Audio group project finished!

We have completed our radio programme. It is a 10 minute show about the bus service in Bristol. To hear the final edit click the link below and download the mp3.

http://www.mediafire.com/?ajwj9pkbnjy

Ofcom

In this entry I will discuss how Ofcom protect children in their broadcasting code. Ofcom (Office of communications) is the regulator for the UK communications industries with responsiblilites across radio, television, telecommunications and wireless communicactions services.

Some of Ofcom's key duties include:

• To ensure that a wide range of electronic communications services - including high speed data services - is available throughout the UK


• To ensure a wide range of TV and radio services of high quality and wide appeal


• To apply adequate protection for audiences against offensive or harmful material


• To apply adequate protection for audiences against unfairness or the infringement of privacy

It is worth noting that Ofcom do not regulate the BBC, they have their own code which can be found on their website - here.

Section 1 of the Ofcom broadcasting code covers their rules on protecting under eighteens. Some key rules they make are:

1.1 Material that might seriously impair the physical, mental or moral development of people under eighteen must not be broadcast.

1.3 Children must also be protected by appropriate scheduling from material that is unsuitable for them.

Material Ofcom are trying to protect children from are:

• The coverage of sexual and other offences in the UK involving under eighteens.
• The use of Drugs, smoking, solvent abuse and alcohol.
• Violence and dangerous behaviour.
• Offensive language.
• Sex and nudity.
• Exorcism, the occult and the paranormal.

Ofcom's methods of protecting under eighteens:

The television watershed imposed by Ofcom is 21:00. Material unsuitable for children should not be broadcast before 21:00 or after 05.30. For premium television services this watershed is 20:00. For pay per view services there is no watershed but users will be asked to provide some security details to ensure no minors are viewing.

There is no watershed for radio broadcasting, but broadcasters are asked not to schedule anything that may be found inappropriate when children may be listening.

For any material that is to be shown before the watershed that may cause distress to children, a warning must be broadcast prior to the programme being broadcast.

Ofcom recently criticised an episode of 'Casualty' after an episode showed graphic scenes of bomb victims. Some viewers complained the episode had left their children frightened. Ofcom despite not responsible for regulating BBC broadcasts stated the episode was "Unsuitable for children".

Ofcom recently published details of significant restrictions intended to limit children's exposure to television advertising of food and drink products high in fat, salt and sugar. Ofcom CEO Ed Richards gives a statement to the media:

Relevant links:

http://www.ofcom.org.uk

http://www.bbc.co.uk

http://www.youtube.com

My tasks in the audio group project

For our audio group project we were asked to produce a short radio programme. We had to brainstorm ideas for the show, decide on an idea, research some content then pitch the idea to a panel. If the panel gave us the thumbs up we would then make the programme.

I was put into a group with Aleicia, Sam and Adam. We shortlisted our ideas:

1. A lighthearted programme on bus travel. Funny stories and passenger accounts of bus journeys. Interviews with bus drivers and facts and figures on public transport.
2. A programme interviewing elderly people in the pub. The idea behind this was to try and get older peoples views on today's culture and also to give them a voice in today's ever youthful media.

We finally chose the bus travel programme for our project. Although personally I preferred the elderly people's interviews, we felt that the bus travel idea would be less of a burden on the timescale on which we had to produce the programme. Additionally the content would be easier to find and produce. The elderly people's interviews is a project I will seriously consider producing independently when I have finished university.

Our roles in the production:

Me - Head of research. Audio editor. Presenter.

Sam - Producer. Script writer. Presenter.

Adam - Producer. Presenter.

Aleicia - Research. Script writer. Presenter.

Our first task was to research the programme. As I was given the 'Head of research' role I set out and found some interesting websites with people's accounts of their bus journeys and some news articles on strange/funny bus related stories. I looked into music we could use in the show and obtained copies of the music we would use. Some of the tracks I chose were:

• Magic Bus - The Who
• Summer Holiday - Cliff Richard
• Theme to the 'On the buses' TV show
• Bus stop - The Hollies
• Mark on the bus - The Beastie Boys
• The National Express - The Divine Comedy

I also found some bus sound effects we could use if we needed them in the production. I did this by searching various sound effect websites and also by taking a bus journey myself and recording the sounds I came across on a mini disk recorder.

We then presented our pitch to try and sell our show to a panel of broadcasters.  I talked about some of the research I had done and of the stories and features I wanted to put in the programme.  After a long nervous wait we had found out we had succeeded in selling our idea and were given the go ahead to start producing the show.  

We have now started to produce the main content for the show. Adam interviewed his father who was a bus driver and got some good stories. Aleicia and Sam recorded a Bus passenger Vox-pop at Bristol bus station. And today we all got involved in recording some stories I had found on the Internet.

Now we will have to piece together all our content, add sound effects and music, record more stories and record the presenters parts. Watch this space for the final edit!

Editing Kims interview.

