News Programme Example (BBC 21st Century)

Connotations Of The Title Sequence

As you can see from looking at the start of this video of the BBC World News, the title sequence involves a lot of features that connote different things. One feature could be the montage of news stories. Now this part of the sequence ties well with other features of the starting sequence. For example the timer in the right hand corner, is linked to the montage of stories. It connotes that these stories (that are also from different parts of the world) may be shown in that particular news programme. 

Also the timer is linked to the music. The music has a 'heartbeat' like sound to it which gives the starting sequence a build-up feel, which can entice or excite the audience. Also with the footage of stories attached to the music, it also draws in the audience to the TV screen.

Another feature is the rush of red 'graphics' that fly from different parts of the world and different landmarks and end up at the BBC Radio Center. This connotes that news stories are collected from all around the world and are sent like the 'speed of light' to the BBC Radio Center, to be presented to the audience. Another feature that links with this is that some of the countries that the graphics run through, are at different times of the day. This connotes that the News is being shown to different parts of the world at different time zones.

Another feature that occurs in this starting sequence is the fact the audience can see behind the camera. For example in the montage of stories, the audience sees the story being filmed. This shows some authenticity in the programme as nothing is shown to be tampered with. This shows that the programme isn't impartial.

Phallic Symbols are also shown in the starting sequence. This is done to show dominance of the programme. In the past it was shown to promote dominance of men but this has changed over the past few years. This picture on the left is an example of a Phallic Symbol.

The last thing I could possibly talk about in this starting sequence is the end of the sequence. As you can see from the picture on the right, there is some CGI of a transparent globe and some rushing graphics. The audience also sees the BBC NEWS logo to show what the programme is. This part of the sequence connotes that the world news is like looking through a window as all can be seen and that the stories haven't changed in any way.

Connotations Of The News Reader

This part of the blog will be on the News Reader its self, focusing on how they act, how they talk, what they say etc. Other elements of the News Reader will also be discussed in this part of the post. At the start of the programme, after the starting sequence, the news reader gives a short summary of what will be in the news and then introduces herself and the programme.

She uses a form of Standard English (which is dialect), and also uses received pronunciation. This is done so that one, the person talking can be heard clearly, and two, that the reader does not connote much of their region. This is seen as being 'Neutral'. She also uses no facial expressions when she is presenting a story. This shows that the reader is not showing any kind of personal opinion or comment.

Another feature that can be noticed in this news programme, is the fact she is already sitting in her chair after the summary of stories have ended. This connotes that she is ready to give the stories straight away to the audience, which shows urgency. Also if they are sitting on a big desk, like this women is, it shows a form importance.

Also another important thing to point out is the fact that this is a female news reader. This is because male news readers are normally shown to be wise and are normally quite old. Whereas women show more of a physical attraction. Also the way they dress could tie with the gender. As you can see from the picture, the women is dressed very formally to connote that she is serious and that she wants to give the audience serious news.

Towards the end of the programme the women seems to crack a small smile, which connotes a friendly farewell to the programme. She does this by announcing her name again, and announcing what programme the audience is watching. This adds to the formal character of the news reader, as she is essentially talking to the audience (just like a normal, formal conversation). The programme then ends with the same rushing graphics and the same 'heart beating' music.

Mise-En-Scene

When talking about the Mise-En-Scene, it can vary from different news programmes, as some can be serious, and some can be less formal and a bit more friendly. However, in this case, this BBC news programme, seems to be closer the formal theme. This is shown by the laptop on the clear, lit up, white desk. This connotes she may have formal work on that laptop. The screen behind with simple text also adds to the formal theme.