It started with a simple email from my old friend, the Guru:
‘Hi, just to let you know I’m closing my Facebook account. If you want to contact me my email is … (first published in the Connacht Tribune).
We had a bit of craic on the Facebook group this week:
“Fans of 2FM presenters Rick O’Shea and Nikki Hayes have this week turned the tables on 2FM over format changes to the shows.
All this week fans, or Ricktivists, have been inundating 2FM shows with requests for Britney Spears’ Trouble and dedicating them to Richard or Nicola. This song has in fact been adopted as an anthem by the campaign. Campaign organiser Allan Cavanagh has said that in effect, 2FM has been playing a song dedicated to Rick and Nikki:
“The Facebook group was set up to show RTE that fans were unhappy with the changes to the shows. We adopted Britney’s Trouble as an anthem for its name and likelihood of getting played. Effectively 2FM has been playing our anthem in support of two of its presenters on its request shows. Now every time it’s played on 2FM it will stand for the unnecessary changes made to the shows and the need to revert to the previous, more popular format.
“The campaign now has over 300 members and will continue to urge 2FM to reverse its decision on this dreadful waste of talent.”
Rick O’Shea and Nikki Hayes had previously had highly interactive shows where listeners drove the shows’ content, but were recently instructed by 2FM management to drop features and simply introduce the music.”
There’s now 150ish members in the group. If you’re on Facebook join us.
Una succinctly captures what’s just so erroneous about the new policy:
“[Rick's] programme is generally stimulating, funny, interesting, interactive, revealing and thought-provoking. Now? Pink – ‘So What’, Beyonce – ‘If I Were A Boy’. A few links. The news. The sport. Entertainment news. It’s an insult to a person of Rick’s capabilities, experience and skills as a radio presenter to turn him into someone who just presses play. (my emphasis)”
…[a]nd even the music they are playing offers nothing new. It’s just playlisted pop. Do the people who make decisions at 2fm not understand that if young people want to listen to music, they plug in their iPod or whack on Last.fm? Do they really just want the afternoon slots at 2fm to turn into a soundtrack for customers at Spar or petrol stations? Because that’s what will happen now with these rudderless and badly thought out decisions.”
RTE 2fm have instructed Rick O’Shea and Nikki Hayes to drop all non-music items from their shows and simply introduce the songs. Rick’s an acquaintance and fellow blogger, and has built up a huge following through the interplay of his show, his blog, his twittering etc. Now RTE has effectively cut off his tongue, his brain and his balls by reducing him to reading the cover of the CD on air, and there’s now one researcher between 3 shows.
I think it sucks. I’ve set up a Facebook group which is up to 70 members tonight. If you’re a fan of Rick or Nikki why not join and show your creepy fanness. And yes I do know there are worse things going on in the world but I don’t think Hamas or Israel are too bothered about Facebook groups.
Why is my Facebook status displaying in Russian this morning?
Me on Culch.ie
