ABC Appreciation Survey Summary Report

Transcription

1 June / 4 / 5 Prepared for: ABC Appreciation Survey Summary Report Lisa Walsh Head of Research & Marketing Australian Broadcasting Corporation 7 Harris Street ULTIMO NSW 7

2 Table of contents 1. Executive Summary 3 2. Background and objectives 5 3. Methodology 6 4. Research findings Overall value of the ABC Television Radio 4.4 Online Coverage of country news and information Other specific charter obligations News and current affairs - being balanced and even handed 39 2

3 1. Executive summary Background The objective of the Appreciation Survey is to provide an overview of community attitudes and opinions about the ABC - as distinct from the detailed behavioural information provided by television, radio and online ratings. The most recent wave was fielded nationally by telephone in June 14, among 1,92 people aged 14 years and over. Overview As found in all previous waves of the survey, a large majority of Australians believe the ABC performs a valuable role (84 percent), provides quality content, and that it is doing a good job satisfying its charter obligations. Compared with last year, attitudes to the ABC overall and ABC TV and ABC Radio specifically are much the same. But over time there continues to be a very gradual loss in the number of Australians who perceive the ABC and its services to be valuable. This loss has been most pronounced among people aged 5+. In turn this is correlated with a gradual decline in the number of people in this age group who believe ABC TV, and to a lesser extent ABC Radio, provide content that appeals to them. At the same time, with the introduction of multi-channels and greater choice for television viewers on free to air television, the number of people over 5 who feel that commercial TV does a good job of providing appealing content has grown. Consequently although the attitudes of people aged 5+ remain more positive about ABC TV and ABC Radio than their commercial equivalents, the gap has narrowed over the last eight years. Overall value of the ABC Eighty four percent of Australians believe the ABC provides a valuable service to the community, and close to half believe it provides a very valuable service. Overall community sentiment remains unchanged compared with last year, though looking back over time the current level is down a few percentage points on 11, and this is part of a very subtle decline since 6. Television Most Australians (78 percent) remain of the view that ABC TV provides quality programming, and about two-thirds feel it does a 'good job' in terms of the number of shows it provides they personally like to watch. For commercial TV, after a marked improvement between 8 and 11 in the level of positive sentiment about the quality and quantity of content it provides, the past three waves show a reversal of this trend and a continued rise in negative sentiment. However the level of positive community sentiment remains above what it was at its lowest point in 7 / 8. Australians continue to have a more favourable view about ABC TV than commercial TV. Attitudes about ABC TV have been relatively consistent over the last three waves following a period of gradual decline in the level of positive sentiment about it (more particularly in relation to the amount of appealing content it provides rather than the quality of its content). Nonetheless over the last eight years, there has been a shift in attitudes about ABC TV among people aged 5+. Although this group remains far more positive about ABC TV than commercial TV, the gap has narrowed quite substantially since 7. 3

4 1. Executive summary (cont d) There has also been a narrowing of the gap among people aged 35 to 49, but the change is far less pronounced than among people aged 5+. Radio Sixty one percent of Australian adults believe the ABC provides good quality radio programming (only 12 percent feel it is poor), and 54 percent believe ABC Radio does a 'good job' in terms of the amount of programming it provides that they personally 'like to listen to' (only 17 percent feel ABC Radio does a poor job). Similar to ABC TV, attitudes concerning ABC Radio have been fairly consistent over the last few waves, but again over the last eight years, there has been a gradual decline in positive sentiment among people aged 5+, and narrowing of the gap in perceptions between ABC Radio and commercial radio. However the change is far less pronounced than for ABC TV. Online Close to 4-in-1 Australians (37 percent) claim to ever use the ABC website, even if only occasionally, and 17 percent say they use it at least once a week. Users of the site are largely sourced from people who are also heavy or medium users of either ABC TV or ABC Radio. As found in previous waves, the vast majority of the site s users: believe the quality of its content is either very good or quite good; and, based on the things they use it for, feel the site does a 'good job' in the amount of content it provides. Compared with last year, more users now rate the quality of content as being good, and the number rating it as very good is subtly trending up over time. Coverage of country news and information Community perceptions about coverage of country news and information remain far more favourable for the ABC than for commercial media - both among people in capital cities and people in country/ regional areas. Eighty percent of Australians believe the ABC does a 'good job' covering country/regional issues compared with 46 percent for commercial media. Other specific charter obligations The majority of Australians remain of the view that the ABC is doing 'a good job' in meeting its various other charter obligations, and compared with last year, there is little change. However there have been some shifts over the last four years, with slightly fewer now believing the ABC does a good job: broadcasting programs that are different from commercial television or radio; having a good balance between wide appeal vs. special interest programs ; being balanced and even handed when reporting news and current affairs; and, being innovative. In most cases, the small drop in positive opinion has been matched by a small rise in negative opinion. Compared with last year, there has also been a small rise in the number who feel the ABC does a poor job of being efficient and well managed. 4

