EOI Unit 55

Trinity Centre, Albacete, Alicante, Valencia Tel: 967 52 07 76 1
Unit 55. The Mass Media in English
EOI UNIT 55
THE MASS MEDIA IN ENGLISH
PRESS RADIO AND TELEVISION
JOURNALISTIC LANGUAGE AND ADVERTISING LANGUAGE
1. INTRODUCTION
2. THE BRITISH NEWSPAPER INDUSTRY

2.1. The Formats of the British Press.
2.2. Broadsheets.
2.3. Tabloids.
2.4. The Sunday Press
2.5. Local and Regional Papers
2.6. Weekly and Periodical Press
2.7. Magazines
3. THE AMERICAN PRESS

3.1. The Pervasive Influence of the Press in the USA
3.2. The Freedom of the Press in the USA
3.3. The Economical Power of the Press in the USA
4. THE RADIO
4.1. The British Broadcasting Corporation
4.2. The Radio in America
5. TELEVISION
5.1. Television in Britain
5.2 Television in America
6. JOURNALISTIC LANGUAGE
6.1. Qualities of Journalistic Style
6.2. Differences in Style between Tabloids and Quality Newspapers
7. ADVERTISING LANGUAGE
7.1. Semiology
7.1.1. Semiology in Advertising
7.2. Verbal Language in Advertising
8. CONCLUSION
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® Registro Propiedad Intelectual. Autor Ian Miles: Número de Asiento Registral 00/2004/3122
1. INTRODUCTION
In this unit we are going to look at the mass media in English speaking
countries - notably Britain and America.
Our reasons for focusing only on these two countries are firstly that of time, and
also because television in Britain is considered to be of a high standard, whilst
America exports many programmes to other countries, thus helping exposure to
the language.
The term mass media is used to refer to the different types of public
communication. The mass media has two main overt functions;
Entertainment.
A source of information.
The British mass media is controlled by independent backers. This means that,
although sometimes the personal views of the owners can show through, there
is absolutely no state control whatsoever, thus the press has total freedom,
unlike in many other countries.
The freedom of the media in the States is protected by the First Amendment.
The press can, in theory, say what it likes. However, strong laws against libel
and obscenity do sometimes have a restricting effect. We will look at this in
greater detail later.
Let us begin by looking at the newspaper industry in Britain. The information

from this unit has been taken from a variety of sources, including: The Press by
John Aitkin and The Media Tradition by Helen Goodchild.
2 THE BRITISH NEWSPAPER INDUSTRY
In Britain, about 80% of all households have a newspaper delivered daily. These
newspapers are responsible for providing background information and details to
the major stories that are reported on the television or radio. It is a fact that
there are about 10 national dailies that dominate the market, - all of them
printed in London. In addition to these, there are local papers that come out in
the evening. Before we continue with this section we will point out the different
formats that exist. This is important because the style of the format will show
which way the newspaper will report the news.
2.1. The Formats of the British Press
There are two main styles, Tabloid and Broadsheet. The tabloids are the gutter
press in England (similar to the yellow press in Spain), whilst the broadsheets
are often referred to as the quality papers. The easiest way to distinguish is by
the size and the print. The tabloids are generally the same size as the majority
of papers in Spain, although the print can be bigger and the front page may be
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just a headline with little written underneath. The qualities have a much larger
size, twice as big as a tabloid. The tabloids are the ones that seem to focus on
the sensationalist news, whilst the quality papers tend to take things more
seriously.
The gutter press can be sub-divided. There are the newspapers at the bottom,
such as The Sun, The Mirror and The Star that aren’t taken seriously, although
they are the ones that sell the most copies, then there are papers that fall
between gutter and quality, such as The Mail or The Express. These seem to
have more news, and are less sensationalist, but they do tend to favour the
Conservative Party, and they often have stories about the Royal Family.
The quality papers are those such as The Times, The Independent, The
Telegraph, The Guardian and The Financial Times. The difference in quality and
in terms of content between these two styles of newspaper is huge. The quality
press has little interest in intruding in people’s lives and instead focuses its
interest more on news items.
Let us look at these two different formats in slightly greater detail, beginning
with the broadsheets.
2.2 Broadsheets or “Quality Papers”
They are known as broadsheets because of the size of the paper that they are
printed on. Broad refers to the width and sheet refers to the paper.
The quality papers tend to be a little less insular than the tabloids, although it is
true that coverage of international news could be extended. The writing style of
these papers assumes that its readership is intelligent, and in fact the letters by
professors, scientists and world leaders that appear on the letters’ pages do
seem to suggest that this is a correct assumption.
The papers have a sense of dignity about themselves, never allowing

themselves to degenerate into sensationalism. The standard of printing is
usually high, as is the cultural standard. There is an analytical and deep
approach to the reporting of the news, which, combined with a lack of hysteria,
gives the quality papers a tone that contrasts sharply with other papers.
The quality papers seem to have a series of functions. One of the most startling
is the fact that many of the gutter papers will consult that which is written in the
qualities before printing it themselves. This means that the word of the qualities
can often be trusted. (In Britain the papers can generally be believed, not
through any moral reasons, but because of strict laws that could result in the
paper being sued heavily if it is caught lying.)
In addition to this, the qualities act as a vehicle for political leaders, social
institutions and national associations when they wish to address the country.
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The quality press is said to be well-informed, expressing a serious opinion. As a

