Perceptions of NZ Sports
Officials
Andrew Hercus, Jan Charbonneau, Ron Garland, Warren Smith
Introduction
• Without independent and unbiased officials
and officiating, any sport would fall into
disarray. While the crucial role played by
sports officials is widely acknowledged, there
has been little research other than anecdotal
about how sports officials are perceived by
the general public.
Survey
• A mail survey was sent to a random sample of
1800 New Zealanders to determine their
overall opinion of sports officials, their
performance on the field, the influence they
have over the outcome of the game, and
whether they should be held accountable for
their decisions. Respondents were also asked
the sources they used to obtain their sports
information and the level of abuse faced by
sports officials.
Response Rate
• A total of 692 valid questionnaires were
processed for an effective response rate of
40%. Not surprisingly, respondents indicated
Rugby, Netball, Cricket and Soccer as the top
four favourite sports.
Level of Involvement in Favourite
Sport
Responses
N
Currently a player, athlete or competitor
Percent
109
15%
Currently a coach, manager or administrator
55
8%
Currently an official
34
5%
522
73%
720
100%
Currently a spectator or follower
Total
Overall Opinion of Sports Officials
66%
29%
6%
Positive
Neutral
Opinion of Sports Officials
Negative
Overall Opinion by Favourite Sport
Favourite Sport - Top 4 sports
Rugby
Netball
Cricket
Soccer
Positive
66%
63%
70%
48%
Neutral
28%
33%
24%
46%
6%
3%
6%
7%
100%
100%
100%
100%
Negative
Total
Characteristics of Effective Officiating
• Based on previous studies into officiating effectiveness, a
suite of general characteristics required for effective
officiating was obtained. Respondent were asked to rank
the importance of each of the following characteristics for
officials in their favourite sport:
•
•
•
•
•
•
makes impartial decisions
makes clear rulings
makes accurate decisions
understands the rules of the game
applies the rules consistently
maintains control of the game & players
Impartial Decisions
72%
16%
9%
2%
Not Important
2%
Not very
Important
Somewhat
Important
Quite
Important
Extremely
Important
An effective Official in my favourite sport makes impartial
decisions
Clear Rulings
71%
25%
0%
Not Important
1%
Not very
Important
3%
Somewhat
Important
Quite
Important
Extremely
Important
An effective Official in my favourite sport makes clear rulings
Accurate Decisions
71%
24%
0%
Not Important
1%
Not very
Important
4%
Somewhat
Important
Quite
Important
Extremely
Important
An effective Official in my favourite sport makes accurate
decisions
Rules of the Game
88%
9%
0%
Not Important
1%
Not very
Important
2%
Somewhat
Important
Quite
Important
Extremely
Important
An effective Official in my favourite sport understands the
rules of the game
Consistent Application of Rules
81%
16%
0%
Not Important
1%
Not very
Important
2%
Somewhat
Important
Quite
Important
Extremely
Important
An effective Official in my favourite sport applies the rules
consistently
Maintaining Control
69%
24%
5%
1%
1%
Not Important
Not very
Important
Somewhat
Important
Quite
Important
Extremely
Important
An effective Official in my favourite sport maintains control of
the game and players
Implications
• Clearly, respondents were concerned with
officials’ understanding and consistent
application of the rules of the game with 88%
and 81% respectively
• Results for the remaining four characteristics
were comparable, with 69 – 72% of
respondents judging them to be extremely
important.
Evaluation of Officiating Performance
• Respondents were asked to assess the
effectiveness of the main official (referee,
umpire or judge) in a recent game of their
favourite sport using the same suite of
characteristics. Results were analysed for the
sample as a whole as well as the Top 4
Favourite Sports with comments made when
substantive differences were noted.
