Communication and Media: Home Town Media Project Research Paper

Overview of hometown Market

Fulda is a town full of traditional activities; it is situated in the middle of Germany and lies between Hamburg to the north, Cologne to the west, Dresden to the east, and Munich to the south. There is an exemplary infrastructure in this area; this is because of its central location at the heart of Germany. The well-organized rail and road connection makes it easy for the market to be accessed.

During holidays, there are a large number of people from all walks of life visiting Fulda; the visitors enjoy watching trumpeters in their historic costumes, breath-sweet aromas of roasted almonds, and glühwein. The existence of Rhine-Main International Airport and a good infrastructure network around the area make it easy to access the Fulda market.

History of the medium in my local market

As a traditional place likened by many, Fulda is a place where people largely enjoy watching television and listening to the radio. There are two Public Broadcasting Corporations in Germany; the ARD & ZDF. The reputable ARD was launched in 1954 to serve more than eleven regional television and radio stations. ARD has more than 30,000 employees, and above US$ 9 billion is in its annual budget (Kansteiner 345).

In LLC Books, The other second decent Broadcasting Corporation is the ZDF, which is a single conglomerate that was established in the year 1961. All Land Corporation is the third broadcasting channel in Germany; its mandate is to broadcast Education and Cultural programs. Privately owned Television channels are so many in the region; serving a population in the best interest (23)

Market definition by Television in Fulda

As a town located in the central part of Germany, Fulda lies between Hamburg (Northern Part), Cologne (Western side), Dresden (Eastern area), and Munich (Southern division). Television and Radio Broadcasting corporations provide entertainment, news, and political views of the country. Several college students like watching some night programs as this is the best time for them because, during the day, they are full of classwork.

Recent survey conducted by Council of Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) conveys that; 76 per cent of Western Germans and 87 per cent of Eastern Germans like watching night programs. Asked about whether television is the place of political views; 72 per cent admitted, while 27 per cent said newspaper provides wide range of political views, making the television industry more likened in Germany (McDowell 234).

There is a wide range of people served by television media in the area. There is a total population of above 1 million household in Fulda, owning television and radio. Commercial and private corporations own the media channels. SAT-1, a private television offers diverse entertainment and news in the region. A drop in the number of people watching public channels has been experienced. However, private channels always perform better in their daily endeavors.

Philosophy of the Television outlet and how it serves the market

The Broadcasting Corporations in the land are well structured. To serve the market in an organized manner, there are stipulated laws that the Media must abide by. The broadcasting council governs daily operations of these channels. For an easy endeavor in its daily operations, the broadcasting council consists of different representatives; from business organizations, the church, unions, and economics, social, cultural, and political groups.

In Turow, advertisements serve as a major contributor of financing the broadcasting corporations in the region. As a principle, commercial advertisement ends at 8pm everyday, and should not take more than thirty minutes in a day on public televisions. As at 1994, television and radio owners were subjected to a monthly household subscription amount of DM23.80 (123).

The television and radio broadcasting corporation in Germany is done in a decentralized manner as provided by basic law. The decentralization idea is to avoid any would be “abuse” by a strong government. For instance, the one witnessed under dictatorship of Nazi rule, which nearly killed the industry’s already booming sector.

There are a lot of events that the television brings to the people; the young and the old are subjected to viewing programs that interest them in real time. Programs that offer different teachings; culture, politics, economics and business are of increase in the area play. Several college students are lectured via the use of television medium (Chaplin 98).

However, there are some soap opera that kids below the age of 14 are not allowed to watch; because the soap operas run up to late hours in the night and may make the students not to attend classes in time, these programs are also composed of obscene plays and strong languages which kids are not allowed to see. In these cases parental guidance is always advised.

Size of the physical plant and the staff of the outlet

Physical offices and the main offices are in the town of Fulda. Good security and the commercial nature of Fulda town make it an extremely perfect location for the plant. The land where the plant is built is not wide because of the concept of IT whereby all operations in the organization is based on modern technology. Modern technology helps in enhancing quality and efficiency of services.

The television media structure at Fulda is simple; comprising of a limited number of employees. Precisely, the media industry comprises of 50,000 to 120,000 employees; seven executive officers, two directors and other managers. There is a team of competent technicians and all rounded News Anchors, with good looking, energetic news reporters. All employees work in an organized manner and to the best of their abilities to bring to be the best in the industry.

In Fulda, all sexes are presented in the media. Women are not left behind and they flock the Television industry. Television Industry at Fulda has approximately 44% female workers.people with disabilities in the TV industry is quite low with a percentage of approximately 4.9% individuals, considering themselves as disabled as stipulated by the people with disabilities act (PWDA).

The long-term goals of the outlet

A number of strategies have been formulated to ensure effective competitiveness of the television media in reference to other competitors in the industry. The most outstanding strategy for luring the attention of the viewers is the adoption of competitive and flexible programs likened by many people. There is an overwhelming desire for the television industry to be the market leader in news provision, program lineup, and the best soap operas. In this respect, the media has an aim of increasing its services and ensuring that viewers can watch their channels in all corners of the globe.

Basically, the media has a dream of establishing over 1.5 million all the time viewers of programs, news, and advertisements. This number is expected to double to 3 million at the end of the 5^th year of operation. With this statistics, the outcome will be high revenue to the television media. Employees are expected to double after four years; this would make daily operations to be efficient and reliable given the number of the workforce.

