ABC Appreciation Survey – June 2014 Summary Reportabout.abc.net.au/.../AppreciationSurveySummaryReport2014.pdfinformation provided by television, radio and online ratings. The most

June 2014

ABC Appreciation Survey – Summary Report

140601 / 0604 / 0605 Prepared for:

Lisa Walsh Head of Research & Marketing Australian Broadcasting Corporation 700 Harris Street ULTIMO NSW 2007

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Table of contents

1. Executive Summary 3 2. Background and objectives 5 3. Methodology 6 4. Research findings 9 4.1 Overall value of the ABC 9 4.2 Television 12 4.3 Radio 20 4.4 Online 28 4.5 Coverage of country news and information 34 4.6 Other specific charter obligations 36 4.7 News and current affairs - being balanced and even handed 39

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 2014, among 1,902 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 50+. 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 50 who feel that commercial TV does a good job of providing appealing content has grown. Consequently although the attitudes of people aged 50+ remain more positive about ABC TV and ABC Radio than their commercial equivalents, the gap has narrowed over the last eight years.

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1. Executive summary 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 2011, and this is part of a very subtle decline since 2006. 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 2008 and 2011 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 2007 / 2008. 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 50+. Although this group remains far more positive about ABC TV than commercial TV, the gap has narrowed quite substantially since 2007.

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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 50+. 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 50+, 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-10 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.

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2. Background and objectives This report presents findings from the 2014 ABC Appreciation Survey, which follows similar studies conducted in 1998, 1999, and annually from 2002 to 2013. 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.

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3. Methodology The research was conducted nationally, by telephone, among 1,902 respondents aged 14 years and over. Fieldwork was conducted over the period June 2-18, 2014, 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 “0” 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 either heavy viewer of ABC TV or heavy listener of ABC Radio 41

Medium medium ABC TV or ABC Radio user, but not heavy user of either 40

Light/non viewers / listeners not heavy or medium user of either ABC TV or Radio 20

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 32 21

Medium <6 hours a week 42 28

Light/non 0 hours a week 26 51

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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

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 2013, 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.

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.

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4. Research findings

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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 2011, and this is part of a very subtle decline evident since 2006. 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 50+ (Figure 2).

1. In 2002-2014, the survey was conducted in June, but the 1998 and 1999 surveys were conducted in December. Moreover in 2002-2014, the 'value' question included reference to the ABC website but not in 1998 and 1999. It is unknown if these differences in timing or question wording had any impact on results.

The small decrease in overall positive sentiment compared with 2011 is driven primarily by a decline in positive sentiment among people aged 50+. 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.

44 41 49 50 48 47 50 50 47 50 47 47 45 47 47

88 86 91 89 89 90 90 89 88 89 88 87 86 85 84

2 3 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 3

7 7 5 5 5 7 5 7 6 8 7 8 8 9 10

100

80

60

40

20

0

20

40

60

80

100

1998 1999 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014

%

VERY VALUABLE QUITE VALUABLE NOT AT ALL VALUABLE NOT VERY VALUABLE

FIGURE 1 BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY (n=1290, 1900, 1900, 1900, 1900, 1900, 1900, 1903, 1902, 1900, 1905, 1904, 1908, 1903, 1902)

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 ...?

NEITHER / DON’T KNOW 4 7 5 6 6 4 5 4 6 4 5 5 6 6 6

NOT VALUABLE

VALUABLE

* Mention of ABC website was not included in the question fielded in 1998 and 1999.

Total valuable

Very valuable

Total not valuable

Not at all valuable

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Statistically significant change: Noted prior to 2014 wave Noted with 2014 wave

BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY: TOTAL (n=1904, 1908, 1903, 1902); SEX: MALE (n=952, 953, 952, 950), FEMALE (n=952, 955, 951, 952); AGE: 14-17 (n=150, 150, 150, 150), 18-24 (n=156, 165, 157, 179), 25-34 (n=258, 201, 246, 231), 35-49 (n=528, 613, 517, 482), 50+ (n=812, 779, 833, 860); AREA: 5 CAP CITY (n=1089, 1093, 1090, 1088),

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, 309)

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 ...?

47 45 47 47 48 45 46 48 45 44 48 45 28 25 31 28

40 39 38 40 51 48 46 52 50 54 55 54 48 42 47 45

87 86 85 84 87 85 84 84 87 87 85 84 88 92 87 91 86 84 87 90 89 83 86 86 87 89 86 86 86 84 82 79

