OFCOM was set up in 2003, we have regulary undertaken some research among parents about the level of concerns related to the type of content that there children watch on television. We have also measured parents view about the time of the watershed and who's responsiblilty it is to protect children. This research has shown consistently that parents continue to understand and value the concept of the watershed on television to protecty the children. OFCOM considers this underlines and the continuing improtance of the watershed, especially taking into account of the growth in recent years of other means of accessing audiovisual material.

Guidelines for music videos

OFCOM acknowledges the importance attached to freedom of expression in the braodcasting enviornment. Music videos are an artistic and creative medium, which can and do sometimes contain challenging content which some may find offensive. However while music videos must have room for innovation and creativity, OFCOM has statutory duties with regard to all programmes including music videos (whatever the genre) to:

• ensure that under eighteens are protected and
• enforce generally accepted standards so as to provide adequate protection for members of the public from the inclusion of offensive and or harmful material

We are aware of the issues faced by broadcasters in this area. including the desire and commercial need to broadcast new music videos as soon as possible after there release and the challenge of managing the expectations of music labels and other stakeholders.However these pressures must always be secondary to the duty of broadcasters to observe the code.

Appropiate scheduling and context

OFCOM recognises that the majority of music channels are not aimed at children especially young children.

OFCOM notes that viewers make a distinction between channels which appeal to a wide range audience, including children and those aimed at smaller, niche audience such as specialist music channels whichi are unlikely to appeal to younger children.

One of OFCOM's rules is that it requires broadcasters to ensure that children are protected by the apporpriate scheduling from material that is unsuitable for them. Appropriate scheduling means taking into account relevant:

• The nature of the content
• The likely number and age range of children in the audience, taking into account school time weekends and holidays.
• The start and finish time of a programme
• The nature of the channel or station and particular programme
• The likely expectations of the audience for a particular channel or station at a particular time on a particular day.

OFCOM recognises that music videos in the urban and R&B genres in particular are well known for including mild sexual content and inuendo, and there will be a certian level of audience expectation for this type of content. However OFCOM considers what time content will be seen. So they would take into account to not play this type of content when children are most likely going to be watching it or also considering whether potential audiences (including adults) would expect to see such content.

OFCOM also takes into account whether the broadcaster has edited the material to make it suitable for a child audience (for example "suitable anytime" or "pre 9PM" )

Sexual images

OFCOM understands that music videos will rarely contain sexually explicit images. However the cumulative effect of certain images or combination of images can result in material of a sexualised nature in music videos which is unsuitable for child viewers and could cause offence.Intrusive or prolonged shots of body parts are likely to increase the overall sexual impact.
The code does not prohibit the broadcast of sexualosed images such as the protrayal of sexual behavior or images or partially clothed men and women. However any images of this nature which do get broadcasted before the watershed in music videos must be editorally justified and approximitely limited broadcasters should take care to avoid any explicit images of sexual behaviour or images that inappropriately convey a sexualised theme.

Clothing

OFCOM's approaches to the clothing featured in music videos will regard in particular to how sexualised the clothing is and how the images are presented. For example OFCOM has been asked whether a music video can contain images of a singers or dancer in underwear or a bikinis. OFCOM does not prohibit the broadcast of such images although we would consider as to whether the clothing is being portrayed in a sexual way.For example remember there is an obvious difference of context between images of a female singer shown in underwear whilst getting dressed or wearing a bikini on a beach and the singer is wearing similarly skimpy clothing whilst dancing provocatively or adopting a sexual move.
It is improtant to note that pre-watershed content OFCOM would not expect to see singers and dancers wearing clothing that does not adequatley covers there bodies.

Lyrics

OFCOM shows clear rules about offensive language broadcast before the watershed and in complying material of this nature we suggest broadcasters refer to OFCOM's 2010 research audience attitudes towards offensive language on television or radio. It is also relevent that sexual lyrics in music videos and such material should be appropiate lf scheduled. While OFCOM recognises that such genres such as R&B and Urban music are well known for including mild inuendos broadcasters should take into account the potential offence caused by the combination of particular sexual lyrics or images.

Dancing

Images of provocative or sexualised dancing should be appropriately limited before the watershed. With regards toeditorial justification. OFCOM will take into consideration things such as tradition or culture associated with particular dancing. However in these circumstances the editorial justification  should be sufficent to account for the images shown.
Broadcasters are reminded that intrusive and/or prolonged shots of body parts are likely to increase the overall sexual impact of a music video.

Violence and dangerous behaviour

As in all programmes broadcast before the watershed,any violence included in music videos pre watershed should be appropriately limited and justified by the context. Therefore any violent images included in videos should be carefully presented so that they are not explicit, gratutious and easily imitable.

conclusion

I think that by researching OFCOM it has helped me realise how many thing are regulated in the media and need to be sensored and i think that this has helped me understand as to what i need to include in my music video and has helped me know what is acceptable and what isnt acceptable in a video. It also helps me know what times of the day my video will be shown on public tv and what times it will gain most views within my target audience.

