To What Extent Can Violent Video Games Be Said to Explain Violent Essay

To What Extent Can Violent Video Games Be Said to Explain Violent Behaviour in Teenagers - Essay Example Many parents and educators allege that this obsession with violent video games that grips so many teenagers is a direct cause of violent behaviour in teenagers. A closer examination of the facts about video games and teenage behaviour reveals, however, that this is a very dubious claim, since it is very difficult to prove any causal link between video game playing and violent behaviour in teenagers. The main argument in favour of a link between violent video games and teenage behaviour is that, like violent films on television and in the cinema, they can affect the development of a young person’s personality in an adverse way. Several well respected American medical associations such as the American Psychological Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and the American Medical Association issued a joint statement in year 2000 saying that there is a causal connection between media violence and aggressive behaviour , but that it is a complex effect (Gentile et al., 2004, p. 19). In the United Kingdom there is a strict classification system in place that is intended to prevent the most violent games from getting into the hands of people under eighteen years of age. This system is not always effective, since the majority of parents do not monitor the titles that their teenage children buy, and they often have very little knowledge about what these games actually contain. Clearly the authorities in most countries are convinced that violent video games can cause harm, and they take steps to minimize this harm. These measures do not, however, amount to real hard evidence that links video games with violent behaviour. Media in general contain vast amounts of material ranging from innocuous cartoons and slapstick violence to sick and criminal content that clearly should not be available to teenagers. Young people are exposed to multiple sources of images and texts on the television, in print material and on the internet every day, and so it is difficult to prove that video games are the root cause of any violent behaviour. Any amount of other sources could influence teenagers, and so it seems unreasonable to pinpoint video games as a cause of violent behaviour. They are perhaps an easy target because they are well regulated, and their popularity can be measured through sales and feedback to the providers. They may also arouse deep suspicion in technophobe adults who cannot keep up with the skills of young people in their care. For all of these reasons, it seems likely that the perceived effect of playing video games is exaggerated, and that their relative novelty in the entertainment landscape has attracted undue attention to the particular contribution that they make. It can be argued that evidence for the influence of video games is to be found in statements of young people themselves. There are many cases where teenagers enter the criminal justice system because they are acc used of some act of violence. In such a situation they can state that they were influenced by a certain game title. Examples such as the â€Å"Grand Theft Auto† series are often mentioned in this connection, because this kind of first person action game involves street crime and aggression towards fictional characters. Violent youth offenders are often

Hofstede on Southwest Airlines Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Hofstede on Southwest Airlines - Assignment Example Rolling King and Herb Kelleher established Southwest Airlines (NYSE: LUV) in 1967. Southwest started operating in 1971, serving intrastate Texas cities, Dallas, Houston and San Antonio. The company achieved break even in two years because of its low-cost model and organizational culture. For the past forty years, Southwest has remained profitable, while other airlines declared losses or bankruptcy. Southwest (2013) boasts that it â€Å"continues to differentiate itself from other carriers with exemplary Customer Service delivered by nearly 46,000 Employees to more than 100 million Customers annually.† The company emphasizes on LUV as its primary motivation in serving its customers. On May 2, 2011, Southwest acquired AirTran Holdings, Inc., and it currently manages AirTran Airways as a wholly-owned subsidiary.Southwest has several notable achievements. It is America’s biggest carrier in terms of originating domestic passengers boarded and, with AirTran added, it has the largest fleet of Boeing aircraft in the globe, as it serves a total of 97 routes in 41 states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and six nearby countries (Southwest, 2013). Southwest, furthermore, has â€Å"lower unit costs (adjusted for stage length), on average, than virtually all major domestic airlines and consistently has one of the best overall Customer Service records† (Southwest, 2013). The company is also consistently one of the most admired companies that employees want to work for.... 13) boasts that it â€Å"continues to differentiate itself from other carriers with exemplary Customer Service delivered by nearly 46,000 Employees to more than 100 million Customers annually.