Source : National Post

CTV newscast benefits

by Jonathon Gatehouse

Ratings for CBC Television's flagship news broadcast, The National, have gone into free-fall during the week-old technicians' strike, plummeting to half the usual viewership as audiences across the country tire of technical snafus and a lack of footage of Canadian events.

Viewer data collected by Neilsen Media Research, obtained yesterday by the National Post, show a rapid drop since the labour dispute with 2,000 radio and television editors, camera operators, and lighting directors began last Wednesday.

On Tuesday, the night before the strike, The National, anchored by Peter Mansbridge, drew 999,000 people. On Wednesday, the night the CBC began its 10 p.m. broadcast with an apology for being unable to provide video of a violent Kurdish protest at the Turkish embassy in Ottawa, the program captured 801,000 viewers. By Friday, the show was drawing an anemic 469,000.

The exodus of viewers already seems to be benefitting the CBC's chief competitor, CTV. Numbers for the CTV National News with Lloyd Robertson rose dramatically once the labour dispute began, from a low of 959,000 on Tuesday, to 1,199,000 on Wednesday, to 1,477,000 on Thursday, when the broadcast followed a much-anticipated episode of the hit drama ER. On Friday, traditionally a weaker television night, the 11 p.m. newscast drew a respectable 1,008,000 viewers.

The two networks have been locked in a battle for news ratings supremacy for several years. While CTV claims to have "Canada's most watched newscast" – habitually edging out the CBC's The National by just over 100,000 viewers, the public network draws a greater overall audience because it airs a repeat of its newscast in the 11 p.m. time slot.

Yesterday, Robert Hurst, vice-president news for CTV, wouldn't discuss the latest ratings in detail, but confirmed that the numbers for his headline show are up.

"I think CBC viewers have learned that there is another quality product out there," said Mr. Hurst.

The network has beefed up its live coverage on its all-news channel CTV-News 1 during the strike, which has also affected the CBC equivalent Newsworld, but has no other plans to try and take advantage of the labour dispute, he said.

Mr. Hurst said he was reluctant to comment on the gaffes and difficulties that have plagued CBC newscasts since management personnel were brought in to do the behind the scenes work last week, but the union representing the striking technicians had no such qualms.

"The other night they had a terrific story on CTV about a woman firefighter in British Columbia suing for sexual discrimination, with lots of interviews" said Bob Hillscher, a producer/editor for the local CBC Toronto news and member of the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada. "The CBC just had stock footage from its library."

Mr. Hillscher said he's certain that the networks makeshift newscasts, with their lack of fresh Canadian images, and heavy foreign news content are turning off viewers. Having reporters read scripts on camera for a minute or two at a time is simply boring, he said.

"It's TV, not radio," said Mr. Hillscher.

The only parts of the country viewers are seeing images from are Moncton, N.B. and Quebec, where camera crews belong to a different union.

The union is seeking a solution to what it says is a 30% wage gap between their CBC salaries and industry
standards. In a news release yesterday, they pointed to the networks recent decision to shelve production of a television movie Must Be Santa – a full length feature staring Dabney Coleman – as proof that the broadcaster's priorities are out of whack. The union estimates that the film, has cost more than $3 million so far, including $800,000 in sets alone.

Ian Morrison, spokesperson for the Friends of Canadian Broadcasting, a pro-CBC lobby group, said he isn't surprised by the dramatic ratings downturn.

"It's only logical. People are aware that they're not getting the same product," he said. "People will only give it one or two chances before turning it off." Mr. Morrison expressed concern about the long term fiscal effects of the strike and the ratings slip. "The CBC will have to give advertisers discounts," he said. "They're risking giving away the family farm."

However, a CBC spokeswoman said the network has no reason to believe that the labour disruption will hurt the bottom line. "None of the advertisers have asked for their money back," said Ruth-Ellen Soles.  She said it is too early to say that viewers are fleeing the network. "As far as ratings are concerned we have only preliminary data," said Ms. Soles. "It's much too early to tell."

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