Good Radio Club

Archive on 4: The First A&R Man

Kicking off our double bill tonight on Good Radio Club is the ever excellent Archive on 4

This Radio 4 special at 8pm tonight was described in this morning’s Guardian Guide it like this

Fred Gaisberg recorded the early classical superstars Nellie Melba and Caruso, set up the UK’s first ever studio and travelled through Russia, India, Japan, China and Singapore in search of musicians to record for EMI’s Hayes Archive. This is Paul Gambaccini’s tribute to this pioneering collector of sonic artefacts.

I’ve been rooting around looking for background material. The best news is that a lot of the tracks being played tonight are on a new LP and there’s a good selection on Spotify.

• Rough Trade have just released Sprigs of Time - The Hayes Archive .  A double LP containing 30 tracks from the 150,000 78’s in the vaults.
• You can visit the EMI Archive in Middlesex
• On spotify: Sprigs of Time | Caruso | Nellie Melba
• EMI’s huge multi-disc, multi-decade, Record of Singing covers the 78 period (1899-1952).

Ok I’m off to do the washing up. Some quick reminders of how to join in.

• Steve has put together a good round up of what to do here.
• Tweet your thoughts using the hashtag #goodradioclub
• Follow @jemstone and @bowbrick
• Don’t worry if you can’t take part tonight. Its Saturday night for gods sake! Go to the pub. We’ll see you next time…

Good Radio Club is back

We’re getting the show back on the road. Putting the band back together. Starting this coming Saturday 13 June we’re planning a run of three Good Radio Clubs, starting with an innovative double-bill of heavyweight Saturday night factual fare. At 2000 you’re invited to listen to a fascinating Paul Gambaccini Archive on Four called The First A&R Man, about Fred Gaisberg who was - among other things - the first person to record Caruso’s voice

After an interval (during which it’s suggested that you take some light refreshment) you should tune into the repeat transmission of the first of Professor Michael Sandel’s Reith Lectures at 2215, about “the prospects of a new politics of the common good.” The lectures have already had a lot of press and Sandel kicks off with a reference to the expenses scandal so this is very topical stuff.

Then, on Tuesday 16 June we’re jumping networks to have a go at a documentary that sounds right up our street about music’s response to Thatcherism, called Stand Down Margaret. It’s the first of two parts and it’s presented by Jeremy Vine. If you were there or if you’re just fascinated about the era, I think this could be a really fun GRC.

And here’s a reminder of how it all works:

People talk about radio programmes on Twitter all the time. They’re already talking about the Reith Lectures, for instance.

Good Radio Club makes it possible for everyone talking about a radio programme to see each other’s contributions and to react in real time. To debate the issues raised with others while listening and to hear a range of interesting opinions.

It’s really simple. Just listen to the programme live (it doesn’t work with Listen Again) and tweet your thoughts or reactions as you listen. To be included in the conversation, just include the hashtag #goodradioclub in your tweets. Add the hashtag #Reith if you’re tweeting about the lectures (lots of Reith nuts are already using that tag).

Follow the conversation by searching for #goodradioclub or #Reith (or #goodradio for that matter) at search.twitter.com or Twitterfall (there are lots of other Twitter search products: choose one you like).

Bookmark this link to search Twitter for #Reith, #goodradioclub or #goodradio and this link to do the same at Twitterfall.

Jem Stone and myself (@bowbrick) will be around throughout (as will the Radio 4 blog) and we’ll try to make the occasional useful contribution. For the Reith Lecture, Jennifer Clarke, producer of the series’ interactive elements, will join in - and I know she’s prepared lots of useful material for the experiment. She’s already twittering as Reith2009.

If you have any questions or suggestions for Good Radio Club, I suggest you follow @bowbrick, @jemstone and @Reith2009 on Twitter and ask there.

Steve Bowbrick, editor, Radio 4 blog

GRC#3 - Morning after the night before

And then this weeks Good Radio Club; for Analysis - Clever.com was plugged by the lovely Stephen Fry.

So our rather small “social listening” experiment became a rather large, trending, quite crowded, coming thick and fast at you, tweeting experiment. Blimey.

