The BBC‘s audio and music director Tim Davie has backed the BBC’s plans to shutdown 6Music after the BBC Trust hinted the public campaign to save the station may force a rethink.
On Wednesday, BBC Trust chairman Sir Michael Lyons said the ‘strong reaction’ against the closure of 6Music could lead to a U-turn. “If we find that there’s massive public concern that we need to take account of then we will go back to the director general to rethink the strategy before it’s approved,” he said. The proposals put forward by the BBC’s Director General Mark Thompson need to be approved by the BBC Trust before they can be put in to practise.
However, following the comments by Sir Michael Lyons, Tim Davie has now added his support to the plans, saying he is ‘passionate’ about 6Music, but agreed that the Beeb needs to downsize. “I do not believe that offering the current range of nine stand-alone digital networks is the right way to serve audiences and ensure radio remains strong in a digital world,” he said. “And, while digital radio has seen growth, my concern is that current development remains slow. So we are proposing to reduce the number of stations and re-invest in our five core networks.”
He continued: “I know that there is real sadness that we are losing valued services, but this is part of a strategy to ensure BBC Radio continues to be as relevant and popular as ever in the digital world.”
Meanwhile, two out-spoken British stars, Radiohead’s Ed O’Brien (photo) and singer Lily Allen, have offered their thoughts on the move. In an open letter to the BBC Trust, O’Brien wrote: “I wonder if those who made this decision are actually aware of the hugely important role that 6 Music plays in fostering and promoting new bands, as well as still playing the likes of the band that I am in. It literally is the radio lifeblood for music outside of the mainstream.”
He added: “Please realise the impact and severity of closing this station down. It will be a huge blow for new bands and their labels. It’s not enough to ‘refocus’ Radio’s 1 and 2 as 6 Music does a very specific thing. What you have with 6 Music is a gem of a radio station, it is doing what no other station in the world does or can possibly do. Remember it is also still relatively young, give it time. You also finally have a fantastic and seemingly settled line up of DJs. Please get behind it and from what I can gather about its annual budget of £6m, it surely punches way above its weight in terms of cultural relevance and importance.”
Lily Allen also condemned the move, saying in an article for The Guardian newspaper: “It will be awful if they do decide to close BBC 6 Music, and I hope that the backlash they’ve received so far will make them think twice. Clearly it will continue to cause an uproar, which is the last thing the BBC want. Perhaps they weren’t expecting this level of interest in a niche station.”
“I read that they want to invest in quality over quantity, but how does that make sense? If they close 6 Music, instead of acts like Seasick Steve and presenters like Lauren Laverne, it will be the Pussycat Dolls and Fearne Cotton on Radio 1.”
The Facebook group set up to save 6Music continues to grow, and has now attracted over 130,000 supporters. The BBC is committed to closing 6Music and The Asian Network by 2011.