Performance – Impartial Decisions
51%
20%
15%
10%
3%
Strongly
Disagree
Disagree
Neither Agree
or Disagree
Agree
Strongly
Agree
Main Official in my favourite sport made impartial decisions
Performance – Clear Rulings
52%
19%
18%
8%
2%
Strongly
Disagree
Disagree
Neither Agree
or Disagree
Agree
Strongly
Agree
Main Official in my favourite sport made clear rulings
Main Official in Rugby – Clear Rulings
52%
17%
17%
13%
1%
Strongly
Disagree
Disagree
Neither Agree
or Disagree
Agree
Strongly
Agree
Main Official in Rugby made clear rulings
Performance – Accurate Decisions
41%
24%
17%
15%
3%
Strongly
Disagree
Disagree
Neither Agree
or Disagree
Agree
Strongly
Agree
Main Official in my favourite sport made accurate decisions
Performance – Understanding Rules
47%
32%
15%
4%
2%
Strongly
Disagree
Disagree
Neither Agree
or Disagree
Agree
Strongly
Agree
Main Official in my favourite sport understood the rules of the
game
Performance – Consistent Application
40%
17%
20%
19%
3%
Strongly
Disagree
Disagree
Neither Agree
or Disagree
Agree
Strongly
Agree
Main Official applied the rules consistently
Performance – Maintaining Control
51%
22%
18%
7%
2%
Strongly
Disagree
Disagree
Neither Agree
or Disagree
Agree
Strongly
Agree
Main Official in my favourite sport maintained control of the
game and players
Implications
Characteristics
Positive
Neutral
Negative
Impartial Decisions
3.9
3.4
2.5
Clear Rulings
4.0
3.5
2.7
Accurate Decisions
3.7
3.2
2.1
Understanding of Rules
4.3
3.7
3.2
Consistent Application
3.8
3.2
2.1
Maintains Control
4.0
3.6
2.9
Influence of Sports Officials
• Anecdotally, there is growing concern that
officials may have a disproportionate influence
over the outcome of the game and are not held
accountable or called upon to explain their
decisions in a public forum.
• Respondents were asked their opinion as to the
amount of influence officials exert over the
outcome of the game. They were also asked
whether officials should be accountable for their
decisions and, if so, to whom.
Influence over Outcome of Game
69%
30%
1%
Too much
About right
Influence of Official
Too little
Differences by Favourite Sport, Level of
Interest & Level of Involvement
Favourite Sport - Top 4 sports
Rugby
Cricket
Soccer
Too much
40%
26%
24%
30%
About right
60%
72%
75%
67%
1%
2%
2%
2%
100%
100%
100%
100%
Too little
Total
Netball
Implications
• The majority of respondents believed the
amount of influence officials have over the
outcome the game was ‘just right’ however
almost one-third believed the influence was
‘too much’. Direct involvement in sport at
some level served to amplify the sense that
officials may be exerting more influence than
acceptable.
Accountability of Sports Officials
• Respondents were asked whether they
believed professional or amateur officials
should be required to explain or justify their
decisions and if so, to whom. Respondents
were given guidance as to what constitutes
professional sports officials e.g. Super 14
referees and amateur sports officials e.g. local
club referees.
Professional Officials
77%
23%
No
Yes
Should Professional Officials be required to explain their
decisions?
Who should Professional Officials be
Accountable to?
Responses
N
Percent
Players
435
35%
Coaches
423
34%
Supporters or Spectators
186
15%
Media
205
16%
1249
100%
Total
Amateur Officials
64%
36%
No
Yes
Should Amateur Officials be required to explain their
decisions?
Who should Amateur Officials be
Accountable to?
Responses
N
Percent
Players
371
40%
Coaches
346
38%
Supporters or Spectators
111
12%
91
10%
919
100%
Media
Total
Implications
• These results indicate that amateur officials
are not held to the same standard of
accountability as professional officials.
However, respondents believe both amateur
and professional officials should primarily be
accountable for those directly involved in the
sport (players and coaches).
Officials and the Media
• Respondents were asked whether
professional, international and amateur sports
officials should be available for questioning by
the media after games. Respondents were
given guidance as to what constitutes
international sports officials e.g. Olympic
judges.
Professional and International
Officials
41%
20%
18%
13%
9%
Strongly
Disagree
Disagree
Neither Agree
or Disagree
Agree
Strongly
Agree
Should Professional Officials be available for questioning by
the Media after the game?
International Officials and Media
Questioning
40%
23%
16%
12%
9%
Strongly
Disagree
Disagree
Neither Agree
or Disagree
Agree
Strongly
Agree
Should International Officials be available for questioning by
the Media after the game?
Amateur Officials and Media
Questioning
34%
26%
21%
13%
6%
Strongly
Disagree
Disagree
Neither Agree
or Disagree
Agree
Strongly
Agree
Should Amateur Officials be available for questioning by the
Media after the game?
