Agenda Index City of Vancouver

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT


Date: July 17, 2001
Author/Local: C.Clement/7270
RTS No. 02160
CC File No. 1192
Council: July 31, 2001



TO: Vancouver City Council

FROM: City Clerk

SUBJECT: Continuation of Greater.vancouver TV series

RECOMMENDATION

B. THAT Council pre-approves the continuation of "Greater.vancouver" TV as an ongoing program at an annual cost of $80,000 contingent upon a positive staff review at the end of the 2001/2002 season. Funding to be provided in 2002 as an increase to the operating budget subject to budget review.

CITY MANAGER'S COMMENTS

The City Manager RECOMMENDS approval of A and B.

PURPOSE

The purpose of this report is to:

1. Update Council on the Greater.vancouver television show;
2. Inform Council of the GVRD's and Shaw Television's interest in continuing production of the show;

3.Inform Council of Shaw Television's move to a new format for all its programming including Greater.vancouver; and
4. Request Council approval and funding to continue Greater.vancouver TV programming for another season, and approve continuation of the programming as an ongoing operating cost subject to a positive staff review at the end of the 2001/2002 season.

BACKGROUND

In an effort to improve residents' understanding of civic issues, in 1998 the City piloted a six-episode, half-hour TVnewsmagazine show with the Vancouver School Board and Rogers Community TV. Called City.vancouver, the show focused on City and school programs, services and issues.

Based on the success of the pilot series, in 1999 the show was expanded to 12 episodes and renamed Greater.vancouver. The GVRD was invited to be the second funding partner after the Vancouver School Board decided against further participation. As well, the scope of the issues examined in the show was expanded to include more city stories that had regional implications.

In 2001, Shaw Television replaced Rogers as the broadcaster.

The show has been airing throughout the Lower Mainland on Shaw Channel 4, with the season traditionally starting in January. Later in the year, the stories are picked up by Delta Cable and also rebroadcast on Shaw.

Topics have ranged from historical pieces, to complex policy issues (e.g., how globalization affects municipalities; the City's test case before the CRTC examining who pays for digging up municipal streets; Vancouver's four-pillars approach to solving the region's drug problem) to lighter subjects (e.g., VanMap, Chinatown Night Market; Vancouver's Portrait V2K).

The show also has been effective in helping the City deliver inexpensive public service announcements (PSAs) for City programs and activities. These 30-60 second commercial-like spots have helped the City promote tips on lawn care that reduce the need for watering; preparing for an emergency at home and in the community; navigating traffic circles; getting a dog a license; and joining the Keep Vancouver Spectacular clean-up program.

Greater.vancouver has won numerous national awards, including the Impression Award for "best public affairs" and "best newsmagazine".

The budget involves equal monetary contributions from the City, the GVRD, and an equivalent contribution by the broadcaster for equipment (i.e. cameras, lights, cell phones,tapes and vehicles) and editing studios.

The show is provided story ideas by a cross-departmental editorial committee, which also includes representation from the GVRD. The production team - which includes a few staff from the City and the GVRD - reports to the City's Corporate Communications Director and the GVRD's Communications Manager.

DISCUSSION

The purpose of the show is to promote civic awareness and inform the public on local and regional issues and programs. The issues are explored in an informative and entertaining way, using a fast-paced, upbeat newsmagazine format.

Generally, four or five separate, stand-alone stories are aired in a single half-hour episode.

Nielsen ratings from previous seasons and calls to our viewer response line confirm there is a strong audience for the show. On average, more than 70,000 people watch a single episode over the course of all airings (original and subsequent airings). Some episodes have generated in excess of 50 calls to the viewer response line, with people providing detailed comments and suggestions for future shows. (See Appendix 2 for a sample of viewer comments).

The show continues to improve the way it delivers content. Based on focus groups conducted last fall by the GVRD, the show now provides more information on how viewers can get involved in an issue.

