Shake up at RTE

tbh

From the IRISH TIMES:

RTE’s various radio stations have announced their new-ish line-ups for the forthcoming season.

Headline changes: two new arts shows on RTE Radio One; Drivetime extended to 7pm; new sports show on RTE Radio One called Sport at 7 presented by Daragh Maloney; John Creedon gets the gig as RTE Radio One evening music host; Dave Fanning moves back to 2fm to present “a new fast-moving topical chat show” every weekday at 7pm; Marty Whelan gets a daily gig on Lyric FM and Raidio na Gaeltachta to stop broadcasting in Irish for the month of November (OK, I made that one up).

But the biggest change? “2fm to be re-positioned in 2010 following a strategic review. Station profile to shift from 15-34 to 25-44″. Yes, 2fm admit the game is up and that they can’t compete for the kids with other stations around the country so, Today FM, they’re comingatcha! Bet Today FM are chortling loudly at that one. Dave Fanning v Paul McLoone? That’s a bit like Limerick v Tipperary yesterday to be honest.



Are we getting our own version of BBC R2? As stated in the Sunday Times yesterday, RTE have a problem finding room for the likes of Maxi, G. Ryan, Dave Fanning etc

mike65

Why find room? Sometimes you have to let go and reinvent. I know that is quite contary to anything RTE has ever done.

deadhead13

Dave Fanning might have had a revelence in the 80's and possibly early 90's as a poor mans John Peel, but before he left for radio 1 his show only had 21,000 listeners. Off the ball's audience is more than twice that. A "new fast-moving topical chatshow" doesn't sound a whole lot different from his current show. It seems to be more a case of RTE being unwilling to make difficult decisions.

trek climber

Why the hell doesn't he retire - what age is he anyway ?

Firetrap

Fiftysomething I'd assume. I don't mind him actually. Some of those aireheaded girly DJs are much more headwrecking.

More Music

Yeah loike u knw I totally agree!!

icdg

tbh wrote: »

From the IRISH TIMES:

RTE’s various radio stations have announced their new-ish line-ups for the forthcoming season.

Headline changes: two new arts shows on RTE Radio One; Drivetime extended to 7pm; new sports show on RTE Radio One called Sport at 7 presented by Daragh Maloney; J

Looks like a complete reversal of the changes on RTÉ Radio 1 of 2006, we essentially have 5-7 Live and Sportscall back.

FlutterinBantam

icdg wrote: »

Looks like a complete reversal of the changes on RTÉ Radio 1 of 2006, we essentially have 5-7 Live and Sportscall back.

Which we all said was the right thing to do when the original programme sched. changed.

Degsy

throw gerry Ryan out and get some other egomaniacal potty-mouth in on one-tenth of the money.

Badabing

What is Des Cahill job now is he just the sports guy on after the news headlines? ala Darren Frehill

bilko1234

Why oh why do RTE have to put up a new sports programme to go head to head with Newstalk's Off The Ball??
Darragh Maloney????
I mean, he's a nice bloke an all, but Eoin McDevitt, Ciaran Murphy, Ken Early and Cian Murtagh can only leave this show in the ha'penny place.
Off The Ball is cool, irreverent, spontaneous, funny and well informed.
Darragh Maloney's new programme sounds like every other sports show RTE has put on...scripted and cardboard like.

irish_bob

trek climber wrote: »

Why the hell doesn't he retire - what age is he anyway ?

hes mid 50,s , i was a fan of fanning untill i hit 25 or so , i cant stand him now , as someone once said about the guy , his whole life is a gig , outside music and film , he has no understanding of anything

irish_bob

bilko1234 wrote: »

Why oh why do RTE have to put up a new sports programme to go head to head with Newstalk's Off The Ball??
Darragh Maloney????
I mean, he's a nice bloke an all, but Eoin McDevitt, Ciaran Murphy, Ken Early and Cian Murtagh can only leave this show in the ha'penny place.
Off The Ball is cool, irreverent, spontaneous, funny and well informed.
Darragh Maloney's new programme sounds like every other sports show RTE has put on...scripted and cardboard like.

off the ball is the best show on irish radio but being on newstalk , it has a limited audience and still only pulls in a fraction of what des cahills daily show would , that said , i think its irreverant style is more at home on an independant station

lacase

I have to agree Gerry Ryan should shove off. Radio 2 started in August 1979 and Gerry and Dave were there among others. That is now thirty years ago so how can these middle aged fat cats appeal to a young audience? Come on the national broadcaster should encourage new talent when you have unmovable fossils in the way where does the new talent get a look in?

It is no wonder that 2fm have to change its audience focus, but even for "oldies" Gerry is well past his sell by date and costs too much for a rubbish program. Who cares what he thinks or wants to hear about how he is just like the rest of us when he is living a millionaire lifestyle on our taxes particularly when people are struggling to make a living. RTE can easily find a replacement with a fresh appeal and will cost a fraction of the price.

Big Tone

lacase wrote: »

I have to agree Gerry Ryan should shove off. Radio 2 started in August 1979

No it started on May 31st 1979

I'd do his 9-12 slot for 10% of what he earns, I'd happily take €70,000.

lacase

You are right it was May I got the month and not the year wrong it is 30 years + Good on you and you could only be an improvement on Gerry.!!

DT100

Big Tone wrote: »

No it started on May 31st 1979

I'd do his 9-12 slot for 10% of what he earns, I'd happily take €70,000.

May 31st was on a thursday in 79..if they grey matter is correct.

deadhead13

In an interview the MD of RTE Radio, Claire Duigan, on the proposed shake-up at 2fm - "The station was targeting teenage market, but there was a misalignment between who the was targeting and the talent and the content it was offering. That said, some of those people are icons of Irish broadcasting and many of them are hugely popular, but we need to have them on a service where there popularity is a hit with the audience that the station is targeting."

But I suspect the main reason for the change is down to advertising revenue being down 30%, 13 million euros. And the diposable income of 25 - 44 year olds being more attractive to advertisers than that of 15 - 35 year olds.

Other interesting bits in the article - RTE's commercial revenue from radio in 2008 was 45 million euros, the cost were 75.2 million euros. The shortfall being made up by the licence fee. Which again makes you wonder about how much the radio "stars" are being paid. And 2fm's audience has fallen from 15.2% in 2004 to 10.9%.

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/finance/2009/0821/1224253010470.html

mike65

deadhead13 wrote: »

In an interview the MD of RTE Radio, Claire Duigan, on the proposed shake-up at 2fm - "The station was targeting teenage market, but there was a misalignment between who the was targeting and the talent and the content it was offering. That said, some of those people are icons of Irish broadcasting and many of them are hugely popular, but we need to have them on a service where there popularity is a hit with the audience that the station is targeting."

Or "we are so inept we don't actually know what we are doing".

parasite

Or "the target audience is whoever listens to over-unionised people we can't get rid of"

deadhead13

Or "all of the above"

tbh

folks this is not a general thread about 2fm. Please stick to the topic at hand.