LO4: Evaluation of radio show

Evaluation of the show:


I feel that the radio show is very in keeping with the breif we were given as well as targeting out audience in an effective way. This can be seen when each of the three sections is analysed individually as that each is slightly different. 

Section 1) News section: 

The first full section for our show was the News section which I was in charge of writing. In order to make sure that each of the four stories that I presented was accurate I made sure to get information for all of them from several different sources as not to broadcast any untrue information which may be effected by political bias or gatekeeping. 
The stories that I chose to cover were also all very focused on the local area a to fit the brief well and I included the story about the upcoming Artic Mokeys album as to further reach our show's goal of being a music focused project which I feel was appropriate as that the Artic Mokeys are from the Sheffield area which again fits with the local theme. 

Section 2)  Sports section:  

The sports section was a difficult one for us to decide on as a group regarding its focus. In the end when Matt was writing it we had told him to take a more general approach to sport as that it is not a subject that can be fully presented as Sheffield based. I feel like this section strongly adheres to the codes and conventions of a sports section on a regular radio show.
Again Matt made sure to check multiple sources for the stories he chose to cover which makes the news presented trustworthy and accurate.

Section 3) Discussion section:

The discussion section was a more creative idea for our show so it was more difficult for us to understand the codes and conventions that radio shows would have built up if a talking section of this nature been commonplace. I stead of this we needed to rely on the norm for shorter discussion sections which can be found on radio talk shows and decided that the topic of "housemate horror Stories" was appropriate as that it fitted the target audience well. As that housemates are a large part of living in university and many students will find the idea of having a poor roommate quite relatable. 

Use Of Music: 

I feel that the use of music in our show is one of the most professional parts of its production as that it compliments our target audience very well. This can be seen in our choice of songs ("Feel it still", "fluorescent Adolescent" and "She's electric")  which are all songs which fit into the genres of Alternative rock and Indie rock and therefore will bring enjoyment to our choice of demographic. 


As well as what I have written above I feel that the show flows very well as that I have made sure to order it in such a way that the sections are ordered in such a way  that it fits with the nature of a typically ordered script.

Frazer

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Evaluation - 
I feel that the radio well fitted the intentions set out in the brief, whilst also directly and effectively appealing to the intended target audience. This is consistent through each sections of the show.

Strengths - 

From reviewing the radio show there are several strengths of our show. One main strength to the show would be how It follows the codes and conventions well. Commonly, radio talk shows are hosted in the morning and involve news, discussion topics and music. All of which are present throughout our show. Other clear conventions would be the use of sound, jingles are used to introduce the show and again throughout. This is beneficial as it clearly identifies the show and gives the SCC radio brand a more memorable image in the listeners mind. Another strength of the show is the diversity, we have created a talk show that has radio hosts of both genders. This is a positive because it is inclusive and this translates to the audience as they are able to identify an ideal self/ideal partner from the radio hosts. By doing this, our audience can relate to the hosts within the show. This is important because radio talk shows are about making the audience feel connected to the hosts. This is also important when creating a brand as the personalities of the hosts become the audience’s favourites as they buy into their personalities.

Weaknesses -

Within our radio show potential weaknesses could be seen in the sport segment. This section features little about local sporting events or teams which would be better suited to the genre of a local radio show. It could also be perceived that the back and forth between the presenters could be improved in this section by involving an interview with a sporting personality to better the flow, or alternatively source different presenters whom specialise in the sports etc, to make for a more natural dialogue which would keep the listeners engaged throughout. 

Evaluation - Audio Levels & Changes and Amendments

To produce the edit a combination of garage band and Adobe Audition was used. Initially, in the studio, garage band was used to capture the audio and produce the first rough edit. This was used as it allowed us to quickly and easily record the audio directly to the Imac whilst simulatenusly allowing us to add basic effects and adjusemntts to the audio/ voices. Once recorded, the raw offline edit was exported then imported into Adobe Audition. This was chosen to do so as it offered for a greater degree of editing capabilites, this is also a reason why it is the industry standard across audio and radio production, again making for another reason why we chopse this software to produce the show.