8 8 9 10 9 10 11 12 7 6 8 8 9 8 11 6 9 10 9 5 6 9 7 9 8 5 9 8 9 9 10 13

120 100

80 60 40 20

0 20 40 60 80

100

11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14

%

47 45 47 47 48 43 46 47 45 47 48 47 63 62 64 64

41 41 41 41 21 17 18 18

87 86 85 84 87 85 84 83 86 86 86 86 97 96 93 94 89 89 87 85

60 59 60 58

8 8 9 10 8 8 10 9 8 8 9 10 2 3 5 4 7 8 10 12 24 20 18 20

120 100

80 60 40 20

0 20 40 60 80

100

11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14

%

VERY VALUABLE QUITE VALUABLE NOT AT ALL VALUABLE NOT VERY VALUABLE

TOTAL MALE FEMALE 14-17 18-24 25-34 35-49 50+

TOTAL 5 CAP CITY CNTRY / REG'NAL HEAVY MEDIUM LIGHT / NON

5 6 6 6

AGE

NOT VALUABLE

VALUABLE

NOT VALUABLE

VALUABLE

SEX

ABC TV /RADIO /WEBSITE^ AREA

4 5 5 4 6 7 7 8 3 1 2 3 4 6 4 4 5 8 7 5 5 6 7 8 5 6 6 6

5 6 6 6 4 6 7 7 6 6 5 4 1 1 2 2 4 4 2 3

NEITHER / DK

NEITHER / DK 16 21 22 22

Overall value of the ABC

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FIGURE 2

^ Segmentation incorporates ABC website from 2013. In prior waves, the segmentation was based only on ABC TV and ABC Radio


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4.2 Television 4.2.1 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 2009 and 20121, perceptions have remained fairly consistent in the two most recent waves. Sentiment about the quality of commercial TV showed a marked positive trend between 2008 and 2011 - first kicked-off in 2009 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 2011. Conversely, the number who describe the quality as ‘poor’ has increased from 42 percent in 2011 to 52 percent in 2014, with a four percentage point increase in negative sentiment over the past 12 months. 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 2009 to 2012 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.

For ABC TV, there is a mix of increases and decreases in attitudes within age groups.

• Among people aged 50+, 2014 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.

20 18 20 23 20 22 23 24 24 25 26 27 27 26 26

4 5 5 5 6 7 6 6 6 6 9 8 9 7 6

75 75 78 79 77 80 80 81 82 82 81 79 78 78 78

41 40 43 41 40 38 39 37 37 42 44

51 49 44 43

2 3 2 2 1 2 2 2 3 2 2 2 1 2 3

19 24

18 18 21 21 19 21 22 18 17 14 16 17 20 12 11 9 8 9 10 7 9 9 10 10 9 9 10 11

53 54 50 51 53 56 54 57 58

52 49 42 45 48

52

100

80

60

40

20

0

20

40

60

80

100

1998 1999 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 1998 1999 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014

%

VERY GOOD QUITE GOOD VERY POOR QUITE POOR

NEITHER / DON’T KNOW

Television - Quality of programming

POOR

GOOD

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?

13 14 13 13 14 9 12 10 9 8 9 12 13 13 10 7 6 7 8 7 6 7 7 5 6 7 7 6 8 5

ABC TV COMMERCIAL TV

BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY: TOTAL (n=1290, 1900, 1900, 1900, 1900, 1900, 1900, 1903, 1902, 1900, 1905, 1904, 1908, 1903, 1902)

Total good

Very good

Total poor

Very poor

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FIGURE 3 Statistically significant change: Noted prior to 2014 wave Noted with 2014 wave

27 27 26 26 28 24 25 26 26 30 27 26 38 36 38 36

27 27 27 26 14 15 11 13

79 78 78 78 79 78 77 80 79 78 79 76 91 91 93 91 84 83 84 84

58 55 52 54

9 9 10 11 9 9 10 11 9 9 10 12 6 5 4 6 10 9 10 12 11 12 15 17

120 100

80 60 40 20

0 20 40 60 80

100

11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14

%

VERY GOOD QUITE GOOD VERY POOR QUITE POOR TOTAL 5 CAP CITY CNTRY / REG'NAL HEAVY MEDIUM LIGHT / NON

27 27 26 26 22 22 22 26 32 31 30 26 26 26 24 30 28 26 20 27 23 31 26 27 28 29 31 31 29 23 24 21

79 78 78 78 77 77 77 78 82 78 78 79 83 85 75 80 78 75 83 81 79 86 75

84 82 81 78 80 78 72 77 74

9 9 10 11 11 9 10 13 7 8 9 10 11 10 12 7 9 10 8 7 8 5 11 9 6 7 9 9 11 11 10 16

120 100

80 60 40 20

0 20 40 60 80

100

11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 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?

POOR

GOOD

POOR

GOOD

12 13 13 10 12 14 13 9 11 13 13 11 5 5 13 12 13 15 8 12 13 9 14 7 11 17 13 10 12 12 13 11

12 13 13 10 11 14 14 9 12 13 11 13 3 4 3 3 6 8 6 4 31 32 32 30

AGE SEX

ABC TV VIEWING AREA

NEITHER / DK

NEITHER / DK

BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY: TOTAL (n=1904, 1908, 1903, 1902); SEX: MALE (n=952, 953, 952, 950), FEMALE (n=952, 955, 951, 952); AGE: 14-17 (n=150, 150, 150, 150), 18-24 (n=156, 165, 157, 179), 25-34 (n=258, 201, 246, 231), 35-49 (n=528, 613, 517, 482), 50+ (n=812, 779, 833, 860); AREA: 5 CAP CITY (n=1089, 1093, 1090, 1088), COUNTRY/ REGIONAL (n=815, 815, 813, 814): ABC TV VIEWING: HEAVY (n=681, 620, 634, 672), MEDIUM (n=784, 811, 776, 761), LIGHT / NON (n=439, 477, 493, 469) FIGURE 4

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8 9 7 6 8 9 7 5 8 10 7 7 6 5 5 3 7 8 6 5 13 16 10 10

