This study was produced by the Project for Excellence in Journalism, an affiliate of the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. The study uses empirical data to measure the quality of local TV news and compare those results with ratings.
SPECIAL REPORT: LOCAL TV NEWS GAMBLINGGAMBLING WITHWITH THETHE FUTUREFUTURE Local newsrooms beset by sponsor interference, budget cuts, layoffs, and added programming
ocal TV journalism is on dan- suggests there may be. Based on Air more long stories and fewer gerous ground. nnnnnnnn data collected from 189 stations very short ones In a survey of 118 local news over four years, we have isolated Hire more staff and give them directors, more than half re- five characteristics that commer- more time to develop stories L port that advertisers try to tell cially successful stations share. The problem is that these ideas them what to air and not to air — Adopting these practices won’t run counter to the prevailing wis- and they say the problem is growing. guarantee financial success, but sta- dom in local TV. Some are overrun To meet profit demands, many tistically they will give a station the again and again by short-term bud- news directors report they are hav- highest likelihood of achieving it. get demands. And some rarely ing to produce a thinner and cheap- The elements: enter the newsroom conversation. er product by adding news pro- Cover more of the community These findings and many others grams while cutting their budgets. Demonstrate more enterprise are part of Year Four of the local News directors say consultants Source stories better television news study by PEJ, a are only providing the most think tank affiliated with the Co- generic solutions. One in five lumbia University Graduate also say their consultants dis- School of Journalism and funded courage them from covering by the Pew Charitable Trusts. certain kinds of news. In the stories that follow, the Gimmicks that once seemed to Project offers troubling findings bump ratings — every story about sponsor interference (News seemed “shocking” — don’t work for Sale), new evidence of the im- any more. And stations don’t pact of quality (Quality Sells), the know what to do in their place. practices that viewers respond to Everything is up for grabs. Too (The Magic Formula), a glimpse at much is for sale. the typical newscast (The Look of Is there a way to succeed in Local News), budget problems such an environment? (Thinner, Cheaper, Longer), a com- The Project for Excellence in parison of network versus local Journalism’s ongoing content TV news (The Patriarch vs. the study of local television news Family Circle), and more. •
Supplement to the November/December 2001 issue of Columbia Journalism Review cover it whatever the source. “Advertisers have the same right to pitch their stories to the news department as anyone,” said NEWS FOR SALE another news director. At most stations, however, news directors admit that advertisers get something more than just commercial time for their money. In Half of stations report over two-thirds of stations, for instance, sponsor pressure on news decisions news sponsors are named by the announcer or identified with a particular news segment. At about half the stations surveyed, the sponsor logo appears in the newscast. BY MARION JUST AND ROSALIND None of the stations in our sample re- LEVINE, WITH KATHLEEN REGAN ported that sponsors were allowed in- volvement in story selection, but a ow much is your local TV news in- handful of stations gave sponsors inter- fluenced by the people who buy views or mention in the body of a ads?xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx newscast in exchange for their support. H In a survey of 118 news directors A news director in a large market around the country, more than half, 53 per- said the biggest change in the news- cent, reported that advertisers pressure room this year was “pressure from them to kill negative stories or run positive sales because of the economy.” ones. More alarming is the idea of spon- And many of these news directors say sors discouraging stories or even getting the problem won’t go away. “Sales is get- them killed. ting more and more influence on news- A half a dozen news directors sin- casts,” said a news director from one gled out local car dealerships and medium-sized market. “Sponsorships, auto manufacturers as the focus of coverage suggestions, on-air mentions.” squashed stories. “We don’t aggres- The pressure to do puff pieces about sively go after car dealers,” one news sponsors occurs “constantly,” “all the director admitted. Another reported time,” “everyday,” “routinely,” and “every a “negative story on an auto dealer time a sales person opened his/her canned under pressure from client.” mouth,” news directors reported in a News directors also mentioned major survey of local news stations. health investigations at local restau- It is “getting harder every year” to rants as vulnerable. At two stations, for maintain the wall between sales and news, vertisers trying to influence what gets on instance, stories were killed when they re- reported another news manager. their broadcasts. Although that sample flected poorly on restaurant sponsors. Two These are some of the findings of the was small, when coupled with the com- other news directors said grocery stores survey of 118 news directors around the ments by news directors, the evidence tried to get them to drop investigative sto- country, conducted between June and Au- suggests the problem is getting larger. ries. gust 2001. The sample represents a signifi- Breaking down the sponsor suggestions Another news director described how cant proportion of the approximately 850 more specifically, 47 percent of news di- pressure came from within the station (the stations that broadcast news. The answers rectors this year said sponsors tried to get sales department) and without (the local have a margin of error of plus or minus 5 them to provide favorable coverage. restaurant association) but “news prevailed.” percentage points. News directors in all And 18 percent of news directors — al- In fact, a number of news directors felt but two cases wanted their comments to most one in five — say sponsors try to pre- able to withstand interference from “sales be anonymous for fear of retaliation for vent them from covering stories, a problem reps who don’t understand the business.” criticizing their companies. that is more acute in smaller markets. “In- Some volunteered that they were sup- News directors also reported their TV terference is common,” one news director ported by their general managers so that consultants (outside companies hired by told us. “the sole and final decision is with the stations to critique newscasts and improve When it comes to advertisers trying to news department.” ratings) issuing blanket edicts about what compel positive stories about themselves, One news director commented that he to cover and what not to cover in order to 16 percent of stations said that they had received “zero pressure from the general attract the most advertising dollars. been asked to cover sponsor events. An- manager,” and another reported that even in Together, the findings and comments other 8 percent covered events that were the face of loss of sponsorship, management raise questions about the journalistic inde- partnerships between the station and the “always backed up the news department.” pendence of local television news. advertisers; 12 percent said the sales or ad- What emerged was the sense that the re- The number of stations that indicate vertising staff requested positive coverage lentless push by advertisers and sales depart- sponsor pressure this year confirms a of sponsors. ments inevitably yields small concessions problem we first saw in our 2000 study. Some news directors take a benign view from beleaguered news directors. Even with- Last year a third of the news directors in a of sponsor pressure. As one put it, if the out overt pressure news directors may feel limited sample of 20 stations reported ad- story has “a valid ‘news’ angle,” they will obliged to compromise just to keep their jobs.
