'Most media texts target a wide range of audiences' How true is this of your chosen texts?

Lost targets a wide range of audiences and does this by using different techniques and conventions. It is a mainstream text that is encoded in a certain way so that it targets a wide audience, including passive and active audiences.

One of the ways in which the producers of Lost can attract a wide audience is through the use of an ensemble cast. There are characters of different gender, age, race and nationality, so audiences from all over the world can personally identify with at least one of the characters. Also, because there are so many types of characters in the cast, there are different issues that can be relatable for the audience...................

Another way in which the producers of Lost try to attract a wide range of audiences is through the constant use of enigma codes throughout the text. By using this technique, a mainstream audience can become hooked and it is enjoyable for a vast amount of people. We see enigma codes through the episode and some are shortly answered through flashbacks and in the dialog which keeps the text fast paced and interesting. One of the enigma codes the audience sees in episode 2 of series 1 is when Walt is walking through the forest looking for his dog and comes across a pair of handcuffs. Through the use of close up shots of his emotions and reactions and the way in which the music builds up, the audience is left questioning where the handcuffs have come from and there is realisation that there is an escaped prisoner on the island. Later in the episode the enigma is answered though a flashback of Kate on the plane. The producers are clever in the way that audiences have enough time to make assumptions of who the prisoner is, but then when its revealed its an unexpected twist that keeps the audience interested.

Mainstream narrative devices are a feature of Lost that attract wide and mainstream audiences. One mainstream device is the non-linear approach of the text, the characters have flashbacks of the plane  crash after there have been scenes of them on the island. This technique makes the narrative clear and answers questions such as the enigmas and mysteries in the text, which makes for passive viewing.