Is new technology a bad thing for radio?

New technology: bad for radio? - my weekly column.

Bob Hoffman has a great weekly newsletter with lots of mostly-accurate reasons why Facebook (in particular) are ripping advertisers off: good ammunition if you want to talk about the trustworthiness of radio as an advertising medium. In last week’s, he wonders why advertisers ignore 50+ women. Me too. (Indeed, the whole 50+ segment appears to be relatively unloved).

Your Tesla Can Go Zero to 60 in 2.5 Seconds But Can’t Get AM Radio - the WSJ isn’t happy

Some impressive podcast content returning: Marvel’s Wolverine series is to come back to Stitcher in Q1 2019, and all podcast apps. Is this a renaissance of radio drama? I’d think so.

Does anyone remember this announcement from the BBC back in 2015? I wonder what happened to it.

Ireland declines more choice in the market. If I understand this right, the argument goes: “The Irish radio market is declining. Better not add any more stations until it gets better.” It’s a shame, since the neighbouring UK shows - beyond any measure of proof - that adding new radio stations and enhancing listener choice makes more money for the entire radio market.

Touchscreen radios in cars are a mess. Great to see Radioplayer is trying to make them better. This is a simple touchscreen radio prototype, aimed at keeping things simple and helping everyone listen to the radio. Looks nice.

Are podcasts and on-demand ‘radio’? wonders David Lloyd. Yes, of course they are. ‘Radio’ is audio with a shared experience and a human connection - it doesn’t need to be live (and, whisper, doesn’t need to be local either).

WLNG Radio to Be Sold - this looks like a good station with a good future; and proof that listening to the consultants doesn’t always work. Which is probably a good thing, all things considered.