Hello, I'm James Cridland, the radio futurologist and every couple of weeks I write a blog post
all about the future of radio and where radio is going. And this is it for June 4th, 2023,
talking about AM, Longwave and Radio on TV. Surprisingly but possibly inevitably, Ford
has decided that after all it WILL put AM radio in its new vehicles in the US. It might have
been radio speaking with one voice. It might have been threatened legislation, even though many
trade groups agreed with Ford and opposed the bill. Ars Technica points out that for a radio alert
to actually work it has to be turned on and tuned to the right wavelength point. Which makes sense,
even though radio sets use frequencies not wavelengths these days if we're going to be
strictly accurate. Also 97% of Americans have a cell phone says Ars Technica which is already
designed to receive wireless emergency alerts and those alerts can be received even if the cellular
network is unable to send calls or other data. Well, it could be good news for those countries
that still rely on AM radio, the US and Canada at least. The UK is continuing to turn AM off.
The BBC says that 5 Live will be off AM by December 2027. They've been slowly turning off BBC
local radio's AM transmitters as well. No news on the BBC Radio 4 medium wave relays,
but you can probably bet that they're not going to exist for an awfully long time.
Commercial radio is too, turning off AM output slowly with Talksport announcing a reduction
in coverage. An absolute radio having vacated it entirely which hasn't really hurt it. They've
just posted their highest ever total brand reach at 5.3 million. However, Australia typically takes
its in-car equipment from that in the UK market. We drive on the left down here. We've got DAB+.
We don't have HD radio or SiriusXM. So if I was an AM broadcaster in Australia, I'd not be breathing
too easily. Now looking at long wave in the UK, BBC Radio 4 is finally coming off long wave. At
least separate scheduling for long wave is to cease in March 2024. So that's an end to the daily
service and the longer and superior version of yesterday in Parliament. It'll be off completely
by December 2027. I say it's the end. That'll be scheduled elsewhere. The BBC says, confusingly,
that the changes are, in anticipation of the closure of the long wave platform, owned and
operated by a third party, which is coming to the end of its life as a technology. Which seems a
little disingenuous because long wave isn't owned and operated by a third party at all. Though BBC
Radio 4's long wave transmitters are owned and operated by Arkeva, just like their FM and DAB
transmission network. What are they trying to say there, I wonder? RTE Radio 1 came off 252
kilohertz long wave in the middle of April. In Denmark, DR Langbäuger, probably pronounced that
entirely wrong. Anyway, that's ceasing at the end of this year. And in Iceland, the RUV will also
cease next year. That'll just leave stations from Poland, Mongolia, Romania and Morocco on long wave.
And good luck getting the Mongolian output even now, since they're on non-standard frequencies
that you probably won't pick up. It looks to me as if long wave is rapidly heading for total closure.
Now I spent some time in the UK a few weeks ago and will do so again shortly in Manchester this
time. And while I can and do watch some of the domestic output of the BBC here in Australia,
because you know, geo-blocking doesn't really work, what surprised me watching it in the UK
and in a UK time zone was the amount of radio shows on the BBC News television channel. The
mornings have a similar cast of Nicky Campbell's phone in from Five Live and it's capable done.
But Campbell sits in a poorly lit studio with a big microphone partially obscuring his face,
big chunky headphones on and a computer monitor also in view. His guest was on a video link rather
than just audio but otherwise no thought appeared to have been put into dressing the studio for
television. No affordance seems to have been made for the cameras. The weekends are full of 30 minute
fillers from BBC Radio 4 and unlike Nicky Campbell's phone in which has some nifty graphics and
production at least, those filler shows are put together with all the production values of a Zoom
call. For half an hour I watched Nick Robinson interview someone in a studio, rolled up posters
had been carefully placed behind each of them but the vision entirely consisted of two locked off
cameras switching between one and the other. The microphone once more obscured their faces and
both were wearing large headphones. Another show with the excellent Ross Atkins interviewing Jeremy
Bowen was recorded in a different radio studio. Headphones were worn once more but no attempt
had been made to dress the studio at all with a 1980s door behind one of the two locked off cameras.
Both appeared to at least ensure that their faces were visible though.
If you compare that with LBC who used desk mounted microphones and a dressed studio
albeit horribly ugly headphones or talk TV's radio output where presenters wear lapel microphones
and earpieces or even seven years ago Paul Henry on New Zealand TV and radio it's inexplicable to me
that the BBC hasn't done more of a good job with their radio to TV output.
Elsewhere the radio.com domain appears to have been withdrawn from auction. It still forwards to
its owner Odyssey. They were wanting at least two and a half million dollars for it and it begs the
question does nobody want that domain really or has the ebused.radiodomain destroyed the.com value?
The UK's latest Radar figures came out with good news for Bowen's greatest hits radio even before
the Ken Bruce effect takes place and Matt Deegan takes a look at the figures with his usual attention
to details links to that and to other things I mentioned in my newsletter at james.cred.land.
One of the many BBC local radio bosses Roderick Telfand Davies has spoken with critic David Lloyd
and doesn't seem to either understand radio nor be across the issues which is rather disappointing.
Meanwhile Matt Deegan again takes a look at what BBC local radio could be doing and the opportunities
it could have in the future. And thank you to Clyde Broadcast who become my latest supporter.
Clyde Broadcast are experts in the design specification and installation of radio studios
and radio stations delivering full turnkey solutions worldwide and I'm grateful to them for their
support as well as Richard Hilton and James Masterton, Brun Audio Consulting, Somer FM and
Media Realms Radio websites. If you'd like to support this work in any way you can buy me a coffee
become a member to give regularly or just give a one-off coffee or five buy me a coffee.com slash
James Cridland is where to go. Now I'm looking forward next week to be at Radio Days North America
in Toronto and then in Manchester for Pod News Live my contact details are on my website james.cridland.net
if you're there too and you'd like to catch up you can also follow me on Masterdon just give me
a search james at crid.land and you'll find me there. My professional website has more details
about who I am, what I do and whether I can help you further as well. And let me talk to you very
quickly about Pod News Live it's in Media City in Salford and it's the first on June the 13th, the
first of a set of local day long conferences that focus on sharing knowledge and networking in the
business of podcasting. We've got speakers from Crowd Network and the BBC and Mike Media and many
more. It's an event which is small enough to network and varied enough to make sure that anyone can
get the most out of the event. Please do book your tickets they're very cheap and it would be lovely to
see you in the Lowry, the Lowry Centre. June the 13th is when it is and you'll find more information
at podnews.net slash live. My professional website, I use the word professional likely,
has more details about who I am or what I do and whether I can help you further you'll find that
at james.critland.net but until next time keep listening.