result of this, it is sometimes considered to be one of the main public voices of
the democratic government.
Typically, an edition of a British quality newspaper might consist of 40 pages, of

which 20 might deal with foreign and home news and opinion, 8 with business
and sports, and 12 with other features and advertisements.
Among these other features there will be film and theatre reviews, book
reviews, crosswords and television listings. Over the last few years, some of the
quality papers have started to run competitions in order to attract readers, most
famously was The Times’ attempt to run a bingo competition based on ideas
first tried in The Sun and The Mirror.
Let us now look at the qualities one by one.
The Times is clearly the most famous. It is seen as being the paper of the
establishment. It is discreet and elegant, and is still seen as the paper where
the society people announce births, marriages and deaths. Although it does
claim to be independent, it can be said to have a preference for the
Conservative Party. Recently it was brought by Rupert Murdoch, an Australian
who also owns BSkyB and The Sun. Many of its readers feel that there has
been a lowering of standards since Murdoch took over.
The Daily Telegraph is such a big supporter of the Conservatives that it is

known as The Daily Torygraph. Its circulation has dropped considerably in
recent years, as the popularity of the Tories fell. However, it sill manages to
have a greater circulation than The Times.
The Guardian used to be called The Manchester Guardian until it uprooted

itself and moved to London, removing the last provincial national daily.
Politically the newspaper is the most left wing of all the British dailies, gutter or
quality. It’s standard of reporting is said to be equal to The Times.
The Financial Times is one of the world’s most widely read business papers,
although this is still fairly small. The distinctive pink pages have been borrowed
by many papers for their own financial sections. The paper no longer just deals
in business interests, but is becoming more widespread in terms of content.
The Independent is one of the newest quality papers. It has a reputation for
being well written, with a completely unbiased style. However, in recent years it
has found it hard to compete with the more established newspapers such as
The Times.
These then are the main quality papers in Britain. We will now look at the
tabloids.
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2.3. The Tabloids or “Gutter Press”.
These papers tend to respond to that which they estimate their reader’s
interests to be. Like the quality papers, you can tell the political ideology of
someone according to their choice of gutter paper. These types of paper thrive
on sensational stories, sex and excitement.
If we were to think about the contents that characterised the gutter press, we
would have to think about firstly the style of language used. The language is
easy to understand, but there is a level of cleverness that is demonstrated by
the plays with words that are used to make the headlines. The next thing that
we should think about is the level of importance that is given to certain topics. It
is typical of the gutter press to give major news stories less prominence than
items about sex, scandal or the Royal Family.
The headlines tend to be enormous, often taking up the whole of the front page
with little or nothing actually being written about the subject. The content inside
the paper tends to be divided over 30 pages, with no apparently logical layout.
The gutter press occupies most space at the newsagents. Among the many that
can be found, we can mention the following:
The Sun. This is perhaps the most famous of all the tabloids. It is built on
scandal and nudity, and sells far more than any other paper. One of the most
famous items about The Sun is its page three girl, a topless female is on page
three every day, and many famous models or singers have been discovered
thanks to having their photo in The Sun. It’s politics are right-wing, although in a
recent survey, most of its readers didn’t realise this! The lower educated often
buy The Sun, but it also has a surprisingly high readership amongst university
students who buy it simply to laugh at the things it says. Its owner, Rupert
Murdoch, who we have mentioned earlier, also owns The Sun’s sister paper,
The News of the World, which only comes out on a Sunday and deals with
sex, scandal and crime.
The Mirror is an older paper than The Sun, and is constantly in a battle to win
more readers. The Mirror is left wing, and has traditionally followed the Labour
Party. During the 1940’s, The Mirror became the first paper to have cartoon
strips. It gave more space to pictures than to text, and reduced the length of its
sentences whilst widening its headlines.
The Daily Mail and The Daily Express were built up by tycoons in the early
part of the 20th century. Politically to the right, The Mail and The Express have
had a fight to survive. Nowadays they do not have a fraction of the popularity
that they had in the past. They seem to have a more serious content than most
of the tabloids, and indeed they were originally designed to appeal to a more
literate population.
The Sport borders on pornographic. It is famous for clever photos that try to
prove the most impossible of facts, such as London Bus Found on Moon
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complete with picture. Everyone knows that it is untrue, it is not supposed to be

taken seriously. The paper is for fun and naked women only, never for news.
In the sensationalist newspaper, it has to be pointed out that there is a closer