5 2. Background and objectives This report presents findings from the 14 ABC Appreciation Survey, which follows similar studies conducted in 1998, 1999, and annually from 2 to 13. The objective of the research is to provide an overview of community attitudes about the ABC - as distinct from the detailed behavioural information provided by television, radio and online ratings. Specifically, the research explored community attitudes and perceptions about: the overall value of the ABC and its services to the Australian community; the quality of programming on ABC Television and Radio; the extent to which ABC Television and Radio offer programming people like to watch, or listen to; usage of, and attitudes towards the ABC website; the ABC s coverage of country news and information; the extent to which the ABC fulfils various other charter obligations; the even-handedness of ABC news and current affairs reporting. As a point of comparison, and to assist interpretation of results, attitudes and perceptions were also measured in relation to commercial media on a number of dimensions. TV viewing and radio listening were also collected for cross-analysis purposes. 5

6 3. Methodology The research was conducted nationally, by telephone, among 1,92 respondents aged 14 years and over. Fieldwork was conducted over the period June 2-18, 14, by fully trained and personally briefed interviewers. Respondents were selected by a stratified random sample process which included: a quota being set for each capital city and non-capital city area, and within each of these areas, a quota being set for groups of ABS Level 4 Statistical Areas; random selection of household telephone numbers random selection of an individual in each household. To ensure the sample included those people who tend to spend more time away from home, a system of call backs and appointments was incorporated. Results were post-weighted to ABS data on age, highest level of schooling completed, sex and area. Heavy, Medium and Light/non-users of ABC services In order to explore attitudes according to people s usage of ABC services, the sample was segmented into heavy, medium and light/non ABC users. The segments were constructed based on respondent s own assessment of how much time they spend watching ABC TV, or listening to ABC Radio (i) on an average weekday and (ii) on an average weekend day. Although in absolute terms these self-assessments may not be particularly accurate, they are adequate for the purposes of a broad segmentation. The following definitions were used: People who report that they do not spend any time watching/ listening to ABC TV/Radio on an average day, may still watch/ listen periodically. Consequently those who claim to watch hours have been categorised as Light/non users. A segmentation based on a combination of ABC TV and Radio usage was subsequently derived as follows: Heavy Medium Light/non viewers / listeners Amount of time ABC TV ABC Radio spent viewing/ viewing segments listening segments listening of 14+ population of 14+ population Heavy 6+ hours a week Medium <6 hours a week Light/non hours a week either heavy viewer of ABC TV or heavy listener of ABC Radio 41 medium ABC TV or ABC Radio user, but not heavy user of either not heavy or medium user of either ABC TV or Radio 6

7 3. Methodology A final segmentation incorporating ABC TV, Radio and the ABC website was derived as follows: Heavy heavy ABC TV/ Radio user or use ABC website 4-6 days a week 43 or more often Statistical significance testing Throughout the report, where relevant, statistically significant changes have been noted. All significance tests have been based on the 95 percent level of confidence. This means that if a change is noted as being statistically significant, there is a 95 percent probability that a real change has occurred, and is not simply due to chance variation between waves. Medium medium ABC TV/ Radio user or use ABC website 1-3 days a week 38 but not heavy user of any Light/non not heavy or medium user users of ABC TV/ Radio or website 18 Changes to question wording Over the years the ways in which people may consume ABC TV or ABC Radio content have expanded to include online and mobile platforms, and the number of ABC TV channels has also grown. Consequently from 13, the questions concerning usage of ABC TV and ABC Radio have included expanded descriptions as follows: Now a question about ABC television. These days the ABC has a number of different TV channels, and you can watch them on your TV, or you can watch them online. Now a question about listening to ABC radio stations - which could include listening to them on a radio, a computer, tablet or mobile phone. 7

8 4. Research findings 8

9 4. Research findings 4.1 Overall value of the ABC Consistent with previous waves of the survey, a large majority (84 percent) of Australians believe the ABC provides a 'valuable' service to the community, and close to half regard it as being a very valuable service (Figure 1). 1 There is no statistically significant change in overall community sentiment since last year, though the current level is down a few percentage points on 11, and this is part of a very subtle decline evident since 6. The small decrease in overall positive sentiment compared with 11 is driven primarily by a decline in positive sentiment among people aged 5+. As will be seen in later sections of the report, attitudes about ABC TV and to a lesser extent ABC Radio have also been gradually trending down in this age segment over the last eight years. A generally positive view about the value of the ABC continues to be shared by men and women, all age groups and both capital city and country / regional residents. Also consistent with previous surveys, belief in the value of the ABC is correlated with usage of ABC services. For example: among heavy ABC Television / Radio/ website users, 94 percent believe the ABC and its services are 'valuable', (including 64 percent who think it is 'very valuable); while 58 percent of light/non-users believe it is 'valuable' (including 18 percent 'very valuable). Related to this, a belief that the ABC is very valuable tends to increase with age, though tapers off among those aged 5+ (Figure 2). 1. In 2-14, the survey was conducted in June, but the 1998 and 1999 surveys were conducted in December. Moreover in 2-14, the 'value' question included reference to the ABC website but not in 1998 and It is unknown if these differences in timing or question wording had any impact on results. 9

