Specialist music, public service and the BBC in the Internet age

Abstract

This article reports on a study into the implications of the development of online fan communities for specialist music broadcasting on the domestic radio stations controlled by the United Kingdom's publically funded the British Broadcasting Company. In particular it focuses on jazz, soul reggae/urban and indie rock. The early sections explore ideas of specialist music and their role in the development of the idea of public service broadcasting within the United Kingdom. This is followed by an analysis of the activities and communities of specialist music fans online. The final section reports on the way the BBC organizes the production of radio and online media around specialist music forms. We also outline our proposals on modularization and dissemination of content, the exploitation of the taste-leadership of the stations' presenters and experts, and the possible ways in which changes in the production of programmes could serve broadcast and online media. The study concludes that the BBC places the support of specialist music as a key argument in defence of their role as a public service broadcaster, and thus for public funds, as well as demonstrating significant policy and organizational support for the implications of new online media. However, we argue that an appreciation of the place of radio and online media in specialist fan culture is not the basis for organizing production. This results in two orientations amongst staff: a broadcast one built around the centrality of the station brand and an emergent interactive one built around the potential of the new media and the BBC as a provider of public service media.

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