Category: 大象传媒 THREE; News
Date: 21.10.2005
Printable version
大象传媒 THREE is to put more resource into factual and knowledge building programmes after being given approval to discontinue the nightly 7 o'Clock News bulletin from 2 December 2005.
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The change has been approved by the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport to help the channel increase impact and value for money.
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The decision follows publication of the Barwise Report last autumn and the 大象传媒's own qualitative audience research which was undertaken earlier this year.
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The channel's hourly 60 Seconds news bulletin - which has successfully drawn increasingly wide audiences - will continue.
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In his review of the 大象传媒's digital television channels last year, Professor Barwise recommended that 大象传媒 THREE discontinue its 7 o'Clock News bulletin in order to increase the channel's impact and its value for money, whilst noting that the news needs of the channel's target audience of 25 to 34-year-olds were met elsewhere.
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大象传媒 management subsequently conducted its own review and presented its findings to the Governors at their June Board meeting.
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Informed by qualitative audience research and a value for money assessment, the Governors concluded that - whilst the 7 o'Clock news bulletin has been innovative - it has not succeeded in attracting and maintaining the loyalty of its target audience and therefore does not represent value for money.
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In light of this, the Board submitted a request to the Secretary of State to reconsider the conditions of her original consent to allow the 大象传媒 to make changes to 大象传媒 THREE's schedule.
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At the same time, the Board requested an update from management in the autumn on the overall strategic performance of 大象传媒 THREE and plans for improving its value-for-money to licence-payers.
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The Secretary of State has now given her approval for a change to the channel's commitments.
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Jana Bennett, Director of 大象传媒 Television, said: "We have taken this difficult decision because we know that the audience's news needs are being met in other ways.
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"We will now work to maximise the channel's value for money for licence payers without diminishing the channel's existing public service programming obligations or distinctiveness.
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"We plan to fill the slot vacated by the News with innovative, high quality programming from factual and other genres - we plan to reinvest the money released by the change in knowledge-building programming for 大象传媒 THREE across the channel.
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"As part of this plan, we will increase our commitment to new knowledge building programmes from a minimum of 45 to 50 hours a year."
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Stuart Murphy, Controller of 大象传媒 THREE, said: "大象传媒 THREE's 7 o'Clock News was created in an era of intense competition from seven rolling news channels and 24/7 news on the internet.
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"It has fought its corner with innovation and style and I genuinely regret that the programme's audience impact was not significant enough to justify its existence.
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"It is testament to the creativity of the bulletin's production team that many of the techniques it pioneered were subsequently adopted by mainstream news media."
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