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<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>Phil<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>Thanks for the advice …. much appreciated,
and a story worth telling. Key commitments are after all ………………
er ? Key ? and I
agree with you, anyone who thinks that the likes of Soo and Lawrie n’all
at Ofcom are unreasonable people have clearly had no real dealings with them.
Providing people don’t take the ‘michael’ they are very
reasonable and furthermore quite helpful within the restraints of how much
information and advice that they are permitted to give.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>In fact, I haven’t come across
anyone yet in the last 7 years who is unreasonable apart from the overall rules
which afterall came about via lots of meetings and lots of committees ………………..
the committees consisting of course of a number of possible influential people
who are removed from the real world. I think decisions were made based on
information that wasn’t really readily available and it has been a
learning curve for all of us. The main issue has been the constant ignoring of
observations / complaints from licence holders almost to extent of the
authorities showing no respect for what we are doing ……………………
hence the reason why I at times have a tendency to ‘shout off ! and/or go
off on one’
anyway, enough of that for now.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>My question here is quite simple ……………..
surely no station goes off-air deliberately ?!………… What
is to be gained by ‘’going off-air’’
believe it or not, we have been off-air 3 times this week ………………..
!
once last weekend when there was a power cut at the Mill ……. Fortunately
our UPS system pulled us through for half-an-hour or so, which meant we were
only down for about 11 minutes …………… (long enough
though to possibly have listeners migrating
away)
the second time we went off was on Friday ………………..
we had a computer ‘’crash!’’
and we didn’t have the cd players in the studio as we were cleaning the
lenses at the time ………… possibly bad or unfortunate
timing
?!
we were off-air for 6 minutes ……………………………
and then (would you Adam and Eve it?) this morning at
7am when the person who set the clock for overnight last night didn’t do
his maths correctly …………… I was driving in this
morning at 6:50am covering one day for our brekky presenter and whilst driving
I hear our news jingle going off ……… by the time I’d
collected the papers and got to the studios, we had had 2 minutes of ‘dead
air’<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>The point I make is that this was all
unfortunate and certainly not something that we want to be doing ……………………………….
Question (How long does a station have to be off-air before it ceases to fulfil
its key commitments ?? and ….
According to the rules and regulations we are 70% community and only 30% radio
so …… What’s the big deal anyway
!?)
sorry to be a bore, but on this occasion I’m only playing devils
advocate.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>By the way, has anyone got any suggestions
regarding my observation on the census
??
belive it or not once again, I actually briefly mentioned it on brekky this
morning as a passing comment …………… so many days
to valentines / so many days to the Brits / so many days to the sale of Olympic
games tickets and er??? so many days to the census ……………….
But ……………. No detail and certainly not
elaborating on it. What that guy said two weeks ago at that meeting was nothing
short of insulting and it was a ‘’WAKE-UP CALL’’ for ‘’ALL’’
of us !<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>The problem we’ve got as I see it is
that our approach doesn’t appear to be co-ordinated ……………………..
I don’t mind someone from the CMA, or Ian or Phil or whoever sending a
message to the board and saying ‘’Nicky dear boy, you are talking
out of your bottom’’
that’s fine by me …………. However, that must be
coupled with another comment stating that if you don’t agree then what is
your alternative and as a group what are we going to try and do about it.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>This really is the root of my gripes ……………….
I think ?<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>All the best<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>Regards<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>Nick<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
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<p class=MsoNormal><b><font size=2 face=Tahoma><span lang=EN-US
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Tahoma;font-weight:bold'>From:</span></font></b><font
size=2 face=Tahoma><span lang=EN-US style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Tahoma'>
cma-l-bounces@mailman.commedia.org.uk
[mailto:cma-l-bounces@mailman.commedia.org.uk] <b><span style='font-weight:
bold'>On Behalf Of </span></b>Phil Korbel<br>
<b><span style='font-weight:bold'>Sent:</span></b> 07 February 2011 15:29<br>
<b><span style='font-weight:bold'>To:</span></b> CMA-L<br>
<b><span style='font-weight:bold'>Subject:</span></b> [cma-l] a tale of two
stations</span></font><span lang=EN-US><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:12.0pt'><font size=3
face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>in today's Ofcom Bulletin
- two community stations - Voice Of Africa [<st1:City w:st="on">London</st1:City>]
and Afan [Port Talbot, <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Wales</st1:place></st1:country-region>]
are told off for apparently going off air [or near as]. <br>
<br>
<a
href="http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/binaries/enforcement/broadcast-bulletins/obb175/issue175.pdf">http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/binaries/enforcement/broadcast-bulletins/obb175/issue175.pdf</a><br>
<br>
There's an interesting nuance - VOA went off air completely for weeks it seems
and neglected to tell Ofcom at all, and Afan had what sounds like a terminal IT
meltdown and had to put on a loop for a week or three. Now they told
Ofcom about their IT SNAFU, got permission for a temporary remedial service
[that didnt fulfill their Key Commitments] but over-ran on the amount of
time they'd been permitted. Ofcom discovered the VOA boo-boo and a
complainant alerted then to the Afan situation Both stations have had the
same breach declared but I wonder if the different approaches to Ofcom will
make the seriousness of any sanction vary between the two?<br>
<br>
Of course we cant know the full context and detail of the two incidents but one
lesson is clear - if there's something going awry that's likely to make you
breach your licence - 'fess up! Start a dialogue w the community radio
team - they are reasonable people [whatever you think of the regulations
Nick]...<br>
<br>
best wishes<br>
<br>
Phil<br clear=all>
<br>
-- <br>
Phil Korbel<br>
Director<br>
0161 237 5454<br>
<br>
Radio Regen is a community, media and urban regeneration charity <br>
A company limited by guarantee and registered in England and Wales No. 3753832 <br>
Registered office: 12 Hilton Street, Manchester, M1 1JF <br>
Registered Charity No. 1077763 <br>
<a href="http://www.radioregen.org">www.radioregen.org</a><br>
<a href="http://www.communityradiotoolkit.net">www.communityradiotoolkit.net</a><br>
<br>
<br>
<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
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