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Reiner Reitsamer, Editor ORF III
#12 Is there a digital campfire burning in the virtual living room?
Whether we like it or not, life currently takes place primarily within our own four walls. That's where an old friend is making a comeback: our TV. Its new best friend is the Internet.
Often pronounced dead, linear television is proving to be the pre
ferred source of information for Austrians these days: Around 88 percent get their information this way, and 81 percent watch ORF programs. These figures were collected by the Gallup Institute at the beginning of the Corona pandemic.
A familiar image arises in the mind: the television as a campfire around which viewers gather. An old ritual that gives us the feeling that we are not alone through these uncertain times. The need for trustworthy information naturally grows during the crisis.
ORF III has therefore unceremoniously expanded its event-related live program ORF III AKTUELL into a morning slot: Now there are three and a half hours of live reporting daily, with specially produced reports, analyses and broadcasts all over the world - a modern studio with remote-controlled cameras and a highly motivated team make it possible. And the ratings analysis confirms it: We are hitting a nerve with the audience.
But will the increased interest survive the crisis? We can be optimistic. In an increasingly complex world, the demand for professional reporting will probably remain high. But it's also true that young people already prefer to get their information online.
Does this mean the end of linear television? No. The campfire is burning as brightly as ever. It's just that the living room has shifted to the Internet - and that's above all an opportunity, because online we not only reach a young audience, we can also enter into a dialog with them. This strengthens trust in our work and helps us to fulfill our special programming mandate even better in the future.
The ORF Player could become a crucial tool in this regard. If we link linear and digital editorial departments, we will no longer just report for television in the future. We will simply report: live.
