In the competitive world of television news, it’s a given that stations need to know as much as possible about their viewers. But a groundbreaking study suggests that ratings and telephone surveys provide a less than complete picture of the audience and its viewing habits. The Middletown Media Studies examined how people really use the media by comparing the results of telephone surveys to diaries and to direct observation of people both at home and away from home. Co-author Bob Papper of Ball State University says one conclusion is inescapable: “If you think you know about your audience by asking them on the phone, you know nothing.”
Satellite television and the expanding power of the Internet are not only changing the way news is delivered, but also the perception of what news is and the way journalists do their jobs. These changes are having a profound impact on the news business while at the same time providing societies with more information that can help strengthen freedom, democracy and human rights. VOA's Bill Rodgers has more in this report.