How community radio has been a pandemic lifeline and exciting plans for more choice

We're talking about radio in episode 317 of Business Live. There's been a surge in listener numbers for local and community radio stations since the pandemic, and we explore why, with guests Sangita Basudev of Sheffield Live! and Shahid Ali of Link FM.

It was Local Radio Day this week, highlighting the value of local radio to communities and celebrating the unique relationship between local broadcasting and listeners.

Local radio has helped people to reduce isolation, tell their stories, keep in touch with local and relevant news, and hear journalists put people in authority to account. And a new piece of research has found that two thirds of UK adults now appreciate and value journalism more since the global coronavirus pandemic began.

Sangita and Shahid both go into detail about how Sheffield Live! and Link FM are serving their audiences in 2020.

And Sangita reveals an ambitious plan to expand choice for radio listeners tuning to digital radio in Sheffield and Rotherham, through small scale DAB (what's that? Listen to find out). Shefcast Digital, a social enterprise, could bring over 20 new digital radio stations to the airwaves.

Timings:

• 0 - 3:10 Introduction
• 3:10 Sangita Basudev, Sheffield Live!
• 22:31 Shahid Ali, Link FM
• 36:36 Updates: Social Enterprise UK's Choose Communities and #BuySocial campaign; a CBE for Matt Smith of Sheffield-based social investor Key Fund; Sheffield Hallam named the best university for degree apprenticeship training at a national awards ceremony; a telephone patent clinic from the Business and IP Centre Sheffield.