Documentaries and current affairs programmes continue to be the most popular in the city, survey results showed yesterday. Six news and current affairs programmes were ranked in the top 20 in the 16th Television Programmes Appreciation Index, with entertainment and informative programmes sharing the remaining spots. News and current affairs programmes scored an average of 73.1 out of 100, informative programmes 71.5 and entertainment shows 68.2 in the survey, conducted by University of Hong Kong's Social Sciences Centre. Research officer Robert Chung Ting-yiu said the results were virtually the same as those in the past five years. A total of 8,443 Cantonese speakers aged nine and above were interviewed for the poll by telephone. They were asked about 213 programmes produced last year by the four main broadcasters, TVB, ATV, RTHK and Cable TV. Dr Chung said current affairs programmes were more popular than others because they provided audiences with practical knowledge and information that related to their daily lives. But entertainment programmes, particularly television dramas, have caught up in the past three years. An awards presentation ceremony will be held on March 10.
