Volume 5, Number 6

June 1992

THE REFORM PARTY: Tracking an Emerging Party

During the past few years, pollsters have been finding that the electorate is becoming more and more disillusioned with traditional parties and elected officials. For example, in March of this year, Gallup found that "fewer than one in ten citizens (9 percent) have a great deal or quite a lot of respect and confidence in political parties." [Bozinoff, Lorne, and Peter MacIntosh (1992) "Political Institutions Earn Scorn of Canadians" Gallup, March 16. Results are based on 1,037 telephone interviews with adults, 18 years and older, conducted February 12-15, 1992. The sample is accurate within a 3.1 percentage point margin, 19 in 20 times.] In a subsequent poll, Gallup found that "only 11 percent of Canadian adults believe that Members of Parliament in the country have either very high or high honesty and ethical standards."[ Bozinoff, Lorne, and Peter MacIntosh (1992) "MP's Viewed as Having Low Honesty and Ethical Standards" Gallup, August 3. Results are based on 1,027 telephone interviews with adults conducted July 8 to 11, 1992. The sample is accurate within a 3.1 percentage point margin, 19 in 20 times.] The polls also indicate that other institutions and professions did not receive the same disregard. For example, the public felt that doctors, police officers, university teachers, engineers and even journalists were more honest and ethical than politicians.

The popularity of emerging candidates such as Ross Perot and Preston Manning is another indication of the low regard the public has for traditional leaders and political parties. While the interest in third candidates is heightened at the present time, it is not without precedent. Western Canada, for example, seems to be a source for alternative parties. The NDP party emerged from the Alberta-based CCF in the 1930s. Like the CCF and NDP, the Reform Party quickly gained popularity. Unlike the NDP, the Reform Party gained much of its prominence through the help of television news.

When the CCF was formed, television was not a factor in the political arena. Today, with the media constantly searching for new issues and personalities, the Reform Party has been able to capitalize on the changes to the medium.

But what image of the party has been presented on national television? To answer that question, this issue of On Balance examines CBC and CTV attention to the Reform Party from July 1988 to June 1992.

ASSESSMENTS OF REFORM FAVOURABLE

As figure A shows, coverage of the Reform Party was consistently favourable throughout this study's four year time frame. While attention peaked in 1991, that scrutiny did not diminish the favourable attention paid to the party. Overall, neutral descriptions of the Reform Party's issues and policies comprised 41 percent of CBC and 30 percent of CTV's attention. Of the remainder, the networks were generally favourable to the party.

Click here to view Figure A: Coverage of the Reform Party by Year

Eight in 10 statements on CBC and 7 in 10 statements on CTV consisted of positive commentary about the party. This favourable attention to the Reform Party is quite similar to the way in which American television has covered the Ross Perot campaign. When Ross Perot first emerged on the national scene, nearly three out of every four evaluations of him were positive. [Lichter, Robert & Linda Lichter (1992) "Election '92: The Perot Factor," Media Monitor, April, vol VI, no. 4, p. 6.]

Of the stories which referred to the Reform Party, less than one-third focused exclusively on the party. The majority of stories interviewed representatives of the party, such as Manning or Stephen Harper, to criticize the policies and actions of the federal government. This finding might explain the favourable attention Manning and the Reform Party received.

The only negative attention the Reform Party received was from name-calling allegations that the party was racist or sexist. Typically, the reporter brought up the allegations, after which a Reform Party representative would be given the opportunity not only to deny the charge but to point to specific policy statements which refuted the allegations. For example, on 5 April 1991, a delegate to the Party's convention stated on "CTV News": "A lot of people feel, come to me and say, `Oh, you're a member of the Reform Party? They're a bunch of, there's racist elements in there, sexist, and that sort of thing.' And I don't see that, myself."

The remainder of the story discussed how the party was purging itself of radical elements. As well, Manning was able to articulate the party's position without having anyone contradict him.

REFORM PRESENTED AS A VIABLE NATIONAL PARTY

Despite the regional roots of the Reform Party, television news presented the organization as a viable, national party. Stories often began by stating that it started as a Western protest movement, but comments about the party's platform and aspirations were essentially national in perspective. Almost two-

. . . television news presented the organization as a viable, national party . . . comments about the party's platform and aspirations were essentially national in perspective.

thirds of network discussion of the Reform Party focused on national issues. Of the remainder, over one-quarter of network attention focused on Alberta. But at the same time, 15 percent of CBC and 27 percent of CTV attention focused on the Reform Party in Ontario.

Most Statements Refer to National Issues

In addition, very little of the coverage of the Reform Party examined traditional Western alienation protest movements. In fact, Western concerns and issues were mentioned in only 3 percent of CBC and 1 percent of CTV overall coverage of the party. This coverage occurred in 1988 and 1989 when the party first emerged on the national scene. Those references all but disappeared by 1990.

