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Broadcasting graphic war violence: the moral face of Channel 4

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journal contribution
posted on 2023-06-08, 15:45 authored by Sarah MaltbySarah Maltby
Drawing on empirical data from Channel 4 (C4) regarding the broadcasting of violent war imagery, and positioned within Goffman’s notion of the interaction ritual (1959, 1967), this article investigates how C4 negotiate potentially competing commercial, regulatory and moral requirements through processes of discretionary decision-making. Throughout, the article considers the extent to which these negotiations are presented through a series of ‘imaginings’ – of C4 and its audience – which serve to simultaneously guide and legitimate the decisions made. This manifestation of imaginings moves us beyond more blanket explanations of ‘branding’ and instead allows us to see the final programmes as the end product of a series of complex negotiations and interactions between C4 and those multiple external parties significant to the workings of their organization. The insights gleaned from this case study are important beyond the workings of C4 because they help elucidate how all institutions and organizations may view, organize and justify their practices (to both themselves and others) within the perceived constraints in which they operate.

History

Publication status

  • Published

File Version

  • Accepted version

Journal

Journalism

ISSN

1464-8849

Publisher

SAGE Publications

Issue

3

Volume

15

Page range

289-306

Department affiliated with

  • Media and Film Publications

Full text available

  • Yes

Peer reviewed?

  • Yes

Legacy Posted Date

2013-09-17

First Open Access (FOA) Date

2014-07-09

First Compliant Deposit (FCD) Date

2014-07-09

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