Anyone else stopped listening to radio

AnthonyCny

Anyone else just stopped listening to Irish radio? I just have spotify on the majority of the day.

Standard of music and chat in the last 18 months has nosedived.

MyPeopleDrankTheSoup

only ever listened in the car

Radio Gold

Only ever listen to RTE Gold now, all other Irish radio stations are just awful.

Damien360

Maybe it's my age but I find myself channel hopping in the car. I dislike phone in parts of any show, so that's RTÉ out for me. Used to be avid Todayfm listener but I am tired of Ian Dempsey so I switched to FM104 when in Dublin, CD's (remember those ?) when outside, and when either station talks to the public, I switch to Newstalk. Back to Dermot and Dave for their show, switch away for Al Porter, only come back for Matt Cooper and hop away if guest is rubbish and often forget to come back and CD's if all else fails.

Harry Palmr

Increasingly yes, I used to listen from wake up to the drivetime programmes but I've not listened to anything after about midday for a few years now apart from very late night on BBC radio 4 (news, book of the week, shipping forecast)

thedudeinthehat

There are good segments, regular features on shows that are worth catching up with as podcasts. On top of the amazing podcasts available from NPR/ BBC I agree that it is kinda waste of time to listen to regular radio live. Repeated news round ups, lame ads. With so much to consume, we are spoiled and the radio stations need to bear in mind that they are not competing with each other but with all these alternatives.

yosser hughes

Only listen to BBC Radio 4 and 6 now and Spotify as well.Podcasts from all over. There really is no need to endure Irish radio anymore.
Could not listen to the bluffers and incompetents and generally boring interviews on Irish radio. Music played is also absolute rubbish on Irish radio.
I'm glad I don't pay a licence fee (I've no TV). It would drive me mad if I did.

Ursus Horribilis

I have. I'm in the 30-something age group that no mainstream radio station wants any more. So there are no daytime music shows for me. I listen to some of Pat Kenny and/or Sean O'Rourke in the morning, perhaps some of Sean Moncrieff in the afternoon and then the drivetime shows in the evening. Other than that, I'm increasingly using Spotify and my phone's radio app. The standard of Irish radio shows has gone to the dogs in my opinion. There are an awful lot more p*ss poor presenters on the air these days and in general radio has dumbed down.

DopeTech

I've got tired of all Irish radio too. They're all just copies of eachother playing the same coronas and kodaline songs an crazy high rotation. I know it have a quota to hit but still.

I've found myself listening to Spotify nearly all the time in the car now. If I want to get a radio fix I stream BBC R1.

RebelButtMunch

Nova has picked up a bit since the demise of txfm

King George VI

Yep. Haven't listened intentionally in years except for the odd Morning Ireland on the way to work. Studied radio, worked in radio for a few years in a cushy job, didn't like it and left the business but still listened to the radio. It's just gone downhill and is almost irrelevant at this stage. There's so many better things out there for me to listen to. e.g. Howard Stern and Joe Rogan or any Youtube series or Spotify actually most often. The advent of internet entertainment has killed radio, and for the better I think.

casscass4444

Radio Gold wrote: »

Only ever listen to RTE Gold now, all other Irish radio stations are just awful.

It's a pity you can't get rte gold on a normal radio.find it brilliant myself.great mix of music and no waffle and bad news breaks.get it here on saorview.our local station in Galway is very hit and miss.main lunch time slot is absolute muck.cowboy/Irish music that would make you want to put a bullet in your head

my3cents

Another Radio 4 listener. I keep trying other stations because I think I should listen to whats going on in Ireland but always end up back at Radio 4. Only time I change is when cricket is on Radio 4 LW or for stuff like the morning service or the Archers omnibus. Now I like cricket but not all day.

Malari

I almost never listen to radio live. Perhaps a news show in the car when I drive to work once a month or so.

I feel I must be in the minority among my friends, though, as if some overplayed Ed Sheeran song is mentioned by and I claim not to know it, I always get the "ah, you do, you'd know it if you heard it!" even when playing of aforementioned song is met with my blank stare :pac:

OldMrBrennan83

This post has been deleted.

Ranjo

Only in the car. Always had TXFM on. Now I spend half my journey surfing stations.

ITV2

Got a dab put into the car mostly listen to RtE Gold and Radio 1Xtra for NPR and BBC world service programmes. Either that or memory stick music.

yosser hughes

ITV2 wrote: »

Got a dab put into the car mostly listen to RtE Gold and Radio 1Xtra for NPR and BBC world service programmes. Either that or memory stick music.

