Commissioning Brief
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RADIO COMMISSIONING Commissioning Brief Commissioning Brief No. 47030, Round 3, 2022/23 CONSUMER JOURNALISM PODCAST TENDER from April 2022 to March 2023 with option to renew for up to two additional years V3 updated by LL 02.06.21 BBC Radio Commissioning Brief_v1.3_2021 03 04 CONTENTS SECTION A: EDITORIAL OPPORTUNITY ...................................................................................... 3 Radio 4 ................................................................................................................................................. 4 The Consumer Journalism Podcast opportunity .................................................................................. 5 Treatment ............................................................................................................................................ 5 Diversity and Inclusion ......................................................................................................................... 6 Success Measures ................................................................................................................................ 6 Presenters ............................................................................................................................................ 6 Risk Management ................................................................................................................................ 6 Price ..................................................................................................................................................... 6 SECTION B: PROCESS, ASSESSMENT & EVALUATION .................................................... 7 The four stages ..................................................................................................................................... 7 Assessment criteria .............................................................................................................................. 8 SECTION C: THE COMMISSIONING TIMETABLE ..................................................................... 9 SECTION D: FULL PROPOSALS AND REFERENCE INFORMATION ........................ 10 2 of 10 BBC Radio Commissioning Brief_v1.3_2021 03 04 SECTION A: EDITORIAL OPPORTUNITY Commissioning Brief ID / Title: 47030 / Consumer Journalism Podcast Commissioning owner Mohit Bakaya Commissioning contact Lea Lauvray Commissioning Brief title Consumer Journalism Podcast Network Radio 4 Guide price £6k The per episode price includes the provision of two simple digital assets to support the promotion of the podcast on social media platforms. Genre Factual Number of episodes We will commission one or more ideas, from around 10 episodes up to around 40. Linear slot day Thursday Linear slot time Approx. 12.30 Duration Approx. 24’ Recorded Recorded Transmission period April 2022 to March 2023, with an option to renew for up to two additional years Production location Undefined Important If you are on the Radio & Music supplier database, you need not complete an eligibility form. There is no short proposal stage. Submit your proposal via Proteus before noon on Tuesday 06 July. Please do so in good time to avoid unforeseen network problems. Late submissions will not be accepted. Enter it under Radio 4, Round 3, 2022-2023, brief 47030, Consumer Journalism Podcast. It should be no longer than six sides of A4 using Arial font, size 11, in the full synopsis field of the Proteus form, including all the information requested in this brief. 3 of 10 BBC Radio Commissioning Brief_v1.3_2021 03 04 Radio 4 Radio 4 is unique in the breadth and quality of its informative, educational and entertaining programming. Every day, on air and online, Radio 4 has more original content than any other broadcaster in the world. Its authoritative news and current affairs journalism is complemented by programmes exploring many areas, including science, arts, history, religion, ideas, drama and comedy, offered through regular strands, one-off programmes and special seasons. In the first quarter of 2020 (the most recent for which RAJAR figures are available) Radio 4 was reaching a weekly audience of 11 million, with an average age of 57. The latest RAJAR report is available on the Radio 4 Commissioning website. An audience pack relating to this commission will also be available on the site. The station is always seeking to understand and reflect the changing nature of the UK, and the changing consumption of audio content. We want to find new ways of reaching beyond our existing base, to extend our journalism and storytelling to audiences that might be poorly served by other media, right across the social and geographical landscape. We are passionate about letting as many people as possible in on the Radio 4 secret, by finding imaginative new ways to engage them. Further, as the podcast market grows, we aim to attract a new generation to Radio 4 as the home of intelligent audio, whether broadcast or on-demand. BBC Sounds offers us a brilliant opportunity to reach listeners who may not yet have the Radio 4 habit. There is an avid and growing online Radio 4 audience. There are around 26 million downloads of Radio 4 content each month, around 15 million of them within the UK. All Radio 4 programmes appear on BBC Sounds and we also commission content which is either digital-first or digital-only. Increasingly, we want our content to work on both platforms. We have had great success here with Intrigue: Tunnel 29, Girl Taken, The Whisperer in Darkness, Grounded with Louis Theroux, You’re Dead to Me and many other commissions. We also know that flagship Radio 4 programmes, like The Archers, The News Quiz, In Our Time and Desert Island Discs, are extremely popular on Sounds. Most of the listening in BBC Sounds - live and on demand - is to Radio 4 content. We want to build on this success with this important tender. Mohit Bakaya Controller, Radio 4 & Radio 4 Extra 4 of 10 BBC Radio Commissioning Brief_v1.3_2021 03 04 The Consumer Journalism Podcast opportunity High quality consumer journalism plays a crucial role in the economic and democratic life of this country. It has always been at the core of Radio 4’s offering to its listeners, informing and empowering them in relation to the goods and services they use. We have seen how consumer journalism can engage and be relevant to a broad audience, and we want a new show that explores this opportunity. Radio 4 is seeking to commission a consumer journalism podcast and radio series with a crystal clear and clever conceit, format and treatment – most likely built around an inspired choice of talent – that is on the side of listeners of all ages as together they navigate the consumer decisions, big and small, that we all make. You should interpret the role of consumer in the broadest sense here. This is about help with navigating the modern world and having the knowledge and analysis you need to make informed choices about the goods and services you select. The podcast should help you understand better the world you live in. The tone and style will need to work brilliantly for the podcast audience without sacrificing any of the journalism and rigour which are essential to all Radio 4 output. We want you to engage listeners’ hearts as well as minds. We want to create an audio destination which is an enjoyable place to be even when the subject under discussion isn’t directly relevant to you – that means warmth, humour, personality and authenticity – and we want the ‘takeaways’ from each episode to be useful and very clear. It will take account of innovative podcast work being done in this area, establishing an identity that lures the casual listener as well as the committed and rewards them all with relevant insights and engaging stories, entertainingly delivered. We do not envisage this being a magazine show, rather a podcast/programme that focuses on one aspect or theme within consumer journalism, in a clever and innovative way. The consumer podcast must appeal to both the podcast and the linear audiences and will have a place in the linear schedule on Thursday, following the Consumer Journalism strand which will have a shorter duration (approx. 28’) on that day. We will commission one or more ideas here, from around 10 episodes up to around 40 per year, with distinct formats and presentation. Numbers commissioned may vary in subsequent years, depending on performance. Please also read the brief for the Consumer Journalism strand on the Radio 4 commissioning site. The podcast will need to complement that strand as well as other relevant programming on Radio 4. We would expect the production teams of the podcast and the live magazine to coordinate closely their plans. Successful suppliers will have experience of relevant broadcast journalism. They will have a production and business support team clearly able to meet the demands of delivering a weekly podcast and programme. They will have a good knowledge of the BBC Editorial Guidelines and a demonstrable ability to manage the risks of this output. Treatment Your written proposal should include an indicative series of subjects and treatments over the six Thursdays prior to and including Thursday 17th June 2021. 5 of 10 BBC Radio Commissioning Brief_v1.3_2021 03 04 Diversity and Inclusion Radio 4 aims to reflect the UK of today and tomorrow in all its aspects. This podcast and programme will play a part in deepening and widening this relationship. We want to hear your ideas for new approaches which will attract engagement