Title: Monthly Listenership Survey – DRC Media Programming – December 2016

This listenership survey analyzes the effect of Search for Common Ground’s media programs in the DRC in December 2016. Over the course of the month, the listeners either called or sent in SMS feedback 2,344 times on the different programs; the Search team followed up and surveyed 431 people. These surveys are part of Search’s 4R approach in media monitoring: analyzing Reach, Resonance, Response, and Relevance of media programs. This report allows teams to reflect on who programming has ‘reached’, identify the most popular programs and establish measures for successful audience targeting. It also allows the team to reflect on the ‘resonance’ of messaging to see if listeners connect with the programs and understand the concepts being communicated. Through listenership feedback, the report also documents examples of ‘response’ to media programs in terms of engagement, attitude and behavior changes. Lastly, feedback allows staff to assess the most ‘relevant’ topics in communities.

A large majority of listeners reported that they were “very satisfied” (19%) or “satisfied” (50%) with programming. They found the topics interesting, related to their own lives, and that they like that the programs are allowing both men and women to express themselves. In particular, listeners appreciated that the current conflicts between Lubas and Twas in Tanganyika province were broadcast with professionalism and respect in the program Tuishi kwa amani. Overall, 77% of listeners interviewed said they were learning something at each broadcast, even if the topics and stories were related to their daily life. 69% of them also said the various broadcasts gave them the will to act, many of them explaining that they will try to get registration certificates to legalize their land property.

This entry was posted in Reports, Resources and tagged Democratic Republic of Congo, DRC, DRC Media, feedback, Radio, SMS, SMS survey on March 1, 2017.

Monthly Listenership Survey – DRC Media Programming – November 2016

This listenership survey analyzes the effect of Search for Common Ground’s media programs in the DRC in November 2016. Over the course of the month, the listeners either called or sent in SMS feedback 2,423 times on the different programs; the Search team followed up and surveyed 426 people. These surveys are part of Search’s 4R approach in media monitoring: analyzing Reach, Resonance, Response, and Relevance of media programs. This report allows teams to reflect on who programming has ‘reached’, identify the most popular programs and establish measures for successful audience targeting. It also allows the team to reflect on the ‘resonance’ of messaging to see if listeners connect with the programs and understand the concepts being communicated. Through listenership feedback, the report also documents examples of ‘response’ to media programs in terms of engagement, attitude and behavior changes. Lastly, feedback allows staff to assess the most ‘relevant’ topics in communities.

The report shows that a large majority of listeners reported being “very satisfied” (16%) or “satisfied” (51%) with programming. They particularly like the programs’ quality and journalists’ neutrality. Those who report moderate or low satisfaction dislike the fact that the broadcasts don’t deal with national current events whereas the few who are unsatisfied (3%) complain that they were not invited to participate in the broadcasts. The youth mostly like the comic book Yawezekana on conflicts between farmers and herders as well as broadcasts that especially target their age group like Duel of young democrats. Men prefer topics related to governance or the security sector while women enjoy programs dealing with violence against women or children’s rights. Most of the surveyed people (53%) listen to the radio in groups, often with their families. After the broadcast, parents tend to explain the content to their children and draw some lessons from it.

This entry was posted in Reports, Resources and tagged DRC Media on January 23, 2017.

Monthly Listenership Survey – DRC Media Programming – October 2016

This listenership survey analyzes the effect of Search for Common Ground’s media programs in the DRC in October 2016. Over the course of the month, the listeners either called or sent SMS feedback 2,241 times based on different programs; the Search team followed up and surveyed 419 listeners. Overall, the report shows that 78,31% of listeners are either satisfied or very satisfied with the radio programs. Those that were not satisfied wished that popular old programs could be re-broadcasted and that opportunities to participate in the programs become more equitable, particularly in Maniema, the Oriental Province and the provinces located in the East of the country. The radio show that received most feedback was Jirani Ni Ndugu. Women were particularly active in providing feedback for Jirani Ni Ndugu because the show focuses on equal access to opportunities and gender roles. For men, it was Mutsikilize Pia and Mopila productions covering themes such as politics, ethnicity and customary rule; which were described as most appealing. 82 % of listeners reported that radio shows covered topics that were relevant such as security sector reform and security forces appropriately responding to their expectations. 73,62% of listeners attested that the radio show contributed to a change in behavior in their daily life. This was especially important for youths from the Ruzizi area who have been more engaged in activities contributing to the role of youth in peacebuilding and land conflicts.

This entry was posted in Reports, Resources and tagged DRC Media, Radio on December 14, 2016.

Monthly Listenership Survey – DRC Media Programming – August 2016

This listenership survey analyzes the effect of Search for Common Ground’s media programs in the DRC in August 2016. Over the course of the month, the listeners either called or sent in SMS feedback 2,819 times on the different programs; the Search team followed up and surveyed 437 people. Overall, the report shows that a large majority of listeners are satisfied (88%) with the programs. Those that were not satisfied cited the fact that programs were re-broadcast, their perception that opportunities to participate in the programs were not equally accessible to all, and the fact that the program aired at different times making it difficult to follow the full series. 65.98% of listeners found the following themes to to be the most interesting: land conflict, equal inheritance, social cohesion, and security sector reform.

