Global Language and World Culture
Media in the United Kingdom

Media in the United Kingdom

Press and media in the United Kingdom
Press and media in the United Kingdom

Media in the United Kingdom, newspapers, radios, TV programs, news and journalists, an article that summarizes all the different media sources in the country.

Journalism is popular, but it is popular mainly as fiction. Life is one world, and life seen in the newspapers another.
G.K. Chesterton

The difference between literature and journalism is that journalism is unreadable and literature is not read.
Oscar Wilde

Journalist: a person without any ideas but with an ability to express them; a writer whose skill is improved by a deadline: the more time he has, the worse he writes.
Karl Kraus

The only qualities essential for real success in journalism are rat-like cunning, a plausible manner, and a little literary ability.
Nicholas Tomalin

Journalism without a moral position is impossible. Every journalist is a moralist. It’s absolutely unavoidable. A journalist is someone who looks at the world and the way it works, someone who takes a close look at things every day and reports what she sees, someone who represents the world, the event, for others. She cannot do her work without judging what she sees.
Marguerite Duras

Only a newspaper! Quick read, quick lost, Who sums the treasure that it carries hence? Torn, trampled under feet, who counts thy cost, Star-eyed intelligence?
Mary Clemmer Ames

Journalism: an ability to meet the challenge of filling the space.
Rebecca West

The term press derives from the machine used to print paper, i.e. a printing press. The press is a body of media communication using written material exclusively and reporting primarily on current news items. Newspapers have become an integral part of our culture; they are cheap and informative, easy to transport and an ideal method of communication. Normally they are published daily and therefore offer a variety of topics and regular up-to-date news. They are usually divided into two groups, tabloid and large press, although nowadays, more and more companies have begun using tabloid for easier handling.
Some “dailies” employ a different type of text to the more “serious” newspapers. They tend to use longer sentences and puns in their articles. Sometimes an insignificant event is given more space and larger print than a serious news item, especially if the subject is a member of the royal family, nobility or a well-known celebrity. Those newspapers are known as the “Gutter Press”. However, serious, well respected journals can be relied upon to furnish accurate, unbiased items.

Most readers have specific choices as to which newspaper they read, and it is said that you can guess a person’s status and political affiliations by the newspaper he reads. For example, the traditional choice of the Socialist British worker is “The Daily Mirror”, the Conservative worker “The Sun”, for Middle class Conservatives “The Mail” or the “The Telegraph”, and for professionals and intellectuals “The Guardian”. Of course “The Times” has always been the symbol of the city businessman. There are also numerous local papers, giving priority to local, as averse to national, news item. However the most important thing to consider is that about 60% of homes in Britain have a newspaper delivered every day, and with the increasing use of the web, news, articles, newspapers, magazines, gossip websites and news blog are becoming always more and more important for our everyday life.

Quality or Broadsheet papers tend to include most important national and world news items but they also are more inclined to be politically biased. On the contrary popular or tabloid papers are bought by readers generally considered to be less educated, they specialize in large photos of girls, sports news, letters to the the editor and pages of advertisments. The space between ads and photos is filled with gossip about the Royal Family, holiday, horoscopes and articles about anyone or anything not considered true blue British.

The Guardian has always aimed to give good coverage of social issues as well as politics and economics. It is published six days a week, with a circulation of 423,000. The Guardian Europe supplement is included from January 1991. The Guardian is a very useful source of news and comment on a very wide range of topics. The Guardian covers a broad range of UK and international news. Its UK coverage is particularly strong on social services, education, health, local government, and local and national politics. In addition to the above, the Guardian file is also a key source of information on the Third World and development economics, civil liberties and human rights, women’s rights and minorities.

There are four main types of newspapers

QUALITY
Cultural people like The Daily Telegraph, The Times, The Financial Times, The Guardian, The Independent, Today

TABLOID
Sport-news, letters to the editor and pages of advertisements in The Sun, The Daily Mirror, The Daily Express, The Daily Mail, The Daily Star

MAGAZINE
Regular publication containing articles and stories by different writers. Some have few pages, others more than 300

JOURNAL of OPINION
For both sexes they contain political and literary reviews. (Time, Newsweek)

Magazines may be weekly, monthly or quarterly. There are different magazines for specific sector and for different categories.

For Men
There aren’t specific magazines for men, but only regarding their hobbies, job or favorite sport

For Women
Women’s magazines deal with love stories, gossip, Knitting, cookery and care of the family (Cosmopolitan, Woman, Bella Hello)

For Teenagers
They deal with fashion, music and teenage problems (Jackie-Top Girl)

Other English Newspapers

The TIMES and SUNDAY TIMES

https://www.timesonline.co.uk/

It contains Britain’s oldest national daily newspaper, The Times, and its sister paper, The Sunday Times. Both papers are renowned for the high quality of their news and current affairs reporting and authoritative comment on a wide range of issues. Letters to the Editor are included with effect from April 1991. News agency items, extract from books, articles by specific authors, entertainments listings, tabular information, and articles from The Sunday Times Magazine , are not included. The Times is a respected source of news and comment on UK and international issues, business, finance, law and current affairs. It was founded in 1785.

