The Internet is not always the answer

As you may have guessed, I love the internet, but, I’ve been thinking recently how it is not always the answer. I love radio too, and that has a role to play.

Some time ago, I was kicking around an idea about how schools could use FM radio to communicate with parents. My idea was for students and teachers to make radio programmes which could be broadcast to parents’ car radios when they arrived to drop off and pick up their kids..

And last weekend I was at BlueLightCamp when the conversation turned to communicating with people during emergency situations. I suggested it ought to be possible to set up a temporary local FM transmitter to speak to people via their radios.

Now, I must admit, I haven’t delved too far into the Ofcom regulations on local broadcasting, and, what I have seen would suggest that either of these ideas might be illegal under current legislation. But I think they are worth investigating, and, if legislation needs to be changed…..

3 thoughts on “The Internet is not always the answer”

good nugget john. i love ‘tech’ and the internet … too but often it is over egged and seen to be a silver bullet. Dave Briggs (i think) did the social media toolkit thingamybob but I hoped that is could have been expanded to cover all types of possible (and not so possible) communications/engagment means. Cathy Aitchison is a good person to speak to about localised radio btw.

One of the thoughts that crossed my mind last week was whether there was any leverage in developing interactive services via TV – in particular in social care settings. The elephant in the room for many elderly people is that they don’t have access to the Internet and will never have it (already discussed family member is a case in point!) but what they do have is radio and TV.

The technology is around, might need some tweaking etc but why not? I am thinking both of the interactivity that is ubiquitous in hotel rooms – where you can see your bill / check out etc etc. Satellite and Cable companies obviously have it. Ceefax & ITV equivalent were hugely successful and are familiar to that generation.