8,000 complaints over 6 Music plans (From Worcester News)

8,000 complaints over 6 Music plans

4:26pm Friday 12th March 2010 in

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BBC 6 Music's proposed closure has prompted one of the biggest complaints campaigns ever directed at the BBC.

Corporation bosses have now received nearly 8,000 complaints in a week and a half, as people object to the axing of the digital service, and a number of high profile names have voiced their concerns about the closure including Radiohead and David Bowie, as well as Jarvis Cocker who has a show on the station.

It has made the closure one of the hottest topics in terms of complaints with which the BBC has had to deal. Levels rarely reach beyond three figures.

Only the Sachsgate scandal and the BBC's decision to broadcast Jerry Springer: The Opera have drawn more complaints directly to the BBC. In both those cases upset was directed against specific broadcasts, rather than being sparked by an entire service.

On Thursday the station celebrated its eighth birthday, prompting artists Damien Hirst and Gary Hume to design and send birthday cards to the threatened radio station to register their protests.

The corporation is directing those who are unhappy at the 6 Music proposals to register their views with the BBC Trust which is conducting a public consultation.

The BBC said: "It is absolutely right that licence fee-payers have an opportunity to have their say on big decisions like service closures before final conclusions are reached and that is why the BBC Trust is running a public consultation in which we hope as many people as possible will participate."