Commercial Radio Defends Public Service Credentials
The UK’s commercial radio stations have launched a robust defence of their public service credentials in the face of an ongoing investigation into the state of the industry being carried out by media super-regulator Ofcom.
A wide-ranging survey has been carried out by the Commercial Radio Companies Association to gauge the amount of news, weather, travel and community information being broadcast across the 200 commercial radio stations it represents.
The results of the study show that an average of almost 470 minutes of news is broadcast on commercial radio every week, with an annual average over 2 million weather forecasts and around 1.4 million minutes of travel news for the medium.
Commercial radio was found to promote more than 8,500 events across the UK within regular What’s On bulletins, with stations broadcasting material in support of their local community around 38 times per week. The industry also raised more than £8.5 million for charity last year through direct fundraising.
Commenting on the findings, the CRCA’s external affairs manager, Lisa Kerr, said: “”The information gathered over this six-week audit among our member stations clearly demonstrates how UK Commercial Radio delivers public service content to its 38 million listeners every day of the week.
She added: “Commercial radio plays an important role in our society and not merely as an entertainment medium. This report explains why commercial radio means so much to its listeners, its localities and to UK society as a whole and we hope that it will assist Ofcom as it poses the complex question: What is Public Service Broadcasting?”
Earlier this year the CRCA’s recently appointed chairman, David Elstein, set out an optimistic vision for the future of commercial radio industry. Speaking at the annual Radio Academy Festival, he welcomed further consolidation within the sector and called for an increased focus on older listeners (see Elstein Sets Out Optimistic Vision For Commercial Radio).
CRCA: 0207 306 2603 www.crca.co.uk
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