Media Rituals In Broadcast Television: Sunrise and Operation Bounce Back

"Representation is the social process of making and exchanging meaning." (Nicholas Carah, Representation, 04 March 2013)

Over the years, meanings have changed and been tailored to suit different environments and situations. Although this is a common progression, as meanings alter and modify, representations must follow suit. Representations are created and preserved through constant peer communication thus remaining inconsistent and vague. With this in mind, the media creates a new form of reality by arbitrating how we comprehend and approach our day-to-day lives. For that reason, representation is an adaptation of reality that greatly influences a society that heavily relies on media as an informative source and as a worldwide connection. Furthermore, media representations shape the world around us and how we perceive it. Representation is not a machine that churns out impassive information, but instead provokes emotion by foreseeing, creating and intensifying how the audience feels (Carah, N. 2013). In the case of Operation Bounce Back, an initiative put together by breakfast television program Sunrise and the Queensland government, these emotive representations and media rituals were used heavily throughout the campaign.

Largely responsible for the success of Sunrise is its integration of viewer interactivity and its representation of the lead hosts, Melissa Doyle and David Koch (Harrington, S. 2009 pg. 176). Because of these two aspects, Sunrise has established a trust brand with the Australian public. The ability to email and send messages through to Sunrise allows its audience to participate and feel included whilst the hosting duo, commonly known as 'Mel and Kochie', are represented as 'real' people and part of the family (Moores, 2005, pg. 76). After the 2011 Brisbane flood, Sunrise and the Queensland government kick started Operation Bounce Back, asking for skilled tradespeople to sign up via website and volunteer their time to help with flood recovery. Through the use of journalistic frames and media rituals, Sunrise was able to increase audience participation in response to the crisis, similar to their previous initiatives Rain Train (2002) and Reject The Recession (2008) (Carah, N. & Louw, E. 2012 pg.138).

According to emails sent to the Department of Public Works from channel 7, Operation Bounce Back was a concept created and engineered by Sunrise despite being represented as an on-the-spot idea put forward by the Queensland government (Sunrise, 2011). The lead up to proposing and accepting the idea was kept secret, allowing it to come off as a smooth spare of the moment decision on the televised interview between Kochie and Anna Bligh. Moreover, the initiative cemented a partnership between Sunrise and the Queensland premier, and more importantly, represented a power relationship between the media and the government (Carah, N. & Louw, E. 2012 pg.137).

"The process of perceiving objects and events in the world, mapping them in our own mind, and exchanging our understandings with others, is always embedded within power relationships." (Nicholas Carah, Representation, 04 March 2013)

In this case, Sunrise is represented as 'everyday Australians' and 'friends' who are welcomed into our homes every morning, whilst the Queensland government is represented as a credible and powerful source (Harrington, S. 2009 pg. 176). By forming a power relationship, both key players are able to represent Operation Bounce Back as credible and helpful to the struggling Queenslanders. In addition, by establishing this relationship, Sunrise was given power and reliability that other breakfast programs didn't have, representing the show as better and more trustworthy than its competitors. Along with this, Sunrise would be able to gain more coverage of the flood that other media outlets wouldn't be able to attain including the progress of recovery efforts as well future events. By involving itself with the recovery efforts, Sunrise was able to positively reinforce their brand with the Australian public and the government. In the mind of a producer, this would lead to an increased number of viewers and a higher income rate from advertising.

Additionally, Sunrise places an extreme focus on a mutual relationship with its viewers, but this goes beyond its representational location of the studio where it's broadcast (Harrington, S. 2009 pg. 182). By including the viewer's constant use of interactive media, Sunrise was able to further expand its use of developing and organizing audience participation (Weitten & Pantti, 2005, pg. 32). Media rituals, such as Operation Bounce Back, aren't just about organizing representations but also about influencing and involving the viewing audience (Carah, N. 2013).

"There is another flood that's going on and that's the flood of love and support that is coming through to our soapbox. " (Larry Emdur, Sunrise, 11 January 2011)

Audience participation was a key ingredient during the representation of the flood. For example, Sunrise was inundated with emails and images from distressed viewers who were affected by the flood but weren't insured, prompting Kochie to campaign and confront both the government and insurance companies about this issue (Carah, N. & Louw, E. 2012 pg.140). Not only does this increase audience participation and interest, but by acting on the audience's behalf, Kochie's representation as an 'average Australian bloke who helps out his mates' was boosted. Because of this, Kochie, and in extension Sunrise, convey the notion that they are a voice for the audience (Harrington, S. 2009 pg. 183).

