Media Audience Research: A Guide for Professionals

The only comprehensive training book on conducting research into all forms of media

This book outlines all the methods for conducting research—both active and passive as well as quantitative and qualitative—in all forms of media, including new media such as the Internet, mobile phones and social media. It explains the ways in which media audiences are measured, understood and taken into account in media planning, advertising sales and social development campaigns. It shows how datasets are analysed and used. The statistical theories behind good quantitative research are explained in simple and accessible language.

The book is intended for both media research scholars and practitioners.

Graham Mytton is an independent media research consultant and trainer based in Dorking, UK. He began his media research career in Tanzania as a student in 1967. He carried out extensive audience research for his doctoral thesis on the role of mass media in nation building in that country before moving to Zambia in 1970, where he conducted audience research for the national broadcaster. From 1973 to 1976, he worked as a reporter, presenter and producer in the African section of the BBC World Service working on programmes such as Focus on Africa and a weekly documentary. He also worked on current affairs programmes on BBC Radio 4, a UK domestic radio network. From 1976 to 1982, he was Head of the BBC’s Hausa language service for West Africa. From 1982 to 1996, he was Head of Audience Research for the BBC World Service, and finally he created the World Service’s first Marketing department, becoming its Controller before leaving it in 1998 to work as an independent audience research specialist and trainer. He was a founder member of the Pan African Media Research Organization, and was awarded the Piet Smit Achiever Award for 2012 in recognition of services to media research in Africa. He is Honorary Fellow of the Bangladesh Marketing and Social Research Society.

He has carried out extensive research projects in Africa and Asia including national surveys in Gambia, Sierra Leone, South Sudan and East Timor. He has led training programmes in media research in 37 countries. He is the author of several books and articles on audience research, broadcasting history and African media.

Peter Diem is an independent media research consultant. He is also the Editor-in-chief of the Austrian Internet Encyclopedia ‘Austria-Forum’ (http://austria-forum.org). He studied Law and Political Science in Austria and in the USA. In 1964, he became a consultant to the Conservative Party of Austria as an adviser on market research. After a short period in book market research (1977–1978), he started to build up TV and Radio Research for ORF, the public service network of Austria. He was Head of the Audience Research Department of ORF until 1999. For three years, he held the position of chairman of GEAR, the Group of European Audience Researchers. After his retirement from ORF, Peter Diem started a career as an online market researcher. He built up online market research for GfK Austria and its CEE subsidiaries.

Piet Hein van Dam is an independent media consultant, helping data- and technology-driven start-up companies to grow and make it to the next phase. From seed to seasoned. With a PhD in nonlinear dynamics, Piet Hein evolved to business developer type CEO. He spent more than 10 years at Unilever and KPMG Consulting in international business development functions. In 2005, he became the managing director of Motivaction International, a Dutch market research company. In 2011 he joined internet start-up Wakoopa as CEO. This passive metering company grew exponentially and joined Netquest in 2014, where Piet Hein took on a new function as Chief People Officer. Piet Hein is a regular speaker at conferences and author of several articles on behavioural data collection. He is holder of six patents and several scientific publications. At Unilever, he was awarded with the Golden Jubilee Award for Excellence in Research (1997) and in 2008 he received the Deloitte Award for the 50 Best Managed Companies in the Netherlands. He loves traditional sailing boats, books and cooking. He lives in Amsterdam, with his wife and two kids.