Who actually listens to Spirit FM?

Wanderer2010

Had this station on for a few hours yesterday on a long drive, and although the songs were nice enough, the heavy pro-Christianity feel, songs about Jesus and general air of bible bashing made me wonder who their target audience actually are?

In 2021 Ireland, you may as well say Catholic Ireland is dead to most younger people, so the fact that some of the DJs are young kind of surprises me. I know they do competitions like any station do but i wonder who actually cares enough about religion these days to warrant listening in?

My car went through a phase of switching to this channel randomly a couple of years ago..

Like, every time I'd get into the car it would be on..

Was pretty weird tbh..

L1011

Spirit isn't Catholic, it's evangelical. A tiny audience willing to part with cash to fund what they like, and also get donations from abroad.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118028922#Comment_118028922

That's actually funny, the same thing happened to me a few years ago, never heard of it before and one day it just appeared out of the blue. The songs used always be particularly eh, relevant at the time too. Very weird.

But yep, it's not really a catholic entity. The worship music industry is massive in the states and Australia and heavily influenced the British and Irish evangelical (protestant) denominations. (Bethel music, Hillsong Worship are massive massive mega churches based primarily on praise and worship in musical format and has a lot of mainstream crossovers ie Justin Beiber et al)

silliussoddius

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118028977#Comment_118028977

Aren’t they not too fond of the papists?

As the saying goes; christian rock doesn’t make christianity better, it makes rock worse

berocca2016

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058213429/who-actually-listens-to-spirit-fm

John Bruton's daughter doing the breakfast show one day when I accidentally flicked on. You'd think he'd at least get her on to RTE.

BorneTobyWilde

There are still many of faith in Ireland and around the world.

Montage of Feck

Christian rock is all all bad, Black Sabbath have quite a few decent tracks.

whisky_galore

There's a Radio Maria that (somehow) managed to get on Saorview.

I dont know what kind of audience numbers these, by now, niche interest stations get in this country.

RobAMerc

I remember when there was RTE 1 and RTE 2 - jesus wept. I love that its there, I'd never listen to it myself. But I'd also love to know who does !

Mrs OBumble

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118029971#Comment_118029971

There are several (at least) evangelical churches in every Irish city, and at least one in many towns. Look at who goes there, and you'll have your answer.

L1011

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118029794#Comment_118029794

Get a content licence, pay the fee and Saorview is open to all. The other broadcasters would be delighted cause the costs are split - new channels make it cheaper for them,

85603

maybe priests. its the priest chat of radio stations.

then theres the mad raggae station thats on at like 1 on weeknights for the burgeoning rasta community.

Fr Tod Umptious

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118030062#Comment_118030062

There is an old pub/venue in Mayo called The Beaten Path.

It used to draw people from miles around in the 80s, massive spot.

Now it an evangelical church with the brilliant sign out the front

"The Beaten Path - Now only serving Jesus"

Hotblack Desiato

Every broadcaster is required to be balanced in reporting of current affairs, not push a political stance, BAI rules etc etc.

EXCEPT religious broadcasters who can broadcast any sort of claptrap as fact, and even push a political line during a referendum.

I've no idea why we allow religious broadcasters to exist in Ireland. We wouldn't allow a political party to own a radio station...

Gregor Samsa

They’re set up as a registered charity and have a big donate button on their web site - with a specific donation option for UK tax payers. I’d say they’re more concerned with getting their message out there than commercial viability based on listenership.

I know two youngish women (30s) who are members of new Christian churches. These churches are popping up in relatively recent times. They're the happy singalong with guitars folks.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118042668#Comment_118042668

Ghosts.

DarkJager21

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118042653#Comment_118042653

It's all singalongs and acoustic renditions of Craig David & Creed until someone spikes the punch.

God said... to Noah... there's gonna be a floody floody.

Hotblack Desiato

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118042899#Comment_118042899

or the kool-aid

Mrs OBumble

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118042899#Comment_118042899

Acoustic? In the big evangelical churches, these lads often have high end sound gear.

Yeah, it's a bit of an industry. Most cadalics probably wouldn't be very familiar with the form of worship music other than kumbiya that they were taught in school but it is kind of mainstream in other denominations and countries. The biggest players have combined over a billion views on their youtube music channels so it's a global player in terms of coinage I suppose and it has spun into popular music attracting industry giants like Beiber and Kanye (who we will now refer to as Ye).

