Radio broadcast survey, Twillingate & area

 

December 2005

 

Thank you for taking the time to complete this survey.  Please do not put your name on this questionnaire.  Send them back in the postage-paid envelope provided.  All responses will be kept strictly anonymous.  

 

If other members of the household wish to fill out this survey please feel free to photocopy it and send it in.  If you have questions, or you need another copy, call Ivan at 709-637-6200, extension 6322, or e-mail him at iemke@swgc.mun.ca.

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The data here are based on 168 responses to the survey, which was sent out to all households in Twillingate and Durrell (which has a total of 967 household addresses).  About a sixth of households returned a survey.

 

The local community radio event

 

1) Were you aware of the community radio broadcast in Twillingate on 104.7 FM (ŌGale

            Force RadioĶ)?                        Yes _85%        No _15%_

 

2) Did you listen to any of the community radio broadcast on 104.7 FM?

 

  Wednesday, October 12:      Yes __64.2      No _____        I didnÕt know about it _____

 

  Thursday, October 13:         Yes __75.6_    No _____        I didnÕt know about it _____

 

  Friday, October 14:              Yes __75.4_    No _____        I didnÕt know about it _____

 

  Saturday, October 15:          Yes __72.1_    No _____        I didnÕt know about it _____

 

For most of the broadcast, about three-quarters of the respondents who knew about the broadcast listened at least part of each day.

 

Of those who knew about it, 82.2% listened at some time during the broadcast

 

3) Approximately how many hours did you listen in total? ______10.9____

 

4) How did you originally find out about the radio broadcast?

 

Word of mouth: 63.6%

Mailing: 26.4

The radio: 7

Newspaper: 3.1

 

5) Did you participate in any way (as a guest, a singer, a volunteer, a host, etc.)?

            Yes __12.6%___ No __71.7%

            I did not participate this time, but would be willing to if there was a broadcast

            in the future ___15.7%__

 

So, over a quarter of those either did participate or would be willing to participate.  Even some of those who did not know about the broadcast would be willing to be involved next time.

 

6) What types of content were of most interest to you (e.g., the music, the interviews, etc.)?  If you can, rank them in order of your interest.

 

Music: 91 mentions

Interviews: 77 mentions

Youth/childrenÕs material: 20 mentions

Conference coverage: 16 mentions

Historical material: 16 mentions

 

7) What was the most important issue covered in the radio broadcast?   

 

Local information: 33.3%

Rural/small town challenges: 28.1

History/culture of the area:  15.8

Local talent: 12.3

Conference information: 10.5

 

8) What issues could have been included in the broadcast, but which were not covered?

 

Most people did not answer this question; only 13.7% gave any answers (we coded up to three for each respondent)

Employment options: 7 mentions

Heritage of the area: 6

Fishery: 4

More youth issues: 2

Poems: 2

Others that received only one mention: classified ads, sports, call-in shows, volunteerism, weather, healthcare issues.

 


Please indicate whether you agree or disagree with the following statements regarding the radio broadcasts:

Data given in percentages, of those who listened

Strongly

Agree

Agree

Neutral

Disagree

Strongly

Disagree

Did not

listen

9) I learned something new during the community radio broadcast

16.3

51.9

28.8

2.9

--

 

10) I gained a new respect for the actions and abilities of community members during the broadcast

20.8

58.5

20.8

--

--

 

11) Since listening to the broadcast, I now have more hope for the future of my community

5.8

33.7

49

10.6

1

 

12) Since listening to the radio broadcast, I am now more interested in community affairs

3.9

33.3

56.9

5.9

--

 

13) Listening to the broadcast increased my pride in this community and the people here

33.3

50.5

16.2

--

--

 

14) Listening to the broadcast made me more interested in the conference which was going on at the time

24.3

55.1

17.8

1.9

.9

 

15) Listening to the broadcast made me more aware of the musical talent in our community

44

45

10.1

.9

--

 

 

16) If there was a local effort to develop a community radio station, would you be willing to be involved?

            Yes ____38%______  No ___15.2____         Not sure __46.8_____

 

Well over a third of the respondents would be willing to help out, and almost half were not sure.

 

17) What could a community radio station provide to the local region?

 

Just over half responded to this question.  We coded up to three responses for each respondent.

Local news and community events both received 40 mentions each

Showcase local talent: 27

Discussion forum for local issues: 20

A source of pride and cohesion: 12

Heritage/culture: 7

Classified ads: 3

Tourism information: 3

School events: 2

Employment: 2

Raise money for local causes: 1

 

 

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Communication tools in the community

 

18) Where do you get most of your national and international news (e.g., radio, TV, internet, personal conversations)?       

 

Television: 75.3%

Radio: 21.5

Internet: 2.5

Newspaper: .6

(we only coded the top choice)

 

19) Where do you get most of your regional and provincial news?         

 

Television: 66.3%

Radio: 30.7

Internet: 1.8

Newspaper: .6

Interpersonal: .6

 

20) Where do you find out about something going on in your community (such as a dance to raise money, or the opening of a new business)?      