relationship between the editor and his journalistic staff. He has more of a say in
what goes in the paper, and the journalists also have no opportunity to argue. In
the quality papers, the editor may only have a brief say in the contents, but if
there is something that he doesn’t like, it is removed. This means that the
sensationalist papers tend to follow the attitudes and the opinions of the editor,
who usually follows instructions laid out by the owner. In the tabloids there tends
to be a wider range of styles.
Both the tabloids and the quality papers have editions that only come out on
Sundays.
2.4. The Sunday Press
This has become the favourite Sunday morning pastime for many of the British.
Reading the papers can take up the whole of the morning, and it is considered
an important way of relaxing.
Most of the Sunday Newspapers are connected to one of the dailies, and they
will either have the same name: The Mail On Sunday, The Express on
Sunday, The Sunday Times, The Sunday Telegraph, etc, or they will have a
totally different name, but still be connected to the major daily: The Observer
(The Guardian during the week), or The News Of The World (The Sun)
The Sunday paper can be huge, and editions of The Times or The
Independent are known for their excellence. There usually can be found
several papers within one: a section for news, another for sport, arts, travel, etc.
In addition to this, there is usually a magazine.
The Sunday versions of the dailies have different editors, different journalists
and different systems of working. It is a sign of the capital’s influence that few
local papers are published on a Sunday, and that all the national Sunday’s are
published in London. However, although the major newspapers are printed in
London, this does not mean that there aren’t any good quality local papers.
2.5. Local and Regional Papers
The local morning papers have suffered from the universal penetration of the
London based national press. Most of the locals are now published only in the
evening. The news focus of these papers is not just limited to the area where
they are published, it is also possible to find national news, mainly in case the
reader does not have a paper in the morning.
Normally they are delivered to the door around about 5 p.m. (This is the major
source of income for many children in England, doing a paper round after
school is a common way of supplementing pocket money.) They can either be
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for a particular city, e.g. The Manchester Evening News, The London
Evening Standard, or they can be aimed at a county region: The Yorkshire
Post.
Each of the cities in England has its own local paper, and many of the towns
and villages have their own version.
Another area that we have to look at is the field of weekly and periodical papers.
2.6. Weekly and Periodical Press.
These can take a wide range of forms and styles. Generally speaking, the level
of writing is high, and many of them are respected for their authoritative views
and expert comments.
Perhaps the most famous of all is The Economist, which was founded in 1841,
and probably has no equal anywhere. It is renowned for its accurate and in-
depth reporting.
The Times has three weekly supplements: The Literary Supplement which is
famous for its reviews of new books, The Times Educational Supplement is
where teachers look for new jobs, and is seen as an authoritative view on
education in Britain, and The Times Higher Education Supplement which is
useful for students at university, or for anyone who is interested in studying for a
doctorate, or a higher degree.
There are also a wide range of satirical, controversial or special interest

publications that can be found on a weekly basis.
Magazines can also be found to cater for all tastes and needs.
2.7. Magazines
Magazines are published on a myriad of subjects. Some of the most famous are
the ironical, satirical magazines such as Punch or Private Eye.
We can also find political commentary magazines such as The New

Statesman, which has left wing ideals, or The Spectator which is right wing.
The magazines can also follow the same styles of magazines that can be found
anywhere, with scandal magazines, such as Hello, the British version of Hola
proving to be popular.
Women’s magazines seem to be able to maintain their popularity, even though

they may have moved away from their standard themes of recipes and knitting
patterns. Now they mirror the growth of feminism, tackling subjects such as
abortion, nuclear disarmament, single parenthood and so on.
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Now that we have seen the British press, let us now look at what happens in
America.
3. THE AMERICAN PRESS
The mass media in the United States is characterised by three main features:
its pervasive influence, its freedom and its economical power.
It must also be remembered that there are few newspapers in America that can
be called national. This is because the country is simply too big to have one
style of paper that can cover all. This means that each town or city has its own
paper, the same as in England, but, with the exception of The New York Times
or The Washington Post, very few of them being found outside of their own
region.
This can mean that the American Press can be very insular, even more so than
the papers in England. Even in papers such as The New York Times, the
national section only deals with other countries if America is affected by events
there. However, we mentioned above that the press is characterised by three
main features. Let us now begin with the first of those, the pervasive influence.
3.1. The Pervasive Influence of the Press in the USA.
The press runs through the whole country in one way or another. We said
above that each region has its own press, without one main newspaper
dominating, but the style and the coverage hardly varies from one area of the
country to another, no matter what event is being reported.
The newspaper in America constitutes a main source of recreational activity,

with over 65% of the population receiving a daily paper. In the outlying areas of
the towns these are normally delivered. (The image of the newsboy cycling
past, carelessly throwing the paper onto the lawn is a common feature in many
American films.)
The next item to be looked at is the freedom of the press.
3.2. The Freedom of the Press in the USA.
The freedom of the press, whatever its views may be, is a characteristic of a
democratic society. In the United States, the First Amendment forbids any law
that curtails that which the papers can say. This is the same as in Britain, but
the Americans do have some limitations.
For example, there are the libel laws. America is known as a litigation society.
This means that if you do anything to harm or to upset anyone you are sued -
often for millions of dollars. There are pluses and minuses to this. On the down-
side the Americans are sometimes inhibited in their actions through fear of
being taken to court. As a plus, however, the standards of service, politeness
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and efficiency are excellent - they have to be - failure to please could result in a
law-suit.
The effect that this has on the press can be imagined. The British press will
criticise anybody, and although they do make mistakes and get sued
sometimes, they do not demonstrate the same restraint as in America - where
printing anything offensive about anyone could result in the paper being ordered
to pay enormous sums in compensation, and the editor being sacked by the
owner. This means that people are not hurt by libellous stories about them, but
it also means that the gossip pages are nowhere near as interesting or amusing
as in Britain. America also has strict laws about obscenity. That which is
tolerated in Britain is illegal in America.
Perhaps the best thing about the American system is that there are criminal
laws that protect the individuals right to privacy. In Britain the view is that if
someone has become rich through fame and money spent by the public on
buying his records, seeing his films, etc. - then he is public property. In America
the view is that once a film star has appeared in a film, that’s it. He has given
the public their money’s worth and the neither the press nor the public has any
further claim on him. This means that if the press try to harass him - as
happened with Princess Diana - the person can take legal action against the
newspaper. If Britain or France had had these laws in 1997, Diana may still be
alive today.
Finally we have to think about the economical power of the American Press, an
issue that determines the way that the press is both ran and controlled, as well
as the content of the newspapers.
3.3. The Economical Power of the Press in the USA.
Nowadays the major parts of the media are privately owned. The newspapers
can be both a political and an economic power, and for this reason there is a
sense of self-interest in the way that they are run.
Information is considered to be a product that is there to be sold. There is a

