Typological Features of Polish Academic Radio Websites

Abstract

Introduction. Considering the rapid processes of convergence and digitalization, student radio stations have also begun operating online. Particularly illustrative in this regard are the websites of Polish radio stations, which position themselves as "Polish academic radio broadcasters." In the context of the theme of our research, the concepts of Polish student radio, university radio, and academic radio are synonymous. Relevance of the study. The purpose of the study is to explore typological characteristics, content, and design of websites of Polish academic radio stations. For the first time, a generalized definition of the concept of «radio station website» and the classification of websites of student radio stations are proposed, typological features of Polish academic radio station websites are analyzed according to the identified criteria. Methodology. The work employs a number of interdisciplinary methods: analysis, synthesis, observation, monitoring, description, generalization, and systematization. Content analysis method is also applied to analyze the content of the websites. Results. It is established that all analyzed websites belong to informational-entertainment category by functional purpose; their content and categorization fully correspond to the orientation and information presentation style of the radio station; they conduct round-the-clock online broadcasting on their websites, utilizing various streaming capabilities. The design of the websites predominantly exhibits restrained aesthetics, catering to the preferences of the youth audience. Conclusions. The conducted analysis does not claim to be exhaustive but represents the first attempt to systematize existing types of websites of student radio stations. In the future, we plan to further study online student radio in detail.