2 CJR/PROJECT FOR EXCELLENCE IN JOURNALISM November/December 2001 what useful. Consultants played a role in a SMALL MARKETS, BIG PRESSURE wide range of activities, everything from The problem of sponsor interference in developing a station’s news “philosophy” to our sample was more acute in medium- recruiting and coaching on-air personnel. sized and small markets. In one case, “Sales More than half of stations (52 percent) sold sponsorship to [a] local retail group, say their consultants actively push cover- which required ‘positive’ stories on retail- ing certain kinds of news. When they did ers (i.e. thinly veiled commercials).” so, they tended to tout “soft news” — Another news director complained that health and consumer issues. “[the] sales department books our live Nineteen percent of stations reported trucks for live sales remotes, which air in their consultants did something we con- commercial breaks within certain news- sider even more worrisome, discouraging casts.” One live truck out of service, one covering certain kinds of news. less opportunity to cover breaking news. News directors told us that sports was And commercials that look like news the topic consultants most often discour- thrown in for good measure. aged, but they said that politics and local While only a third of news directors in business coverage had also been singled out. the very largest markets reported sponsor Consultant advice to give more time to pressure to provide positive coverage, health and less to sports seems pitched to make fully two-thirds of news directors in the local news more attractive to female viewers. smallest markets feel those pressures. News directors are more positive about A quarter of news directors in small advice from general managers than the markets, those under 376,000 households, kind they get from consultants. They rarely report that they have been pressured to see managers as “interfering.” Several GM’s censor their news. One news director in tants have to offer? A common complaint mentioned in our survey were former the Rockies described the situation as “a is that consultant recommendations are news directors. Others commanded re- very large problem in this market.” not tailored to the needs of individual sta- spect because of their experience and ex- Pressure on newsrooms is aggravated by tions. More than half of the stations report pert knowledge of the news. the fact that small stations cannot afford that the advice they receive is “mostly” or A number of news directors said general their own lawyers. As a result they try to “entirely” general, usually focusing on pre- managers suggested story ideas “like every- avoid stories that might prompt legal action. sentation rather than content. one else.” But of course, as one news direc- One news director described an inci- Not surprisingly, the maxim “you get tor remarked, “They are not everyone else.” dent where the station “obtained copy of what you pay for” holds true for consul- Increasingly, it seems, advertisers aren’t a Department of Human Services report tants. While 59 percent of stations in large either. • on abused foster child. State law holds it or very large markets get advice made to ‘confidential.’ We would have been hauled fit their particular situation, only a third of Marion Just is a professor of political science to court if used [report] and refused to re- small-market stations have access to that at Wellesley College and a research associate veal source. Source broke the law by hand- kind of consultation. at the Shorenstein Center on the Press, Politics, ing it to us.” This small station did not feel News directors are not overcome with and Public Policy at Harvard. Rosalind Levine it could cover the story. enthusiasm about consultants, but most tell is an attorney in Boston. Kathleen Regan is a Other small-market stations also re- us that consultant advice is at least some- student and research assistant at Wellesley. ported staying away from stories that dealt with social service agencies in their METHODOLOGY states or cities. Several news directors oped by separate teams of university scholars avoided stories where a libel suit was he study this year examined broadcast news and professional researchers to grade newscasts threatened or even where “one individual T programs in 14 cities, 43 stations in all. We by a point system matched to these criteria. As in was named” in a negative way. also studied the three broadcast network evening years past presentation is a very minor factor. So news programs. Taping occurred during a Febru- that grading can be accomplished objectively, ary sweeps week and an April non-sweeps week. stories score well based on an accumulation of CONSULTANTS A team of professional coders analyzed 6,472 sto- the simple journalistic values mentioned above. ries from 470 broadcasts, or 235 hours of local This year’s study also included a national mail Pressure on news content comes not only news. The results were then statistically analyzed survey of news directors, conducted between June from outside the newsroom, but also from by researchers Princeton Survey Research Associ- and August 2001. A random sample of 196 news di- those who are invited in — the ubiquitous ates and at Wellesley College and interpreted by rectors was selected from an enumerated list of news consultants. Most stations use inde- a team of journalists. television stations. One hundred eighteen news pendent consultants. Our definition of quality is the same estab- directors completed the surveys for a response About half the stations surveyed use lished by our design team of local TV news pro- rate of 60 percent. The sample of 118 respondents outside consultants periodically or for fessionals. We stress the basics: a newscast represent 107, or more than half, of the 210 local special topics and 21 percent solely rely on should cover a broad range of topics, focus on television markets throughout the country that consultants drawn from their parent com- the significant aspects of the news, be based on produce news. Results are therefore reported un- pany. About two-thirds of the stations in original reporting, provide credible information, weighted. The survey has a margin of error of plus use multiple sources, balance stories with multi- or minus 5 percent, which means statistically that our survey report that consultants visit ple points of view, and contain locally relevant in 95 samples out of 100 the results will not differ their stations two to four times a year. stories. We continue to use the system devel- more than 5 percent from those reported here. What kind of advice do these consul-
CJR/PROJECT FOR EXCELLENCE IN JOURNALISM November/December 2001 3 QUALITY SELLS It builds share, demographics, and more
BY CARL GOTTLIEB us the ability to get the number-one share AND ATIBA PERTILLA in the market for selling advertising.” DEMOGRAPHICS This year was the first in which we stud- y any measure of financial success, ied lead-in numbers for every broadcast. We Quality also turns out to be the best way to quality journalism sells.xxxxxxxxxxxx found that 63 percent of “A” and “B” stations attract the audiences advertisers want most In the four years that the Project for were adding or retaining audience. Stations — people aged 18-to-49 and 25-to-54. Half B Excellence in Journalism has conduct- in the middle didn’t fare so well: only 27 per- of all “A” stations this year were improving in ed its annual study of local television news, cent of “C” stations and 20 percent of “D” these demographic groups over time, better 55 percent of “A” stations have successful stations were gaining on their lead-in. than any other grade. At the other extreme, ratings trends, better than any other grade. Both of our “F” stations were building neither “F” station was improving, and the This year we found quality is also the best audience. But don’t try this trick at home. next worst category was the ten “D” stations. way to succeed when it comes to market The “F” stations are at the absolute bottom While the amount of data is small, it sug- share, demographics and audience retention. of our quality scale and most newsrooms gests that going downmarket may alienate the Our 2001 study included 43 stations in are not good enough to be that bad. most demographically desirable audience. 14 markets. We found the correlation be- When we began this study, we cau- tween quality scores and household rat- MARKET SHARE tiously concluded from our data that the ings not quite as strong as in years past: for news did not have to bleed to lead — that the first time another grade (“B” stations) Quality is also the best way to build mar- audiences were not demanding trash and actually scored better than “A” stations in ket share — the percentage of households flash in local TV news. our sample. But we also measured quality watching TV tuned to a given station. If broadcasters were aping the tabloids, it against other yardsticks broadcasters told Four years of data reveal that high-qual- was their own choice, not the audience’s. There us they consider important. When we did, ity stations are the most likely to be gain- was no penalty for doing better local news. the case for quality became even stronger. ing in share over time. Fifty-seven percent Today, we can say something more. Au- of our “A” stations were building share over diences prefer quality. time, significantly better than every other If a company that owns television sta- AUDIENCE RETENTION grade. What’s more, “D” and “F” stations tions wants to protect and nurture its assets, Quality, the numbers show, is the best way were most likely to be losing share. the data suggest investing in quality is the for a news program to retain or add to its Over four years, it turns out, the correla- best strategy. It may require investing in peo- so-called lead-in audience. “The fact that tion between quality and share is even ple, giving them time, and even resources, we can maintain audience from program stronger than the correlation we have gener- but it is more likely than any other approach to program shows that viewers are not just ally used, basic household ratings. As the to pay commercial dividends over time. • loyal to our programs — they’re loyal to number of people watching television de- our station,” says Diane Caggiano, research clines, the ability to claim the largest share Carl Gottlieb is deputy director of the director at KTVK in Phoenix, a high-quality of the available audience is becoming more Project for Excellence in Journalism. station from last year’s study. “That gives and more important to station management. Atiba Pertilla is a research associate at PEJ.
