B Radio Programmes

The British Broadcasting Corporation is the first and biggest broadcasting organization in the United Kingdom.

The BBC was set up in 1922. The company became a corporation in 1927, with a purpose to “educate, inform, and entertain” the public. It obtained its authority through a renewable royal charter and with a board of governors, representing the public interest and appointed by the government, which also set the level of the licence fee.

The BBC rapidly gained a reputation for high standards. Drama, music of all kinds, including the Promenade Concerts (the “Proms”), children’s programmes, news and current affairs, and religious programmes were soon all obtainable by the great mass of the British public, backed by the Radio Times (from 1923), a highly successful programme magazine. Educational broadcasting began in 1924. One of the greatest achievements was the start of overseas broadcasts in English, through the creation of the Empire Service, now called the World Service. During the 1930s, described as “The Golden Age of Radio,” the BBC was, however, forced to recognize the power of competition, when the public began listening to lighter fare from commercial stations transmitting from France.

A major reorganization of radio occurred in 1967 with the opening of Radio 1, a response to “pirate radio,” and the renaming of the Light, Third, and Home services as Radios 2, 3, and 4. In the same year, BBC Local Radio started in Leicester and within six years there were 20 such stations, making special programmes for local communities, for example, those with large Asian and Afro-Caribbean populations.

BBC programmes start at 5 or 6 in the morning and they last till 1 or 2 a.m. Radio 1 is the most popular with a lot of “disk-jockey” programmes. It broadcasts continuous “pop” music. Radio 2 is very similar to Radio 1 and broadcasts concerts of light music and jazz, short plays, quizzes (A quiz programme is a question and answer competition which offers money or other prizes to the winners.). Radio 3 and 4 are more “highbrow”. They broadcast classical music, political discussions, educational programmes. And on Radio 5 you can listen to such programmes as World Service, the World Today, Sport programmes and Health Service.

The BBC World Service is the international radio division of BBC. It transmits radio programmes around the world in 42 languages. With a regular audience of about 140 million listeners, it reaches more people than any other international broadcaster. The aims of the World Service are: to provide comprehensive, in-depth, and impartial news and information to contribute to a better-informed world; to help meet worldwide needs for education and training, including the study of the English language; and to give people overseas access to British culture and entertainment.

• Say what you have learned about:

  1. The BBC;

  2. programmes on Radio 1 and 2;

  3. programmes on Radio 3 and 4;

  4. programmes on Radio 5;

  5. The BBC World Service.

• Think and answer.

  1. Why is Radio 1 the most popular programme in Great Britain?

  2. Why are programmes on Radio 3 and 4 called “highbrow”?

• Discussion questions.

  1. When do you listen to the radio?

  2. What sort of things do you listen to: news? music (what type?) ? other?

  3. Are there any stations broadcasting in Ukrainian which you can listen to when you're out of the country?

  4. What are the advantages of radio over television?

  5. When do we celebrate the professional holiday of Radio and TV?

C Television Programming Genres in the USA

Today, television stations in the United States produce very little of their own programming, apart from daily local newscasts and a few public-affairs discussion shows. Most stations broadcast series, feature films, documentaries, and world and national news coverage originating via network connections from Los Angeles and New York City.

Most of today's television programming genres are derived from earlier media such as stage, cinema, and radio. In the area of comedy, situation comedy, or sitcom, has proven the most durable and popular of American broadcasting genres. “I Love Lucy” (1951-1957), which starred Lucille Ball and was adapted from her radio show “My Favorite Husband” (1948-1951), was the first hit television sitcom, finishing first in the national ratings for three seasons in a row (1951-1954) and establishing dramatic elements — such as battles between the sexes, arguments among neighbours, and other mundane conflicts — that became fundamental to the genre.

Comedy-variety is a hybrid of vaudeville and nightclub entertainment. A comedy-variety hour typically consisted of short monologues and skits featuring the host, which alternated with various show-business acts, including singers, musicians, stand-up comedians, trained animal acts, and other novelties. The variety show is a related form in which the host serves only as master of ceremonies. “The Ed Sullivan Show” (1948-1971), for example, hosted by newspaper columnist Ed Sullivan on CBS, presented entertainers as diverse as the rock group the Beatles and the Bolshoi Ballet.