As well, the Web site has undergone several improvements based on Council's recommendation. The show's Web site now contains an extensive collection of online video of stories produced for each show. The video can be viewed through the Web and enables viewers to see a particular story at any time.

As has been the case in previous years, there were more ideas for stories than the program was capable of covering. Many of these ideas - generated by staff and by viewers - could be explored in future seasons. As well, emerging issues can be incorporated into future shows.

The GVRD, through the Administration and Intergovernment Committee, reaffirmed its support for Greater.vancouver on July 5. Committee members were pleased with the audience size for the program, as well as the format and content. The GVRD looks forward to the program having a long run on Shaw.

Our partner broadcaster, Shaw Television, is also interested in the material we produce.

However, Shaw Television is revamping its format this fall to one that has been successfully used in other cities. The goal of Shaw Television is to make Channel 4, its community channel, a destination channel for Lower Mainland viewers.

To this end, the broadcaster eventually will move Council coverage to a new public affairs channel. The move will take place once the public affairs channel is ready for air.

On Channel 4, Shaw Television will be focusing on programming with high production values, and a new screen format. The screen will contain a border on two sides in which information such as weather, sports scores, etc. are continually updated. In the remaining two-thirds of the screen, regular programming will be aired.

In markets where this format has been introduced on community channels, the channel's reach has increased from roughly 5-10 per cent to 50 and even 60 per cent. (In Victoria, Shaw's community channel's reach is now more than 50 per cent.) More people come to the channel for information and, while there, also tune in to the programming on the larger part of the screen.

In this new format, Greater.vancouver material would now be included in part of a larger news show dedicated to the Lower Mainland. This news show will air several times throughout the day. For Greater.vancouver, the implication is that instead of a 30-minute show aired three times a week, we would now be given "spots" throughout the day.

These spots (about 4-5 minutes in duration) would essentially mean taking the single stories that we currently as part of a half-hour show, and running the stories on their own.

The spots would be identified as a Greater.vancouver piece by the host and by the opening graphics. We would also continue to refer to the show's Web site for additional information and ways to get involved.

The communications directors of the City and the GVRD as well as the show's senior producer have discussed the pros and cons of this new format. The disadvantage is that the partners will no longer have a complete half-hour show airing at a particular time during the week.

The advantages of the new format are:

· It will allow the City to respond quickly to emerging issues rather than waiting for an appropriate episode in which to put a story.
· It will significantly reduce the time it takes for us to get an important story to air.
· It will enable the City to run stories that up until now may have been rejected because they did not easily fit with other stories that season.

The format also does not preclude the City from repackaging some of the single stories intoa thematic episode for use by schools, or producing public service announcements, or running TV specials on Shaw Television in which we explore a topic from several angles. In fact, certain weeks can be devoted to a particular theme with all the stories relating to that theme.

Shaw Television has said our individual stories will receive more air time and viewers than when they ran as part of the show format. This will be due to the fact that the Greater.vancouver spot will be running several times a day.

The primary question for the City and the GVRD is whether or not the new format will still allow us to meet the objectives of the television program, which is to provide context to issues that affect our residents. Staff believe the new format will still enable the City to provide background and in-depth information on issues. Without our programming, it is likely that no local media outlet will explore the municipal/regional issues in as much depth or with the same scope or frequency.

For this reason, we're recommending we continue to fund the production of television programming under the Greater.vancouver identifier.

SOCIAL IMPLICATIONS

The renewal of the Greater.vancouver show will provide the City with:

1. a vehicle to explain complex civic issues in an informative and entertaining way,
2. inexpensive access to the communications medium from which most people today obtain their information,
3. the ability to react quickly to the educational/information needs of the public and publicize and solicit involvement in new programs and projects;
4. a cost-effective way to reach a broad audience (the potential household reach is 650,000+, the number of households with cable in the Lower Mainland); and
5. additional opportunities to promote co-operation between the City and the GVRD.