The INDEPENDENT

https://www.independent.co.uk/

It gives clear and accurate reporting of home and foreign news, accompanied by in-depth features on the major issues of the day. In addition there is comprehensive coverage of business and finance, the arts, health, education, sport and the media.

The HERALD

https://www.theherald.co.uk/

Formely known as the Glasgow Herald, it is Scotland’s biggest selling quality daily newspaper. Launched in 1783, The Herald is the oldest national newspaper in the English-speaking world. Three editions of The Herald are published six days a week.

The DAILY MAIL

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/

Together with its sister paper, The Mail on Sunday , it covers a broad base of national and international news, financial, consumer and specific interest topics. Both papers have regular weekly sections, such as Money Mail.

TODAY

Launched by News (UK) in March 1986, was Britain’s first new national daily newspaper for 10 years. It was also the first UK tabloid newspaper to be publicly available online. Today provides a valuable source of general news and social comment, complementing the “heavier” political, economic and business information provided by the other UK newspapers available through FT Profile.

The FINANCIAL TIMES

https://www.ft.com

Europe’s leading business newspaper, the Financial Times is produced six days a week by some 350 editorial staff and foreign correspondents. Primarly a paper of record, it aims to cover everything of interest to the international businessman. It carries news, features, special surveys and editiorial comment, and has a name for authoritative, apolitical reporting. Its worldwide readership is estimated at one million. FT Profile carries the UK final edition of the newspaper, plus extra articles from the International Edition published in Frankfurt. Exclued are the largely-tagular sections on Currency, Money and Capital Markets, World Stock Markets and the London Stock Exchange.

The GUARDIAN

https://www.guardian.co.uk

It aims to give good coverage of social issues as well as politics and economics. It is published six days a week, with a circulation of 423,000. The Guardian Europe supplement is included from January 1991. The Guardian is a very useful source of news and comment on a very wide range of topics. The Guardian covers a broad range of UK and international news. Its UK coverage is particularly strong on social services, education, health, local government, and local and national politics. In addition to the above, the Guardian file is also a key source of information on the Third World and development economics, civil liberties and human rights, women’s rights and minorities.

The ECONOMIST

https://www.economist.com/

It is one of the world’s most distinguished periodicals, offering in-depth coverage and analysis of politics, economics, business, finance, science and technology. It is produced in London, printed in England, Singapore and the USA, and has a worldwide circulation of more than 250,000 copies a week. The file contains the full text of each weekly edition, with the exception of letters to the editor.

LLOYD’S LIST

It was founded in 1734, and has been renowned as the world’s leading shipping newspaper for more than 250 years. Lloyd’s List is a daily newspaper, and covers far more than just shipping news. All aspects of marine commerce, transport and insurance are covered, and news items that relate to these industries are also covered in detail. Energy and raw materials are covered, as are the financial markets that underpin all international commerce.

THE SCOTSMAN

https://www.thescotsman.co.uk

It is a leading Scottish quality newspaper, published in Edinburgh from Monday to Saturday. The file offers access to extensive of Scottish company, industry, social and economic issues, covered in a level of detail not available in the other national newspapers. In addition to the reporting of Scottish affairs. The Scotsman also provides coverage of new across the United kingdom. The full text of the newspaper is taken, with the exception of agency material, advertisements, sports results, court circular reports and certain special features. SCOTLAND on SUNDAY is the sister publication of The Scotsman. The newspaper comprises of two sections: Section One covers News, News in focus, international, Commentary, Business and Sport; Section Two includes Spectrum and covers the arts, leisure and magazine-style features. The SCT file carries the full text of the newspaper, with the exception of colour magazine articles, agency material, advertisements, sports results and certain special features.

The SUN

https://www.thesun.co.uk/

The MIRROR

https://www.mirror.co.uk/

The DAILY EXPRESS

The DAILY STAR

One of the leadings papers is The Sun. It tells its 4.2 million readers a day almost nothing about international and national affairs.It gives news about Princess Di’s clothes, dogs rescued from burning buildings and the divorces of Hollywood stars.
The Daily Mirror sells 3.2 million copies a day and it is considered to be pro-Labour. It infact encourages its readers tovote Labour in general elections. The other three popular papers are The Daily Express, selling 1.6 million  copies a day, The Daily Mail with 1.8 million and the Daily Star.

The other mass media: radio, TV, Internet

RADIO
Radio services in Britain offer a great variety of programs

Radio 1
For rock and pop

Radio 2
For entertainment and sport

Radio 3
For music, drama, documentaries

Radio 4

For news and information services
Radio World Services

Important BBC Radio which transmit in 36 languages apart from English

TELEVISION

The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) was established in 1927 and began to transmit regular programmes in 1936
BBC 1 presents more programmes of general interest, such as comedy, light entertainment, sport, current affairs, children’s programmes and outside broadcast

BBC 2 (1962) places greater emphasis on minority interests, but also provides documentaries, travel programmes, serious drama, music, programmes on pastimes and international films

The Independent Broadcasting Authority (IBA) was founded in 1954 and began to transmit in 1955
Channel ITV (1955) Ensures the some BBC 1’s programmes
Channel 4 (1982) Ensures the some BBC 2’s programmes

The BBC and the IBA each operate a teletext service, offering constantly updated information on a wide variety of subjects, including news, sport, travel information, local weather conditions and entertainment.


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