Conspiracy

Call me cynical but as the BBC 6 music/Asian Network radio station closures have panned out this week I have a nagging feeling that I am being used. The leaking of the news that 6 music was to close on Friday  was the kick start to a massive campaign by a very vocal 6 music listening community. There are around 600,000 listeners per week to the digital station that has finally given a modern music appreciating audience a medium that they hold dear and will defend. You only have to see how much of a stink was kicked up when someone decided that Georg Lamb would be a good idea on the station. There is also a fair amount of presenters/guest presenters and bands that are being very criticising of the BBC for axing 6 music.

Now I'm not one for conspiracy theories and I'm not going to go all David Icke on you but hear me out. I'm Mark Thompson and I need to trim some of my output because of a reactionary right wing press witch hunt to destroy the socialist nightmare that is the BBC and a Tory Government is just around the corner. I want to close a radio station that serves a minority audience but it will be a little bit tricky to pull off without compromising the public broadcasting remit that the BBC has to answer to. What can I do? I'll also announce the closure of another minority audience radio station one that has a similar number of listeners. Only this station has quite a passionate following and is used mainly by people of a certain age who would exploit all social networking tools and media to demand that their station remain open. There will be a massive backlash across all the news outlets and the BBC trust will have no option other than to reverse the decision. 6 Music will stay open and may even gain some more listeners who will tune in to hear what the fuss is about. In the mean time my original target will close and Asian network will be no more.

Just a prediction. Hope I'm wrong and they both manage to stay open. I don't listen to Asian Network but I have no doubt that the people who do love it as much as we love 6 music. The BBC is meant to cater for minority audiences in a way that commercial television and radio doesn't. If that means people who listen to bhangra or a John Peel Beta Band session from 1998 we aren't going to find it on radio 1/2 or any of the commercial station sin between 'go compare' and 'we buy any car' adverts. Thats why we pay the TV licence.

In the oft misquoted words of Voltaire "I don't agree with that Pap your watching on BBC3 but I'll defend to the death your right to watch it"

We own the BBC.