Implications
• The expectations of the general public that
amateur officials will justify their decisions to
the media are substantially lower than those
for paid professional and internationally
ranked officials.
• Not surprisingly, respondents with officiating
experience disagreed or strongly disagreed
with officials being available for questioning
Questioning of Professional Officials
by Experience
Experienced as a
sports official
No
Strongly Disagree
Yes
8%
11%
Disagree
12%
14%
Neither Agree or Disagree
19%
14%
Agree
43%
38%
Strongly Agree
18%
23%
100%
100%
Total
Sources of Sports Information
• Many things can influence opinions about the
performance of sports officials besides an
individual’s personal experience with the
sport. Respondents were asked the amount of
notice they paid to a range of sources of
sports information (commentary or
discussion) and how trustworthy they
believed the sources to be.
Notice Taken of Match Commentators
56%
19%
16%
9%
No Notice
Little Notice
Some Notice
Lots of Notice
Notice taken of Match Commentators
Notice Taken of Players
49%
27%
18%
5%
No Notice
Little Notice
Some Notice
Notice taken of Players
Lots of Notice
Notice Taken of Coaches
47%
25%
19%
10%
No Notice
Little Notice
Some Notice
Notice taken of Coaches
Lots of Notice
Notice Taken of Journalists
44%
33%
14%
9%
No Notice
Little Notice
Some Notice
Notice taken of Journalists
Lots of Notice
Notice Taken of Friends and
Associates
54%
28%
9%
No Notice
9%
Little Notice
Some Notice
Lots of Notice
Notice taken of Friends and Associates
Notice Taken of Online Social
Networks
63%
24%
12%
1%
No Notice
Little Notice
Some Notice
Lots of Notice
Notice taken of Online Social Networks
Notice Taken of TV Sports Shows
35%
29%
28%
7%
No Notice
Little Notice
Some Notice
Lots of Notice
Notice taken of TV Sports Shows
Implications
• These results suggest that respondents take
more notice of sources closest to the action at
the time of play – players, coaches and match
commentators. As such, match commentators
in particular have potential to influence
perceptions of officiating performance for the
viewing public.
Trustworthiness of Selected Sources
• Respondents were asked their opinions as to the
trustworthiness of a range of sources of sports
information. Trustworthiness was defined as
knowledgeable, accurate, and impartial. Coaches
and players were rated as the most trustworthy
with 61% and 60% respectively rating them as
quite or very trustworthy
• Not surprisingly, TV sports shows and online
social networks were judged the least
trustworthy (Figures 47 and 46).
Trustworthiness of Match
Commentators
49%
39%
7%
5%
Not at all
trustworthy
Somewhat
Trustworthy
Quite
Trustworthy
Very
Trustworthy
How trustworthy are Match Commentators?
Trustworthiness of Players
52%
35%
8%
5%
Not at all
trustworthy
Somewhat
Trustworthy
Quite
Trustworthy
How trustworthy are Players?
Very
Trustworthy
Trustworthiness of Coaches
53%
35%
9%
3%
Not at all
trustworthy
Somewhat
Trustworthy
Quite
Trustworthy
Very
Trustworthy
How trustworthy are Coaches?
Trustworthiness of Journalists
51%
33%
14%
2%
Not at all
trustworthy
Somewhat
Trustworthy
Quite
Trustworthy
Very
Trustworthy
How trustworthy are Journalists?
Trustworthiness of Friends and
Associates
55%
33%
9%
3%
Not at all
trustworthy
Somewhat
Trustworthy
Quite
Trustworthy
Very
Trustworthy
How trustworthy are Friends and Associates?
Trustworthiness of Online Social
Networks
48%
42%
9%
1%
Not at all
trustworthy
Somewhat
Trustworthy
Quite
Trustworthy
Very
Trustworthy
How trustworthy are Online Social Networks?
Trustworthiness of TV Sports Shows
48%
28%
21%
3%
Not at all
trustworthy
Somewhat
Trustworthy
Quite
Trustworthy
Very
Trustworthy
How trustworthy are TV Sports Shows?
Implications
• The findings suggest that respondents feel that sources
closest to the action at the time of play are more
trustworthy – players, coaches and match commentators.
• Also interesting is the low proportion of respondents who
believe any of the sources of sports information are ‘very
trustworthy’ and both the limited amount of notice and
trustworthiness assigned to online sources and television
shows.