51 49 44 43 50 49 44 45 53 49 44 41 37 34 33 26

55 50 43 44 64 64 57 63

14 16 17 20 14 16 16 18 15 17 20 22 21 24 25 27 11 15 17 18 11 11 11 12

42 45 48 52 42 46 47 51

41 44 50 53 55 60 58 69

40 44 51 51

28 30 34 31

120 100

80 60 40 20

0 20 40 60 80

100

11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14

%

VERY GOOD QUITE GOOD VERY POOR QUITE POOR TOTAL 5 CAP CITY CNTRY / REG'NAL HEAVY MEDIUM LIGHT / NON

8 9 7 6 7 9 5 4 9 10 8 7 11 10 6 10 15 19 7 6 13 12 10 10 8 9 8 6 3 5 5 3

51 49 44 43 48 46 41 42 54 52 47 45

79 73 74 68 66 68 61 55 66 62 58 56 52 50 44 45

35 33 28 29

14 16 17 20 16 20 19 20 13 13 16 19 4 3 4 3 5 9

1 11 9 8 6

14 13 15 18 17 23 26 29 28 42 45 48 52 43 49 51 54

40 41 45 50

17 24 20 18 24 29 29 40

29 33 33 40 44 45 49 51 56 59 65 66

120 100

80 60 40 20

0 20 40 60 80

100

11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14

%


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?

POOR

GOOD

POOR

GOOD

NEITHER / DK 7 6 8 5 8 6 8 5 6 6 8 6 4 3 6 14 11 4 10 6 5 5 9 5 9 8 7 5 4 5 6 4

7 6 8 5 7 5 8 5 7 7 6 6 8 6 9 5 6 6 5 5 8 6 9 6 NEITHER / DK

AGE SEX

ABC TV VIEWING AREA

FIGURE 5

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BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY: TOTAL (n=1904, 1908, 1903, 1902); SEX: MALE (n=952, 953, 952, 950), FEMALE (n=952, 955, 951, 952); AGE: 14-17 (n=150, 150, 150, 150), 18-24 (n=156, 165, 157, 179), 25-34 (n=258, 201, 246, 231), 35-49 (n=528, 613, 517, 482), 50+ (n=812, 779, 833, 860); AREA: 5 CAP CITY (n=1089, 1093, 1090, 1088), COUNTRY/ REGIONAL (n=815, 815, 813, 814): ABC TV VIEWING: HEAVY (n=681, 620, 634, 672), MEDIUM (n=784, 811, 776, 761), LIGHT / NON (n=439, 477, 493, 469)

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4.2 Television (cont’d) 4.2.2 The number of shows people like to watch In terms of the number of shows they personally like to watch, two-thirds of Australians believe ABC TV does a 'good job', compared with 48 percent for commercial TV1 (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 2007. 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 50+, 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 2005. 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.

Looking at attitudes towards ABC TV amongst demographic segments:

• During 2011-2014 the number of people aged 50+ who say ABC TV does a ‘good’ job at providing shows they like to watch has levelled off at around 70 percent after a decline from figures historically closer to 80 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 50+ 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 50+, and (ii) there is not such a marked drop in positive sentiment about ABC TV among 35 to 49 year olds.

0

18 19 19 21 21 23 24 25 22 24 22 24 21 22 24

9 8 10 12 9 12 10 12 10 15 17 15 15 13 11

0

70 69 71 71 69 74 72 70 70 70 68 67 65 65 67

48 46 51 47 46 47 47

42 44 48 51 55 51 48 48

5 4 3 3 4 5 4 5 6 5 6 6 5 6 5

17 20

16 17 21 20 19 23 23 18 18 15 17 19 19 17 17 16 16 18 16 15

19 20 21 22 21 22 23 22

47 48 43 46 48 49 47 54 52 48

44 41 44 45 48

100

80

60

40

20

0

20

40

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0 1998 1999 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 1998 1999 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014

%

VERY GOOD JOB QUITE GOOD JOB VERY POOR JOB QUITE POOR JOB

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?

13 14 13 14 13 11 12 11 10 9 10 12 13 13 11 5 6 6 6 6 4 5 5 4 4 5 5 6 7 4

ABC TV COMMERCIAL TV GOOD JOB

POOR JOB

Total good

Total poor


Very good

Very poor

FIGURE 6

17



24 21 22 24 23 21 21 23 25 22 22 25 16 15 15 19 16 15 11 20 20 15 18 25 25 23 27 28 30 26 24 23

67 65 65 67 65 66 64 68 68 65 66 66 62 61 53 55 61 48

60 64 53 64 56 62

71 68 64 71 72 70 72 69

6 5 6 5 5 4 6 6 6 6 6 4 10 7 3 8 7 8 9 1 8 5 7 9 3 5 7 4 5 4 4 5

21 22 23 22 22 23 25 23 20 21 21 22 33 33 36 34 24

39 31 28 31 25 28 28

15 17 24 17 18 17 15 19

120 100

80 60 40 20

0 20 40 60 80

100

11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14

%


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?

