Nanos Research: Views on local news, CBC and political preferences among voters in the federal electoral district of Peterborough-Kawartha

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According to a recent riding survey for the Friends of Canadian Broadcasting conducted by Nanos, Peterborough-Kawartha voters value local TV, trust the CRTC to protect CHEX-TV, and believe that CHEX-TV contributes to making their community stronger. Four-in-ten (39%) believe CBC’s independence has decreased under Prime Minister Harper’s watch. Six percent think it has increased and 35% think it has stayed the same. According to a majority of voters in the federal riding, the Prime Minister has too much influence over what CBC broadcasts because of his power to appoint CBC’s President and Board of Directors (59% of Peterborough–Kawartha voters). A wide majority of Peterborough–Kawartha residents would also suggest maintaining (49%) or increasing (38%) the CBC’S funding and are more likely to vote for a candidate who favours increasing the CBC’s budget.

At the ballot box

Forty-one percent of decided Peterborough–Kawartha decided voters would support the Liberal Party if an election were held when the research was conducted. In second place is the Conservative Party with 29% support, followed by the NDP at 27%, and the Green Party (4%). About one quarter (27%) of voters in Peterborough–Kawartha remain undecided.

Local TV in my community

Peterborough–Kawartha voters value local TV, want their Member of Parliament to work to keep local broadcasting in Peterborough strong, trust the CRTC to protect their local TV station, and believe that local TV contributes to making their community stronger.

Local TV’s value to Peterborough-Kawartha voters – Four in five voters (80%) agree or somewhat agree that local news on CHEX-TV in Peterborough is valuable to them. Residents who would consider voting for the Liberal Party as their first choice value local TV news the most as 85% agree or somewhat agree, followed by the NDP (81%), and the Conservatives (68%).
Stop broadcasting local news – More than four in five respondents (82%) disagree or somewhat disagree with the statement that they would not care if CHEX-TV in Peterborough stopped broadcasting local news. Among residents (voters) who would consider voting for the NDP as their first choice, 88% disagree or somewhat disagree with the statement, followed by Liberal Party supporters (82%), Conservative Party supporters (80%), and Green Party supporters (61%).
Trust the CRTC to protect local TV stations – Most respondents (66%) agree or somewhat agree that they trust the CRTC to make decisions that will ensure that their local TV station is not forced to close. Three in four residents (76%) that would consider voting for the NDP as their first choice trust the CRTC to protect news on their local TV station, followed by the Liberals (64%), and the Conservatives (61%).
MP’s role in keeping local broadcasting strong – More than nine in ten residents (92%) agree or somewhat agree that their federal Member of Parliament should work to keep local broadcasting strong in their community. Among residents that would consider voting for the NDP as their first choice, 95% agree or somewhat agree, followed by both the Liberals and the Conservatives with 90%.
Role of local TV in the community – Almost nine in ten residents (88%) agree or somewhat agree that CHEXTV contributes to making their community stronger. Among those who would consider voting for the NDP as their first choice, 94% agree or somewhat agree, followed by the Liberals (89%), and the Conservatives (84%).

The CBC’s independence

According to four-in-ten Peterborough–Kawartha voters (39%), the CBC’s independence has decreased over the past four years and six-in-ten (59%) think the Prime Minister’s power to appoint the CBC’s President and Board of Directors gives the government too much influence over CBC's programs.

PM’s appointment of CBC’s President and Board of Directors – Almost three in five residents (59%) believe that appointments by the Prime Minister give the government too much influence over the nature and content of CBC's programs, whereas 29% believe that it doesn’t matter who appoints the Board of Directors.
CBC’s independence over past four years – Almost two in five residents believe that the CBC’s independence as a broadcaster has decreased over the past four years, whereas 35% believe that it has stayed the same and 6% believe that it has increased. 20% of respondents were unsure.

The CBC’s funding

Peterborough–Kawartha voters would suggest maintaining or increasing the CBC’s funding and are more likely to vote for a candidate who favours increasing its budget.

CBC’s funding level - If their federal Member of Parliament asked them for advice on an upcoming vote in the House of Commons on what to do about CBC funding, almost half of Peterborough–Kawartha voters (49%) would advise him/her to maintain funding for the CBC at current levels, 38% would suggest increasing funding, and 9% would suggest to decrease funding. This cuts across all party supporters (NDP Increase 59%, Maintain 35%, Liberal Increase 51%, Maintain 43%, Undecided Increase 26%, Maintain 57%, Conservative Increase 14%, Maintain 64%).
CBC’s budget at the ballot box – Almost seven in ten Peterborough–Kawartha voters (69%), including half (48%) of Conservative Party supporters, are more likely to vote for a candidate who favours increasing the CBC’s budget, 18% are more likely to vote for a candidate who favours privatizing the CBC, and 13% were unsure.

These observations are based on an RDD dual frame (land- and cell-lines) random telephone survey of 300 voters of the Federal Electoral District of Peterborough-Kawartha, 18 years of age or older, conducted between August 25th and 26th, 2015 by Nanos Research. The research was commissioned by Friends of Canadian Broadcasting. The margin of error for a random survey of 300 voters of the Federal Electoral District of Peterborough-Kawartha is ±5.7 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

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