@Eclipse Now: So I'm wondering if they are also counting how many people listen to their podcasts?

I was wondering about that too. Its a pity Valerie didn't provide a reference for that 2% figure so we could make our own judgements. I looked up how the survey's are done http://www.commercialradio.com.au/files/uploaded/file/2011%20Survey%20Guidelines/07_%20How%20Surveys%20are%20Conducted%20Nielsen%202011.pdf None mention podcasts or downloads. Maybe that is because it's for advertising. People don't always listen to ads on podcasts.

They may not be very relevant to advertisers, but they evidently are important to Radio National. When they were looking a reduce the number of programs a while back, they said they were going to can those with the fewest podcast downloads.

You can get a feel for why this might be so from this senate report http://www.aph.gov.au/library/pubs/bn/sp/ABC.pdf (page 21). There were 42 million ABC podcasts downloaded from the ABC in 2009, growing by 19% per year. The local stations don't do podcasts, so I guess that would be RN podcasts.

Me - I don't listen to RN. When it comes to choosing mindless prattle to fill a void in the background noise, I'm with the 98% of Ozzies who think live radio does it so much better. But I do play an RN's podcasts most days, so I am little suspicious of how Valerie measures RN popularity.

rstuart,
yeah, good point — there's a *lot* of RN I wouldn't bother with live. But when I scan my various podcasts feeds in iTunes and notice some amazing new "Big Ideas" talk or something from LNL or the Science Show or the ABC Environment podcast (which scans across all the other shows to bring anything in environmental in from science, politics, rural news etc) then I'm covered.

The author responds just once .. to tell a "customer" reader/poster, they are wrong, when they say the ABC is blaming the customer.

What is at about mindsets and "tone"? That's just gorgeous!

"2, " I do detect the tone from the author that it is the customer's fault .. not the programming or the policies or politics of the ABC."

As the author, I am blaming the policies of the ABC, and not the customers. That is the point of the article.

Your detection is incorrect.

You have not read the article all through adequately."

Yes I did, and you have a very set position, and like the ABC, brook no dissent.

Also by the author, who must have been particularly sensitive that day

"We do not condemn elitism in anything else - sports for example. It is not patronizing, it is common sense to keep the best of everything for the benefit of all. "

Yes we do condemn elitism in sport, constantly .. where do you get your news from? Oh, of course RN .. explains your lack of knowledge of the sporting world, and not just in Australia.

Finally, it is patronizing, regardless of you being offended by that accusation, get over it .. the common perception in Australian society is the the ABC is elitist. The key word being, perception.

With 2%, evidently, of the available audience, they claim they are the intelligent corner of the radio world in Australia .. is that elitist or what?