I’m still getting over the fact that for most of yesterday evening instead of SXSW, Apprentice, Comic Relief etc; the most tweeted thing on the entire internet was a whole load of reactions to a fairly serious episode of a BBC Radio 4 documentary series.

Anyway i’m not sure if my red felt tip scales to Fryfuelled tweeting so you might have to wait a bit for the full report and post match analysis. And thanks again to everyone who took part; all those links, comments, feedback and photos. Nicely done. But I think this tweet from Christopher Maggs probably sums up the evening best.

We plan to do more. Watch out for an announcement on Monday for the next few. We also intend to provide you with some better tools to immerse yourself in this sort of thing either during or post broadcast.

Oh and I missed Red Riding in the end. Damn. (Jem Stone…. bowbrick is the other good sir in goodradioclub towers.)

Good Radio Club #3 - clever.com

So its part three of Good Radio Club; our small experiment in social listening. Using the lovely Twitter, a small group of radio listeners listen and tweet to different radio shows in “real time”.

This evening at 8.30pm on Radio 4 (Thursday March 12th)  a few of us will be tweeting along to an edition of Analysis; Clever.Com; devoted to asking whether the web is rewiring our childrens’ brains - and whether we should be worried” .I also hear that someone called @stephenfry has also contributed to the programme with a short interview.

Presenter KenanMalik has also pledged to join in and producer; Hugh Levinson will be lurking.

If you want to play along then here’s what to do:

• Some pre-reading: The transcript of the show is already live | Summary of the topic | Daily Mail original article reporting on Susan Greenfield’s claims| Ben Goldacre on Newsnight
• follow your hosts Jem Stone and Steve Bowbrick on Twitter.
• tag all your tweets or photos with the hashtag #goodradioclub
  
• Follow the conversation at places like Twitterfall (where i”ve pre-loaded some tags like #goodradioclub and #radio4) or Monitter or TweetChat
• Share links, thoughts, feedback, provide some colour/context about where, how you are listening. Think of it like a Directors’ Commentary or somesuch.
• Take a picture of where you are listening, tag it #goodradioclub and upload to Flickr or your pic hosting site of choice.
• Feel free to just lurk if you want!
• We’ll write up a report about how it went so you can piece it together it all over again on BBC iPlayer for the “next 7 days” or download the podcast. But at your own pace.

Previous Good Radio Clubs: #1 Analysis: Social Housing | #2 Ken Clarke’s Jazz Greats

GoodRadioClub #2 - Write Up

So we hosted another of our small experiments in “social listening”. This time during the working day and this time for a fairly conventional Radio 4 hosted feature. The first part of what is now the 7th series of Ken Clarke’s Jazz Greats. Jazz buff shadow minister Clarke has a special guest; this week UK jazz musician Soweto Kinch and they canter through the biography of a Jazz “great”; in this case bebop pioneer; Charlie Parker interspersed with short clips of his music or BBC archive.

Its only 30 minutes but less intense than Analysis . We didn’t change much though. Users tweeted comments, links, feedback and this time photos of how they were listening to the programme. I enjoyed, listening in an office, the connected aspect of it as i watched the tweets “fall” in from twitter followers, other BBC colleagues and complete strangers. A few quick thoughts.

• DikJones made the point that concentrating and composing tweets; literally writing a sort of Directors Commentary as you go means you are distracted from the programme itself.
• Westpier argued that “Noticing that a lack of controversy, compared with social housing Analysis programme two weeks ago, reduces tweeting”
• Ironically iPlayer developer Dansumption found Listening via iPlayer posed some technical difficulties.
• But most tweeters said it brought what is after all primarily background listening into the foreground. Some nifty concentration was required.

And we trended. #goodradioclub sneaked into the top ten of most trended terms on Twitter yesterday lunchtime. Not exactly Obama or Superbowl proportions. It took around 110 tweets in 30 minutes from 25 people to do it largely at a time when the US was asleep.