Broadcast drama can be presented in either of two formats: an anthology showcases and individual plays and series. The genre has included police dramas (“Magnum, P.I.” (1980-1988)), westerns (“Gunsmoke” (1955-1975)), science-fiction series (“Star Trek” (1966-1969)). Dramatic series tend to follow the exploits of lawyers (“Perry Mason,” 1957-1966; “L.A. Law,” 1986-1994), doctors (“Ben Casey,” 1961-1966; “Marcus Welby, M.D.,” 1969-1976), or families (“Dallas,” 1978-1991).

Soap opera, or daily serial drama, was originally developed as a daytime genre aimed specifically at a female audience. Soap operas explored romance, friendship, and familial relations in slow-moving, emotionally involving narratives. The invention of the soap opera is credited to Irna Phillips, who began developing such programmes for local radio broadcast in Chicago during the 1920s. Many of her radio shows were adapted for television, with some running first on radio and then on television for more than 25 years. Philips's productions include “The Brighter Day” (1954-1962), “The Guiding Light” (1952- ), and “The Edge of Night” (1956-1984).

Other television programme types include talk shows, sports coverage, children's programming, game shows, and religious programmes, all of which originated on radio. New programme types are rarely introduced in broadcasting, since audience familiarity plays a key role in determining programming.

• Say what you have learnt about

  1. sitcoms;

  2. comedy-varieties;

  3. broadcast dramas;

  4. soap operas.

• Discussion questions.

1. What in your opinion can be done to make our TV better?

2. Imagine that you will have to live some time without TV. Will you be very unhappy? What will you find to replace it with?

3. Some parents don’t allow their children to watch TV. Do you understand their reasons? Do you agree with them?

4. Imagine that you are asked to make a TV programme for Sunday. What programmes will you include in it?

5. Do you often listen to the radio? Do you have a favourite radio programme? What do you like about it?

6. Do you belong to people who switch on the radio or TV as soon as they get up in the morning? If yes, why do you do it?

7. Which TV personalities are very popular in your country? Why do you think they are popular?

8. If you were invited to take part in one of the following TV programmes, which would you choose and why?

a. “Field of Wonders” b. “The First Million” c. “A Hidden Camera”

9. Compare British/American and Ukrainian television. What is common and what is different?

Activity 1. Conversation Questions

With the whole class

Discuss:

1. How often do you read the paper or watch the news on TV?

2. How important is it for you to keep up with current events?

3. In your opinion, what has been the single biggest news item from the past year? How did the media cover this event?

4. Do you think that news reporting has got better, got worse, or stayed the same over your lifetime?

5. Do you prefer listening to the radio or watching TV? Why?

6. Do you think a politician's private life is newsworthy? Why or why not?

7. Are there certain things journalists shouldn't report on? Why?

8. How do you feel about censorship? Are there times when the news should be censored?

9. Who owns the newspapers and TV stations in your country? Do you think this has an effect on the news that you hear?

10. Do you think that the media covers too much bad news and not enough good news? What was the last "good news" story you heard?

11. How has technology affected the way that we receive news?

12. Have you (or anyone you know) ever been in the newspaper/on TV? If so, what for?

Activity 2. The Media

A By yourself

Think of some examples of these forms of media in Ukraine. Which are the most popular at the moment? Do you read/watch them yourself? Which are your favourites?

tabloid newspapers television commercials weather bulletins

serious newspapers soap operas special-interest magazines

fashion magazines violent crime series real life dramas (e.g. emergency rescues)

television news bulletins cartoons

game shows television documentaries

B In groups (3 or 4)

Discuss which of these comments might be made about each of the forms of media in A. Add your own comments.

• they are very informative

• their approach tends to be very sensational and sometimes irresponsible

• the reporting is very biased

• the reporting is usually objective and accurate

• they can be very misleading

• they are harmless fun

• they are quite stupid

• the information they provide is usually reliable

• they are mainly aimed at women/men/children

• they really annoy me sometimes

• they can be very entertaining

• they cause a lot of harm

• they are sometimes very boring

• they can influence the way people think and behave

• they raise important issues sometimes

• they make people more aware of what’s going on in the world