10 Overall value of the ABC * Thinking now about the ABC overall, including ABC Television, Radio and the ABC website. Overall, how would you rate the value of the ABC and its services to the Australian community? Would you say it is...? VALUABLE Total valuable Very valuable NOT VALUABLE Not at all valuable Total not valuable NEITHER / DON T KNOW * Mention of ABC website was not included in the question fielded in 1998 and VERY VALUABLE QUITE VALUABLE NOT AT ALL VALUABLE NOT VERY VALUABLE FIGURE 1 BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY (n=129, 19, 19, 19, 19, 19, 19, 193, 192, 19, 195, 194, 198, 193, 192) Noted prior to 14 wave Noted with 14 wave 1

11 Overall value of the ABC Thinking now about the ABC overall, including ABC Television, Radio and the ABC website. Overall, how would you rate the value of the ABC and its services to the Australian community? Would you say it is...? 1 SEX VALUABLE NOT VALUABLE NEITHER / DK TOTAL MALE FEMALE AGE 1 AREA ABC TV /RADIO /WEBSITE^ VALUABLE NOT VALUABLE NEITHER / DK TOTAL 5 CAP CITY CNTRY / REG'NAL HEAVY MEDIUM LIGHT / NON VERY VALUABLE QUITE VALUABLE NOT AT ALL VALUABLE NOT VERY VALUABLE ^ Segmentation incorporates ABC website from 13. In prior waves, the segmentation was based only on ABC TV and ABC Radio FIGURE 2 BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY: TOTAL (n=194, 198, 193, 192); SEX: MALE (n=952, 953, 952, 95), FEMALE (n=952, 955, 951, 952); AGE: (n=15, 15, 15, 15), (n=156, 165, 157, 179), (n=258, 1, 246, 231), (n=528, 613, 517, 482), 5+ (n=812, 779, 833, 8); AREA: 5 CAP CITY (n=189, 193, 19, 188), COUNTRY/ REGIONAL (n=815, 815, 813, 814): ABC TV/ RADIO/ WEBSITE: HEAVY (n=894, 834, 895, 899), MEDIUM (n=698, 737, 687, 694), LIGHT/NON (n=312, 337, 321, 39) Noted prior to 14 wave Noted with 14 wave 11

12 4.2 Television Quality of programming A large majority of Australians (78 percent) believe the quality of programming on ABC Television is 'very' or 'quite good'. Following a small decline in positive sentiment between 9 and 12 1, perceptions have remained fairly consistent in the two most recent waves. Sentiment about the quality of commercial TV showed a marked positive trend between 8 and 11 - first kicked-off in 9 with the introduction of a number of high rating Australian TV programs such as Underbelly, Packed to the Rafters, MasterChef, and extending further with the introduction of the free to air digital channels. However the past three surveys show a reversal of this trend, and currently 43 percent of adults describe the quality of commercial TV as 'good', compared with 51 percent in 11. Conversely, the number who describe the quality as poor has increased from 42 percent in 11 to 52 percent in 14, with a four percentage point increase in negative sentiment over the past 12 months. For ABC TV, there is a mix of increases and decreases in attitudes within age groups. Among people aged 5+, 14 sees an increase in the number saying the quality of ABC TV is poor. Moreover looking over the last four waves, the number who say the quality of ABC content is good has been consistently below the level seen in the previous four waves. This has been matched by a rise in the number who have no view about ABC TV, and as noted above, in the number this year who feel the quality of ABC TV content is poor. Among 25 to 34 s, the level of positive sentiment about the quality of ABC TV has increased after a dip last year. Compared with two years ago, there is now a higher level of negative sentiment about the quality of ABC TV among Light/ Non viewers of ABC TV. Consequently overall, there continues to be a far stronger association of 'quality' content with ABC TV rather than commercial TV. Analysis among demographic segments shows the drop in positive sentiment for commercial TV over the past few years is evident (even if it is not always statistically significant) within each age group; among both men and women, and both among people who live in capital city and country/ regional areas. 1.The 9 to 12 decrease in positive sentiment about the quality of ABC TV was not reflected in a commensurate increase in negative sentiment, but rather an increase in those who did not have a view about ABC TV. 12