Audience research

Audience research - Social networking



I did audience research so that it would give me a better idea as to what my audience wanted in a music video. The way in which i did took out my research was through a social networking site called facebook i thought that this was a simple way of getting my answers. However i didnt get many responses, but there was enough for me to get a good idea as to what people in my target audience were looking for in a music video with the genre of romance.

What i asked :

The questions in which i asked were :

1. How old are you?

The reason as to why i asked question is so i get an idea of what different age groups are in to and what they look for in a music video and whether out music video will relate to them.

2. What do you look for in a music video?

why i asked this question was because i thought that this would give me an idea as to what different opinions people had about music video and whether they liked them more to do with the singer or if they like it story based.

3. Should there be music throughout the whole music video (e.g should there be acting or an intro)?

The reason as to why i asked this is so i know whether i should have more a love story for my music video and have acting or whether i should just concentrate on the song, or should i consider a bit of both.

4. What would you expect to watch from a music video which is showing a relationship break-up

?

why i asked this question is so i know what my audience are looking for in a the type of music video genre i am doing and to get a better idea on what i should base it on.

 

 

 

Audience research - surveymonkey

I also chose to carry out my Audience research on survey monkey because i thought that the social networking method didnt work too well as i didnt get too many results. I thought that survey monkey would benefit me into getting more results, The advantage of using it also is that it draws up graphs for results which was easier for me to present my results. Overall i think that this was a better method in to taking out my audience research successfully.

What i asked :

1. What would you hope not to see in a music video based on a break up?

choice of answers:

1. An unclear reason for the breakup

2. A use of two different character's playing on specific character

3. Any false or potentially fake expressions such as smiling whilst argueing, laughing when crying etc....

The reason as to why i asked this question was because so that i could know what my chosen target audience were more interested in and to know what i should consider including in my music video. It also meant i could know what this genre of music videos are expected of.

2. What is your gender?

choice of answers:

1. Female

2. Male

I think that it was essential to ask this question as i thought that it would help me out into getting know what type of gender the majority of my target audience would like to watch a romantic genre music video. It helped me to know what gender i should base it mostly around and how to catch that certain genders attention.

3. What is your age?

choice of answers:

1. 14 to 18

2.18 to 21

3. 21 to 30

4. 30 to 35

5. 35 to 40

6. 45 to 50

7. 75 or older

The reason as why i asked this question is so that i know which age group are more interested in the type of music video i am doing and what type of age group i should aim it too. It has also meant that i can accurately say that the majority of romantic music videos are more aimed for the younger generations.

4. what typed of things do you expect to see in a music video with the storyline of a relationship break-up?

choice of answers:

1. lots of emotion from the main characters

2. A clear lead up to the break up

3. The cause of breakup

4. The aftermath of the breakup

This question is helpful to me as it gives me a rough idea as to what my audience are looking for and expecting to see in my music video, This means that i can have more of an idea on what i am going to include in my music video to make it successful.

5. What types of things do you look for in a music video?

choice of answers:

1. A storyline

2. A certain atmosphere

3. A focus on the artist

4. A theme to run alongside the song

This has helped me to find out what people look for music videos in genral across all genres, it also tells me what aspects of a music video are crucial to include for it to be successful and popular

 

Conclusion
How i think my audience research has helped me with my media project is that there are a wide range of answers in which i have recieved with my responses to my questions. I think that it helps me out in knowing what a wide range of different gender and ages expect my musaic video to be like and what they expect that type of genre music video to have in it.

What my answers were on the social network?

first answer:

1. - 18 years old

2. a video that relates to the song

3. yes music all the way through i hate the talking bits at the beginning.

4. lots of crying and depression.

second answer :

1. 17 years old

2. something eye catching.

3. In some cases it works to have the intro to explain the song and storyline better but i do prefer it when it goes straight into the song.

4. lots of strong emotions like anger sadness confusion and despair.

Third answer:

1. 18 years old

2. The artists meaning of the song

3. if the message the artist makes needs to be more clear then yes

4. crying, trying to move on.

Fourth answer:

1. 26 years old

2. something different that really stands out and makes people talk

3. depends on the message the song is trying to give

4. rain, fire, photographs flashbacks over colours slow/fast movements.

My conclusion on the responses!

I think that this has gave me a good idea s to what i should be doing for my music video and what i should include as i can see from my answers is that the majority of my responses were in their teens apart from one. I have also noticed that what they all look for in a music video is ofr it to be eye catching and show some important connection to the artist and song and for the song too have a true meaning and for the basis of the video to be something really different and outstanding so it is really surprising for the audience which makes them want to watch the video more than once. I found out also that by having a story or acting involved with a music video really needs to be something that really relates to the song and almost has to be there if needed and not just put there for no reason as some of my responses said 'depends on the message the song/artist is trying to give' i thought this was really helpful as my first ideaof my music video was to involve acting at the start. However this has changed my decision as it isnt really nesseccary for my music video to include it.

