Jocelyn Hay
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Jocelyn Hay | |
|---|---|
| Born | 30 July 1927 Swansea, Wales |
| Died | 21 January 2014 (aged 86) Gravesend, England[1] |
| Occupations | Journalist and broadcasting campaigner |
| Known for | Founder of the Voice of the Listener & Viewer |
Jocelyn Hay, CBE (30 July 1927 – 21 January 2014)[2] was a British journalist and broadcasting campaigner, founder of the Voice of the Listener & Viewer in 1983. In 2008, The Daily Telegraph described Hay as "possibly the best lobbyist in the whole UK".[3] The Scotsman noted that she was once called the "Florence Nightingale of Public Service Broadcasting".[4]
Career
Hay began her career as a freelance journalist, broadcaster, and public relations writer,[6] most notably for Girl Guides.[3] In 1983[6] she founded Voice of the Listener (the name was lengthened to Voice of the Listener & Viewer in 1991)[3] as a consumer group to promote public service broadcasting.[7] Voice of the Listener was seen as a "voice for radio listeners" at a time when the managing director of BBC Radio 4, Richard Francis, was pushing to turn the station into a news-only channel.[6] Hay also saw the need for a platform that would address a "full range of policy issues", unlike the more narrowly focused National Viewers' and Listeners' Association (NVLA, now Mediawatch-uk), set up by Mary Whitehouse in 1965.[7]
Besides on-air programming, Hay chaired annual conferences in Scotland which encouraged public interaction and debate with "broadcasters, regulators, politicians, journalists and academics".[4]
By the time Hay relinquished her role as chairman of Voice of the Listener & Viewer to become its president in 2008, Voice of the Listener & Viewer numbered 1500 members.[3]
Honours and awards
In 1999 Hay was appointed MBE, and also received the Elizabeth R Award from the Commonwealth Broadcasting Association.[4] In 2005, she was promoted to CBE. In 2007, she received a European Woman of Achievement Award.[4]
