SRG and culture - develop further or save to death?

The SONART position paper on media and culture (available at www.sonart.swiss) was discussed in Lausanne on June 12, 2021. Prominent guests on the panel were writer and media politician Guy Krneta (Basel) and Nicolae Schiau, Head of the Music, Entertainment and Youth Department at Radio Télévision Suisse (RTS). Both panelists were positive about the thrust of the SONART paper. Krneta, however, took a more pessimistic view. He sees an increasing reduction in good cultural journalism, which is based on the inclusion of artists. "The reduction is devastating. It leads to arbitrariness and no longer highlights the content of culture." Schiau takes a slightly different view, emphasizing that music and the expansion of Swiss music is a clear intention at RTS. There are very good journalistic cultural vessels in all music genres, but it is true that audiences are being lost and financial pressure is increasing. "We media professionals are also subject to political decisions." However, Schiau is certain that new formats are needed to attract a new audience and reminds us that the average age of the "Couleur3" audience is 43, for example. Nevertheless, he remains optimistic: "There will always be public radio, we want to continue making radio in the future, but the formats and focus will change." Krneta takes this on board and calls for close cooperation between artists and the media: "The art scene and the cultural media want the same thing. We are all in the same boat."