5th Floor, Holborn Gate, 330 High Holborn, London WC1V 7QG Tel: 020 7861 3080 Fax: 020 7861 3081 email: enquiries@opinionleader.co.uk BBC Governors’ Impartiality Review on Coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Qualitative and quantitative audience research conducted by Opinion Leader Research in October and November 2005 Report prepared for: January 2006 Opinion Leader Research contact: Monique Rotik Opinion Leader Research 2 Contents 1. Introduction................................................................................................................................... 3 1.1 Background......................................................................................................................... 3 1.2 Objectives............................................................................................................................ 3 1.3 Approach............................................................................................................................. 4 2. Executive Summary...................................................................................................................... 7 3. Main Findings.............................................................................................................................10 3.1 Audience’s relationship with news and current affairs .....................................................10 3.2 Awareness, understanding and perceptions of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict...............17 3.3 Evaluation of media coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict......................................27 3.4 Assessment of news clips on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict...........................................40 4. Conclusion..................................................................................................................................45 5. Appendix.....................................................................................................................................47 5.1 Discussion guide ....................................................................................................................47 5.2 List of clips ..............................................................................................................................50 5.3 BBC News online story...........................................................................................................51 5.4 Quantitative questionnaire .....................................................................................................53 Opinion Leader Research 3 1. Introduction 1.1 Background For the BBC, impartiality is a legal requirement. The BBC’s Charter and agreement requires the BBC to produce comprehensive, authoritative and impartial coverage of news and current affairs in the UK and throughout the world to support fair and informed debate. 1 Impartiality lies at the heart of BBC’s commitment to its audiences, along with the accompanying commitment to reflect a diversity of opinion. Impartiality is explicitly articulated as one of the BBC’s editorial guidelines, the criteria which the BBC expects to be applied to editorial judgements across all its services and output whatever the format.2 As part of what is planned to be a regular series of impartiality reviews, the BBC Governance Unit has commissioned a review of coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This follows a previous Governance Unit review of the impartiality of the BBC’s coverage of EU issues, an exercise which included audience research together with content analysis conducted by an independent consultant, written submissions from interested parties and interviews with witnesses by an independent panel tasked with overseeing the review. The aim of this review is to give Governors a clearer picture of how the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is covered in order for them to assess impartiality in the BBC’s output. Television, radio and online news and current affairs are covered. The review has four constituent parts: 1. Audience research 2. An academic content review 3. Written submissions by interested parties 4. All overseen by an independent panel Opinion Leader Research was commissioned to conduct the audience research component of the review. 1.2 Objectives The audience research element was tasked with exploring how licence fee payers perceive the BBC’s coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in terms of: § The extent to which the coverage is perceived to be partial or impartial § The level of accessibility of the BBC’s coverage to a wide audience 1 BBC Charter (DCMS) 2 BBC Editorial Guidelines (www.bbc.co.uk) Opinion Leader Research 4 § The differences that may exist across different news and current affairs formats – television, radio, online. Key questions addressed as part of the research include: § Is coverage fair to both sides? § What kinds of issues are reported? § Is coverage sufficient? § Is there enough context provided in reports? § Does the BBC explain and analyse key issues clearly? § How could reporting be better? § What image of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is reflected by the BBC? 1.3 Approach 1.3.1 Qualitative phase The initial qualitative research phase consisted of 10 group discussions across the UK. The groups were held in England’s Midlands and South East as well as in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales. The usual locations for group discussions were intentionally avoided in order to have a greater likelihood of recruiting people who are not regularly researched. The locations chosen were Watford and Sutton Coldfield (England), Londonderry (Northern Ireland), Bridgend (Wales) and Glasgow (Scotland). Each group was longer than normal, at two hours; the extended sessions gave participants more time to consider the issues and reach informed decisions. All participants were required to be: § BBC news consumers, in order that they could comment on BBC’s coverage of the conflict § At least moderate consumers of news and current affairs (with the exception of one ‘low interest/engagement’ group ), in order that they could be expected to be able to judge impartiality3 Beyond this, participants were recruited to represent: § Different news/current affairs formats consumed (TV, radio, online) § Different attitudes to the BBC § Different awareness/understanding of the subject matter § Different attitudes to the subject matter 3 It was a clear finding of the audience research in the EU impartiality review that people who do not follow or understand news and current affairs are incapable of judging impartiality. Opinion Leader Research 5 § Different ages and an equal mix of men and women § Different socio-economic grades § Different ethnicities and faiths People who are strong supporters of either side of the debate were intentionally excluded from this research, as were members of Israeli or Palestinian interest groups. This was because the views of these groups can be expected to be heard in the interest group submissions part of the review. The specifications of the first 8 groups were as follows: Group Awareness / understanding of conflict Attitude to the conflict SEG Age Location 1 High Leaning Israeli ABC1 Over 40 Sutton Coldfield 2 High Leaning Palestinian C2DE Over 40 Londonderry 3 High Not affiliated ABC1 Under 40 Bridgend 4 Moderate Leaning Israeli C2DE Under 40 Bridgend 5 Moderate Leaning Palestinian ABC1 Under 40 Sutton Coldfield 6 Moderate Not affiliated C2DE Over 40 Glasgow 7 Low Mixed attitudes ABC1 Over 40 Watford 8 Low Not affiliated C2DE Under 40 Londonderry The final two groups were designed to supplement the core programme, with one group focussed specifically on people who have particularly high engagement and interest in news and current affairs (sometimes referred to as the ‘chattering classes’). For completeness we also conducted a group specifically with people who have low engagement with news and current affairs. Thus the specifications of the final 2 groups were as follows: Group Engagement in news/current affairs Attitude to the conflict SEG Age Location 9 Very high Mixed ABC1 Mixed Bridgend 10 Low Not affiliated C2DE Mixed Glasgow This qualitative phase of the research was conducted between 4th and 13th October 2005. The discussion guide used in the focus groups is included in the appendix to this report, along with a list of clips which were examined in the groups Opinion Leader Research 6 1.3.2 Quantitative phase The second stage of the study was a quantitative telephone survey amongst a nationally representative sample of 1,000 adults. The sample of 1,000 was chosen to provide sufficient numbers for robust results and sub-group analysis. The maximum margin of error on a random population sample of this size is +/- 3% (at 95% confidence intervals). The sample was selected through random digit dialling. To ensure national representation, quotas were set and population statistics weightings were also applied at the analysis stage. The telephone survey was 15 minutes in duration and took place between 33r and 27th November 2005. The survey included both closed-ended and open-ended questions and a copy of the questionnaire is appended to this report. Opinion Leader Research 7 2. Executive Summary The British public is being increasingly exposed to news and current affairs News consumption appears to be on the increase as sources and formats have proliferated. The great majority (70%) of those interviewed in Opinion Leader’s UK-wide survey define themselves as being ‘interested’ in news and current affairs and claim to access news at least daily. As a result, audiences are currently being constantly exposed to news reports of major issues and events. However, coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is not top of mind International news coverage in recent years is perceived to have been dominated by an unusually large number of major crises – both natural and man made. In this context, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is not top-of-mind for audiences, having been overshadowed by other more recent high profile stories such as the London Bombings, Tsunami, Iraq War and Pakistan earthquake. Unprompted recall of coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is negligible (2%) against this backdrop, although prompted recall rises to two-thirds (67%). There is low understanding of the conflict The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is perceived to be complicated and people lack confidence in their own understanding. In the quantitative survey, the great majority feel that they only know only ‘a little’ (43%) or ‘nothing’ (28%) about the conflict. It also lacks personal relevance for many (53% rate the conflict as ‘not very’ or ‘not at all’ important to them) and most (67%) do not have personal sympathies to either side. This lack of understanding and engagement makes it difficult for people to assess coverage of the conflict. Impartial coverage of the conflict is a high priority but difficult for audiences to evaluate Impartiality is one of the top priorities for audiences in coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict (84% rate it as ‘extremely’ or ‘very’ important). Impartiality is defined by audiences as a ‘lack of bias’ and the most critical aspects are perceived to be ‘factual reporting’ and ‘being fair to both sides.’ However, audiences have great difficulty judging the impartiality of different media sources’ coverage with respect to the conflict as they feel they lack sufficient knowledge about the issues to properly evaluate. However, no systematic bias is perceived Despite this, most do not believe that there is any systematic bias in reporting of the conflict by any UK media source. Nearly 8 in 10 (78%) cannot identify any media source as being more partial and biased in coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Opinion Leader Research 8 The BBC is a trusted source and is perceived to be impartial in its coverage of the conflict amongst those able to volunteer an opinion on this issue There is a heavy reliance on the BBC for news and current affairs provision, with three-quarters (77%) of the public consuming a BBC source on TV, radio or online, and two-thirds (65%) turning to the BBC first for coverage of major international events. More than half (52%) specifically nominate the BBC as having the best coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Given the public’s lack of knowledge on the conflict, this is likely to be in part a halo effect of the BBC’s generally strong reputation as a media provider (scoring more than 7 out of 10 in overall favourability). In terms of the impartiality of coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the BBC is generally regarded as being as good or better than other sources. Of those (36%) who were able to nominate sources that they considered particularly impartial, the BBC is the most mentioned source (by 23%). When subsequently asked directly whether they agreed or disagreed that the BBC’s coverage of the conflict is impartial, half (53%) do not express a point of view. This reflects the low levels of knowledge of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as shown earlier (28% claim to know “nothing” and 43% only “a little” about the conflict). However, amongst those who do have an opinion, positive responses about the BBC’s impartiality outweighed negative ones by a factor of more than 10 to 1 (42% agreed the BBC is impartial, 4% disagreed). Only a very small minority believe BBC coverage to be partial (4%), and amongst this group views about which side the BBC supports are evenly split. Reflecting the high levels of satisfaction with the BBC’s coverage of the conflict, most are unable to offer suggestions on how it could improve. Evaluation of clips adds to the understanding of impartiality Evaluation of a series of clips in the qualitative stage added significantly to the understanding of the implicit factors that demonstrate impartiality. Language used is critical as emotive or loaded words can indicate bias. Similarly, images chosen need to be appropriate to the story and not gratuitous. Balanced coverage is another priority and this does not just mean equivalent airtime but also treating each side fairly, for example by using equally strong spokespeople. The tone of reports is also an important indicator of impartiality, with audiences looking for reports to be free of any implicit approval or disapproval to either side. Finally, the summation of the report is crucial – audiences want professional interpretation but not personal opinions here. Opinion Leader Research 9 Audience-led guidelines for ensuring quality coverage of the conflict were developed This research also looked beyond the specific issue of impartiality to explore what qualities audiences are looking for in coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict overall. A clear set of audience guidelines for coverage of the conflict were developed in the qualitative research, and these were subsequently confirmed in the quantitative survey. This list comprises: 1. Accurate reporting of the facts 2. Impartial and unbiased reporting 3. The latest, most up-to-date news 4. Reports that are clear and easy to follow 5. Providing explanations and background information 6. Having reporters on the ground who know the issues 7. Showing ordinary people in their daily lives 8. Ensuring images are not too violent or distressing Opinion Leader Research 10 3. Main Findings This chapter contains an integrated analysis of the main findings from both the qualitative and quantitative research phases. The analysis is organised into four sections which reflect the main areas of investigation in the study: 1. Audience’s relationship with news and current affairs: Level of consumption and interest, sources consumed and turned to first, attitudes to the BBC 2. Awareness, understanding and perceptions of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict: Unprompted and prompted recall of the conflict, specific stories recalled, perceived own level of knowledge, perceived reasons for the conflict, perceived importance, personal beliefs 3. Evaluation of media coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict: Importance of various qualities in coverage of the conflict, which media source is perceived to be best for coverage of the conflict and why, importance of various qualities in ensuring coverage of the conflict is impartial, whether any news sources stand out for being more or less impartial, extent to which the BBC is perceived to be impartial or partial, suggested improvements to BBC’s coverage of the conflict 4. Assessment of specific news clips of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict: Detailed qualitative evaluation of 5 television clips, 1 radio clip and 1 online report. 3.1 Audience’s relationship with news and current affairs The quantitative survey measured the extent to which audiences are interested in, and consume, news and current affairs. This question was designed to evaluate whether views about the Israeli- Palestinian conflict or BBC’s impartiality differ according to level of news consumption of interest. 3.1.1 Interest in and consumption of news and current affairs The results show that seven in ten (70%) define themselves as either interested or very interested in news and current affairs and claim to watch, view or listen to news and current affairs at least once a day. One quarter (25%) are more occasional viewers – either if topics are relevant or tuning in to major news stories. Only a small minority (4%) is uninterested in news and current affairs. This is likely to be at least in part related to the survey having been introduced as being about news; as such, it can be expected that some non-consumers of news will have opted out of answering the survey. Opinion Leader Research 11 Chart 1: Thinking about news and current affairs on TV, radio and online, which one of the following elements most closely matches your level of interest? (Prompted question) 4% 14% 11% 41% 29% 0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45% I'm NOT THAT INTERESTED in news and current affairs I only view watch or listen to news and current affairs OCCASIONALLY, but will watch if there are topics I am interested in or BIG NEWS STORIES I am interested in news and current affairs IF THE TOPICS ARE RELEVANT TO ME, and try to view or listen to news or current affairs MOST DAYS A WEEK I am INTERESTED in news and current affairs and make an effort to view or listen to news and current affairs at least ONCE A DAY I am VERY INTERESTED in news and current affairs and make an effort to view or listen to news and current affairs at least TWICE A DAY BASE = All respondents (1001) I n the qualitative research, participants similarly ranged from ‘news junkies’ to those whose consumption is more sporadic, accessing news as and when they can. This latter group becomes more engaged with current affairs at times when there are major events that they are actively seeking to follow. “At home I really just watch the news if something really important happens: crisis, tornadoes, whatever.” [Low awareness of the conflict, Londonderry.] The qualitative research also indicated some differences in how older and younger audiences consume news. Older audience members tend to be more habitual, with preferred sources and timeslots. Younger people by contrast have more of a “grab and go” mentality, picking and choosing news and current affairs to fit into their lives. “I think I know I’m getting old. I’m obsessed about getting the news at six o’clock.” [Low engagement in news, Glasgow] Opinion Leader Research 12 However, a general finding across all age ranges was that passive consumption has increased as both sources and formats have proliferated. Participants discussed their changing consumption of news, e.g. watching 24 hour news stations during the night if they are having difficultly sleeping and viewing online news during their lunch hour. “Everywhere you go you hear news…If you go visiting somebody there’s news on their telly, or news on the wireless when you’re in the car…It’s very hard to miss.” [Low engagement in news, Glasgow] “Coverage is more intense now. You used to just see a headline… and they’d normally just say ‘there’s been a disaster here.’ But you’re actually seeing it live from that place.” [Low engagement in news, Glasgow] The proliferation of news sources means that audiences now have a significant degree of choice available to them. Younger audience members tend be less loyal to a particular news outlet. If they are not interested in a particular item, or they do not like the way a story is being covered, then they would normally turn to another outlet. “There’s a lot of variety now so if you don’t like one channel’s reporting you can switch to another channel.” [Moderate awareness of the conflict, Sutton Coldfield] “Different sources give different information…the news people give one perspective and the TV might give another and the Internet maybe another.” [Moderate awareness of the conflict, Sutton Coldfield] As a result, some audience members have also become very media savvy. Some are even using industry jargon (e.g. “live feeds” etc.). 3.1.2 News and current affairs sources consumed The quantitative survey found that of all TV, radio and online news sources, BBC1 is the most consumed4. Just over half (51%) of all audience members named BBC1 as one of their news and current affairs sources. This is followed by ITV1 which is viewed by just over one-third (36%). Other news sources mentioned include Sky News (17%), BBC Radio 4 (11%), BBC News 24 (10%) and Channel 4 (10%). In total, three-quarters (77%) of the public consumes one or more BBC news source. BBC consumers are more likely than average to be aged over 54, male, in the socio economic groups ABC1 and White. They tend also to be higher consumers of news, viewing or listening to news at least once a day. 4The BBC Governors were not revealed as the sponsor until the end of the questionnaire to ensure responses would not be biased Opinion Leader Research 13 Chart 2: Which source (TV, radio or internet) do you view or listen to for news and current affairs? (Unprompted question. Multi-response) 10% 10% 11% 17% 36% 51% 77% 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% Channel 4 BBC News 24 BBC Radio 4 Sky News ITV1 BBC1 All BBC (net) BASE = All respondents (1001) I n terms of news formats, television is the most popular source of news, with nearly 9 in 10 (86%) people naming a television news source (60% named a BBC television news source). Three in ten (30%) consumes news on radio (23% on BBC national or regional radio). The qualitative investigation found that radio news consumption tends to be more passive, with people being typically exposed to news when listening to their favourite radio stations in the car on the way to work or doing chores at home. However, it is clearly still an important supplementary source of news. One in ten (10%) name an online news source (6% mention BBC Online). The qualitative work found that consumption