strong business-orientated notion of media content. This means that, as in the
case of any business, profit is given precedent over public service.
The papers tend to work together to offer a monopoly service over the business
reporting. This means that there is no competition in America for the best news
stories, as all the paper owners work together to ensure that they maintain a
monopoly. The effect is that the papers in America often lack the bite and the
competitive edge that can be found in the British papers.
4. THE RADIO
The invention of radio communication is generally accredited to an Italian,

Marconi. Marconi could find no backing in Italy, so he came to England. The
government realised the potential for his work, and so gave him all the support
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that he needed. The result was that in 1897 Marconi broadcast a signal from
Poole in Dorset to a house in Sandbanks, a distance of 9 miles. The first radio
signal had been sent.
The fact that only four years after that first broadcast, Marconi was able to send
messages across the Atlantic is a testament to the speed at which he worked.
Originally, the radio was used for military purposes and for shipping news.
However, it was not long before the potential for entertainment was noticed.
As the initial work was done in England, it is not surprising that England was the
first country to have an organised radio network. The need for a radio service
was perhaps sped up by the outbreak of the First World War in 1914, in the
same way that in 1935 the Spanish Civil War encouraged Spain’s radio network
to start.
The BBC was the world’s first radio broadcasting station, and it is still a name
that is respected and used as an example to be followed.
4.1. The British Broadcasting Corporation.
The BBC was founded in 1922. It was originally known as The British
Broadcasting Company, but five years later it was declared to be a public
service and given a Royal Charter. A national broadcasting monopoly came into
force, and the name company was replaced by corporation.
At this point the BBC was funded by the state. It was run by a board of
governors, whose job consisted not only of deciding on the programming, but
also on ensuring that political impartiality was maintained. The Board of
Governors is still the system that is used in order to run the corporation, and
impartiality is still their main objective, although they can at times lean towards
the left.
Originally, the programmes that were broadcast were a mixture of news,

comment, music and entertainment, but it was during the Second World War
that radio really took off as a popular medium. The nation craved news about
what was happening, and the BBC was there to provide it. The brilliance of
Churchill’s speeches roused the nation, and the radio became the perfect tool
for issuing propaganda. There was hardly a house that didn’t have a radio set,
and those that didn’t crowded round to neighbours’ to listen to the news.
The radio became an essential part of wartime life, and helped to unify the
nation.
Such was the popularity of the radio that various frequencies were set up after
the war, with names such as The Light Programme, or The World Service,
which is still in existence today, and can be picked up in virtually every country
on earth. The World Service is seen as the most objective radio station
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available, and people from all over the world tune in to find out the facts about
international issues, without fear of the programme being biased or prejudiced.
These programmes were the forerunners for the five national stations that can
be found today. These are:
Radio One: This broadcasts mainly pop and rock music during the day, as well
as light hearted comedy aimed at the under 30’s. The D.J’s are famed for their
quick wit and ability to talk. Later in the evening the channel changes and starts
to broadcast underground music, or music that has a minority interest.
Radio Two: Radio Two is mainly aimed at light music, including pop, jazz, folk,
country, etc. There are also some comedy and some chat programmes. The
main audience for this channel seems to be housewives, although there are
some excellent comedy and drama programmes broadcast at night which
appeal to a wider audience.
Radio Three: This channel is exclusively given over to classical music. There is
little conversation, unless it is about the music that is being played. The only
exception to this is the cricket commentary, especially if a match is being played
in Australia, when the live commentary goes through the night due to the time
difference.
Radio Four: This is seen as one of the main channels. The station broadcasts
news programmes, current affairs, documentaries, long running serials (The
Archers - a story of people in a farming town - is the world’s longest running
radio show). There are also a large amount of comedies, quizzes, chat shows
and so on. The station is highly acclaimed for the quality of its programmes, as
well as the diversity.
Radio Five: This channel is exclusively for sport and light music. It is Radio
Five that broadcasts all of the major sporting occasions on the radio, such as
football matches, rugby matches and so on, from all over the world.
In addition to these main national channels, the BBC also runs a series of local
stations which focus on local issues. All of the BBC stations are funded without
any help from advertising. There are no advertisements on the BBC.
An increase in interest in digital radio has also provided many new channels
catering to all tastes.
However, the BBC could not maintain its monopoly forever. In the sixties there
was a demand for other channels. Pirate Stations began. These were illegal
radio stations that operated without a license and were hugely popular. The
most famous of these has now passed into radio history. Radio Caroline was
based on a ship moored off the coast of Britain, although it moved whenever the
authorities came too close. It famously sank during the early seventies.
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However, the authorities could not ignore the demand for other channels, and
so licenses were given to independent channels. There are now hundreds
throughout the country, of varying levels of quality. Some of the best are Classic
Gold which plays music from the past, and Virgin F.M., run by Richard Branson,
of Virgin Music, Virgin Airlines, etc., which is capturing a lot of listeners from
Radio One.
4.2. The Radio In America.
In the States, the radio is spread over many different regions, without there
being a single station that covers the whole of the country. This means that the
music will have a tendency to be focused on local issues.
There are far more radio stations in America than there are in Britain. The range
of tastes that are catered for is overwhelming - in fact, if you have an interest,
there’s probably a radio station somewhere to dedicated to it.
The further south you go, the more religious the stations become, the Christian
and Gospel channels of the deep south are famous, whilst in New Orleans you
will find Jazz, Mississippi the Blues, and in Memphis it is hard to find anything
that isn’t Elvis Presley.
The American radio stations will tend to have a private owner, the same as the
newspapers in Britain, This means that they can be sometime self-centred,
focusing on the interests of the station owner, especially politically or business-
wise.
In America, as in Britain, the radio is generally free from governmental control,