PERSONNEL IMPLICATIONS

There are no long-term staffing requirements. Similar to prior seasons, the core production team would be hired on temporary contracts and supervised by the City's Corporate Communications Director and the GVRD's Communications Manager.

The project will continue to promote interdepartmental cooperation. Story ideas will be brought forward the editorial committee. Existing City staff will be involved as part of their responsibilities, serving as policy advisors and on-camera experts.

As well, the TV show will continue to provide an opportunity for some City staff to expand their skills set by getting them involved in different aspects of the show's production (e.g., research, script writing, field production, editing, etc.).

FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS

The show's costs per season is budgeted at $160,000, the same as last year. Half would come from the GVRD ($80,000) and the other half from City of Vancouver ($80,000). Shaw Television will continue to supply air time as well as an equivalent amount in equipment and facilities (i.e., cameras, lights, editing studios, cell phones, vehicles, and air time).

The budget covers such things as the producer's fees, research, the host, freelance camera operators, editors, supplies (tapes, batteries, etc.), Web site maintenance, motion and print graphics, dubs, mailing/courier costs, and marketing/advertising.

The show offers excellent value to the City in terms of its outreach. No other communications tool produced by the City will have such a broad outreach and also have further applications for schools, libraries, etc.

The show also will enable the City to continue to save money on video production in other areas. By utilizing footage captured for the show, or equipment and freelance staff working for the show, Corporate Communications is able to produce videos for departments at a cost substantially less than if departments went to an outside, for-profit production house. Standard corporate videos cost, at minimum, $1,700- $2,500 per finished minute to produce. In the last couple of years, Corporate Communications has been able to reduce those costs to $500-$700 per finished minute of video by using the show's production team.

The new season starts airing in September 2001 and will wrap up around June 2002. For production during this time period (i.e., the 2001/2002 season) the cost to the City will be $80,000. Funding would be provided from contingency reserve.

Due to the success of the program, staff recommend that Council fund Greater.vancouver TV as an on-going program. However, given the changes in the programming format, funding of $80,000 on an on-going basis will be subject to staff reviewing the effectiveness of the program and the results of the 2002 budget review process.

IMPLEMENTATION

Shaw Television would like to air the new programming starting September. If Council approves this plan, production of the show must begin in August in order to do significant research and filming.

A production team would be contracted. Simultaneously, the City and the GVRD would review issues and informational needs for the next 12-month period. Suggestions from viewers, ideas from City staff, as well as suggestions provided last season, would be reflected in the story lineup.

Near the end of the 2001/2002 season, the communications managers for the City and the GVRD as well as the television editorial committee and the City Manager, will review the effectiveness of the new format. The review will be based on, but not limited to, such factors as audience numbers for the channel, and responses to our viewer line and the show's Web site.

CONCLUSION

The citizens of the City receive enormous benefits from the content provided through Greater.vancouver, as evidenced by their comments to our viewers response line. As well the City itself benefits by being able to quickly provide information to a large audience - on a wide range of both complex and simple programs and topics - through the most popular communications medium in use today.

Despite the format change on Shaw Channel 4, staff believe residents will continue to receive context and background on municipal/regional issues that will not be available through other television news outlets.

For all these reasons, as well as the interest of our partners in continuing with the programming, we recommend continuation of funding for this program.

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Appendix 1: 2001 Season Stories for Greater.vancouver

Episode 1: January 24, 2001
History of the region's sewer system
GVRD pollution control
Grime Watchers in North Vancouver
Engineering pollution
Tip: The environmental problems with garburators

Episode 2: February 7, 2001
The unique design features of Vancouver's Chinatown architecture
How Vancouver's urban planners work with architects (and interview with Larry Beasley and Arthur Eriksen)
A look at some of Vancouver's most interesting buildings
An interview with Cornelia Oberlander on landscape architecture
How Richmond City Hall is designed to provide service

Episode 3: February 21, 2001
Archive donations at the City of Vancouver
Versatile Shipyards
The Nikkei Centre
Saving our industrial heritage
Japanese Canadian National Museum
What cemeteries tell us about the past

Episode 4: March 7, 2001
The growth of the Vancouver International Airport
How free trade could affect civic libraries
Free trade and the Lower Mainland's wine industry
How city governments play a critical role in attracting businesses

Episode 5: March 21, 2001
Vancouver's City Visions process
The role the community/ethnic media plays in helping the City of Vancouver reach its residents
Planning a sustainable community in East Clayton
GVRD Headquarters
PSA: Get a Dog Licence!