of online news appears to be on the increase, however it tends still to supplement and complement other news consumption rather than being a primary source. “I generally find that if there’s something that I’m particularly interested in…then I’ll tend to go and look online.” [Low awareness of the conflict, Watford] Opinion Leader Research 14 Chart 3: Which source (TV, radio or internet) do you view or listen to for news and current affairs? (Unprompted question. Multi-response) BASE = All respondents (1001) 3.1.3 News sources turned to first for coverage of major international events There is a particularly strong reliance on the BBC for coverage of major international events. When asked which one source people would turn to first for news on a major international event, twothirds (65%) name a BBC news source. The most relied on source by a considerable margin is BBC1 (40%), ahead of Sky News (14%) and ITV1 (12%). BBC News 24 (8%), BBC Radio 4 (5%) and BBC News Online (4%) then follow. Interestingly, although digital broadcaster Sky News is consumed by fewer overall than ITV for news and current affairs (refer Chart 2), Sky News and ITV receive an equal number of mentions as the source people turned to first for coverage of a major international event. The qualitative research indicated that Sky is associated with providing the latest breaking news. 10% 30% 86% 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% Online (net) Radio (net) TV (net) 6% 23% 60% 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% BBC online BBC Radio (net) BBC TV (net) Opinion Leader Research 15 Chart 4: Which source (TV, radio or internet) would you turn to first for news on a major international event? (Unprompted question) 4% 5% 8% 12% 14% 40% 65% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% BBC News Online BBC Radio 4 BBC News 24 ITV1 Sky News BBC1 All BBC (net) BASE = All respondents (1001) 3.1.4 Perceptions of the BBC generally The BBC is not only highly regarded for its news and currents affairs output, but also more generally. Towards the end of the survey, respondents were informed that the BBC Governors were the sponsor of the research and then asked to rate the BBC generally on a scale of 1 to 10, where 1 means extremely unfavourable and 10 means extremely favourable. The majority (71%) scored the BBC at 7 or more points out of 10 with most of the others (23%) giving the BBC mid range (5-6) scores. Very few (6%) were critical of the BBC. Opinion Leader Research 16 Chart 5: Thinking about the BBC generally, what is your overall impression on a scale of 1 to 10, where 1 means extremely unfavourable and 10 means extremely favourable? 1% 1% 2% 2% 14% 9% 23% 30% 11% 7% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Distribution of scores 7.1 Mean score BASE = All respondents (1001) I n the focus groups, participants discussed what they regard as the BBC’s key strengths. These include: § The BBC’s size and network of reporters around the world § The BBC’s high standards of professionalism § The impartiality of the BBC’s coverage – this emerged spontaneously in early discussion of news sources prior to any examination of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict “The BBC has got a huge network.” [Low awareness of the conflict, Watford] “ITV is more tabloid-oriented whereas the BBC is a lot more serious.” [Moderate awareness of the conflict, Bridgend] “My perception of the BBC is more unbiased than the others.” [High engagement in news, Bridgend] “The BBC tries to be more down the middle.” [High awareness of the conflict, Londonderry] Opinion Leader Research 17 3.2 Awareness, understanding and perceptions of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict 3.2.1 Unprompted recall of the conflict Qualitative research found that international news coverage in recent years is perceived to have been dominated by an unusually large number of major national and international crises, both natural and man made. “The last couple of years on the news, the first story is normally always war…and a lot of the time I just switch off.” [Low awareness of the conflict, Londonderry] “It’s always disasters.” [Low awareness of the conflict, Londonderry] This view was also borne out in the quantitative survey which asked participants which major international issues they could recall being reported over the last year. The London Bombings emerged as the most recalled issue overall (46% unprompted recall), followed by the Tsunami (36%), Iraq war (30%) and Pakistan earthquake (29%) and Hurricane Katrina (18%). This reflects the timing of the research as these were all recent events at the time the survey was conducted (November 2005). The response to coverage of these international events is mixed – on the one hand, there is a strong desire to be informed, on the other there is also some indication of disaster fatigue and tuning out after the initial reporting phase. The proliferation of news output exacerbates this fatigue with more repetition of news items and extended coverage. Significantly, against this backdrop unprompted recall of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is currently very low at 2%. In the qualitative research, it was apparent that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is currently overshadowed by high profile recent events and in particular by the Iraq War which many feel is more directly relevant to the UK given the posting of British troops there. “Iraq’s more interesting at the moment isn’t it?” [High awareness of the conflict, Watford] Opinion Leader Research 18 Chart 6: Which major international issues can you recall being reported on TV, radio or online in the last 12 months? (Unprompted question. Multi-response. Pre-coded.) 2% 3% 4% 18% 29% 30% 36% 46% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% Israeli-Palestinian conflict Live8 / Make Povery History / aid to Africa Bali bombings Hurricane Katrina Pakistan Earthquake Iraq war Tsunami London bombings BASE = All respondents (1001) 3.2.2 Prompted recall of the conflict When prompted, two-thirds (67%) of people can recall reports on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. More likely than average to recall reports on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict are BBC news consumers, those aged over 35 and in the socio-economic groups ABC1. Those more likely not to recall reports on the are 18-34 year olds, those in C2DE socio-economic groups, and consumers of ITV and Sky News. The qualitative research showed that the length of the conflict and sporadic nature of its coverage impacts recall. People feel that the conflict only stays on their radar during the specific time in which a new incident occurs in the region and is reported. When the conflict is not on the news people tend to forget about it. “I think it’s put on the agenda when there’s a big incident…then when it dies down we don’t hear anything about it. We forget it.” [Moderate awareness of the conflict, Sutton Coldfield] Opinion Leader Research 19 Chart 7: Do you recall any reports on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict? 33% 67% Yes No BASE = All who do not spontaneously recall the conflict as a major international event reported in the last 12 months (982) 3.2.3 Perceived own knowledge of the conflict The quantitative survey found that only a very small proportion (3%) regard themselves as knowing a lot about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. And while one-quarter (26%) feel they know a reasonable amount, the great majority are less confident in their knowledge. More than 4 in 10 (43%) feel that they know only a little about the conflict and 3 in 10 (28%) that they know nothing about it. Men are more likely than average to regard themselves as knowing a lot or a reasonable amount about the conflict, whereas women are more likely to feel that they know a little about the conflict. 18-34 year olds and ITV consumers are more likely to feel they know nothing about the conflict. Opinion Leader Research 20 Chart 8: Thinking about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, how much do you feel you know about the conflict? (Prompted question) 28% 43% 26% 3% Nothing A little A reasonable amount A lot BASE = All respondents who recall reports on Israeli-Palestinian conflict (678) The qualitative research showed that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is regarded as long standing and complicated. As such, people lack confidence in their own understanding of the conflict. What people do know if often quite patchy. For example, they may know about a particular event or aspect from having watched a specific documentary, but do not understand how this links into the wider agenda. “It’s almost as if there’s so many pieces of the jigsaw and you only ever get one or two a day and you just never really get a chance to put them all together.” [Low awareness of the conflict, Watford] Even those who are better informed do not feel particularly confident in their own understanding. “To me, it’s been going on for quite a long time and I don’t know that much about it.” [High awareness of the conflict, Watford] “You can’t go on one side because you just don’t know enough about it.” [High awareness of the conflict, Watford] Opinion Leader Research 21 When discussing gaps in knowledge people focus on their lack of understanding of the background of the conflict. “You get the day to day happenings (in the news)… but I don’t feel I really have an understanding of what the two points of view are. I don’t understand where it came from or why it’s where it is.” [Low awareness of the conflict, Watford] 3.2.4 Recall of specific reports The recent Israeli withdrawal from Gaza in August 2005 is the most resonant event which has taken place in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict over the last couple of years. In the quantitative survey, nearly a half (48%) mentions the withdrawal from Gaza as an event they recall having been reported. The qualitative work found that this event stands out for the absence of overtly violent content and for the human interest element. “People being pulled out of their houses. Families that had lived here for generations.” [Moderate awareness of the conflict, Glasgow] “I remember being reported these people giving up their homes and crying.” [High awareness of the conflict, Sutton Coldfield] “Upset families being dragged out of their houses.” [Moderate awareness of the conflict, Bridgend] The Gaza withdrawal also stands out because it is regarded as potentially a more positive sign for the region. Apart from Gaza, the most prominent stories have been on suicide bombings, with one-third (34%) able to recall such reports over the last couple of years. There are also mentions of other issues, primarily the death of Arafat (19%) but also minor mentions of tit for tat retaliations (5%), Peace summits (45), James Miller’s death (2%) and recent documentaries about the region (1%). However, of those claiming some recall of reports of the conflict, one in ten (10%) is unable to recall anything specific. Opinion Leader Research 22 Chart 9: What specific events or issues relating to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict do you remember being reported in the last couple of years? (Unprompted question. Multi-response. Pre-coded) 10% 1% 2% 4% 5% 19% 34% 48% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% Nothing specific just recall Israeli-Palestinian conflict in the news Documentaries (e.g. Israel & the Arabs: Elusive Peace) British cameraman (James Miller) killed in Gaza Peace summits (e.g. Sharm El Sheik) Tit for tat / retaliations Death of Arafat Suicide bombings Withdrawal from Gaza BASE = All respondents who recall reports on Israeli-Palestinian conflict when prompted (678) 3.2.5 Perceived reasons for the conflict When asked what the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is about, the main responses are ‘land’ (59%), followed by ‘religion’ (38%). Small numbers also cite ‘oil’ (3%) and ‘US influence’ (3%) as contributing factors. Almost one in ten (8%) of those claiming some knowledge of the conflict is unsure of the causes or reasons. In the qualitative stage, there was a sense of hopelessness about the conflict. Participants felt that the conflict has developed into a ‘tit for tat’ affair with no obvious solution. “It’s all tit for tat.” [Low engagement in news, Glasgow] “There doesn’t seem to be any solution to any of these problems, does there?” [High awareness of the conflict, Sutton Coldfield] Opinion Leader Research 23 Chart 10: What do you think the conflict is about? (Unprompted question. Multi-response. Pre-coded) 8% 2% 3% 3% 38% 59% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% Unsure Tit for tat US influence Oil Religion Land BASE = All respondents who feel they know at least a little about the conflict (726) 3.2.6 Perceived importance of the conflict Views are mixed on the question of how important the conflict is to them personally. In the quantitative survey, people tend to take the middle ground, with most responding that it is either ‘not very important’ (39%) or ‘quite important’ (35%). One in four is more unequivocal – with as many saying it is ‘not important at all’ (14%) as claiming that it is ‘very important’ (12%). Opinion Leader Research 24 Chart 11: How important is the conflict to you personally? (Prompted question) 12% 35% 39% 14% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% Very important Quite important Not very important Not important at all BASE = All respondents who feel they know at least a little about the conflict (726) The qualitative work demonstrated that the conflict is perceived to have important implications for regional stability and possible links to the broader anti-terrorism agenda. “Until that conflict is squared up, until the Yanks can get that Road Map on board, you’re still going to have Al-Qaeda. You’re going to have bombs in London. You’re going to have bombs in New York.” [High awareness of the conflict, Londonderry] “The problem is that neck of the woods is such a hotspot anyway and that’s why they keep hitting on it all the time in the news.” [High engagement in news, Bridgend] However, the conflict is comparatively low on the personal relevance scale for most. “It doesn’t affect me directly. I don’t like seeing other people suffer needlessly…but it’s not really on my front doorstep.” [High awareness of the conflict, Watford] Iraq, for example, tends to be more resonant because there is a direct link to Britain through our troops being posted there. Some also report suffering from ‘conflict fatigue’ and switching off from coverage of the conflict. Opinion Leader Research 25 “I think the conflict’s been going on so long that people are getting a bit fed up of it to be honest.” [Moderate awareness of the conflict, Sutton Coldfield] “It’s almost as if they’re getting pretty blasé about it now. Oh, the Israelis have launched a mortar attack on so and so. So many people were killed. The Palestinians retorted with this, that and the other…and moving on to the next story.” [Low awareness of the conflict, Watford] 3.2.7 Personal beliefs on the conflict In the survey, the public was asked about their personal sympathies with respect to the conflict. Two-thirds (67%) claim not to side with either the Israelis or Palestinians in the conflict. In the qualitative research, it was also apparent that most people without a personal connection to the conflict tend not to have strong personal sympathies to either side. Some feel that they do not know enough about the conflict to make a judgment; others feel that both sides have valid arguments and/or both sides have made mistakes or are in the wrong. Of those who do have a partisan view, one in ten (11%) sympathises more with the Israelis and almost one in five (18%) sides more with the Palestinians. The qualitative research suggests that a reason for the higher level of support of Palestinian interests may be the perceived ‘David and Goliath’ nature of the conflict. The Palestinians are generally perceived to be the weaker side. However, very few have strong views in support of either side (2% strongly pro-Israeli, 5% strongly pro-Palestinian). Opinion Leader Research 26 Chart 12: Which of the following statements do you feel best describes your beliefs with regard to the conflict? (Prompted question) 2% 9% 67% 13% 5% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% I strongly sympathise with the Israeli side I tend to sympathise more with the Israeli side I do not side with either the Israelis or the Palestinians I tend to sympathise more with the Palestinian side I strongly sympathise with the Palestinian side BASE = All respondents who feel they know at least a little about the conflict (726) Opinion Leader Research 27 3.3 Evaluation of media coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict 3.3.1 Importance of various elements in quality of coverage of the conflict In the qualitative stage, participants developed a set of qualities that they agreed are important in international news and current affairs coverage generally. Impartiality emerged as a key priority for news and current affairs coverage, along with accuracy, clarity and general professionalism. Participants also considered what qualities are most important to them in coverage of the Israeli- Palestinian conflict specifically. They did this both in general discussion and after viewing specific clips of the conflict. Overall, the attributes agreed to be most critical for ensuring high quality coverage of the conflict include: § The latest, most up-to-date news § Accurate reporting of the facts § Impartial and unbiased reporting § Reports that are clear and easy to follow § Showing ordinary people in their daily lives § Reporters on the ground who know the issues § Providing explanations and background information § Ensuring images are not too distressing or violent These attributes were subsequently tested in the quantitative survey, in order to assess the relative importance of impartiality in comparison to other factors. The survey results show that, with the exception of censoring images, each quality is considered to be ‘very’ or ‘extremely’ important by the majority of audience members. However, when subsequently asked which one quality is most important overall, ‘reporting the facts’, followed by ‘impartial reporting’, are well ahead of the other aspects as the clear top two priorities overall. Opinion Leader Research 28 Chart 13: How important are the following qualities to you in news and current affairs coverage of the Israeli- Palestinian conflict? (Prompted question) 21% 9% 7% 5% 4% 4% 3% 29% 31% 23% 24% 17% 15% 11% 8% 27% 39% 47% 48% 50% 51% 46% 44% 12% 17% 22% 22% 28% 29% 38% 45% 3% 8% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% No distressing images Showing ordinary people Up to date news Background information Reporters on the ground Clear reports Impartial reporting Reporting the facts Not at all important Not very important Quite important Very important Extremely important BASE = All respondents who feel they know at least a little about the conflict (726) Opinion Leader Research 29 Chart 14: How important are the following qualities to you in news and current affairs coverage of the Israeli- Palestinian conflict? (Prompted question) 2% 1% 2% 3% 3% 5% 7% 27% 50% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% Other No distressing images Showing ordinary people Up to date news Background information Reporters on the ground Clear reports Impartial reporting Reporting the facts BASE = All respondents who feel they know at least a little about the conflict (726) 3.3.2 Which media source is perceived to have best coverage of the conflict The quantitative survey asked which media source has the best coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in an unprompted question. Half (52%) believe the BBC has the best coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, with one-third (32%) specifically citing BBC1 and some mentions (7%) also of BBC News 24. Of the other news outlets, Sky is mentioned by one in ten (11%), and ITV by slightly fewer (7%). A substantial minority (21%), however, is unsure which news source is best for coverage of the conflict. Respondents who identified a news source as best were also asked for their reasons, in an openended question. For those who nominated a BBC news source as best, the main reasons given were that it goes into more depth, it is unbiased and it is the only source used. There were also references to the quality of particular journalists, the topicality of the information and the extent of coverage. Opinion Leader Research 30 “They’re very strong on the ground. They seem to react very quickly and they seem to have more people…The reporters, they’ve got far more knowledge of local affairs.” [High engagement with news, Bridgend] Chart 15: Which media source on TV, radio or online, do you think has the best coverage of the Israeli- Palestinian conflict? (Unprompted question) 21% 5% 7% 7% 11% 32% 52% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% Unsure BBC (unspecified) BBC News 24 ITV1 Sky News BBC1 All BBC (net) BASE = All respondents (1001) Opinion Leader Research 31 Chart 16: Why do you think…gives the best coverage? (Open ended question) 9% 9% 10% 15% 15% 17% 0% 5% 10% 15% 20% More coverage More up to date than other sources Positive comment on quality of reporter/journalist It's the only one I watch/listen to They are unbiased Goes into more depth/detail BASE = All who identified BBC as having best coverage of the conflict (516) 3.3.3 Importance of various qualities in impartiality of coverage of the conflict The qualitative research investigated the audience’s definition and understanding of impartiality in detail. As a result a set of qualities or attributes required to ensure impartiality were developed and were then tested in the quantitative survey. These qualities include: § Factual reporting § Explaining the context behind the facts § Showing historical causes of the conflict § Being fair to both sides § Not promoting journalists’ personal opinions § Providing a balance of views § Having a professional and neutral tone § Ensuring reports are not sensationalist § Taking care with words and language used Opinion Leader Research 32 The quantitative survey shows that all factors are regarded to be ‘very’ or ‘extremely’ important by the great majority. Thus, the attributes developed in the qualitative stage represent validated audience-led guidelines for ensuring impartiality with respect to coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. ‘ Reporting the facts’ and ‘being fair to both sides’ are particularly valued, with more than 4 in 10 regarding these aspects as ‘extremely’ important. These elements are also the two most likely to be nominated as the one most important overall. Each of these factors is in effect seen as being synonymous with impartiality overall. Chart 17: How important are the following qualities in ensuring that coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is impartial and unbiased? (Prompted question) 4% 6% 5% 6% 24% 19% 23% 21% 14% 16% 15% 7% 5% 48% 54% 45% 46% 53% 46% 43% 49% 48% 21% 23% 