CBC FOCUSES ON POLICY WHILE CTV EXAMINES THE PARTY STRUCTURE

Overall, CBC presented more substantive coverage of the Reform Party's policy positions than did CTV. On CBC, discussion of Reform's policies regarding constitutional and political reform, fiscal and economic issues, as well as cultural and social issues comprised 30 percent of total coverage. On CTV, the focus on these issues comprised 23 percent of total coverage (figure B).

Click here to view Figure B: General Story Information on Reform

For CTV, the focus was more on the party structure, comprising 35 percent of total attention. On CBC, party structure was reported less frequently, comprising 27 percent of the attention.

Manning was the focus in roughly 10 percent of both networks' coverage of the party.

Attitudes towards the party were given more attention on CTV than on CBC. On CTV, the assessments by others comprised 16 percent of attention, whereas on CBC it consisted of only 11 percent.

REPORTERS AND ANCHORS TAKE BACK SEAT TO MANNING

One might wonder why the Reform Party has been given such favourable and substantive attention. One reason may be because Preston Manning and the Reform Party were given the opportunity to explain their policies and platform by themselves. There was very little commentary from other politicians, interest groups, or even reporters.

Overall, reporter and anchor statements comprised 39 percent of CBC and 53 percent of CTV attention. Of the remainder, Manning made 38 percent of CBC and CTV sources' statements. Reform Party representatives, including convention delegates and members, comprised 19 percent of CBC and 20 percent of CTV sources' statements. The governing Conservatives, on the other hand, received less than 10 percent of CBC and slightly over 10 percent of CTV sources' statements. Liberal and NDP party representatives each received less than 5 percent of network attention.

CONSTITUTION AND GOVERNMENT REFORM TOP POLICY FOCUS

Of the discussion on the Reform Party's platform, the issue which received the most attention was politics and the constitution. Half of CBC and almost two-thirds of CTV coverage on the Reform Party's policies focused on political and constitutional reform. Of this coverage, 6 in 7 statements made reference to constitutional reform.

Both networks focused on the Reform Party's challenge to the form of Canadian confederation. Half of CBC and one-third of CTV statements regarding political reform centred on the Reform Party's vision of a new Canada (figure C).

Click here to view Figure C: Coverage of Reform Party Policies (Government)

For example, in an interview with Barbara Frum broadcast on 5 April 1991, Manning discussed why his party had not attempted to raise members in Quebec: "In talking about trying to represent the rest of Canada, we make it clear that we are not antagonistic to Quebec's constitutional aspirations. In fact, I went to Quebec specifically to say that a few months ago. But we think there's a process this country's going to have to go through: that Quebec people, Quebec politicians, are going to have to define a new Quebec; and they should do that without looking over their shoulder at what the rest of the country wants. But that the rest of Canada better say what it wants for its constitutional future, with or without Quebec. Define a new Canada; and then see if the two can be put together."

Similarly, in a 24 January 1992 "CTV News" story, Manning reiterated his vision: "Our objective is to see a new Quebec within a new Canada. We do not want to see Quebec secede any more than anyone else does."

Television Does Not Refute Reform's Constitutional Platform

Some of the Reform Party's constitutional policies presented on the news included equal regional status, triple-E Senate, regional fairness and their opposition to native self-government. The networks provided little criticism of these policy positions. The platform was presented neutrally in 23 percent of CBC and 21 percent of CTV coverage on political and constitutional reform. Of assessments, 9 in 10 CBC and CTV statements agreed with the Reform Policy.

One of the few dissenting voices for the Reform Party's constitutional policies came from Prime Minister Mulroney. For example, on the 25 October 1991 "CTV News," Craig Oliver outlined how this policy concerned the Conservative government: "The Conservative government is also worried about the inroads being made in Ontario by the Reform Party of Preston Manning. Mulroney ripped into what the Reformers call their `New Canada Program'. `The separatists,' Mulroney said, `are not the only ones who want to dismember the country.'" A clip of Mulroney was then provided: "What about those in other parts of the country: who would confuse resentment with Reform? Whose new Canada leads inevitably to two Canadas? Who advocates the election of MPs so intimidated by the threat of recall by special interests, that they will never have the courage to act in the national interest?"

Coverage of the party's political reform included electoral reform, such as pre-determined election dates, as well as ending public funding of political platforms and political lobby groups.

Social Policies Given Support on Television

The Reform Party's social policies comprised one-third of CBC and almost one-fifth of CTV's attention to that issue. Coverage of the Reform Party's social policies was also well accepted. In this instance, neutral descriptions were more frequent, consisting of 34 percent of CBC and 28 percent of CTV attention to the Party's social issues. Of the remainder, 8 in 10 assessments supported the Reform platform.

Criticisms Aimed at Multiculturalism and Language Policies

Of assessments of the party's social policies, the networks differed in their focus. For example, CBC presented more information on the Reform Party's policy of ending subsidized multiculturalism and cutting social spending. CTV was more concerned with the policy of limiting language laws and the party's position that a referendum should be held on abortion (figure D).

