Classifying Audiences Media diary Week 3

The Mainstream  is the one that tends to stick with the status quo, and their life choices are ‘we’ rather than ‘me’. They are the largest group in society and tend to stick with well known brands for the safety of family. Their core need in life is security.The media text I would use pick for the mainstream would be ‘Game of Thrones’ , this would be ideal as it is a programme that a lot of people in society are familiar with therefore by watching this they can feel secure and part of society.

The Aspirer is a group of materialistic, acquisitive people who are driven by others perceptions of them rather than by their own values. They tend to have a superficial image , appearance and have a high interest for subjects such as fashion. The media text I would pick would be ‘Cosmopolitan’ as the Aspirer is all about status . The cosmopolitan is a perfect magazine as it includes expensive clothing brands and health and beauty tips.

The Succeeder possesses self confidence, have strong goal orientation and tend to be very organised. They tend to seek out rewards ,such as high end brands as they feel that is what they deserve.However they also seek out safety in brands. Their core need in life is control. ‘The Apprentice’ would be an ideal TV programme for a Succeeder to watch as it involves a group of young businessmen and women all aiming to achieve the best in their jobs. But also includes Sir Alan Sugar who is a successful businessman.

The Explorer is driven by a need for discovery and challenges. They are often the first to try out new ideas and experiences. Brands they normally lean towards would be ones that offer different and new experiences such as 3D technology. One media text you could use for the explorer would be ‘The Mighty Boosh’. The show included unconventional characters and unrealistic settings. And also worked with live action the occasional animated scene and musical numbers. All together this would come across as an unusual show , attracting the explorer as it is something new to experience.

In ways I think that these categories are useful as they do clearly outline the differences between which type of group in society consumes a media text. For example the mainstream tend to stick to the films and TV shows that they have been watching for a long period if time for example , the Marvel superhero films and TV shows such as The X factor . This is proven as there is always a high rating for the amount of people who pay to see these films and and the people who choose to watch shows such as The X Factor.However a certain type of group could fit into another , for example, The Struggler will tend to stick with blockbuster films just like the Mainstream.

A programme currently on the TV now is ‘Doc Martin’ . The audience profile I think would be suited with this programme would be both male and female. The age group would be around mid 30’s and over. The ethnicity would be English as the programme include Irish , Scottish ,Welsh and English actors and actresses in it. The viewers for the programme will be spread over the UK and the class of viewers may vary form working class up to higher class.

The ideal lifestyle category for Game of Thrones would be Groupies as they want to be accepted by those around them, so if it means watching Game of Thrones to be accepted that is what the will do , but also it could be Trendies as they are desperate to have the admiration of their peer group. The lifestyle category for Cosmopolitan would be Egoists as the are mainly concerned about getting the most out of their lives , for example the best clothing brands and beauty tips. For ‘The Apprentice’ I would say that they group would be cowboys as they want to make money quick and easy , innovators as they want to make their mark on the world but also Utopians as they want to make the world a better place. ‘The Mighty Boosh’ audience for me would be Drifters as they are not sure what they want so they tend to explore new media and brands. Lastly the ideal lifestyle category for ‘Doc Martin’ would be Traditionalists as they want everything to stay the same, the reason I chose this was because the show has been on the TV for a while, but the audience could also include Trendies.