BBC 'exposed' over left-wing debate audience, says Ukip

[-:Undertaker:-]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/poli...-audience.html

Ukip says BBC 'exposed' over left-wing debate audience

Figures released by BBC show that only 58 members of the audience were Conservative or Ukip supporters compared with about 102 who supported left-leaning parties

Nigel Farage has claimed the BBC has been “exposed” after it was forced to admit that nearly twice as many members of the studio audience for the Challengers’ Debate were "left-wing" as were Conservative or Ukip supporters. The Ukip leader was booed during Thursday night’s debate after claiming it was a “remarkable audience even by the left-wing standards of the BBC”.

He added on Friday that it was "completely obvious that we did not have an audience reflective of public opinion" and insisted: "I didn't lose my rag." The BBC initially refused to disclose the political make-up of the audience but eventually released figures on Friday afternoon. They showed that, of the 200-strong audience, about 58 were Conservative or Ukip supporters while about 102 supported left-leaning parties - Labour, the Lib Dems, SNP, Plaid Cymru or the SNP – and the rest were undecided.

Mr Farage said: "If you were to put Ukip and the Conservatives on the centre-right in current opinion polls, we are on about 49 per cent between us. If the audience make-up didn't reflect that then it's wrong.” He added: “There was a whole feel to the thing that frankly it wasn't as it was intended to be. It just exposes them [the BBC] and firms up the views of people watching it. I would say it's nul points for the BBC."

Jeremy Hunt, the Conservative health secretary, also questioned the audience make-up, saying: “The need to do something about immigration is something where Nigel Farage was more in touch with the British public than perhaps the studio audience were.” The BBC said that all broadcasters and political parties involved in this year’s live TV debates had agreed for an independent polling organisation to select the audience. The BBC used ICM and “set out clear objectives to ensure there [was] a broad range of political preferences”.

A spokesman said: “We asked the polling company to work to proportions which take account of a number of factors in recruiting the audience – in other words, recent polling figures are only part of the equation. We also look at past electoral support, as well as the different party political make-up in different parts of the UK.”

About 20 per cent of the audience were undecided. Of those who were decided there were five Conservative voters for every five Labour, four Lib Dem, three Ukip, two SNP, two Green and one Plaid Cymru voter, the BBC said. An ITV spokesman said the audience for its seven-way debate reflected the same proportions. James Harding, head of news and current affairs at the BBC, said that the booing of Nigel Farage reflected the audience getting “really engaged”.

Thursday night's debate averaged 4.27 million viewers between 8pm and 9.30pm, according to data from Attentional - down from the 7 million that watched the seven-way leaders debate on ITV.

Bloody KNEW IT.

And this is just going by political party identification too. Apparently the audience was largely selected from the surrounding area aka wealthy areas of London. If you took a typical Labour voter in Islington and a typical Labour voter in say Kent, Yorkshire or Lincolnshire you'd find they had constrasting views on many topics, especially the likes of immigration. The audience was as bent as a nine bob note.

Thoughts?

[The Don]

So out of 6 parties, a third of the audience were supporters of... a third of the parties. The literal definition of a neutral audience.

[-:Undertaker:-]

So out of 6 parties, a third of the audience were supporters of... a third of the parties. The literal definition of a neutral audience.

That isn't representative of the public at all.

If you class Ukip and the Tories as to the 'right' they both have support of around 50% of the Great British public. Yet in this debate, only 58 out of 200 people in that bent audience were supporters of those parties. More to the point and as I said above, political party representation isn't even representative of the public for the reason that if you take a working class voter who usually votes Labour in Yorkshire and a millionaire Labour voter in Islington, you'll have completely different social opinions from them both. So Farage was 100% right when he said that the real audience was sitting at home.

The BBC or ICM have been caught out on this, and even Tories (no friends of Ukip) are pointing it out.

[FlyingJesus]

Let's introduce quotas to ensure proportional representation in all aspects of public life and turn people away if they're too much like the majority of persons... that's what you support, right Dan

[-:Undertaker:-]

Let's introduce quotas to ensure proportional representation in all aspects of public life and turn people away if they're too much like the majority of persons... that's what you support, right Dan

I support audiences of major televised debates being representative of the British public in terms of opinion, that's right.

[Kardan]

Looks like there's far too many Lib Dem voters in there.

Still though, you'd think the 22 or so UKIP supporters in the room would have clapped Farage.

[The Don]

That isn't representative of the public at all.

If you class Ukip and the Tories as to the 'right' they both have support of around 50% of the Great British public. Yet in this debate, only 58 out of 200 people in that bent audience were supporters of those parties. More to the point and as I said above, political party representation isn't even representative of the public for the reason that if you take a working class voter who usually votes Labour in Yorkshire and a millionaire Labour voter in Islington, you'll have completely different social opinions from them both. So Farage was 100% right when he said that the real audience was sitting at home.

The BBC or ICM have been caught out on this, and even Tories (no friends of Ukip) are pointing it out.

What I meant was the audience was filled with a fair amount of supporters from each of the parties to make it neutral. If there are more left-wing parties then of course there will be more left-leaning audience members.

[-:Undertaker:-]

What I meant was the audience was filled with a fair amount of supporters from each of the parties to make it neutral. If there are more left-wing parties then of course there will be more left-leaning audience members.

So if there were 8 left-wing parties which polled 50% of the national vote between them and 2 right-wing parties which also polled 50% of the national vote between them, you'd say it would be fair to have 80% of the audience left wing and the 20% of the audience as right wing?

[scottish]

Seems like a load of moaning and ******** because he lost the debate.

[The Don]

So if there were 8 left-wing parties which polled 50% of the national vote between them and 2 right-wing parties which also polled 50% of the national vote between them, you'd say it would be fair to have 80% of the audience left wing and the 20% of the audience as right wing?

I'm just pointing out that having an equal amount of supporters for each of the parties is neutral and not "as bent as a nine bob note" as you claimed.