Next Friday from 9am until 4pm, and Sunday evening from 6pm until midnight I will be hosting, along with Hopi Sen, a live elections programme on PlayRadioUK. These would be very much akin to how we covered the local elections on 18 Doughty Street on local election night in 2007. Very rough and ready and using citizen journalists all round the country to provide information and updates on what is going on in their area. It will be a sort of PoliticalBetting.com on radio...
The BBC is not doing an election programme on the 5th and won't be on air until 9pm on the Sunday, so it seems to me there is a lot of scope to do something very innovative.
I'm looking for correspondents to cover each of the County Council/Unitary elections and also for the Sunday, correspondents to cover each Euro region - preferably more than one. We have the facility to get people on air by phone, Skype, email, text and Twitter.
We're not going to try to repeat the kind of election programme the mainstream broadcasters do - it will be very much live and loose, and totally reliant on citizen journalism and bloggers to make it work. We'll be talking to leading politicians and pundits over the course of the programmes too, but the bulk of it will be devoted to people like you.
When I first wrote about this, I had a huge response from people offering to play a part, and I'll be emailing you all over the weekend. But if there is anyone else who may be attending a count, or be able to act as a correspondent, do please email me or leave a comment and I will add you to our list.
And while I am at it, don't forget to tune into my normal weekly show on Playradiouk tonight from 11pm to 1am. And even better, call in!
Please put up the direct url to the broadcast so we can avoid going through the main site.
ReplyDelete"The BBC is not doing an election programme on the 5th..."
ReplyDeleteCan't afford to be seen spending licence fee money on the grief counsellors they'd need for their staff, eh?
Actually disgraceful that they are not..they are a public sector broadcaster and as such this is the sort of thing we pay them for.
ReplyDeleteRemember the wall-to-wall coverage when we were heading for defeat in 1997? Massive coverage of every election contest from '04 onwards, but now it is Labour'stime for a stuffing they go silent, less than 12 months before a General Election
Digusting bias
After reading this article in the Daily Mail, I've decided to vote Labour. And so should everyone else.
ReplyDeleteIt's a timely article, coming as it does five days before the election, and I now realise what a nice guy Gordon Brown is. Just in the nick of time!
I'm off to sell my own grandmother. Bye.
I'm a County candidate. If you are happy for candidates to report then I'd be willing to help.
ReplyDeleteI'll be at the count on the 5th in Wisbech for Fenland, Cambs. I've got to check with my organising secretary to make sure its within the rules, but if it is i'd be happy to do it.
if I win I'll also be at the Euro count on Sunday (If I lose I'll be hiding my head under a rock somewhere) ; )
Results will not be out on Friday the 5th because most of the other countries are voting on Sunday. That is probably why the BBC is not doing an election programme on that day. What will yours be about, Iain? Exit polls are notoriously unreliable.
ReplyDeleteHelen, can you not read? Friday is county council election results, and Sunday is for European!
ReplyDeleteI've checked. There's no problem with my helping you out. let me know if you'd like me to report for you.
ReplyDeleteSteve, can you email me please.
ReplyDeleteWhat, no Sunday Roast? Boo.
ReplyDeleteI am currently planning to be at the Lancashire count (though not actually IN the count) and I'll most likely be confirmed as a counting agent for Manchester Europeans in the next few days. I'd be happy to get in touch occasionally and let you know how things are going.
ReplyDeleteRadio Times has FiveLive doing an Election Special as partof the Bacon show
ReplyDeleteYes I am on that on the Thursday night. But there are very few counts on the Thursday night.
ReplyDeleteI might be attending the Euro count in the Ceredigion constituency (but will let you know if that is confirmed or not). If not, could I help with the forecasts based on the results as they come in?
ReplyDeleteHi Iain i live in the North of Ireland.
ReplyDeleteIt probably wont get much coverage on networks in England, so if its any help do you want me to fire over results from N,I too you?
Please do!
ReplyDeleteemail talk@playradiouk.com
Sorry, Iain. Probably I can't read. After all, I am only a blogger. None of them can read. or write. In other words, temper, temper.
ReplyDeleteBut you are right and I have been ignoring the county council elections.
Can probably do the NW Count (Manchester) from the press office and/or the killing floor.
ReplyDeleteThey were using my press pass from 2005 when I reported for the John Harris Project. Quite an acronym.
SNWDWVF ...
I can hopefully provide details of Shropshire County Council results, plus Euro Results. Also, wider Midlands results, possibly.
ReplyDeleteUm. There are a few local council election results too in Bonnie Scotland on Thursday/Friday. I'm sure they would spice up anyone's intellectual day. (Will tweet...)
ReplyDeleteNo coverage on the BBC, Labour stooges! Not even close to being balanced and impartial!
ReplyDeleteIainM
Some direct URL's
ReplyDeletehttp://www.playradiouk.com/playlinks/PlayTalkUK.asx
mms://195.90.118.83/playradio_talk
"Radio Times has FiveLive doing an Election Special as partof the Bacon show."
ReplyDeleteI'd rather burn my ears off.