† The company emphasises on LUV as its primary motivation in serving its customers. On May 2, 2011, Southwest acquired AirTran Holdings, Inc., and it currently manages AirTran Airways as a wholly-owned subsidiary. Southwest has several notable achievements. It is America’s biggest carrier in terms of originating domestic passengers boarded and, with AirTran added, it has the largest fleet of Boeing aircraft in the globe, as it serves a total of 97 routes in 41 states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and six nearby countries (Southwest, 2013). Southwest, furthermore, has â€Å"lower unit costs (adjusted for stage length), on average, than virtually all major domestic airlines and consistently has one of the best overall Customer Service records† (So uthwest, 2013). The company is also consistently one of the most admired companies that employees want to work for. Moreover, Southwest is doing financially well, despite the lasting effects of the 2008 financial crisis. In 2012, Southwest gave $422 million to shareholders through buying back $400 million of common stock (around 46 million shares) and providing $22 million in dividends (Southwest, 2013). Southwest promotes corporate social responsibility. It is committed to â€Å"the triple bottom line of Performance, People, and Planet† (Southwest, 2013). Because of its successful organisational culture and continued profitability, Southwest is one of the most studied organisations in the airline industry. Organisational Culture: Some Definitions Organisational culture has diverse definitions because of

Review of 1970s Art Through the Works of Valerie Jaudon Essay

Review of 1970s Art Through the Works of Valerie Jaudon - Essay Example This paper will examine the works of Valerie Jaudon from the 1970s and what his influence was on that particular time period. Avalon This first work which will be looked at is called Avalon. Avalon was created in 1976 with oil and aluminum on a canvas that is 76 inches by 108 inches. This works uses a pattern which has black shapes outlined in white. This simplification of colors brings about a balance to the works that leans towards darkness in the hue with bright spots illuminating the shapes in the pattern of angles, waves, circles, and rectangles. The waves make it look as though they continue throughout the landscape of the painting. The craftsmanship of this painting is well done, where you cannot see the aluminum on the paper but how it is used to hold the pigment of the oil onto the canvas. Also, the contrast between the colors allows us to see how the patterns used goes in and out of each other and how they overlap, as well. His economy is well done, just using the basic col ors and shapes with a focal point right in the middle of the painting where two diagonal shapes meet. The gestalt of the work is how the pattern gives it depth instead seeming to be just individual shapes and colors. The grid on this painting allows the artist to keep his shapes evenly spaced from one side to another. The implied lies are the ones that allow the Jaudon to show his shapes and patterns overall. Everything within the design of his painting Avalon are completely in portion form the radial balance going outward from the circles within the painting to the rhythm of the piece which gives a nice even flow from side to side. Furthermore, there are many shapes within the painting that are similar to one another but not identically the same on this very symmetrically balanced piece. There is probably some overall texture to this painting, it is an oil painting after all, but the visual texture reminds me of a very well planned wicker type design to the piece which brings a uni ty and harmony to the piece. Minter City A year later, she created a square piece on a 72 inch by 72 inch piece of canvas using oil and metallic pigment called Minter City. From first look at this painting with its burnt sienna hue, one can see that there is a definite radial balance within the symmetrical piece. The balance in this piece is easily seen as the design seems to hold a continuation of the same elements throughout the piece. Furthermore, the continuity of Minter City goes from the central focal point to the edges, but there is more continuity which comes from the four corners of the work and diagonally meets in the center of the piece. The exacting craftsmanship is shown in Jaudon’s piece as she shows us how meticulously laid out the abstract design. Furthermore, the gestalt of the piece shows an exacting unity amongst the flow of the rhythm and the basic economy of the design, which shows a minimalist approach to the overall value of the non-objective design. Mo und Bayou This painting by Valerie Jaudon is the same size as Minter City and created with the same basic materials. However, that is where the similarities end between the two pieces. Mound Bayou definitely has a focal point in the middle of the painting. But, this painting seems to have a couple of rather complex rhythms running through the piece. Not only is there a radially balanced rhythm to the piece but there is another rhythm with the underlying crisscrossing diagonal lines, along with the interlocking chain of circles which seem to go right through the middle of the piece. You can easily see the continuation created by the various shapes throughout the piece. And the contrast between the sharp edges of the diagonal lines and the soft lines of the rounded shapes gives

Employees should have an expectation of a right to privacy in the Research Proposal

