Introduction to radio:
BBC Sounds
1) Why does the article suggest that ‘on the face of it, BBC Radio is in rude health’?
On the face of it, BBC Radio is in rude health. It has half the national market, with dozens of stations reaching more than 34 million people a week. Radio 2 alone reaches 15 million listeners a week (“editorially I think it’s in brilliant shape,” says Purnell), one in nine Britons still tune in to hear John Humphrys and his co-presenters harangue politicians every week.
2) According to the article, what percentage of under-35s used the BBC iPlayer catch-up radio app?
Although millions of young Britons continue to tune in to traditional BBC radio stations, Purnell says just 3% of under-35s use the iPlayer catch-up radio app, which will soon be axed.
3) What is BBC Sounds?
BBC Sounds, a new app and website that formally launches on Tuesday with a glitzy event at Tate Modern. It will bring radio livestreams, catch up services, music mixes and podcasts together under one roof.
4) How do audiences listen to radio content in the digital age?
Convincing people to abandon their existing behavior and simply trust the BBC app will not be easy. Spotify has begun integrating a number of podcasts – including BBC content – directly into its app and an increasing number of people are listening to the radio using voice assistants such as Amazon Alexa
5) What does Jason Phipps suggest is important for radio and podcast content aimed at younger audiences?
The man chosen to do this is the man Jason Phipps, a former Guardian staffer who joined earlier this year as the company’s first editor commissioning podcasts says the BBC needs to rethink the overall tone of the storytelling , that those 35 precious years at Downstairs goes well beyond a rigid schedule if you want to attract an audience
6) Why does the BBC need to stay relevant?
“The world in which we offer this amazing idea called the BBC has changed exponentially over nearly a century and particularly in the last decade,” he says. “And because the BBC is really important and valued by licence fee [payers] it’s got to continue to be relevant.
“Otherwise you leave the BBC set in aspic and increasingly irrelevant. If you believe in the BBC you have to let [it] flourish in spaces where it can have a greater public value than market impact. That’s what we seek to do: be relevant.”
7) What content does the BBC Sounds app offer?
The best idea is to download the app and then go to BBC Sounds to search for any audio (except longer audiobooks). Music, news, drama, documentaries, true crime, comedy – if you want it in your ears, it starts with an orange button. The app allows you to click on any live BBC radio station, but it also gives you new ways to listen, from podcasts to playlists.
8) How does it link to BBC Radio?
Sounds is easy to use, though I found the programme information a little tricky to access, and the search – as ever with the BBC – isn’t sensitive enough. (Looking for the new 5 Live podcast about the Waco siege, I typed in “5 Live Waco”, but only got old programmes). My other main problem is there isn’t enough content. “Spooky Sounds” only offered me 11 shows; “Be Curious” just 10. The BBC has thousands of amazing audio programmes! If you browse podcasts via, say, the Apple Podcasts app, you have 16 categories to choose from, and within each, at least 20 series to try. Sounds needs to feel as packed as Netflix in order to properly work.
9) What are the criticisms of the BBC Sounds app?
Presented by Tina Dahle, Beyond Today is an attempt to copy the successful New York Times program The Daily, none of the shows I heard were bad Firstly, about whether there is enough money in the UK had too much listening advice; The second, about the Iraqi Instagram star who was killed for provoking too much, is excellent.
10) Two new podcasts were launched alongside the BBC Sounds app. What are they and why might they appeal to younger audiences?
greatbigowl.com
Conceived and hosted by comedian Sarah Morgan, the podcast asks guests three questions: their favorite scary scene from movies or TV; something they have feared as children; And the fear they still have now.
thenosleeppodcast.com
In 2010, the self-proclaimed Reddit forum NoSleep became a place for people to post original horror stories. An online version, a podcast, was launched a year later to share the horrific stories surrounding the fire. Created by Matt Hansen and hosted and produced by David Cummings, the NoSleep podcast features awesome short stories, which Cummings reads on the air.