4 CJR/PROJECT FOR EXCELLENCE IN JOURNALISM November/December 2001 THE MAGIC FORMULA Five proven steps to financial success in news
BY TOM ROSENSTIEL, CARL GOTTLIEB, It turns out their professional instincts AND ANDREW FINLAYSON were right. The data show stations that cover a broader range of topics in their t’s becoming clearer, over dozens of sta- newscasts have a better chance of suc- tions, thousands of stories, and millions ceeding commercially. of viewers. nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn. It’s a mistake for stations to cleverly I There are some things we can demon- limit themselves to topics that test well in strate audiences want. focus groups, are highly promotable, or They are characteristics commercially strike station managers as good “water successful stations share — whether this cooler” material. study rates them as good quality stations This study measures topic range by or bad. comparing the number of topics in each They are the things news directors newscast to the number of stories aired. should ask for in their budget meetings, Stations that score highest for topic range and that station and group managers are 33 percent more likely than any other should support. grade to have successful ratings trends. They were not arrived at by some dis- Take Florida’s WTSP, a high-quality sta- cussion of lofty journalism principles. They tion beating the ratings odds. The station were discovered the other way around — had one of the best scores in this year’s by taking all the stations that are thriving in study for topic range, scoring 19 percent business terms, and then isolating those better than the national average. factors that helped them get there. Its market contains two distinct cities Some cost money, some don’t. But they separated by water, Tampa and St. Peters- show that content matters, and that burg. But in the words of former news di- squeezing a station’s people, resources and rector Jim Church, “bridges are not barri- time is not the answer. ers” but instead “connect together com- The five factors amount to a formula munities.” for success—a formula that is provable So, Church says, the station pursues a with numbers based on our study of 189 regional approach. “We do tons of stories stations over the past four years: focused on issues such as the persistent Cover More of the Community drought, transportation, and protection Do More Enterprise Reporting from hurricanes.” Source Stories Better Incidentally, covering more topics does- n’t just help ratings. The numbers show it Do More Long Stories and Fewer Very also helps a station succeed by the other Short Ones key commercial measures: market share, Hire More Reporters and Give Them audience retention and demographics. More Time The demographics numbers are inter- In a sense, the data suggest a surprisingly esting. They suggests audiences want to simple analogy: if you tune into a sitcom and learn about the whole community, no it’s not funny, you don’t go back. If you tune matter who or how old they are. Tailoring into a news program and there isn’t enough your topics to appeal to key demographics information, you won’t tune in again. is a fool’s errand. Let’s take these successful practices one at a time. MORE ENTERPRISE REPORTING COVER MORE OF Stations putting the magic formula to THE COMMUNITY work, from top: WTSP coverage of a Stations that demonstrate more enterprise February brush fire; former captive fare better commercially. From the outset, our design team of indus- Stephen Gonzales talks with a KTVT Enterprise is measured on a scale — try professionals agreed that covering the reporter; WRC interviews an Iraqi- from original investigations, at the top, all entire community was the most important American; WFLA anchors on the set. the way down to using video press releas- thing a local TV news operation could do. es. Over four years, successful stations do
CJR/PROJECT FOR EXCELLENCE IN JOURNALISM November/December 2001 5 13 percent more of certain kinds of enter- prise, especially the kind people can rec- ognize — tough interviews, investigations and special series. Other kinds of enterprise also help, though statistically not as much — doing more breaking news, avoiding video press releases, sending a reporter and not just a camera. The lesson — effort pays. For instance, KTVT, this year’s best large-market station, also scored near the top for enterprise reporting. While ratings at the other stations in Dallas were generally trending down, KTVT was the only one picking up steam at the time of the study. When it comes to getting story ideas, “We don’t believe in reading the newspa- per,” says news director Linda Levy. Her philosophy is that producers, reporters, and assignment desk staff all are held ac- countable for coming up with stories, and But better sourcing across the board reasons it has dominated the Washington she urges her newsroom not to take no for adds up. Successful stations were 5 per- market in recent years. an answer. cent less likely to cite no source at all in a That attitude is demonstrated in the story. They score 5 percent better for using details, like fleshing out a piece on pre- multiple sources. They score 3 percent MORE LONG STORIES AND scription drug abuse with interviews of re- better on source expertise. FEWER VERY SHORT ONES covering addicts. These numbers relate to ratings, but the On the day China allowed the crew of a basic correlation between better sourcing For years, the common wisdom was that Navy spy plane to return to the U.S., KTVT and commercial success holds up no mat- viewers had short attention spans — and took the initiative to interview a local U.S. ter what the measure — ratings, share, au- maybe they were getting shorter. The soldier who had been held captive by dience retention or demographics. thinking was that people would not be Bosnian Serbs two years earlier, giving WRC has long enjoyed the ratings lead able to focus for long on complicated sto- viewers insight into the experience of for late news in Washington, D.C. While it ries about dense issues. being the prisoner of a hostile nation. received a “B” for its overall grade this year, As a consequence, soundbites — and After September 11, KTVT assigned its the NBC station is one of the better ones stories — have gradually shrunk. And stories entire nine-person investigative staff full- we studied when it comes to sourcing of have been told with fewer and fewer facts. time to look for local ties to the terrorists all kinds. The numbers say all this is a mistake. and those who might have aided them. “It’s part of the culture in our news room,” After four years we can show that sta- It is an approach that Levy thinks can be says WRC news director Bob Long. “News- tions that are enjoying better than average summed up as “super aggressive, super re- room discussions are likely to be philo- ratings air fewer short stories — those sponsible.” sophical . . . . We question our reporters.” under 30 seconds — and more stories When U.S. fighter planes attacked Iraq longer than two minutes. in February WRC localized the larger story In fact, successful stations are 17 per- BETTER SOURCING by doing a piece about a Washington cent more likely than stations losing rat- The Project measures sourcing various restaurateur and his fears for relatives still ings to air stories two minutes or longer. ways. living in Iraq. Commercially successful stations are We check the number of sources in sto- WRC also interviewed Middle East ex- also 13 percent less likely to air stories 30 ries: the more sources, the better. perts with opposing views on the wisdom seconds or shorter. We gauge credibility by noting whether a of the attack, providing a quick primer on Tampa’s WFLA uses its airtime wisely. source has appropriate expertise for the the conflict as well as illustrating its Twenty-nine percent of the station’s stories story: an independent doctor may score high human side. in the 6:00 p.m. time slot are two minutes or in a medical piece, a voter in a political piece. A story about an overturned truck on longer compared with 19 percent nationally. These elements may seem like Journal- Interstate 95 in the D.C. suburbs provided The station also airs shorter stories less fre- ism 101, but the scores have proven lower viewers with official information about quently than most, 25 percent of the time, than expected. the next morning’s rush hour, a resident’s while the national average is 40 percent. And over four years we have found that concerns about the truck’s toxic cargo and “It is more important being right than successful stations generally score higher a state environmental official allaying fears being fast,” says former news director Dan for sourcing. that a nearby stream had been polluted. Bradley, who has since been promoted by the Some types of sourcing are especially While viewers probably don’t sit and station’s ownership, summing up the philoso- important. For instance, over four years, count sources or ponder their expertise, phy that results in longer stories. Current successful stations were 17 percent less WRC comes across to local viewers as news director Forest Carr thinks the pro- likely to use anonymous sources. credible and informative. It’s one of the gram’s pacing reflects a larger ambition of the
6 CJR/PROJECT FOR EXCELLENCE IN JOURNALISM November/December 2001 newsroom to recognize that “local news is More than half of stations (54 percent) That’s a big impact for good journalism in about me the viewer, not me the producer.” that increased staff had average or even the face of so many factors influencing And while the station has been known above-average ratings trends, compared to ratings that stations cannot control. to tear through ten stories in a first block, only a third of stations that did not in- Added together, these five elements it also has aired pieces as long as four and crease staff — regardless of market size. suggest there is a particular approach to a half minutes. Letting staff do more thorough reporting managing TV newsrooms that is demon- Until 1993, WFLA had a different ap- also helped ratings. Stations that asked reporters strably more likely to succeed than any proach. “Some stories were literally eight to produce only one story a day fared signifi- other. It is not just about packaging, pro- to nine seconds long,” according to Carr. cantly better in the ratings than stations that re- motions, high-tech equipment or slogans. The current philosophy, he said, “is if quired their reporters to do more than one. Television journalism is best practiced we can’t budget enough time to make a The benefit of investing in people and by hiring talented people and giving them story relevant and meaningful we give that giving them production and reporting the time and resources to cover the entire time to another story.” time is underscored by another finding — community, demonstrate genuine enter- It seems imparting more information stations that avoided video press releases prise, and put their stories together care- through longer stories is also good for and relied on their own reporting had sig- fully and completely. business. Stations that tend to do better in nificantly better ratings trends than others. Viewers notice. The numbers show it. • the ratings, increased market share, those Indeed, limiting the number of stories building lead-in audience and improving reporters undertook each day and dis- Tom Rosenstiel is director of the Project for their key demographics avoid very short couraging the use of video news releases Excellence in Journalism. Carl Gottlieb is stories and air longer ones. accounted statistically for 20 percent of deputy director of PEJ. Andrew Finlayson is the improvement in station ratings trends. News Director at KTVU in Oakland, California. HIRE MORE REPORTERS When we compared our national survey of news directors with our data on commer- cial success, we discovered something striking about staff size and workload: sta- tions that invest their money in people do better in the ratings. In this year, a tough one for advertising, stations adding staff had a significantly better chance of holding their own or im- proving their ratings than those where the staff held steady or declined.
