Maltby, Sarah (2013) Broadcasting graphic war violence: the moral face of Channel 4. Journalism, 15 (3). pp. 289-306. ISSN 1464-8849

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Abstract

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.

Item Type:	Article
Schools and Departments:	School of Media, Film and Music > Media and Film
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > H Social Sciences (General) P Language and Literature > P Philology. Linguistics > P0087 Communication. Mass media
Depositing User:	Sarah Maltby
Date Deposited:	17 Sep 2013 08:30
Last Modified:	03 Jul 2019 01:09
URI:	http://sro.sussex.ac.uk/id/eprint/46285

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