THE SAVVY AUDIENCE FOR LOCAL TV NEWS
Are stations turning viewers off?

Live! Late-breaking! Only on Channel 28! Local television news often is a high-decibel production. Stations eager to draw more eyeballs to their newscasts heavily promote their coverage as well as the tools they use to gather the news. But are viewers impressed?

A preliminary NewsLab survey suggested that, instead of attracting an audience, news promos may be driving some viewers away. People who said they watch less local news than they used to were more likely than regular viewers to say they're turned off by the promos.

We wanted to know more. So NewsLab joined with the Project for Excellence in Journalism in conducting four focus groups in 1999 1-two in Atlanta and two in Tucson.2 The viewers in these focus groups were adults between 25 and 54, diverse in education, race and gender, who said they watched the local evening news at least three days a week. They told us they want responsible reporting and quality coverage on the local television news, but they believe competition among stations can get in the way-competition that often manifests itself as self-promotion and hype. As one person put it: "I think part of the reason why everything is sensationalized is because of the competition." This viewer urged stations to focus on "presenting a real story when they have all the information."

Participants said they were not impressed when stations trumpeted their "exclusives" or boasted about being first to report a story. "Why brag?" one participant asked. "Everybody has been reporting on the story since it happened….You don't need to tell me that." Another said, "I don't care if you were there first, just give me the news." And a third put it this way: "They're trying to convince you with volume instead of the quality of the story."

Viewers recognize and resent the gimmicks stations use to lure them into watching. From helicopters to live trucks, technology and toys don't seem to impress most viewers. When one station promotes its "Sky Cam" coverage, a participant scoffed, "I'm saying, oh jeez, like this is the first time somebody has ever seen this stuff, you know." Another chimed in, "Like we're from Mayberry or something." Viewers saw this kind of promotion as patronizing, and it seemed to make them assess stations engaging in it as less credible.

Instead of fighting over viewers, participants said, stations should fight for viewers. They praised the work of consumer and investigative units that seek solutions to community problems and get results. On one station, for example, the segment is called "9 on Your Side." On another, it's the "I-Team." The focus groups said when television news fights for viewers in this way, it assumes a positive and constructive role in the community. "I like the fact that they'll go to bat for you," one participant said.

But the viewers in our focus groups were not happy about the way stations tried to keep them from switching channels by teasing upcoming stories. In both Atlanta and Tucson, people complained about the number of teases during a typical newscast. And many were angry and frustrated with stations that promote a story throughout a newscast, only to have it turn out to be a throwaway. One participant said, "They make a big deal about something you want to hear, and it's like 30 seconds and there's nothing to it." Some viewers said they'd rather tune out than be strung along. Others expressed a desire for newscasts with a more structured format, so they would know when to tune in for certain kinds of stories.

Focus group members also urged stations to cover stories in depth. "Instead of skimming over things, we'd rather see you take one thing and do more," said one viewer in Atlanta. Viewers also said they understand what drives stations to do less. "It's the visual," said one person. "Everything they do. It's done at random. They have no idea what they are doing. They just take a picture of a (body) laying on the ground … there's no thought about (what they're doing)."

Participants drew a distinction, however, between in-depth coverage and repetitious or drawn-out coverage, complaining that stations stick with some stories too long. They specifically mentioned stories with compelling video that may have little news value day after day. "They drag stories out to the point where you're just sick of hearing about it," one viewer in Tucson said, "when there's other things that you should be hearing about."

These conversations clearly indicate that viewers are quite savvy about television news, particularly when it comes to stations' efforts to keep them watching. In general, they believe station promos are over-hyped, and that the news is too often oversold in misleading teases. And with the local news audience declining in markets across the country, it's worth considering whether a more tempered approach to promotions and teases might help to rebuild viewer loyalty.