Thanks again for taking part. Really enjoyed it. Looking forward to seeing you all again on Thursday night for GRC#3; another episode of Analysis; Clever.com . (8.30pm; Radio 4, Thursday March 12th). This time might be different as a certain @stephenfry has made quite a contribution to the documentary and longer versions of the interview used in the programme are already published here. Presenter @kenanmalik is also likely to participate.

Oh and two bits of housekeeping:

the hashtag: We’ve been using #goodradioclub which is ten characters. Quite a bit for a hashtag. We’ve had a few requests from hairyhatfield, mattzki and others to shorten. #GRC is rather annoyingly used for something else search/conference related. We’ll probably switch (or rather try and switch) to #goodradio after this week. but #goodradioclub for now.

the programmes: Let me or steve know if you have any suggestions for any future programmes. They don’t have to be Radio 4 btw. And now on Good Radio Club.

The Round Up:

Kitchen Radio on Flickr - James Bridle.

Listen: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00j0c2f

Photos: Simon Smith | Fearoffours | Jem Stone | Steve Bowbrick | WestPier (view from his window)

Full Tweets:(read from the bottom up) : Scorecard of Tweets Pic

19 h on_line: blogging bout openplatform, not enough fingers to twitter today’s #goodradioclub too @martynrdavies nice to hear some tunage in the office · Reply · View

19 h smallworldmedia: @bowbrick Just came across this www.coveritlive.com/ Would that work for #goodradioclub live Twitter updates? · Reply · View

19 h kcorrick: RT @JemStone: Don’t forget we’re back again on thursday night. 8.30pm on #radio4 for another edition of Analysis. #goodradioclub night all. · Reply · View

19 h hairyhatfield: @bowbrick Could we pick a short music show maybe? Or except from one? I’m thinking R3’s Late Junction or R1 specialist show. #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h bowbrick: And of course you have to remember to always use the bloody tag #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h hairyhatfield: I’m gutted to be missing the next #goodradioclub, but will be out bellringing. Topic close to my <3 Would love daytime ones to be continued · Reply · View

19 h JemStone: And don’t forget we’re back again on thursday night. 8.30pm on #radio4 for another edition of Analysis. #goodradioclub night all. · Reply · View

19 h simonsmithster: #goodradioclub Over too soon. Nice. I could now recognise Parker more swiftly and bluff jazzers at a dinner party (how shallow is that) · Reply · View

19 h hairyhatfield: @huey I certainly didn’t know of Bird’s substance abuse till #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h westpier: And now to the Archers. Thanks for having me #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h chilesl: I was ‘pushed’ towards Charlie Parker when doing art foundation. 1st Jazz I’d ever really listened to. great place to start #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h dansumption: OK, only managed to catch about 2 minutes of #goodradioclub because I was battling with RealPlayer. At least next time I know where to go. · Reply · View

19 h huey: “They teach you there’s a boundary line to music. But, man, there’s no boundary line to art. ” Charlie Parker #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h JemStone: Ta everyone. Thanks also to producer; Paul Evans. www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0092tqq/upcoming #goodradioclub Archers now. · Reply · View

19 h hairyhatfield: @dansumption yup, I do agree. real IS awful. #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h alanconnor: BTW #goodradioclub bit.ly/ZxIoS gives a different perspective on jazz. Eastwood loves Cullum! · Reply · View

19 h huey: Is he really remembered for his narcotics abuse over his music? I don’t think so #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h bowbrick: @london16 has just pointed out that you can’t play this game if your Twitter updates are protected! #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h dikjones: @bowbrick feels like I’m missing chunks of the episode whilst composing tweets #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h dansumption: @hairyhatfield fair enough, but I should at least get EMP with MP3. I mean … *Real* fergawdsake? #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h mattzki: Don’t know why, iPlayer console went down & is taking ages to buffer Curses! #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h hairyhatfield: @dansumption #goodradioclub I think you only get the aac as a labs beta tester · Reply · View

