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Populists gut radio drama
"the political reality"

Radio drama is on the chopping black in Denmark as the government looks for further reductions at public broadcaster DR. Earlier DR announced severe job cuts and the closing of three digital radio channels in the 20% budget reduction demanded in a media agreement between the Culture Ministry and the right-wing populist Danish People’s Party (Dansk Folkeparti - DF). The previous media agreement required 30 hours of radio drama produced annually. Danmarks Radio, now known as DR Radio, has offered radio drama since 1925.

“It's going to make a significant difference to the listeners who like DR radio drama, for they will get less,” said DR radio director Gustav Lützhøft, quoted by Politiken (October 29). “And for those who have been producing, there is also less to produce. This due to the politically reality we find ourselves in.” (See more about media in Denmark here)

Radio drama will no longer be internally produced but commissioned, largely, from outside podcast producers. “The genre is not dead and it has not disappeared from DR,” he added. “We must at least have two major productions per year.”

Many radio broadcasters - public and privately-owned - are seeing new demand growth for speech-based programming. And it is not only news and public affairs content. Then, too, distribution by podcast is surging. As DR was an early adopter of digital radio distribution through the DAB platform, it has now adopted podcasts.

New clues to declines in radio listening
"those who know and love the radio"

At the end of August, the Poland’s National Media Council (Rady Mediów Narodowych) terminated the employment of Polskie Radio president Jacek Sobala. Earlier in the month, he had been suspended without duties. Two weeks later he was formally fired for "breach of corporate governance and principle of collegiality in the work of the company's bodies,” said the Polskie Radio management board statement, reported Onet.pl (August 28). Extensively reported at that time, the firing was due to a “conflict” with Anny Czabańskiej, deputy director of Polskie Radio and wife of National Media Council president Krzysztof Czabański.

All of this is tied, unceremoniously, to the rule of Poland’s Law and Justice (PiS) party and its relentless pursuit of a nationalist and uncritical media. “Public media is only political prey… and prey,” wrote Tomasz Wybranowski in a open letter to the National Media council, quoted by media news portal wirtualnemedia.pl (October 23). “This merry-go-round causes the listeners, the body who also pays for Polish Radio, to lose most.” Mr. Wybranowski had been a finalist in consideration for the Polskie Radio presidency in 2017, in which Mr. Sobala was selected. (See more about media in Poland here)

“The channels of Polish radio are losing their listeners and nobody wonders why this happens,” he continued. “Since 1989, teams managing public radio are displaced every four years, depending on which group won parliamentary elections. The results of the Polish Radio Track (audience estimates) – let's say it sincerely – they are lousy, miserable and weak compared to the strengths that the public radio has. Maybe the time has come, finally, to entrust the reins of Polish radio to the specialists, those who know and love the radio?” Mr. Wybranowski had been, until January 2016, director of overseas broadcasting for Polskie Radio.

Much - if not all - of this is due to the precipitously deteriorating audience for Polskie Radio channels. In the recently released Q3 (July-September) Radio Track from Kantar Millward Brown full-service contemporary music channel Jedynka Radio dropped to 6.7% audience share in the national estimates, “the lowest result in the history of broadcasting,” said wirtualnemedia.pl (October 29). Alternative music channel Trojka Radio also fell; 5.7% audience share - “one of the worst outcomes ever.” Privately-owned RMF FM rose to 26.0% audience share. (See Poland national radio audience estimates trend chart here)

Radio Page week ending October 26, 2018
radio in the UK, radio audience, RAJAR, BBC Radio, public broadcasting, commercial radio, Radio 2, Radio 4, Magic, LBC, Heart, Classic FM, digital radio, digital transition

Radio Page week ending October 19, 2018
radio in Norway, digital transition, digital radio, Norwegian Media Authority, Metro Radio, radio in Belgium, CIM, radio audience, summer listening, Nostalgie, Bel RTL, Vivecité, RTBF, Radio 2, MNM, VRT, QMusic, Joe FM

Radio Page week ending October 12, 2018
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Radio Page week ending October 5, 2018
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Radio Page week ending September 28, 2018
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Radio Page week ending September 21, 2018
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Radio Page week ending September 14, 2018
radio in Lithuania, music quotas, M-1

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