My main interests in broadcast production, at the moment, is editing audio. My history in music and recording bands sparked this interest a few years ago.

Our most recent editing project was to interview Kim about her career in broadcasting, to choose parts of the interview we wanted and to edit the whole thing down to two minutes. The Interview took 33 minutes, so to cut that down to 2 minutes was a challenge!

For my edit I chose to focus on Kim's early career, her career path and how her career affects her family. Kim went into a lot of detail when we spoke to her so I found the moments where she made key statements and used those in the final piece. However, it was very difficult to squeeze it all down to 120 seconds so I found myself cutting out a lot of words and silence in the edit.

I edited the interview in Cubase VST32 at home on my own Pc. Cubase is a primarily a music sequencer but does have a useful wave editor in the package. I would have probably completed the task quicker if I had used Protools as I find it more user friendly and easier to use.

Click the link below to download the final edit of the interview as an mp3.

http://www.mediafire.com/?8mbdyzgt4xd

Other relevant links:

Protools:- http://www.digidesign.com/

Cubase:- http://www.steinberg.net/24_1.html

Job roles in the television industry.

On our first lecture with Kim she introduced herself by telling a story about her career in television production and we discussed a lot of the jobs she had in her career path up until now. In this entry of my blog I will look at some of the roles Kim did and will explain them in more detail. The jobs I have picked to explain are the ones that interested me the most.

Production Assistant

The production assistant is an entry level job in the industry, a lot of people that are now successful in television production would have had their first jobs as a production assistant.
Although the job does involve a lot of administrative work, the job also requires sound technical ability and creativity.

Some of the roles include setting up productions by booking facilities needed, checking copyright and getting permissions to use material for use in production, assisting the director, producer and production team on and off set. Finding props, welcoming guests and contributors. If I decide to pursue a career in television this is a job that I would certainly be interested in.

Assistant Producer

The Assistant Producer is a senior member of the production team second to the producer. Some of the roles include writing scripts for parts of the program, contributing and researching ideas for content, drafting and editing material for any supporting publications to the production, Co-ordinating staff, locations and guests. As an assistant producer you will undertake some direction of filming.

Researcher

The researchers in a production team will be responsible for content of a programme. Their job is to support the producer by coming up with ideas, sources and content. Once an idea is in place and is in production they are to check all the facts, find interviews and sources and to contribute in the development of the scripts.

Welcome to my Blog!

Hello. I'm Tom, I'm 30 years old and I live in Exeter. This is my blog documenting my progress and thoughts of the Broadcast Media Foundation Degree course at Weston College.

My interest in broadcasting goes back 20 years. When I was 10 years old I started getting involved in the hospital radio station at North Devon District Hospital, Tarka Radio. I rang the studio to request a song and they invited us to see the studio. From that moment I was fascinated with the equipment and as soon as I got home started to make my own radio programs with an old cassette recorder and record player.

That Christmas I recall not asking for a games console or the latest toy as expected for someone of my age, but requesting an audio mixing desk and a decent microphone!

It wasn't long until I joined Tarka radio as a full member and my parents would drive me there twice a week so I could train to use the equipment, visit patients and file the records and I was soon offered the chance to present my own program for children in the hospital. This gained some media attention locally and nationally. I knew this was the career route I wanted to take from then.

I continued to present my program through my school years and also did some volunteer work for the Radio Devon sports program on the occasional Saturday and was involved in the Lantern FM daily community program.

As I reached my teenage years, along with my ambitions to work in radio broadcasting, I also played bass guitar in several indie bands in and around North Devon. I got in touch with the local gig promoter and started to help him set up the gigs and eventually started doing the sound for all the shows we arranged. Along with my college commitments this was taking up all my time so I chose to stop volunteering for Tarka Radio.




Me on the left in an old band aged 18.

My time at college studying Performing arts satisfied the musical and creative side to my personality but it wasn’t until I started to study Music Technology a few years later that I felt I had found my true calling - audio production. I enjoyed working with wave editors, experimenting with equipment and microphones, making sound tracks for TV programs and recording bands. This led to some work on tour with 70’s Singer Elkie Brooks when I was employed as Drum technician and general roadie.

In 2002, with my wife Gillian, I moved to Exeter, adopted two cats and settled in the area. This was a very optimistic time for me. There were several radio stations in the area I could try and get work with and a healthy music scene I could get involved in. I set up an internet radio station for local musicians ‘Alternative Devon’ and joined a local punk band.

I worked in various call centres to pay the bills and settled at a local CCTV company, for 3 and a half years. They promoted me to telesales manager but in the back of my mind really wanted to find a career in program making and audio production for T.V. or radio by either setting up an independent production company or working for someone like the BBC. Up until now this search has proved difficult due to lack of recent experience and relevant qualifications. This is why I have chosen to apply for university.

Relevent links:
http://www.tarka-radio.co.uk/
http://www.elkiebrooks.net/