Audio Interface // Studio Setup // Adobe Audition Edit

Throughout the whole procces of both recording and editing the show the key aspect which had to be taken into consideration was the audio levels at each stage of production. In order to have clean audio that did not peak or distort or neither be too quiet the levels had to be adjusted acordingly. When recording on the Focusrite interface, the input gain for the mic being used to record the show was set ot around -12db. This ensured that all the auido recorded would have a very slim chance of peaking and ultimetely distorting due to the extreme loudness at parts of the show/ script, this allowed for a proffesional sounding and clean audio recording which could be later edited. In post production the audio levels were again adjusted, this time the levels were increased to around -3db which made the radio presenters loud and clear, with no peaking or distortion due to initallt recording at -12db. However, due to there beign three different presenters, naturally there a diffrences in volume and pitch etc. Therefore, once i had ran through the whole show and condesed it down to the key talking pointst by cutting all the excces using the cut tool, the presenters track was selcted and then 'match clip loudness' was selceted. This meant Audtion went through each clip and automatically adjusted them so the volume was consitent throughout. A similar process was also done to the music track and bedding music track, however to a lower level in order for the bed music to not over power the voices of the presenters but agian still keep it consitent. Other changes which had to be done to the levels included keyframing audio levels. This meant applying keyframes at key points and either lowering or higherign the levels, which resulted in the audio smoothly transitioning in audio levels, this was used for example when the music was introduced on top of the presenters and i wanted to smooth transition into oneanother as seen throughout proffesional radio shows, which often feature very few abrupt cuts to music. This is evidenced below. Final changes to the levesl including adding cross fades to certain segemnts to smoothly round of the piece and finally selecting all tracks of the multitrack session and mastering it all to -1db. 

Matching Clip Loudness // Keyframing levels

Throughout the production of the show there were also several changes and amendments made to the piece. Most noticeably, I had to re record the radio advert. The first draft of the advert was noted to be not very enthusiastic with the audio being slightly distorted also. Therefore, I rerecorded the audio using different settings and editing techniques, this resulted in a clearer, more pronounced and enthusiastic radio ad which suited the energetic and lively scene of the club being advertised.  In addition to this, bedding music was also added after the first draft however it was noted this was too loud in certain places which resulted in the presenters being over powered. As a result I reduced the volume further to subtly give a background to the presenters. All these changes allowed for a consistent radio show across the whole ten minute duration, with the choice of software making it achievable. The funcionalties of Adobe Auidtion greatly improved the production of the show, with its abilties to edit as part of a mulittrack session meaing i could easily sepreate out each element of the show on its own indicudal track for an easy workflow and key alterations to gain etc. Another benfit to using this software opoosed to simpler more basic softwares would be the effects anf functioanlity of the software. Audition provied inudstry standard presets and effects all with full customizabiltyiy, one succ example would be the echoe effect used on some of the sound effects of the show. As a whole this allowed us to record, produce and export a show which mimics the traits and conventions of a professional radio talk show.

Oliver

LO4: Producing the radio show

Equipment Setup: Oliver

Recording audio:

Frazer: It was my job to speak for a section of the radio show. 

Evidencing editing:

Pictured above is the final edit for the radio show, this involves the presenters audio, bedding music, sound effects, adverts, jingles and music. All of which was organised onto individual lablede tracks to making editing easier and clearer.  

Throughout the production a variety of changes and effects were added in order to produce the final professional radio show.

Pictured above can be seen all the assets used as part of the radio show. This involved: three separate bedding tracks, presenters audio, music tracks (No Scrubs, Feel it still, Fluorescent adolescent), radio jingle, The Leadmill advert, big ben bong, news jingle, DJ scratches and radio static for transitions.

Evidenced above can be seen the use of the echo effect. This was added in order to provide a smooth transition between audio clips. This is because by introducing a echo, it removes the usual harsh and abrupt finish and allows the audio to fade out cleanly, making for a more professional show. In addition to this, it can also be seen to make aspects of the show more dramatic and draw attention to them.

Seen above is examples of how i adjusted the levels to transition between the different elements and tracks of the radio show. The volume key frames are represented by the yellow line. As seen the music bed track volume was lowered to provide a subtle background to the audio of the presenters. Key frames were also added to fade out the bed music as the song is introduced. In order to smoothly introduce the song a cross fade was used in addition to lowering the volume, the volume was then dramatically introduced once the song was introduced by the presenter, as represent by the steep line. This is synonymous with the style of most other radio shows of a similar genre. 