The issue of modern forms of advertisement and organizational communication will be optimally utilized. Television media will be focused in ensuring adoption of the most advanced technology in its operations. Precisely, the website designs and television development will be highly sophisticated to ensure they are appealing among the customers, viewers, and the advertisement agencies. Internet and media advertisement will also be adopted in popularizing the television as well as its services.

Efficiency and quality will be achieved through ensuring recruitment of the most competent employees. In addition, adoption of sophisticated IT infrastructure is also potential of enhancing quality and efficiency in provision of services.

The broadcasting cooperation in Germany has also employed several tactics in making the television industry more appealing to the people at large by creating high awareness campaigns for the television network and by demonstrations. There is the introduction of Low CPM (advertisement cost) for the television in the town of Fulda. This has impacted in creating many desire in the people thus making the television much more appealing to people.

Challenges to the outlet

Basically, broadcasting corporation in Germany has its weaknesses and threats while in operation. There are increasing rivals to the television media in the area; these are competitors posing threats to the industry. A localized published newspaper- Abendzeitung (AZ) appeals to the intellectuals of the society. This paper has over 400,000 readers per week, the readers appreciates the politics, and news provided by the paper. Unlike the televisions, it is convenient for many readers to retrieve the paper in the internet (Peevers 34).

Financing of the media in a proper manner is a constraint in the area; operation of the media requires a lot of financing. The Industry has limited capital endowment which may compromise the quality of facilities and human resources to be recruited in the organization. Programs that are shown in the media are sometimes of low quality; they possibly might not satisfy the viewers. Different people have different tastes. Thus, some programs might not appeal to them. Some news that television channels broadcasts is ever on crimes, deaths, and disasters. Such information brings grief rather than harmonize situations; cultivating the culture of fear in the communities (Sterling & Abramson 140).

According to Marc & Thompson, some information provided by the media may be misleading; the government and some powerful groups may influence the way that news are shown in the channels; they could derail Media houses to provide wrong and misleading information by offering bribes so the news favors them, and provide information that might bring conflict in the society, as well as threaten or close down channels that might not support them. The television industry in Fulda is a major entertainment and social equipment. Since there has been a decline in revenue, the effectiveness and maturity is declining and the advertisement costs which should be declining is rising quite fast as recent stories show (342).

A research also stated that some viewers are opting for the online material rather than especially those ages between 17-28 years and it is said that if this continues the future for the television media is at risk.

Hometown Media Project

Library Research Questions

1. The size of the media market where my hometown is located. There are approximately 10 television markets in Fulda town. The number of households that own television is high as 300,000 people. There is an increasing trend in owning televisions in the area.
2. The demographics. The number of people is above 2 million. Many of them own televisions in their homes. There is a figure of 300,000 households that own televisions; those who are between the ages of 0-14 are 12%, between 15-60 years are 64%, and above 65 years old are 22%. Parents having kids of between 0-14 years are advised to guide them on what channels to view, and make them understand what certain programs entail. Many of the age group of 15-60 years consists of; college students, those in the workforce, and those who are preparing to retire. They are the ones that dominate the media industry; by watching news, entertainment, and they follow programs of their desires.
3. What is the base income of your hometown or county? What is the industrial or economic base? The base income in Germany is approximately $ 36,000; this creates a good base for income because everyone is able to afford Television. Total population of the country is 81.8 million people, with a land area of 357,021 square kilometers. There is a significantly high standard of living in the country. Well organized workforce is in place with good social security system.
4. How many newspapers, radio and television stations claim your hometown? There is above 20 newspaper companies, and approximately 10 television channels in my area.
5. How many advertising agencies? Advertising agencies have the trend of increasing in the area. Currently, the number of these agencies is above 15.
6. How many theatres? The total number of theatres is 12.
7. How many bookstores? There are several bookstores; approximately 23 are in the area.
8. What makes your hometown unique?
   1. as a place to live. The atmosphere is noise free. People are friendly and able to assist in unexpected circumstances. During holidays, there are a large number of people from all walks of life visiting Fulda; they enjoy watching trumpeters in their historic costumes, breath-sweet aromas of roasted almonds and glühwein.
   2. as a media market. The town is full of television programs that appeals to a large number of people; there are programs on culture, education, politics, and business. Having a well organized rail and road connection makes it easy for the market to be accessed.
9. Who owns the mass communication outlets in your hometown? The mass communication is largely owned by private investors, the government has only two media; one is the state owned television and the other is the channel that they use as an educational and information tool.
10. Who should you contact for your interview?

Manager of television media would be useful for an interview and should be ready to share with me critical information. This would help me to ascertain the truth of media in my hometown.

Works Cited

Chaplin, Tamara. Turning on the mind: French philosophers on television. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2007.

Kansteiner, Wulf. In pursuit of German memory: history, television, and politics after Auschwitz.USA: Ohio University Press, 2006.

LLC, Books. Television in Germany: Television in Germany, History of Television in Germany, Discovery Networks. Berlin: General Books LLC, 2010.

Marc, David & Thompson, Robert. Television in the antenna age: a concise history. New York: Wiley-Blackwell, 2005.

McDowell, Walter. Broadcast television: a complete guide to the industry. London: Peter Lang, 2006.

Peevers, Andrea. Germany. Berlin: Lonely Planet, 2007.

Sterling, Christopher & Abramson, Albert. The History of Television, 1942 to 2000. New York: McFarland, 2007.

Turow, Joseph. Media Today: An Introduction to Mass Communication. Chicago: Taylor & Francis, 2008.