How good is the signal on your DAB ? Can you get BBC 4 for example? Could you recommend one?

TallGlass

Only in the car, if I have the phone will usually listen to Capital FM London. What I have noticed, is this 'radio banter' only a thing in Ireland, between two co hosts? Its bloody awful.

hullaballoo

I am listening to radio quite a bit actually but my habits have changed an awful lot since October. I have Lyric FM on in the car, Today FM on in the kitchen mornings and evenings and 8radio.com or Spotify TXFM tribute playlists on the rest of the time.

Ciaran_B

I bought a bluetooth speaker for the kitchen and replaced the radio. I stream podcasts or music to it. Not listened to the radio for a good while now.

I do miss it though but the annoying ads and presenters were too much.

dublinman1990

RTE Gold is my station of choice on Saorview & that would be it regarding Irish radio nowadays.

I listen to one internet radio station called Truckers FM by streaming it from it's website or on Twitch.

It is a radio station for gamers who play the multiplayer versions of Euro Truck Simulator 2 & American Truck Simulator on Steam.

Elsewhere; I listen to music from MP3's & my CD collection at home. Youtube is my choice for my other sources of music.

Birneybau

dublinman1990 wrote: »

RTE Gold is my station of choice on Saorview & that would be it regarding Irish radio nowadays.

I listen to one internet radio station called Truckers FM by streaming it from it's website or on Twitch.

It is a radio station for gamers who play the multiplayer versions of Euro Truck Simulator 2 & American Truck Simulator on Steam.

Elsewhere; I listen to music from MP3's & my CD collection at home. Youtube is my choice for my other sources of music.

Whuh?

trixiebust

Thought I was alone in this. Completely switched off Irish radio in the last few months, and don't miss it one bit.

From Dempsey in the morning, to Duffy in the afternoon, to whomever else is trying to fill air time with inane chatter, turned me completely off Irish radio.

Tried Today FM earlier, lasted about 30 seconds, some guy " live from Dubai ". I don't care you're live from Dubai, I'm in Ireland, and it's pissing rain. Fluck off with you're nonsense.

The time is...the weather is...news from the net...etc, etc. All to fill air time. Podcasts are all I listen to now, get what I want when I want.

Radio will soon become an old medium, just like newspapers, advertising will fall off a cliff, and never recover.

infogiver

Can't listen to Tubbs
Can't listen to Duffy
Can't listen to Darcy.
Sean O rourke allowed a woman on from Hidden Hearing the other morning and gave her 20 minutes on why we should by hearing aids from her for €4000.
Pat Kenny too many ad breaks
George Hook unbearable.
Paul Williams unbearable.
Marion Finnucan shoot me now.
TippFM country music 5 hours a day.
BBC2 top class.

snowflaker

BBC iPlayer Radio app ftw. But mostly speech based programs on 4 & 5

pilly

I tend to listen to a lot of radio for the latest news but I don't know if I'm alone in this but I get SO sick of sports reporting.

Just seems to be so much of it now. Like Drive time had 10 minutes on Cheltenham almost every evening this week. It ignores the fact that a huge % of the public have zero interest.

mr_edge_to_you

Ye. It's fairly bad.

I hate this craic of having to have comedians presenting shows. It's a contstant competition to be the funniest show in radio. I always think back to the 90s and 2fm in the evenings. I never liked that Hot line show that Tony Fenton did, but from 8-10 you had Dave Fanning playing unbelievable music followed Aidan Leonard until midnight. Even after midnight there was a cracking show by Mike Moloney. No messing, just good music, no texting or twitter polls.

I would mainly have listened to radio in the morning and as I got older my tastes have changed. I found Ivan and Chris on Newstalk to be exactly what I wanted. We all know what happened there.

The only show I find myself listening to live now is Off The Ball.

phater phagan

I listen to radio a lot, on the Internet - mostly musical programs - Classical and Jazz, but also to news on the car radio. The thing of it is, I can receive good reception from many countries BBC, National Public Radio in the USA, French radio stations ( even Poland); however, the only station that is ever problematic ( no reception, cutting out etc. ) is RTE. Newstalk is fine - never a problem.
Given that RTE has so much money going into it with Government subsidies from the Licence Fee I wonder why it has such bad I.T.

