Uses and Gratifications - LOST

LOST
The uses and gratifications model suggests that audiences are a mixture of individuals that select media texts that best suit their needs of consumption.
The audiences that view particular media texts is due to their background, culture, age, needs and desires. For example the famous TV show 'LOST' would appeal to many ages, cultures and backgrounds as it portrays characters of many different races, cultures and ages. The show is aired on Sky1 but it could be argued that it used to be a niche show as you needed a certain sky player to watch it. Now it is considered mainstream and is well known in the UK.

Many of the characters on the show are from different places in the world. For example Claire, is a young, pregnant woman from Australia, and Jin and his wife Sun are a couple in their mid 20's from South Korea. Each character from the show has a background that different people can relate to in different ways. For example Kate is a young woman who has been on the run for a long time from the police for an accidental commitment of crime, and Jack is a doctor from America who eventually develops a love interest for Kate. Charlie, is a young guy who's life of being a rockstar was progressing to go downhill as his addiction to drugs got worse before he crashed on the island, and Michael, a black-American guy in his mid 30's who has a broken relationship with his 12 year old son. All of these character's background's are presented to attract people who are in the same situation as them. Therefore, making it a mainstream audience. There is a big age-range in the show, going from 12 to 65, all of different genders, races and cultures. Because the show has an ensemble cast, it is going to attract people of different ages, cultures and races.

Lots of people, myself included, watch this show for entertainment or escapism. Sometimes people enjoy putting themselves in other peoples' situations to see what it would be like if it actually happened. Of course the show is unrealistic in particular ways, for example the resources they have and how they get enough food etc. is never mentioned, but automatically makes audience assume it would be possible to survive the way they did and to experience all of the things they did as well.

The mode of address for this TV show would be an ensemble cast, as the characters all come from different places, cultures and are of many races. Another would be the non-diagetic music used in the show, this is used to produce atmospheres for certain scenes. For example fast paced music would be used to create an intense scene and slow, lyrical music would be used to create an emotional scene; making the audience feel what they are meant to feel during the specific scene.

In conclusion, the uses and gratifications of LOST would be that people watch it for entertainment or escapism, personal backgrounds as they can relate to it, and for pleasure as they enjoy putting themselves in situations different to theirs. People watch the programme for all different reasons, and an ensemble cast and how people relate to it is a big part of why that is.