WHERE HAVE ALL THE VIEWERS GONE? BY CARL GOTTLIEB AND TODD BELT falling faster than the ratings, that would ing news into entertainment will proba- mean people were tuning to another pro- bly drive more viewers away. oday in local television news few gram. (Ratings measure the number of But local TV news can’t seem to break stations are gaining audience.xxxxx households watching a given station. Mar- away from the belief that being like enter- T Winning is now a matter of beat- ket share expresses ratings as a percentage tainment will boost numbers. Mimicking ing the odds. of all households watching TV at the time.) the prime-time entertainment schedules, This year, in our sample of 43 stations, The evidence shows that local news is celebrities and crime continue to be main- 77 percent are suffering ratings declines. not losing its audience to other kinds of stays of local news, greatly outweighing In our 1998 study, by comparison, that TV programs, even cable programming. coverage of civic institutions and leaders. number was 66 percent, but it has been in TV news is losing out to other activities The ratings in New York demonstrate the mid to high 70s ever since. — the Internet, raising kids, commuting, the folly of this strategy. There, coverage In the past, we talked about station rat- working. of celebrities has more than doubled be- ings rising or falling. Today, it makes more This finding confirms studies by our af- tween 1998 and 2001 and is now three sense to talk about “succeeding” or “fail- filiate NewsLab, researchers at Indiana Uni- times larger than the national average. ing.” “Succeeding” stations have ratings versity, and the private company Insite Re- Meanwhile, over the past three years, New trends better than the average; “failing” search. Their results suggest that people York newscasts are losing audience faster stations are doing worse than average. are turning away from local TV news be- than 78 percent of the late newscasts in If ratings are declining, where are view- cause they find it repetitive, formulaic and other major markets in our survey. • ers going? Are they abandoning TV news superficial, and can get their local news to watch something else, or are they no more effectively from other sources. Carl Gottlieb is deputy director of the longer watching TV at all? Our data suggest that news directors Project for Excellence in Journalism. By comparing a station’s ratings with its who mold their news shows to resemble Todd Belt is a doctoral student in politi- market share over time we are able to get entertainment are making a mistake. That cal science at the University of Southern an answer. If the share for news were is not where their viewers are going. Turn- California.
CJR/PROJECT FOR EXCELLENCE IN JOURNALISM November/December 2001 7 WHO’S BEST IN 14 CITIES? LOCAL TV NEWS Quality Station Quality Network Average Topic Focus Enterprise Expertise No. of View- Local Audience Ratings Grade Score Affiliation Story Score Range Sources points Relevance Retention Trend
A KULR 424.69 22.00 +4.2% Good station. Above average for investigative. Not much breaking news. Could improve sourcing. A KTVQ 420.15 23.30 +22.1% Dominant station, and good. Great sourcing, but lots of canned events. BILLINGS - 5:30PM
C WCNC 316.08 21.51 -58.1% Best station in worst market. Ratings improving. Best sourcing in town. Good watchdog. D WBTV 272.03 20.33 -9.6% Big changes. Dropping 6:30 show. New news director. Program needs work. F WSOC 227.21 18.96 +8.7%
CHARLOTTE - 11PM CHARLOTTE Worst in study. One-time powerhouse in ratings dive. One sided, poor sourcing. Overdoes “breaking news.”
A KTVT 423.85 23.08 -44.4% Best large-market station this year. Good ratings. Most investigations in town. Needs more sources, fewer feeds. C WFAA 335.61 21.45 +13.9% Low on crime, high on ideas. But too many everyday incidents. Belo powerhouse falling fast in ratings. C KDFW 320.34 21.23 -16.2% Improving station. High focus on institutions. Should add more viewpoints in stories. DALLAS DALLAS - 10PM D KXAS 278.87 20.29 -9.3% Down from B to D since ’99. Most everyday crime in town. Too many stories with no sources.
C WDIV 321.69 20.46 -8.2% Dominant at 11pm. Above average for investigations and series. Very local. Could improve number of sources. D WXYZ 296.34 20.28 +4.3% New news director. Could improve sourcing. Needs more enterprise. Lots of everyday incidents. DETROIT - DETROIT 11PM
CHART KEY Overall Grade Ratings up Icons: Average story score for a station by variable. (3 years) Audience Retention A = 400.75 or higher flat/slightly up highest score second lowest score Percentage of B = 353.23 – 400.74 slightly down second highest score lowest score viewers gained (+) C = 305.72 – 353.22 D = 258.20 – 305.7 1 down or lost (-) from mid-range score preceding program. F = 210.69 – 258.19 sharply down Quality Station Quality Network Average Topic Focus Enterprise Expertise No. of View- Local Audience Ratings Grade Score Affiliation Story Score Range Sources points Relevance Retention Trend
A KGMB 407.91 24.79 -19.4% Top ten in quality. Recent ratings bump. Low on crime, high on series. Good sourcing. B KHON 378.66 23.20 +50.4% Market leader airs lots of sources, viewpoints, but too many feeds. Could use more expert sources. B KHNL 378.22 22.67 -76.5% Ratings challenged. Needs to add sources, viewpoints, ideas. OK at breaking news and localism. HONOLULU - 10PM B KITV 371.83 22.86 +1.1% Strong number two in ratings. Hearst station could add sources, investigations, and viewpoints. Crime heavy.
