Jenni Murray joins in radio debate at NEWI

8 May 2006

The legendary Woman’s Hour presenter, Jenni Murray visited NEWI last Thursday (4th May) to talk about the future of radio.

Jenni who has had an extensive radio career, which led her to being made an OBE for her work in radio broadcasting in 1999, is famous for her discussions and books on strengthening the role of women in society but on Thursday she was tasked to help join the debate on what the future of radio might be in the light of new technology, 24-hour televised news and the abundance of other forms of entertainment.

The evening included short talks by Jenni Murray; Huw Roberts, BBC Wales’ Head of Communications and Marketing; and Nadira Tudor lecturer on NEWI’s Radio and Sound Performance degrees followed by a ‘Question Time’ type discussion chaired by Professor Michael Scott, Principal of NEWI.

Professor Michael Scott was delighted by the inspiring and thought-provoking debate. “In this day and age we often accept the impact of technology without really assessing the positive and negative effects on our lifestyle and culture. It is interesting that radio, which we take for granted as an everyday information source, is going through so much change. It is rather similar to the changes we go through in the university sector in terms of developing new degrees and in how we deliver courses.”