Tesco's In The Media

Introduction:

There was a task set to analyse the coverage of a business event from two independent sources. The business event was analysed between a group of four and documented through a presentation and a written report.

It was decided that a big business event at the time was the announcing of Tesco’s first half profits at

The report and presentation were split into 4 key sections. Each section focused on a different aspect of the analysis. The information was grouped under four key headings:

1. Arguments developed

2. Use of Evidence

3. Effectiveness of Arguments

4. Validity of Arguments Presented

Findings:

Arguments Developed

The information which was captured in The Independent newspaper was very informative and used inset graphics and charts to display ideas held within the main text body of the article. It showed a large amount of quotes from the Tesco’s CEO Sir Terry Leahy, using figures and facts in the commentary to highlight any ideas which he had not fully explained. It only gave the quotes of the CEO and shows no other viewpoints from any other knowledgeable bodies. The main argument presented in the Independent addresses the idea that “its quest to be a global retail giant helped it notch up interim profits before tax of £1.1bn”. This had more than one meaning. It could be suggestive of the fact that the only reason the first half profits were that high is because the money came from global markets or, the fact that globalisation is the key to a successful business.

Information captured from the Times newspaper on the 4th October 2006 was full of useful facts as it was presented to the reader with a selection of charts and graphics inset. This ensured that there was a variety of reading material. It discussed in high detail the plans and suggested initiatives taken to carry out plans to expand further into the global markets of the US and Asia. Unlike the article in The Independent, The Times showed little or no information from any reputable bodies/persons and appeared to make use of past commentary from the Tesco’s CEO to address the information the writer wished to present. This information formed the basis of the argument laid down of “By February Tesco, which launched overseas ten years ago will have 60 per cent of its store space abroad”

The articles were chosen very carefully to highlight the changes that can be made by a number of different parties to a generic press release.