and equal time must be given to all political parties when there is an election.
The libel laws in the United States are so strict as to prevent the radio stations
from being too critical of anything or anyone, but generally speaking, the
standard is high, especially in the larger areas such as New York or San
Francisco.
We mentioned before that in Britain, the BBC had a monopoly in the radio until
the 1960’s. This cannot be said of television, where their monopoly lasted for a
much shorter time.
In 1954 permission was granted to the Independent Television Authority to start

the first commercial channel, ITV. This channel is run by private individuals and
is funded by advertising.
With this in mind, we will now look at television.
5. TELEVISION
We will begin this section by looking at television in Britain.
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5.1. Television in Britain
In Britain today there are five terrestrial channels, and an infinite number of
satellite and cable channels. The five main terrestrial channels are:
BBC1: The world’s oldest T.V. station is still maintaining a high standard of
programming and impartiality. There are no adverts on the BBC, instead the
public pays for it by means of a T.V license, which is about 100 pounds a year.
Most people do not object to buying the license (which has to be brought if you
have a T.V, whether or not you actually watch the BBC is irrelevant) as the
population feels that it has control over the television station. However, the
system is difficult to implement, and there are talks of finding another system,
although the majority of the viewers would be horrified to find adverts on BBC.
BBC2: Set up in 1968, BBC2 is an alternative station, mainly dedicated to the

arts and international affairs. Its viewing figures are lower than BBC 1, but it still
manages to capture several million viewers for its best programmes, such as
documentaries, or wildlife programmes.
ITV. This should be known by a different name. In the early 90’s the
independent companies were put up for sale, with companies bidding, like in an
auction, to buy them. Now there are many different independent stations, all
following a similar pattern, but based in local areas, so, for example, in the north
you can find Granada T.V., in the Midlands you can find Carlton and in the
south there is Meridian. They all broadcast the same programmes at the same
time, but there is an addition of local news and the occasional local programme.
These are paid for by advertising. Perhaps the most famous programme on ITV
is Coronation Street, which is the world’s longest running T.V show. It started
almost 40 years ago, as the first soap opera. It is still on four times a week, and
is the most watched programme on T.V.
Channel Four: Set up in 1984 as an alternative to ITV, Channel Four has

steadily gained in independence and quality. It focuses on minority issues and
alternative programmes. It challenges the establishment and gives time to
issues that are normally ignored.
Channel Five is the newest channel in Britain. It opened in 1997, and has still
to prove itself. It tries to be similar to Channel Four in the irreverence of its
programmes. At the moment it has few viewers, but then so did Channel Four
when it started.
In addition to these there are also satellite programmes, such as Sky, known as
BskyB after it merged with another company. However, everyone still calls it
Sky. Sky is responsible for programmes such as MTV and so on. It is owned by
Rupert Murdoch, the same man who owns The Sun and The Times
newspapers. There are some arguments in England at the moment, as Sky has
the monopoly on all sporting events, if you don’t subscribe you don’t see it. Sky
introduced the pay-per-view system that is being seen in Spain too. This means
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that even though you are paying for the service, if there is a big sporting
occasion, such as a world championship boxing match, you have to pay extra.
Now there are nearly 25 satellite channels, most of them connected to Sky,
broadcasting programmes in English all over Europe.
Over the last few years we have seen a rise in digital TV, which gives the viewer
the choice of a multitude of channels, including BBC 3 and ITV 2, channels
connected to the main broadcasters, but only available to subscribers.
5.2. Television in America.
In the States, the most famous T.V stations are NBC (National Broadcasting
Company) and ABC (American Broadcasting Company). The system is different
to in Europe. In America the stations are networked. This means that there is a
collection of stations all tied to the same programming source, normally a
corporate concern that has the rights to the channel. The stations are controlled
by advertising, with a primetime (when most viewers are watching) advertising
slot costing thousands and thousands of dollars. This means that the ratings are
vital.
The ratings are the amount of viewers that a programme gets. The higher the
viewing figures, the more the advertisers will pay, the lower the figures, the less.
This means that programmes with low viewing figures are dropped.
There are two ways of looking at this. On the one hand we can say that this
maintains the quality, but on the other, some argue that minority programmes
are neglected as they don’t attract enough of an audience. Television is geared
to the masses, and there can sometimes seem to be a lack of finesse to
American T.V. However, there are some programmes that the Americans can do
better than anyone. Sitcoms (Situation Comedies) are perhaps the biggest
success story from the States. International successes have included Cheers,
Seinfield and Frasier.
One of the most curious forms of television in the States is Christian

