Television

Television seems to be the first choice among the various mass media. The average Briton spends 28 hours a week watching what he or she calls ‘the box’, ‘the telly’ or ‘the TV’.

There are four main TV channels in Britain. BBC1 and BBC2 are broadcast by the BBC without any advertising. Independent television consists of two channels: ITV and Channel 4, which carry advertisements. There are also two satellite TV channels (SKY and BSB), and several small cable networks.

ITV has a regional network – each region is run by a different company, so many television programmes may differ from region to region. ITV gets its money from advertisers who pay to show films advertising their goods between programmes and during breaks in programmes – ‘commercial breaks’, as they are called. The time allowed for commercial breaks is not more than six minutes in an hour.

There is a choice between four TV programmes:

BBC1 and BBC2 (which are broadcast by the BBC without any advertising);

ITV and Channel 4 (which carry advertisements).

Radio

Almost all households in Britain have at least one radio set; most have more than one. The TV licence includes radio and is paid each year.

The BBC has five national radio stations. They all broadcast news bulletins.

There are also many commercial radio stations, which mostly broadcast pop music. Each of the national BBC radio stations specializes in a particular type of programme.

Дата добавления: 2015-07-20