Sam Kade

If it isn't sh1te music it's people moaning about the government and the state of the country. I can't figure out why people ring onto a radio station to moan about the government because all it is is a rant and nothing will ever be done about it.

El_Duderino 09

I only ever listen to radio segments through podcasts. RTE and newstalk rugby podcasts and Moncrieff human interest segments, BBC radio 4 for documentaries. Financial times for news analysis and others for various buts and bobs. Live radio only for matches.

The patter on daytime radio is appalling but I don't think it's a recent development. Was radio ever better?

jelutong

Bad and all as the programmes are during the week they really plumb the depths at the weekend. Wall to wall English soccer coverage on every bloody station for example. Endless chat shows spewing utter drivel. Thank god for the BBC.

brevity

BBC Radio 6 only. The newish station 8 Radio has been good any time i listened to it.

infogiver

Morning Ireland, News at 1, Drivetime (RTE1) . The presenters have been primed to adopt the very worst haranguing hectoring tone when interviewing absolutely anyone, wether that tone is needed or not.
Keelin Shanley was interviewing someone from the helicopter crash tragedy search team and she was practically demanding most forcefully to know exactly when they would be in a position to go down to the seabed to search.
He wasn't being allowed to muse that the weather would dictate what happened next, no, he had to pinpoint when exactly it would happen. It's cringe making

phater phagan

I agree with most of the posters about the inanity of chatter between co-host, but I admit I do like Moncrieff . He's witty and intelligent. I'm usually on the road when he's on and I enjoy his show then.

radioguru02

ive reverted to all internet here, WLr is unbearable, Beat isn't bad but is becoming more like wlr by the day. Both stations are extremely repettettive. I dont listen to any form of offline radio aside from pirates or rte pulse on dab where one or other of them are recievable. Mostly listen to the UK pirates online or some other online dance station.

Mint Sauce

Today FM, only ever in car, and even then, will turn it off during the day. BBCR2 or Nova once I come in to catchment. Newstalk the odd time.

All the rest is Internet Radio. Nova, LBC, BBCR2, occasionally R4, RTE Gold, or Absolute 80s/90s.

BuilderPlumber

I listen to hardly any radio. Local radio are the worst (RTE radio 1 can have some good programmes admittedly but 2FM and local stations are woeful). Local radio in all counties is filled with woeful stuff. Moaning programmes of the Joe Duffy variety but made worse and more localised are on a lot. When they are not on, it is woeful modern country music drivel.

Often, the people doing the music programmes have no background in or knowledge of music. It amazes me how people with such limited knowledge are in charge of these programmes. Luckily I can listen to my own music collection and can decide what I want to listen to and modern country music is certainly off the menu.

More and more people are turning away from radio and especially local radio. The content of these stations are an insult to one's intelligence. Surely something better could be given a chance?

byte

All I tend to listen to on Irish radio is maybe a bit of Ian Dempsey on weekday mornings, Sean Moncrieff on Newstalk afternoons, Electric Disco on 2FM Saturday nights and the best show these days IMO - Ed's Songs of Praise on Today FM Sunday nights.

Lovely Bloke

Regularly listen to Livedrive on Dublin City FM each morning and evening, usually for about 15 minutes at the start of my journey, then I'll switch back if the traffic seems to be slowing up more than usual. It's an excellent service and the presenters seem to have editorial control over the music, which is normally excellent.

Apart from that, I listen to podcasts, Spotify or BBC6 Music or Radio X from the UK (in the morning normally, switching between Moyles and Keaveney) on TuneIn, I'll listen to BBCR5Live in the evenings in bed on an Internet Radio (my trusty Logik IR100, it must be 10 years old at this stage).

I'll also listen to Morning Ireland or Drivetime if there's particular news I'm interested in hearing.

_feedback_

Mentioned this on another thread recently.

I'm a radio enthusiast and have been for many years. I would have enjoyed changing stations to listen to the different varieties etc. In recent years that changing stations became a necessity, to avoid the rubbish.

In recent months I have abandoned the FM radio in the car and listen to Chris Moyles on Radio X in the mornings. If I'm driving for work I will put on a podcast and for a longer journey with passengers I'll put on a Google music playlist.