13 Television - Quality of programming Based on your own experience, or what you may have seen or heard, overall do you think the quality of programming on... (TYPE) is good or poor? GOOD ABC TV Total good COMMERCIAL TV Very good POOR Very poor Total poor NEITHER / DON T KNOW FIGURE 3 VERY GOOD QUITE GOOD VERY POOR QUITE POOR BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY: TOTAL (n=129, 19, 19, 19, 19, 19, 19, 193, 192, 19, 195, 194, 198, 193, 192) Noted prior to 14 wave Noted with 14 wave 13

14 ABC Television - Quality of programming Based on your own experience, or what you may have seen or heard, overall do you think the quality of programming on ABC Television is good or poor? 1 GOOD NEITHER / DK POOR SEX TOTAL MALE FEMALE AGE 16 AREA ABC TV VIEWING GOOD POOR NEITHER / DK TOTAL 5 CAP CITY CNTRY / REG'NAL HEAVY MEDIUM LIGHT / NON VERY GOOD QUITE GOOD VERY POOR QUITE POOR FIGURE 4 BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY: TOTAL (n=194, 198, 193, 192); SEX: MALE (n=952, 953, 952, 95), FEMALE (n=952, 955, 951, 952); AGE: (n=15, 15, 15, 15), (n=156, 165, 157, 179), (n=258, 1, 246, 231), (n=528, 613, 517, 482), 5+ (n=812, 779, 833, 8); AREA: 5 CAP CITY (n=189, 193, 19, 188), COUNTRY/ REGIONAL (n=815, 815, 813, 814): ABC TV VIEWING: HEAVY (n=681, 6, 634, 672), MEDIUM (n=784, 811, 776, 761), LIGHT / NON (n=439, 477, 493, 469) Noted prior to 14 wave Noted with 14 wave 14

15 Commercial Television - Quality of programming Based on your own experience, or what you may have seen or heard, overall do you think the quality of programming on commercial television is good or poor? SEX AGE 1 GOOD POOR NEITHER / DK TOTAL MALE FEMALE AREA ABC TV VIEWING 1 GOOD POOR 69 NEITHER / DK TOTAL 5 CAP CITY CNTRY / REG'NAL HEAVY MEDIUM LIGHT / NON VERY GOOD QUITE GOOD VERY POOR QUITE POOR FIGURE 5 BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY: TOTAL (n=194, 198, 193, 192); SEX: MALE (n=952, 953, 952, 95), FEMALE (n=952, 955, 951, 952); AGE: (n=15, 15, 15, 15), (n=156, 165, 157, 179), (n=258, 1, 246, 231), (n=528, 613, 517, 482), 5+ (n=812, 779, 833, 8); AREA: 5 CAP CITY (n=189, 193, 19, 188), COUNTRY/ REGIONAL (n=815, 815, 813, 814): ABC TV VIEWING: HEAVY (n=681, 6, 634, 672), MEDIUM (n=784, 811, 776, 761), LIGHT / NON (n=439, 477, 493, 469) Noted prior to 14 wave Noted with 14 wave 15

16 4.2 Television (cont d) The number of shows people like to watch In terms of the number of shows they personally like to watch, twothirds of Australians believe ABC TV does a 'good job', compared with 48 percent for commercial TV 1 (Figure 6). Reflecting patterns in perceptions about quality, the past few surveys have seen a rise in negative sentiment about commercial TV following several years of continued improvement. Nonetheless attitudes about commercial TV remain more favourable than they were at their lowest point in 7. Although the timing of this turnaround in sentiment about commercial TV varies by segment, collectively over the past few waves it is evident among both men and women; people in capital cities and country/ regional areas, and people aged 14 to 17, 18 to 24 and 25 to 34. However there has been little change in attitudes among people aged 5+, and after an initial decline, the level of positive sentiment among people aged 35 to 49 has risen again this year. For ABC TV, again reflecting perceptions about quality, public sentiment has not changed significantly compared with last year. Indeed attitudes have been relatively consistent over the past three waves, following a period of gradual decline in the level of positive sentiment since 5. Looking at attitudes towards ABC TV amongst demographic segments: During the number of people aged 5+ who say ABC TV does a good job at providing shows they like to watch has levelled off at around 7 percent after a decline from figures historically closer to percent. Moreover the last few surveys have seen a subtle decline in the number who say ABC TV does a very good job. Although sentiment among people aged 5+ remains far more positive for ABC TV than commercial TV, the gap has narrowed substantially over the last eight years. It s conceivable this has contributed to fewer people in this age group believing the ABC and its services are valuable (see Section 4.1). Among 35 to 49 year olds, the current survey finds a lift in positive sentiment for both ABC TV and commercial TV. Nonetheless there is also a narrowing of the gap between them over the last eight years, though (i) it is not as pronounced as the narrowing among people aged 5+, and (ii) there is not such a marked drop in positive sentiment about ABC TV among 35 to 49 year olds. 1. This finding is perhaps surprising given audience ratings for ABC TV vs commercial TV. However there are a couple of issues to consider: Firstly, we believe respondents answer this question relative to their expectations, and the role they have for ABC Television and commercial television in their lives. For example, a person may mainly use the ABC for news or current affairs, and believe it delivers. In their mind, the ABC provides quality content, and does a good job at providing the number of shows they like to watch. The same person may turn to commercial television for light entertainment - and in fact they spend more time watching light entertainment than anything else. But they may complain 'there s nothing worth watching', and so, the commercial networks fall short of their expectations. Secondly, the data show that heavier users of ABC Television are very critical of commercial TV, while other people are more even-handed in their appraisal of ABC vs commercial television. 16

