Radio Questions

Explain how audiences use radio differently. Refer to the BBC Radio 1 Breakfast show to support your answer.

-  Audiences now have many different ways to listen to the radio. Radio 1 in particular is listened by 60% of millennial's through apps for streaming and podcasts which are now on the rise. However 93% of millennial's still listen to AM/FM radio every week. Some people also listen through the use of BBC Sounds. Some people might listen to the BBC Radio 1 Breakfast show for company in the mornings as it almost feels like Greg James is talking to you as he engages his audience through cheery chat to wake you up and entertain you in the morning. Other people may listen to the Radio to be Informed and educated about news happening globally and in Britain as they may want to be kept up to date in what is happening in the world. Others may use the radio for entertainment such as listening to the games and competitions and stories that are told by other listeners in the show or even by engaging in the show itself by tweets and calling in. Another way an audience uses the Radio differently is by just listening in to listen to music for entertainment. There are so many ways for audiences to use the Radio differently because the radio has its remit to inform, educate and entertain by having these three remits to fufill it means it allows them to have a wider target audience. This then means more people of their 15 - 29 target age should probably listen in.

Explain why popular music programmes struggle to gain recognition as public service broadcasting. Refer to the BBC Radio 1 breakfast show to support your answer.

- Radio One is a public service Radio Broadcaster this means they are made, financed and controlled by the public for the public. It is neither commercial nor state-owned, free from political interference and pressure from commercial forces. Through PSB, people are informed, educated and also entertained because of the remit they are set.  The BBC Radio 1 may struggle to gain recognition as a Public service broadcasting because they have different shows like BBC Radio 1, BBC Radio 2, BBC Radio 3 etc, that are all aimed to different target audiences and different parts of the remit. BBC Radio 1 in particular is aimed at 15 - 29 year olds and its main focus is to tick the entertainment of the remit, however they do inform slightly with news but because this is so sparse it mainly feels like a show to entertain people with popular music (mainly pop), new British artists, and also in the particular their breakfast show with fun games/quizzes and stories from the public or host Greg James are telling, this may make people feel like they are not meeting the Public Broadcasting Service and not recognise them as part of this, because it doesn't feel like its completely meeting the remit.
Another Reason that they might struggle to gain recognition as a public service broadcaster is because they are meant to be free from political interference however BBC Radio 1 is under OfCom which have a charter with the government that states that they aren't allowed to be bias however they sometimes politically can be and lean certain ways on topics because it's in the government's best interest this therefore means they arent successfully filling their role to always be in the public's best interest, which may make them come across as not being a public service broadcasting.
The BBC Radio 1 is not controlled by adverts and commercials because they are Public service broadcasting however this may not come across as they may not advertise brands or certain shows etc, but they do advertise other things going on in the BBC such as new television series, however as they are advertising their own company it doesn't count as them being controlled by commercial forces however it may come across that they are advertising to the public even if it is their own shows and this may have a negative effect and cause annoyance from the public and make them feel like they are not sticking to their OfCom regulation even though technically they are.
Altogether i would say that the BBC are sticking to their PSB, and to well informed public members who listen to the show regulry would see this however it can come across like they aren't always sticking to it because of the multiple stations they have who all fufil the PSB in different ways.