24% 25% 30% 31% 33% 42% 45% 3% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% Professional, neutral tone Explaining context Showing historical causes Care with language Balance of views Not sensationalist No journalist opinions Fair to both sides Reporting the facts Not at all important Not very important Quite important Very important Extremely important BASE = All who know at least a little about the conflict (726) Opinion Leader Research 33 Chart 18: Which of these qualities I have just mentioned would you say is the most important overall? (Prompted question) 2% 2% 2% 3% 3% 6% 9% 10% 23% 39% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% Other Care with language Professional, neutral tone Not sensationalist No journalist opinions Showing historical causes Balance of views Explaining context Fair to both sides Reporting the facts BASE = All who know at least a little about the conflict (726) 3.3.4 Whether particular media sources are perceived to be more or less impartial Qualitative work revealed that the audience has great difficulty in judging whether or not media coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is impartial because they feel they do not know enough about the conflict to properly evaluate this. “I think you just have to trust what you’re actually seeing and hearing… I think generally you do put your faith in what you’re listening to.” [Moderate awareness of the conflict, Sutton Coldfield] “I find it difficult to decide whether it’s balanced or not.” [High awareness of the conflict, Sutton Coldfield] The default position is to trust that coverage will be impartial, reflecting generally high trust and confidence in news and current affairs sources in the UK. British news and current affairs sources are generally highly regarded for their quality standards, in contrast to American news. Opinion Leader Research 34 A minority of participants in the discussion groups perceive that the tit for tat nature of the conflict makes it difficult for individual news stories to be completely balanced. But even this group does not believe that there is any systemic bias. “I think it’s one of those conflicts that, because it is tit for tat constantly, it only takes one side to perhaps be a little bit more active and they show that on the news, then you could be seen to be biased, where perhaps that’s not the case.” [High awareness of the conflict, Watford] In the quantitative survey, respondents were asked, in an unprompted question, whether they perceive any media sources as standing out for being either more or less impartial in their coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The great majority are unable to nominate a source as being more impartial than others (64%) and an even greater number cannot nominate a less impartial source (78%). Of those who could respond on these questions, almost one-quarter (23%) spontaneously referred to a BBC source as being more impartial, with small numbers (2-3%) also referring to Channel 4, Sky News and ITV as demonstrating greater impartiality. Conversely, 1 in 20 (6%) nominates a specific BBC source as being less impartial, compared to 3% for CNN and 2% each for Sky News and ITV. Chart 19: Of all the TV, radio and online sources that you are familiar with, do any stand out for being more impartial and unbiased than the others in its coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict? (Unprompted question, multi response) 64% 2% 2% 2% 2% 2% 3% 3% 12% 23% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% No answer / none stand out ITV1 Sky News BBC2 BBC (unspecified) BBC Radio 4 Channel 4 BBC News 24 BBC1 All BBC (net) BASE = All who know at least a little about the conflict (726) Opinion Leader Research 35 Chart 20: Of all the TV, radio and online sources that you are familiar with, do any stand out for being less impartial and unbiased than the others in its coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict? (Unprompted question, multi response) 78% 2% 2% 3% 3% 6% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% No answer / none stand out ITV1 Sky News CNN BBC1 All BBC (net) BASE = All who know at least a little about the conflict (726) 3.3.5 Whether BBC’s coverage of the conflict is perceived to be impartial The survey also asked a prompted question on the extent people agree or disagree that the BBC is impartial. (This question was asked of all respondents, including those who believe they know “nothing” (28%) or only “a little” (43%) about the conflict.) More than half (53%) feels unable to comment on BBC’s impartiality with respect to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict even when asked directly. However, more than 4 in 10 (42%) agree that the BBC is impartial, with one-quarter (24%) agreeing strongly. By contrast, less than 1 in 20 (4%) disagrees and only 1% disagrees strongly. As such, positive responses on the BBC’s impartiality outweigh negative ones by a factor of more than 10 to 1. Opinion Leader Research 36 Chart 21: Thinking now specifically about the BBC’s coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict – do you tend to agree or disagree that the BBC’s coverage is impartial and unbiased, or do you have no opinion on this? (Prompted question) 1% 3% 53% 18% 24% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% Strongly disagree Slightly disagree No opinion Slightly agree Strongly agree BASE = All (1001) Analysis of sub-groups shows that those who agree that the BBC’s coverage of the conflict is impartial and unbiased are more likely to be older, male, of socio economic groups ABC1, high consumers of news and (perhaps unsurprisingly) favourable to the BBC generally. Conversely, those who disagree that BBC coverage is impartial and unbiased are more likely to be unfavourable to the BBC generally, from a black or minority ethnic group and to regard the conflict as personally important. However, even amongst these sub-groups, perceptions that the BBC is partial are at very low levels. Interestingly, analysis also shows that those with Palestinian sympathies are both more likely to agree and disagree that the BBC is impartial. In qualitative work the BBC also often stood out as being more impartial and unbiased than other sources in its coverage of the conflict. “I have seen reports after various problems where someone will be interviewing Palestinians and then others interviewing Israelis…They appear to be giving a balanced view.” [High engagement in news, Bridgend] Opinion Leader Research 37 Although there is virtually no specific criticism of BBC coverage of the conflict in terms of impartiality, a small minority in the qualitative research did raise questions about BBC impartiality in general, with references to the Hutton Report and the Prime Minister’s alleged criticism of the BBC’s Hurricane Katrina coverage. “I don’t think the BBC is impartial, because they got rid of their chairman because he took a different slant from the government. So I don’t think they’re impartial.” [High awareness of the conflict, Londonderry] “I think the news on BBC is not as impartial any more as it used to be: when a Prime Minister actually speaks out in the national press about how they reported and it looked like they were blaming George Bush.” [Low engagement in news, Glasgow] In the survey, the small proportion (4%) who believe the BBC are partial are fairly evenly divided, with around half each perceiving that the BBC is partial to the Israeli and Palestinian sides. Please note that the sample size for this question is extremely small so results should be treated with caution. Chart 22: Which side of the conflict does the BBC support more – the Israeli or Palestinian side? 43% 57% Israeli side Palestinian side (n=19) (n=25) PLEASE NOTE SMALL SAMPLE SIZE BASE = All who disagree that BBC is fair / impartial (49) Opinion Leader Research 38 The small minority who perceive that the BBC is partial to a particular side were also asked for their reasons. Responses to this question were quite vague and included that the BBC is ‘occasionally biased’ and that it is ‘just a feeling’. 3.3.5 Suggested improvements to BBC’s coverage of the conflict At the end of the survey, audience members were asked, in an open-ended question, if they have any suggestions for how the BBC’s coverage of the conflict can be improved. Two-thirds (66%) did not have any suggestions; a further one in twenty (6%) responded that the BBC ‘does its job well’. The suggestions that were made included providing ‘more historical facts’ (8%), presenting ‘both sides’ (5%), ensuring ‘information is accurate’ (4%), providing ‘more in-depth interviews’ (3%), setting aside ‘more time’ to covering the conflict (2%), providing ‘more depth’ (2%) and ‘continual updates’ (2%). Chart 23: Do you have any suggestions for how the BBC’s news and current affairs coverage of the Israeli- Palestinian conflict can be improved? (Open-ended question) 66% 2% 2% 2% 3% 4% 5% 6% 8% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% No answer Continual updates - not just big stories More depth More time dedicated to the conflict More in-depth interviews with local residents / general public Accurate information / be factual Presenting both sides / equal coverage They do their job well More historical facts BASE = All (1001) Opinion Leader Research 39 The desire of audiences to receive more historical background and context also emerged in the qualitative work. However, people generally accept that this is not the role of news bulletins. Current affairs programmes and documentaries are seen as having an important role to play in plugging the knowledge gaps and complementing news coverage. “I think they do (give background) in things like Panorama and they do in other programmes. But the news is there to give you bullet points.” [High awareness of the conflict, Watford] “I think as far as the news is concerned, there’s only a limited time to tell us about what’s happened. They can’t go in depth. When there is a documentary…you saw what was happening behind the scenes which you don’t see on a news programme.” [High engagement in news, Bridgend] Opinion Leader Research 40 3.4 Assessment of news clips on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict During the discussion groups, six clips (5 television clips and 1 radio clip) were played in the groups, and one website report was also provided. These were as follows: § BBC 10 O’Clock News 08.02.05 (Orla Guerin) § ITV Evening News 08.02.05 (Julian Manyon) § BBC 10 O’Clock News 20.05.05 (Orla Guerin) § BBC 10 O’Clock News 19.08.05 (Jeremy Bowen) § BBC Radio 4 6 O’Clock News 24.09.05 (James Reynolds) § BBC Website 24.09.05 § Sky News Bulletin 24.09.05 (Miranda Schunke) Participants were asked to critique the clips, to ultimately form an opinion on BBC’s coverage of the conflict and to form guidelines for best practice in terms of coverage of the conflict. These clips were chosen as typical examples of coverage within a recent timeframe and included clips of the same story covered in different formats and by different broadcasters. 