Basically a bunch of young white Americans/Australians who convene to have giant worship meetings that verge on warehouse raves, but instead of bangers and coke they seem to be getting high on the music. It's a mystery. There is a huge following and demand for the music though so I suppose it has it's place.

this kind of thing

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HVAR85rorvU

I personally love Jewish Zemirot but there no radio stations in Ireland playin that jazz 🙄

Parachutes

I’d probably go on it for a well paying cushty job in radio. I’ll play as many alive-o songs as you want.

Glaceon

Spirit was intended to be a Medium Wave station but somehow managed to get FM frequencies all over the country, which seems like a complete waste to me. They still have a MW service but it's at such low power that it's barely usable in about half the country.

Radio is most certainly not well paying - unless you're well known.

Mikefitzs

I don't care what religious sect it's from, I hate it, I hate the fact that I can't block it. I hate anything religious. They have found a new way of interfering in my private life. At least I can press the scroll button but it always bloody stops at Spirit, I guess they have some serious power on that transmitter lol

Atticus Jung

The music is so bad on the radio that I'm often I am flicking through the channels for something half decent and end up stopping on spirit. It actually surprises me how often it happens.

I never encounter it. And while I mostly listen to podcasts/albums/playlists when driving, I listen to the radio at night.

Baseball72

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118045509#Comment_118045509

I tune in from time to time and, like the other stations I listen to (Newstalk / Talksport/ RTE1/Today FM (Matt Cooper programme), I have it saved (pun intended!) in settings so its a conscious decision on my part to listen. Its evangelical for the most part but not in "your face" sort of way. Yes, I would imagine that there is a serious Power on that transmitter!😎

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118045641#Comment_118045641

What frequency is it on? I can never find it

Yeah, I must kind of say really that I did kind of get used to it for a finish..

Whenever God turned it on in the car I generally left it on for a bit..

It's very positive kinda..and I'm a miserable bastard so it probably does me good..

marno21

They now have 20 FM transmitters and the MW outlet in Carrickroe. That would have quite a bill at this stage.

SATSUMA

Taxi drivers in Dublin! I once had to ask a driver to turn it town!

Capt'n Midnight

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118030344#Comment_118030344

No the costs are NOT SPLIT.

Despite more or less getting eighty million in free money from the government TV3 (who only had 80% coverage before Saorview) took legal action to limit costs to how many bytes were actually transmitted even though most of the cost is electricity which is the same if a multiplex transmits one byte or half a dozen channels in Full Proper HD. This is in effect a massive subsidy for Virginmedia as without them there'd only be a need for one Mux. (eg: Saorsat dropped bandwidth to 12500 which is a tad lower than the 24000 on each of the DTT multiplexes.)

Virginmedia/TV3 are why you get crap picture low bandwidth width of 528 pixels instead of proper 720 pixel SD. Even RTE HD is only 1440 instead of 1980 wide. BAI should hang their heads in shame as they send people off to subscription services or UK Freesat.

/RANT

Hangdogroad

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118029360#Comment_118029360

His son is involved with some weird breakaway Catholic sect.

Hangdogroad

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118032038#Comment_118032038

That American style tele (or radio) evangelism never sat well with me. I don't have any religious beliefs anymore and I'm relieved that the Catholic Church don't have that stranglehold on Irish society that it once had but I think one downside is a vacuum thats partially being filled by shady baptist, evangelist type organisations plus the likes of the Scientologists and also weird breakaway Catholic sects who seem to be obsessed with turning the clock back to pre Vatican II.

Hotblack Desiato

Those assorted weirdos attract publicity out of all proportion to their numbers.

end of the road

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118032038#Comment_118032038

because we do, as we do have a tiny semblance of a radio market in this country, very tiny as that is.

there is no reason not to allow such broadcasters either given nobody is forced to tune in to them.

if you honestly expect a religious station of which the religious teachings they follow would be against a subject, to provide balance in relation to that subject, then i am afraid that your expectations are unrealistic, given that unlike the rest of the radio, there would be no actual point in doing it given there would be no minds to be changed meaning they would be doing it for the sake of doing it and wasting their and their listeners time providing something they don't wish to listen to.

just don't tune in to such broadcasters, i don't and never would and they don't effect my life in any way, just like the rest of commercial radio in this country to be honest.

1874

Never found it too overbearing, definitely not catholic, there used to be a guy on in the early hours chuck something or other, used to listen to it in the car, quite relaxing, generally upbeat and positive station, sometimes a bit too much, Im sure I heard a reasonable almost rap like music on there, after a while I copped that it wasn't mainstream, so me sometimes, and Im not religious.

