BBC Trust

There was a perception amongst a number of participants that the News was “generally too depressing for everyday viewing/listening” but a number were regular consumers of news on TV, radio and increasingly on-line or via apps.

The perception amongst many of the participants was that young people were, on the whole, negatively portrayed by Network News with an example being the portrayal of young people who participated in the 2011 riots. There was a perception that while there was extensive coverage of the riots themselves, there was little attention given to the excellent work undertaken by young people in clearing up in the days following the riots. Negative portrayal was considered hugely corrosive in terms of social cohesion. As one participants said “We’ve all been labelled as the ASBO generation.” Some participants felt that the newspapers were better at portraying young people in positive terms than TV and radio news.

There was a perception that there was too much emphasis on the USA in the BBC’s Network News services.

A significant proportion of participants praised BBC three’s 60 Second News programme, since it concentrated on the key headlines of the day. Others however felt that its tone was overly casual and the facts presented in a way that was too bold, though there was a widespread consensus that the language used by the programme was appropriate to the target audience. Many of the participants had in the past been regular views of Newsround on CBBC and liked it because it used accessible language and allowed viewers to get a comprehensive understanding of the issues involved and presented the news in a straightforward way.

Some of the participants felt that “BBC News is over-dramatised” but others felt that “the men in suits sometimes play down the news”.

Many of the participants felt that their locality was not adequately covered in news terms, at either the Network or Wales level. Some resentment was expressed that England had regional news, but that there was no equivalent service in Wales, and no local BBC Radio Stations either.

There were several participants who watched the BBC produced Newyddion on S4C and was appreciated.

Many participants felt that the BBC’s approach towards breaking news stories was ‘completely over the top” and that coverage of these stories was too often to the detriment of ‘proper’ news.

Radio 1’s Newsbeat was praised for presenting the news headlines in a succinct way.

The perception was that Radio Cymru’s news service was generally far better at providing local news coverage than other outlets, and was greatly appreciated.

There was widespread use of the BBC’s on-line news services (both Welsh and English) and it was generally appreciated, with some participants saying that this was their main way of accessing BBC News. It became evident that almost all the participants who accessed the BBC’s on-line news services did so via a smartphone (which was also the main means for many of them to access material on the iPlayer).

There was praise from its users for the BBC News app, which they felt was very useful. However, there was widespread criticism of the ‘Search’ facility on the BBC’s websites, which participants felt was not fit for purpose, though the quality of the information on the BBC website, once it had been found, was considered excellent.

Several participants praised the BBC’s use of Twitter to provide breaking news, and many of those who used this service expressed their appreciation that they could see the headline for the story and then decide whether to click on the link provided and read the news story in more depth.

Some participants said that Facebook was their main source of news, but others considered it largely a source of misinformation and “a waste of time” in news terms. However, some participants felt that they would be more interested in BBC News, if it could be accessed via Facebook.

The local newspapers were considered to be the best source of local news, with a number of participants saying that they read The Daily Post, The North Wales Chronicle and the Bangor and Anglesey Mail.

There was a lot of support for the BBC’s sports coverage with Match of the Day being a popular choice amongst participants. Other programmes specifically mentioned included Doctor Who and Casualty. The TV channel of choice for most participants was BBC three, with Family Guy, American Dad and Russel Howard mentioned as appointments to view.

Participants listened to Radio Cymru (with C2 and Tudur Owen mentioned), Radio 1, Radio 2, Heart FM and Nation Radio. 

Generally it was felt that the BBC provided good value for money.