19 h kcorrick: Loving the rare fact that R4 is playing music with lovely, intelligent, knowledgeable chatter. More please #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h huey: @bowbrick It encourages you to catch every detail of the conversation. Radio is very passive, this changes that dynamic #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h simonsmithster: @bowbrick #goodradioclub Feel a bit like I am listening in a fishbowl, trying to be cleverer than I am. · Reply · View

19 h westpier: @bowbrick Improves concentration. Usually on in the background and multitasking. I did stop work to listen though #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h dansumption: OK #goodradioclub … If I go direct via bbc.co.uk/iplayer I get full 128kbps AAC. So what dolt runs the Radio4 website with its “aod” link? · Reply · View

19 h adambowie: Not convinced that some DAB “warbling” adds a great deal to Charlie Parker. Damn those thick office walls #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h hairyhatfield: I guess the desire to participate in the conversation encourages me not to miss too much stuff. #goodradioclub. After this: Bird on Spotify. · Reply · View

19 h dikjones: @simonsmithster sat at the back of the office, I can ‘jazz out’ in complete confidence. #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h huey: @mattzki @JemStone It’s OK if you are Clough talking to a young Keane, but in this instance… No. With @mattzki on that one #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h hairyhatfield: #goodradioclub makes me try to listen harder. It would be background noise while I worked otherwise. As it is I’m not getting much work done · Reply · View

19 h dansumption: Interesting thing is though with #goodradioclub + RealPlayer… Parker now sounds like Ornette Coleman with those short sharp squawks. · Reply · View

19 h bowbrick: Does this aid your concentration? Make you listen differently? Or does it just spoil the show? #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h mattzki: @JemStone find that a tad annoying tbh. #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h dansumption: RealPlayer now playing a cut-up version of Charlie Parker on #goodradioclub. Burroughs would be proud. RealPlayer #fail · Reply · View

19 h dickdotcom: hopefully this Jazz torture will end soon #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h Filafleur: #goodradioclub What is making it sound so echoey? Are they in the loo? · Reply · View

19 h JemStone: Loving the way Ken has a Brian Clough young man thing going on. Calling everyone.. “the young Davis” and “the kid” #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h dansumption: #goodradioclub didn’t last long. I’m buffering. (at 44kbps!!!) … is it RealPlayer, or is it Reith? · Reply · View

19 h alanconnor: @bowbrick #goodradioclub Yay! Scrapple From The Apple. What a good-natured sound junkies can make when they put their addled minds to it. · Reply · View

19 h dansumption: Joining #goodradioclub late… and wondering why the hell Radio 4 still uses RealFuckingPlayer for live streaming. Probably my fault though. · Reply · View

19 h dickdotcom: bah: good radio club using MY radio without permission. Jazz as well . #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h kcorrick: RT @huey: RT @JemStone if you wanna take part in#goodradioclub a good primer here tinyurl.com/dhu4yh · Reply · View

19 h westpier: @bowbrick Or make it available as a podcast. #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h simonsmithster: #goodradioclub Is anyone else getting odd looks from office mates for random periods of ‘jazz head nodding’ · Reply · View

19 h hairyhatfield: love that idea of full length music version, @bowbrick. Would be great! #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h kcorrick: Comforting that lots of others are also listening over lunch to Ken Clarke on R4 talking bebop and Charlie Parker #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h JemStone: RT @garryrutter likes Ken Clark doing the Jazz thing on Radio4 - is that normal? #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h huey: @mattzki Wishing Charlie Parker was my local MP #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h dikjones: Interesting to hear the back story of Charlie Parkers addiction, shame so many greats have some kind of vice. #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h martynrdavies: First time in 11 months I can remember hearing any music in this office #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h simonsmithster: More on Bird’s addiction: bit.ly/l5YZL #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h bowbrick: There should be a double-length edit with full-length pieces - it could go out at 4 a.m. on R3 or something #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h westpier: Freeview pause facility to answer door puts me out of kilter. Going live to listen in real time again. #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h JemStone: Real tinge of regret from clarke at parker being “hopeless drug addict” but clearly in awe of the “beauty” of his altosax #goodradioclub · Reply · View