Because Sunrise stood to gain from the use of this media ritual, Operation Bounce Back's communicative frame "invoked a shared 'we' and a general 'spirit' to 'naturalize' the event's causes and effects", similar to Premier Anna Bligh's speech, which included the now famed quote "we are Queenslanders" (Carah, N. & Louw, E. 2012 pg.139-140). Operation Bounce Back was represented as a successful joint effort of viewers of Sunrise and volunteers from the initiative. Through the use of 'soften' footage and follow up stories of volunteers and recovery efforts, Sunrise represented themselves as the caring leaders of Operation Bounce Back.

"The question is not always about whether representations are accurate or not, but how they subtly frame events in ways that position individuals in the social order." (Nicholas Carah, Representation, 04 March 2013)

However, the representation of Operation Bounce Back's success was a result of changed media content on Sunrise's behalf. Despite proposing the initial idea, Sunrise had little to do with the actual clean up and recovery process; this was an effort led by the Queensland government. The volunteer and recovery stories that followed in the coming days and weeks of the flood were of either government supplied or members of the Australian public who had no affiliation with Operation Bounce Back, despite the insinuation by Sunrise. For example, the reconstruction of several buildings in Theodore was undertaken by Operation Bounce Back, however, because of the limited number of volunteers, who had to leave due to changed circumstances, QBuild decided to complete the outstanding work along with other flood recovery projects in Theodore (Department of Public Works, 2011).

In conclusion, although Operation Bounce Back was deemed unsuccessful in terms of the recovery effort, in the eyes of a Sunrise producer, the initiative would be considered a triumph. In the end, Sunrise wanted good publicity to enhance its already glowing public trust brand and to gain a power relationship with the government. This type of exposure is what drives the breakfast show format, particularly when the program is represented as the heart of the community and its hosts are seen as 'one of the people'. By attaching itself to the government, Sunrise was able to legitimize Operation Bounce Back whilst also obtaining the rights to exclusive footage as well as future follow up stories. Although this is not the first time this type of media/government relationship has formed over an event, government officials need to gain more control over these types of initiatives. Rather than the media take control and use these events to their advantage, the government should step in and make sure that the recovery efforts are the first priority.

Reference List

• Carah, N. (2013, March 04). Representation. Retrieved April 03, 2013, from http://prezi.com/wo4qnih9mtfl/representation/?auth_key=d4ce62050def384354be83a940728b234c88af5e&kw=view-wo4qnih9mtfl&rc=ref-1782428

• Carah, N. (2013, March 11). Rituals. Retrieved April 03, 2013, from http://prezi.com/ds8b_wf28fw_/rituals/?auth_key=c01ba3fef0d9f189ac91f7103dc6492a525dcf40&kw=view-ds8b_wf28fw_&rc=ref-1782428

• Carah, N., & Louw, E. (2012, August). Inundated By The Audience: Journalism, Audience Participation and the 2011 Brisbane Flood. Media International Australia, No. 144, 137-145. Retrieved from https://learn.uq.edu.au/bbcswebdav/pid-165084-dt-content-rid-396712_1/courses/COMU2233S_6320_22777/Carah%20Louw%20MIA2012N144_137.pdf.

• Commonwealth of Australia. Department of Public Works. (2011). General Briefing Notes: Progress report on the Operation Bounce Back reconstruction project at Theodore (Ref: DPW02556/11). Retrieved from: https://learn.uq.edu.au/bbcswebdav/pid-165241-dt-content-rid 531224_1/courses/COMU2233S_6320_22777/11072R%20Released%20Documents.pdf

• Harrington, S. (2009, December 10). Waking Up With Friends. Journalism Studies, 11:2, 175-189. Retrieved from https://learn.uq.edu.au/bbcswebdav/pid-165084-dt-content-rid-396720_1/courses/COMU2233S_6320_22777/harrington%20waking%20up%20with%20friends.pdf.

• Moores, S. (2005) Media/Theory: thinking about media and communications, London and New York: Routledge.

• Rosen, J. 2010, ‘Politics Needs Journalism as Reality-check: Rosen’, Lateline, ABC TV, 25 August, www.abc.net.au/lateline/content/2011/s3302557.htm.

• Sunrise (2011, January 17). Premier Anna Bligh launches Operation Bounce Back [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V89TXtdMc8I

• Wieten, J. & Pantti, M. 2005, ‘Obsessed with the Audience: Breakfast Television Revisited’, Media, Culture & Society, vol. 27, no. 1, pp. 21–39.

#sunrise #television #charity #floods #queensland