OSP: The Voice - blog case study

The Voice: case study blog tasks

Language and textual analysis

Homepage

Go to the Voice homepage and answer the following:

1) What news website key conventions can you find on the Voice homepage?

Title, Search bar, advertisements, sub-section, links, handlebar, social media links.

2) How does the page design differ from Teen Vogue?


Teen Vogue is more "professional" and well presented and has subtle colours making it seem more classy where as The Voice has a less organised structure with more colours that do not really compliment each other. 

3) What are some of the items in the top menu bar and what does this tell you about the content, values and ideologies of the Voice?

Education and opinion stand out because they try their best to empower black people and they also have 'faith' which links to religion and hope, this online CSP has a main aim which is to motivate black people and these titles show that.

4) Look at the news stories in the Voice. To what extent does the selection of news stories fit Galtung and Ruge’s News Values theory

Closeness  eg. Manchester, London.
Negativity- many stories including natural disasters around the world, etc.
Continuity-sports tournaments 
Simplicity- easy to explain and predictable

5) How is narrative used to encourage audience engagement with the Voice? Apply narrative theories (e.g. Todorov equilibrium or Barthes’ enigma codes) and make specific reference to stories on the homepage.

Lifestyle section

Now analyse the Lifestyle section of the Voice and answer the following:

1) What are the items in the sub-menu bar for the Lifestyle section and what does this suggest about the Voice audience?

-Food Caribbean recipes, Fostering and adoption, Female- feminism, Travel, Competition, Relationships

2) What are the main stories in the Lifestyle section currently?

-Will Smith opens up about relationship with eldest son

-Usain Bolt "I don't think London has proper Jamaican food"

-Why women's lives matter

3) How does the Lifestyle section of the Voice differ from Teen Vogue?

-This differs from The Voice as the main stories on this website's lifestyle section are more politically relevant

-Many of the stories are about the achievements of black individuals

4) Do the sections and stories in the Voice Lifestyle section challenge or reinforce black stereotypes in British media?

-Many of the stories highlight a sense of 'black excellence', as they revolve around achievements of black individuals in the community. This challenges black stereotype in British media, as it shows that they are incredibly academic, smart, and successful compared to the 'thugs' and criminals British media typically shows black people to be.

Feature focus

1) Read this Voice Lifestyle feature on the first black photographer to shoot the cover of Vogue magazine. Why would this appeal to the Voice’s audience?

The photographer- is from South West London, so as well as being black, she is also local which would appeal more to the audience. The article also highlights female success, which appeals to the feminist values of the Voice audience.

2) Read/watch this Lifestyle interview with The Hate U Give star Amandla Stenberg. How does the interview reflect the values and ideologies of the Voice? What do you notice about the production values of the interview?

3) Read this feature on ‘buying black’ for Black Friday. What does this feature tell you about the values and ideologies behind the Voice? Does this viewpoint reflect Gilroy’s theory of the ‘Black Atlantic’ identity?

Audience

1) Who do you think is the target audience for the Voice website? Consider demographics and psychographics.

- Afro Caribbean, 30+, C2/DE

- Aspirers

2) What audience pleasures are provided by the Voice website? Apply media theory here such as Blumler and Katz (Uses & Gratifications).

-Personal identity (as a reflection through the positive, more realistic media)
-Personal relationships (a community)
-Surveillance (on black media, news, achievements, etc)

3) Give examples of content from the website that tells you this is aimed at a specialised or niche audience.

-Wind rush: three people wrongly removed flown back to UK
-Caribbean news: Coral reefs, hurricane troops + more
-Young Authors Spotlight Black Heroes
-Helping the faithful find an approach to healthy eating

 Studying the themes of politics, history and racism that feature in some of the Voice’s content, why might this resonate with the Voice’s British target audience?

 Can you find any examples of content on the Voice website created or driven by the audience or citizen journalism? How does this reflect Clay Shirky’s work on the ‘end of audience’ and the era of ‘mass amateurisation’?

Representations

1) How is the audience positioned to respond to representations in the Voice website?
They are meant to respond to issues affecting the black community as a whole not just on individuality.

2) Are representations in the Voice an example of Gilroy’s concept of “double consciousness” NOT applying?
I feel like the concept is being applied which is why stories like this and the newspaper itself exists - it wants to guide the target audience in a certain way.

3) What kind of black British identity is promoted on the Voice website? Can you find any examples of Gilroy’s “liquidity of culture” or “unruly multiculturalism” here?

The whole community progressing while also facing challenges.

4) Applying Stuart Hall’s constructivist approach to representations, how might different audiences interpret the representations of black Britons in the Voice?
Trying to educate those in the community of that challenges they face, how they can help themselves and how they are being helped.

5) Do you notice any other interesting representations in the Voice website? For example, representations or people, places or groups (e.g. gender, age, Britishness, other countries etc.)
Focus on news in the Caribbean, stories on the decriminalisation of marijuana, but they do have a focus worldwide on issues affecting black people.

Industries

1) Read this Guardian report on the death of the original founder of the Voice. What does this tell you about the original values and ideologies behind the Voice brand? 

2) Read this history of the Voice’s rivals and the struggles the Voice faced back in 2001. What issues raised in the article are still relevant today? 

3) The Voice is now published by GV Media Group, a subsidiary of the Jamaican Gleaner company. What other media brands do the Gleaner company own and why might they be interested in owning the Voice? 

Western Focus, The Flair Magazine, The Financial Gleaner.

4) How does the Voice website make money?

They sell space on their website to promoters who need the advertising space.

5) What adverts or promotions can you find on the Voice website? Are the adverts based on the user’s ‘cookies’ or fixed adverts? What do these adverts tell you about the level of technology and sophistication of the Voice’s website?

Fixed adverts, the fact that they don't use the consumer data to create specific/personalised advertisements suggests that the Voice are unable to operate at a technology level that high.

6) Is there an element of public service to the Voice’s role in British media or is it simply a vehicle to make profit?

Means of giving those in the black community a platform to express themselves and be represented through.

7) What examples of technological convergence can you find on the Voice website – e.g. video or audio content?

Offered with different influencers.

8) How has the growth of digital distribution through the internet changed the potential for niche products like the Voice?

I think this is because people are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of gaining an insight on multiple points of view.

9) Analyse the Voice’s Twitter feed. How does this contrast with other Twitter feeds you have studied (such as MailOnline or Teen Vogue)? Are there examples of ‘clickbait’ or does the Voice have a different feel?

Does have a lot less text in the actual tweets - very image/video based

10) Study a selection of videos from the Voice’s YouTube channel. How does this content differ from Teen Vogue? What are the production values of their video content?

Lower quality compared to the videos of Teen Vogue and Receive a fewer views.