[cma-l] Community radio in funding crisis: The Guardian 24/08/09

[CMA-L]

Steve Buckley
The Guardian, Monday 24 August 2009
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2009/aug/24/community-radio-funding-crisis

Here is a paradox of media policy. In an early speech as the
chancellor, Gordon Brown highlighted community radio as one of the
"new ideas" the government should support and encourage. That support
translated into legislation that led to a new tier of not-for-profit
community radio services throughout the UK. But today this sector is
led by social entrepreneurs who are disgruntled with the present
government because they feel hamstrung by regulatory constraints on
funding and supported by a woefully inadequate Community Radio Fund –
a funding mechanism considered so strategic at the time that it was
provided for in law in the Communications Act 2003.

Community radio legislation's implementation has been described by
Ofcom as "one of the great UK broadcasting success stories in the last
few years". More than 200 community radio services have been licensed
since 2004. Around 150 of these services are still on air, creating
around 400 jobs, involving more than 10,000 volunteers, and bringing
increased choice to a potential audience of more than 10 million. Yet
those working on the frontline in community radio are acutely aware of
how precarious the foundations of this success are. Six stations have
failed to launch, three have handed back their licences. Many others
are at high risk.

Community radio is under constant fear of closure, according to
Professor Anthony Everitt, the author of the 2003 report, New Voices.
His recommendations formed the basis for government legislation.
Everitt's comments will be among those especially noted by the
Department for Culture, Media and Sport as consultation – part of the
Digital Britain review – closes tomorrow on amendments to the
community radio licensing regime. The Community Radio Order 2004
restricts community radio to a maximum 50% of revenue from advertising
and sponsorship, and in some locations advertising is prohibited. This
settlement was to be complemented, in part, by a sizeable commitment
to the Community Radio Fund. The government's own impact assessment,
in line with Everitt's recommendations, suggested the fund would
require £3m-£4m per annum.

But funding for community radio has not kept pace with growth in the
number of services. The Community Radio Fund was set up in 2005, with
£500,000 per annum when there were only 14 community radio licensees.
Today there are around 150 community radio services on air, but the
fund is yet to receive any annual increase.

Lord Puttnam is among the prominent figures who have pledged their
support for a campaign by community radio stations pressing the
government for access to adequate and reliable funds. In a joint
letter to the prime minister to mark the fifth anniversary of
community radio legislation, 60 station managers, together with media
experts, called for a fair share of government funding arrangements
for broadcasting. A follow-up petition has gathered more than 1,800
supporters. Puttnam assures them "the weight of public support and
technological history are with you".

In Cambridge, 209radio is one of the stations badly affected by
funding restrictions. Its station manager, Karl Hartland, says: "To
put it in context, the money available today through the Community
Radio Fund, to help support the operating costs of more than 150
community radio stations, is less than the annual salary of a BBC
Radio 1 breakfast DJ."

The government recently proposed taking 3.5% of licence revenue, or
around £130m per annum, to support local and regional news consortia
and other "essential" public service broadcasting content priorities.
But the community radio sector, already demonstrably successful,
appears to have slipped off the radar of funding priorities.

Everitt says the sector is "hobbled by its poverty", and has called on
the government to implement the recommendations of his report to
provide (matched) grant aid of £30,000 per year per station towards
core operating costs. Everitt believes this to be a "modest
expenditure" when the benefits community radio can offer are taken
into account. It could not only save some community radio stations
from the threat of imminent closure but also reward others for their
sustained delivery of social gain and community benefit.

• Steve Buckley is the co-author of Broadcasting, Voice and
Accountability: A Public Interest Approach to Policy, Law and
Regulation. He is also a director of Sheffield Live! 93.2fm

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Community Media Association
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