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To state the obvious, most Indonesians have always cherished
traditional values. But there's evidence suggesting more people are
embracing more conservative views on social issues today.
If the number of people who believe that "democracy is working"
continues to decline at the same time, all freedom-loving people will
have something to worry about.
These observations are based on trends continuously measured by Roy
Morgan Single Source, Indonesia's largest syndicated survey. That study
is now expanding to include more than 27,000 respondents annually,
projected to reflect 90 percent of the population over the age of 14.
If fundamental rights are to be preserved and flourish in a secular
state, everybody in society has a role to play, especially people in a
position to influence others.
That includes Big Business and Big Media, their owners, stakeholders
and associates alike. For city folk to assume that the rise of
conservative thinking is a rural phenomenon is first, misguided, and
second, ignores the fact that all voters have equal power at the ballot
box.
In a context where almost everybody watches television every day, the
power of the small screen cannot be underestimated. But the medium is
largely understood within the confines of just nine major cities, and
only within the limited perspective of bald demographics.
As an industry tool, Television Audience Measurement (TAM) has a vital
role to play in measuring the number of eyeballs glued to the little
screen every day in those nine major cities. But the inescapable
reality is that those cities add up to just 20 percent of the
population.
Furthermore, TAM is not designed to add insights on social issues or
viewer values. If they used it on its own, TV channel managers, media
buyers and marketers would remain ignorant of the equally important
need to understand viewer behavior, needs and wants.
Let's restrict this discussion to Urban Indonesia, including the nine
major cities measured by TAM, but also including smaller cities and
towns. The top 10 programs measured by Roy Morgan Single Source reveal
what attracts viewers in the cities and towns of Indonesia on a
continuing basis. The list does not include special events.
It would be difficult to find many democracies in the world where
spiritual programs are permanent fixtures within the Top 10 list. Let
me hasten to add that I have nothing against spirituality. Nor do I
have anything against faith-based programming. But in a multicultural
and multi-religious society, the needs of minorities also need to be
carefully tended.
In Indonesia, television has a crucial role to play in protecting
democratic principles and nurturing individual freedoms, more than any
other medium. To play that role, the TV channels need to understand and
monitor the nuances of societal development, within and also beyond the
major cities.
The single-minded pursuit of ratings alone, if encouraged and rewarded
by marketers, can cause incalculable damage to the fabric of society.
The freedom of choice, the ability to live and let live are fundamental
rights that television has the power to promote. Failure to do so today
may well lead to a tomorrow when Religion and State will have merged.
Television content in Indonesia then will not be dissimilar to
television programming in a theocracy. Is that a desirable scenario for
what is today a secular democracy? How many rupiah would the industry
generate in advertising revenues if that day ever dawns?
How hard is it to use the popularity of blockbuster programs to spread
the message of individual freedoms? How difficult is it to weave a
discussion of key social issues into the script of every single episode
of successful programs like Bajaj Bajuri?
How many media buyers and marketers are there who have raised these
issues with the TV stations? Inaction is not an option, nor can
ignorance be bliss for much longer.
Can the response to such actions be monitored periodically, by
geography, demography or by specific segments of society? The answer is
yes.
Today, savvy media and marketing professionals are looking at insights
beyond TAM, both qualitatively and geographically. For example, Roy
Morgan Single Source data reveals that of all viewers 14 years old and
above, 22 percent of those who live in the nine major cities and 12
percent of those in other cities and towns watch the No. 1 program,
Extravaganza.
The 21.8 million viewers of that program include millions more than TAM
measures in the nine major cities. But the more important distinction
between the two sources of viewership data is the Single Source
capability to directly link selected groups like Grocery Shoppers Who
Buy Powdered Milk to their No. 1 program. That program, Cek &
Ricek, with 2.4 million such viewers, doesn't even feature in the
national Top 10 list.
That ability to zoom into specially identified groups can be used to
measure changes in the different segments of society, their opinions
and attitudes over time. Any stimuli that the media and marketing
community provide via the small screen can also be tracked -- the
positive as well as the negative. (The writer can be contacted at
Debnath.Guharoy@roymorgan.com).
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