EXAMPLE 1: TARGETING AUDIENCE

How do popular music programmes target, reach and maintain a variety of audiences?

Established in 1967, Radio 1, then coined the ‘swinging new radio show’, was set up in response to the emergence of pirate radio stations. The BBC recognised the growing influence of pop music on the younger generation especially since these pirate stations had a large youth following, therefore when the Marine Broadcasting Offence Act 1967 shut down these stations, they acknowledged that there was an opportunity for them to offer a legal alternative to connect with the same demographic. 16 years later, in 1983, they enhanced their connection with the younger generation when the Radio 1 Breakfast Show aired for the first time, and through employing a presenter led format, adapting to changing technological contexts and adhering to the PSB charter, it eventually became the flagship show, currently receiving 9 million weekly listeners.

The main way popular music programmes, specifically the Radio 1 Breakfast Show, target, reach and maintain audiences is through the process of carefully selecting their presenter. Chris Moyles was the longest running presenter, hosting the show from 2004 to 2012, and he boasted high listening figures among the show’s target audience of 15-29 year olds. Despite this success, he was eventually removed from the show because of his age as they felt he was not appealing to a young enough audience anymore, and to maintain the high figures and continue targeting their audience, Nick Grimshaw took over until 2018. Nick’s purpose as a host was to ‘scare away the over 30s’ in order to maintain the 15-29 audience. Applying Hesmondalgh, we can see how this may have been a success, since Nick had previously hosted ‘Switch’, a TV programme targeted at young adults, therefore they would be familiar with him and he would attract a pre-sold audience to the Breakfast Show. However, it is difficult to tell the extent to which this was truly successful, since listening figures did begin to drop during his time as host, leading Greg James to be brought in as a replacement, who still hosts the show currently. Whilst this could be attributed to the fact those he was losing were actually over 30, showing the role of hosts in targeting and maintaining audiences, it leads me to the changing contexts that radio finds itself operating within, since live listeners are on the decline overall as young people are beginning to spend less time engaged with digital media.

Changing technological contexts have subsequently altered audience expectations, with most young listeners now expecting to be able to access content on demand. Whilst the decline in Grimshaw’s figures seems to suggest a flaw in using hosts to target and maintain audiences, identifying and adapting to increasingly modern technological contexts have meant that Radio 1 has successfully managed to reach and maintain its audience in alternative ways. For example, the show can now be accessed on FM, DAB, Freeview, Sky, iPlayer and BBC Sounds to name a few of the outlets, reinforcing the fact that streaming seems to be overtaking and doing well since audiences now have the option to play the show back, or listen on the go, rather than the traditional way of live listening, demonstrating the way Radio 1 have used more convergent technology to respond to the flexibility in listening demands. The Breakfast Show have also adapted to the waning attention spans of its listeners within the changing technological world and have broken the show into shorter segments, incorporating regular breaks and a mix of music, interviews and interactive elements to accommodate for different listening preferences in order to maintain and engage its audience, also finding quick ways to respond to current affairs to ensure the listeners do not feel out of date to preserve their loyalty and trust in the show. The incorporation of interactive content is especially beneficial in targeting and maintaining its audience, as it lets them make their own decisions and reinforces Shirky’s idea that new media encourages audiences to be active producers rather than passive consumers. The success of this was acknowledged by Greg James, who said that ‘the listeners have become like mates’, suggesting that by implementing new technology they were able to target and maintain their audience and even enhance their relationship with their listeners. This is also reflected in the success of the Radio 1 Youtube channel which has amassed a global audience of 1.4 billion viewers and 8 million subscribers, showing how new technology and increased interactivity has allowed the Radio 1 Breakfast Show to target and maintain its audience.

The use of new technology to increase interactivity shows the Breakfast Show’s success in meeting the ‘entertain’ section of its Public Service Broadcasting remit, as does the 4th October 2018 episode by featuring Romesh Ranganathan as a celebrity guest. As well as entertaining the audience, this also targets, reaches and maintains the audience by reflecting diverse communities with a guest of Hindu background. As well, it adheres to its remit to play 51% British music and ‘nurture UK talent’ per week by featuring Sam Fender’s ‘Dead Boys’ as song of the week, and mentioning the R1 Teen Awards which engages a younger audience. Also to target a younger audience, Radio 1 has a committee of 11 younger staff members to select songs for the weekly playlist to address the listening habits of younger people. As a public service broadcaster funded by a £159 annual license fee, Radio 1 has an obligation to cater to diverse demographics and serve the interests of the entire population, especially young people. Therefore, there is also evidence to suggest it meets the ‘inform’ and ‘educate’ Reithian values which have allowed it to target and maintain its audience. For example, the show includes many news, weather and traffic updates which clearly inform the audience, whilst the outreach programs on offer by the BBC provide young people with a pathway into the creative industry, effectively meeting the ‘educate’ value. Finally, as a PSB, Radio 1 are regulated by OFCOM, however as Livingstone and Lunt suggested, the rise of new media is complicating regulation because the internet is becoming more decentralised, meaning OFCOM are unable to regulate adverts or online stations. Therefore, to maintain its audience, the Breakfast Show have to regulate themselves via apologies in order to maintain their family friendly image, granted their early slot and young audience. They have to do this in order to avoid sanctions from Ofcom, for example, Nick Grimshaw had to apologise for a sexist tweet against London Grammar in order to reassure the listeners that they are truly committed to acting in their best interests.