• When analysed by the Top 4 Favourite Sports, the only
difference found was relative to the trustworthiness of
coaches.
Trustworthiness of Coaches by
Favourite Sport
Favourite Sport - Top 4 sports
Rugby
Not at all trustworthy
Netball
Cricket
Soccer
2%
4%
2%
8%
Somewhat Trustworthy
26%
38%
42%
42%
Quite Trustworthy
61%
45%
51%
44%
Very Trustworthy
11%
12%
5%
6%
100%
100%
100%
100%
Total
Media as Sources of Sports
Information
• Respondents were asked to indicate, on
average, how many hours per week they
spend watching, reading or listening to sports
coverage on each of the following media:
television, magazines, newspapers, radio and
the Internet. Respondents were categorised
into non-users (not at all), light users (overall
up to 3 hours), moderate users (overall up to
10 hours) and heavy users (more than 10
hours).
TV as Source of Sports Information
31%
29%
20%
8%
7%
5%
Not at all
1 hour or
less
Up to 3
hours
Up to 5
hours
Up to 10
hours
More than
10 hours
On average, hour many hours per week do you spend watching
Sport on TV?
Magazines as Source of Sports
Information
54%
38%
6%
Not at all
1 hour or
less
Up to 3
hours
1%
0%
1%
Up to 5
hours
Up to 10
hours
More than
10 hours
On average, hour many hours per week do you spend reading
about Sport in Magazines?
Newspapers as Source of Sports
Information
57%
23%
14%
4%
Not at all
1 hour or
less
Up to 3
hours
Up to 5
hours
1%
1%
Up to 10
hours
More than
10 hours
On average, hour many hours per week do you spend reading
about Sport in Newspapers?
Radio as Source of Sports Information
40%
35%
13%
5%
Not at all
1 hour or
less
Up to 3
hours
Up to 5
hours
3%
3%
Up to 10
hours
More than
10 hours
On average, hour many hours per week do you spend listening
to Sport on the Radio?
The Internet as Source of Sports
Information
65%
22%
9%
2%
Not at all
1 hour or
less
Up to 3
hours
Up to 5
hours
1%
1%
Up to 10
hours
More than
10 hours
On average, hour many hours per week do you spend
watching/reading/listening to sport on the Internet?
Implications
• Newspapers, television and radio appear to be
the preferred source of sports information
overall, however the majority of respondents
are light users of these media. Television is the
main overall source of sports information.
Abuse of Officials
• Abuse has been identified in previous studies
as a source of stress and burnout for officials
and one of the reasons why individuals cease
officiating. Respondents were asked whether
they believed the level of abuse of sports
officials has increased or decreased over the
past 5 years. They were asked about the
acceptability of varying levels of abuse and
the impact of abuse on their own enjoyment
of the game.
Abuse of Officials over Last Five Years
65%
30%
5%
Increased
Decreased
Stayed about the same
Do you think that, in general, over the last 5 years the abuse of
Officials has ...?
Abuse of Officials by Gender
Respondent
gender
Male
Female
70%
59%
35%
26%
6%
Increased
4%
Decreased
Stayed about the same
Do you think that, in general, over the last 5 years the
abuse of Sports Officials has ...?
Abuse of Officials by Officiating
Experience
Experienced as a
sports official
Yes
No
Increased
64%
67%
Decreased
4%
7%
32%
25%
100%
100%
Stayed about the same
Total
Abuse of Officials by Involvement in
Sport
Experienced as a
player, administrator
or official
No
Yes
Increased
61%
69%
Decreased
4%
6%
34%
25%
100%
100%
Stayed about the same
Total
Acceptability of Varying Levels of
Abuse
• What constitutes abuse towards sports
officials will vary depending on the individual
observing the abuse, the particular abusive
behaviour, setting, and parties involved.
Respondents were asked to indicate
acceptance of different types of abuse
identified in previous studies.
•
Loudly Disagreeing with Officials
37%
31%
18%
13%
2%
Strongly
Disagree
Disagree
Neither Agree
or Disagree
Agree
Strongly
Agree
Is loudly disagreeing with Officials' decisions acceptable?
Loudly Disagreeing by Gender
Respondent
gender
Male
Female
71%
63%
16%
19%
20%
11%
Disagree
Neither Agree or
Disagree
Agree
Is loudly disagreeing with Officials' decisions acceptable?