24 21 22 24 25 19 22 24 23 25 21 23 41 35 36 39

21 21 22 22 8 6 6 8

67 65 65 67 66 64 63 67 68 68 67 67 89 89 90 90

73 71 71 73

27 30 30 29

6 5 6 5 5 6 6 5 6 5 5 5 2 2 1 1 4 3 5 4 12 12 12 12

21 22 23 22 22 23 23 23 19 21 22 21 9 9 8 8

21 22 24 23 37 36 37 39

120 100

80 60 40 20

0 20 40 60 80

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11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14

%


POOR JOB

GOOD JOB

POOR JOB

GOOD JOB

12 13 13 11 12 12 12 10 12 14 14 12 5 5 11 11 15 14 8 8 16 10 15 10 10 13 13 11 14 15 12 11

12 13 13 11 12 14 13 10 13 11 11 12 1 2 2 2 6 6 5 4 36 34 34 31


AGE SEX

ABC TV VIEWING AREA

NEITHER / DK

NEITHER / DK

FIGURE 7

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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?

15 15 13 11 13 12 11 10 16 18 14 12

34 29 26 26 21 31

15 19 19 25 19 16 14 11 12 10 9 7 7 6

55 51 48 48 54 46 46 46

55 56 51 51

82 74 68 63 65 64 67 59 68 62 59 54 54 49 46 53 40 39 37 38

15 17 19 19 16 20 21 20 15 14 17 19 4 6 6 7 5 11 8 12 11 13 14 15 17 15 20 17 22 24 26 27

41 44 45 48 42 49 47 50 39 38 43 45

18 25 28 32 27 34 27 39

28 30 33 44 42 47 48 44

54 54 56 57

120 100

80 60 40 20

0 20 40 60 80

100

11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14

%

15 15 13 11 15 16 13 11 15 13 12 13 9 8 6 7 14 15 12 10 24 23 20 18

55 51 48 48 54 52 47 48 55 49 51 49 41 37 37 33 56 52 49 48

70 64 60 67

15 17 19 19 15 17 20 19 17 17 18 21 22 24 25 26 15 15 18 18

8 13 14 13

41 44 45 48 41 43 45 48 41 44 44 47 54 58 57 62 40 42 46 48

25 31 31 29

120 100

80 60 40 20

0 20 40 60 80

100

11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14

%


POOR JOB

GOOD JOB

POOR JOB

GOOD JOB

AGE SEX

ABC TV VIEWING AREA



NEITHER / DK

NEITHER / DK

5 6 7 4 4 5 7 4 5 6 6 5 0 1 3 5 8 3 6 2 4 8 8 3 6 7 7 5 3 5 6 4

5 6 7 4 5 5 7 4 3 7 5 4 5 6 6 4 4 6 5 4 5 6 9 5

FIGURE 8

19



20

4.3 Radio 4.3.1 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 2009 and 20101. Perceptions abut commercial radio have also been generally consistent, though there has been a slightly higher level of negative sentiment about its quality in 2014 and 2013 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. 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 50+ after a respite in 2013 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 50+ who are critical of the quality of ABC Radio content.

1. As discussed in previous reports, the higher level in 2009 appeared related to ABC Radio’s coverage of the

fire and flood disasters of that year.

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 50+ - 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 2011 to 2014 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 50+] 2. 2. See Section 3, Methodology, for a description of how the heavy, medium and light/non

listening segments are derived.

17 19 21 22 20 22 22 22 21 21 23 22 22 25 21 12 13 10 12 13 14 13 11 12 12 13 15 15 13 11

60 58 59 60 61 63 63 64 65 69 69 64 61 64 61

55 58 53 55 55 58 56 53 54 53 52 55 53 51 51

1 2 1 2 2 2 1 2 2 2 3 3 2 3 3 12 12 12 13 12 13 13 13 13 12 15 12 13 16 14

7 6 7 8 6 8 7 7 8 9 10 9 8 11 12

29 29 31 30 29 30 32 31 33 33 34 30 30 35 34

100

80

60

40

20

0

20

40

60

80

100

1998 1999 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 1998 1999 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014

%


Radio - Quality of programming

POOR

GOOD

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?

33 36 34 32 33 28 31 29 27 22 21 27 31 26 27 16 14 16 16 16 13 13 16 13 14 14 14 16 14 15

ABC RADIO COMMERCIAL RADIO

Total good

Very good

Total poor

Very poor


21

FIGURE 9



22 22 25 21 21 21 25 22 24 22 25 21 16 26

15 16 17 20 22 17 22 19 28 24 24 22 26 29 24 22 25 17

64 61 64 61 66 62 66 64 61 60 61 58 71 79

67 69 66 63 70 61 60 55 64 64 62 65 60

67 64 57 63 55

9 8 11 12 10 9 12 14 8 8 10 10 17 12 15 14 9 9 17 16 10 14 9 11 10 6 11 10 7 6 8 12

120 100

80 60 40 20

0 20 40 60 80

100

11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14

%

22 22 25 21 23 18 24 21 22 27 26 23 47 45 50 49

32 29 32 27 7 9 8 7

64 61 64 61 61 58 62 59 68 66 66 65

97 94 95 94 88 86 89 85

36 36 33 34

9 8 11 12 11 9 10 12 7 7 12 12 3 3 3 6 8 6 7 9 13 11 16 16

120 100

80 60 40 20

0 20 40 60 80

100

11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14

%



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?

