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Codes & Conventions of the NewsroomJake Stokes

Codes and Conventions

Codes and conventions are what makes a media programme what it is; it’s how the equipment is used and what’s involved in the programme. Codes are how things are done, they can be split into two categories – symbolic and technical. Technical codes are how equipment is used, like different camera work in different genres of film. Symbolic codes are what we can’t see, how a character’s actions in a film show how he/she is feeling (symbolic codes aren’t used in factual programmes).Conventions are the generally accepted way things are done, like using specialists when talking about complex/uncommon topics on a news programme.

List of Codes and Conventions Of a Factual News Programme

Studio newsreader,Field Reporters,Links to studios with a specialist or eye witness,Interactive mode to indulge the viewer,Interviews (aggressive style, sympathy if speaking to victim)Talks with experts,Footage of the current story/event,Voiceovers,Television screen in background showing pictures about the current story being reported,Dramatic introduction at the start and at cuts back into the studio,Still, professional camera work,Desk/sofa with table,Shuffling papers/notepad.

How do they inform and determine audience responses?

Different codes and conventions are more appropriate for different programmes, you wouldn’t want the camera work to be constantly moving as it would be distracting. In film, lighting could be used to trigger different responses like flickering lights often means suspense. Although you couldn’t really use this in factual programming, other actions can trigger emotion. For example, showing video/images of a warzone or a battlefield could make people feel sad.All the conventions are used to efficiently inform the viewer of local and global news.

Documentaries

Interactive Documentaries – The presenter/filmmaker takes part and interacts with the people he’s documenting. He uses a wide range of multimedia tools to make it more enticing and increase interaction with the audience.Investigative Documentaries – In this mode, the producer initially introduces a problem which he then goes on to solve.Observational Documentary – Observational documentaries simply attempt to document lived life with no intervention or as little as possible. The earliest documentaries of this genre date back to the 1960s. New technology has made these much more possible with new cameras and especially sound recording devices.

More Documentaries

Expository Documentary – These documentaries speak directly to the viewer, they are made to persuade. They often use voiceovers and a strong male lead voice. They also usually propose an argument with a strong/controversial point of view.‘Mockumentary’ – A fiction film that uses the ‘documentary format’ to suggest the scenarios on screen are real life situations that have been captured by a production team. They most often mock observational style documentaries and they frequently use unknowing members of the public to give a false sense of realism.Docudrama – Docudramas use fiction and actors to recreate a period of time or an event, it’s often also called ‘documentary theatre’

The Newsroom Episode

The Newsroom episode demonstrated a lot of the codes and conventions that we talked about – like the typical dramatic introduction to every factual news programme, interviews with field experts, background visuals with updates and images, voiceovers, the expected desk with the reporter shuffling papers. There was also demonstration of aggressive interviewing.