지역 교통방송 청취자의 이용 동기와 충족에 관한 연구

Abstract

최근 들어 우리나라 방송환경은 급격하게 변화하고 있다. 인터넷방송, 위성방송, 케이블TV 등 뉴미디어가 등장하였고 이로 인해 올드 미디어들은 점점 그 위상을 잃어 결국 라디오의 경우 사양매체로까지 인식되기 시작하였다. 이로 인해 라디오 매체의 생존전략은 다각도로 강구되었고 그 중 전문성과 보편성이라는 라디오 매체의 특성으로 부활하기 시작하였다. 다양한 매체가 경쟁하는 사회지만, 매체의 특성과 청취자 기대욕구에 부응할 경우에는 라디오도 새로운 가능성을 모색할 수 있다는 것이다. 즉, 차량의 폭발적 증가와, 늘어나는 이동거리로 차 안에서 소요되는 시간을 효율적으로 이용하고자 하는 청취자의 욕구에서 라디오의 가능성이 재발견 된 것이다. 이러한 상황에서 라디오 프로그램의 학문적 접근은 아무리 강조해도 지나치지 않으며, 실제 라디오 프로그램을 듣고 이용하는 수용자들을 대상으로 한 선행연구들이 지금까지도 이어지고 있다. 하지만 기존연구들은 주로 라디오 교통정보 프로그램에 대한 이용행위와 관련한 이용 동기와 충족이 대부분이었다. 따라서 본 연구에서는 라디오의 전문성이라는 매체의 특성으로 탄생한 특수방송 중 하나인 ‘부산교통방송’에 대해 연구해 보고자 하였다. 본 연구는 이용과 충족이론에 입각해 교통전문방송인 ‘부산교통방송’ 청취자들을 대상으로 이용행태를 알아보고 청취동기요인과 만족도요인의 분석과 추출된 각 요인이 인구사회학적 변인에 따라서 어떠한 차이가 있는지 규명해 보고자 하였다.

Radio was viewed as one of fading media due to the advent and spread of television, an audiovisual medium to be listened and watched. Contrary to earlier expectations, however, that still has taken a firm root as an independent and competitive medium. Although today's society is marked by competition among various kinds of media, radio can open a new chapter for itself provided that it plays up the unique characteristics of its own and satisfies listener needs. Under the circumstances, it's absolutely needed to take an academic approach to radio programs. Sustained research efforts have still been directed into listeners who listen to and use radio programs, but few studies have ever focused on Busan TBN that has functioned as a relatively successful specialized traffic channel over the last 11 years since its establishment. The purpose of this study was to examine the use of Busan TBN, a traffic channel, among listeners, their listening motivation, satisfaction and the relationship of their demographic variables to listening motivation and satisfaction based on the theory of uses and gratifications. Four research questions were posed to serve the purpose: 1. What are the characteristics of listening among Busan TBN listeners? 2. What is the listening motivation of Busan TBN listeners? 3. What is the satisfaction level of Busan TBN listeners? 4. What is the relationship of listening motivation and satisfaction level among Busan TBN listeners? The subjects in this study were 211 owner drivers, tax drivers and bus drivers who listened to Busan TBN. A survey was conducted to find out their listening motivation and the level of gratification to address the research questions. The findings of the study were as follows: The Busan TBN listeners investigated listened to the radio mainly in their cars or buses for five hours or more a day on the way to work or home. They had the most liking for traffic information programs and took traffic information they got from the radio into account a lot when they drove. There were four motivation factors to affect their listening: quality programs, participation in broadcasting, B.G.M., and traffic information acquisition. They listened to the radio primarily to get traffic information, to be informed about what route to take, to listen to local news and to listen to music. The acquisition of prompt and accurate traffic information was another major motivation factor. In terms of satisfaction level, the four factors affected it as well: quality program, participation in broadcasting, B.G.M., and traffic information acquisition. They were satisfied since they got traffic information, since then were helped to make the right decision on what route to take, and since they knew about local news and listened to music. The swift supply of accurate traffic information also satisfied them, and some were contented as they didn't felt lonely by listening to that. As for the relationship of demographic variables to listening motivation and satisfaction level, those who were professional drivers, who were older, who were less educated, who had a smaller income and who drove for a longer period of time were more motivated to listen to the radio and expressed higher satisfaction. Concerning correlation between listening motivation and satisfaction level, the listeners were gratified as TBN came up to their expectations. Thus, there was a close positive correlation between the two. The findings of the study are expected to assist Busan TBN to get an extensive grip on the characteristics of listeners, to provide programs tailored to their needs and ultimately to serve as a quality traffic channel. To make it happen, specialized programs that cater to particular listener groups should be prepared. As TBN was much more successful in addressing listener needs for traffic information, traffic programs should be enlarged, and a state-of-the-art supply system should be built to let listeners better benefit from traffic information. And sustained efforts should be directed into developing a wide variety of programs that target different age groups. The attributes of different listener groups should be taken into account in order to ensure successful programming, and their personal tastes and interest should be taken into consideration as well.