POOR

GOOD

POOR

GOOD

AGE SEX

ABC RADIO LISTENING AREA


27 31 26 27 24 29 23 22 31 33 29 32 13 10 19 17 25 28 13 22 30 31 26 25 29 37 28 33 28 29 29 24

27 31 26 27 29 34 28 29 25 27 22 23 1 2 2 * 5 9 4 6 51 53 51 49

NEITHER / DK

NEITHER / DK


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=880, 902, 883, 893) FIGURE 10

22


* LESS THAN 0.5 PERCENT

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?

15 15 13 11 13 12 12 9 18 18 14 13 18 24 14 9

17 11 13 10 14 20 15 12 16 15 15 10 14 12 11 12

55 53 51 51 55 50 48 47 55 56 54 55 72 78

65 68 52 57 62 53 62 60 52 53 55 55 53 51 51 45 44 48

12 13 16 14 14 16 18 16 10 11 14 11 4 5 8 7 8 11 12 14 11 14 20 19 16 16 18 14 14 13 16 13 30 30 35 34 33 35 39 39

27 26 31 29 23 18 28

20 35 27 33 41

28 32 38 37 37 33 37 37 27 31 33 30

120 100

80 60 40 20

0 20 40 60 80

100

11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14

%

15 15 13 11 17 16 13 10 13 14 12 12 7 6 6 5 11 13 13 11 21 20 16 14

55 53 51 51 56 57 52 51 53 48 50 51 32 33 29 33

55 52 54 53 65 62 59 58

12 13 16 14 13 13 17 13 11 14 14 15 28

22 30 23

12 17 17 15 6 8 9 10

30 30 35 34 31 29 36 34 29 33 33 33 52 47 55 52

34 38 38 36 19 20 23 24

120 100

80 60 40 20

0 20 40 60 80

100

11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14

%


POOR

GOOD

POOR

GOOD

AGE SEX


14 16 14 15 12 15 13 14 17 17 15 16 5 4 8 12 13 16 5 6 11 8 10 11 22 25 23 22 8 12 10 12

14 16 14 15 13 15 12 15 17 19 18 16 16 20 16 15 11 11 7 11 15 17 18 18



NEITHER / DK

NEITHER / DK

FIGURE 11

23



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=880, 902, 883, 893)

24

4.3 Radio (cont’d) 4.3.2 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 50 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 50+, 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.

16 18 19 22 23 20 20 22 22 23 22 23 20 24 22 13 16

11 15 15 17 14 14 14 14 16 17 15 15 14

57 56 57 56 59 59 59 59 59 62 61 57 53 57 54 56 58 53 55 54 55 55 53 54 54 52 53 51 50 50

2 4 2 3 3 4 3 4 5 5 5 4 4 5 5 12 12 14 14 13 14 14 15 14 13

17 14 14 17 15 10 10 8 9 9 12 10 12 14 16 17 14 15 16 17

28 27 30 29 28 31 32 32 33 33 34 31 32 34 34

100

80

60

40

20

0

20

40

60

80

100

1998 1999 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 1998 1999 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014

%


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?

33 34 35 34 32 30 31 29 27 23 22 29 32 27 29 16 15 16 16 18 14 14 16 13 13 14 15 17 15 16

ABC RADIO COMMERCIAL RADIO GOOD JOB

POOR JOB

Total good


Very good

Total poor

Very poor

FIGURE 12

25



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?

23 20 24 22 22 20 25 25 23 20 23 19 14 23

10 15 18 15 18 18 20 14 22 25 23 20 26 25 26 23 28 20

57 53 57 54 60 56 61 57 54 50 53 51 58 63 53 55 56 53 61

50 55 47 54 56 57 59 55 61 58 50 60 49

14 15 16 17 15 15 16 18 13 14 16 16 28 27 26 29 19 23 26 29 15 20 21 20 14 11 16 11 10 10 9 15

120 100

80 60 40 20

0 20 40 60 80

100

11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14

%

23 20 24 22 21 18 24 21 24 22 23 22

54 47 54 52 28 25 31 26

6 6 6 6

57 53 57 54 55 49 57 51 61 59 59 58

96 95 92 94 81 76 84 79

28 25 25 23

14 15 16 17 17 16 15 18 10 12 17 16 2 3 5 4 14 14 12 15 20 20 23 24

120 100

80 60 40 20

0 20 40 60 80

100

11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14

%


POOR JOB

GOOD JOB

GOOD JOB

29 32 27 29 24 29 23 25 33 35 31 33 13 9 21 15 25 24 12 21 30 33 24 24 31 40 32 36 29 30 30 28

29 32 27 29 28 35 28 31 30 29 24 25 2 2 3 2 5 9 4 6 52 55 52 52



AGE SEX


NEITHER / DK

NEITHER / DK

POOR JOB

FIGURE 13

26




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?

