Examination of Witnesses (Questions 1240
- 1248)
WEDNESDAY 5 DECEMBER 2007
Mr John Perkins, Mr Jon Godel and Mr Peter Murphy
Q1240 Baroness Scott of Needham Market:
Whilst understanding that of course, from your menu, you will
make a story that you think that is more relevant for an audience
on Kiss and so on, to what extent do you take on board a suggestion
that, by making those choices, you are sending a message out to
that audience that this is the most important story of the day
and that other things do not matter? How do you think about that?
Mr Godel: That is always an issue for any news
organisation. How does the News Editor of the BBC six o'clock
news choose which is the lead story? You are never going to win,
really. Our job as credible journalists and experienced journalists
is to editorialise the priority of news. We are meeting some of
those priorities by speaking to the people who are closer to the
audience, ie the radio stations, understanding the lifestyle of
the audience and trying to deliver a relevant product to keep
them interested in news views and opinions. There is absolutely
no point in me doing a story on, I do not know, the ongoing issues
in Darfur today and making that my lead story because (1) my clients
would not want it and (2) it will turn these listeners off news.
What we try and do is introduce Darfur. We have done but we have
tried to do it in such a way that is accessible to those people.
Editorialising what the priorities should be of news is an ongoing
battle in one's head.
Q1241 Baroness Eccles of Moulton:
Do you know after the event what is selected?
Mr Godel: For the radio stations?
Q1242 Baroness Eccles of Moulton:
Yes, who has taken what?
Mr Godel: No. We send out everything to all
our clients and it is up to them to decide. Each one of those
radio stations has a news editor and a journalist available to
make those editorial decisions.
Q1243 Baroness Eccles of Moulton:
But you do not know afterwards what editorial decisions they made?
Mr Godel: We do by research in our surveys but
not instantly afterwards.
Q1244 Baroness Eccles of Moulton:
Do you do that?
Mr Godel: Yes, we do.
Q1245 Baroness Eccles of Moulton:
Was there a single broadcaster who did not take the canoeist story?
Mr Godel: No, that would have been on every
radio station. In the morning, we phone round six or seven radio
stations and find out what the running orders are to be. That
canoeist story would pretty much be on everyone's radio station
because it has talkability.
Q1246 Baroness Bonham-Carter of Yarnbury:
Picking up on that line of questioning, might someone ask you?
Might someone say, "Actually, we would like some Darfur"?
Mr Godel: That might come back. That is what
we call "helpful feedback". Classic might say, "There
is a Darfur angle today with a meeting in ..." wherever and
we will do something. So, there is influence in that. It is a
two-way street. We are not imposing anything on anyone. Equally,
if someone came to us, we would do it. Under our station calls,
as we call them, we do "want more of, if possible" and
that is an instant focus group.
Q1247 Chairman:
Nothing on party funding, I notice.
Mr Godel: Not today.
Q1248 Chairman:
It might come up in PM's questions though how Peter Murphy is
going to know that, I cannot imagine!
Mr Murphy: Osmosis!
Chairman: There are a number of other
questions which we could ask you, we would be quite interested
in your audience figures and things of that kind, but that is
perhaps something we can get by correspondence. You have been
very patient. Thank you very much. Your evidence has been extremely
clear and we are very grateful to you for you coming.
| 
