A new podcast from the UK government’s Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) is receiving a mixed response from across the culture sector.
At the end of February the DCMS launched First Draft, a podcast hosted by a culture minister Chris Bryant, which will air fortnightly. Bryant says on X that “this is the first ever government minister podcast” and, according to the DCMS, episodes will be delivered “at no extra cost”.
“First Draft is a podcast that champions the cultural and creative industries. It will be an opportunity for a variety of guests from across DCMS sectors to join the Minister and share their experiences,” says a DCMS spokesperson.
Brett Spencer, the director of the Centre of Podcasting Excellence at City St George’s, University of London, says that First Draft gives the DCMS an opportunity to bridge the communication gap with the electorate and build a more engaged and connected community across relevant subject areas.
“It does have the potential to reach a younger, politically engaged audience who choose to listen to podcasts rather than get their news elsewhere. Government communications can often feel sterile and detached and a podcast can present a different side to a politician and allows them to speak more conversationally, humanising them, and building trust with listeners,” he adds.
Rob Summerhill, a Welsh photographer, also praises the initiative on X, writing that “this is very positive in terms of communication. Keir [Starmer] and other [government] departments need to get their act together and simply tell the electorate what they’ve done, what is next.”
However Rob Watson, the director of the media consultancy, Decentered Media, says that the new podcast is highly inappropriate. He asks: “Why not invest in community radio to develop this content, rather than using the government marketing and promotion machine, which many will feel is propaganda because it is not editorially independent or accountable?”
“How will [Bryant] fit this in? I hope he can still focus on other key issues such as challenging the government’s AI copyright plans,” said an anonymous cultural commentator. Creative professionals have protested against proposals to let artificial intelligence companies use copyright-protected work without permission.
Last year, following Labour’s victory in the General Election, Bryant was appointed Minister of State at both the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology and the Department for Culture.
