Cbc Radio One, Today
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Stratégies gagnantes Auditoires et positionnement Effective strategies Audiences and positioning Barrera, Lilian; MacKinnon, Emily; Sauvé, Martin 6509619; 5944927; 6374185 [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected] Rapport remis au professeur Pierre C. Bélanger dans le cadre du cours CMN 4515 – Médias et radiodiffusion publique 14 juin 2014 TABLE OF CONTENT ABSTRACT ......................................................................................... 2 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................. 3 CBC RADIO ONE, TODAY ...................................................................... 4 Podcasting the CBC Radio One Channel ............................................... 6 The Mobile App for CBC Radio One ...................................................... 7 Engaging with Audiences, Attracting New Listeners ............................... 9 CBC RADIO ONE, TOMORROW ............................................................. 11 Tomorrow’s Audience: Millennials ...................................................... 11 Fishing for Generation Y ................................................................... 14 Strengthening Market-Share among the Middle-aged ............................ 16 Favouring CBC Radio One in Institutional Settings ................................ 19 CONCLUSION .................................................................................... 21 REFERENCES ..................................................................................... 23 APPENDICES ..................................................................................... 25 Appendix A ..................................................................................... 25 Appendix B ..................................................................................... 25 Appendix C ..................................................................................... 26 Appendix D ..................................................................................... 26 Appendix E ..................................................................................... 27 Appendix F ..................................................................................... 28 1 ABSTRACT CBC Radio One provides the vital service of informing Canadians about the political, artistic, scientific and cultural topics that contribute to citizen engagement and cultural norms. However, the onset of digital media has changed how a majority of Canadians consume media, which has led to a downturn in audience size for many broadcasters. En optant pour une approche à la fois qualitative et quantitative, ce rapport bilingue dresse un portrait des activités – et de l’état de santé global – de CBC Radio One. La programmation, les émissions, les contenus multiplateformes et les interactions avec les auditoires – via les médias sociaux, entre autres – seront analysés de manière critique. This report also explores how CBC Radio One has adapted to the digital era, and more importantly, the next steps it must take to maintain relevance in the coming two decades. The ways in which CBC Radio One has adapted, including the use of podcasting, the development of a mobile application, and the use of social media to encourage audience participation will be presented and analysed. Finally, based on the current situation of CBC Radio One, suggestions for increasing audiences among teenagers, young adults, and middle age demographics, as well as within Canadian institutions will also be provided. 2 INTRODUCTION CBC/Radio-Canada currently operates from 88 radio stations (CBC, 2014) across the country, broadcasting the CBC Radio One and CBC Radio 2 channels, and their French language equivalent – ICI Première and ICI Musique. CBC Radio 3 is only available online and via satellite radio. For the purpose of this report, only CBC Radio One will be discussed. As part of CBC/Radio-Canada’s mandate, CBC Radio One provides distinctively Canadian programming to national and regional audiences, while serving the special needs of those regions and targeting Canadians from all demographics. However, in light of the recent financial constraints, the CBC has been challenged to prove its relevance in order to increase its budget and to maintain the quality of programming stipulated in its mandate. At the heart of CBC/Radio-Canada’s history, radio broadcasting has suffered from audience declines in recent years, especially on the English- language channels – mainly due to the availability of American content. CBC Radio One, being the English-language radio channel mainly focused on talk radio programming, is both the flagship of CBC’s radio content and the platform least prepared for the digital age. This report explores what CBC Radio One is doing, and what it should be doing, in order to be informing, educating, and entertaining Canadians for years to come. 3 CBC RADIO ONE, TODAY The CBC Revenue Group reported on December 12, 2011 that CBC Radio One had “captured a record 9.9 percent share overall in the five markets measured by PPM - Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Calgary and Edmonton” – a figure that they deemed exciting enough to consider ‘spectacular’. In a more recent study, they determined that Vancouver’s regional CBC Radio One “is the number one station in the market overall… with a 12.3% share overall” (CBC, 2013). Because of these mildly successful numbers, “the public broadcaster’s French and English radio networks [have remained] ad-free” (Friends of CBC, 2014, p.17). While these audience shares have been enough to keep CBC Radio One ad-free for now, they may not be enough to ensure the channel’s survival over the next two decades. Radio is often criticized for appealing only to older audiences who are loyal to this platform, and CBC Radio One is no exception. Indeed, a 2007 survey by Canadian Media Research Inc. (CMRI) found that 47.4% of regular CBC Radio listeners are between the ages of 55 plus, 36.3% are 35-54, and 16.3% are 18-34. As for occasional and non-listeners, more 18-34 year olds tuned in, but the majority of audience members remained the 35-54 year- olds (See Appendix E). Appendix C shows that AM/FM radio listening is facing a decline in usage. Because of this, it is essential for the CBC to attract younger audiences. In today’s digital age, attracting younger audiences means accessing the networking and interactive potential of the Internet. According to the latest studies by Statistics Canada and Internet Advertising Bureau, the level of Internet advertising revenue has surpassed radio and is approaching TV (See Appendix B). Analysis of CBC Radio’s homepage reveals the level of quality and the effort that CBC has put towards keeping up to date with the technology of new media (See Appendix A). Highlighted in red are links to CBC Radio’s pages on various social media platforms, their newsletter, their 4 mobile number and their podcast inventory. This indicates that the CBC understands how vital online forms of their radio programming and audience interaction are to their success. Overall, the website appears professional and of high quality. A 2008 study prepared for the Friends of Public Broadcasting by CMRI reveals many insightful facts on the audience of CBC radio: “About 4 in 10 Canadians listen to CBC Radio on a monthly basis [22%].” (p. 6). This is the percentage for Canadians that listen to CBC radio occasionally – 10 hours or fewer per month. “19% are regular listeners (more than 10 hours per month). Regular CBC listeners, on average, spend over 55 hours per month with CBC radio” (p.6). The CRMI study (2008) asked respondents to agree or disagree with the statement When I first turn on the radio each day, it is to get caught up with news, weather and other information. The results showed that “over 40% of regular listeners strongly agree with this concept and another one- third agree” (p.16). They also found that “about one-half (49.1%) of non- CBC listeners report local news as a primary reason for listening. Some two- 5 thirds of occasional and regular CBC listeners say that local news is a primary reason for listening, basically equal in importance to music” (p.20). Another CBC study discovered that “the CBC Radio One audience wants more comedy (66%), entertainment (61%) and news (58%). Only a minority want more arts (37%), drama (35%), or sports (31%). They are split on the question of popular music, with 46% wanting more and 41% wanting less” (2005, p.14). Possible courses of action in response to these statistics will be discussed shortly. Podcasting the CBC Radio One Channel Podcasts have been around since the 1990s, but they became a popular medium when Apple announced that it would be “taking Podcasting mainstream by building everything users needed to discover, subscribe, manage and listen to Podcasts right into iTunes” (Apple, 2005). A 2004 article in The Guardian predicted the endless possibilities that the internet could offer radio broadcasters: “Liberating the listeners from time and place, and allowing them to talk back to the programme-makers is one thing: liberating the programme-makers is even better. You can get away with a lot more on the internet” (Hammersley, 2004). Podcasting has since presented opportunities and challenges for private and public radio, including the CBC; as Hammersley theorized, it is an alternative and flexible medium for radio programs, but there is the threat of the grueling competition that comes along with every media innovation.