Originally Posted by CyrilTheWasp:
“I am not at all surprised. I honestly think that there has been a real backlash from listeners against the BBC and 5live/Radio Manchester in the more populated Midlands region because the BBC has totally abandoned this area in favour of and a wrong focus on Manchester.After being a 5live listener for many years, I decided that if they cannot be bothered to support the Midlands region ( in which the BBC gets a quarter of its licence fee funding ) then I will desert them and I feel others have done the same and now listen to LBC and Talkradio and you know what ? I actually enjoy listening to the radio again compared to the mundane dross & presenters on 5live.Julia Hartley Brewer and Iain Dale have superb shows and I understand have increased their audience figures.Well done to them.”
LBC gets calls from literally all over the UK. It really should no longer be referred to as "a London radio station", (which the BBC call it when they use a news clip). 5Live is Salford based, yet LBC reflects the views and concerns of people nationwide more than the BBC nowadays, and, in truth, has done for a while.
I think Media City has become a bubble of self-satisfaction and arrogance, that they are "the best" and are reflecting the regions, they aren't. You can read it in the opinions of presenters via their tweets that their programming is superior. It begs the question, have they listened to other stations? They might not be so smug.