3.4.1 ITV Evening News, 08.02.05 (Manyon) / BBC 10 O’Clock News, 08.02.05 (Guerin): both reporting on the Sharm El Sheikh Peace Summit Participants in the groups viewed two clips (one ITV and one BBC) consecutively; both were reporting on a peace summit in Sharm El Sheikh. Overall, the BBC report is generally preferred for a number of reasons: § The BBC report is perceived to have a more optimistic, hopeful tone of voice. The ITV story by contrast is perceived to be more sceptical and down-beat about the potential for peace § The ITV story is perceived to use overly emotive language, such as “terrorist”, “crack down” and “peace maker Sharon.” Participants feel this language implies partiality to Israel § Of the two sources, the BBC version is considered “closer to the action.” This is in part due to more close up camera angles § The BBC reporter is perceived to be more knowledgeable 3.4.2 BBC 10 O’Clock News 20.05.05 (Guerin) Attack and counter-attack, Gaza The clip of the Palestinian mortar attack and Israeli response is regarded as graphic and shocking. However, the audience is split on whether this is justified – some feel it is newsworthy and should be shown, others that it is unnecessarily violent. “That was quite distressing.” [High awareness of the conflict, Watford] Opinion Leader Research 41 While most do not have any particular criticisms relating to the impartiality of the clip, a minority perceive that it does not treat both sides equally and is more sympathetic to the Israelis. They comment on various aspects: § The use of official Israeli footage is seen by some as a sign of partiality (however others do not agree because the clip is properly attributed and therefore viewers are made aware of its third party source) “I thought it was quite an Israeli bias. It showed a live Israeli army video.” [High awareness of the conflict, Sutton Coldfield] § The Israeli spokesman is perceived to be stronger than his Palestinian counterpart (e.g. speaking articulately in perfect English, in a “statesman like” setting of a library) “They had an impeccable 40 seconds talking to the Israeli ambassador. That was done in a library somewhere, it was done on a stage. The diction came over beautifully clear. Then they go to the counter view. It’s about half, 20 seconds, and not as good quality.” [High awareness of the conflict, Sutton Coldfield] “The guy sitting with the Israeli flag there he seemed to be more the on the ball than this other guy, the President of Palestine or whatever….” [Low engagement in news and current affairs, Glasgow] § The statement within the clip that Israel was “protecting the border” is considered to be sympathetic to the Israeli side, implying that the response was legitimate § It is perceived that Israel had more airtime in the report overall § The suggestion of a rabble at the end of the report is felt to portray the Palestinians in an unfavourable light 3.4.3 BBC 10 O’Clock News 19.08.05 (Bowen) ‘Explainer’ piece on the implications for the West Bank following Gaza withdrawal, illustrated in an Israeli settlement and a Palestinian village This clip is popular with audience members for a number of reasons: § It is a human interest story, depicting people going about their everyday lives which provides some context to the conflict-focused reports “It’s informative without being spectacular. They’re showing you the normal scene basically…. What’s going on there, without all the shooting.” [Low engagement in news and current affairs, Glasgow] § Both Israelis and Palestinians are interviewed and the interviewees are regarded as equals § Bowen is “on the ground” with the people and he is regarded as a good communicator “Jeremy Bowen is a good presenter. He is unbiased. He’s doing his job. He is reporting the facts…There’s no opinion coming into it…He is renowned as a good reporter.” [Moderate awareness of the conflict, Glasgow] Opinion Leader Research 42 § His comment “they believe” in reference to the Palestinians’ arguments stands out as a positive as it clearly conveys that it is their point of view and not his For a minority, however, there is a suggestion that the clip is more sympathetic to the Palestinian side: § In Bowen’s summation he states that the Palestinian “livelihood is under great threat” § Some feel that more time is given to the Palestinian side than to the Israeli side § Some also feel that there was an implicit tone of disapproval towards the Israelis in this clip “Seems it’s trying to make out the Israelis were the bad guys, to me… It’s just the last couple of sentences about they may have given up the Gaza strip but they’re not going to give up their goals on the West Bank.” [Low awareness of the conflict, Londonderry] 3.4.4 BBC Radio 4 6 O’Clock News 24.09.05 (Reynolds) Attacks and counter-attacks, Gaza Participants found it more difficult to engage with this clip. This is partly to be expected as it is challenging for participants to focus on radio coverage after having viewed TV clips, especially in an unnatural group setting. However, the clip also has some specific attributes which make it more difficult to follow. In particular, it is seen to be loaded with too many facts and to be lacking in interpretation. “I got lost. He was talking too fast. I’m trying to digest what he was saying…Too many names, It’s too much information to absorb.” [Moderate awareness of the conflict, Glasgow] . On the other hand, it is generally considered to be impartial and to give both sides of the conflict equal weighting. “I got the feeling that it was ‘here are the facts. Here’s what one side is saying. Here’s what the other side (say). You make your own mind up.’” [High engagement in news and current affairs, Bridgend] The one small criticism of its impartiality relates to the use of what is perceived to be an emotive term - “amassing” - to describe the accumulation of Israeli troops on the border. 3.4.5 BBC Online “Israel raid kills Hamas militant”, 24. 09.05 Online news viewers like this article in the main, although there is consensus that it is too long. Features like the map and the links to background information and related coverage are seen as being particularly useful. Opinion Leader Research 43 Most people regard the story as impartial although a minority feel that there is more coverage of the Israeli side, particularly at the beginning of the article. The subheading “crushing” is criticised for being overly dramatic and not in keeping with the nature of the story. “I thought that was very violent language.” [High awareness of the conflict, Londonderry] 3.4.6 Sky News 9pm, 24.09.05 (Shunke) Attack and counter-attack, Gaza This clip was the least favourably received overall. The Images used, such as wrecked cars, are perceived to be gratuitously dramatic. “Why do we need to see a blown up car? It doesn’t really add to the story, it’s just the wreckage of a car.” [High awareness of the conflict, Watford] The language is perceived to be emotively charged, with words such as “retaliation” and “barrage”. Audience members feel confused by this clip, commenting that it seems as if the clip is trying to cover four separate stories and there is too much information for them to take in. Furthermore there is insufficient context provided. The story appears to some to be pro-Israeli because the summation implies that Israel had been vindicated in its actions. Opinion Leader Research 44 3.4.7 Summary of clip analysis Group participants note that it is only after being exposed to clips in this way that people are properly equipped to make an evaluation about impartiality. They normally wouldn’t notice in their day-to-day lives. As such, deconstructing the clips added significantly to the understanding of what is most important to the audience in demonstrating impartiality/partiality. § The language used is seen as critical. Emotive or loaded words are seen as indicators of bias § The images chosen are also important, with audiences wanting to see images that are appropriate to the story and not gratuitous § Balance is another key issue, both in terms of affording each side equivalent airtime and also ensuring spokespeople chosen to represent either side are equally strong § The tone of reports is also important. There should not be implicit approval or disapproval of either side § Finally, the summation of a report is seen to be crucial as it is here where the main journalistic interpretation of events is normally contained Based on the clips shown, the BBC generally fares very well on these factors. As mentioned earlier, the audience perceives it to be extremely difficult for individual clips each to be absolutely even-handed and impartial due to the polarised nature of the conflict itself. However, based on the selection of reports presented, the BBC is perceived to be balanced in its coverage overall. However, there is a sense (albeit amongst a minority) that some BBC reports have a tone of implicit disapproval of the Israelis. This may be related to the David and Goliath nature of the conflict, with the Palestinians clearly the weaker side and weaker can be interpreted as more ‘right’5. While audience members clearly do not want the journalist’s personal opinions to come through, it is acknowledged that there is a need for reports to contain some professional interpretation. Without this, it is difficult for lay audiences to understand the significance of the facts provided and to fully engage with the story. This lack of engagement was evident with the radio report which was predominantly factual based and with little interpretation. The Bowen example shows that even partisan opinion is not necessarily off limits as long as it is clearly identified as such. 5 See Rod Liddle’s comment in the Independent on Sunday, October 9th 2005 Opinion Leader Research 45 4. Conclusion The BBC and other broadcasters do not have a major issue with respect to audience perceptions of their impartiality. Most do not spontaneously identify any specific broadcasting sources that they perceive to be partial or biased in their coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. When asked directly about the BBC, the great majority of those with an opinion regard the BBC in particular to be impartial in its coverage of the conflict. However, broadcasters do face a number of challenges in covering the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The conflict is not currently top-of-mind with audiences and the public admits to low understanding of the conflict. In the main, people are also not particularly engaged in the issues. Consequently, although people value impartiality highly, many feel incapable of properly evaluating broadcasters on this. Their default position is to trust that broadcasters will be impartial. This is particularly true for the BBC, reflecting high levels of trust in the BBC and reliance in it as a news source. To demonstrate impartiality to audiences it is critical to be seen to ‘report the facts’, ‘be fair to both sides’ and ‘provide a balance of views’. It is also important for broadcasters not to ‘promote personal opinions’, nor to be ‘sensationalist’. Additionally, because of the audience’s lack of knowledge on the conflict, ‘explaining the context’ and ‘showing historical background’ is required by audiences to better equip them to make informed judgements on the subject and its coverage. There are also a number of more implicit factors which can contribute to reports being perceived as more or less impartial: § The language used – emotive or loaded words can be seen as indicators of bias § The images chosen – audiences want to see images that are appropriate to the story and not gratuitous § Balance – both in terms of affording each side equivalent airtime and also ensuring spokespeople chosen to represent either side are equally strong § The summation of a report – the section of a report that usually contains journalistic interpretation of events must be fair After detailed deliberation on the subject in the qualitative research, audience members took the view that it is difficult for each and every report on the conflict to be completely impartial. This is due to the polarised nature of the conflict meaning that individual reports will necessarily often focus more on one side than the other. What is important to participants is that overall, on balance, coverage should be impartial. In the main the BBC is achieving this, but it must continue to strive for the best possible output. Opinion Leader Research 46 A set of qualities for ensuring high quality of coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict were developed and tested in this research. The following list can be treated as overall ‘audience-led guidelines’ for coverage of the conflict. Significantly, impartiality alongside accuracy are the top two priorities for audiences overall. 