Radio NZ marks its 100th anniversary this week but, as Stephen Parker writes, the broadcaster is quietly adopting some of the techniques used in commercial media to reverse its ratings slide.
The state broadcaster is burring off its editorial earnestness on Radio NZ National in favour of a more personable touch, especially so with its flagship - Morning Report.
There are many examples to choose from over the past week. Like when Corin Dann announced British singer Adele’s latest recording is being released on vinyl, he immediately asked the listeners for feedback.
This ‘news’ item included Dann and Susie Ferguson slipping into light-hearted banter which in the US TV industry would be described as classic presenter ‘Happy Talk’ – jargon for when hosts are cued for smiley chit chat.
These increasing doses of light and shade in the morning programme are a sign the state broadcaster’s biggest audience puller is being subtly revamped.
Entertainment news and humour were once heresy in Morning Report’s serious news line-up. Now the taboo is gone. And it’s like seeing an old friend arriving in Chuck Taylor high-tops after decades of wearing boat shoes.
A change of strategy is in play. RNZ is now looking to lift the “presence” of the Morning Report hosts.
The programme is placing more emphasis on live interviews. The past practice of presenters reading introductions to long voice reports from RNZ journalists is drifting out of favour.
And, a different approach is being adopted for what’s usually that most contentious zone of Morning Report, the interviews. While the presenters are expected to deliver searching interviews they are making a conscious effort to avoid interruptions or talking over moments.
Listeners will notice other changes across RNZ National. News bulletins are being read on the half-hour throughout the day. The idea being to accentuate RNZ’s news depth while also preventing ponderously long daytime interviews. And the sports news is more like a two-way chat than structured bulletins.
Chief executive and editor-in-chief Paul Thompson spoke to Newsroom about the changes.
He says the station has been undertaking a back-to-basics rethink which has produced good radio craft. “So making sure that the presenters are present in the show. So you will see more live interviews,” he says.
“Maybe six months ago when Morning Report starts at six o'clock, you'd immediately go to two or three international packages. But Corin and Susie weren't necessarily there with the audience. So you will see that they are now more with the audience.”
It’s no coincidence the revamp comes as the tide has been going out for RNZ audience ratings.
During the initial Covid outbreak 18 months ago, and before the election, RNZ had a record high cumulative weekly total of 703,000 listeners. On the most recent GfK radio survey, RNZ was down to a 589,600 cumulative weekly total.
So what happened?
“It feels a little like a cyclical thing rather than a structural thing,” says Thompson.
He regards the overall audience story as positive. Radio rating fluctuations still sit within the five-year average. And its offset by RNZ’s growing digital presence, bolstered by RNZ content shared with commercial media companies.
While there is no sense of panic at RNZ headquarters on The Terrace, time and money is being invested in audience research to figure out what is happening, especially to listeners who turn the dial elsewhere.
And the answer seems to have landed somewhere between listeners who are fatigued with RNZ’s heavy-duty diet of news or who think there’s a better product elsewhere. And no doubt Newstalk ZB and breakfast host Mike Hosking have been harvesting higher audience numbers.
"Many people are anxious and uncertain at the moment and they find the relentless flow of hard news about Covid very challenging. That’s why our producers and presenters are working hard to ensure interviews are searching and insightful without them becoming unnecessarily argumentative or tense as some of the audience will just turn off at the moment.” – Paul Thompson, RNZ
Critics would point to RNZ’s tone of ‘political correctness’, perceived or real, as a turn-off for some listeners, while Mike Hosking’s strident criticism of the Labour government has done his ratings no harm.
Thompson says RNZ’s audience survey findings suggest a heavy-duty news diet is a factor.
“It's just we are very hard-driving, particularly in our news shows. And we have to be and we think that's our critical job. So the issue is probably more of just the relentlessness of our news agenda, rather than our listeners' perception that they want a more partisan view.”
Possibly surprising is that RNZ’s on-air audience tends to turn off during an election campaign, although its online audience soaks it up.
“Often we do see during an election like we had last year, people going it’s just too much politics right now. Of course, we feel we need to cover the election robustly and comprehensively. So the kind of softening kind of started at that point. And I think Covid as well added another element,” says Thompson.
What appears to ring loudly in the RNZ audience research is how gladiatorial interviews play out.
“We’ve had consistent feedback from some listeners that they do not like interviews in which people talk over each other and interrupt. This is backed up by independent research we’ve commissioned that highlights that this is a turn-off for some.
“Also, more importantly, many people are anxious and uncertain at the moment and they find the relentless flow of hard news about Covid very challenging. That’s why our producers and presenters are working hard to ensure interviews are searching and insightful without them becoming unnecessarily argumentative or tense as some of the audience will just turn off at the moment.”
It leaves the RNZ hosts in a delicate position. Every instinct in their bones will not shy away from a tough interview, but they are left choosing their moments carefully in fear of interruptions turning off the audience.
All this contributed to a somewhat ironic turn of events this week when Jacinda Ardern interrupted and talked over Corin Dann during the PM’s weekly interview.
The next 12 months could prove the most pivotal in a generation for the state broadcaster.
"Every government in the world is wrestling with key issues around what do you do about the influence of the global platforms? How do you regulate extremist speech and hateful speech? How do you keep your democracy cohesive and informed? How do you support the media ecosystem? How do you support journalism, which creates a plurality.” – Paul Thompson
First, it needs to guard its radio ratings at a time of superheated competition next year. Newstalk ZB is dominant, but Mediaworks will raid the ratings pie when it launches a rival talk station, spearheaded by Tova O’Brien in the breakfast slot.
As those two relatively like-for-like stations duel it out, RNZ National is banking on preserving its audience segment.
RNZ is also figuring out how to pick up speed with digital innovation. A new mobile app is in the pipeline. It’s all the more critical because its audience survey indicates young and old increasingly prefer time-shifted listening instead of listening live.
The changes are occurring ahead of what will be a pivotal moment in the country’s public broadcasting history. In February, the Government will decide on merging TVNZ and RNZ into a single public entity. That decision will have major ramifications for not just the state-owned broadcasters but the whole media sector.
Thompson says on top of that government policymakers are in for a busy few years.
"Every government in the world is wrestling with key issues around what do you do about the influence of the global platforms? How do you regulate extremist speech and hateful speech? How do you keep your democracy cohesive and informed? How do you support the media ecosystem? How do you support journalism, which creates a plurality.”
He's reluctant to delve into the proposals for a public media outlet saying RNZ is simply waiting for the Cabinet decision in the New Year, and all the change it heralds.
“So yeah, it's challenging, but probably, for us, lots of upside and opportunity because of the kind of thing which we do. Which is publicly funded public service media, without a commercial agenda, that's there to create a cohesive connected community, and that is probably coming into focus at the moment,” he says.
