American children’s programming dominates the dedicated channels and, in many cases, is an increasing part of the terrestrial broadcasters children’s schedules. In 1996, American
productions made up a quarter of the output of children’s programming on ITV1 (Source: ITC). This has risen to 30% in 2002, although the level has been relatively stable over the past four years. Five has seen a marked increase year-on-year from 16% of total output in 2001 to 35% in 2002. Channel 4 shows a significant reduction in its purchase of American content (down from 84% of total children’s output in 1997 to 43% in 2001 to 27% in 2002).
Children’s views
Most children, especially those under the age of 10-11 years, know little about the origin of the programmes that they watch. It is not something that concerns them. Children in London often assume a programme is from the United States and children outside London, e.g. Scotland, often believe that everything comes from London. It is not until around 11 or 12 years that they start to understand and have an opinion about ‘foreign’ material and then they can be quite judgmental, e.g. ‘It’s American rubbish’.
Parents’ views
The majority of the parents interviewed were quite happy with the type of children’s programmes on offer, but more so on the terrestrial channels. Some were critical of the domination of animation on most of the dedicated children’s channels. They were aware of the American influence across children’s programming generally, but were pragmatic about the fact that their children enjoy many of the American shows such as Sabrina, Hey Arnold, and Keenan & Kel. They felt that these kinds of programmes enable children to escape into a fantasy world away from the reality of school and homework. They offer a bit of light relief and are often funny and make children laugh.
‘I just like good programmes, I don’t care where they come from.’
(Mother, Manchester)
Mothers of younger children (under eight) and especially terrestrial-only mothers had more issues. Some were concerned about children picking up American accents, but the main worry was that these programmes were not ‘homemade’ and therefore were considered to be less culturally relevant. Some mothers also felt they were less educational.
‘There are certain American ones which do actually really annoy me... teaching kids to pronounce things in a certain way, and the language isn’t right for British kids.’
(Mother, Edinburgh)
‘Cheap, rubbish. Bought-in TV.’
‘I find Friends quite shallow. It’s in snippets. It’s a bit like reading The Sun - a little bit here and a bit there. The British ones tend to follow more of a story, more of a theme - a bit more in depth.’
(Mother, Manchester)
‘Look at the Teletubbies. That’s a UK creation and that swept the world.’
(Mother, Edinburgh)
Given the choice, however, it is the American shows that many children seem to prefer watching. Children think that they look better and perceive them to have higher production values. They make them laugh, and they find the humour more sophisticated. They allow for escapism, and for some children they were seen to be aspirationa,l with clever, funny characters living in worlds which children found attractive. American programmes were perceived to be ‘for my age group and above’ which gives children a sense that they are not being spoken down to. Programming appeal has been found to be linked to perceptions by children of its positioning as ‘older’ or ‘younger’ than themselves (Messenger Davies et al).15
While there are different types of UK-based children’s dramas, few seem to incorporate all of the values of the US-based dramas. Often slapstick humour is used, and, while many children love it, it can feel young. Programmes such as My Parents Are Aliens are enjoyed, but tend to be seen as being for younger children. Book-based dramas such as The Worst
Witch and The Queen’s Nose are very popular with the under 10s but, whilst older children
still watch them, given the choice they would prefer more ‘grown up’ programming.
US shows appear to have a far broader appeal. They are more multi-leveled so there is something in them for everyone. British programmes such as Grange Hill and Byker Grove are well liked and remembered by terrestrial children, but they are almost forgotten by multichannel children. The latter always have the choice to watch something else. These kinds of UK children’s soap dramas are often seen as depressing, and, although they are more relevant to British children’s lives, they do not fit well with the ‘home from school mood’ and the need of children for a bit of escapism. Children want to chill out and relax when they get home from school and not have to think about anything too heavy. Given the choice, most would opt to watch a funny US programme.
New media abound, but television retains its importance as the primary source of leisure entertainment for children. Nevertheless, it has to continue to compete. The leisure industry is expanding at a rapid rate as new technologies flood the market. Many of the early adopters of these technologies are households with children. The competition for children’s leisure time has never been greater.
Television has had to evolve to keep pace. The landscape of children’s television, in particular, has changed dramatically. Currently, there are 10 main dedicated children’s channels broadcasting children’s programming 24 hours a day. The provision of children’s programming overall has tripled in the past five years. Not only do children have access to their own programmes whenever they want, but also the development of dedicated replay channels, which repeat schedules every hour, means that they never have to worry about missing their favourite programmes. Perhaps it is not surprising that it is harder for multichannel children than it is for terrestrial children to turn the television off.
Terrestrial children have far less flexibility about when they can view and less choice about what to watch. Television may be a disappointment to them at times, but they do value what they have and look forward to the times of day when there are programmes on for them. They are much more able than are multichannel children to turn the television off when their programmes have ended and to find alternative forms of entertainment.
Most of children’s everyday viewing occurs within the children’s genre, but they also regularly dip into:
■ music ■ soap operas ■ real-life dramas ■ sport
■ some nature programmes
Multichannel television has created a sense of ownership among the child audience. Children now feel that they own a part of television. And having additional dedicated channels has raised their expectations and demands. Children want and expect a good choice of programmes across a number of channels. They expect to see new programmes on offer all or most of the time, and they eagerly embrace these new offerings.
Dedicated channels have changed the way children view. This audience no longer has to worry about missing their favourite programmes because they know they will be on again. Neither do they have to confine their viewing to certain times of the day because whatever the time of day there will be programmes on for them to watch. The electronic programme guide has given children more control over their viewing, and they are adept at using it.
15 Conclusions
Although terrestrial viewers are less sophisticated, most have regular access to cable or satellite channels and therefore have many of these expectations as well. They know it is only a matter of time until they get digital television themselves. Terrestrial parents,
however, would seem to have more conservative views. They do not see a need for any more television. They consider there is already too much content that is not of good quality. It may be quite a difficult task to shift these terrestrial ‘die hards’’ views.
In essence, whether multichannel or terrestrial, children are looking for good programmes. They have little channel loyalty, especially in the multichannel world where there are so many options to choose from. Children are a critical audience and they want high quality programmes that entertain, contain humour, provide interesting information and above all, do not speak down to them.
While multichannel children are watching more television than terrestrial children are, it is significant that it is not more children’s programmes they are tuning in to but other kinds of programming. Analogue terrestrial broadcasters offer a better balance of programming across the hours they broadcast and more original British productions, which are valued by parents and enjoyed by children. The challenge facing terrestrial broadcasters is to continue to compete within an increasingly competitive market place. The BBC has taken the step of creating its own dedicated channels, CBBC and CBeebies, available in multichannel homes. It remains to be seen whether other terrestrial broadcasters will see an economic need to follow suit.
As far as the future is concerned, viewers’ expectations are:
■ access to digital channels will be available on every set in the home, ■ interactive television will be used on a regular basis,
■ internet access via the television will be available to all households, ■ there will be televisions in every room and possibly even in the car.
Everyone realises that the future is changing. Children are an audience eagerly embracing the digital age and families will be the early adopters of the latest technology. There are still a group of parents, however, who remain to be convinced that more choice means better quality.
Rosenblatt Research was commissioned by the ITC and the BSC to carry out qualitative research involving children’s groups, mini groups (trios), and family observations with a range of children aged between six and 12 years. In addition, a number of parent groups was held. A variety of different techniques were used in order to facilitate understanding of children’s views in relation to children’s programming. The fieldwork was carried out by Nicki Karet and Abby Jones.