Employees should have an expectation of a right to privacy in the workplace, e.g. electronic monitoring of computer usage, phone calls, video surveillance should be eliminated or restricted - Research Proposal Example According to Findlaw.com, the employment law entails all rights and commitments within the relationship between the employer and employee. This covers all aspects of the employees whether current employees former employees or job applicants. The law is emphatic on safety of the employee at the workplace in terms of privacy (â€Å"Findlaw.com†). Many employers would argue that monitoring of their employees by camera surveillance, computer monitoring, restriction of phone calls and emails is one way of increasing productivity of a firm, but this is only relative. Too much monitoring and supervision may create a situation where fear is instilled among the employees that their performance is retarded. In addition, employees may not be able to think on their own and bring new ideas, as they would always feel that they are subject to being controlled by their employer (Weckert, 2005). According to Findlaw.com, all employees have essential rights at the workplace, which range from the right to privacy, fair treatment, and liberty from discrimination. Employers would argue that monitoring their employees is not a form of discrimination, but looked at from an ethical point of view it is. For instance, an employer who monitors the use of personal phones or emails by the employees denies them the right to communicate to people outside the workplace. A point to note is that some messages may need to be delivered urgently. If employees are not allowed, receive their calls or the calls are vetted by the employer, this denies the employees their fundamental right to freedom. The right to privacy at the workplace entails freedom of keeping one’s own personal possessions, including bags and brief cases, and lockers which are accessible only by employees (Howard, 2006). Employees also deserve a right to be the only people who access their private emails. If the employer keeps on monitoring an employee’s personal effects such as email, the employees may even

Phuket Beach Analysis Essay Example for Free

Phuket Beach Analysis Essay Statement of the Problem Should the management of Phuket Beach Resort accept the offer made by PlanetKaraoke Pub to set up an outlet inside the hotel or should the managementoperate a pub, Beach Karaoke Pub, by itself? II. Case Background Mike Campbell, General Manager of Phuket Beach Hotel is considering an offermade by Planet Karaoke Pub, a fast expanding company, which is looking for avenue in Patong beach area for setting up another outlet. The Board of Directorsof the establishment had previously rejected several old offers because it offerslow return on investment. The space was located on the second floor of the main building and was verymuch under-utilised. Planat Karaoke Pub offered to sign a four-year leaseagreement with the hotel for rending part of the unused space. It proposed topay:a. a monthly rental fee of 170,000 baht for the first two years; andb. thereafter, a 5% increment for the next two years. Planet Karaoke Pub required only 70% of the unused space measuring 3,000 sq. feet. This would allow the hotel to keep the remaining space for the creation of analley two years later. Mike Campbell is contemplating on creating a pub operated by the managementof the hotel itself since such establishments attract a lot of customers andtourists. Mike Campbell sought the assistance of Kornkrit Manming, the hotel’s FinancialController to review the offer from Planet Karaoke Pub and estimating revenuesand costs associated with an alternative project, Beach Karaoke Pub. III. Objectives With the given two alternatives on hand, this case aims to:a. ome up with a concrete recommendation to the board of directorsof Phuket Beach Resort of which of the two alternatives will offer a higherreturn on investmentb. determine if operating a pub in the hotel, whether by a third party orby management, will be a good investment on the part of the hotel. c. compute for the relevant cashflows associated with each projects? The 25% fear factor is applied on the projected annual net room revenuerepresenting 50% of the pub revenue – 50% from hotel guests. . Overhead expenses allocated to the Planet Karaoke Pub project amountingto 55,000 baht and 16% of sales representing salaries for the Beach KaraokePub project are considered irrelevant costs since these costs will not differbetween alternatives. Both are allocated costs. 5. The weighted average cost of capital is 10. 75% computed using 10%interest rate and 12% hotel owners’ cost of equity on its capital structureconsisting of 25% debt and 75% equity respectively. The cost of equity isassumed to be after tax. 6. All payments and inflows assumed to have been made at the end of theyear. The two projects have unequal lives: Planet Karaoke Pub to run for 4 yearswhile Beach Karaoke Pub to run for 6 years. 8. It was envisaged that the proposed pub would not affect the hotel’s futureexpansion plans. 9. The existing system ranked projects according to their average return oninvestment and payback period, regardless to the time value of money. 10. Similar development proposals had been rejected by the board because itrequired a long payback period. Other proposals were also discarded due toits low return on investment.

