Introduction to LO1 Unit 6

Why do media producers need to know their audience?

It is important for media producers to know their audience because they need to know what their
target audience is into so that what they are producing is being shown and watched by the right type
of audience or group of people. That way they would make more money and have better TV ratings,
more viewers or listening and more people buying their product.
Give examples of 2 media theories that explain how audiences respond to media products?
Hypodermic Needle- this is when the media its self is hypothetically injecting you with information,
which as such brain washes you into either watching the media program or persuading you to buy a
certain product. This idea works best on a passive audience. The media company will supply you
with so much information that you have no other choice but to listen to it and abide to it.
Uses & gratification- Uses and gratification focuses on asking what people do with media rather
than what media does to people. Audience watch media to satisfy their physiological needs, they
make a judgement immediately.

Which organisations supply audience information? Discuss which ones are the most use?

BARB (Broadcast Audience Research Board) this organisation provide whats new, whats next,
whats trending, resources and whats most popular.
RJAR (Radio Joint Audience Research) This organisation measure radio audiences in the UK. It is
jointly owned by the BBC and the RadioCentre on behalf of the commercial sector.

List a variety of audience research methods media producers can use?
There are many ways as a producer of finding out and collecting data, some of these are:

Surveys
Questionnaires
Focus group
Interviews
Social media
Forums