Wire Watch 2006

1
Wire Watch 2006

• Prepared by the Pennsylvania Associated Press
  Managing Editors for state AP members and staffers

2
Whats New in 2006?

• Second year for shorter survey
• Better survey of state APs photo coverage
• On-cycle stories charted during survey period for
  first time

Highlights of 2006 survey

• Satisfaction ratings, member contributions and
  use
• Chart value and use of APs special projects
• Survey national AP areas for second year

3
Of 44 newspapers responding

• Nearly 2/3 of all newspapers responding were
  AM-cycle newspapers

Newspapers per circulation

• 14 lt 20,000
• 25 20 to 75,000
• 5 gt 75,000

• 15 completed survey via mail
• 29 completed survey via the Web

4
Overall satisfaction with AP

• Historic low / 1997 / 56
• Historic high / 2001 / 92
• This Year? Rated at 91
• This is 5 higher than last year.

5
Increases in members satisfaction by category

• Pennsylvania legislation (Up 13)
• Pennsylvania courts (Up 13)
• Sports news (Up 6)
• Pennsylvania politics (Up 4)
• Spot/Breaking news (Up 4)
• Election night coverage (Up 3)
• Sports features (Up 1)

6
Decreases in members satisfaction by category

• Coverage by neighbors (Down 37)
• State business coverage (Down 8)
• Enterprise reporting (Down 7)
• Sunday advances (Down 5)
• Request response (Down 4)

7
Photography / Good things

• College sports (75 satisfaction)
• Pro sports (86 satisfaction)
• Request response (80 satisfaction)

Photography / What can we do?

• Photo/story coordination (52)
• Spot news photos (50)
• Multi-photo features (34)
• Spot news by members (32)
• High school sports (20)
• Photos of my region (12)

8
National AP / Overall satisfaction

• Sports (93)
• Election night (86)
• Enterprise/Advance (85)
• Health (84)
• War on Terror (79)
• Stories for ages 18-35 (37)

9
AP Projects / Most important

• Accessing public records (97)
• FOI project (97)
• Act 72/Opting In or Out (95)
• Voices of the Wounded (78)
• Inside PA County Jails (71)
• Colleges at crossroads (71)
• Trouble underground (69)
• The Susquehanna River (68)
• Pennsylvania Outdoors (66)

10
AP Projects / What we used most

• Smaller newspapers used Act 72, Accessing public
  records and the FOI project in full most often
• Medium newspapers used the FOI project and
  Accessing public records in full most often
• Large newspapers used Inside PA County Jails in
  full most often

11
Member contributions

• Members provided fewer stories, but more
  photographs than last year
• The turn-around percentage for stories moved to
  the wire for use declined by 8
• Seven newspapers provided 10 stories on-cycle
  during the survey period

12
Ideas from the survey

• Getting all newspapers to contribute to the AP
  report
• Coverage of state legislature actions (re pay
  raise tax reform)
• Coverage of rollout of gambling across the state
• Can it be addressed? Photo/story coordination
  member contributions.

13
How to use this report

• Pass the Wire Watch report around among your
  staff.
• Check your own contributions and their use
  (particularly on-cycle contributions).
• Check up on your neighbors contributions of
  photos, stories.
• Talk with Sally and others at AP about any
  concerns you have.

14
Next years survey

• Chart stories and photographs taken by AP
  directly from member Web sites
• Continue to watch on-cycle submissions
• Host survey on PAPMEs web site
• Other suggestions?

15
Thank you

• Members of the PAPME Wire Watch committee Dave
  Troisi, Bob Heisse and Harry Dietz for editing
  the work.
• Ray Shaw and the Lancaster Intelligencer Journal
  for printing the report.
• Sally Hale and the staff at state AP for
  compiling statistics and providing feedback.
• Samantha Dellinger and Chris Glass at the
  York Daily Record/Sunday News for designing the
  report.

16
To get another copy

• Email me at tsickler_at_ydr.com if you need
  additional copies in .pdf form