I think the changes in Today FM really pushed me to look elsewhere.. if I do have the FM radio on for a short spin to the shop or something, I'll make sure anything but Today FM is on

drunkmonkey

I enjoy the Radio, drive a good bit so it's on in the car, enjoy George Hook and while I find him terribly patronising Sean Moncrefe. When I get home I usually turn on some music in the kitchen, could be anything from 2FM to Jamaica FM.(something on tune in Radio)

I think the Radio is current and live, while I like Spotify it's boring in the sense it's just music.

I'd love to to be able to rewind live radio in the car, I know you can lister later in a podcast but to be able to rewind to the start of a show would be great especially if it's a hot subject.

Radio keeps you fresh as well I think, remember driving with my dad when a wee chap and he'd be saying turn off that ****e if I was listening to 2FM of what ever it was called then, he'd then stick on his Elaine Page tape. Don't want to end up like that with my young fellas. I like keeping up with music instead of getting stuck in an era or genre.

Teyla Emmagan

I basically always have the radio on in the house but don't listen to it anywhere else. I have a DAB radio but I never read the manual so the only stations I can find are RTE1 and RTE1 extra. Which are beside each other So once Ray D'Arcy or more than 30 seconds of sports come on I switch. But some of the stuff on RTE1 extra is brilliant. I love 'a prairie home companion' at the weekend and some of their BBC programming is also brilliant. John Creedon is the only music I listen to now. I clearly have to get into podcasts!

BuilderPlumber

drunkmonkey wrote: »

Radio keeps you fresh as well I think, remember driving with my dad when a wee chap and he'd be saying turn off that ****e if I was listening to 2FM of what ever it was called then, he'd then stick on his Elaine Page tape. Don't want to end up like that with my young fellas. I like keeping up with music instead of getting stuck in an era or genre.

The main problem is Irish radio, Irish media in general, want to force what they favour onto us. It is as if boybands and woeful modern country music is all there is. They are stuck in a rut and cannot move past the drivel they are promoting and making a wonder of. I like to listen to all types of music from all eras, and can tolerate most styles as long as it is not modern country music.

The Irish media do not do a good job of representing music. Over the decades, a lot of good music was bypassed by the Irish media. Real music whether recorded in 1947 or 2017 or whenever is timeless. Poor music is very much of its era and does not get remembered. The drivel played on local radio is the worst music ever.

yosser hughes

drunkmonkey wrote: »

I enjoy the Radio, drive a good bit so it's on in the car, enjoy George Hook and while I find him terribly patronising Sean Moncrefe. When I get home I usually turn on some music in the kitchen, could be anything from 2FM to Jamaica FM.(something on tune in Radio)

I think the Radio is current and live, while I like Spotify it's boring in the sense it's just music.

I'd love to to be able to rewind live radio in the car, I know you can lister later in a podcast but to be able to rewind to the start of a show would be great especially if it's a hot subject.

Radio keeps you fresh as well I think, remember driving with my dad when a wee chap and he'd be saying turn off that ****e if I was listening to 2FM of what ever it was called then, he'd then stick on his Elaine Page tape. Don't want to end up like that with my young fellas. I like keeping up with music instead of getting stuck in an era or genre.

Radio should be current, fresh and informative. Irish radio doesn't do any of those things; either with music or talk.
Music is wall to wall chart or middle of the road shyte and talk is heavily editorialised, biased and often just plain wrong.
Don't they get it; that people can get information from elsewhere now? The weekly blather fests on Saturday and Sundays mornings; with the same array of,lazy badly informed windbags pontificating won't cut it anymore.
People have real,international alternatives now and Irish station bosses do not get that
RTE awarding the likes of Ray Darcy 500k is astonishing.

AnthonyCny

[/quote] Radio keeps you fresh as well I think, remember driving with my dad when a wee chap and he'd be saying turn off that ****e if I was listening to 2FM of what ever it was called then, he'd then stick on his Elaine Page tape. Don't want to end up like that with my young fellas. I like keeping up with music instead of getting stuck in an era or genre.[/quote]

All you've got to do is create a spotify playlist, add to it the current top 50 chart songs in along with your own musical choices.

You'll stay up to date without having out it being rammed down your throat 24/7. I don't mind some of today's music but couldn't listen to it all day.

Arghus

I would describe my radio listening habits as intermittent.

Sometimes I might listen to the odd hour of Paul McLoone in the evening on Today FM because he might throw in the odd interesting tune or two, but I could go weeks on end without bothering to listen. It's far from unmissable, but sometimes the music is good, if a bit safe - you'll hear Bowie a couple of times a week, that kind of thing.