17 Television - Number of shows you like to watch And overall would you say... (TYPE) does a good job, or a poor job, in terms of the number of shows it provides that you personally like to watch? GOOD JOB ABC TV Very poor Total good Very good COMMERCIAL TV POOR JOB Total poor NEITHER / DON T KNOW VERY GOOD JOB QUITE GOOD JOB VERY POOR JOB QUITE POOR JOB FIGURE 6 BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY: TOTAL (n=129, 19, 19, 19, 19, 19, 19, 193, 192, 19, 195, 194, 198, 193, 192) Noted prior to 14 wave Noted with 14 wave 17

18 ABC Television - Number of shows you like to watch And overall would you say ABC Television does a good job, or a poor job, in terms of the number of shows it provides that you personally like to watch? SEX AGE 1 GOOD JOB POOR JOB NEITHER / DK TOTAL MALE FEMALE AREA ABC TV VIEWING GOOD JOB POOR JOB NEITHER / DK TOTAL 5 CAP CITY CNTRY / REG'NAL HEAVY MEDIUM LIGHT / NON VERY GOOD JOB QUITE GOOD JOB VERY POOR JOB QUITE POOR JOB FIGURE 7 BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY: TOTAL (n=194, 198, 193, 192); SEX: MALE (n=952, 953, 952, 95), FEMALE (n=952, 955, 951, 952); AGE: (n=15, 15, 15, 15), (n=156, 165, 157, 179), (n=258, 1, 246, 231), (n=528, 613, 517, 482), 5+ (n=812, 779, 833, 8); AREA: 5 CAP CITY (n=189, 193, 19, 188), COUNTRY/ REGIONAL (n=815, 815, 813, 814): ABC TV VIEWING: HEAVY (n=681, 6, 634, 672), MEDIUM (n=784, 811, 776, 761), LIGHT / NON (n=439, 477, 493, 469) Noted prior to 14 wave Noted with 14 wave 18

19 Commercial TV - Number of shows you like to watch And overall would you say commercial television does a good job, or a poor job, in terms of the number of shows it provides that you personally like to watch? SEX AGE 1 GOOD JOB POOR JOB NEITHER / DK TOTAL MALE FEMALE AREA ABC TV VIEWING 1 GOOD JOB POOR JOB NEITHER / DK TOTAL 5 CAP CITY CNTRY / REG'NAL HEAVY MEDIUM LIGHT / NON VERY GOOD JOB QUITE GOOD JOB VERY POOR JOB QUITE POOR JOB FIGURE 8 BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY: TOTAL (n=194, 198, 193, 192); SEX: MALE (n=952, 953, 952, 95), FEMALE (n=952, 955, 951, 952); AGE: (n=15, 15, 15, 15), (n=156, 165, 157, 179), (n=258, 1, 246, 231), (n=528, 613, 517, 482), 5+ (n=812, 779, 833, 8); AREA: 5 CAP CITY (n=189, 193, 19, 188), COUNTRY/ REGIONAL (n=815, 815, 813, 814): ABC TV VIEWING: HEAVY (n=681, 6, 634, 672), MEDIUM (n=784, 811, 776, 761), LIGHT / NON (n=439, 477, 493, 469) Noted prior to 14 wave Noted with 14 wave 19

20 4.3 Radio Quality of programming There continues to be a greater similarity in Australians overall perceptions about the quality of ABC vs commercial radio than in their perceptions about the quality of ABC vs commercial television. Sixty one percent describe the quality of ABC Radio programming as 'good' (12 percent feel it is poor), while 51 percent feel commercial radio offers good quality programming (and 34 percent feel it is poor) - Figure 9. Perceptions about ABC Radio have been reasonably consistent over the last four waves after a drop from the unusually high levels of 9 and 1 1. Perceptions abut commercial radio have also been generally consistent, though there has been a slightly higher level of negative sentiment about its quality in 14 and 13 compared with the previous two years. Both ABC Radio and commercial radio have also seen a drop in the number of people who rate the quality of their content as being very good. Similar to the pattern for ABC TV, over the last eight years there has been a narrowing of the gap between perceptions about ABC Radio and commercial radio among people aged 5+ - though the narrowing is nowhere near as pronounced. Apart from the last 12 months, the loss in positive sentiment about the quality of ABC Radio content is not because more people have a negative view about it, but rather because fewer have any view about it at all. As noted in last year s report, this relates to a loss of behavioural connection with ABC Radio. [Appreciation surveys over 11 to 14 have seen, based on peoples claimed listening behaviour, an increase in the absolute number categorised as light/non listeners of ABC Radio, and a reduction in those categorised as heavy listeners and this has been most evident among people aged 5+] 2. Within demographic segments: Positive sentiment about ABC Radio has increased again among 35 to 49 s after a dip last year. Conversely it has dropped among people aged 5+ after a respite in 13 from a general downward trend in this age group in recent years. The current survey has also seen a slight rise in the number of people aged 5+ who are critical of the quality of ABC Radio content. 1. As discussed in previous reports, the higher level in 9 appeared related to ABC Radio s coverage of the fire and flood disasters of that year. 2. See Section 3, Methodology, for a description of how the heavy, medium and light/non listening segments are derived.

