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Audience Priorities 2012/13

Category: Audience Council England; Audience Council Northern Ireland; Audience Council Scotland; Audience Council Wales

Each year the four Audience Councils, for Northern Ireland, England, Scotland and Wales, advise the Trust on priority issues for audiences around the UK. The priorities for 2012/13 were as follows:

1. Maintaining a focus on Quality Journalism

All four Audience Councils welcome the Trust’s commitment to high quality journalism, one of the Â鶹ԼÅÄ’s five editorial priorities.

The Councils are aware that audiences appreciate the improvements that have been made by Â鶹ԼÅÄ News to label more accurately the relevance of stories to the constituent nations of the UK. However, the Councils also believe there is still room for more comparative stories highlighting different approaches to public policy across the UK.

The Councils ask the Trust to ensure that news coverage continues to meet the changing needs of audiences in the nations and English regions.

2. Continuing to focus on serving all audiences

The Councils place a particular priority on ensuring that the Â鶹ԼÅÄ is able to serve all licence fee payers with programmes and services relevant to them. They have reminded that Trust that, even in difficult financial times, the Â鶹ԼÅÄ should aim to ensure that the needs of diverse audiences can still be met, and quality maintained.

3. Accessing the Â鶹ԼÅÄ’s services in the nations

The Councils are concerned about the future of nations-specific programming on Â鶹ԼÅÄ Two HD, given the Executive’s proposal that HD versions of Â鶹ԼÅÄ Two would not be provided with nations variants. There are also concerns about the availability of English regions variants on Â鶹ԼÅÄ One HD.

The Councils stress the importance of making existing services – such as nations’ and regions’ radio services - available to all licence fee payers.

4. Portrayal of diverse communities across the United Kingdom

The Councils welcome the proposal that a higher proportion of material originated in the nations should be broadcast to audiences throughout the UK. They consider that this could contribute significantly to better reflecting the UK, it nations, regions and communities.

The Councils seek assurance that this development will not dilute the distinctiveness and cultural specificity of content for the nations and regions.

Additional priorities for audiences in Northern Ireland

In addition the Audience Council Northern Ireland identified the following two priorities for audiences in Northern Ireland:

Â鶹ԼÅÄ Network supply

Audience Council Northern Ireland welcomes potential opportunities to enhance the level of production from Northern Ireland at Network level. However, the Council remains concerned that, without a coherent strategy, this will not be sufficient to build a sustainable creative centre in Northern Ireland.

The Council asks the Trust to consider the Â鶹ԼÅÄ’s role, with others, in developing a sustainable creative centre in Northern Ireland, and to ensure that a strategy is in place to deliver this.

Digital Switchover

Audience Council Northern Ireland asks that the Trust is mindful of plans for digital television switchover in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, in 2012, with regard to the synchronisation of switchover in order to avoid adverse effects on Northern Ireland audiences who currently receive and enjoy analogue television services from across the border.

Council is also concerned that communications with audiences, about digital switchover, are effective and take account of the needs of vulnerable groups.

The Audience Councils are active in monitoring how these priorities are addressed in the course of the year and report back in their Annual Reviews.