In tune with the listener: How local radio in ireland has maintained audience attention and loyalty

Abstract

Local radio has remained relevant and ever-present in Ireland owing to the relationship stations have built with their audiences over time. These strong connections combined with adherence to public service duties and supplying locally relevant content – which the national stations cannot offer – helped local stations repel the double threat of a global recession and the influx of new media. This paper argues that by building on its core strengths while embracing change and adopting the potential offered by digital and social media, local Irish commercial radio stations have managed to survive and remain relevant. Using case studies of two prominent stations Radio Kerry and Beat, and one public service station RTÉ 2fm, this paper will illustrate that by being in tune with the audience’s unique social, cultural and political interests, radio stations have been able to endear their audiences to the brand and compete for their attention in an increasingly competitive mediascape. These stations were able to achieve this partly through the formation of online communities on Facebook, by having a presence in the local community and by actively engaging with the audience. This paper posits that local radio holds an important place in the lives of the people it serves and therefore must be preserved as not only an invaluable public service but as a beacon of culture and heritage.