21 Radio - Quality of programming Based on your own experience, or what you may have seen or heard, overall do you personally think the quality of programming on... (TYPE) is good or poor? GOOD ABC RADIO Total good Very good COMMERCIAL RADIO Very poor Total poor POOR NEITHER / DON T KNOW VERY GOOD QUITE GOOD VERY POOR QUITE POOR FIGURE 9 BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY: TOTAL (n=129, 19, 19, 19, 19, 19, 19, 193, 192, 19, 195, 194, 198, 193, 192) Noted prior to 14 wave Noted with 14 wave 21

22 ABC Radio - Quality of programming Based on your own experience, or what you may have seen or heard, overall do you personally think the quality of programming on ABC Radio stations is good or poor? 1 GOOD POOR NEITHER / DK SEX AGE 12 TOTAL MALE FEMALE AREA ABC RADIO LISTENING GOOD POOR NEITHER / DK * FIGURE 1 TOTAL 5 CAP CITY CNTRY / REG'NAL HEAVY MEDIUM LIGHT / NON VERY GOOD QUITE GOOD VERY POOR QUITE POOR BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY: TOTAL (n=194, 198, 193, 192); SEX: MALE (n=952, 953, 952, 95), FEMALE (n=952, 955, 951, 952); AGE: (n=15, 15, 15, 15), (n=156, 165, 157, 179), (n=258, 1, 246, 231), (n=528, 613, 517, 482), 5+ (n=812, 779, 833, 8); AREA: 5 CAP CITY (n=189, 193, 19, 188), COUNTRY/ REGIONAL (n=815, 815, 813, 814): ABC RADIO LISTENING: HEAVY (n=482, 472, 472, 454), MEDIUM (n=542, 534, 548, 555), LIGHT / NON (n=8, 92, 883, 893) * LESS THAN.5 PERCENT Noted prior to 14 wave Noted with 14 wave 22

23 Commercial Radio - Quality of programming Based on your own experience, or what you may have seen or heard, overall do you personally think the quality of programming on commercial radio stations is good or poor? SEX AGE 1 GOOD POOR NEITHER / DK TOTAL MALE FEMALE AREA ABC RADIO LISTENING 1 GOOD POOR NEITHER / DK TOTAL 5 CAP CITY CNTRY / REG'NAL HEAVY MEDIUM LIGHT / NON VERY GOOD QUITE GOOD VERY POOR QUITE POOR FIGURE 11 BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY: TOTAL (n=194, 198, 193, 192); SEX: MALE (n=952, 953, 952, 95), FEMALE (n=952, 955, 951, 952); AGE: (n=15, 15, 15, 15), (n=156, 165, 157, 179), (n=258, 1, 246, 231), (n=528, 613, 517, 482), 5+ (n=812, 779, 833, 8); AREA: 5 CAP CITY (n=189, 193, 19, 188), COUNTRY/ REGIONAL (n=815, 815, 813, 814): ABC RADIO LISTENING: HEAVY (n=482, 472, 472, 454), MEDIUM (n=542, 534, 548, 555), LIGHT / NON (n=8, 92, 883, 893) Noted prior to 14 wave Noted with 14 wave 23

24 4.3 Radio (cont d) Amount of programming personally like to listen to Fifty four percent of Australians believe ABC Radio does a 'good job' in terms of the amount of programming it provides that they personally like to listen to, compared with 5 percent for commercial radio (Figure 12). The number who feel commercial radio does a 'poor' job remains substantially greater (34 percent) than for ABC Radio (17 percent). Reflecting attitudes about quality, perceptions about the appeal of ABC Radio and commercial radio content have been broadly consistent over the last four waves. Among people aged 5+, the adverse shift in sentiment concerning the quality of ABC Radio is also found in perceptions about the appeal of its content. And again, over the last eight years, there has been a narrowing of the gap in perceptions about ABC Radio and commercial radio among this age group. In this case, the loss in positive sentiment has been compensated both by an increase in negative sentiment, and a rise in the number who do not have a view about ABC Radio. As found in relation to perceived quality, the latter correlates with less behavioural engagement with ABC Radio. 24