 

Cable TV community channel: 52.6%

Interpersonal: 23

TV (channel not specified): 9.2

Bulletin boards: 6.6

Newspaper: 5.9

Radio: 2.6

 

21) In your everyday life, which of the following media is the most important to you?

 

Television: 57%

Radio: 23.7

Internet: 15.1

Weekly newspaper: 4.3 (the Pilot)

           

22) Which radio station do you listen to most often?

 

VOCM: 50.3%

OZ-FM: 28.1

CBC: 15

K-Rock: 2.6

CJON: 2

KIXX: 1.3

CKCM: .7

 

23) Which television channel do you watch most often?

 

NTV: 53.3%

CBC: 29.6

CNN: 2.6

Discovery, NBC, Weather channel: 2

CBS, HGTV, Treehouse, TSM, A&E, CTV, TBS, Community channel, Speed, Space WB: all less than 2%

 

24) If you have a concern about something local (the water or the roads, for example), how do you communicate that to municipal officials? (e.g., writing a letter, making a telephone call, using the internet, going to public meetings, etc.)     

 

Phone call: 73.1%

Letter: 14.5

DonÕt bother: 6.2

Go to Town Hall: 3.4

Use the internet: 1.4

Go to public meeting: 1.4

 

25) Do you have a satellite dish for your television reception (e.g., ExpressVu)?

 

Yes __13.3%              No __86.7%

 

If yes, which service?

 

Expressvu: 18 subscribers

Star Choice: 4 subscribers

 

26) Do you have a cable television connection? Yes _84.4% No _15.6%_

 

If yes, do you regularly read the announcements on the community cable

channels?

 

Yes _93%_                  No _7%__

 

27) Do you play the TV bingo organized by the LionÕs Club?

 

Always _12% Usually_16.9___ Sometimes _19.3__           Rarely 10.8___            Never 41___

 

28) Do you use the internet?  Yes _65.1%____         No _34.9%______

 

Almost all answered this question (only 2 didnÕt), showing a high level of internet usage.

 

If yes, where do you use it the most? Home __89%_ School __3__

Workplace __4.2_ Library CAP site __1_____

 

 

What is your main use you make of the internet?       

 

E-mail: 37.3%

Information/research: 21.6

News/weather: 18.6

Work-related: 10.8

Banking/business: 9.8

Hobby research: 2

 

 

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Prospects for your community

 

Please indicate whether you agree or disagree with the following statements regarding your community:

Data in percentages, for those who answered the question

Strongly

Agree

Agree

Neutral

Disagree

Strongly

disagree

DonÕt know

29) This community is stronger and more unified than it was five years ago

5.5

18.9

31.7

23.8

7.9

12.2

30) I am optimistic about this communityÕs future

9.7

30.5

19.5

25.3

7.8

7.1

31) I expect that, in five years time, this community will be stronger and more unified than it is now

2

25.8

22.5

29.8

9.9

9.9

32) If I was a young person graduating from high school, I would try to stay in this community

6.5

15.7

13.7

35.9

17.6

10.5

33) If I was a young person graduating from high school, I would go away for more education and then return

12.8

25

18.6

20.5

9.6

13.5

34) Based on our experience with the conference in October, we should attempt to attract more conferences

33.8

39.1

15.9

1.3

1.3

8.6

35) I have confidence that local leaders will be able to successfully meet the challenges of this community

9.9

30.9

26.3

13.8

7.9

11.2

 

36) If I had to leave this community, the thing I would miss most would be:

 

The people: 52.7%

Natural environment: 24.7

Lifestyle: 12.7

Safety/security: 7.3

Home: 2

Fishery: .7

 

37) If I had to leave this community, the thing I would miss the least would be:

 

Weather/wind: 25%

Gossip/attitude: 17.3

Limited shopping: 14.4

Few job chances: 14.4

Lack of activities: 10.6

Roads: 4.8

Isolation: 3.8

Apathy: 2.9

Local politics: 2.9

Drinking water, dances, rocks and the ocean each got one mention.

 

           

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Information about you

 

38) Name of your community

 

Fully 68.1% were from Twillingate and 18.4% from Durrell.  The rest identified communities such as Crow Head, Ragged Point, Bayview, Back Harbour, Kettle Cove, PurcellÕs Harbour and Black Duck Cove.

 

39) Have you lived in this community all your life?            Yes _55%____            No ___45%_____

 

            If no, in what year did you most recently move to this community? ________

 

Average length of time here for those who moved here: 22.6 years

 

40) Gender:     Female _63%__                      Male __37% ___

 

41) Year of birth:        Average age: 48.8

 

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Thank you again for your valuable assistance and your kindness in taking the time to fill out this questionnaire.  If you have any other comments or questions regarding this survey, or if you wish to see the results of the survey, please do not hesitate to contact me (see the small print below for the address):

 

Ivan Emke, Social/Cultural Studies, Sir Wilfred Grenfell College, MUN, Corner Brook, NL, A2H 6P9

709-637-6200, ext. 6322; 709-639-8125 (fax); iemke@swgc.mun.ca

 

If you have any further comments or anecdotes regarding the broadcast, IÕd be delighted to hear them!