C KLAS 350.18 21.61 +18.2% Best station in a bad market. Missed a “B” by three points. Needs more investigations, localism. D KTNV 288.14 21.25 -3.5% Needs work. Lots of series, human interest. Good mix of viewpoints. No ratings. F KVBC 251.34 19.82 +21.6% LAS VEGAS - 5PM Tied for ratings lead. Could be more local, improve sourcing and breaking news. Most investigations in town.
C KNBC 346.77 21.15 -34.2% New G.M. bans live police chases and ratings suffer. Best station in weak market can get better. D KABC 302.77 21.23 -39.9% Long way to go, but closing on KNBC. Lots of feed stories. Could improve sourcing, do more investigations. D KCBS 278.58 19.55 -55.4%
LOS ANGELES - 11PM Changes coming with new G.M. Only investigations in town. Needs more viewpoints, less crime.
C WABC 348.49 21.38 -4.9% Gaining on WNBC at 11. Not much crime. Could cover fewer pressers, get more sources. C WNBC 340.44 22.13 -21.5% Quality dropping. Could air more breaking news, fewer press conferences. Could be more local. C WCBS 340.37 20.05 -52.4% NEW - 11PM YORK “Information network” slogan not working. Try quality to differentiate. More viewpoints, sources needed.
B KFOR 398.72 24.16 +14.7% Best station in a decent market. Airs lots of issues, investigations and viewpoints. Big on everyday crime. B KOCO 355.23 22.02 -24.9% Losing viewers to competitors. Covers local institutions. But has apparent aversion to enterprise. C KWTV 339.80 21.62 +20.4% Challenging for No. 1. Lots of politics, breaking news. Needs to improve sourcing. OKLAHOMA CITY-10PM WASHINGTON - 11PM TAMPA - 6PM SALT LAKE CITY - 10PM PORTLAND - 6:30PM PHILADELPHIA - 11PM Quality Grade B A A A C B A C C B D D C D D C New management team. Shallow coverage.Shallowteam. management New interviews.76%tough non-controversial.on stories high of But breakingnews,everydayof use.” improveLots “newsCouldcan you sourcing.Rebuilding. 30% crime. pressers.Weakestmany town.crime. Not sourcingin and — stories issue of Fox.Lots moving.FastQuality stories.sourcesmorein use Could institutions. Coversbusiness, town6. local atin Best Dominant. New news director and G.M. Leads D.C.everydayLeadssources.more investigative.in need and StoriesG.M. crime newsdirector Newand Greatfour.”“frontlocal. more sourced.be wellCouldStories 11? atvulnerable leader Market experts. and viewpointsmore use breakingsources,news.Could series, of ratings Lots challenged.but better Getting WFTS WTSP WTVT WFLA WUSA WRC WJLA Losing ratings traction. Most breaking news in town. Very local. Tootown.Veryratingsbreakingnewseverydaylocal. in LosingMosttraction. crime, much incidents. investigations.moresources,more do Use local. more be Could issues. Awaitingon FoxBig fatedeal.in pressers.everydayof sourcing.Little Lots improve could breakingnews,crime. expert institution on Market ratingsdogfight. in Leading local. not stories of half than More politics. and feeds of breakingnews,lots Little newsdirector.newsnationalrelevant.makea breakingnews, tosources, Fails has of viewpoints. Finally Lots Recoveringlayoffs?from Too everydaymany south?fewsources,Ratingstooheaded viewpoints. incidents, station’slocalism. this half experts, moresourced.weakness.showingthan More Needs poorly king Market stories Februarybook. everydayarein stories BeatWPVI Fewof issues. incidents. 40% Nearly time. the Breakingnewsall credibility.cellar. coverthe ratingssourcingPoorneighborhoods. hurts toImproving in but station the Needs KUTV KTVX KSL KGW KATU KOIN WPVI WCAU KYW Station 7.92.7+5.7% +27.5% +9.3% +21.5% 20.17 22.24 371.09 23.53 400.78 22.76 409.01 418.07 0.72.9-19.1% 20.89 300.47 9.12.4-19.5% 20.14 296.41 8.41.5-25.9% 18.25 282.04 Quality 4.12.1-4.4% 21.51 344.21 7.82.6-21.7% 21.36 377.88 4.02.9-15.5% 21.29 347.40 7.31.0+6.3% 19.10 275.33 2.42.4+5.7% 21.64 328.04 3.01.4-24.4% 18.54 339.90 2.51.8-39.7% 19.48 325.55 5.12.1+19.9% 22.11 353.61 1.52.6-48.7% 21.36 411.65 Score Affiliation Network Story ScoreStory Average Average Range Topic Focus Enterprise Expertise No. of No. Expertise Sources points View- Relevance Local Retention Audience Ratings Trend THE LOOK OF LOCAL NEWS
BY LEE ANN BRADY AND crime coverage with tales of ATIBA PERTILLA mayhem from distant places. Stations air stories about hen you look at the economics, social issues and numbers, it is diffi- scientific or consumer mat- cult to conclude ters at almost the same rate W that local televi- regardless of market size. sion news gives citizens the Regardless of the topic, information they need to however, small market sta- make informed decisions tions are far more likely to about their communities. tell the story from a local Consider this statistic: perspective (98 percent of one has to add up all the ed- stories) compared to the ucators, school board mem- largest markets (69 percent). bers, city council members, Minorities are more likely mayors, state agency offi- News Director (and anchor) Blaire Martin of top-scoring to appear in large markets, cials, state legislators, gover- station KULR in Billings with co-anchor Tim Vendt but this may be changing nors, members of Congress with increased immigration and all other local elected and appointed Yet on local TV news, the arts and cul- to small cities. officials combined just to match the num- ture are almost invisible, accounting for What small-market stations do more ber of criminals and suspects on screen. just 24 stories — again, less than one per- than larger markets is cover stories affect- Local TV news can vary widely from cent of the total studied. ing major community institutions or em- place to place in quality and sometimes in Who are the people shown in local TV ployers, perhaps because small metropoli- style. Our highest-scoring station, KULR in news stories? After criminals and suspects tan areas are less economically diverse. Billings, for instance, earned nearly twice (who make up 10 percent of all people on as many quality points (424) as our worst screen) the next most common group fea- station, WSOC in Charlotte (227 points). tured is crime victims or their families (9 POLITICS, POLICY OR SCANDAL percent). But the mix of stories is remarkably con- Coverage of politics, policy and govern- But this focus on victims, perhaps to sistent across the country, and the tone is ment fell by nearly half from last year’s manipulate viewers’ emotions, is unwise. generally breathless, chatty, and superficial. presidential primary season, down to just Stations doing well in the ratings are the Here are some numbers: 8 percent of all stories. The bigger prob- least likely to broadcast interviews featur- Forty percent of the stories last 30 lem is that the politics that were covered ing victims or victims’ relatives. seconds or less. seem fairly trivial now. One in four stories is about crime, law Our sample period included weeks or courts. BIG CITY VS. SMALL-TOWN NEWS when Congress was debating a massive tax Less than 1 percent of stories could be cut and President Bush was promoting his Crime is the perennial No. 1 topic, in large plans to rebuild the military. But the scan- called “investigative.” markets and small, but in the largest mar- dals surrounding President Clinton’s depar- Health stories outnumber all other kets stations are most likely to pad their ture from office made for much more social issues by 32 percent. There are as many stories about the bizarre (8 percent) as there are about civic institutions. An important part of the picture is what’s missing. Poverty, welfare, and home- lessness are all but absent in local news. Out of the nearly 6,000 stories studied, only nine dealt with these topics, not enough to even register a single percentage point. Cultural events are another topic that barely rates coverage. A recent report from the National Endowment for the Arts found that citizens spend more money each year attending performing-arts events than either the movies or profes- sional sports.
