Christmas vox pops

We went out in Farnham to ask what people's views and opinions were on the Christmas decorations going up in the Lion and Lamb Yard nearly two months before Christmas, here's what they had to say!

Christmas vox pops by Madeleine Hearn

Analysis of the BBC news programme: Council houses may be offered for as little as two years

Content within programme:

The program begins with GVs of council housing in different areas with a voice over from the reporter. The program then cuts to a clip of the housing minister talking about the benefits of the new plans. This clip appears to have been taken from a previous interview as the housing minister sits with a background of London behind him. Perhaps this clip has been taken from an interview done from the studio on Breakfast TV. The reporter then introduces the vox pops section of the program: another GV of a street and a voice over from the reporter informing the viewer of the responses “mixed” and the location “in Newcastle”. Three vox pops from three different people then follow from a woman, and then two men. All of the vox pops are filmed with residential areas behind them, two support the new plans and one disagrees with them. After this it cuts to a shot of the reporter (who we haven’t actually seen yet until this point) he does a P2C on a council estate walking towards the camera explaining some of the exceptions to the new scheme (those already living in council housing and some with certain housing associations will not be affected). This then cuts to a shot of more GVs with reporter doing a voice over talking about the problems that homeless charities and support groups have with the new rules. This then cuts to a woman from the charity Crisis speaking about why they don’t like the new rules. This vox pop looks to be taken from an interview as it hasn’t been filmed on the street but is in an office. More GVs of council buildings then follow with a Soc said over the images.

What I liked in the programme:

I thought that the use of GVs worked well, they we’re used frequently through out the program. I think this helped to add a creative element to the program as the GVs looked as though they had been well thought out and planned.

I liked that when the reporter was doing his P2C he walked towards the camera up the street instead of standing still. This added an extra element and made his P2C more interesting.

The people who they chose for the vox pops didn’t just represent one group of people as they chose a mixture of sexes and also races. They also had varying opinions. This made the vox pops seem like they properly represented ‘the peoples’ view.

What could have been done better:

One of the people in the vox pops I thought spoke quite unclearly and I could just make out what he had said, perhaps another person who spoke a bit more clearly should have been chosen.

I felt that one of the main issues within the program was how some people may be exempt from the new rules and the question as to weather this is fair or not. The way that the only P2C in the program was raising this issue gave the impression that it was an important point. Therefore I felt it may have been better to have a vox pop/interview with a rep from a housing association rather than from a homeless charity. I felt that this element of the program was slightly confusing.

It's Sean-time!

Our first television production lecture, which took place last week, saw us first meeting the man who would be teaching us, Sean Walsh. A man whose very being says "camera, lights, action!" Decisive and straight to the point, the moment the clock hit 2'oclock (the time our lecture is supposed begin) Sean locked the doors meaning any late comers would simply miss their first lesson in television. "Programs can't ever go out late" he warned us,"we will be treating this class room as a real television studio, therefore lateness can not be tolerated." After making his point he finished with a beaming television smile and looked as if he should then say "My name's Sean Walsh, thank you and goodnight"  From that moment on I knew I was going to like Sean, and I also knew that there was no way I was ever going to let myself be late to any of his lectures.

Here's a few of the things Sean told us about television production in general and what to expect from television if we choose it as one of our preferred subjects:

• When filming always ask for the persons name and how it's spelt, get this all on camera.
• From Christmas onwards if you decide to take TV you will be expected to create a unit dairy detailing what you did, what you learnt and how you could have improved your work.
• All work is marked by Sean and also by a person not connected to the course. It is important to remember this person will not know you or your personality, therefore you must be clear and concise with your work so that they fully understand it
• TV terms:

 B-roll: Secondary material (eg,shots of buildings and scenery)

A-roll: Interviews, reporter pieces etc

P2C: Piece to camera (standupper)

Soc: Sign off (standard out que)

• Always be aware of lighting and what effect it is having on the shot.
• Rule of thirds: dividing the shot into 9 parts
• Fill the frame (F.T.F)
• Don't put the person you're interviewing right in the middle of the shot, put them slightly to one side.
• 1st year will comprise of: making packages, GVs (general shots), B-roll, vox pops (voice of the people) interviews with accredited sources, p2c, graphics
• You will never loose marks for being creative even if the idea doesn't work out
• The most important element of television is the audience
• TV is for people, about people

Our task in the lesson was to go out and interview people on campus about the recent royal engagement. Teams decided, risk assessment forms filled out (finally) and recording equipment picked up we headed out: young journalists full of enthusiasm and optimism. This, however didn't last very long as we quickly established that firstly, hardly anyone likes being filmed, and secondly that the nations interest in the royals appears to have wained since Charlie boy and Di tied the knot. So after many a "Errr...I dunno" and a "They're getting married?" and even, strangely enough, one "Don't point that thing at me!"we returned back to the class room with few bits of footage that we could actually use. 

This said, similar to Sean's previous door locking stunt, the exercise taught us a tough lesson: that television is most certainly not always glamourous and that TV may be "for people about people"but people can't half be unhelpful in the making process! 

Poppy Pressure?

Today is Sunday the 14th of November, it is Remembrance Day. On this day we remember those who fought and died in World War One and World War Two. More recently this day has also been utilised for us to remember the British troops who are currently fighting in Afghanistan.

As I looked around at peoples lapels in the weeks leading up to this day I saw nearly all of them were wearing poppies. Whenever I watched the television: news presenters, interviewers, interviewees, sports personalities, musicians, each one of them were wearing red poppies. This made me panic. "Everyone has a poppy on" I thought, "I haven't bought one yet, everyone's going to start thinking I don't care, I need to buy a poppy." And just like that, I was a victim of poppy pressure.
Are those on the street or on television wearing poppies because every time they put them on they stop and think about the people who died at war? Perhaps they do. Or are they wearing one as they feel socially pressured to buy one, or because the television company would look bad if they didn't make everyone on their shows wear one?

At the start of november my brother and myself were sat at Victoria looking up at the advert of a solider putting on a prosthetic leg, next to this image it says "It only takes a second to put on a poppy". I ask my brother, who works for a charity, what does he think of this advert? He replies, "It makes the viewer feel guilty, like all charity adverts, so I guess it's a pretty effective advert." I can't argue with him, I do feel guilty when looking at the advert and it does make me want to buy a poppy.

Therefore we as a nation obviously feel guilty that we have sent men and woman to fight wars for us and they have not always returned. I am not saying that Remembrance Day is not important, nor am I saying that war is not horrific and awful. What I am saying is that guilt is most definitely a strong emotion attached to Remembrance Day and that perhaps the 14th of November is a day designed to vent a nations guilt just as much as it is to remember.

 It is a firmly accepted fact now that World War One was one of Britian's most awful wars. We accomplished very little and a lot of blood was shed in the process. And no one seemed to really know what we were fighting for. Sounding familiar to a certain war we are currently engaged in now? I do find it slightly ironic that we have a day where we remember how awful war is and how guilty we feel for so many people dying in the process, yet we go and do it all again. And no doubt after this pointless war another one will surely follow.

I bought two poppies this year and lost both of them before Remembrance Day after they fell off of my coat.