Sites of Television Channels of Cultural and Educational Topics: Experience of “Russia K” and ARTE

Abstract

The article presents the outcomes of studying the transformation of audiovisual content in a new technological environment, which is one of the stages of the research project conducted by the Department of Television and Radio Broadcasting of the Journalism Department of Lomonosov Moscow State University. This stage held in July 2019 aims to identify the technological features of the work of the cultural and educational TV channel portals – “Russia K” (domestic channel) and ARTE (French-German channel). Both “Russia K” and ARTE are important media players that have been setting trends in their field for more than 10 years. The reason for comparing these channels was their thematic focus and a certain similarity of projects. The TV channel “Russia K” is the only non-for-profit channel dedicated to the cultural and educational topics in R SMAI, and ARTE TV channel is one of the most popular media specialized in this subject in Europe. During this stage the total amount of analyzed materials is 251 (145 publications on the “Russia K” and 106 on ARTE websites). The analysis of materials published on the Internet is based on following criteria: the number of materials, the nature of the content (broadcast / special), thematic and genre.

The analysis of the amount of materials enables tracing the frequency of publication of new articles; data on the nature of the content helps to conclude which materials on the sites are more – on-air or special. Defining thematic and genre originality provides a complete picture of the content being posted.

The author concludes that nowadays the Internet versions of the channels have their own faces but are inseparably bound with their television counterparts. The website of the TV channel “Russia K” is a vibrant media with recognizable style and creative presentation. However, in order to strengthen its position, the editors of the site should increase the number of copyright off-air materials and use new interactive genres (tests, quizzes, etc.).

The site of the ARTE channel fits into the modern digital space while maintaining the classic presentation. Since most ARTE channel programs are timeless, they correlate very well with the consumer nature of the Internet and the need for educational content. Documentary films – the most common form of ARTE channel programs is in great demand by the audience in the digital environment that wants to quickly learn something important in a simple, vivid and understandable form.

The difference between the on-air and non-air versions is largely exaggerated, because sites and channels do not compete with each other but are adjacent and complement each other. Websites enable access to the channel’s content anytime, anywhere, by selecting the desired program. Sites act not only as electronic repositories but also as individual units in the media world providing unique information.