 
|  | | Did you know that 1.3 million Sierra Leoneans are regular listeners to Cotton Tree News bulletins? Or that 68 per cent of the country’s households can receive shortwave (SW) broadcasts?
Fondation Hirondelle and UNICEF carried out a joint nationwide media survey in Sierra Leone. The study was conducted by Graham Mytton, the former head of IBAR, the audience research office of the BBC World Service, who also worked for Fondation Hirondelle in Timor and Sudan in the past.
The findings show that the most popular programmes in the country are those broadcast by the Sierra Leone Broadcasting Service (SLBS), the UN radio, the BBC World Service and "Cotton Tree News" (on both FM and SW).
According to the survey, radio is the primary and most reliable source of news for 77 per cent of the population. Many people also trust relatives, friends and neighbours to stay informed.
Programmes in Krio, the country’s most widespread language, attract nearly 90 per cent of listeners, followed by broadcasts in Mende (45 per cent) and in the other two national languages, Temne and English (39 per cent each).
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