Public perceptions of the role of television in raising Aids awareness

Abstract

TELEVISION has played, and will continue to play, a prominent role in many Aids awareness campaigns. What is not so certain is how the viewing public regards programmes with an Aids content, what pro portion actually watch such programmes and whether these programmes are of any educational value. This study sought to address some of these issues by surveying public interest in television coverage of Aids and its relevant issues, using a nationally representative panel of viewers. The study asked respondents how much they personally felt they knew about Aids and measured these sub jective assessments against scores obtained from re sponses to a knowledge test. Perceptions of the impact different televised events might have on the public's awareness of Aids were also investigated, together with respondents' views on the suitability of including Aids material in various programmes.

Blogs, news and credibility

“…Audience criteria derive from research conducted amongst news consumers. Media researchers working in this area have surveyed public opinion about the perceived credibility or impartiality of news channels (Gunter and McLaughlin, 1982; Gunter et al , 1994), news suppliers or “brands” (Gunter, 2005), and the impact of news presentation and narrative features on audience memory and understanding of news (Gunter, 1987; Robinson and Levy, 1986). Other research has studied the impact of the way stories are written and emphasise specific points of view on audience perceptions of issues (Entman, 1991, 1993; Iyengar, 1990).…”

“…In comparisons between news media, television has frequently emerged as more trusted than other news media, especially print media. It has been identified as the most objective news media (Finberg et al , 2002), and the medium to which people turn first for coverage of major national and international news (Gunter et al , 1994). It is also the medium people said they would trust most if faced with conflicting reports in television and newspapers (Lee, 1975; Rubin, 1983).…”

“…The relative credibility ratings of different media have been found to vary between countries. Despite the greater trust placed in television as a medium than any other within the UK (see, for example, Gunter et al , 1994), in Germany, newspapers were rated as more credible than television (Schweiger, 2000). Meanwhile the German public rated the internet as having similar credibility to television and newspapers across a range of credibility ratings (Schweiger, 2000).…”

“…Previous research has shown that both media and brands invoke varying degrees of public trust in the context of news provision. Television has commanded more trust from the public than newspapers, for example (Gunter et al , 1994). Even among television news suppliers, however, trust in them as news sources can vary (Gunter, 2006).…”

Trust in the news on television

“…The news has long been regarded as one of the most important services provided by television. This observation is underpinned by public opinion concerning television (Gunter et al , 1994; Towler, 2003) and by broadcasting legislation (Gunter, 1997). Yet, in recent debates, questions have been raised about the significance of televised news to modern‐day media consumers presented with increased choices of news suppliers and about whether television news is losing its appeal.…”