19 h mattzki: KEN CLARKE’S MY LOCAL MP #GOODRADIOCLUB · Reply · View

19 h adambowie: Escaping James Morrison (bit.ly/19H4R6) by listening to Charlie Parker on R4 with #goodradioclub bit.ly/ypzoB · Reply · View

20 h nigelsmith99: #goodradioclub phone call interupts me · Reply · View

20 h westpier: Noticing that a lack of controversy, compared with social housing Analysis programme two weeks ago, reduces tweeting. #goodradioclub · Reply · View

20 h alanconnor: @JemStone #goodradioclub Hoping to hear Kim (and chat thereof) · Reply · View

20 h JemStone: RT @huey Jumping from Edith Bowman to Ken Clarke on Charlie Parker is like eating Broccoli + trifle on the same plate #goodradioclub · Reply · View

20 h bowbrick: #goodradioclub beboppers in KCity in the late thirties must have been like punks in Basildon in 76/77 · Reply · View

20 h hairyhatfield: Hoping we get enough music to give the interviews context. #goodradioclub · Reply · View

20 h huey: Jumping from Edith Bowman to Ken Clarke on Charlie Parker is like eating Broccoli and trifle on the same plate #goodradioclub · Reply · View

20 h JemStone: I always had Ken down as a trad man but extolling the virtues of bebop and “the kid”. Soweto Kinch is | bit.ly/skinch #goodradioclub · Reply · View

20 h nigelsmith99: #goodradioclub I recommend Robert Altman’s under rated film Kansas Citywww.imdb.com/title/tt0116745/ · Reply · View

20 h westpier: Ken Clarke slightly imposing as the interviewer. He seems bigger than the subject. #goodradioclub · Reply · View

20 h simonsmithster: Improving my mind with jazz and pizza bit.ly/MZSwx #goodradioclub · Reply · View

20 h huey: RT @JemStone if you wanna take part in#goodradioclub a good primer here tinyurl.com/dhu4yh · Reply · View

20 h JemStone: Nick Robinson trail and kickoff. i’m posing for listening to the radio pix. www.flickr.com/photos/bowbrick/3344300612/ #goodradioclub · Reply · View

20 h hairyhatfield: twitpic.com/1z6m1 - At my desk, ready for #goodradioclub · Reply · View

20 h dikjones: At my desk, waiting for Good Radio Club to start. #goodradioclub · Reply · View

20 h JemStone: if you want to take part in #goodradioclub then a good primer here:goodradioclub.co.uk/post//taking-part-ken-clarkes-jazz-greats · Reply · View

20 h JemStone: i’m at my very untidy desk overlooking Langham Place listening to #radio4 via a Roberts RD 41 and commentmoderation on WATO #goodradioclub · Reply · View

20 h westpier: All set for this week’s first #GoodRadioClub . #radio4 on Mac via EyeTV , tag open in Safari and ready to tweet via TweetDeck (if needed). · Reply · View

20 h westpier: View from my SHO. Sea visible in distance either side of that shocking social housing project #goodradioclub twitpic.com/1z6bf · Reply · View

20 h bowbrick: If you’re twittering along with Ken Clarke at 1330 goodradioclub.co.uk, take a few pics of where you are and tag them #goodradioclub · Reply · View

21 h bowbrick: By now you’ll have got your meatball sub or Sashimi platter ready in plenty of time for #GoodRadioClub at 1330. goodradioclub.co.uk · Reply · View

23 h keridavies: Will be travelling at 13.30 today, so won’t be able to participate in #goodradioclub. Boo. · Reply · View

23 h Fatcontroller: RT @bowbrick tune in to Ken Clarke’s Charlie Parker show on #radio4 at 1330 and twitter using #goodradioclub. We call it ‘social listening’ · Reply · View

23 h hairyhatfield: setting tweetdeck for #goodradioclub (isn’t that hash tag a bit long? I appreciate it is established now, but #grc would give us + 10 chars) · Reply · View

1 d bowbrick: Major plug: tune in to Ken Clarke’s Charlie Parker show on #radio4 at 1330 and twitter using #goodradioclub. We call it ‘social listening’ · Reply · View