25 Radio - Amount of programming like to listen to And overall would you say that... (TYPE) does a good job, or a poor job, in terms of the amount of programming it provides that you personally like to listen to? GOOD JOB ABC RADIO Total good COMMERCIAL RADIO Very good Very poor POOR JOB Total poor NEITHER / DON T KNOW VERY GOOD JOB QUITE GOOD JOB VERY POOR JOB QUITE POOR JOB FIGURE 12 BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY: TOTAL (n=129, 19, 19, 19, 19, 19, 19, 193, 192, 19, 195, 194, 198, 193, 192) Noted prior to 14 wave Noted with 14 wave 25

26 ABC Radio - Amount of programming like to listen to And overall would you say that ABC Radio does a good job, or a poor job, in terms of the amount of programming it provides that you personally like to listen to? SEX AGE GOOD JOB POOR JOB NEITHER / DK TOTAL MALE FEMALE AREA ABC RADIO LISTENING GOOD JOB POOR JOB NEITHER / DK TOTAL 5 CAP CITY CNTRY / REG'NAL HEAVY MEDIUM LIGHT / NON VERY GOOD JOB QUITE GOOD JOB VERY POOR JOB QUITE POOR JOB FIGURE 13 BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY: TOTAL (n=194, 198, 193, 192); SEX: MALE (n=952, 953, 952, 95), FEMALE (n=952, 955, 951, 952); AGE: (n=15, 15, 15, 15), (n=156, 165, 157, 179), (n=258, 1, 246, 231), (n=528, 613, 517, 482), 5+ (n=812, 779, 833, 8); AREA: 5 CAP CITY (n=189, 193, 19, 188), COUNTRY/ REGIONAL (n=815, 815, 813, 814): ABC RADIO LISTENING: HEAVY (n=482, 472, 472, 454), MEDIUM (n=542, 534, 548, 555), LIGHT / NON (n=8, 92, 883, 893) Noted prior to 14 wave Noted with 14 wave 26

27 Commercial Radio - Amount of programming like to listen to And overall would you say that commercial radio does a good job, or a poor job, in terms of the amount of programming it provides that you personally like to listen to? SEX AGE 1 GOOD JOB POOR JOB NEITHER / DK TOTAL MALE FEMALE AREA ABC RADIO LISTENING 1 GOOD JOB POOR JOB NEITHER / DK TOTAL 5 CAP CITY CNTRY / REG'NAL HEAVY MEDIUM LIGHT / NON VERY GOOD JOB QUITE GOOD JOB VERY POOR JOB QUITE POOR JOB FIGURE 14 BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY: TOTAL (n=194, 198, 193, 192); SEX: MALE (n=952, 953, 952, 95), FEMALE (n=952, 955, 951, 952); AGE: (n=15, 15, 15, 15), (n=156, 165, 157, 179), (n=258, 1, 246, 231), (n=528, 613, 517, 482), 5+ (n=812, 779, 833, 8); AREA: 5 CAP CITY (n=189, 193, 19, 188), COUNTRY/ REGIONAL (n=815, 815, 813, 814): ABC RADIO LISTENING: HEAVY (n=482, 472, 472, 454), MEDIUM (n=542, 534, 548, 555), LIGHT / NON (n=8, 92, 883, 893) Noted prior to 14 wave Noted with 14 wave 27

28 4.4 Online Usage of the ABC website Close to 4-in-1 Australians (37 percent) claim to ever use the ABC website, even if only occasionally, and 17 percent say they use it at least once a week (Figure 15). The last two waves show evidence of a slight increase in the number of people who ever use the website compared with the previous two waves. Usage remains higher among people aged under 5 rather than over 5, and continues to be mainly concentrated among those who are heavy/ medium users of ABC TV/ ABC Radio (Figure 16). Usage of the site has generally been higher among men than women, though there is evidence of a little more growth in usage among women over the last couple of years. Frequency use ABC website Now Now thinking thinking about about the ABC the ABC website. website. About About how often how would often would you personally you personally visit the visit ABC the website? ABC website? Would be Would it at be least at least once a once week, a week, less than less once than a once week a or week never? or never? Total ever use At least once a week FIGURE 15 AT LEAST ONCE A WEEK LESS THAN ONCE A WEEK BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY: TOTAL (n=129, 19, 19, 19, 19, 19, 19, 193, 192, 19, 195, 194, 198, 193, 192) Noted prior to 14 wave Noted with 14 wave 28