Click here to view Figure D: Coverage of Reform Party Policies (Social & Cultural)

While most of the statements regarding the Reform Party's social policies simply stated the policy, or affirmed it, there were cases in which dissenting opinions were given almost as much attention. For example, on CBC, the policy of unsubsidized multi-culturalism received almost as many opposing comments as supporting comments.

Limit Official Bilingualism Favourably Covered by CBC

Another difference between the two networks was in their attention to the Reform Party's policy of limiting official bilingualism. On CBC the policy was never criticized. For example, on the 3 October 1991 "National" Kevin Tibbles stated: "Manning's three part platform includes talk of a new Canada, constitutional change and a balanced budget. But at this it was his rejection of official bilingualism that drew the applause." Manning was then quoted: "We would call for a scrapping of the federal official languages program." Following that statement, only applause was heard and nowhere in the story did anyone challenge the policy.

In contrast, on CTV, one-third of the assessments of the language policy were unfavourable. For example, on 5 April 1991 Mark Sikstrom reported: "The Reform Party is acutely aware that many still consider it a refuge for people with extremist views on language and immigration."

Economic Policies Given Least Attention of Party's Platform

Considering the public's concern over economic issues, it comes as somewhat of a surprise that the Reform Party's policies which received the least amount of attention were those concerning fiscal and economic reform. Only 14 percent of CBC and 16 percent of CTV coverage on the Reform Party's platform examined the economy.

GST Opposition Gives Boost to Party

One of the areas that received significant attention was the Party's opposition to the Goods and Services Tax. This issue gave the party the opportunity to oppose an already unpopular tax and get national recognition. For example, all of the statements on CTV were simply the party's opposition to the tax, with little reference to their official party platform on tax reform. In contrast, CBC provided more attention to their overall policy on tax reform than to their GST opposition. This fuller examination of the party's position also resulted in some dissenting opinions about the party's platform.

A typical story on the GST included a statement such as the one presented by Keith Boag on the 2 October 1989 "National": "Preston Manning, leader of the Reform Party, said the tax should go and that Albertans could send a message to Ottawa and to the provincial Conservatives by electing a Reform Party candidate in this month's senate election."

Spending Cuts Reported Favourably on CBC

The second economic policy that the networks focused on was the Reform Party's platform of cutting spending. One-fifth of CBC and over one-third of CTV attention to the economy focused on cutting spending (figure E). One event which underlined the Reform Party's message of cutting government spending was their own pay cut. CTV's Lloyd Robertson on 21 September 1990 presented the event: "There was a no-nonsense budget cutting message for MPs and Senators today. It came from the Western-based Reform Party. Reform Party Senator Stan Waters, and MP Deborah Grey, accompanied by their leader, Preston Manning, have decided to take a voluntary 10-percent cut in pay. They say it's their way of whittling down the national debt, and they want other politicians to follow their lead."

Click here to view Figure E: Coverage of Reform Party Policies (Fiscal & Economic)

MANNING'S LEADERSHIP ABILITIES EMPHASIZED

While focus on Preston Manning himself comprised only 10 percent of total network attention, those statements were also favourable. The majority of comments centred on Manning being the party's leader and the challenges of that position. Forty-one percent of CBC and 33 percent of CTV's attention to Manning focused on this aspect. For example, on the 5 April 1991 "Journal," Denise Rudnicki recounted the party's debate about expanding eastward: "Not all delegates want the party to spread East. Some Westerners feel it's a betrayal of the party's original goal to get a better deal for the West. Preston

". . . Preston Manning appears as a prophet, a leader with no political past--who promises a better, caring future."

Manning's challenge this weekend is to control the opposing forces. He will be reminding delegates that a national party could win as many as 40 seats in the next election, that Reform could become the balance of power in a minority parliament."

Manning's travel schedule was discussed in 15 percent of CBC and 30 percent of CTV's attention to the leader (figure F).

Click here to view Figure F: Assessments of Preston Manning

On CTV, two components of the coverage of Manning received unfavourable attention: his personality and popularity. On CBC, while his personality received balanced treatment, discussion of his style was completely favourable. For example, on a full edition "Journal" on the Reform Party on 12 December 1990, Susan Reisler noted: "At a time when a big majority of Canadians are cynical about politicians, Preston Manning appears as a prophet, a leader with no political past--who promises a better, caring future."

METHODOLOGY

Results on the Reform Party are based on census samples of 58 "National," 25 "Journal," 21 "Sunday Report," and 2 "Venture" stories, as well as 84 "CTV National News" stories from July 1, 1988, to June 30, 1992. All stories appearing during that time were coded, representing a total population rather than a random sample of stories.

Three researchers were employed in coding the news stories. The researchers were selected on the basis of their differing political views. To assess the clarity of the research instrument and measure consistency, tests of inter-coder reliability were conducted throughout the procedure. A high level of intercoder reliability (0.87) was obtained.

Further information or details on the coding design and methods may be obtained by contacting the National Media Archive.

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