1 d JemStone: up. coffee.dogs and stuff. #goodradioclub again today. lunchtime, 1.30pm. #radio4 with charlie parker, kenclarke. pop in. bit.ly/grc · Reply · View

1 d kenanmalik: Finished recording Analysis: Clever.com. To be broadcast R4 Wed 20.30. #goodradioclub will be tweeting along: goodradioclub.co.uk · Reply · View

4 d bowbrick: Jazzy twitterers, if you’re planning on joining the next #goodradioclub experiment, take some pics and post them to flickr with the same tag · Reply · View

5 d westpier: RT @bowbrick: Tuesday afternoon’s #radio4 #goodradioclub - Ken Clarke and Soweto Kinch on Bird: tinyurl.com/ClarkeParker · Reply · View

5 d bowbrick: Starting the build-up to Tuesday afternoon’s #radio4 #goodradioclub - Ken Clarke and Soweto Kinch on Bird: tinyurl.com/ClarkeParker · Reply · View

5 d adrian_trenholm: @bowbrick Can’t say I have tried it, but Feedweaver may be what you need twurl.nl/gwniuy #goodradioclub · Reply · View

5 d bowbrick: We want to blend several twitter RSS feeds into one and then display the result in real time on a web page. Anyone done this? #goodradioclub · Reply · View

5 d keridavies: RT@JemStone: another #goodradioclub next Tuesday lunchtime. Pop by. Charlie Parker, Ken Clarke, BBC R4. bit.ly/jazzgreats · Reply · View

5 d hairyhatfield: ooh goody. Another #goodradioclub. Looks like I might be able to take part in this one! Ken Clarke profiles Jazz Greats. bit.ly/X3Oc1 · Reply · View

5 d dickdotcom: @JemStone #goodradioclub jazz great? where’s the connection? · Reply · View

5 d JemStone: Me and @bowbrick are hosting another #goodradioclub next Tuesday lunchtime. Pop by. Charlie Parker, Ken Clarke,R4. bit.ly/jazzgreats · Reply · View

Taking Part - Ken Clarke’s Jazz Greats

So its part two of Good Radio Club; our small experiment in social listening. Using the lovely Twitter, a small group of radio listeners listen and tweet to different radio shows in “real time”.

This lunchtime at 1.30pm on Radio 4;  Ken Clarke’s Jazz Greats (the first part of series 7 no less) focusing on Charlie Parker .

If you want to join then here’s what to do:

• follow your hosts Jem Stone and Steve Bowbrick on Twitter.
• tag all your tweets or photos with the hashtag #goodradioclub
  
• Follow the conversation at places like Twitterfall (where i”ve pre-loaded some tags like #goodradioclub and #radio4) or Monitter or TweetChat
• Share links, thoughts, feedback, provide some colour/context about where, how you are listening. Think of it like a Directors’ Commentary or somesuch.
• Take a picture of where you are listening, tag it #goodradioclub and upload to Flickr.
• Feel free to just lurk if you want!
• We’ll write up a report about how it went so you can piece it together it all over again on BBC iPlayer for the “next 7 days”. But at your own pace.

If you’ve missed this one or can’t make it don’t worry. We’ve thought of you. So Tune into Good Radio Club #3 at 8.30pm this Thursday March 12th on Radio 4  when we’re be tweeting along to an edition of Analysis; Clever.Com; devoted to deconstructing the stereotypes behind teenagers and their use of videogames/the internet.

Ken Clarke’s Jazz Greats - Charlie Parker

Emboldened by last week we’ve decided to have another go.

We had a couple of requests from users saying that radio/twitter time for them is actually during the day when they are at *work* so we’ve moved into lunchtime for our first of two choices next week;  The first part of a new repeated series of Ken Clarke’s Jazz Greats

This is on: Radio 4 - Tuesday March 10 2009 at 1.30pm

The billing for this 30min pre-recorded doc is:

Ken Clarke MP profiles great jazz musicians of the 20th Century.

