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London (pte032/21.03.2005/15:30) - The claim by British TV viewers that they love to watch news and documentaries has been disproven by new research conducted by the BBC and OfCom. As the Media Guardian http://www.mediaguardian.co.uk reports, the actual truth is that they pay far more attention to drama series, sport, soaps, sitcoms and factual programmes. Figures from OfCom and the BBC reveal that, despite what viewers tell researchers about the importance of news, the reality is that they choose to actively engage in tried and trusted programmes with strong narratives. "There's a chicken and an egg situation going on here with both the chicken and the egg in denial," said Alison Preston, an OfCom research associate in its strategy and market research division.
According to OfCom, when they asked TV viewers what was the most important for TV to provide, 84 per cent of respondents said news and other information programmes. However, the survey, commissioned by the BBC and utilised by OfCom, found that programmes with strong narratives - drama or sports events with a big "storyline" - commanded the most interest with 73 per cent of people saying they especially chose to watch drama series and serials. For soaps this was 68 per cent and for factual drama 65 per cent. "It's the narratives and storylines that people actively choose to watch the most," said Preston. Only 58 per cent of viewers said that they exclusively chose to watch news, while for current affairs that number slipped to 50 per cent. Current affairs commanded the second lowest level of interest, just above party political programmes.
According to the BBC, the TV is just "wallpaper" - just on in the background while adults are cooking, looking after children or reading a newspaper. The study found that through the course of an evening, 61 per cent of viewers actively watch a programme, 25 per cent make some effort and 13 per cent watched only because the TV was on. The research also showed that 25-to-34 year olds tended to pay more attention later in the evening. It found that 49 per cent especially chose to watch between 6pm and 7pm, while between 9pm and 10:30pm that number increased to 61 per cent. Similarly, early in the evening, 20 per cent said they watched because the TV was on, while that slipped to 14 per cent during the later period.
"Where these things are positioned in the evening will have some impact on whether people are able and available to give it their attention," said Preston. "Current affairs doesn't do well - it appears the reason why all the political programmes don't do well could be because of the fact that people are politically disengaged," she added.
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