17 15 15 14 16 12 15 13 18 17 16 15 24 25 20 23 17 10 17 14 16 15 13 15 16 17 19 14 17 13 13 12

53 51 50 50 52 48 49 48 54 55 51 52 66 73 67 64 58 49

64 53 55 58

48 52 54 54 51 50 48 44 44 47

14 14 17 15 15 17 20 16 12 11 14 13 7 8 5 9 13 15 10 15 11 15 22 18 16 15 19 16 14 14 18 13 31 32 34 34 35 37 37 37 28 26 32 30 28 24 25 28 31 35 31 39

32 31 42

36 36 36 38 38 29 30 31 29

120 100 80 60 40 20

0 20 40 60 80

100

11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14

%

17 15 15 14 18 15 16 14 16 14 15 13 9 9 8 9 14 11 15 12 22 19 19 17

53 51 50 50 55 54 52 51 51 47 47 49 32 31 26 34

54 50 55 53 62 60 59 56

14 14 17 15 14 14 17 15 12 14 17 14 28 24 31 26

14 16 17 14 7 9 11 11

31 32 34 34 31 30 35 33 31 34 34 34 50 51 56 51

37 40 37 36 21 20 22 25

120 100 80 60 40 20

0 20 40 60 80

100

11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14

%


POOR JOB

GOOD JOB

POOR JOB

GOOD JOB

AGE SEX




NEITHER / DK

NEITHER / DK

15 17 15 16 13 15 14 14 18 19 17 18 6 3 9 9 11 16 5 8 13 12 10 12 23 26 24 24 10 10 12 11

15 17 15 16 14 15 13 15 18 19 19 17 18 18 17 14 9 9 8 11 17 20 19 19

FIGURE 14

27




Usage remains higher among people aged under 50 rather than over 50, and continues to be mainly concentrated among those who are heavy/ medium users of ABC TV/ ABC Radio (Figure 16).

2 2

6 8 7 7

9 10 11 12 13

17 15 16 17

8 12

18 20

22 23 23 26 25

31 31 35 34

37 37

0

20

40

60

80

1998 1999 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014

%

AT LEAST ONCE A WEEK LESS THAN ONCE A WEEK

28

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?

Total ever use

At least once a week

BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY: TOTAL (n=1290, 1900, 1900, 1900, 1900, 1900, 1900, 1903, 1902, 1900, 1905, 1904, 1908, 1903, 1902) FIGURE 15

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?


4.4 Online 4.4.1 Usage of the ABC website Close to 4-in-10 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 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.

17 15 16 17 18 15 17 18 14 15 15 16 24 22 21 24

16 15 17 16

3 3 5 5

35 34 37 37 37 35 39 38 32 33 32 34

45 44 44 48

37 35 40 37

9 14 14 13

0

20

40

60

80

100

11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14

%

AT LEAST ONCE A WEEK LESS THAN ONCE A WEEK

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?

17 15 16 17 19 19 18 19 14 12 15 15 19

13 14 15 16 14 14 13 21 23 20

24 20 18 21 23

12 11 12 12

35 34 37 37 39 38 38 39 31 31

35 34

48 40 37

41 39 35 41 40

43 47 40

44 40 40

45 45

25 24 28 27

0

20

40

60

80

100

11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14

% AGE SEX

ABC TV/ RADIO AREA



FIGURE 16

29


BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY: TOTAL (n=1904, 1908, 1903, 1902); SEX: MALE (n=952, 953, 952, 950), FEMALE (n=952, 955, 951, 952); AGE: 14-17 (n=150, 150, 150, 150), 18-24 (n=156, 165, 157, 179), 25-34 (n=258, 201, 246, 231), 35-49 (n=528, 613, 517, 482), 50+ (n=812, 779, 833, 860); AREA: 5 CAP CITY (n=1089, 1093, 1090, 1088), COUNTRY/ REGIONAL (n=815, 815, 813, 814): ABC TV/ RADIO: HEAVY (n=894, 834, 851, 852), MEDIUM (n=698, 737, 710, 726), LIGHT/NON (n=312, 337, 342, 324)

30

4.4 Online (cont’d) 4.4.2 Quality and amount of content on ABC website Among those who ever use the ABC website, the vast majority (90 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 2013 and 2014 results were averaged, and the age segmentation collapsed into three groups: 14 to 34, 35 to 49 and 50+. 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.

34 34 32 38

29 34

28 28 32 30 33 36 34 34 37

92 83

90 89 87 89 89 88 91 89 91 89 89 86 90

0 6

3 2 3 2 3 4 3 3 2 4 2 4 4

100

80

60

40

20

0

20

40

60

80

100

1998 1999 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014

%


ABC website - quality of content^ Do you personally think the quality of the content on the ABC website is good or poor?

9 11 7 9 10 9 8 8 6 8 7 7 9 9 7

BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY WHO EVER VISIT ABC WEBSITE (n=115, 237, 365, 402, 453, 464, 471, 547, 514, 592, 633, 706, 680, 727, 715)

GOOD

POOR

AMONG THOSE WHO EVER VISIT THE ABC WEBSITE

^ In 1999-2004 the question was asked in relation to 'quality of information'

Total good

Very good

Total poor

Very poor

FIGURE 17

31



39 34 31 35 37 38 42

37 41 41

93 89 90 92 91 93 92 92 91 93

2 6 4 4 4 3 3 3 3 3

100

80

60

40

20

0

20

40

60

80

100

1998 1999 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014

%


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?