CJR/PROJECT FOR EXCELLENCE IN JOURNALISM November/December 2001 11 popular material, outweighing coverage of the tax plan 5 to 1. In all, only 16 stories out of nearly 6,000 discussed the tax-cut debate in THINNER, CHEAPER, Washington or its possible effects on the local community. To pad profits, broadcasters cut budgets GOING GLOBAL and staff while adding programs This year, our study also coincided with two international incidents involving the BY MARION JUST, ROSALIND Much of the pressure on broadcasters has military — the sinking of a Japanese fishing LEVINE, AND TODD BELT come from declining ad revenue as the boat by a Navy submarine and the collision country slipped into slow growth and near of a U.S. EP-3 spy plane with a Chinese he terrorist attacks in New York and Washington galvanized their local recession. But only seven percent of the fighter jet. As a consequence, defense is- news directors surveyed reported that their sues jumped to the No. 3 topic on local stations and brought into relief the challenge of providing all-out break- stations had responded to declining revenue newscasts. Although our sample included T ing news coverage. by reducing the number of newscast hours. four stations in Honolulu, the home base Based on what news directors around Quite the opposite. Producing news is of the submarine involved in the sinking, the country say about their budgets, it’s still cheaper than buying syndicated enter- these stories were covered heavily questionable whether most stations tainment programming. throughout the country. This may be a sign would be able to respond just as quickly Events since September 11 will likely that when public concern demands it, a na- and thoroughly. make things worse. An analysis by CMR, a tional story will capture the attention of Even before September 11, stations were company that tracks ad spending, found local TV, overriding the “local-only” mantra being asked to do more and more with that local affiliates lost $93 million in ad- that so many stations promote. less — and that was forcing them to put a vertising the first week after the terrorist Unfortunately, the data point to unset- cheaper and thinner product on the air, ac- attacks. Major sponsors like airlines and tling conclusions. Despite the increased cording to a national survey of people car dealers are pulling back. A new war on coverage of defense issues, there is little who run local television newsrooms. terrorism will further tax news budgets. energy or imagination evident on the air. There’s an intensifying “fear-loathing of Meanwhile, virtually all stations are fac- Just 12 percent of all defense stories stock-based companies laying off for prof- ing investments ranging from $3 million were based on breaking news. Nearly it-only reasons,” and a “feeling that their to $8 million to convert to digital broad- twice that, 23 percent of the stories, were decisions are very short-sighted,” reported casting. news conferences, and 43 percent were one news director. The belt-tightening already in place covered using feed material. About half We surveyed news directors at 118 sta- came in various ways. Overall, 68 percent these stories connected the national tions around the country between June story to the viewing audience, but local and August 2001, a significant portion of stations were almost equally likely to sim- the 850 stations that do local news. We ply pass along the latest updates without promised confidentiality to news direc- explaining their local effects. The locals tors in return for information about their mostly duplicated the networks rather budgets, fiscal decisions, and their com- than supplementing them with more nu- ments on the news business. Here is anced, original coverage. some of what they had to say: The events of September 11 will pre- Half of all stations had either budget sent an even greater challenge. The de- mands of a prolonged war on terrorism, cuts or layoffs in the last year. The much of it to be fought in covert opera- average budget cut was 8 percent. tions in far-off countries, will strain al- Sixty percent of stations had to make ready decimated newsroom budgets. unscheduled budget cuts within the The nation looks to local news for in- course of the last fiscal year. formation. A poll by the Pew Research Two-thirds of stations added broad- Center this summer found that local news stations were a more popular news cast hours. source than the networks, though not as Fifty-seven percent had to produce popular as cable channels. But there is the same or more news despite lay- reason to worry whether newsrooms will offs, budget freezes or budget cuts. prove deserving of the public’s confi- “Budget cuts, frozen positions, less dence. • money and more responsibility,” ex- plained one news director, describing Lee Ann Brady is senior project director the atmosphere at his station. Another at Princeton Survey Research Associates. news director estimated a “loss of Atiba Pertilla is a research associate at news gathering ability of 10-12 percent PEJ. due to cuts.”
12 CJR/PROJECT FOR EXCELLENCE IN JOURNALISM November/December 2001 LONGER ing freeze and we’re still producing the ad- The best young staffers have “worries ditional newscasts,” reported one news about career future[s]” or a “sense of dis- manager. couragement,” said one news director. of stations limited overtime, 48 percent Many news directors echoed the con- “Staffers hoping to move up in markets imposed hiring freezes, and 21 percent re- cern about the impact of budget cuts on are frustrated and that spills back into sorted to layoffs. Travel has also been cut staff. They responded that the biggest their work,” said another. severely and capital purchases have been change in the newsroom this year was “Cut- Not all stations believed that budgets put on hold indefinitely. backs in staff due to budget restraints,” affected morale — or at least “not yet.” While these actions satisfy the short- “staff cuts, early retirements,” “layoffs,” Some said their operations were already term demand for maintaining or increasing “cutbacks,” “reduced staff,” “staff reduction,” trimmed so close to the bone that there profit margins, the cuts may backfire. “lower staffing,” “staff turnover,” and was nothing left to cut. One news director “shrinking staff.” noted that because the station made cuts n 1999, the survey data, when matched And no matter what the market size, in the non-salary portion of the budget, with ratings, found that adding staff is more than half the stations reporting say morale did not suffer. the best way for a local news operation that budget cuts have affected morale in One news director waxed philosophi- I to invest resources to build ratings. the newsroom. One Midwestern news di- cal. The effect of budget cuts on morale With smaller staffs, coverage of break- rector, calling morale the biggest change was “what you’d expect, but we soldier ing news is bound to suffer. Enterprise or in the newsroom this year, declared: “Peo- on.” Another explained: “We’re very open in-depth coverage, the kind our studies ple are no longer kidding themselves with employees, and by choosing a reduc- have shown TV viewers appreciate most, about the ethic of business vs. quality tion in annual increases over layoffs, it ac- becomes less likely. In the words of one journalism. ‘Journalism’ is now ‘commer- tually boosted morale.” news director, budget cuts mean that cial journalism.’ “ Budget pressures are topmost in the “sometimes we don’t commit as much Several news directors described a pre- minds of news directors. When we asked resource to certain discretionary stories.” vailing anxiety brought about by budget them about the obstacles to producing a Another indicated that budget cuts cuts. In response to an open-ended ques- high-quality newscast, “too little money” meant a “major reduction in use of part- tion, more than one used the term “a sense was a popular response, second only to timers. Thus full-time staff is stretched, of uncertainty.” “too few staff.” less time for investigative work, special “Everyone wonders if, and when, layoffs But the linkage between the two prob- projects.” may happen here,” wrote one news director. lems is clear. “Budget cuts have killed staff Not surprisingly, 54 percent of news di- “It is like a dark cloud looming over the staff,” morale — no raises, a hiring freeze, no rectors fear that budget cuts have substan- wrote another. “Who is next?” wrote a third. overtime,” said one news director. tially hurt their station’s news-gathering abil- News directors are worried about the Luckier ones reported investments in ity. As one news director noted, “The cut- stress on the workforce. One, from a their stations. Some news directors backs have made a lean staff malnourished.” small-market station, ticked off his con- bragged about new equipment (“we went Another commented: “Freeze on capital cerns: “Fewer people — more work for re- digital!”), new personnel (general man- & hiring freeze has us shorthanded...” maining staff. Dip in production quality for agers, news directors, owners, on-air tal- Even when there are no staff cuts, qual- daily stories. Inability to get all stories.” ent), and new newscasts. ity may be affected, said some news direc- In some stations the budget crisis has And a few remained optimistic by con- tors. The problem, one noted, is “retaining created, or intensified, tension between centrating on the people they work with: qualified desk managers and talented pro- the newsroom and the boardroom. “In spite of all the negatives (what we can’t ducers, attracting skilled persons with the “The news staff has become frustrated do and industry impacts) [we’re] maintain- salary we have budgeted.” with corporate and it has begun to show,” ing a creative, positive, forward-thinking Small stations are suffering the most. explained one manager. Another ex- team,” said a news director from a small Many had few resources to begin with and pressed a “higher level of frustration over market. “More positive than ever before.” the demand for more newscasts puts them high expectations with not enough re- One thing seems clear. Nearly all news in a terrible bind. sources.” Said another, slightly more opti- managers are going to have to find creative One news director in a small-market mistic, “For the most part the staff has ways to cope with the people and resources described the situation as “Tough!... 2.5 pulled together but it still affects how that remain. The question is whether viewers hours a day with a 19-person staff.” More people view our corporation.” will begin to decide that what is left on the than 40 percent of stations in small mar- One news director described a nexus of air is not worth their time when they have kets rely on their reporters to produce two problems: “Anxiety about future of busi- more choices than ever for news. • or more news packages a day. Half of the ness, resentment toward corporate owner- reporters in small markets routinely shoot ship, lack of money for better coverage.” Marion Just is a professor of political science or edit their own video, significantly more Many news directors indicated that at Wellesley College and a research associ- than those in larger markets. young people were particularly worried ate at the Shorenstein Center on the Press, News directors sounded frustrated, even about their future prospects in the news Politics, and Public Policy at Harvard. Ros- angry, about their stations’ strategies. “We business, an ominous sign that the pro- alind Levine is an attorney in Boston. Todd added product (newscasts) then three fession may lose some of the most tal- Belt is a doctoral student in political science months later reduced staffing through a hir- ented members of its next generation. at the University of Southern California.
CJR/PROJECT FOR EXCELLENCE IN JOURNALISM November/December 2001 13 THE PATRIARCH VS. THE FAMIL Format dictates much of the difference between network and local news
BY ANDREW TYNDALL the crew’s release. Defense and foreign af- news managers even think in terms of cast- fairs — along with that other great nation- ing a family — the older husband, the ne might think local and network al abstraction The Economy — accounted younger wife, and then the children, one a news together would provide for fully 39 percent of all network stories jock, the other the trustworthy weather viewers with a full plate, a well- filed, compared with a mere 16 percent on person. O rounded hour of local, national the local broadcasts. The time devoted to news in a local half and international news plus sports, The two beats, however, are not the hour minus commercials, weather, sports, weather and traffic. most important distinction. That differ- traffic, and chit-chat is shorter than 15 min- As comprehensive as this hour of news ence is their formats. utes, compared with almost 19 is designed to be, the latest study by the Flowing from the expecta- minutes at the networks. De- Project for Excellence in Journalism reveals tion that they would be cov- spite the smaller news hole, that its two components — the local half ering consequential, far- the local story count is higher hour and the network half hour — are reaching and complicated (14) than the network (11). chalk and cheese. stories, the networks set up a How can that many stories Do not think of the two as doing the format in which a lone an- be crammed into that small a same job with two beats: one local, the chor serves as the symbolic news hole? The local anchor other national and international. Instead commander of a cadre of couple shoulders the work- think of two different approaches to tele- correspondents. The tradi- load. They average eight vision journalism. tional anchor’s desk presides read-only stories (lasting 45 Network news is more abstract: its sto- over the headquarters of a seconds or less) between the ries are more likely to feature clashes of worldwide newsgathering two of them; the solo net- opinions (32 percent of stories versus 16 operation, a sort of journalis- work anchor reads only four percent in local broadcasts), to cite expert tic Captain Kirk on the bridge tidbits each night. sources (49 percent versus 19 percent) and of the Starship News. While Granted the networks to discuss societal trends (17 percent ver- Dan or Peter or Tom may have more resources, time, sus 2 percent). have his name attached to expertise, and clout, all of Local news is more mundane: its stories the title of his nightly news- which help them put togeth- cover everyday events like fender-benders cast, the routine work is as- er better stories that would (42 percent of stories versus 5 percent signed to the correspondents score higher in this study. among network newscasts) more than who together file between Still, the main reason the net- monumental ones (2 percent versus 16 per- six and seven edited packages works would do better is that cent) and they quote the vox pop (14 per- each day complete with ' 2001 CBS WORLDWIDE INC their format features more cent versus 7 percent) almost as much as soundbites, graphics and vi- reporter packages. It is easier the expert. suals. Half of all the network to include the attributes of The two beats, local and network, are news stories are longer than journalistic quality — such as worlds apart. The networks’ national and 120 seconds, as opposed to 19 a mix of points of view, ex- international focus is brimming with big percent for local newscasts. perts and sources — in a cor- events and ideological clashes. In April If the network newscast respondent package than in 2001, during our study period, the net- looks patriarchal, the local an anchor read-only story. works were handed just the type of event news anchor team seems fa- Thus the solo anchor ver- their news operations are made to cover: milial: usually four personali- sus the family circle format the downing of a U.S. Navy EP-3 spy plane ties — a his-and-hers anchor determines not only image, on the Chinese island of Hainan and the team plus sportscaster and marketing and promotion, ensuing diplomatic tug-of-war to secure weathercaster. Occasionally, but journalistic quality itself.
