RGU set to launch Garthdee Community Radio
The University is going to have its very own radio channel shining a light on community stories thanks to local charity SHMU’s new DAB licence.
RGU:Union and the School of Creative and Cultural Business (CCB) are collaborating to bring to life a hyperlocal community radio channel as part of the Garthdee Community Media project.
The project, which was developed in the last year, will now comprise of the newly relaunched Garthdee Community Newsletter and the Garthdee Community Radio, which will operate under Station House Media Unit’s (SHMU) DAB platform.
This welcome addition comes after community media development charity SHMU approached the University to be part of their sustainable and cost-effective Aberdeen DAB channel, which can be broadcast across the city of Aberdeen, as well as streamed online.
Shining a light on our community's stories
As owners of Radar Radio, a student-led channel for those with a passion for broadcasting, the Union is taking leadership of the project with the financial, creative, and professional support of CCB.
Just like the Garthdee Community newsletter, the Garthdee Community Radio will aim to build a bridge between RGU and its local community and will initially have a lot of crossover content.
Gregor Mailer, Chief Executive Officer of RGU:Union shares what we can expect from this new channel:
“The new, student led, Garthdee Community Radio channel will include a mix of music, podcasts, interviews, news, sport, and features produced by students, staff, and residents from the Garthdee Community. It will shine a light on the history, people, and places at the heart of Garthdee and bring the community together in a shared, authentic learning experience”.
A student-led initiative to build employability skills
The channel will support the professional development of CCB’s students with the school creating brand-new placement roles to lead on the production of the newsletter and radio, which will be undertaken as part of their course. An initial team of four postgraduate students will be working for the Garthdee Community Media project in the next few months and tasked to prepare a strategic plan for the channels.
It is then hoped that there will be a regular rolling of placement students as well as a fixed team of volunteers to produce and offer original content. Even though staff will always be involved to coordinate the project, the radio and newsletter will very much be led by RGU students, to give them an opportunity to develop essential digital skills for their future career and build valuable experience that will boost their employability.
Jo Royle, Dean of the School of Creative and Cultural Business, shares:
“Operating an industry-standard radio studio is an essential skill for broadcast journalists and radio journalism is a growth sector within the creative industries. The DAB license for Aberdeen will enable a new Garthdee Community Radio channel to be launched and extend the teaching, learning, and commercial opportunities available to the University and surrounding community”.
Get involved in producing content
In the early days of the Garthdee Community Radio, most of the content will be pre-recorded in CCB’s radio studio in the Riverside Building to be broadcast in a podcast format. This is an accessible and straightforward method which will hopefully draw in many people to come record for the channel.
As well as students and members of the Garthdee Community, staff are greatly encouraged to record content that they think might be of interest, or if they would like more coverage on the work they are doing at the University. The radio channel aims to be as reflective of the whole RGU community as possible.
If you are interested in learning more or getting involved, please contact Izzy Crawford, Associate Dean at the School of Creative and Cultural Business.