Television. This has seen the foundation of a new form of preacher, who
performs miracles on live television, whilst across the bottom of the screen is
constantly shown a number which you can dial in order to make your donations
which will guarantee your place in heaven.
These T.V Evangelists have - surprisingly, considering how many times they are
caught doing something immoral - become exceedingly rich and famous in
America, and perhaps they now make the most enduring image of American
T.V.
Now let us move on to look at the way that language is conducted in the press,
and see how it has been adapted from the normal language that we can find in
the street.
14
6 JOURNALISTIC LANGUAGE
A word becoming popular in Britain at the moment is journalese, referring to the

way that journalists use language in a peculiar way. This is a new word for an
old concept. For many years we have known that they way of using language in
a newspaper is different than for anywhere else. Any foreigner looking at
journalese would find it extremely difficult to understand. This is because the
headlines are written in a shorthand style: KENNEDY BOY PLANE DEATH, or
they rely on puns or commonly known words.
This form is most common in tabloids, but the quality newspapers are not above
making jokes with their headlines.
Let us begin this section by looking at some of the qualities of journalistic style.
6.1. Qualities of Journalistic Style.
The main qualities that journalese should have are similar to the maxims of
Grice. The language should have a clarity that makes it easy to understand, it
should be concise so that it does not go on unnecessarily and finally it should
be attractive enough for people to want to continue reading. This may sound
obvious, and we could argue that these rules should apply to all styles of
writing, but the truth is that when people read an article, if it doesn’t interest
them immediately they will instantly move onto the next section.
Therefore, one of the most important things for a journalist to do is to hold the
attention of the reader. Articles of an informative nature have a peculiar
structure which is used to hold the reader’s attention from the beginning to the
end. It must also be remembered that many of the writers in one newspaper
have different styles, so the reader is being taken from one way of expression to
another.
Let us now think about the different ways of writing that can be found quality
and the gutter press.
6.2. Differences in Style Between Quality and Tabloid Papers.
We mentioned above that the quality papers will be quite happy to make jokes
and puns in the headlines. However, the overall style is, as one may guess,
completely different. Look at the following two headlines:
BRAVE BARMAID BEATEN BACK BY BLAZE
BARMAID UNABLE TO FIGHT FIRE
Both of these headlines have been taken from national dailies, The Sun and
The Independent respectively. Here we can see that there are two different
styles of writing. The quality papers would not use the same form as the gutter
press, and sensationalism is avoided.
15
Some of the current buzz words in English (words that are fashionable and can
be seen or heard everywhere) have come about as a result of journalese. A
glossary of some of these terms from the tabloid press may include the
following:
Road Rage: Violent acts committed after minor traffic accidents.
Have-a-go Granny: A pensioner that has tried to fight back when being the
victim of a crime.
These terms have now passed into the English language, along with many
others, as a result of the use of them in the tabloids, thus demonstrating the
power that these newspapers can have over the language.
Finally, we will look at one of the most interesting areas of advertising, the use
of language.
7. LANGUAGE IN ADVERTISING
Advertising is a form of communication, and to understand it properly we have

to understand the language that is being used. However, language is not only
verbal, non-verbal images are also important. Before going on to looking at the
language, we will look at the images that advertisers exploit in order to make
their point. This field of study makes use of the way that we recognise signs,
and is known as semiology or semiotics (the two terms meaning the same).
7.1. Semiology
We will begin this study by looking the three categories of signs that go to make
up non-verbal communication: icons, indicators and symbols.
Icons are visual signs that take the form of a direct representation of the
signified. For example, we can think of the cigarette on a “No Smoking” sign.
The interpretation on the part of the receiver is a simple matter of visual
recognition and application to the situation in which the sign is seen.
Indicators are signs where the relationship between the visual representation
and the signified is less direct, being based on association. For example, on a
weather map we may see a thermometer being used to signify high
temperatures, or a ring worn on the third finger, which signifies that the wearer
is married.
Symbols are signs whose visual aspect bears no relation whatsoever to the
object or concept that they signify. As an example we can think of a red traffic
light meaning stop or even of a series of letters that are put together to make
words. This last is known as the study of language, or linguistics.
16
Now that we have seen what semiology is about, we will apply it to

advertisements.
7.1.1. Semiology in Advertising.
As many advertisers know, quality of the advert is much more important than
the quantity. Some companies will do comparatively few adverts, but they will
be unforgettable. The result is that the television advert has become an art
form.
The images that are used may be humorous, spectacular, amibiguous or

