Sorry John, maybe your show has had its day

And if people are simply not watching a show, that would seem to me to be a message - the show has had its time.

THE DEBATE over the possible cutting of current affairs programme Campbell Live is a topic of consternation among journalists but whether this filters down to the general readership is debatable.

It is, after all, the "readership", or more accurately viewers, that is blamed for the show's possible demise. Falling ratings are never happy news for managers.

And if people are simply not watching a show, that would seem to me to be a message - the show has had its time.

What concerns journalists is the potential to lose what is one of the few platforms in this country for aggressive investigative journalism. In terms of the role of the media as a public watchdog, and holding those in power to account, we should be, as a society, better off with resourceful broadcast journalism backing us up. But society is not our audience in a lecture hall, listening to the wise journalism academic. Society will go with what appeals.

So does broadcast journalism still appeal? People lament the younger generation not buying newspapers, but it's my experience with my stepson that the generation below me are avid followers of hard news.

It's all online, they can have it when they want it. As a result I have frequently found my stepson to be far more knowledgeable and well-read than me on items of national interest.

But does that same generation want to sit down and watch half an hour of investigative journalism from 7-7.30pm? John Campbell has a brash and youthful appeal, in contrast to the stuffy style of the'70s and'80s, but if people have taken in what they need from the 6pm news, plus whatever's online, 7pm might be the time to get Game of Thrones rolling on Netflix.

Campbell Live, at its best, employs that most basic aspect of journalism: with the power of the media, I step forward and ask the question, and I expect an answer on the record.

One less organisation asking those questions is a blow to the free press.

But in a small country, hard investigative pieces don't happen all the time. The shows can't be punchy every night of the week. I don't think it has been. People like being informed but they reach their limit quickly. If you have already had your "fill" of news from 6pm and online, you're ready to move on to entertainment.