talkSPORT's Boxing Day and the definition of "radio"

The rise of new listening platforms, from DAB to online, has made radio more of a versatile medium than merely a device - in that an internet station is considered radio just as its analogue counterparts are.

In a recent blog, the legendary David Lloyd went a step further in questioning why some believe audio content cannot be called "radio" if it's a podcast. David observes that broadcast operations are evolving to expand reach and increase relevance and argues the art of "radio" is one, whether linear or on-demand.

Personally, I'm torn on this. There are obvious differences between both means of delivery as well as pros and cons to each. While linear radio can connect in ways a podcast cannot and vice-versa, the two can and often do serve the same purpose. It's true that, overall, a great podcaster and a great broadcaster share the same qualities.

A good example of progression is News UK's announcement today that the talkSPORT app will carry exclusive coverage of all nine Premier League fixtures on Boxing Day with users being able to choose between the commentaries.

A solid move, and I'd love to be the person running those numbers afterwards - I can't even begin to imagine the audience and app traffic this will drive for the brand.

Should a radio station invest in branded vehicles?

LA's KIIS FM have branded Chevys that put every other to shame.

The @1027KIISFM branded Chevys are quite something 🤩 pic.twitter.com/85LrXpSKAP

— Harrison RB (@HarrisonRBRadio) October 12, 2019

The main reason for vehicle wrapping is, of course, visibility - but I've always thought stations could take it a step further by showing off an impressive high-end "whip" (as the youth would say).

Why not a branded classic car? Now there's a way to attract attention!

Britain's Got More Talent and understanding your programming

ITV has axed Britain's Got Talent's spin-off show after 12 years.

Hosted by Stephen Mulhern and broadcast on ITV2 immediately after the main show, it had always been popular - far from the presenter's tongue-in-cheek claim to have only one viewer.

Bosses say it's "the right time to move on" and point to young audiences migrating online, just as they said when bringing the curtain down on The Xtra Factor two years ago.

Anyway, why am I writing on a predominantly radio-themed blog about TV? Because, in this instance, I feel there's a overarching point about truly understanding your programming and the purpose it serves.

I'll declare a vested interest here - the Britain's Got More Talent live shows were always one of a few TV shows that had me belly laughing.

While the pre-rec'd episodes focused heavily on unseen auditions and the silly banter we've also seen in Mulhern's "In For a Penny" game earlier this year, the live shows with celebrity guests and a shouty production crew were an entirely different beast - more resembling of The Big Breakfast.

Certainly for the last few years, I've been starting to fall out of love with Britain's Got Talent. It still gets huge audiences and clearly valued by ITV but the reality is I'm only still watching so I can make sense of the unbelievably hilarious BGMT.

The Xtra Factor - in all its different guises - never came close. It really didn't matter who the presenter was and I couldn't tell you who was doing it at the end.

Conversely, Stephen Mulhern took ownership of Britain's Got More Talent and it was his answer to a late-night entertainment show that could've worked without any connection to the main show whatsoever. Behind-the-scenes/exclusive content will be popular but not for the same reasons.

If the same live format with the same presenter moved to the primary ITV on, say, a Friday or Saturday night - with strong marketing - I could see it doing really well for them.

This is like saying you're going to axe a late-night radio show because it's all about social media clips these days. The latter may be a big part of the game nowadays, but if you think it can replace the former you clearly don't understand radio. The same goes for TV.

Information vs entertainment

Fred Jacobs' latest TechSurvey studies Americans' main reasons for tuning in to analogue radio.

The US market may not be quite up to speed with Europe when it comes to digital, but it still offers an interesting insight into the feelings of a typical listener. Let's pick apart some of the key findings:

• 71% say radio is the easiest thing to listen to in the car. It's certainly a lot easier just to press a button or two on the stereo than connect another device each time you're about to drive. The future challenge for radio will be connected cars that put other media on an equal footing. Radioplayer continues to be the industry's voice in the fight to secure radio's position on tomorrow's dashboards.

• 62% say it's because radio is free. In the UK, internet listening is still a relatively small slice of the pie with a key factor being the strength of DAB. Going forward, online will unleash new opportunities and stations are likely to experiment with alternative funding models. We may have become accustomed to it being free but if someone's happy to pay for their favourite TV or podcast, I don't see why they wouldn't pay for their favourite radio if it's incentivising enough.

• 59% say jocks/shows and 57% say their favourite songs/artists. There's not a lot in it, but personality and content is becoming more important as it's something music streaming doesn't currently offer in the same way. I'm a passionate believer in the power of a nice surprise, but "music surprises" are way down on 23%. I would suggest it's a result of radio not doing enough of them, but also the fact people just want to hear their favourite songs (hence tight rotations).

Radio 2 Beatles can't be streamed online?

Radio 2 Beatles is a pop-up brand extension to celebrate 50 years since the release of Abbey Road.

The curveball is you can only listen live on DAB with fans being encouraged to listen on-demand via BBC Sounds. I can't think of any other station, in 2019, that is only accessible via a physical radio "set".

I totally understand the concept of driving Sounds traffic - and this is a solid way to do that - but why wouldn't you also make the linear stream available on there?

It's not necessarily a criticism, I'm just genuinely intrigued by this puzzling decision and would love an explanation from the BBC as to its motivation here.

You can't be impartial on racism and bigotry

I'm often quick to defend the BBC against unjustified accusations of bias from both sides of the political spectrum.

It may not get everything right and licence fee payers have a right to hold it to account but, overall, it is a proud British institution.

One thing the BBC often hasn't got right is its rulings on what it believes to be matters of impartiality that are, in fact, not.

The corporation's Executive Complaints Unit ruled that Naga Munchetty breached guidelines by criticising Trump's "go back" to the "places from which they came" tweet by sharing her own experience of racism.

You cannot be impartial on a crime. You cannot be impartial on something that is disgusting and universally condemned. You cannot be impartial on racism.

I'm reminded of the brilliant Iain Lee's sacking from BBC Three Counties Radio four years ago after he stood up for the LGBT community against a homophobic Christian fundamentalist.

I fully support the need for BBC journalists to maintain political impartiality - for the sake of the BBC's credibility and so as not to frustrate licence fee payers - but that does not mean BBC presenters should be perceived to have hearts of stone and banned from using their platform to make a positive impact.

Partnerships enable community radio to thrive

BBC Somerset and the nine community radio stations in its area are coming together for a new content-sharing and training arrangement.

With the commercial sector changing direction resulting in fewer local independent stations, coupled with a general decline in hyperlocal press, the opportunity for community radio has been significantly enlarged - but many don't have the resources or skill to carry the torch by themselves, especially volunteer projects.

Partnering with the BBC and other organisations, be it media or businesses in any relevant field, to deliver engaging local content and train community radio teams should result in a better offering.