intriguing. The advert may feature a famous person, music, or there may be a
spoken catchphrase.
Certain adverts are made in America and exported around the world, for
example, the adverts for Pepsi, Coke, Levi’s and Kellogg’s are universal.
It also helps to be able to recognise some of the tricks that are used in the
adverts. For example, look at any advert for watches. The hands are always at
ten-to-two because this is thought of as being pleasing to the eye. If there is a
glass of wine on a table, there will always be two bubbles on the surface, and
any adverts for dandruff shampoo will always have the actor or actress in black,
to show that the dandruff cannot be seen.
There are many other subtle tricks that the advertisers will play in the hope of
fooling us. Sometimes though, the brand is so well known that a trick isn’t
needed. Often they even omit the name of the product, using an image that is
so well known that we automatically associate it with the product. For example,
the cigarette manufacturers, Benson and Hedges play with the colour gold, this
being their brand colour. No-one in England needs telling what is being
advertised, even though the brand name is never shown.
Sex is being used again after Britain went through a long period of political
correctness in this issue. Five years ago, using a beautiful woman to sell a car
would have been unthinkable, and would have brought a storm of protests from
feminists. Nowadays, it is once again OK, as long as half naked men are used
to sell female products. Interestingly, Britain has also reacted against the use of
only young and beautiful women and men. A recent advert for Wonderbra has
the image of a woman in her 50’s, showing that age and beauty can go
together, while another company has become famous for using only real women
in their adverts, not heavily made up models.
However, the public are becoming tired of clever advertising, and are no longer
fooled by subliminal messages and semiology. Many advertisers are going back
to basics and are simply telling the public what their product does.
It is also worth noting that in Britain and America, racial prejudices or stereo
types are not tolerated. Adverts seen on T.V. are controlled by the Advertising
17
Standards Committee, an independent body that makes sure that advertisers

are honest about their claims.
Now let us look at some of the ways that language is used by the advertisers.
7.2. Verbal Language in Advertising
Language in advertising has developed to a high standard, although music and

lyrics have remained the most important element. There are certain language
devices that are used in order to make the message.
Parallelism is one of the most common, with two ideas running alongside each
other to give the desired impression, for example:
Strong enough to take your breath away.
This is an advert for a mouthwash. The phrase take your breath away is used
when something is spectacular, and we have the connection with a mouthwash.
Metaphors are also common:
Why have cotton when you can have silk?
This is used to advertise chocolate, with the product’s smooth taste being
highlighted.
Personification gives human qualities to inanimate objects, such as the

following slogan for a car:
Loves driving, hates garages.
Alliteration can be used to make the slogan more memorable:
You’ll never put a better bit of butter on your knife.
Nowadays, we find that as the barriers open, the adverts that appear in one
European country appear in the same form in all of the member states. This is
true with adverts that cross the sea from America. For this reason, there are
many adverts in English on Spanish television, for example:
Don’t imitate, innovate.
The advertisers take great care to make sure that the language they use in the
adverts is the language that is likely to be used by the target consumer. For
example, the language in an advert for a man’s fragrance that is aimed at a
youthful market would not be the same as the language that is used selling a
family car. The language in the first would be much more likely to contain words
that are currently popular and idiomatic than those used in the second.
18
7. CONCLUSION
In this unit we have seen how the British and American television and radio
companies operate. Neither of them, with the exception of the BBC, could
survive without the power of advertising. As competition between companies
increases, the need to advertise in a way that the public approves of has grown.
This has meant that the adverts have undergone many changes of style and
form, and have developed into a new way of artistic expression. In fact, many
people feel that the adverts are better than the programmes.
19
Unit 55. Mass Media II

Themes Notes
The mass media has two main functions, entertainment, information. There is no state control
over British media. Two types of papers, Broadsheets and Tabloids. In the USA it is pervasive, free
and has economic power. About 80% of all houses have papers delivered daily. 10 dailies dominate
the market, all of them printed in London. Two main types, Tabloid and Broadsheet. They are
known thus because of their size. Broadsheets are less insular than tabloids. They never
degenerate into sensationalism. Many tabloids consult them for news. The quality press are
considered to be well informed. The Times is the most famous. Gutter Press: respond to what they
estimate the reader’s interests to be. The language is easy to understand, but there are clever
plays on words. Headlines are bigger than the stories. The Sun is the most famous. There is a
closer relationship between the editor and his staff on the tabloids. He has more of a say in what
goes into the papers. The Sunday Press are usually connected to one of the dailies. Normally there
are several papers within one.The Sunday versions of the dailies have different editors and
different systems of publishing. No local papers are published on a Sunday. Most of the locals are
now published only in the evening during the week. Normally they are delivered to the door at
about 5pm. They can be for a city or a county region. The weeklies and the periodicals generally
have a high standard. Magazines can be found to cater for all tastes. These can be published on a
myriad of subjects. Some of the most famous are the ironical or satirical magazines. Women’s
magazines mirror the growth of feminism. In America there are no real nationals. The papers can
be very insular, showing no real interest in what is happening in the outside world, unless
Americans are involved. There is a pervasive influence of the press, with the papers being one of
the main sources of recreational activity. The press also has a large amount of freedom, although
the strong libel and obscenity laws can be restrictive. There are criminal laws that respect the
individual’s right to privacy. The major parts of the media are privately owned. The papers can be a
political and economic power, so there is a sense of self-interest in the way they are run. Profit is
given precedent over public service. They have a monopoly. The Radio was invented by Marconi.
First broadcast in England. BBC founded in 1922. Became popular during the war. Five stations:
One: for pop music, Two, light music, Three, Classical, Four, selection, Five: Sport. Also there are a
series of local stations. There are no advertisements on the BBC. Pirate stations began in the 60’s,
BBC lost its monopoly. Independent channels started. In US radio is spread over different regions.
Religious stations are popular in the south, Jazz and blues according to the state. Stations will have
a private owner. Free from governmental control. Television: In Britain there are five terrestrial
channels: BBC 1 is paid for by a license that everyone has to buy. BBC2 is an alternative station
catering for minority tastes. Famous for documentaries. ITV is divided up into individual companies
according to the region. Coronation Street is the world’s longest running show. Channel 4:
alternative to ITV. Minority and alternative programmes. Challenges the establishment. Started
Theme Nights. Channel 5: Newest channel, struggling to capture a share of the audience. Also
there are satellite channels: e.g. Sky. Broadcasts all over Europe, helping to spread the English
language. In USA The most famous channels are NBC, ABC. Stations are networked, one source
owns a collection of stations, all paid for by advertising. This means that a programme has to
attract the viewers if it is to be broadcast. US makes famous sitcoms that are sold all over the
world. Christian television one of the most curious forms. Preachers get very rich through
donations. Journalistic Style: Headlines are written in a form of shorthand, or they rely on puns. The
language that is used should be true brief, relevant and clear. The attention of the reader must be
held. The quality papers would not use the same form of writing as the tabloids. Racist comments
and stereotypes are avoided. There are always words that become popular with everyone because
of their use in the press. Semiology: Icons: Visual signs that take the form of a direct
representation. Indicators show a less direct relationship, Symbols have no relation to the object or
concept that they signify. Images in ads may be humorous, spectacular, ambiguous or intriguing.
Tricks are used, such as placing the hands of a watch at ten to two. Sex is now being used after a
period of political correctness. Adverts are going back to basics as the public are tired of clever
images.
Language has developed: Parallelism, Metaphors, Personification and alliteration are all used to
make the ad memorable. Ads can appear in the same form all over Europe - often in English.
20
Now test your understanding of unit 55 by answering the following

