Durham OnAir the local radio station for County Durham & Darlington will soon be one of the only choices to hear genuine local radio all day, as two local radio stations switch to national branding.
Metro Radio has now changed to the national brand "Hits Radio", with Sun FM Rebranding to Nation Radio in May. The rebrands are part of an ongoing reduction in the number of independent local radio stations in the UK. With stations getting absorbed into national brands, radio companies are cutting local programming and resources to cut costs. The local radio industry has seen many redundancies over the past decade, and local radio programs that have ran for years have been taken off air. Changes have also been made at the BBC, with BBC stations across the north sharing programming between regions, reducing the number of locally made shows.
While some local programming will remain on the re-named Metro and Sun Fm, alongside local news and travel services, the majority of programming will be shared with the rest of the national network, with most shows being produced from central network studios servicing many radio stations, such as those based in Manchester and London.
Meanwhile, Durham OnAir will continue to create programming especially for and from the north east. A spokesperson for Durham OnAir said:
"Local radio is vitally important to the people of County Durham, Darlington and the North East, and heritage stations such as Metro and TFM have been a huge part of North East identity for decades. Here at Durham OnAir we care about local people, local business and local radio. We dedicate all of our resources to the local area, and every single one of our shows is made for a North East Audience. We're proud to carry on the tradition of local radio in the North East 24/7. Anytime you tune in, you know you're hearing North East content alongside Just Great Music."
Durham OnAir has a locally produced breakfast show every single morning, a local drivetime show everyday, and daytime programmes focusing on local news and events.
Durham OnAir can be heard across the North East on DAB Radio, through your Alexa smart speaker by enabling to "Durham OnAir" skill in the Alexa App, and thensaying "Alexa, Start Durham...On...Air" and through the free Durham OnAir App which you can download by Clicking Here.
For more information on how to listen, visit www.durhamonair.com/how-to-listen