Branding Strategies Of Asda Marketing Essay

Branding Strategies Of Asda Marketing Essay Branding is a most important tool for any product or company to gain a long term market share. The aim of this study is to develop an understanding of branding and its implications in the retail market. This will include the concepts and practices of branding that are adopted by different retailers in the UK as well as the new challenges faced by these retailers in UK market. This research will identify the benefits of branding for suppliers, customers and for the retailers. I will identify the strategic approach which retailers in the UK can adopt as a role model to survive in a highly competitive market and this will include the survey of UK food and grocery retail market. I will also investigate how the changes in the market from the early beginning have changed the position of grocery supermarket chains. I will describe the in-depth branding strategies of ASDA, various operations of ASDAs stores and its competition with world-wide and UK retailers. This study will also identify and investigate the competitive position of ASDA amount other key players in UK such as TESCO, Sainsbury and Morrison. INTRODUCTION What is branding? According to the Websters dictionary a brand is defined as a mean of identification and an arbitrarily adapted name that is given by manufacturer to a product to distinguish it and it may be used and protected as trade name.  [1]   A brand is defined as a name, term, design or symbol or a combination of them intended to identify the goods and services that identifies and distinguishes a specific sellers product from a competitive product of another seller. It is also defined as a part of a product and services tangible features, the verbal indication that help customers to identify the products they want. It plays a vital role in assessment of a product or service and can add value to them. It is a word which is commonly referred to by advertisers and marketing people. Why it is important? People generally recognize a well-known brand even if they do not know about the company or its products/services. These are usually the name of businesses or the name of a product, although it can be the name of a feature or style of a product too. A good brand delivers the message clearly and motivates the buyers. There are few other terms which have been used to define branding such as brand name, brand mark, trade name or trade mark. Thus branding is very essential for companies and it is beneficial for buyers and customers. INDUSTRY BACKGROUND ASDA was formed in 1965 with a merger of two companies, Associated Dairies and the Asquith Brothers supermarket chain Queen. ASDA Stored Ltd was created a supermarket with its objectives to offer the customers permanently low prices. In 1999 ASDA was acquired by Wal-Mart Stores Inc., and ASDA became part of the worlds biggest and best retailer. Since then, ASDA also became Britains second largest supermarket. ASDA has now over 300 stores across the UK and employ 150,000 staff and its friendly service is as inextricably linked to the ASDA brand as their reputation for quality and service.  [2]   According to a recent survey, as of 1st August 2010 ASDA has 376 locations with operating income of  £638 million and ranking as second largest supermarket chain in the UK. ASDA Group Ltd., operates as one of the largest food retailers in the United Kingdom. The companys stores sell a wide variety of merchandise including food and apparel, along with house wares, music, videos and books. The company once known as a diary conglomerate was acquired by Wal-Mart Inc. in 1999. Under its new parents guidance, ASDA has been adding pharmacies, opticians, jewelry and photo departments to its stores.  [3]   ASDAS BRANDING STRATEGY According to a survey in 2004 which shows the key figures of the UK retail market, states that UK retail sales reached approximately  £246 billion in 2004. This shows that retail industry, generally, continues to show positive signs of growth. The retail industry in any country is generally a very active, fast changing sector. Thus it comprises one of the main sectors in the economy of a country, in terms of transactions and turnover; as a result, it is a highly competitive and sophisticated industry. My research proposal is about the importance of branding in retail market particularly in the UK retail, food and grocery market. I will identify the branding strategy of ASDA and its market share in the UK retail sector. Currently ASDA is using one strategy which is: In September 2010 ASDA announced that it is going to re-launch its mid-tier private label range under the new Chosen by You brand name in a bid to improve perceptions of the quality of its food. This new rang is a part of a  £100m investment which includes 200,000 UK consumers taste testing and benchmarking the products.  [4]   And now ASDA has also decided to launch their new opticians business adopting similar logos and using slogans making indirect references to the chain. ASDA ran a campaign featuring the two slogans: Be a real spec saver at ASDA Spec savings at ASDA  [5]   These strategies are helping and will help ASDA to gain consumers satisfaction. Although ASDA is already getting continuous growth with the diversification and extension of its existing stores but the retail market has become more competitive and having less market share can affect the overall ranking and position of ASDA in the international market. Therefore I will analyse and evaluate the strategic position of ASDA in comparison to other UK retailers and in conclusion there will be future strategic options suggested which aimed to strengthen its position in the highly competitive market and to gain customers satisfaction and loyalty. While using the same brand name, ASDA is also offering financial services to its customers which include: Insurance Credit cards and loans Savings Motor breakdown cover Energy supplying According a recent report at BBC (27 May 2010) ASDA has also announced plans to buy Netto for  £778m. Netto has 193 stores in the UK which will continue to trade under the Netto name for the time being but will come under the ASDA brand by mid-2011.  [6]   ASDA is continuously promoting its brand strategy and has announced that its customers will benefit from low prices on a significantly broader range of quality products, complemented by the wide range of services ASDA offer at all their small stores (ASDA Chief Executive Andy Clarke). ASDA brand George was bought by ASDA in 1995, George was started in 1990 by George Davies and it was the first supermarket clothing brand. Thus George grew and become the largest clothing retailer by volume in the UK today. This brand is also traded internationally by Wal-Mart. RESEARCH OBJECTIVES The core idea of this research to analyze the different strategies ASDA is using for its branding to compete with all the supermarkets within UK to capture a large portion of market share in retail and other relative industries. This research will also throw light on the factors to identify how these branding strategies affect customers behaviour and why they chose ASDA as compare to all other supermarkets in UK. Without an appropriate set of objectives, you can end up not only with a misguided strategy, but with an unrealistic set of goals. Increasing brand awareness for a product that already has a baseline awareness of 99 percent, for example, can be virtually impossible. If you set the wrong objectives, you set yourself up for failure (Graham 2001).  [7]   This research will emphasize the practices of ASDAs brand objectives how ASDA is using its branding to get customers loyalty and trust within the competitive market where its main rivals TESCO, Sainsbury, Morison, Marks Spenser are operating side by side as strong competitor. ASDAs brand objectives are that it is comprised of ASDAs personality, image, core competencies and characteristics. ASDAs basic framework of its brand is to pursue to put an impression on its customers that describe the company to other people. ASDA is following the strategy of its branding to build a strong credibility and have more influence on the market and to motivate customers to shop at ASDAs stores. ASDAs objectives are to be looked as a leader and not as a follower. I will explore and find out that how ASDA is defining its objectives with specific timelines and how it has been developing plans of action to achieve those objectives. RESEARCH QUESTIONS Why branding is important and what ASDA wants from its brand to do? What does ASDA wants others to know and say about its products? How ASDA can retain its top ranking position in the UK retail market? RESEARCH AIMS Identify different retail brands in UK Identify current branding strategy of ASDA Review market share of ASDA in UK retail market Analysis of competitors of ASDA Study of future practices of ASDA Recommend improved strategy for ASDA to retain its top ranking position in the UK retail market. LITERATURE REVIEW The central concern of brand building literature experienced a dramatic shift in the last decade. Branding and the role of brands, as traditionally understood, were subject to constant review and redefinition. A traditional definition of a brand was: the name, associated with one or more items in the product line, which is used to identify the source of character of the item(s) (Kotler 2000, p. 396). A literature review is very important and critical for the justification of the proposed research in order to find out different factors to identify the research area and to clarify questions of the chosen research topic (Saunders, 2007). Aaker and Joachmisthaler (2000) argued the traditional branding model where a brand management team was liable for creating and coordinating the brands management program. In these circumstances, the brand manager was not high in the companys hierarchy; his focus was the short-term financial results of single brands and single products in single markets. The basic objective was the coordination with the manufacturing and sales departments in order to solve any problem concerning sales and market share. With this strategy the responsibility of the brand was solely the concern of the marketing department (Davis 2002). In general, most companies thought that focusing on the latest and greatest advertising campaign meant focusing on the brand (Davis and Dunn 2002). The model itself was tactical and reactive rather than strategic and visionary (Aaker and Joachimsthaler 2000). The brand was always referred to as a series of tactics and never like strategy (Davis and Dunn 2002). Brand is defined as a name, term, symbol, design or any other feature or a combination of any of them. Branding is used to define, or is proposed to identify the goods or services of one seller and distinct it from those of other sellers. Branding helps to differentiate ones service from those of its competitors. It plays vital role in assessment of product and can add value to a product. It is therefore an intimate aspect of product strategy. Therefore In developing a marketing strategy for individual products, the seller has to tackle the issue of branding. According to Peter Doyle; Brands are at the very heart of marketing. When a company creates a strong brand it attracts customers preference and builds a defensive wall against competition. Marketers and sellers make different strategies for their products and most of these are associated with branding. These decisions include how to create brands, how to choose brand names, brand marks, trademarks and trade names. A brand may identify one item, a family of items or all items of that seller. Brand loyalty is an integral part of building a brand, as consumers usually have a choice of products in the same market segment, and so a successful company will use a way to keep consumers re-buying their product or coming back to their stores rather than going to their competitor. These brand loyalty-building efforts may come in the form of coupons and incentives such as many grocery chains use a technique of grocery discount cards or loss leaders, meant to draw consumers into the store, where they will hopefully buy products at discounted fare with a higher profit ratio (Kumar 2010).  [8]   SOURCES TO BE USED FOR DATA I will be using different scholars books written in different countries on branding, why it is important and work of researcher all over the world in this field. As branding is the most important factor of any business, organisation, product or service so there is a lot of information on the internet, journals and newspapers. Proper references from all the sources will be included in my work. I will also be conducting interviews from different Managers of ASDA, TESCO and Sainsbury including some customers in the stores to get much information regarding my subject and a practical experience which will help me writing a good conclusion to my proposed work. Data collection will consist of surveys, interviews and observation with ASDA Managers, employees and customers as well as journal logs from scholars. As suggested by Prof. Francis Knox I am planning to conduct multiple interviews with each participant in order to provide more in-depth data collection and opportunities for follow-up. I will utilize a qualitative evaluation for this research project leveraging subjective methods such as interviews and observations to collect substantive and relevant data. I hope that such a qualitative approach will be valuable here due to the varying experiences of the Managers and customers visiting ASDA. Recent research on subject matter will also be consulted to validate collected data. DATA ANALYSIS Data analysis is an important part of any topic as it gives an outline and understanding of the subject. In the same way I will analyse the collected data by comparing it with all the other competitors of ASDA to find out how ASDA is benefiting from its branding strategies and objectives. I believe that data analysis shows the different things discussed in topic and which one is most suitable and favourable according to the situation. Data can be collected from various sources and its analysis gives understanding and shape to the topic or field of interest. Collect necessary Data to answer questions Analyse Data Creating strategies to use results Reporting out on recommendations and conclusion RESEARCH METHODOLIGIES My research methodology requires gathering relevant data from the scholars books, online journals, newspapers and internet and to compile the databases in order to analyze the material and to arrive at a more complete understanding of the importance of branding of a company or a product. The following chart can best represent how research methodology work: Source: http://www.clientopinions.com/pages/11/Research-Methodology/ My dissertation would be based upon primary and secondary sets of information available on branding within supermarkets and my research work will be based upon both qualitative and quantitative data, for example exploring the work of researcher on branding importance for supermarkets and conducting interviews with relevant employees working as Managers and customers of ASDA supermarket. In this research I will also include the current trends of branding in different countries of the world and especially in the UK. Questionnaires carried out during my research will help me to get the facts how big chains of supermarkets and other organisations are using their brand image to get a large portion of their respective markets. On the basis of all the relevant information available branding evaluation and conclusion will be carried out. The evaluation and conclusion will also include how and why ASDA branding is better comparing to its competitors and how ASDA can better use their branding strategy all over the world. The research approach is also constructive (Jarvinen 1999, Olkkonen 1993). The positivistic approach would have required a quantitative analysis of the system (Takala Helo 2000) which would be very difficult to accomplish without disclosing some confidential business information.  [9]   This nature of research is a process of finding information; analyzing, interpreting information to deal with questions which must have certain characteristics like be controlled, systematic, rigorous, valid and critical. My research will ideally be focused on primary and secondary research on ASDA brand name and image, which will enable me to get adequate knowledge and with the help of this awareness I will work on my dissertation with no trouble. I will be able to investigate the advantages of branding and will find out what can be the problems using a brand name/images in a most competitive market for a company. During this research proposal I found out that there is plenty of information available in the journals, books and on the internet specifically for ASDA and I will use that information in the dissertation to make it more clear and acceptable. With the help of this provided information I would be able to present this in a theoretical form including data chart, comparison diagrams etc, which will help to understand my subject simply. As mentioned earlier that brand is a most important tool for any company, product or service. There are so many products in the market who