CONNECTIST-ISTANBUL UNIVERSITY JOURNAL OF COMMUNICATION SCIENCES, cilt.61, ss.1-28, 2021 (ESCI)
The aim of this study was to examine to what extent university radio stations
in Turkey are an alternative to popular, commercial radio stations by analyzing
the program content and general approaches within the framework of their
music and program policies. Using the qualitative research method, in-depth
interviews were carried out with the employees and representatives of 25 public
and 9 foundation university radio stations across various regions and different
cities of Turkey. Twenty university radio stations were examined on site by direct
observations and face-to-face interviews, and we interviewed the representatives
of 14 university radio stations via telephone or video communication. All
interviewees were asked the same semistructured questions. Furthermore, the
supervisors of the 11 sample radio stations who archive their programs regularly
selected some of the programs and shared their archives with the researchers.
These selected programs were analyzed in terms of the duration of talk and
music, and categorized according to the production elements. It was found that
university radio stations in Turkey have problems with content production for
various reasons and are exposed to certain restrictions. Therefore, in contrast to
international practices and the existing literature, they have content similar to that
of commercial radio stations, rather than broadcasting alternative content.