Compared to the last two months, the number of youth responding with feedback increased by 5% this month. Women listeners especially appreciated the program “Uishi na upende” for its focus on the right of inheritance, domestic violence, as well as challenges associated with education of girls and women and joint decision making in the home. Overall, 72% of listeners think the programming is entertaining. But, beyond entertainment, many listeners, especially those who follow the programs focusing on the family, reported that after listening they had explained the content to their children and drew lessons from it. 80% reported that the programs motivated them to take action.

This entry was posted in Reports, Resources and tagged DRC Media, Radio on October 18, 2016.

Monthly Listenership Survey – DRC Media Programming – July 2016

This listenership survey analyzes the effect of Search for Common Ground’s media programs in the DRC in July 2016. Over the course of the month, the listeners either called or sent in SMS feedback 3,491 times on the different programs; the Search team followed up and surveyed 696 people. These surveys are part of Search’s 4R approach in media monitoring: analyzing Reach, Resonance, Response, and Relevance of media programs. This report allows teams to reflect on who programming has ‘reached’, identifying most popular programs and establishing measures for successful audience targeting. It also allows the team to reflect on the ‘resonance’ of messaging to see if listeners connect with the programs and understand the concepts being communicated. Through listenership feedback, the report also documents examples of ‘response’ to media programs in terms of engagement, attitude and behavior changes. Last, feedback allows staff to assess the most ‘relevant’ topics in communities.

The report shows that a large majority of listeners declare being very satisfied (28%) or satisfied (44%) with programming. The majority of listeners giving feedback are men older than 18 years of age; youth mostly react to participatory and more entertaining broadcasts, and to comic books. The analysis showed that women are also listening to programs, but tend to react less. Male youth say they listen to compare themselves to the participants, in a competitive spirit, while young women usually participate to defend women’s rights or older women. According to listeners, the most interesting topics are armed forces’ roles, military justice, women’s autonomy, and opportunities for peace. Overall, 76% of listeners think the programming is entertaining and like the fact that there are different formats with which to engage; the 24% who disagreed explained that some broadcasts are more serious, such as ones about child refugees, land conflicts, or military justice. Three quarters of surveyed people listen to the radio in groups, often with families. After the broadcast, parents tend to explain the content to their children and draw some lessons from it.

This entry was posted in Reports, Resources and tagged DRC Media, Radio on August 25, 2016.

Monthly Listenership Survey – DRC Media Programming – June 2016

This listenership survey analyzes the effect of Search for Common Ground’s media programs in the DRC in June 2016. Over the course of the month, the listeners either called or sent in SMS feedback 3,722 times on the different programs; the Search team followed up and surveyed 482 people. 6,459 SMS messages were sent to listeners from the Eastern part of the country to promote the following broadcasts: Lobi mokolo ya sika, Mopila, Duel des Jeunes Démocrates and the comic books.

The report shows an overall interest in programs, with some challenges in reaching women. The majority of listeners are men older than 18 years of age. Women mostly reacted when topics were related to equal opportunities for men and women, or to women’s position in society. The report shows again that a large majority of listeners declare being very satisfied (20%) or satisfied (58%) with programming. In June, unsatisfied listeners requested fairer sharing of broadcast time between participants based on their province of origin. Others also found it regrettable that some broadcasts no longer exist, such as Lobi mokolo ya sika, Mopila and Biso bana. Overall, 74% of listeners think the programming is entertaining and like the fact that there are different formats with which to engage. The 26% who disagree explained that some broadcasts require too much knowledge and deep reflection on the topics, while comic books are easy to understand through the illustrations.

This entry was posted in Reports, Resources and tagged DRC Media on August 11, 2016.

Monthly Listenership Survey – DRC Media Programming – May 2016

This listenership survey analyzes the effect of Search for Common Ground’s media programs in the DRC in April 2016. Over the course of the month, the listeners either called or sent in SMS feedback 1,352 times on the different programs. The Search team followed up and surveyed 326 people. Within the last three months, SFCG has managed to create a database of 2215 phone numbers from previous call-ins and has been able to use this database to inform people about the new launch of Jirani ni ndugu serial broadcast.

The report shows an overall interest in programs, with some challenges in reaching women and assuring repeated exposure to activities like comic books. The majority of listeners are men older than 18 years of age. The lower level of women’s participation is attributed to men owning radio sets, and the fact that they are less involved in house chores during diffusion times. A majority of listeners prefer to listen in groups, mainly with their families in the evenings, or on weekends and holidays. The report shows that a large majority of listeners declare being very satisfied (22%) or satisfied (45%) with programming. The main complaints come from unexpected changes in radio programming and from unsuccessful requests to participate in the broadcasts. Moreover, Mopila comic book readers are having difficulty finding releases of new editions. In terms of resonance of the programming, 42.5% of listeners do not identify with the characters. Often, listeners with high social status do not identify with characters such as villagers; other times, interviewees state that they do not identify with the “negative” characters in the series.

This entry was posted in Reports, Resources and tagged DRC Media on July 27, 2016.