There was an continuity on the answers for the last question as all of my responses said that what they think they would typically see in a romance genre music video is crying, depression, confusion, rain etc all things that darken the atmosphere of the song to give it some depth and meaning and soul to the lyrics of the song and more a meaningful video which has a connection to the artist. This is one of the main conventions in which we are mostly going to stick to in our music video.

Over all i think that the social networking audience research has helped me out alot, however it could have been more helpful with more responses to the questions. But it has gave me a better idea as to what my audience will be expecting in my music video

What my answers were on surveymonkey?



1.

what i found which was the most popular answer to what my audience would hope to see in a breakup video is any false or potentially fake expressions such as smiling whiclst argueing or laughing whilst crying etc... I thought that this was an obvious response to this question as in a professional music video you would not expect bad acting techniques you would expect the actors to be acting of a high standard. I have taken this on board as to what type of actors i should include in my music video.



2.

What i found was the most popular answer to this question was that there was more female responses as to what gender they were, this concludes that mostly females are most likely interested in music videos to do with romance and love. This has gave me a good idea as to what type of gender i should be aiming my music video towards as females are more likely to be more emotional about romance and love than males.
3.


For this question my most popular answer was that the majority of my responses were from the ages of 21-30. I am overall quite surprised at this as i would think that people of that age group would not have enough time to watch music videos as much as teens, however the age group which had came second was the 18-21 which is more understandable as people of that age group arent into doing many full time jobs as they are at uni or college so they have more time to watch tv and music videos whereas people who are in the late 20s who have more proirities.

4.


For this question my most popular answer to the question what types of things to expect to see in a music video which has a storyline of a breakup. My most popular answer was that they expected to see alot of emotions from the main characters, i think that this is an obvious response to as in a typical love story/ breakup music video you have scenes which include heartbreak and anger and sadness which all express the emotions of the characters in the music video which makes it more effective to the audience and makes them almost have a link with the music video and the artist feelings which then means that our audience are going to want to watch our video again. The second most popular response in which i got for this question was that they expected to the aftermath of a breakup, i think that this can sometime have to be essential in some break up music videos as it tells the story and journey in which a couple have been through and then it shows you what has happened after and the effects of what has created the break-up and how they react to it. I think that i will most definitely take note of these answers and make sure i include these aspects to my music video.

5.

What the most popular answer to this question what types of things do you expect in music video, was that there was two answers which had the same amount of responses which was that they expected there to be a storyline and a theme to run alongside the song. I thought that these answers would be most likely be the most popular as i think these are the most nesseccary aspects to a any music video, because when a artsit writed the lyrics to a song they are telling a story to there audience and wanting to portray whatever that story is through something visual so by having a storyline is the most crucial in creating a good professional music video and by having the storyline matching in with the song makes the video flow more and makes it more understanble and easy to watch, this then makes an audience want to the watch the video more as they will understand the storyline and what the artist is trying to say and will be able to relate to the artist more which will make the song sell more and be more popular.

Conclusion

Overall i think that the questions i asked for my audience research have gave me a lot of inspiration into what i should include in my blog and what my audience are looking for and who i should be aiming to please. I think that the most successful questionnaire was from surveymonkey as i had more responses and the answers got automatically drawn up into a graph.

Audience targeting

Audience Targeting!


Age group?

I think that my music video would most

likely be aimed at a younger generation from the ages of 14-20 year olds because they are the type of age group which watch music videos more on music channels such as MTV or 4MUSIC. It is also the style of music video which would appeal to that age group too.

  Gender? 

what gender i think that my music video would be more suited to it females because of the narrative love story behind it by a guy leaving his long term girlfriend and the girl then ends up feeling upset and regretting cheating on him. I also think that it focuses more on the girl side of the story than the mans so more females will be able to relate to the music video more than males would as they wouold understand as to how the singer feels and can relate to the lyrics more.






Interests?


What interests/hobbies my audience are going to be mostly interested in is television programmes for younger generations such as music channels and watch celebrity gossip programmes such as E!.I also think that the type of people who would listen/watch our music video would most likely like to party and are still young so they are more interested in the idea of love so this is another factor as to why the younger generations would prefer our music video.
                                                        











Example of a music video which our target audience would like!

Gabrielle Aplin - Panic Cord              

    The reason as to why i chose this video as a good example for what our target audience would be interested in is because it is well related to a good break up song with the typical girl and boy situation.    

                                           

conclusion

To conclude i think that the target audience in which i have researched into will be most likely be our type of audience the reasons for this is that i myself can relate to the target audience and know that i have the same kind of interests and can relate to the audience. How this has helped me with my music video is that i will be able to know what kind of things i need to include into my music video to make it more eye-catching to my target audience.