Episode 6: April 4, 2001
Vancouver's Community Web Pages
The role of business improvement associations in building community
A tour of the Lower Mainland's religious temples
A school project that helps children understand their parents' history
Maple Ridge history
PSA: Vancouver's Get a Dog Licence!
PSA: Keep Vancouver Spectacular

Episode 7: April 18, 2001
The history of Vancouver's trees
Cutting edge sustainability at UBC's CK Choi building
The Pacific Environmental Science Centre
Nature on parade at the Maplewood Flats
Delta's water

Episode 8: May 2, 2001
Vancouver's Beautiful Block Award
Rooftop gardens
Habitat for Humanity
Bowen Island development
Tri-city Vector Control
PSA: Keep Vancouver Spectacular

Episode 9: May 16, 2001
VanMap - Vancouver's new online mapping system
Vancouver's Grow Busters project
Vancouver's Mounted Squad
West Vancouver Police
PSA: Keep Vancouver Spectacular
PSA: Vancouver's Get a Dog Licence!

Episode 10: May 30, 2001
Avalon Dairy
Greenhouses in the region
Burquitlam Community Organic Gardens
Maplewood Farms
PSA: the life of an aluminum can
PSA: Recycle!

Episode 11: June 13, 2001
Vancouver's Hastings Park an update
The Art of photography
Youth in Surrey Parks
Derby Reach Regional Park
Tips: From Vancouver's Parks Board on lollipopping your trees
PSA: Vancouver's Neighbourhood Emergency Preparedness workshops
PSA: Watershed Tours

Episode 12: June 27, 2001
Vancouver's Chinatown Night Market
The Rive Gauche Market in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside
The Royal Hudson tour
Fraser River Discovery Centre
Whale Watching
Kidsworld Program
PSA: Vancouver's Neighbourhood Emergency Preparedness workshops
PSA: Lawn Ranger
PSA: Vancouver's Millennium project - Portrait V2K
Tips: From Vancouver's Parks Board on keeping slugs away from your dahlias

Appendix 2: Viewer Comments to the Greater.vancouver

Below is a sample of the many comments we received from viewers on our viewer response line.

I live in East Vancouver near the Port of Vancouver. Tonight is the first night that I've watched the show and I'm very impressed. I'm finding harder and harder to find something interesting useful and half decent to watch on TV. Even though there seem to be more and more channels.
April L.

I was just watching your program on Shaw Cable and its Wednesday April 4th. And it mentioned something about Keep Vancouver Spectacular a volunteer program - I didn't get the number but maybe you could call me back with it? Thanks.
Marnie

Peggy L.

I've got nothing to do on a Saturday so I was sitting here watching your show. It's beautiful and I was sitting here realizing that this is great TV. Especially for someone living in Vancouver.
Shawn

Very interested in the show - you learn about a lot of new things that you wouldn't normally know about Vancouver. I've seen much and I really love your show. Thanks.
Sudha S.

Just turned on my TV and I am finding your program very very interesting - I've always wondered what happened to the water when it went down the drain. Thank you very much it has answered some questions for me and I'm looking forward to future programs. Thanks a lot.
Sheila S.

I'm watching this Greater Vancouver show about the treatment centre I would like to get a copy of this for showing some students.
Vahid Kahnamelli

I'm an elementary school teacher and we're talking in class about this very subject -pollution and water management. I'm just wondering with the information on TV whether or not I could get a copy to use at Jamieson Elementary.
Valerie N.

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