Codes and Conventions of Newspaper Advertisements

Channel 4 Newspaper Adverts


Disarming Britain

http://4creative.frankiandjonny.com/flash/#/print/press_and_poster/disarming_britain_1
This advert has used urban colours such as greys and blacks to give the show an urban feel and the fact that it is called Disarming Britain suggests that it will be violent so these simple, dark colours relate well. The Channel 4 logo has been coloured red for the advert because of the connotations that red suggests , blood, anger and violence. This makes the audience think that these will be key themes in the programme. The image includes teenagers which have been made to look like yobs, creating a stereotype in the audience's head that can be linked to the programme. The 'Teenage Yob' is wearing a golden chain which can again be linked to another stereotype at first glance of the yob or chav groups. The other male in the poster is using his fingers to create a gestural gun linking to the title, as he has been disarmed.

China's Stolen Children

http://4creative.frankiandjonny.com/flash/#/print/press_and_poster/chinas_stolen_children_48_sheet
This print advert uses an image of the Great Wall of China to display images of missing or stolen children in China. This image straight away shows the audience the great scale of the situation as the wall is huge and is shown right into the background of the image, not just a close up. The red logo and coloured box of where the title and scheduling goes is used because red is a colour which appears in the Chinese flag and it is a colour which is considered to be lucky for the Chinese. Also, the documentary is being shown on the 8th of October and the number 8 is also seen as being lucky in China. With the logo being red, it makes it stand out against the dull and gloomy colours of the image in the background so that the audience know straight away that the documentary is on Channel 4. The boxed in text also has the same effect, drawing the audience in to the title and scheduling with the logo as well and this then makes them look at the image which catches their thoughts.


Sven: The Coach, The Cash And His Lovers

http://4creative.frankiandjonny.com/flash/#/print/press_and_poster/sven_1
This image on the poster has Sven Goran Eriksson in the centre as he is the main focus for the documentary. After noticing Sven first because of the lighting on him focusing our initial attention to him, we see that other England players are surrounding him in a steamy bath. The steam can show that there will be some excitement in the documentary, as the title suggests. The More 4 logo is again on the right hand side and has stuck to its usual green colour because this stands out against the background anyway as the background is has a misty grey kind of colour to it. All of the font on the More 4 advert is in capital letters to show that it is all of the same importance and that the name and scheduling are all equal because you need to know them all to begin to watch the documentary.

Iraq: The Bloody Circus

http://4creative.frankiandjonny.com/flash/#/print/press_and_poster/iraq_week_a
The print advert for this documentary has used dark grim colours to create a sombre mood that relates to the Iraq war. These dark colours are highlighted by the two soldiers' costumes. They are dressed as clowns to link with the 'Circus' in the title which could suggest that some people think the Iraq war is a joke. One of the clowns is wearing a bright blue wig and the other is wearing a bright green wig which matches the colour of the More 4 logo, making it stand out more than anything else on the advert. In between the two clowns is one injured soldier. This represents the 'Bloody' in the title of the documentary and the serious side of it.

Codes and Conventions in Channel 4 Newspaper Advertisements
All of the adverts are branded with the channel's logo on the right hand side of the advert so it is the last thing that the audience will see before they turn the page, being the thing that they remember the most so even if they do not remember the name of the show, they will remember the channel so they can find out the name. The advert encapsulates the documentary with one exciting enigmatic image, leaving questions to be answered as well as creating questions about the documentary. The images do not give away a lot about the narrative to the programme but give one essential piece of information which can be read from the one image. All of the above analysed print adverts contain the required information that is needed for the audience to be able to watch the documentary, these are the name of the documentary, date and the time. Another advert which does not stick to these conventions is the Disarming Britain one because it has no title, date or time, only a website for the audience to visit.