How close are we to losing bFM?
"Media organisations can close any day of the week – and they won't come back," warns general manager Tom Tremewan.
The couches are stained, slashed and torn. Most of the studio’s technical equipment is donated and held together by duct tape. Graffiti and dust covers most surfaces.
In the kitchen, one “comically small” fork is shared by dozens of staff over lunch.
“We didn't have paper towels in the bathroom for about two months when I started,” says Tom Tremewan, 95bFM’s general manager who inherited this “hot mess” four months ago.
“It was like, how dirty can a tea towel really get before you need to wash it?”
At the Auckland radio station, some of that is exactly as it should be. With 15 staff and 170 volunteers running the University of Auckland institution, no one expects its premises to be in pristine condition.
Posters are peeling off the wall. Signatures of guests and DJs are etched into desks and walls. You can feel decades of bFM history when you walk in the front door.
That grimy environment flows into broadcasts, with live mishaps, intentionally jarring song choices and homemade ads all part of the adventure.
But, right now, some of this isn’t as it should be. That lone fork is emblematic of the tough times bFM has found itself in.
First came the sale of bFM’s massive vinyl collection. Built up over the station’s 54 years, much of it was sold off in August in what was billed as a “last resort” measure to keep the lights on, causing an outcry that one critic branded “distasteful”.
Then, earlier this week, a benefit concert was announced. Organised by veteran promoter Brent Eccles and Frontier Touring, Save the b is a fundraising venture being held on December 20 at the Auckland Town Hall.
Without a sell out, Tremewan admits bFM is in real trouble. But the line-up is huge: Shihad playing Churn in full, a final live performance by Concord Dawn, along with Marlon Williams, Tiny Ruins, Aroha, Delaney Davidson, Ebony Lamb, Lips and Princess Chelsea playing in support.
All of those artists got their big break at bFM. They are performing for free because the station is broke. It has been for some time. If you’ve ever listened to and loved bFM, it needs your help now, says Tremewan.
Its problems are the same as those faced by many media companies: rising operating costs, slowing economic conditions, and a steep drop in advertising revenue.
But bFM’s situation includes unique factors too. Debt has built up over the years. That needs to be paid off to ensure the station’s survival. (This is not due to mismanagement, says Tremewan.)
So when these measures are labelled as the last resort, he means it. “Even if we are maintaining our finances, we need to generate more revenue in order to pay off those bills,” he says.
“bFM has been in a dire position for a long time … we operate on the faintest smell of an oil rag. People have assumed BFM is doing okay, when that is not the case. There’s this big hole that we’re in.”
Ask Tremewan how close the station is to closing, and he sighs. "Media organisations can close any day of the week – and they won't come back," he says. “Look at things like Today FM just getting shunted off a cliff, and Vice media closing.”
This, obviously, cannot be allowed to happen to bFM. It’s the country’s largest independent radio station, a proven training ground for students before they embark on their professional careers. Many big names got their start at bFM: Mikey Havoc, Charlotte Ryan, David Farrier, Rebecca Wright, Wallace Chapman, Russell Brown, Jeremy Wells, Noelle McCarthy and Matt Heath all kicked things off there.
But so did those whose names aren’t as well known. “Most of the newsrooms in the country are staffed with journalists, reporters, producers and writers who got their start in student media,” Tremewan points out.
Where else, he says, could you screw up an interview with the Prime Minister by forgetting to press the record button – and not get fired? (A true story, he says.)
If bFm were to go, New Zealand would lose The Top 10, an essential nightly fix that regularly showcases local talent. We’d see daily extended news show The Wire disappear. The Kids Show, a Sunday morning staple giving Auckland parents a sleep-in for the past 20 plus years, would also be gone.
More than 40,000 weekly listeners would be bereft. “We're a music and news station but if you give a shit about politics, culture, sport, cooking, art, culture, you'll find your people here,” says Tremewan. “It can be a home away from home for a lot of people.”
So the GM is doing his best, spending his fourth month at bFM’s helm fronting as many media interviews as possible to raise awareness and try and keep it afloat.
He remains optimistic. “If we sell out (the Save the b concert) and we play out the rest of the year with the same momentum that we’ve had in the last four months, we will be in a very good position … to get back to zero,” he says.
As he talks, the sound of a staff member washing the studio’s lone fork in the kitchen sink can be heard in the background.
If you want to help, a Givealittle page has been set up, tickets are available for Save the b through Ticketmaster from midday today, b-cards can be purchased here, and merch is available here. You can also stream bFM online.
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