In order to ensure the volume of the radio show is consistent throughout as seen on all professional radio shows, once the final edit was finalised all the clips were selected and the "match clip loudness" was selected this ensured none of the audio peaked and was all consistent throughout.

Throughout the edit various roles were undertaken by different team members. The radio jingle was recorded and edited by Charlotte, with Matt and Frazer producing the initial offline edit, and myself editing all components together into the final radio show.

From feedback from peers and self assessment it was decided that a few changes would be made. This involved re-recording the radio advert in order to get clearer audio which was then edited into a new version of the advert. In addition to this, from feedback it was noted that the levels of the bed music was marginally to loud in places. Subsequently, using the key frames i lowered the gain of the clip in certain places to make the audio of the presenters clearer and more defined/ not overpowered.

Linked below is the finished product:

LO3: Legal and Ethical Issues associated with planned show

When creating a radio programme it Is of up most important to make sure that the content complies with several law that are enforced heavily in the UK

Legal consideration one: The Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988: 

This law, brought into force in the late 1980s protects the trademarked products of companies so that other people or companies cannot create similar products that may mislead audiences and cause the original creator to lose revenue. The law carries harsh penalties with people who violating it facing orders to had over all profits of the copied products as well as a maximum sentence of 6 months in prison and an unlimited fine.
In order to make sure that my radio show doesn't violate copyright law I will make sure that it doesn't contain any licensed assets (logos, slogans or names.)

Legal consideration two: Slander (Defamation act 2013)

Slander is a law which protects the reputations of people against broadcasted falsehood. It is a very important law as that without it people would be allowed to state untrue information about people which could have devastating effects on their livelihoods and mental health. A famous example of people who sued for being slandered you;d be the 2017 case of the Country of Ireland suing the independent magazine for making untrue allegations about it's employees.
In accordance to this law I will make sure that the show does not

Legal consideration 3: Data protection (data protection act 1998)

Data protection is of vital importance when creating a media product which will be distributed to a large amount of people as that it involves the handling of peoples personal information. For example under this law it would likely have to be stated somewhere in the advertisement for a call in that the caller is allowing their first name to be used on air however it is unacceptable for the host to then state the callers personal phone number, race, religious background, address or sexual orientation on air as that that isomer information than a person may feel comfortable having shared with a large amount of people.

Ethical issue one: Representation: 

My task is to create a local radio show In Sheffield which Is a multi cultural environment. For this reason we should create a show which represents the many different genders, ethnicity and religious beliefs that make up this city. We will make sure, for this reason, that the show contains the voices and opinions of many different types of people and will also not convey any negative stereotypes about a group of people.

OFcom: 
The UK Office of communications or OFcom is the major regulatory body for all shows that are broadcast on publicly accessible radio services. It is therefore very important that while we are writing, recording and Editing SCC radio that we adhere the regulations that they have put in place in order to make sure that our show is acceptable to be shown to a UK audience.

LO3: Codes and Conventions of Genre of planned show

LO3 Codes and Conventions of Genre of planned show (Matt Frost)

The codes and conventions of a breakfast show is to be very up beat in the approach and the presenters
should aim to communicate this and enforce the ideal partner/ideal self. The show must be light
hearted and not to be to hard hitting or serious as it is first thing in the morning (however the news
section must be fully candid) and people want to be motivated. In my lo 1 research i noticed that allot of 
radio shows have funny talking segments which are based on everyday life i.e. dating etc. The breakfast 
shows will also always play music to get their listeners motivated. I also noticed that they often have 
listener call in for prizes or song choices, this helps to get the audience involved in the show. 
I have also noticed that in the conventions of a talk show there is a great deal of back and forth 
between the presenters, which keeps the audience engaged and listening it also allows for anecdotes and 
content to be communicated seamlessly.

How our planned ideas reflect these codes and conventions

By looking at the running order of our planned script you can see, our planned idea reflects the codes and conventions as we planned our radio show so that we were not having hard hitting content in our discussion section and we have put music at the begging of our show and will motivate people to get out of bed. We have then altered our running order so that the sport section came up before the news section to ease our listeners into the News section, which may be more hard hitting. We have also included a 'Topical discussion section, which allows us to fill our show with anecdotes and stories, which can be sent in by listeners and our listeners will find them relatable.