Ken talks to British jazz musician Soweto Kinch about saxophonist Charlie Parker, one of the founding fathers of the bebop movement. After moving to New York in 1939, he worked with Dizzy Gillespie and helped to push the boundaries of the form. However, his life and career were blighted by a heroin addiction which killed him at the age of just 34.

As before we’ll be asking anyone who wishes to pop by to tweet along with reactions, comments and feedback to the prog as it airs.

The hashtag is #goodradioclub and it might be worth following your radioclub hosts http://twitter.com/jemstone/ and http://twitter.com/bowbrick/ leading up to the broadcast. (although you also get to read our rather random tweets about dogwalks and trips round bbc buildings mixed in). We’ll be providing some places to view all the tweets as they come along, and reporting back here on how it went.

In the meantime to get you in the mood I can heartily recommend NPR’s brilliant 2 hour profile; Bird Lives. Both are available as podcasts.

• http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=13999003
• http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=14156541

And watch out for more info too about the second goodradioclub next week around Analysis’ deconstruction of the stereotypes around teenagers, videogames and the internet.

Good Radio Club - the morning after

“Good Radio Club: Lots of people listen to the same radio show and Twitter about it. Nicely.”
Paul Carvill, http://paulcarvill.com

A small experiment in ‘social listening’. We invited a small group of Radio 4 listeners to tune in to Radio 4’s brainiest show, Analysis, at 2030 on Thursday 26 February and to join a conversation about the programme’s topic – social housing – on Twitter. They were asked to mark their contributions by typing the ‘hash tag’ #goodradioclub in their tweets (Jem Stone came up with the idea, basing it on another successful Twitter experiment: Bad Film Club).

We used simple online tools to capture the resulting conversation. Twitterfall.com displayed a rolling sequence of tweets tagged #goodradioclub. Yahoo Pipes was used to blend several Twitter search terms into a single RSS feed for feed readers. A Tumblr blog was set up at http://goodradioclub.co.uk as home for the feed and for information about #goodradioclub. No development work was done (although Tristan Ferne did help us get our Yahoo Pipes sorted out) and no money spent.

The result was a small hit. 24 Twitterers (including Jem Stone and myself) joined in and sent 102 tweets using the hash tag #goodradioclub – that’s just over 4 per head. Almost all of the tweets were sent during the show or in the few minutes on either side of it. An unknown number ‘lurked’ and watched the conversation using Twitter and Twitterfall but didn’t join in.

The experience of listening to Analysis while watching a Twitter feed and tweeting thoughts as they came to me was positive: enriching the experience but not distracting from the excellent radio programme at the heart of the thing. It was actually quite exhilarating because it required some additional thought. It’s hard to veg out while listening to Analysis at the best of times but harder still when you’re required to make a contribution!

#goodradioclub isn’t an ‘audience exploder’. It’s not the kind of thing you’d do to create a huge buzz around a brand or an event and it probably won’t double your reach or fix your ratings decline – it’s more of a ‘conversation enabler’. We wrapped a conversation around an existing programme brand to make the experience richer and more engaging – for programme makers as well as for listeners. Hugh Levinson, the programme’s editor said “I was gripped by the Twittering last night – exciting and alarming at the same time.” We think there are programmes all around the BBC schedules that could benefit from the addition of a spontaneous, live conversation alongside the linear output. Things to do now:

1.   Improve the presentation of the conversation. We might build or commission a simple tool to present the stream of tweets in an accessible way.

2.   Make it easier to start a conversation. Programme makers or multiplatform teams might want to start conversations around their programmes or they might just want to invite listeners to start their own. A widget or a badge might make starting and following a conversation easier.

3.   Keep experimenting. We’ll try this again with different kinds of programme and different audiences. We’ll record the results and share them.

Participants on the night included: Kenan Malik, an Analysis presenter and Moral maze regular, Pete Harrington, head of comms at Demos and Hugh Levinson, Analysis editor (Hugh lurked). Others were mostly regular Radio 4 listeners but not necessarily Analysis fans. Thanks to everyone who joined in. It was fun. We’ll keep you posted about the next experiment.

There’s a PDF based on this blog post here.