Introduction to policy as a critical concept and managerial tool

2.3 Introduction to policy as a critical concept and managerial tool

In contrast to textual methods of studying films and television programmes,

e.g. mise en scene or semiotics, which draw out an analysis from what is seen on the screen, policy can be loosely grouped with contextual methods of study. The approach of these three chapters is to look at the relationship between media policy, film and television texts. This is illustrated in Figure 2.1.

Political, economic, cultural determinants

Media policy

Media institutions

Media texts

Figure 2.1 The relationship between media policy, film and television texts.

Thus, analysis of the media text should reveal both the influence of media policy and the political, economic and cultural factors which shape it, rather than, for example, the director’s intentions or its links with other films within

a genre. The policy line can be traced back from the film or television programme to the institution that produced it (e.g. film company, broadcaster or independent). From there, we can consider the influence of

Managing in the Media

media policy upon the institution (e.g. PSB charter, film funding policy), and finally relate this policy to the political system and economic, political and cultural factors which shaped that policy.

As a simple example, we could consider the popular television drama series, Minder . A detailed background is given to the production company, Euston Films, in Manuel Alvarado and John Stewart’s book, Made for Television: Euston Films Limited – regrettably, there have been few studies which are so detailed since. In the first chapter, Alvarado and Stewart explain how Euston

Films came into existence 1 . Thames set up a film production company mainly in order to increase overseas sales and improve earnings because of the tax structure for ITV’s profits in the 1970s. This limited earnings within the UK, because if advertising revenue grew too great it was largely paid over to the government in tax. Thus, the taxation policy and the intention of limiting the growth of ITV audiences led to a very particular group of programmes being made in the late 1970s and early 1980s, i.e. produced on film so that they could earn money from overseas sales and so that contractual conditions of service from the film industry rather than television could be utilised.

We can trace a policy ‘line’ from broadcasting policy through to Euston Films and, finally, Minder. This would lead to very different conclusions about the production techniques, largely based on low-budget feature film practice, than we might deduce from an analysis of the programme alone. For example, the use of dialogue recorded on location, with little improvement in post-production, might be perceived as an attempt to make the series as naturalistic as possible – appearing to be really taking place on the streets of

London. However, as Michael Winterbottom explains 2 in the same study, the lack of post-synchronisation of dialogue is also a product of the production cycle for the series; determined very much by the budget and hence restricted schedule.