Radio: Introduction to radio

 Read Media Factsheet #224 Understanding the Industrial Context of Radio. This will give you a wider perspective on industry contexts for radio with particular focus on the industry theorists (Hesmondhalgh, Curran & Seaton, Livingstone & Lunt). Answer the following questions: 

1) Read the first two pages of the factsheet. How does the Factsheet argue that radio still has cultural significance in the digital age? 

Radio still reaches billions of people, although people have streaming services like YouTube or Spotify, it still is the dominant source of information and entertainment in developing countries especially where people have no access to the internet. 

2) Look at the page 4 section on media theories. Briefly summarise the ideas of Curran and Seaton, Hesmondhalgh and Livingstone and Lunt.

Curran and Seaton - The media output is concentrated in the hands of a few, horizontal integration leads to a large concentration of radio owned by large conglomerates.

Hesmondhalgh - The media puts profit over creativity, small radio stations who's main purpose it not to make money offers a more unique and individualised listening.

Livingstone and Lunt - Media regulation should be a consumer based approach

3) What is the definition of public service broadcasting?

"broadcasting intended for public benefit rather than to serve purely commercial interests."

4) Look at the list of eight key principles for BBC Radio on page 6 of the factsheet. Choose the three you think are most significant and explain why.

Universal geographic accessibility – you can listen to radio anywhere in the country. This is important because people value things being accessible to them all of the time especially when you can access everything instantly in the digital age.

Attention to minorities – inclusive and non-tokenistic programming. This is important because we live in a multicultural world and diversity and inclusivity is celebrated and valued. 

Universal appeal – across the board the programming will have something for all an everyone. This is important because it means everyone has a reason to listen and it is not excluding anybody, allowing for a very wide audience.

5) What does the Factsheet suggest is the future of PSB radio? Do you agree?

The BBC have attempted to gain a younger audience through the sounds app in hopes that when they get older they will pay for the licence fee however because of the threats of streaming services like amazon and Spotify the future looks precarious for them. I agree because I think that whilst the BBC sounds app is trying to appeal to all young people, apps like Spotify have a huge range of different types of content posted by anybody which may target younger people and the people who host them are more famous to younger people than they people who host the BBC radio stations.