5 5 5 3 5 4 5 6 5 5

BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY WHO EVER VISIT ABC WEBSITE (n= 464, 471, 547, 514, 592, 633, 706, 680, 727, 715)

GOOD JOB

POOR JOB

AMONG THOSE WHO EVER VISIT THE ABC WEBSITE

Total good

Very good

Total poor

Very poor


FIGURE 18

32


36 33 39 35 42 31 48

27 24

88 86 91 93 88 82 95 89 73

4 6 2 2 6 6 4 4 6

100 80 60 40 20

0 20 40 60 80

100

TOTAL MALE 35-49 FORTNIGHTLY/ MONTHLY

%

ABC website

8 9 8 5 7 13 2 8 22

GOOD

POOR

AMONG THOSE WHO EVER VISIT THE ABC WEBSITE – AVERAGE 2013 / 2014

BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY WHO EVER VISIT ABC WEBSITE AGED 14+ NATIONALLY: TOTAL (n=1442); SEX: MALE (n=753), FEMALE (n=689); AGE: 14-34 (n=458), 35-49 (n=452), 50+ (n=532); FREQUENCY USE WEBSITE: AT LEAST WEEKLY (n=681), FORTNIGHTLY / MONTHLY (n=500), LESS OFTEN (n=261)

TOTAL MALE FEMALE 14-34 35-49 50+ AT LEAST FORTNIGHTLY / LESS WEEKLY MONTHLY OFTEN

NEITHER / DK

41 38 45 42 44 36 50 37 27

92 91 94 95 93 87 95 95 81

3 4 2 3 4 4 3 3 4

100 80 60 40 20

0 20 40 60 80

100

TOTAL MALE 35-49 FORTNIGHTLY/ MONTHLY

%


5 6 5 3 4 9 3 3 16

GOOD

POOR

NEITHER / DK

Quality of content

Amount of content

SEX AGE FREQUENCY USE WEBSITE

FIGURE 19

33

SEX AGE FREQUENCY USE WEBSITE

TOTAL MALE FEMALE 14-34 35-49 50+ AT LEAST FORTNIGHTLY / LESS WEEKLY MONTHLY OFTEN

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 20). 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.

35 33 35 32

18 12 15

11

34 31 33 32

15 10 13

8

36 36 38 33

22 16 20 16

82 79 80 80

52 46 45 46

83 78 78 80

45 41 39 41

79 81 84 81

63 54 56 53

2 1 1 2

13 12 17 14

2 1 1 2

15 13 18 14 3 1 2 2

9 12 14 12 7 7 6 8

38 44 43 44

6 7 6 8

43 47 46 48

10 8 8 9

31 38 38 37

120

100

80

60

40

20

0

20

40

60

80

100

11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14 11 12 13 14

%


Doing a good or poor job in country and regional areas

POOR

GOOD

Thinking now of news and information about things happening in country and regional areas of Australia. In your opinion, do ABC / commercial TV & radio stations & websites do a good job, or a poor job of covering things happening in country and regional areas of Australia?

BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY: TOTAL (n=1904, 1908, 1903, 1902); AREA: 5 CAP CITY (n=1089, 1093, 1090, 1088), COUNTRY / REGIONAL (n=815, 815, 813, 814)

11 14 13 11 10 11 12 10 11 15 16 12 12 12 15 11 11 11 8 9 7 8 6 9

ABC COMMERCIAL ABC COMMERCIAL ABC COMMERCIAL

35

FIGURE 20


TOTAL FIVE CAP CITY COUNTRY / REGIONAL


36

4.6 Other specific charter obligations Respondents to the Appreciation Survey are asked if they believe the ABC is doing a 'good job' or a 'poor job' on nine other specific aspects of the ABC charter: The majority of Australians remain of the view that the ABC is doing 'a good job' in fulfilling each area (Figures 21 and 22).

There have been some very small shifts in opinion over the last four waves, 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 have also been: • small drops in the number who say the ABC does a very good job

being balanced and even handed, and encouraging/ promoting Australian performing arts (though for the latter this marks a return to more typical levels after a rise last year);

• a small increase in the number who feel the ABC does a poor job of being efficient and well managed.

a) being innovative - that is trying to do new things and different types of programs

b) being balanced and even-handed when reporting news and current affairs

c) encouraging and promoting Australian performing arts such as music and drama

d) broadcasting programs of an educational nature

e) being distinctively Australian and contributing to Australia’s national identity

f) being efficient and well managed

g) broadcasting programs that are different from the sort of programs you would get on commercial television and commercial radio stations

h) having a good balance between broadcasting programs of wide appeal, and broadcasting programs that appeal to people with special interests

i) broadcasting programs that reflect the cultural diversity of the Australian community

48 48 49 48 47 50 47 48 48 44 42 45 47 44

50 47 50 47

36 35 37 36 33 38 34 36 38 40 39 41 40 39 42 39 42 41 38 35 37 40 38 41 40 42 38

88 87 89 92 89 87 86 85 84 86 85 86 88 86 84 82 83 83 84 85 83 86 85 83 82 80 80 84 84 84 86 84 83 83 82 82 83 79 81 83 82 81 80 78 77

3 4 3 3 4 4 4 4 5 3 4 3 4 4 3 3 3 4 5 5 6 6 6 5 6 6 8 6 5 6 6 7 5 5 5 7 6 10 9 11 9 10 7 11 13

100

80

60

40

20

0

20

40

60

80

100

06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14

%


The Charter - doing a good or poor job

GOOD JOB

Now we’d like your opinion about other aspects of the ABC. Based on your own experience, or what you may have seen or heard, do you personally think the ABC is doing a good job or a poor job on each of the following?

BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY (n=1900, 1903, 1902, 1900, 1905, 1904, 1908, 1903, 1902)

9 9 8 5 7 9 10 11 10 11 11 10 9 10 13 15 14 12 11 10 11 8 9 11 12 14 12 10 10 10 7 9 11 13 13 10 11 11 10 7 9 10 13 11 10

BROADCAST DIFFERENT PROGRAMS TO COMMERCIAL TV

& RADIO

BROADCAST PROGRAMS OF AN EDUCATIONAL NATURE

GOOD BALANCE / WIDE APPEAL / SPECIAL INTEREST PROGRAMS

DISTINCTIVELY AUSTRALIAN

BALANCED & EVEN-HANDED


37

FIGURE 21

POOR JOB


31 34 33 32 31 35 32 35 37 34 37 37 37 37 39 36 42

38

26 23 28 26 24

29 26 29 27 27 26 25 25 25 27 25 27 26

81 81 80 83 80 81 80 79 80 79 80 82 83 78 79 79 79 80

73 72 73 75 74 75 72 73 71 70 71 69 72 73 70 66 69 68

6 8 8 8 9 7 6 5 7 6 5 6 6 8 6 6 5 6 11 12 12 13 12 10 11 11 13

6 7 7 7 6 5 5 6 10

100

80

60

40

20

0

20

40

60

80

100

06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14

%


The Charter - doing a good or poor job (cont’d)

POOR JOB

GOOD JOB

Now we’d like your opinion about other aspects of the ABC. Based on your own experience, or what you may have seen or heard, do you personally think the ABC is doing a good job or a poor job on each of the following?

13 11 12 10 12 12 14 16 12 15 15 12 11 13 15 15 16 14 16 16 15 12 14 15 18 17 16 24 22 24 21 21 25 30 25 22

BROADCAST PROGRAMS THAT REFLECT AUSTRALIAN CULTURAL

DIVERSITY

ENCOURAGING / PROMOTING AUSTRALIAN PERFORMING

ARTS

INNOVATIVE EFFICIENT / WELL MANAGED

BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY (n=1900, 1903, 1902, 1900, 1905, 1904, 1908, 1903, 1902)

38

FIGURE 22



39

4.7 News and current affairs – being balanced and even handed Perceptions about balance and even-handedness in reporting were explored in more detail among viewers and listeners1 of the ABC’s flagship News and Current Affairs programs:

– Television: 7pm News, 7.30 (previously 7.30 Report);

– Radio: The World Today, AM and PM. The vast majority of those who watch/listen to the respective programs believe it does a 'good job' of being balanced and even-handed – and in each case, around 45 percent of viewers/listeners believe it does a 'very good job'. There are no significant changes compared with last year, but looking over a longer time frame: • the number of listeners who say AM/PM does a very good job of

being balanced and even handed is gradually trending up; • although recent years had seen a gradual negative shift in attitudes

concerning the 7pm News, the current wave finds no further deterioration in sentiment.

1. Those who claim to 'ever' watch / listen to the respective programs.

49 43 41 44 40

48 46 47 46 44 45 41 45 42 45 39 43 43 41 39 41

36 40 44 42 44 47 42 40 42

38 39 46

41 45 48

95 95 94 96 95 94 92 91 92 93 89 90 90 88 90 87 87 89 89 82 85 89 85 87 90

85 86 85 83 83 88 86 85 84 85 86

2 3 3 2 3 3 4 5 4 4 7 6 6 8 4 6 7 5 2 4 3 1 3 4 2 4 4 1 3 2 1 2 1 3 2

100

80

60

40

20

0

20

40

60

80

100

06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14

%


ABC program does a good / poor job of being balanced and even handed

Thinking now about the extent to which ABC programs are balanced and even handed. For each of the following, please tell me if you personally think they do a good job or a poor job of being balanced and even handed when reporting news and current affairs. Firstly…

BASE: AGED 14+ NATIONALLY: WATCH / LISTEN TO SPECIFIC PROGRAM: ABC 7PM NEWS (n=1331, 1340, 1305, 1324, 1284, 1126, 1082, 1053, 1070), 7.30 (n=1270, 1237, 1266, 1261, 1231, 1046, 998, 1004, 1002),

AM / PM (n=638, 690, 627, 681, 728, 679, 613, 647, 629), WORLD TODAY (n=487, 516, 500, 540, 540, 509, 432, 481, 460)

GOOD JOB

POOR JOB

Total good

Very good

Total poor

Very poor

ABC 7PM NEWS 7:30 REPORT / 7:30# AM/PM THE WORLD TODAY

3 2 3 2 3 3 4 4 4 3 4 5 4 4 5 7 6 5 9 15 13 10 12 9 8 10 9 13 14 15 11 11 15 15 12 12

#PRIOR TO 2011 KNOWN AS 7:30 REPORT


40

FIGURE 23

POOR JOB

*


* LESS THAN 0.5 PERCENT

Documents

ABC Appreciation Survey – June 2014 Summary Reportabout.abc.net.au/.../AppreciationSurveySummaryReport2014.pdfinformation provided by television, radio and online ratings. The most