"Who are we trying to please here?" asked Ellen Agress, senior vice president at Fox Entertainment Group. "The only report card we care about is the viewer. If we put stuff on that people didn't find informative and didn't like, they wouldn't watch us."
The study judged local newscasts based on criteria set by journalism professionals -- including enterprise, local significance, story length, sourcing and balance -- and then graded them, A through F.
Stations owned by small companies with three stations or fewer proved more than twice as likely to receive A grades than stations owned by the 25 largest owners. According to the report, 51% of affiliate newscasts received A's and Bs, versus 38% for the networks.
Still, the survey offered some ammunition to media owners and others lobbying to repeal or relax certain rules.
For example, it found that co-ownership of a TV station and newspaper in the same market -- currently banned by the FCC in most cases -- improves the quality of the station's newscasts. (Tribune Co., parent of the Los Angeles Times and KTLA-Channel 5, is lobbying to repeal the co-ownership rule.)
The study also suggested that ownership has little effect on what types of stories are aired or the diversity of people depicted.
In addition, researchers said they were surprised to find that locally owned stations did not score higher than stations controlled by companies headquartered in other markets, deflating the argument by some that local owners do a better job of serving their communities.
Fred Reynolds, president of Viacom Television, dismissed the findings as a "matter of opinion." He said Viacom's 39 properties are chiefly run by local station managers, though they benefit from the corporation's resources, such as the ability to purchase helicopters and Dopler Radar to track the weather.
Eddie Fritts, president of the National Assn. of Broadcasters, which is fighting against the networks to retain the 35% cap, said the study appeared to confirm his group's assertion that affiliates offer higher-quality newscasts.
"It validates some of the theories advanced by our side," Fritts said.