do not have proper brand name or image and these products disappear from the shelves after sometime. So in my research work I will explore few of those products and will compare the quality and price to ASDAs similar products, as this experiment will discover the importance of branding. EXPECTED OUTCOMES I consider that after having a detail study on brand name/image and its importance in the retail market and research on branding strategy of ASDA and its implementation, it will be helpful for me to suggest how ASDA can improve itself amongst its competitors in the United Kingdom. As we all know that branding is perhaps the most important fact of any business, beyond product, distribution, pricing and location for any company and this build a tangible trust and loyalty amongst the customers. Brand loyalty is an essential part of building a brand name/image as customers usually have a choice of similar products in the same market segment so a successful company like ASDA will come up with a way to keep customers re-buying their products or coming back to their store again and again rather than going to its competitors. During my dissertation while conducting different interviews and surveys I will find out how ASDA is successfully implementing its branding strategy and how it can more effectively improve this with my field work on this specific topic. So I conclude this proposal with acknowledging that if brand name is used properly, ASDA can keep the large share of the market. ASDA brand name is Saving you money every day, so as far ASDA is fulfilling the requirement of its brand name, there is no doubt that this big chain of supermarket will continue enjoying a large portion of the market share in the United Kingdom. During my research proposal I have found out that ASDA has improved its operations and thus it become the second largest supermarket in the United Kingdom and this is only because it has its long term branding strategies which reviewed on regular basis and the market is compared on weekly basis on the prices and quality of the product being sold at the similar stores in the country. SCHEDULE (DAILY TIME TABLE) Dissertation Working Process Start Date Finish Date 1. Introduction and history 01-01-2011 02-01-2011 2. Finalising aims/objectives and questionnaire 04-01-2011 06-01-2011 3. Draft a complete version of Literature review 08-01-2011 11-01-2011 4. Finalise Literature review 13-01-2010 17-01-2011 5. Revisit the methodology Literature 20-01-2011 24-01-2011 6. Finalising the research approach 26-01-2011 30-01-2011 7. Finalising research strategy and method 01-02-2011 03-02-2011 8. Finalising questionnaire and interviews 05-02-2011 08-02-2011 9. Entering and analysing the data 10-02-2011 12-02-2011 10. Update Literature if necessary 14-02-2011 15-02-2011 11. Completing the remaining work 17-02-2011 18-02-2011 12. Revise the draft make amendments format for submission 20-02-2011 22-02-2011 13. Write Reflective Document / add at the end of dissertation 24-02-2011 26-02-2011 14. Submit Dissertation Possible Submission Date: 31-03-2011

Influence of the Chinese Communist Party Over State-Controlled Media an

â€Å"It’s not what you say, it’s how you say it† (Luntz, cited in Scheufele and Tewksbury, 2007: 9). Introduction Agenda setting describes the ability of those in positions of power, such as the mass media and influential political leaders, to transfer salience to certain issues that they deem important, while pushing other issues that they deem less important to a lower priority and out of the public view. There is an abundance of literature on the agenda setting process, but it is mainly focused on agenda setting in the West. Therefore, this paper will look at agenda setting in China, which has a Communist government in power that likes to use the influence and control it has and likes to apply harsh censorship on the media and its content. â€Å"The Chinese mass media have served effectively in agenda setting to conduct positive propaganda for Party ideologies and policies (Li, Qin, & Kluver, 2003)† (Luo, 2012:1). It will look at whether the Chinese government is successful or not in using its control over the media to promote the issues it believes in. The purpose of this paper will b e to see the extent to which the Chinese government has control over the media. This will be done by using articles and blog posts from both government affiliated and independent sources that will help in providing unbiased results. The lack of literature looking at agenda setting outside the West makes this an interesting case to study as it can provide additional information about and the opportunity to explore agenda setting in a Chinese context. Agenda setting is an important topic in political communications and China is becoming a strong and powerful world player, therefore it is crucial to look at agenda setting in a Chinese context. Literat... ...6). [Accessed 18th November 2013]. Zhang, X., (2011), The Transformation of Political Communication in China - From Propoganda to Hegemony (World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd). Zhao, Y., (1998), Media, Market, and Democracy in China - Between the party line and the bottom line (Urbana and Chicago: University of Illinois Press). Zhou, Y., & Moy, P., (2007) ‘Parsing Framing Processes: The Interplay Between Online Public Opinion and Media Coverage’ Journal of Communications 57: 79-98. Appendix â€Å"...we reiterate that the media must report the story in strict accordance with Xinhua News Agency wire copy; downplay the story; do not speculate on it; do not exaggerate it; do not put the story on the front page or website homepage; do not produce any other reports or commentary; do not use images...(October 30, 2013)† (Henochowicz, China Digital Times, 2013).