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Is Grimshaw really scaring off the over-30s?
Inkblot
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Ben Cooper has congratulated Nick Grimshaw for "scaring-off the over 30s", as a result of which the breakfast show now has its lowest audience since 2003.
Just wondered whether people thought the over-30s really were scared of Grimshaw. It seems like a strange turn of phrase, and more like spin than objective analysis.
Just wondered whether people thought the over-30s really were scared of Grimshaw. It seems like a strange turn of phrase, and more like spin than objective analysis.
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The BBC will find it easier to justify the continued use of licence fee if it can show it's serving an audience that is less favoured by commercial stations, and that Radio 1 isn't competing directly with those stations for the lucrative over 30s audience.
If anything, the BBC is alienating adults under the age of 35.
Nobody can say there isn't ample provision of pop these days. The station in it's present form is anachronistic and needs a complete rethink.
Unless, off course, you can differentiate between one 'pop' track and another. R1 is as far away from commercial 'pop' services as R3 is from Classic FM. Both are equally valid, although it should be noted that R3 costs significantly more than R1.
Grimshaw isn't alienating over 30s, the show is alienating everyone. It's just a very bad show. Grimmy is another Coxy, a potentially good presenter stuck on a dire breakfast show that does him no favours. Greg James needs to be pushing now for the slot in the same way Moyle's did, for his career and for the sake of Radio 1's future.
Radio 1 is very important to British music. It needs to get to its young audience to fulfil its role of introducing them to new British music. Clearly iTunes, Spotify, Vevo and the like can't be trusted to promote British acts without either filtering them into some niche bucket or only focussing on Sam Smith and Ellie Goulding and ignoring anyone else. The problem is that the current breakfast show is failing to hold onto or gain younger listeners in the target demo - a far bigger problem than the problem of too many older listeners. Definitely time for a change.
outside of radio 1 i agree with you.
next stage is subliminal messages ''we are like a pension scheme, keep paying and you can use us in a few decades time if you are lucky"
Should it be a latter day Peel FM? Well that would certainly reduce the audience to a fanatical rump and would be good for certain parts of the British music industry. Or maybe it goes all urban, kids like that right?
I think they need to ask genuine whippersnappers the length and breath of the land, then not shy away from the verdict and just retreat to the W1A bubble as usual.
If businesses thought like the BBC, and actively tried to discourage over-30s from consuming their products, we'd have no Toy Story or Lego Movie or Big Hero 6. Because management would say, there are too many elements in these films that appeal to older viewers. We need to take out the thought-provoking bits, the smart gags and the witty observations and just leave in the bits that kids like.
And we'd be left with rubbish, wouldn't we?
The BBC needs to get a grip and realise that older audiences can appreciate radio, TV, books, films and yes, music, that are all aimed at an audience younger than they are. We don't stop enjoying music just because the people who made it are young enough to be our kids. Radio 1 should embrace that instead of trying to scare away the people who, er, pay for it.
we would also have no jokes for adults in the simpsons, probably no minions or professor in despicable me (the best parts) and lets also forget things that kids watch on kids tv that their parents also like, so no more rastamouse for example.
we are reaching a similar situation to when r1 was invented, a disillusioned group capable of making their own stations, all we need is for the bbc trust to see that
Are there any audience results that would make him look bad?
I think he'd make a great government spin doctor as he can make any news look good.
I wonder how he'll react if the government decide to halve his budget due to austerity and less listeners, I imagine he'd reward himself a payrise for being given a more challenging job and leave even less for programming.
I worry about this country when people like this get into such powerful positions in the public sector, no wonder the Tories are popular knowing that these type of people need reducing in the public sector saving us all a fortune.
i believe however that this sort of behaviour from the bbc is going to make a license fee very difficult to justify to a generation alienated by the country's two biggest national radio stations
It should offer a range of new music, support emerging artists – especially those from the UK – and provide a platform for live music. News, documentaries and advice campaigns should cover areas of relevance to young adults.
The remit of 1Xtra is to play the best in contemporary black music with a strong emphasis on live music and supporting new UK artists. The schedule should also offer a bespoke news service, regular discussion programmes and specially commissioned documentaries relevant to the young target audience (15–24 year olds), particularly, although not exclusively, those from ethnic minorities.
Find more information about the remit and licence for Radio 1 and 1Xtra.
The remit of 1Xtra is to play the best in contemporary black music with a strong emphasis on live music and supporting new UK artists. The schedule should also offer a bespoke news service, regular discussion programmes and specially commissioned documentaries relevant to the young target audience (15–24 year olds), particularly, although not exclusively, those from ethnic minorities.
.[/QUOTE]
sounds like how radio 1 is heading
Indeed very little differentiation now, is this the BBCs master plan to make them so similar that they eventually merge. Heritage secreatary could then let merged station keep 1Xtra's DAB slot and sell off the FM/other DAB slot to the highest bidder.
One step to reducing the defecit. At the same time lets have one controller of BBC popular music, can't be a need for seperate Radio 1 and 2 controllers.
The BBC need to realise that 30somethings are not the same as they were decades ago, they aren't going to move to Radio 2 to listen to easy listening classics, they still want to know about new music and listen to youthful banter.
As all ages pay the same licence fee, is it right that 30-50 year olds are not provided with a national FM radio station?
Correct
Ben cooper is indicative of everything that is wrong with how r1 and parts of the bbc are run, I for one would be happy to see him sacked
I certainly don't want to be pensioned off to Radio 2 with Vanessa Feltz, Friday Night is 1939 night and the other assorted FAB effEM platter spinners.
I'd certainly like to think my radio listening is reasonably broad. On my drive to work at 5.15 am it's -
5.15 - Radio 1
5.30 Radio 4 news, papers and business
5.40 Radio 1 / Peak FM / Ambersound (whoever has the best song at that point)
Lunchtimes it's Radio 4
Driving home it's back to Radio 1 and at home Team Rock or Absolute
I fully support the licence fee and indeed would like to see it increased (slightly) but the argument for it's abolition is sadly growing. Why should I, as a working 37 year old be denied a Radio 1 that caters for all ages from 12 - 50 plus and Family guy, American Dad! on BBC Three just because somebody at the BBC Trust thinks we're too old for them?!
Nick is the radio equivalent of dog shit on your best shoes.
Most people in their 30s want to listen to the music Radio 1 plays, we are way too young to listen to Radio 2. It's basically an "oldies" station, why would I want to listen to that? I want new music! So if they want to scare us off the only place we can go is to commercial radio, and what does that achieve?
Now I listen almost exclusively to 1xtra which I think should be called 6Urban or something because it has almost nothing in common with 1 to me. I just like a lot of grime, hip hop, and urban music and they basically only play that with little nonsense around it.
To be fair, Radio 2 does play some new music, though this week's playlist is particularly grim.
In fact the strange thing is that Radio 1 doesn't play oldies. Current music doesn't exist in a vacuum. The people who make the music obviously know their oldies, you can hear it in a lot of new music. So why shouldn't the listeners also know their oldies?
i asked the exact same question nearly 2 and a half years ago
http://forums.digitalspy.co.uk/showthread.php?t=1796135&highlight=
now i only listen to absolute or non uk stations (absolute in the car and on our stereos, otherwise its spotify or non uk stations)
I'm starting to swing more towards abolition of the license fee as i cannot see what i get for it