Players Answering Back
44%
42%
9%
5%
1%
Strongly
Disagree
Disagree
Neither Agree
or Disagree
Agree
Strongly
Agree
Is players answering back to Officials acceptable?
Smart or Funny Comments
41%
38%
13%
7%
2%
Strongly
Disagree
Disagree
Neither Agree
or Disagree
Agree
Strongly
Agree
Is making smart or funny comments about Officials
acceptable?
Smart or Funny Comments by Gender
Respondent
gender
Male
Female
83%
74%
14%
Disagree
11%
Neither Agree or
Disagree
11%
6%
Agree
Is making smart or funny comments about Officials
acceptable?
Commentators Questioning Officials’
Decisions
35%
24%
22%
16%
4%
Strongly
Disagree
Disagree
Neither Agree
or Disagree
Agree
Strongly
Agree
Is commentators questioning Officials' decisions acceptable?
Throwing Objects at Officials
73%
13%
10%
1%
Strongly
Disagree
Disagree
2%
Neither Agree
or Disagree
Agree
Strongly
Agree
Is throwing objects near or at Officials "not" acceptable?
Throwing Objects at Officials by
Favourite Sport
Favourite Sport - Top 4 sports
Rugby
Disagree
Neither disagree or agree
Agree
Total
Netball
Cricket
Soccer
10%
17%
11%
8%
0%
1%
6%
6%
90%
82%
83%
85%
100%
100%
100%
100%
Nasty or Derogatory Comments
67%
18%
10%
Strongly
Disagree
2%
3%
Disagree
Neither Agree
or Disagree
Agree
Strongly
Agree
Is making nasty or derogatory comments about Officials "not"
acceptable?
Nasty or Derogatory Comments by
Favourite Sport
Favourite Sport - Top 4 sports
Rugby
Netball
Cricket
Soccer
Disagree
9%
17%
13%
9%
Neither disagree or agree
0%
1%
6%
9%
91%
82%
81%
82%
100%
100%
100%
100%
Agree
Total
Verbal Abuse
65%
21%
10%
Strongly
Disagree
2%
2%
Disagree
Neither Agree
or Disagree
Agree
Strongly
Agree
Is verbally abusing Officials to their face "not" acceptable?
Verbal Abuse by Favourite Sport
Favourite Sport - Top 4 sports
Rugby
Netball
Cricket
Soccer
Disagree
9%
17%
13%
9%
Neither disagree or agree
0%
1%
6%
7%
91%
82%
81%
84%
100%
100%
100%
100%
Agree
Total
Journalists Undermining Officials
29%
30%
21%
13%
7%
Strongly
Disagree
Disagree
Neither Agree
or Disagree
Agree
Strongly
Agree
Is Journalists writing articles undermining officials "not"
acceptable?
Journalists Undermining Officials by
Gender
Respondent
gender
Male
Female
61%
56%
25%
17%
Disagree
20%
22%
Neither Disagree or
Agree
Agree
Is Journalists writing articles undermining officials "not"
acceptable?
Implications
• Overall, respondents felt the varying levels of abuse
presented were unacceptable. Respondents expressed the
strongest opinions about the unacceptability of throwing
objects, making derogatory or nasty comments, verbally
abusing officials or players answering back. Interestingly,
while 38% of respondents felt it was not acceptable for
commentators to question officials’ decisions, 39% felt this
was acceptable behaviour.
•
• Unexpectedly, Rugby fans had a lower tolerance of specific
abusive behaviours (throwing objects, making nasty or
derogatory comments, or verbal abuse) than Netball,
Cricket or Soccer fans.
Effect of Verbal Abuse of Officials on
Enjoyment
85%
15%
Agree
Disagree
Spectators verbally abusing Officials "decreases" my
enjoyment of the game
Effect of Verbal Abuse on Enjoyment
by Gender
Respondent
gender
Male
Female
90%
79%
21%
10%
Agree
Disagree
Spectators verbally abusing Officials decreases my
enjoyment of the game
Effect of Players’ Verbal Abuse on
Enjoyment
85%
15%
Agree
Disagree
Players verbally abusing officials "increases" my
enjoyment of the game
Players’ Verbal Abuse by Favourite
Sport
Favourite Sport - Top 4 sports
Rugby
Netball
Cricket
Soccer
Agree
12%
12%
27%
16%
Disagree
88%
90%
73%
84%
100%
100%
100%
100%
Total
Effect of Commentators on Enjoyment
70%
30%
Agree
Disagree
Constant questioning of Officials decisions by
Commentators and Journalists "decreases" my enjoyment
of the game
Effect of Commentators on Enjoyment
by Gender
74%
Respondent
gender
Male
Female
66%
34%
26%
Agree
Disagree
Constant questioning of Officials decisions by
Commentators and Journalists "decreases" my enjoyment
of the game
Implications
• Undoubtedly various forms of abuse towards
officials have an impact on spectators’
enjoyment of the game. For females, previous
intolerance of abusive behaviours has a
notable negative effect on their overall
enjoyment of the game.
