Representatives of the BBC, ITV and Sky News have told ePolitix they fear sound bite culture is helping to turn the public away from television coverage of political news.

With BBC news chiefs concerned by recent research indicating that the public is less interested in politics news on TV, political editor Andrew Marr told ePolitix that while the Six and Ten news bulletins were performing well, there was a wider discussion about "a turning-away from democratic discussion among large swathes of the population".

Both Marr and Sky News political editor Adam Boulton agreed that part of the problem was the current state of the parties. Marr highlighted the "relative ideological convergence" and a more general feeling of contentment.

Boulton said: "We've gone through a period when we've had intensive coverage of politics but interest has not been great because things have pretty much all gone in one direction - continued dominance by Tony Blair's Labour Party."

But there was a general feeling that politician's are contributing to the disillusionment felt by TV viewers.

Sins of the soundbite

Asked about the public's view of soundbites, Steve Anderson, the controller of news, current affairs, art and religion at ITV, said: "I think there's a lot of cynicism about it because it's become notorious in its own way - the very phrase 'sound bite' is now used to dismiss a lot of cynical political posturing."

Boulton agreed, saying: "I think that the public is like everyone else - if people say something interesting or striking then they are interested. If people say something hollow or evasive, they notice it and they are turned off."

Marr agreed, noting that sound bites were used "to stop, or to keep a hold on, the kind of gaffe stories and split stories that journalists did far too much of."

The 'Westminster village'

There was caution on the role that the "Westminster village" plays in generating news stories.

Acknowledging that Westminster was a "story factory", Marr told this website that "I think we have to be based here but we have to remember constantly that people are looking from the outside - and see this obscure, self-important village - and do what we can to break through that."

Anderson added: "Journalists are supposed to be there as an essential part of the democratic process, to be the voice of the people, to be the eyes and the ears of the people so the public know what is going on. Maybe that could be embraced more wholeheartedly."

However, Boulton was placed more emphasis on the need for personal knowledge of the goings-on in Westminster.

"Politics is about people ultimately, and the public are very quick to pick you up if you appear to be ignorant or not know about something. So again, I'm not as apologetic as some of my colleagues are about this. I do think there's a role for us even if we do wear suits," he said.

Winning back the viewers - lessons from Pop Idol?

Adam Boulton detailed Sky's new electronic technology, the way Sky cameras cover events people haven't seen before and cover issues overlooked by others as evidence of how Sky News appeals to viewers, but he is keen to point out that attracting a mass audience to politics news isn't necessarily Sky's function.

Andrew Marr describes how it is the BBC's duty to attract people to politics news. "Because we are the nation's public broadcaster, financed by the license fee, we have an absolute moral and political duty to engage as many people in this country as we can in the national conversation; because if we don't do it, nobody else will."

Steve Anderson says "political coverage on mass channels like ITV1 and BBC1 will have to learn to compete with all these different forms of entertainment".

He argues that TV chiefs need to rethink their election coverage, saying: "The lesson of 2001 is that people are turning away from the traditional form of political coverage...They're not impressed by battle buses, they're not impressed by politicians pulling down a curtain to unveil a poster, they're not impressed by daily press conferences at which politicians fail to answer questions. All that stuff is old hat."

When asked if this means Pop Idol meets politics, Anderson replies: "Why not? Pop Idol is a success because it's a simple idea that exploits the television age. And political coverage on mass channels like ITV 1 and BBC 1 will have to learn to compete with all these different forms of entertainment."

Looking to radio for inspiration

As well as explaining how the BBC is looking at language and location for its political journalists, Marr described how TV chiefs are looking at radio as a model for TV news.

"We offer a big range of political coverage on radio. If you think of the difference on Radio One coverage, Radio Five coverage, the Today Programme, and so on - Radio Two coverage, the Nicky Campbell show - lots of different tones on radio."

He adds: "We offer a range of voices on television, but not such a wide range. Maybe we should."

To read the full interviews, visit the Interviews section of ePolitix.com.