29 Frequency use ABC website Now thinking about the ABC website. About how often would you personally visit the ABC website? Would it be at least once a week, less than once a week or never? SEX AGE TOTAL MALE FEMALE AREA ABC TV/ RADIO TOTAL 5 CAP CITY CNTRY / REG'NAL HEAVY MEDIUM LIGHT / NON AT LEAST ONCE A WEEK LESS THAN ONCE A WEEK FIGURE 16 BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY: TOTAL (n=194, 198, 193, 192); SEX: MALE (n=952, 953, 952, 95), FEMALE (n=952, 955, 951, 952); AGE: (n=15, 15, 15, 15), (n=156, 165, 157, 179), (n=258, 1, 246, 231), (n=528, 613, 517, 482), 5+ (n=812, 779, 833, 8); AREA: 5 CAP CITY (n=189, 193, 19, 188), COUNTRY/ REGIONAL (n=815, 815, 813, 814): ABC TV/ RADIO: HEAVY (n=894, 834, 851, 852), MEDIUM (n=698, 737, 71, 726), LIGHT/NON (n=312, 337, 342, 324) Noted prior to 14 wave Noted with 14 wave 29

30 4.4 Online (cont d) Quality and amount of content on ABC website Among those who ever use the ABC website, the vast majority (9 percent) believe the quality of content is 'good', and this is up slightly on last year. Thirty seven percent rate the quality as very good, and this is subtly trending up over time (Figure 17). Nine-in-ten users also feel the site does a 'good job' on the amount of content it provides, with 41 percent describing it as very good. There is no significant change compared with last year (Figure 18). In order to provide a window into demographic patterns, the 13 and 14 results were averaged, and the age segmentation collapsed into three groups: 14 to 34, 35 to 49 and 5+. This means the demographic analysis is based on more robust sample sizes (Figure 19). This shows that the vast majority of users in each segment rate the site positively both on quality and quantity of content, though not surprisingly, those who use it more frequently are more enthusiastic in their rating of the site. Female users are a little more likely than male users to rate the site as very good on both the volume and quality of content. 3

31 ABC website - quality of content^ Do you personally think the quality of the content on the ABC website is good or poor? AMONG THOSE WHO EVER VISIT THE ABC WEBSITE GOOD Total good Very good POOR Very poor Total poor NEITHER / DON T KNOW VERY GOOD QUITE GOOD VERY POOR QUITE POOR FIGURE 17 ^ In the question was asked in relation to 'quality of information' BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY WHO EVER VISIT ABC WEBSITE (n=115, 237, 365, 2, 453, 464, 471, 547, 514, 592, 633, 76, 6, 727, 715) Noted prior to 14 wave Noted with 14 wave 31

32 ABC website amount of content As far as the things you use the ABC website for, would you say the website does a good job, or a poor job, in terms of the amount of content it provides on those things? AMONG THOSE WHO EVER VISIT THE ABC WEBSITE GOOD JOB Total good Very good POOR JOB Very poor Total poor NEITHER / DON T KNOW VERY GOOD JOB QUITE GOOD JOB VERY POOR JOB QUITE POOR JOB FIGURE 18 BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY WHO EVER VISIT ABC WEBSITE (n= 464, 471, 547, 514, 592, 633, 76, 6, 727, 715) Noted prior to 14 wave Noted with 14 wave 32

33 ABC website AMONG THOSE WHO EVER VISIT THE ABC WEBSITE AVERAGE 13 / 14 Quality of content SEX AGE FREQUENCY USE WEBSITE GOOD POOR NEITHER / DK TOTAL MALE FEMALE AT LEAST FORTNIGHTLY/ FORTNIGHTLY MONTHLY / LESS WEEKLY MONTHLY OFTEN Amount of content SEX AGE FREQUENCY USE WEBSITE 92 GOOD POOR NEITHER / DK TOTAL TOTAL MALE MALE FEMALE AT LEAST FORTNIGHTLY/ FORTNIGHTLY MONTHLY / LESS WEEKLY MONTHLY OFTEN VERY GOOD QUITE GOOD VERY POOR QUITE POOR FIGURE 19 BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY WHO EVER VISIT ABC WEBSITE AGED 14+ NATIONALLY: TOTAL (n=1442); SEX: MALE (n=753), FEMALE (n=689); AGE: (n=458), (n=452), 5+ (n=532); FREQUENCY USE WEBSITE: AT LEAST WEEKLY (n=681), FORTNIGHTLY / MONTHLY (n=5), LESS OFTEN (n=261) 33

34 4.5 Coverage of country news and information Community perceptions about coverage of country news and information remain far more favourable for the ABC than for commercial media - both among people in capital cities and people in country/ regional areas (Figure ). Eighty percent of Australians believe the ABC does a 'good job' covering country/regional issues compared with 46 percent for commercial media. Compared with last year, the only difference is a reduction in strong opinions about commercial media - slightly fewer people now rate commercial media as doing a very good or very poor job in covering issue about regional Australia. 34