I will say that Kelly Anne Bryne on Today FM on the weekends lateish at night is quite good, but I wouldn't listen all the time - usually there's something else going on! Her tastes are fairly eclectic and she seems to really love the music, always giving her opinion in a way that comes across, to me anyway, as genuine and borne out of a real love of music, rather than just the sound of her own voice. I like her a hell of a lot.

I haven't listened to 2FM in years and years. Maybe it's great, maybe it's not. I couldn't tell you. All I know is that I gave up on it a while back and haven't missed it since. Not for a single day.

I sometimes go through phases of listening to Liveline. It can on occasion be absolute radio gold - I will give it that, on rare, rare occasion. However, after a few days of exposure in a row my brain simply can't take it anymore. It's just so grindingly stupid and pointless that it begins to hurt. A lot of time when the programme ends I feel this empty sensation that I've just completely wasted an hour and a half of my life - that I could have put to better use doing something - literally anything - else. Thankfully D'arcy comes along straight afterwards and I have no choice but to turn the radio straight off and go about my day. He used to be sound, but now he's unbearable. That's his greatest asset in my view - the sound of his voice is the reminder that I've better things to be doing.

Used to listen quite a lot to Off The Ball back in the glory years. I can't warm to the new guys the same way, so very rarely tune in today.

Local radio around here ranges between stale, stagnant and strictly for the over sixties or obnoxious, repetitive noise assaults aimed at the youth and/or the feeble minded, with presenters who sound more like braying donkeys than professional broadcasters - just markedly less articulate, or coherent and a great deal more irritating....So local radio is an absolute no.

Spotify, other music sources and Podcasts: it's the way to go.

BuilderPlumber

yosser hughes wrote: »

Radio should be current, fresh and informative. Irish radio doesn't do any of those things; either with music or talk.
Music is wall to wall chart or middle of the road shyte and talk is heavily editorialised, biased and often just plain wrong.
Don't they get it; that people can get information from elsewhere now? The weekly blather fests on Saturday and Sundays mornings; with the same array of,lazy badly informed windbags pontificating won't cut it anymore.
People have real,international alternatives now and Irish station bosses do not get that
RTE awarding the likes of Ray Darcy 500k is astonishing.

The problem with all the Irish media is it is always forcing certain individuals on us every chance they get. Poor fare gets overhyped and as long as the gullible follow it, there will be no change.

With regard to music, it is all Nicky Byrne types by day and Mike Denver types by night. Certain singers, bands and songs get pushed to the limit and it seems that Irish audiences are being force fed what is favoured by the media.

Why the likes of Ray D'Arcy, Ryan Tubridy, Pat Kenny, Joe Duffy, etc. get paid a fortune is beyond me. They are essentially doing an easy job and dishing out rubbish radio and TV programmes. The latter 2 names I mentioned would be RETIRED long ago if they were in any other job! They keep working because what they do is easy and very well paid!

I always get the feeling that these media people in Ireland have big notions of themselves and are an elite that have way too much power that the gullible have handed to them. They can brainwash people and they have the say on what gets pushed and what doesn't.

A lot of National radio and TV is very poor. But as bad and all as some of this is, it has nothing on the brutal entities that are local radio. You have localised idiots imitating Joe Duffy and Pat Kenny that are joke. Then, there is this obsession with these woeful modern country music singers with some idiot DJ who cannot speak properly playing Mike Denver, etc. CDs nonstop. And then in the afternoon, there is some full of himself DJ playing chart and boyband drivel and thinking he is cool.

seachto7

Whatever about national radio, I was listening to local radio the other day in Limerick and wondered what the point of it was. Maybe it was Saturday, but it was just bland chart music throughout the day. Why would you bother turning it on when you could set up a playlist and listen to whatever you wanted minus the ads.

loyatemu

since the demise of TXFM I hardly listen to the radio at all - generally use Spotify in the car (though it can be a bit hit/miss connecting to bluetooth and playing automatically). TodayFM have some decent music and presenters in the evenings (McLoone and Kelly-Anne Byrne are good) but daytime radio is a disaster. The 2-person zany presenter format alway reminds me of this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VdMjqcjMVTc

Fairdues

Mainly tend to listen in the car also. In Cork, the main morning presenter is moving from Red Fm to 96 Fm, so I'll be moving stations to 96 FM. Not a fan of the phone in whinging type programmes. Happier to listen to lighter stuff and music.