Previous Officiating Experience
73%
27%
No
Yes
Previously an Official but no longer involved?
Reasons for no longer being a Sports
Official
Responses
N
Was unhappy with the organisation
20
Percent
7%
Family or work commitments
81
28%
Too many training demands
12
4%
Too much abuse from fans or players
11
4%
Out of pocket expenses too high
21
7%
101
35%
43
15%
289
100%
Family or personal interests changed
Other reasons
Total
Overall Opinion of Sports Officials
• Overall, the majority of respondents
expressed positive opinions of sports officials,
most notably for fans of Cricket. The more
passionate the individual was about their
favourite sport, the more positive their
opinion of sports officials.
Performance on the Field
• Respondents felt officials’ understanding of the rules of the
game and their consistent application were more important
to effective officiating than other characteristics such as
maintaining control over both the game and players.
•
• When asked to rate the performance of the main official in
a recent game of their favourite sport, respondents gave
overall high ratings. The more positive respondents’
opinion of officials was generally, the higher the rating.
However, the main official in Rugby was rated substantially
lower than their counterpart in Cricket when it came to
understanding and application of the rules of the game.
Influence and Accountability
• Almost one third of respondents felt that sports officials
exerted too much influence over the outcome of the game.
Direct involvement in sport as a player, administrator or
official served to amplify the belief that officials may be
exerting more influence than acceptable.
• The general public expected Professional sports officials to
be more accountable for their decisions than their Amateur
counterparts. Respondents believe both Professional and
Amateur officials, if to be held accountable, should
primarily be accountable to those directly involved in the
sport (players and coaches) rather than spectators and the
media.
Sources of Sports Information
• Respondents took more notice of information sources
closely involved in the on-field action (players, coaches and
match commentators) and also judged these sources to be
the most trustworthy. Rugby officials were considered
significantly more trustworthy than their Cricket, Netball or
Soccer counterparts. Little notice was taken of TV sports
shows and online social networks and this was also
reflected in the lower degree of trust in these sources.
• Respondents relied more on traditional channels for their
sports information (television, newspaper and radio), with
television being the predominant source.
Abuse faced by Sports Officials
• Two thirds of respondents felt that abuse of sports officials had
increased over the last five years, a view held more strongly by
females.
• The vast majority of respondents judged a range of abusive
behaviours towards officials as unacceptable. Respondents
expressed the strongest opinion about the unacceptability of
abusive behaviour towards sports officials when that behaviour was
directly aimed at the sports official, namely, throwing of objects at
officials and verbal abuse of officials. Females and Rugby fans had
substantially lower levels of tolerance towards abuse directed at
sports officials. Abuse directed at sports officials had a significantly
negative effects on respondents’ enjoyment of the game –
especially so for females.
• The primary piece of research was
undertaken via a general public
survey which was supplemented by
three other general areas of analysis:
Newspapers, television commentary
and interviews.
Newspapers
No. of individual
responses
Responses of Newspaper writers about Referee
Performance
60
40
Series1
20
0
Series1
1
2
3
56
51
8
Negative, Neutral and Positive Responses
Rugby Match Commentary Analysis
No. of Comments
Rugby Commentators comments on Referee
performance
50
40
30
Series1
20
10
0
Series1
1
2
3
38
43
19
Negative, Neutral or Positive Commentary
Netball Commentary Responses
No. of Responses
Netball Commentary Responses
18
16
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
Series1
Negative
Neutral
Positive
Implications
• Results indicate a high propensity by media
commentators to report officials’ performance
negatively. Neutral commentary
(informational reporting, no positive or
negative judgement by commentator on
specific decisions) was also prevalent and
positive comments were cited as significantly
lower than both other categories.