Hotblack Desiato

EOTR, they are propaganda stations, we don't allow it in any other area of life but as usual, religion gets a free pass - why?

Should we have a KKK radio station, after all people are free to not listen to it? A frankly stupid argument. Either we have standards, or we do not, and if we do have standards then they must be applied equally to all.

end of the road

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118052752#Comment_118052752

no hot black, its not a stupid argument but simple fact.

they are religious broadcasters, propaganda stations or not, they target a market that subscribes to a legitimate set of beliefs that people are entitled to subscribe to in ireland and most countries, and that, i am afraid means the right to access to the airwaves as much as any other legitimate belief system, of which the KKK isn't just like isis and other extremist groups meaning your comparison to the KKK fails.

we certainly have standards, but quite rightly that doesn't extend to preventing access to the airwaves to groups and people simply on the basis that we disagree with their views, their views have to be of a certain threshold before such a process by where they can not be given a platform can happen.

you are going to have to learn to live with the fact religious people and their beliefs exist, i don't like religion either, but while it's thankfully declining it is not going to be fully gone in our lifetimes, so you are just going to have to get over it.

Hotblack Desiato

There is already religious broadcasting on RTE, BBC etc. and nobody is proposing to get rid of it.

What I'm talking about in particular is stations promoting a political viewpoint during a referendum campaign, this is not allowed but the religious stations are either exempt from the rules every other broadcaster has to obey, or were just let away with it - either is wrong.

You're really not getting the point at all. Broadcast stations (in our part of the world) are not supposed to be for promoting the viewpoint of a particular group or media owner. But religions are an exception to this rule, and no justification for this exception has been put forward by you, the BAI or anyone else.

Montage of Feck

I always like things to have an air of officiality, therefore can't see the appeal of evangelical Christianity. Not that I believe in god anyway but as ceremony providers the Catholic church put on a reasonable show.

Mrs OBumble

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118058544#Comment_118058544

So if broadcast stations have to be impartial- all published books, magazines etc should have to do the same, surely?

Hotblack Desiato

No. Broadcasting has always been regulated. But it seems that some get a free pass because they're religious. I think the point is being wilfully ignored at this stage...

It appears they are brainwashing evangelical Christians with evangelical music. (Hands up, I don't actually recall any discussion format on it when I did tune in, just the christian music)

Also, I think country and western stations should not be permitted licenses top operate on the FM frequency because Big Tom and Daniel O Donnell are gateway drugs to political parties like Fianna Fail and Fine Gael. Before you know it farmers will be running the country and there won't be a child washed for school because they'll all have to stay at home and look after the sheep.

I had to come back and edit that because I felt bad calling it evil music, it's just music and some of it can be incredibly uplifting and enjoyable. It's obviously working.

end of the road

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118058544#Comment_118058544

i get the point, it's just a non-issue and i don't care, i don't need to justify it it's that much of an irrelevance.

religious broadcasters are never going to have balanced discussion on topics that are against the teaching of those religions, and the listeners to those broadcasters don't want it anyway, so therefore there is no point in forcing something on a station and an audience that have no interest as it's wasting air time and everyone's time from those involved to the listener.

all other stations have a cross section of listeners, so it makes sense to require them to have balanced debates, to insure that cross section is represented and are able to get air time, granted the current affairs stuff should be dropped as a requirement from commercial stations anyway.

what you are looking for is unrealistic given the broadcaster and the audience involved.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118058744#Comment_118058744

Much better to have teachers running the country.

I'm Christian. I don't listen to Spirit, no one is forcing me to. Hotblack has an obvious abhorrence to anything that doesn't support his atheist beliefs. So his, dislike of the station isn't a surprise.

Listening to him going on about his hatred of religion is no different to listening to the pope saying his is the one true church and I'm a heretic.

I just can't get people who have such a hatred of something spending so much time discussing it. Surely they have better things to do with their lives.

I think atheists are wrong in their belief. I don't spend endless hours discussing those beliefs and telling everyone about it. I've more important things to be doing with my life.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118059010#Comment_118059010

I think it's just a very catholic response to a very Christian issue. As someone raised Irish catholic I can empathise with the instinct to reject the oppressive nature that was of the power of the catholic church and it's influence on Irish politics since the inception of the state (not to mention the centuries of division the island has endured as a direct consequence of religious wars). But I also have learned to value the more important qualities that personal beliefs can bring to people individually. An educated understanding definitely helps making decisions easier.

(I just have a tendency to be very sarcastic in response to obvious and glaring issues that might otherwise shut communication down)