Quarterly Summary: 1 January to 31 March 2015
This report provides information about audience contacts finalised by ABC Audience and Consumer Affairs between 1 January and 31 March 2015.
Audience and Consumer Affairs plays two distinct roles in responding to audience complaints. Where a written complaint suggests that the ABC may have breached its Editorial Policies or Code of Practice, Audience and Consumer Affairs may investigate the complaint and determine whether ABC editorial standards have been met. In cases where these standards have not been met, the complaint will be upheld (either fully or in part).
Complaints can also be resolved where prompt action is taken to remedy a matter. Details of both upheld and resolved complaints are published on our website. Audience and Consumer Affairs also provides an audience liaison service for complaints which do not relate to editorial standards, such as matters of personal taste and preference. These complaints can include scheduling issues, preferences for different presenters, and so on.
This report includes both editorial and non-editorial complaints, as described above.
This report outlines:
the overall composition of contacts finalised;
the timeliness of responses;
the subject matter of complaints finalised;
the number of complaints upheld; and
the number of complaints resolved.
Summary details of all complaints upheld by ABC Audience and Consumer Affairs are available at http://about.abc.net.au/talk-to-the-abc/feedback-and-enquiries/upheld-complaints/ and summary details of all resolved complaints are available at http://about.abc.net.au/talk-to- the-abc/resolved-complaints/. You can also read some of our recent responses to complaints and enquiries here – http://about.abc.net.au/topics/.
For more information about the role of Audience and Consumer Affairs, refer to the ABC’s Complaints Handling Procedures available here –
http://about.abc.net.au/reports-publications/complaint-handling-procedures/.
1. Overview of contacts finalised: how many and how did we deal with them?
Overall there were 14,719 written contacts finalised during this period. Of these, complaints made up 50% of contacts with 7,346 complaints (comprising 7,348 issues).
Table 1: Written contacts finalised.
Type of Contact Email Letter/Fax Other Total % of
Total
Complaint 7164 179 3 7346 50%
Appreciation / Request / Suggestion 5789 102 1 5892 40%
Other 1379 102 0 1481 10%
Grand Total 14332 383 4 14719 100%
Audience and Consumer Affairs provided a personal response to 2,227 of these 7,346 complaints. 3,331 complaint contacts were referred to other areas of the Corporation for direct response and no substantive response was required for 1,788 complaint contacts.
2. Timeliness of responses
Audience and Consumer Affairs seeks to respond to all contacts as quickly as possible, and aims to respond to all contacts within 30 days of receipt, in accordance with the timeliness standard for complaint handling that is specified in the ABC’s Complaint Handling
Procedures. Due to the large volume of correspondence we receive, and the complex nature of some complaints and enquiries, responses may at times take longer than 30 days.
During the January-March quarter, the vast majority of our responses were provided within the specified 30 day period.
Table 2: Timeliness of responses provided by Audience and Consumer Affairs.
Type of contact Average response time % of responses provided within 30 days
Complaints 14 days 93%
All contacts 13 days 95%
3. Subject matter and outcomes of complaints finalised
A single contact to the ABC can raise more than one issue. We aim to categorise each significant issue raised in the complaints we receive, based on the description provided by the complainant. The following table counts the number of issues raised in complaint contacts finalised by Audience and Consumer Affairs during the quarter, and shows how they were dealt with and their outcomes.
In each case where a complaint is upheld Audience and Consumer Affairs provides a written response to the complainant acknowledging the error. Details of each upheld complaint are also published in summary form on our website. Where appropriate, additional action is taken to rectify the mistake and/or ensure that the problem does not recur. Actions taken in response to upheld complaints can include the following: written apologies to
complainants; on-air corrections and apologies; counselling or reprimanding of staff;
amending programs for future broadcasts; and reviews of and improvements to procedures.
On occasion, a complaint may be upheld for more than one reason. Where possible and relevant, the corrective action taken is reported in the online summary of the upheld complaint.
The Complaint Handling Procedures provide that a complaint may be regarded as resolved where the relevant area of the ABC takes steps to remedy the cause of complaint prior to or within 30 days of the ABC receiving the complaint, and the steps are considered by
Audience and Consumer Affairs to be adequate and appropriate such that further processes formally to uphold, part uphold or not uphold would add nothing of substance.
Report published 22 April 2015 and correct at time of publication. Any subsequent minor amendments to data will not be reflected in this report. Updated statistics are published in the ABC Annual Report at http://about.abc.net.au/how-the-abc-is- run/reports-and-publications/
Table 3: Topics of complaint issues finalised.
Category Subcategory
Balance N/A 138 39 32
Bias Anti-government 380 126 89
Anti-opposition 7 4 3
Other 182 38 27
Other political 103 23 13
Pro ALP 96 24 15
Pro Coalition 28 2 2
Pro-government 53 31 30
Pro-opposition 6 2 2
Captions N/A 20 8
Customer service / complaints handling N/A 59 18
Factual inaccuracy N/A 240 69 61 17 27.9% 3 4.9%
Failure to disclose N/A 10
Inappropriate content Bad example 41 22 6 1 16.7%
Bad language / profanity / swearing 89 56 6
Drugs / smoking / alcohol 7 2 1
Nudity 7 5 1
Offence to religious feeling 15 11 5
Other 170 68 23 7 30.4%
Poor taste 34 7 2
Sex and sexuality 28 19 8 1 12.5%
Violence 41 22 12
Incidental advertising - Non ABC products /
logos N/A 27 10 9
Internet - technical difficulties N/A 964 3
Intrusiveness / invasion of privacy N/A 20 6 5 2 40.0%
Management issues N/A 111 26
News values / news content Not enough coverage 166 4 1
Other 295 3
Placement in bulletin 17
Too much coverage 112 3
Other N/A 127 11
Promotions - ABC programs and products Not as advertised / misleading / inconsistent 8 4
Other 11 6
Too few promotions 1
Too intrusive 27 22
Too many promotions 9 3
Too revealing 3
Quality - general N/A 377 141
Scheduling / program changes Change of format 43 3
Change of timeslot 88 44
Discontinuation of program 531 357
Interruption to regular schedule 99 51
Other 876 610
Too many repeats 72 46
Sensitivity and portrayal N/A 21 3 3 1 33.3%
Standards of interviewing Other 15 1 1
Poor context / research / background 32 3 2
Too easy on guest 17 3 3
Too tough / aggressive / rude to guest 100 26 26
Standards of presentation Language - poor terminology / misuse of word 84 4 Language - pronunciation / grammar / spelling 152 5
Other 480 137
Personal presentation 159 15
Program presentation / set design / camera work 136 12 Sound quality / voiceovers / background music 94 22
Transmission N/A 139 3
Unfair treatment Denigration 43 11 8
Discrimination 20 1
Other 57 16 8 1 12.5%
Racism 24 11 1
Sexism 37 7 5
Grand Total 7348 2229 410 27 6.6% 6 1.5%
% of investigated
complaints upheld Total
issues closed
Issues responded
to by ACA Issues investigated
by ACA Total issues resolved
% of investigated
complaints resolved
Total issues upheld
410 complaint issues were investigated by the Audience and Consumer Affairs Investigations team. Of these, six issues (six contacts) were upheld and 27 issues (27 contacts) were
resolved.
