Compare and contrast different types of factual programming essay.

By
Eoghan Leonard
Factual programming is a genre of non-fiction-based program which is based on
real events and people. Factual programming is often educational and
informative. The genre of Factual programming has existed as long as the film
industry has been around, and the genre is growing more than ever. There are
many different types of factual programming that branch out to multiple different
types of media. Documentaries, Podcasts and News Programming are all different
types of factual programming. There are also many sub-genres in Factual
Programming such as, Docu-Drama, Crime-Docs, Reality TV and wildlife
documentaries. In this essay I am going to compare and contrast documentaries,
podcasts and news programming and how they are different from each other in
the factual programming genre.
Each type of factual programming has certain components that make it unique
and differ from other forms of factual programming. The components which make
a documentary film can change per production as there are many different
techniques used for documentary film making. They are factual based and follow
already existing information. The main purpose of a documentary is to inform and
educate. Documentaries often focus on a single topic and go into detail about it.
The documentary will give context to the topic and the crew behind the
production will research and the film will analyse that process. Common
components found in most forms of documentary are interviews, archive footage,
re-enactments, infographics, background music and most commonly a voice over.
Podcasts on the other hand are much more simplistic with the components
needed. Often the only components needed for a podcast are a few topics for
discussion and possibly a guest for the podcast. On the other hand, news
broadcasts have quite a lot in common with documentaries but there are some
key differences. Documentaries are long form factual programming while for
news broadcasting there is only minutes allotted per news story. Also, News
reporters often need to remain impartial in the story being told meanwhile in
Documentaries there are often personal stories and are interested in conveying a
particular perspective.
For each form of factual programming, production and pre-production have a lot
of differences. For documentaries, the producers need to review existing
literature and develop a hypothesis for the doc, as much research is done into the
topic as possible, and all routes taken are documented for the film. One done
producer needs to write up a script, produce voice overs, set up and arrange
interviews, plan the shooting schedule as well as any drone shots needed as well
as creating any graphics for the documentary that are needed. News Broadcasting
has some similarities to the production of its program but there are key
differences. News broadcasting only follows current news so often productions
are created very quickly or as its often called in the news world “breaking news”.
These productions have short time to plan and research so that can be the
quickest part. Interviews are also used in news broadcasting but tend to be much
shorter than in documentaries. Graphics are also common for news broadcasts to
display statistics or relevant information to the story. News broadcasts are often
done on live TV or are played on TV on a 30 second delay so it is a high-pressure
environment with little leeway for mistakes. In comparison to both last forms of
programming, podcasting is the simplest to produce. With a podcast very little
planning is necessary but depending on the podcaster some people may be more
prepared. In most cases podcasts have little to no preparation and just involve 2
or more people having a discussion. Podcasts are often long form and can last
from half an hour to two or three hours. With little planning needed these
podcasts are often very casual and easy for the producers to just create on an
often-weekly basis in some cases. Some podcasts can have weekly guests which
are invited on to speak about a topic related to themselves or to promote
themselves.
Creativity can be used in each form of factual programming, but it should be used
with caution and precautions should be made so a production isn’t creating a
false narrative or presenting things falsely. For Documentaries, a common way of
creativity being embraced is during re-enactments. These re-enactments draw in
the audience further and create more interest. Re-enactments are most often
seen in Docu-Crime films for example “The Ripper” by Netflix which used re-
enactments in its film. For News Broadcasting often creativity is avoided in order
to maintain its factual basis and to remain serious. News Broadcasts stay factual
and remain serious except for some occasions for example more light-hearted
news stories or comedic ones which can be broadcasted when news days are
quiet. For Podcasting there is often little restraint on creativity and the hosts are
free to speak about whatever they choose. While podcasts often are supposed to
remain factual and truthful there are many times when podcasts can try to spread
fake/incorrect information around. An important requirement to be a podcaster
is to have good conversational skills and to keep and interesting, engaging, and
creative podcast.
Each format has very different camera and editing techniques. For Documentaries
because they are long form factual programming, they require very large and
extensive shooting schedules to have enough footage for the documentary. These
shots can include interviews, re-enactments, drone footage and montage footage.
This large shooting schedule also means that there is a large editing operation
which is also time intensive as well as expensive. For news broadcasting they also
require interviews but also need backing footage for the news story. Often if the
story is local the news broadcasting company will send a camera down to the
location which is broadcasted back live to the production. Most of the production
is live and a little editing is needed. For Podcasting often no camera is included if
it is an audio only podcast, but some also include video for example the Joe-
Rogan Podcast which includes a camera shot for himself as wells as his guest. This
means that due to the long form nature of podcasts editing is relatively easy due
to the low number of shots and static cameras shots used throughout the
podcast.
The cost of each type of Factual programming is drastically different. The most
expensive type of factual programming without a doubt is Documentary film
making. On average it takes typically 2-3 months to produce a documentary. The
entire film crew including, Producer, Director, Editors, Camera operators, runners
and catering crew all need pay throughout the shoot production. The cost of
equipment including, cameras, microphone and other expensive gear also are
apart of the budget. As for interviews within the documentary it may also include
a charge to get an interview with the person depending on their status or if they
may be a celebrity. For News Broadcasting many of the costs remain the same
which mean the entire crew all need to be paid often on a yearly wage basis for
the news industry. News Reporters also need to be paid now which is not a role
seen in documentary film. The costs for the production in news broadcasting can
go up depending on if the news company had to pay someone for the news story
in the first place. Costs for podcasting are only a fraction of the costs that are
needed for documentaries or news broadcasting. Podcasts are much simpler to
film due to the low number of shots and the creators are often self-employed, so
no wages are paid. This means the cost to create a podcast is very small and the
few costs that exist are for equipment such as a laptop and microphone for
recording the podcast.
Due to the ongoing world-wide pandemic and lockdown the factual programming
industry has had a lot of rapid changes and growth. Now more than ever we as a
society are consuming more media and that also includes factual programming.
Statistics from Oxfam state In the UK adults on average watch over six and a half
hours or 45 hours a week of television and online video according to statistics
from Oxfam. Because of this the demand for Documentary programming has
gone up and now we are seeing new documentaries releasing on television and
streaming services weekly. The same goes for the News Broadcasting industry,
due to the pandemic viewing figures for news companies went up worldwide. This
was due to people trying to stay informed and safe during the pandemic. With
people being stuck at home and with so much free time more people now have
picked up listening to podcasts. Many people use podcasts on their morning
commute to work or listen to it while multitasking and doing something else.
Podcasts were a great way for people to maintain some social contact and feel
connected in the otherwise lonely time during lockdown for some people. In 2020
Netflix stated that listening consumption of podcasts had doubled in their July
earnings release.
It is clear that all types of factual programming are clearly distinct and vary greatly
within the genre. Each type of programming has its own audience and appeal.
There is a lot of potential in the industry for future growth and I am certain that
Podcasting, News and Documentaries will only become more popular now in the
age of the internet where almost anyone can create content themselves.
Bibliography
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-53637305

https://www.braunfilm.com/how-long-to-make-a-documentary#:~:text=In%20a%20nutshell%2C%20it
%20typically,the%20length%20of%20the%20process.

https://www.theverge.com/2020/7/29/21346339/spotify-q2-2020-earnings-podcasts-coronavirus-
covid-19-consumption-recovery