1. Accurate reporting of the facts 2. Impartial and unbiased reporting 3. The latest, most up-to-date news 4. Reports that are clear and easy to follow 5. Providing explanations and background information 6. Having reporters on the ground who know the issues 7. Showing ordinary people in their daily lives 8. Ensuring images are not too violent or distressing Opinion Leader Research 47 5. Appendix 5.1 Discussion Guide 5th Floor, Holborn Gate, 330 High Holborn, London WC1V 7QG Tel: 020 7861 3080 Fax: 020 7861 3081 Email: enquiries@opinionleader.co.uk BBC Governors’ Impartiality Review on Coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Outline Discussion Guide 23 September 2005 Introduction (10 mins) § Introduction – OLR and any observers § Brief explanation of research § Ground rules and housekeeping - confidentiality, permission to tape, mobiles off, breaks etc § Paired introductions § First name, job, family § What news & current affairs do they access regularly and why (formats, outlets and channels/programmes)? § MODERATOR TO FLIP CHART NEWS & CURRENT AFFAIRS FORMATS, OUTLETS AND CHANNELS THAT PARTICIPANTS ARE REGULARLY ACCESSING Warm up (5 mins) § How relate to news and current affairs generally · How many minutes per day · How fit it into their lives · How easy / difficult to make time · How often per day and what times of day · If and how has their consumption of news / current affairs changed over time (frequency of access, times, formats, outlets etc) Priorities for news / current affairs coverage & audience definition of impartiality (15 mins) § FLIP CHART: What qualities are most important personally in news and current affairs coverage? (e.g. accuracy, accessibility/ease of understanding, fairness/impartiality, background/context etc.) Opinion Leader Research 48 § IF IMPARTIALITY NOT MENTIONED, RAISE AND GAUGE IMPORTANCE, DEFINITION § Evaluation of news / current affairs sources against these criteria. § With impartiality in particular, how do media providers rate? Awareness and understanding of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict (10 min) § How much do you feel you know about the conflict? § What words would you use to describe the conflict? § Where do you find out about it? (PROBE: media and other sources, e.g. word of mouth) § How interested are you? § Do you have any personal views on the conflict (PROBE: do you lean to any particular side? Is there conflict fatigue?) § Do you have a personal connection to the conflict? How the issues are being reported in the media (20 mins) § How much do you remember being reported on the conflict recently: § Specific events or issues recall being reported? § Where saw/heard these? · What specific messages and images are recalled? § How does the media represent the conflict generally? § What works? What should be different? (PROBE: accuracy, accessibility/ease of understanding, fairness/impartiality, background/context etc.) § Is there enough / too much / not enough coverage of the conflict in the media? § Are the right things covered? Any gaps? § How do media sources compare in terms of coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict? · Differences · Similarities · Any stand out as better / worse (by format, outlet etc) · Any stand out as more impartial/partial · How does BBC in particular compare? (PROBE: biased / unbiased - use their own words from flipchart) Assessment of clips (45 mins) CLIP 1 [several BBC clips, different stories and formats – 25 mins] After each clip § Main messages/images conveyed? § What did feel when watched that clip? § How informative? § How accurate? § How easy to understand? § How interesting? § How fair/impartial? Opinion Leader Research 49 Generally § Overall assessment of BBC coverage – 1-10 rating and reasons § Is coverage different on different formats – TV/radio/online? § Which clips liked best and least – why? § How fair / impartial CLIP 2 [clips of same story from different news outlets including BBC – 20 mins] After each clip § Main messages/images conveyed? § What did feel when watched that clip? § How informative? § How accurate? § How easy to understand? § How interesting? § How fair/impartial? Generally: § Is coverage different on different outlets – how? § Which clips liked best and least – why? § How does the BBC cover the conflict compared to other broadcasters? § Comparative strengths & weaknesses § Is there anything about the BBC coverage that makes it distinctive? § How fair/impartial? How could reporting be better (15 mins) § ROLE PLAY IN 3 BREAK OUT GROUPS: If you were head of programming at the BBC, and it was your role to provide guidelines for news and current affairs coverage, what would your guidelines for reporting of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict be? · Develop 5 key principles for guidelines and then discuss in plenary · PROBE: Impartiality and other key criteria developed at the outset of the group Opinion Leader Research 50 5.2 List of clips 1. ITV Evening News, 08.02.05 (Manyon): Sharm El Sheikh Peace Summit 2. BBC 10 O’Clock News, 08.02.05 (Guerin): Sharm El Sheikh Peace Summit 3. BBC 10 O’Clock News 20.05.05 (Guerin): Attack and counter-attack, Gaza 4. BBC 10 O’Clock News 19.08.05 (Bowen): ‘Explainer’ piece on the implications for the West Bank following Gaza withdrawal 5. BBC Radio 4 6 O’Clock News 24.09.05 (Reynolds): Attacks and counter-attacks, Gaza 6. BBC Online “Israel raid kills Hamas militant”, 24. 09.05 7. Sky News 9pm, 24.09.05 (Shunke): Attack and counter-attack, Gaza Opinion Leader Research 51 5.3 BBC News Online Story http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/4277358.stm Last Updated: Saturday, 24 September 2005, 14:12 GMT 15:12 UK E-mail this to a friend Printable version Israel raid kills Hamas militants At least two Palestinians have been killed in an Israeli air strike on two cars in the eastern part of Gaza City. The Israeli army confirmed it had carried out the strike, the latest in a series launched in response to rocket attacks on the Israeli town of Sderot. The two men killed were identified as members of the militant group Hamas. The raids, which began before dawn on Saturday, are Israel's first in the Gaza Strip since its military withdrawal almost two weeks ago. In the early hours of Saturday, militants fired 30 rockets into the town of Sderot, wounding five Israelis. Hamas said the rocket attacks were themselves a response to an explosion at a Hamas rally on Friday afternoon, which killed at least 15 people. Israel denies it was responsible and the Palestinian Authority said it appeared to have been an accident caused by Hamas members carrying explosives in an area packed with people. 'Crushing' Israel's defence minister promised a "crushing response", and ordered the West Bank and Gaza borders sealed. "We have to make it clear to the Palestinians that Israel will not let the recent events pass without a response," Shaul Mofaz said in a statement. Israel's defence minister said militants should expect a response BBC NEWS:VIDEO AND AUDIO See the devastation following the Israeli strike KEY STORIES P alestinians vote in key election Palestinians up security for vote Palestinian campaign hits climax One killed in Israeli air strike FEATURES AND ANALYSIS P romises of change Elections promise profound change in the West Bank and Gaza, writes Jeremy Bowen. On the campaign trail with Hamas Gazan high hopes Hundreds to watch election Guide parliamentary vote Q&A: Palestinian elections Who's who in the elections SHARON HEALTH CRISIS 'No change' for comatose Sharon Sharon's breathing tube replaced Comatose Sharon 'moves eyelids' V IDEO AND AUDIO Reports and analysis HAVE YOUR SAY Opinion Leader Research 52 "The response needs to be crushing." Officials say large numbers of ground troops have been ordered to the border with Gaza. An Israeli artillery unit also set up along Gaza's northern border. On Saturday morning, the Israeli army said one strike had targeted a field used by Palestinian militants to fire rockets at Israel. Three strikes Earlier, during the dawn helicopter raids, the Israeli military said it had fired one missile at a Hamas weapons warehouse in the Jabaliya refugee camp. Two more missiles were fired at targets in Gaza City. The missiles appeared to have caused little damage but Palestinians said at least one person was injured. The casualties in Sderot were caused by shrapnel from the Qassam rockets, one of which landed near a sports hall in the town centre. Sderot is located near the border to the north-east of the Gaza Strip. Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for firing 10 home-made rockets into Israel on Friday, following the killing of three of its leaders by Israeli troops in Tulkarm. Israel said the militants were killed after opening fire on troops who were trying to arrest them. Israel's withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, completed on 12 September, ended 38 years of military occupation of the territory. P alestinian elections: Your views PROFILES Ariel Sharon In depth coverage RELATED INTERNET LINKS: Israeli foreign ministry Palestinian National Authority The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites T OP MIDDLE EAST STORIES NOW Palestinians vote in key election Israel 'has to withdraw further' Saudi king in rare visit to India Kuwait settles royal succession | What is RSS? Opinion Leader Research 53 5.4 Quantitative questionnaire 5th Floor, Holborn Gate, 330 High Holborn, London WC1V 7QG Tel: 020 7861 3080 Fax: 020 7861 3081 email: enquiries@opinionleader.co.uk BBC Governors Impartiality Review on Coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Quantitative questionnaire 25 October 2005 Introduction Good morning/afternoon. My name is ……… and I am calling on behalf of Opinion Leader Research. We are currently conducting a survey on news coverage of major events. Would you be able to spare 15 minutes to take part in a telephone interview? All your responses will be completely confidential. IF ASKED ABOUT THE SPONSOR SAY: We will tell you who the survey is for at the end of the interview. Screening Q1 Before we begin, can I just check if you are employed in the following occupations: § Market Research § Media or journalism IF YES CLOSE Quota questions Q2 And can you tell me how old you are? TO FIT QUOTA Q3 INTERVIEWER TO RECORD GENDER TO FIT QUOTA Q4 INTERVIEWER TO RECORD REGION FROM SAMPLE TO FIT QUOTA Opinion Leader Research 54 Use and perception of news and current affairs Q5 Thinking about news and current affairs on TV, radio and online, which ONE of the following statements most closely matches your level of interest: I am very interested in news and current affairs and make an effort to view or listen to news and current affairs at least twice a day I am interested in news and current affairs and make an effort to view or listen to news and current affairs at least once a day I am interested in news and current affairs if the topics are relevant to me, and try to view or listen to