Compare the ways in which the given newspapers seek to sell their messages. which do you think is the most effective? which would you buy?

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COMPARE THE WAYS IN WHICH THE GIVEN NEWSPAPERS SEEK TO SELL THEIR MESSAGES. WHICH DO YOU THINK IS THE MOST EFFECTIVE? WHICH WOULD YOU BUY?

Introduction

For my English media studies coursework I shall compare the way in which each given newspaper seeks to sell its message. I shall also say which publication I think is most effective at selling its self and which publication I would buy.

British newspapers have been around for nearly three centuries. Newspapers fall into two distinct categories: Tabloids such as Express, Sun, Mirror and Broadsheet such as Times, Independent and Telegraph. Broadsheet newspapers have a rigid and regular structure. In contrast to tabloid newspapers which have a less regular and rigid structure.

Every publication has its own style and way of presenting information, but each publication has one thing in common the simple message ‘buy me’.

Broadsheet newspapers are highly regarded newspapers they tend to be very informative. Broadsheet newspapers are aimed at those who want all the detail about current affairs i.e. educated society. The main age group for readers of Broadsheet newspapers is 25-45 years of age. There is a close relationship between the news on the television and the news in Broadsheet Newspapers. On average the front page of a Broadsheet newspaper will contain between one thousand five hundred to two thousand words. This immediately suggests that the people who read broadsheet newspapers are keen to read and also have time to read the news in detail.

Tabloid newspapers appeal to readers who are working class. These readers want to quickly scan through the news and gossip. Tabloid newspapers devote most of their pages to large headlines and pictures, but contain a small amount of text in contrast to Broadsheet newspapers which contain a lot more text.

Tabloid newspapers carry a lot more advertisements in contrast to broadsheet newspapers. This brings in more revenue for tabloid newspapers and allows them to cost less, on average 20-30p cheaper than broadsheet newspapers.

I am now going to look in detail at the front page of the following newspapers:

The Sunday Telegraph

The People

Daily Star Sunday

Sunday Express

News Of The World

The Sunday Telegraph

The Sunday Telegraph is a broadsheet newspaper it tends to be more serious and traditional in contrast to the tabloid newspapers. The Sunday Telegraph is a large newspaper and has to be folded showing only the top half when placed on the rack of a newsagent store. Therefore the top half of the newspaper has to be very attractive because the top half is what potential customers see first.

The top half of The Sunday Telegraph has the headline ‘they stood no chance: the seven who perished in the space shuttle’. The headline in The Telegraph is similar to the headline used in the News Of The World both headlines emphasise that the astronauts had no chance of survival. The headline in The Sunday Telegraph is much smaller in size compared to the headlines of the other newspapers. Also the headline in The Telegraph is not in capitals which makes it less punchy and dramatic. It is also a lot longer than the headline used in the tabloid newspaper therefore the power message is not instant. However the headline is straight to the point and informative and it also creates great shock within the reader. The headline creates great shock within the reader when it uses the word ‘perished’ due to the fact that the reader realises that the astronauts have died this also gets the reader emotionally involved.

Join now!

The presentational device used on the front page is that the headline is in bold and black. Black is used in the headline because black is the colour associated with death. Another presentational device used is a large picture of the astronauts. This large picture of the astronauts gets the reader emotionally involved because it shows the astronauts at happier time this is reflected by all of the seven astronauts smiling. Most of the other newspapers have chosen to use pictures of the space shuttle and not the astronauts.

In the block below the picture of the astronauts ...

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