ABSTRACT
Having launched the BBC's social media services in 1998, as a long-standing member of the BBC's production staff, I completed a doctoral study in 2009 that looked at how BBC producers were engaging with the public in message boards, live chats, chat rooms, and via interactive television. The findings showed producers were often unsure how to organize participatory services such as message boards or live chat; there was a lack of reciprocity from the BBC's side. This pointed towards the need for more investigation into how a more creative relationship with audiences might develop.
