A wide range of demographic and other data for the classification and description of listeners is collected as part of the RAJAR audience measurement system in the United Kingdom. In addition to the existing characteristics, users have expressed increasing interest in the collection of lifestyle and attitudinal data to enhance purely demographic analyses. RAJAR's audience results are the gold standard for measurement and it is critical to users that any additional data should be based on the existing sample and yield identical audience results to those published from standard surveys. This paper describes a pilot survey that was undertaken using the combination of a mailed re-contact questionnaire and a subsequent fusion of this new data to non-respondents in order to enhance RAJAR's original findings.
Radio Watch is a portable passive radio audience measurement meter with a unique design. Its main feature is to combine the ability to sample the environment whilst simultaneously monitoring radio broadcasts. The matching of this pair of samples creates a listening record in real time. The aim of our development programme is to provide the operational benefits of the methodology in a miniaturised meter.
This paper describes the ways in which the United Kingdom's radio audience research system (RAJAR) has been developed and modified since its beginnings in 1992 to improve representation of minorities. Primarily its coverage relates to the measurement of two groups - young people and ethnic and linguistic minorities. The paper demonstrates that mainstream surveys such as RAJAR can introduce successful modifications, but also accepts that there are limitations in what can be achieved, and concludes by arguing for attention to be given to the integration of specialist surveys with core industry research services.
The first section of this paper shows that newspaper publishers in general are becoming increasingly dependent on circulation as a source of revenue. It then sets this change against a background of stable demand for newspapers and intensive competition for readers. The second section outlines a research technique which enabled us to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of our own and competitive newspapers.