The times newspaper

• The times is a British national quality newspaper
• First published 1785
• Can be referred to as a broadsheet
• Published by Times newspaper since 1981,a subsidiary of New UK which is wholly owned by new corp
• The company also publishes the Sunday Times ,the sun,the sun on Sunday and until recently the news of the world
• Politically it adopts a more neutral stance position compared to the explicit political allegiance of the tabloid press
• Does have a right wing allegiance, supports the Conservative party at key times such as when there is a general election
• The times is famous for having a range of journalist with a varied political viewpoint which allows the newspaper to offer a more neutral and balanced political stand on some issues
• Set edition published Feb 1 2022
• The article focuses on the report into the investigation into parties held at downing Street while the country was under lockdown restricitions
• Political context - this edition of the newspaper deals with the scandal surrounding allegations regarding parties and social gatherings held by the conservatives party at a time when it's leaders had enforced strict restrictions on the people of England that prohibited such gathering
• Political context - this story was first reported in Nov 2021 and alleged that during lockdown Christmas of 2020 parties had been held at downing Street, some of which had been attended by pm Boris Johnson .This led to an inquiry being undertaken by senior civil servant sue gray the results of which were published in Jan 2022
• Political context - On the date this edition was published ,Boris was due to give a statement to the commons about what had happened .It was reported in the newspaper that sue gray had revealed that the metropolitan police were investigating breeches of lockdown by N10 and Boris Johnson had refused calls for his resignation
• Social ,cultural context - All newspapers including times reflect the social and cultural context of thd time in which they are produced .The times largely targets a ABc1 demographic with cultural capital and an interest in news and analysis in detail. This demographic is targeted through the news values of the paper ,the selection of stories and how particular social groups and issues are represented
• Social and cultural context - The choice to focus on this particular story also rienforces a common theme for this newspaper to accurately present the news and its effect on society .Whilst it is not explicitly critical of the government on this front page this story cuts across political divides with many members of the Conservative party as well as Labour shocked by the revelations
• The newspaper plugs also reflects a cultural context with a lifestyle focus intended to broaden the appeal of the newspaper
• The page is split between political stories and a plug promoting times2 ,the lifestyle supplement of the paper which in this instance features an article on fitness and personal story about being bitten by a puppy
• Thd layout and design of the front page is conventional of this style of the broadsheet ,quality newspaper
• Text led rather then image led
• The time usually has an image which may be a standalone ,a main story ,a secondary story and a plug
• There is often an in the news section at the bottom of the page with jump lines linked to the main inside the stories
• The masthead is bold and recognisable effictively signifies the ideology of the paper suggesting that it reports and reflects upon issues of the times
• The typography chosen is strong and commands the front page
• The lion and unicorn are symbols appearing on the heraldic crest and the slogans dieu et Mon drift, God and my right dates to king Richard 1st .the fact that it remains unchanged by the newspaper suggests that they intend to reinforce their longevity and traditional values
• The headline police investigate pm's four lockdown parties is informative rather then dramatic and enigmatic. The same is true of the subheading "Gray criticism the leadership and drinking culture" However their is subtle, implicit criticims through the selection and the use of language e.g. including the number four and choosing the specific aspect of the report that comments on a drinking culture
• Similarly the pull quotes that accompany the central image are direct quotations from sue grayish report denoted by the large quotation mark to emphaise their importance. Positioning them in white on the black background gives them as prominence and means that they function as an anchor for the image of the pm
• The central image is a close up photograph of Boris with an indirect mode of address .His code of expression shows some trepidation of what is to come as he goes to the commons .The newspaper has selcted this photograph to suggest that he does have questions to answer whilst not explicltely criticising him
• The caption is long and gives information base on facts placing the photograph in a context rather than taking an active stance .This is a typical convention of this style of the newspaper
• The in the news section at the bottom of the page offers a brief summary of other content in the newspaper including a global aspect .The mode of address is formal
• Language ,mode of address used for the stories on the front page are formal
• The text is compact and detailed, subheadings aren't generally used to split up the stories into sections suggesting that the readers are comfortable with the detailed information and analysis
• Subheading the times verdict with jump lined to the analysis of the story on the inner pages establishing the newspaper as an opinion leader
• The plug is constructed differently using a bright colour pallete to differentiate between the serious and lighter elements of the newspaper content
• Meaning is dependent on pairs of oppositions the way these oppositions are used and resolved reflects the ideology of the newspaper
• The time demonstrates less explicit political allegiance compared to a tabling publication and therefore may offer more than one viewpoint on an issue. The resolution of oppositions may also be evident and more explicit in something such as editorial and opinion piece where the political allegiance of the paper may be more obvious
• Newspapers have access to the same stories dialy but will choose how to represent events and issues that reflect and the values ,attitudes and belief of the paper and their readers .The way in which the event/ issue / social group is represented will affect the audience response
• The choice of the image of Boris focuses on his code of trepidation on his way to the commons anchored by the caption and the large quote from sue grays report
• Unlike like a tabloid newspaper the representation of the event and Boris Jonhons role it is more implicit
• The selection and combination of images and language constructs a subtly negative representation
• The choice of pull quotes from the report placed next to the image of the pm implictely directs blame at his behaviour