“When was the last time you saw this amount of coverage for the radio”

Are you excluding the BBC’s 22 high-impact TV advertising campaigns it has shown for DAB over the last 7 years, or are you including those thousands and thousands of TV adverts as being “coverage for the radio”?

Oh Steve – I think James means UNPROMPTED coverage by commercial and public service TV. That is – not orchestrated by or for a broadcaster. In fact, it is far and away more in terms of PR than we in the UK have ever achieved – give credit where its due – I for one UK person am blown away by it.( Oh, and do you work for the BBC?)

Steve Green, who runs the digitalradiotech website, harrasses me and others in the industry. Every comment by him in my blog will henceforth be accompanied by this text, which will also serve to highlight his appalling behaviour to others; and I am no longer permitting more than one comment per article from the harrasser Steve Green.

James –

Useful post which perhaps I can enrich ?

As an Australian (albeit living in LDN now) and having involvement in media over there, the level of coverage reflects a few points about the Australian DNA.

1 – The Australian commercial media has a much greater hold than, say, in the UK. To that end, *any* stories to bolster their sales pitch (and, of course, told by their own), is always going to get coverage.

2 – Similar to (1), the industry is a bit “clubby” – maybe reflects the nation size ? So, jamborees such as these always go down well.

3 – The quality / depth of output of current affairs over there is, well, thin. I am just back from a week in Sydney – it always amazes (= frightens) me what passes for “news” in a major metro market, at primetime.

4 – The country has always been a bit nerdy when it comes to technology. Some call it an “early adopting” nation. Either way, new toys make the news.

-= David

David – Oh poor sad embittered expat.! I too am an expat living in Mexico and have worked in media around the world. Media in Oz is not clubby – it is incredibly competitive and TV gives radio no breaks at all. ABC wouldnot thank you for your comments on news coverage nor would the news talk radio stations. Get off your high horse. By the way, as an Australian you should know we are early adopters and known world wide for that – it’s hardly nerdy.

The detail here is a bit old and biassed.
The ABC now has not only its analog programs of local radio, Radio National, ClassicFM, JJJ, but also ABC Jazz, ABC Dig, Grandstand 1 Grandstand 2, ABC country and ABC Extra (for special events). SBS now has its SBS1 as well as SBS2, Chill and Asia.
http://www.digitalradioplus.com.au/index.cfm?page_id=1048&display_news_id=1079 Shows the current figures just remember transmissions only started 19 months ago and the total population of the coverage area is 13 million.
AlanH