news or current affairs most days a week I only view watch or listen to news and current affairs occasionally, but will watch if there are topics I am interested in or big news stories I'm not that interested in news and current affairs Q6 (Even though you are not that interested) which sources (TV, radio or internet) do you view or listen to for news and current affairs? Unprompted – DO NOT READ OUT INTERVIEWER TO PROBE FORMATS Code in first column in grid below Q7 Which source (on TV, radio or the internet) would you turn to first for news on a major international event? Unprompted – DO NOT READ OUT INTERVIEWER TO PROBE FORMATS IF ANSWER BBC INTERVIEWER TO PROBE FOR CHANNEL/SERVICE Code in second column in grid below TERMINATE INTERVIEW IF NO TV / RADIO / ONLINE OR NEWSPAPERS ONLY Opinion Leader Research 55 Q6: Sources (record all) Q7: First for news on major event (one mention only) BBC (channel/service not specified after probing) BBC1 BBC2 BBC3 BBC4 BBC News 24 ITV1 ITV News Channel Channel 4 Five Sky News CNN TV sources Other TV (specify) BBC News Online (i.e. BBC’s services on the internet) Guardian Unlimited Google MSN Yahoo Online Other online (specify) BBC Radio 4 Radio Five Live BBC World Service Other BBC radio (specify) Radio Other commercial radio (specify) Other (specify) No TV/Radio/Online news TERMINATE INTERVIEW Opinion Leader Research 56 Newspapers only TERMINATE INTERVIEW Media coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict Q8 Which major international issues can you recall being reported on TV, radio or online in the last 12 months? Unprompted – DO NOT READ OUT § Pakistan Earthquake § Bali bombings § Hurricane Katrina § Live8 / Make Poverty History Campaign / aid to Africa § Tsunami § Iraq war § London bombings § Israeli-Palestinian conflict (go to Q10) § Other (specify) Q9 IF NOT MENTIONED IN Q8: Do you recall any reports on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict? § YES § NO (skip to Q11) Q10 IF YES IN Q9: What specific events or issues relating to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict do you remember being reported in the last couple of years? Unprompted – DO NOT READ OUT § Suicide bombings § Withdrawal from Gaza (families leaving etc) § Death of Arafat § British cameraman (James Miller) killed in Gaza § Tit for tat retaliations § Peace summits (e.g. Sharm El Sheikh) § Documentaries (e.g. BBC documentary airing currently – Israel and the Arabs: Elusive Peace) § Other (specify) Engagement with Israeli/Palestinian conflict Q11 Thinking about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, how much do you feel you know about the conflict? Interviewer instruction: If any knowledge, code as at least ‘a little’ READ OUT LIST § A lot § A reasonable amount § A little Opinion Leader Research 57 § Nothing (skip to Q16) Q12 IF AT LEAST A LITTLE KNOWLEDGE: What do you think the conflict is about? PROBE: What do you think are the reasons for the conflict? Unprompted – DO NOT READ OUT. Record all mentions. § Religion § Land § Tit for tat § Oil § US influence § Unsure (after probing) § Other (specify) Q13 How important is the conflict to you personally? READ OUT LIST § Very important § Quite important § Not very important § Not important at all Q14 Which of the following statements do you feel best describes your beliefs with regard to the conflict? READ OUT LIST § I strongly sympathise with the Israeli side § I tend to sympathise more with the Israeli side § I do not side with either the Israelis or the Palestinians § I tend to sympathise more with the Palestinian side § I strongly sympathise with the Palestinian side § Do not read out: Unsure (after probing) Evaluation of news & current affairs coverage of Israeli-Palestinian conflict Q15 [If answered nothing at Q11: Even though you don’t know much about the conflict] Which media source on TV, radio or online do you think has the best coverage of the Israeli- Palestinian conflict? Unprompted – DO NOT READ OUT IF ANSWER BBC INTERVIEWER TO PROBE FOR CHANNEL/SERVICE Opinion Leader Research 58 Q15: Best source (one mention only) BBC (channel/service not specified after probing) BBC1 BBC2 BBC3 BBC4 BBC News 24 ITV1 ITV News Channel Channel 4 Five Sky News CNN TV sources Other TV (specify) BBC News Online (i.e. BBC’s services on the internet) Guardian Unlimited Online Other online (specify) BBC Radio 4 Radio Five Live BBC World Service Other BBC radio (specify) Radio Other commercial radio (specify) Other (specify) Unsure (after probing) Opinion Leader Research 59 Q16 Why do you think [INSERT RESPONSE TO Q15] gives the best coverage? RECORD VERBATIMS [OPEN ENDED] If answered nothing at Q11 then skip to Q23 Q17(a) IF AT LEAST A LITTLE KNOWLEDGE: How important are the following qualities to you in news and current affairs coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Firstly…. - is this extremely important, very important, quite important, not very important or not at all important? Next….? CONTINUE THROUGH LIST LIST TO BE RANDOMISED Code in first column in grid below Q17(b) And are there any other important qualities to you in news and current affairs coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict? Record other (specify) in first column in grid below Q18 Which of these qualities I have just mentioned would you say is the most important overall? INTERVIEWER TO REPEAT THOSE RATED AS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT IN Q17 IF REQUIRED Code in second column in grid below Q17 Q17(a) Extremely important Very important Quite important Not very important Not at all important Unsure (do not read out) Q18 (record one only) The latest, most up-todate news Accurate reporting of the facts Impartial and unbiased reporting Reports that are clear and easy to follow Showing ordinary people in their daily lives Reporters on the ground who know the issues Providing explanations and background information Ensuring images are not too violent or distressing Q17(b) Other important qualities (specify) Opinion Leader Research 60 Impartiality in more detail Q19(a) How important are the following qualities in ensuring that coverage of the Israeli- Palestinian conflict is impartial and unbiased. Firstly…. – is this extremely important, very important, quite important, not very important or not at all important? Next….? CONTINUE THROUGH LIST LIST TO BE RANDOMISED Code in first column in grid below Q19(b) And are there any other important qualities to you in ensuring news and current affairs coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is impartial and unbiased? Record other (specify) in first column in grid below Q20 Which of these qualities I have just mentioned would you say is the most important overall? INTERVIEWER TO REPEAT THOSE RATED AS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT IN Q19 IF REQUIRED Code in second column in grid below Q19 Q20 (record one only) Q19(a) Extremely important Very important Quite important Not very important Not at all important Unsure (do not read out) Reporting the facts Explaining the context behind the facts Showing the historical causes of the conflict Being fair to both sides Not promoting journalists’ personal opinions Providing a balance of views Having a professional, neutral tone Opinion Leader Research 61 Ensuring reports are not sensationalist Taking care with the words and language used Q19(b) Other important qualities? (specify) Q21(a) Of all the TV, radio and online sources that you are familiar with, do any stand out for being more impartial and unbiased than the others in their coverage of the Israeli- Palestinian conflict? Unprompted – DO NOT READ OUT Code up to 3 mentions in first column in grid below IF ANSWER BBC INTERVIEWER TO PROBE FOR CHANNEL/SERVICE Q21(b) Why do you say [INSERT RESPONSE TO Q21A] is more impartial and unbiased than others? RECORD VERBATIMS (OPEN ENDED) Probe for specific reasons and examples Q22(a) And of all the media sources that you are familiar with, do any stand out for being less impartial and unbiased than the others in their coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict? Unprompted – DO NOT READ OUT Code up to 3 mentions in second column in grid below IF ANSWER BBC INTERVIEWER TO PROBE FOR CHANNEL/SERVICE Q22(b) And why do you say [INSERT RESPONSE TO Q22A] is less impartial and unbiased than others? RECORD VERBATIMS (OPEN ENDED) Probe for specific reasons and examples Opinion Leader Research 62 Q21(a): More impartial (record up to 3 mentions) Q22(a): Less impartial (record up to 3 mentions) BBC (channel/service not specified after probing) BBC1 BBC2 BBC3 BBC4 BBC News 24 ITV1 ITV News Channel Channel 4 Five Sky News CNN TV sources Other TV (specify) BBC News Online (i.e. BBC’s services on the internet) Guardian Unlimited Online Other online (specify) BBC Radio 4 Radio Five Live BBC World Service Other BBC radio (specify) Radio Other commercial radio (specify) Other (specify) None Opinion Leader Research 63 Evaluation of the BBC on impartiality of its Israeli-Palestinian coverage Q23(a) Thinking now specifically about the BBC’s coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Do you tend to agree or disagree that the BBC’s coverage is impartial and unbiased, or do you have no opinion on this? § Agree (go to Q23b) § Disagree (go to Q23b) § No opinion (go to Q27) § Other (specify) (go to Q26) Q23(b) IF AGREE OR DISAGREE: Is this strongly agree/disagree or slightly agree/disagree? § Strongly agree (go to Q26) § Slightly agree (go to Q26) § Slightly disagree (go to Q25) § Strongly disagree (go to Q25) Q25 IF DISAGREE SLIGHTLY / STRONGLY Which side of the conflict does it support more – the Israeli or Palestinian side? § Israeli side § Palestinian side Q26 ASK ALL EXCEPT NO OPINION: What gives you that impression? Probe for specific reasons and examples why BBC is perceived to be impartial/unbiased or partial/biased to either the Israeli side or partial to Palestinian side. RECORD VERBATIMS (OPEN ENDED) Suggested improvements Q27 This survey is for the BBC Governors who are conducting a review of BBC coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Do you have any suggestions for how the BBC’s news and current affairs coverage of this conflict can be improved? RECORD VERBATIMS (OPEN ENDED) Attitudes to the BBC Q28 Thinking about the BBC generally, what is your overall impression on a scale of 1 to 10, where 1 means extremely unfavourable and 10 means extremely favourable? Code the relevant answer below Opinion Leader Research 64 Extremely unfavourable Extremely Favourable General impression of the BBC 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Don’t know/ No opinion Additional demographics (soft quotas) For monitoring purposes, I would like to ask you a few further questions. Q29(a) What is your current working status? Working full-time GO TO Q29b Working part-time GO TO Q29c Unemployed GO TO Q29c Student GO TO Q29c Home maker GO TO Q29c Retired GO TO Q29c Q29(b) What is your occupation? Q29(c) What is the occupation (or former occupation if retired) of the head of your household? RECORD SOCIAL CLASS A B C1 C2 D E Q30 How would you describe your ethnic background? W hite British origin Other White (Irish, European etc) Opinion Leader Research 65 Black Caribbean/Caribbean Black African/African Origin Mixed heritage Indian Pakistani Other (specify) Q31 How would you describe your religion? Christian Buddhist Hindu Jewish Muslim Sikh Other religion (specify) No religion Q32 What is the highest level of education that you have attained? READ OUT LIST § Post graduate § Under graduate § A-levels (or equivalent) § GCSEs / O-levels (or equivalent) § Not completed school