14 CJR/PROJECT FOR EXCELLENCE IN JOURNALISM November/December 2001 are more likely than their local counter- underlying societal trends or pander to parts to employ journalistic strategies that the self-serving pre-occupations of key have engendered criticism: “gotcha!” jour- demographic components of the view- nalism and lifestyle fluff. ing audience. Again, without drawing One of the sample weeks chosen for conclusions, 11 percent of the networks’ this study included a prize example of the packages ran under such formats where- gotcha game, representing the last hurrah as only 3 percent of the local broad- of the Washington press corps’ fascination casts’ did. with Bill Clinton. The investigation of his If the high-stakes, hard-driving, corre- Y CIRCLE pardons of the fugitive financier Marc Rich spondent-dominated style of the net- and others led the way as fully 11 percent works leaves them open to charges of of all network packages had an investiga- slickness and remove, the local newscasts tive tone (versus 2 percent for local). The offer a contrast. This study demonstrates numbers do not define the line where that your local station’s promotion of its The networks’ advantage in resources is hard-nosed investigative journalism cross- familiar four-person anchor team goes be- not irrelevant. If you eliminate the read- es over to mere “gotcha!” But my own yond mere marketing. That format shapes only stories and compare just the reporter sense of watching these stories is that the journalism itself. Compared with the packages (those stories 90 seconds or they provided more fodder for scrutiny of networks’ severe patriarchal product, local longer), the networks still do a better job. that line than the local stations did. news may seem anti-intellectual and su- As an example, the networks were notably Another example of questionable en- perficial. But that intimate local family cir- more likely to include three or more terprise is the category “news series.” cle delivers the reassuring rhythms of sources in such stories (56 percent net- These are the nightly non-news-related everyday life. • work versus 45 percent local). features run under titles such as ABC’s A Both the networks and the locals rely Closer Look or CBS’s Eye on America or Andrew Tyndall is publisher of the Tyn- heavily on the “day book” of prearranged NBC’s In-Depth and Life Line which, de- dall Report, a research service, and has events for these long packages (roughly pending on one’s taste, either round out been monitoring network news coverage four in ten stories for both). Only one the day’s coverage to survey important since 1987. package in five covers unexpected break- ing news. Thus the networks are actually getting more into their long packages with basically similar assignment habits. QUALITY BY STATION GROUP We have already noted that, overall, local news tends to focus more on events 1998-2001 (as opposed to ideas, issues, policies, malfeasance, institutions or trends) than Large media companies are growing Station Average Grade Stations the network stories do (54 percent vs. 42 more eager to buy television stations. Group percent). The important difference, how- A chain of stations that shares pro- ever, was not in the number of event-dri- duction facilities, marketing strate- ven stories but in how consequential gies, content, and even sales staff will EMMIS 363.30 B 7 they were. Almost all the networks’ save money and be able to offer ad- event-driven stories (88 percent) were vertisers more eyeballs. The FCC is RAYCOM 356.47 B 4 classified as monumental, unusual, or expected to lift the ban on the rule breaking news. Compare that to just 22 capping any company reaching more GANNETT 351.86 C 12 percent for local. than 35 percent of the nation’s view- CBS 338.24 C 12 Since the purpose of examining the net- ing audience, a ceiling already works was to illuminate the journalistic op- breached by CBS/Viacom and Fox. NBC 337.08 C 7 tions for local newscasters, this piece is not A review of annual reports shows meant to be an analysis of the quality of that most media companies pub- BELO 335.88 C 8 the nightly newscasts themselves. ABC, licly extol the importance of good CBS and NBC have problems. Each has pre- journalism. We decided to average HEARST 330.23 C 9 cipitously cut its commitment to overseas the quality scores of those owner- coverage. All have devoted more time to ship groups in which we’ve studied ABC 323.96 C 5 commercials. They have begun picking sto- four or more stations in hopes of SCRIPPS 301.81 D 4 ries based on demographic targeting rather learning about different companies’ than newsworthiness. And yet they still commitment to quality. have been unable to devise a news agenda COX 262.86 D 4 that attracts young viewers — or even to [For complete documentation, get the newscast programmed by the time please visit our web site, viewers are home from work. We leave www.journalism.org.] these and other issues to another day. Still, the data show that the networks
CJR/PROJECT FOR EXCELLENCE IN JOURNALISM November/December 2001 15 WHAT COMES NEXT?
n September 11th terrorism spurred television news ments can define new eras for journalism. News institu- people to do what they do best. xxxxxxxxxxxxxx tions remake themselves and find new philosophies. O Producers suddenly were allowed to create news Viewers sample new stations, switch channels and create programs rather than gimmick-filled promotional vehi- new loyalties. cles. Reporters were asked to cover something important Since that unthinkable September morning, Americans and take care to get it right. The anchor mugging and bon have returned to the news. Viewership is up, and these mots largely disappeared. people are hunting. One major station executive told us Can it last? privately that by the first of October, close to 90 percent Local television news over the last generation had de- of the households in his market had sampled his news volved into something less than journalism because the programs. medium thought it lacked compelling stories to tell. Ma- We have come back to news because there is an im- nipulating viewers overtook thinking about content. An portant story in the country that compels us to look be- obsession with extracting absurd profits overwhelmed yond ourselves, our health, and our consumer impulses. what was originally a federally required public service in If this project has established one thing, it’s that many exchange for a license to broadcast. of the conventional formulas broadcasters apply don’t Now, the federal requirements long gone, the audi- work any more. ence has begun to shrink, and the profits are drying up. If local broadcasters respond by trying to exploit this An ABC affiliate in St. Louis recently dropped news al- new audience, rather than inform it, viewers will be re- together because it couldn’t make enough money. Others pelled as they would by a war profiteer or a price gouger. will likely follow. There is not enough audience or adver- Now TV news professionals have an opportunity, and tising to support so many news outlets. a reason, to show the public that they can practice jour- The short history of television reveals that epic mo- nalism again. •
WHO DID THE STUDY This study was conducted by the Project for Excellence in sulting editor of the Columbia Journalism Review, edited the Journalism, a journalists’ group in Washington, D.C., affiliated articles. Nancy Novick, art director of the Columbia Journal- with the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism and funded ism Review, designed the layout and graphics. by the Pew Charitable Trusts. Tom Rosenstiel, director of the PEJ, was lead writer. Carl Gottlieb, the deputy director, super- DESIGN TEAM vised all aspects of the study. Atiba Pertilla and Chris Galdieri The following local news professionals developed the cri- of PEJ were project researchers. teria of quality for this study and signed off on major de- The scholar team that developed the methodology in- cisions: cluded Marion Just, Ph.D., Professor of Political Science at • John Cardenas, News Director, WBNS, Columbus, Ohio. Wellesley College; Michael Robinson, Ph.D., formerly of Georgetown University; Ann Crigler, Ph.D., Director of the • John Corporon, Board of Governors, Overseas Press Club. Jesse M. Unruh Institute of Politics at the University of • Randy Covington, former News Director, WIS, Columbia, S. C. Southern California, and Sherrie Mazingo, Ph.D., of the Uni- • Marty Haag, former Executive Vice President, A.H. Belo. versity of Minnesota, and Lee Ann Brady of Princeton Survey • Alice Main, former Executive Producer, WLS, Chicago. Research Associates. Researchers at Princeton Survey Research Associates coded • Gordon Peterson, Principal Anchor, WUSA, Washington, D.C. the newscasts and prepared the initial statistical data under • Jose Rios, Vice President of News, KTTV, Los Angeles. Brady’s supervision. Todd Belt of USC developed the measure- • Dan Rosenheim, News Director, KPIX, San Francisco. ments and analyzed the Nielsen Media Research data for rat- • Kathy Williams, News Director, WKYC, Cleveland. ings, share, demographics and audience retention. Kathy Regan and Rosalind Levine performed data collection and statistical • Gary Wordlaw, President and General Manager, analysis for the survey of news directors. Evan Jenkins, con- WTVH, Syracuse.
This year’s Local TV News study is dedicated to the memory of James Lawrence Snyder. Jim was one of the guiding hands of this project and was a member of the design team of industry professionals that continues to advise us. To a fine journalist and a terrific friend, we will miss you.
16 CJR/PROJECT FOR EXCELLENCE IN JOURNALISM November/December 2001