Radio Argovia sees need for clarification with government council

  Roland Baumgartner, responsible for electronic media at AZ Medien, sees a "need for clarification" with the Aargau cantonal council. He is pleased with their recommendation to award licenses to the two broadcasters Tele M1 and Radio Argovia. However, the government criticized the quality of local electronic media both in its consultation response and in an interpellation response on Friday and called for measures to improve it. The government does not explicitly refer to the AZ Medien stations. From the context, however, it is clear who the media scolding is aimed at. Baumgartner emphasizes to Werbewoche that the government council would be "knocking down open doors" with its demand for quality: "Radio Argovia has been committed to quality programming since it started broadcasting in 1990 and has well-trained, long-standing program staff," he says. They are also already in the process of implementing additional measures for the quality assurance system required in the new performance mandate. He expresses the opinion that his stations broadcast a "high-quality program". In the last two years, Radio Argovia has continuously expanded the editorial services in its program and reported very intensively on the federal elections, for example. "The government council obviously has a different perception than we do," says Baumgartner.

However, he admits that there is "room for improvement" in the TV sector. The financial framework conditions are tight here, but this is a structural problem: "After all, apart from Tele Züri, no other regional television station in Switzerland is in the black". Like other broadcasters, Baumgartner also struggles with high staff fluctuation: "We're a training flow heater. As soon as we have trained people well, they leave us for Swiss television". Should Tele M1 receive the license, he hopes that the fee money will ease the situation somewhat. This is where Baumgartner meets with the Aargau cantonal councillor, who also hopes that the local television stations can be obliged to provide "more quality information" with the fee money.