questions:
1. Give a description of the types of newspapers in Britain and explain the

difference between gutter and tabloid.
2. What are the main channels on British TV?
3 How do American radio stations operate?
4. What does network mean in American TV?
5. What is meant by the term Journalese?
6. Give examples of semiotics
7. Name some of the tricks used by advertisers and the effects they have on
the public
21

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Unit 55. The Mass Media in English

2. THE BRITISH NEWSPAPER INDUSTRY

3. THE AMERICAN PRESS

Let us begin by looking at the newspaper industry in Britain. The information

2 THE BRITISH NEWSPAPER INDUSTRY

2.1. The Formats of the British Press

2.2 Broadsheets or “Quality Papers”

The papers have a sense of dignity about themselves, never allowing

The quality press is said to be well-informed, expressing a serious opinion. As a

Typically, an edition of a British quality newspaper might consist of 40 pages, of

Let us now look at the qualities one by one.

The Daily Telegraph is such a big supporter of the Conservatives that it is

The Guardian used to be called The Manchester Guardian until it uprooted

2.3. The Tabloids or “Gutter Press”.

complete with picture. Everyone knows that it is untrue, it is not supposed to be

In the sensationalist newspaper, it has to be pointed out that there is a closer

2.4. The Sunday Press

2.5. Local and Regional Papers

2.6. Weekly and Periodical Press.

There are also a wide range of satirical, controversial or special interest

We can also find political commentary magazines such as The New

Women’s magazines seem to be able to maintain their popularity, even though

3. THE AMERICAN PRESS

3.1. The Pervasive Influence of the Press in the USA.

The newspaper in America constitutes a main source of recreational activity,

The next item to be looked at is the freedom of the press.

3.2. The Freedom of the Press in the USA.

3.3. The Economical Power of the Press in the USA.

Information is considered to be a product that is there to be sold. There is a

The invention of radio communication is generally accredited to an Italian,

4.1. The British Broadcasting Corporation.

Originally, the programmes that were broadcast were a mixture of news,

4.2. The Radio In America.

In America, as in Britain, the radio is generally free from governmental control,

In 1954 permission was granted to the Independent Television Authority to start

With this in mind, we will now look at television.

We will begin this section by looking at television in Britain.

5.1. Television in Britain

BBC2: Set up in 1968, BBC2 is an alternative station, mainly dedicated to the

Channel Four: Set up in 1984 as an alternative to ITV, Channel Four has

5.2. Television in America.

One of the most curious forms of television in the States is Christian

A word becoming popular in Britain at the moment is journalese, referring to the

6.1. Qualities of Journalistic Style.

6.2. Differences in Style Between Quality and Tabloid Papers.

BRAVE BARMAID BEATEN BACK BY BLAZE

BARMAID UNABLE TO FIGHT FIRE

Road Rage: Violent acts committed after minor traffic accidents.

Advertising is a form of communication, and to understand it properly we have

Now that we have seen what semiology is about, we will apply it to

7.1.1. Semiology in Advertising.

The images that are used may be humorous, spectacular, amibiguous or

Standards Committee, an independent body that makes sure that advertisers

7.2. Verbal Language in Advertising

Language in advertising has developed to a high standard, although music and

Strong enough to take your breath away.

Metaphors are also common:

Why have cotton when you can have silk?

Personification gives human qualities to inanimate objects, such as the

Loves driving, hates garages.

Alliteration can be used to make the slogan more memorable:

You’ll never put a better bit of butter on your knife.