Two years ago, the BBC announced a radical overhaul of its output. Channels were to be cut, jobs lost and shows axed.

As part of that reshuffle of its priorities, there were to be swingeing cuts to its local radio output – a move which will see the loss of presenters and a further drop in local programming.

It was described by the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) as “the biggest threat to local radio since it launched in 1967”.

Protests have taken place around the country – with BBC workers, including those based at its Tunbridge Wells TV and radio studios – walking out on strike.

BBC Radio Kent, along with the 38 other BBC networks, will keep its current schedule from 6am to 2pm but after that shows will be shared. Regional – rather than Kent-specific – programmes will be broadcast from 6-10pm on weekdays, across the day on Saturday as well as Sunday mornings.

Paul Siegert, national broadcasting organiser of the NUJ said the BBC plans to reduce services to 48 hours of weekly local radio programming was a “disservice to the 5.7m weekly listeners who tune into BBC local radio”.

Instead, the corporation is focusing on heavily investing in its online news and content offering – including in the regions facing reductions in local radio content.

But that in itself has sparked a furious backlash from commercial local media publishers around the country who, for many years, have invested in local news teams and building trust within the communities they serve.

They have united in opposition to the plans saying it could force some local titles to close as a consequence.

Explains the News Media Association (NMA), the voice of news organisations across the UK: “Far from boosting local journalism, we believe the BBC’s plans will in fact irrevocably damage local news.

“What’s more, there is no need for the BBC to do this – the commercial local news sector already serves communities across the entire length and breadth of the UK.

“Enshrined in a Royal Charter, guardrails which are supposed to prevent the BBC misusing its power in this way have completely failed.”

So just why has the BBC become entangled in such a messy situation and appeared to declare war on existing local publishing companies? And what does it mean for the local media landscape?

At the very heart of the issue is the way in which the BBC is funded.

The TV licence fee – currently £159 a year – is a legal obligation for anyone who wants to watch, stream or record live television on any channel and on any platform. (So, yes, it applies if you have Sky or Virgin, for example).

It is through this that the BBC is funded. The benefit for the BBC? A guaranteed income stream which means, unlike all other commercial TV, radio and newspaper publishers, it does not need to sell advertising, or charge for online access, in order to pay for its staff or production costs.

The concept of a compulsory BBC ‘tax’ in an age of streaming has been the focus of huge debate.

Many view the concept as outdated and argue the BBC should be made to stand or fall on the appeal of its content. If they believe people value what they do, let’s see if they choose to pay for it alongside Netflix, Disney et al.

In an age of viewer choice, why should the BBC get a free ride?

The BBC’s ability to publish or broadcast free of any commercial considerations gives it another important advantage over commercial publishers, who need to run adverts on their websites to fund their journalism.

BBC websites carry no adverts and load faster - and that means they appear higher in Google search results, no matter if the story originated on a commercial publisher’s website.

From a reader’s perspective, why does any of this matter? More local news, less adverts - it’s got to be a good thing? Only it's not that simple.

Its decision, however, to focus on online content puts it head-to-head with the various long-established media organisations which local communities have long since come to rely on.

Those very same local media publishers – of which Iliffe Media, which publishes KentOnline and the various KM newspaper titles is among – have certainly not had an easy time over the last 20 years.

Newspaper sales have steadily declined as reader habits change, with social media giants simultaneously hoovering up the vast majority of advertising revenue.

Explains Ian Carter, editorial director of Iliffe Media: “The problem lies with the BBC’s enormous and unique power - granted to the corporation by the licence fee - and the impact of this upon other news providers.

“We are always up for fair competition. Fair competition drives innovation and quality in many different sectors.

“But the BBC’s proposals are the exact opposite.

“Under the plans, online readers – and the commensurate advertising revenues which we use to pay our local journalists – will be sucked away from local media websites to the BBC’s.

“That pressure on our resources, at a time when we are grappling with a host of other challenges could cause some local titles around the country to call it a day.

“That would be a disaster for the communities affected.”

In 2019, the Caincross Review made proposals as to how to safeguard high quality journalism in the face of the shift to online content.

The problem lies with the BBC’s enormous and unique power and the impact of this upon other news providers.

It said: “The review recommends that Ofcom should review to what extent BBC online content acts as a substitute for, rather than a complement to, the offerings of commercial news providers, and what measures might reasonably be required of the BBC to reduce substitution.

“Ofcom should ask whether, in its pursuit of younger audiences, BBC News Online goes beyond the BBC’s core public purposes, and inappropriately steps into areas better served by commercial partners.

“It should clarify and confirm appropriate boundaries for the future direction of BBC online content. This should address the arguments put forward to this review that, if the BBC moves too far into ‘softer’ news, it jeopardises the wider market’s ability to make money from news.”

However, in March of this year, Ofcom – the UK’s media watchdog – updated the BBC operating licence with none of the restrictions the report called for.

It prompted NMA chief executive Owen Meredith to say: “It is a missed opportunity for Ofcom to place clear guardrails around the BBC’s impact upon commercial providers, particularly local news media providers.

“Instead, the BBC has been given a free pass to expand its offering, using the licence fee to compete directly with commercial providers, to the detriment of our wider media ecosystem and contrary to the recommendations of the Cairncross Review.

“The government must now act via the mid term review to protect local news providers from the harmful effects of the BBC’s planned encroachment into local news.”

It is urging those concerned about the impact of the BBC’s plans – both on the decline in its own local radio content and to the broader commercial local news sector – to write to their local MP to state an objection.

Some have already spoken out against the BBC move. Tracey Crouch, MP for Chatham and Aylesford, joined those protesting in Tunbridge Wells, adding the corporation’s plans were “a massacre of all that is distinct within the BBC by the managers”.

Concludes Iliffe Media’s Ian Carter: “The local news sector believes in and values the contribution the BBC makes to our vibrant news ecosystem.

There is a real risk that its plans could wreak untold damage on our vibrant local journalism sector

“But there is a real risk that its plans could wreak untold damage on our vibrant local journalism sector.

“We cannot allow that happen.

“With your help we can get the BBC to be a better neighbour to local commercial titles, ensuring a vibrant and diverse local news sector for many years to come.”

The BBC’s director general Tim Davie has described the steps the corporation is taking as the “right thing to do” but added the changes to local radio have proved “very difficult and unpopular”.