At least that is what he told Dubbo mayor Allan Smith, who contacted Mr Caralis over developments at the radio station.

Last month 2DU retrenched radio announcers Angela Clutterbuck and Ash Keenan, and scaled back its ‘live and local’ weekend broadcasts.

Instead, from Saturday afternoon to Monday morning, 2DU listeners now hear a feed from the Caralis-owned 2SM network.

“I wrote up a letter and within a short period Mr Caralis rang me,” Cr Smith said.

“He believes the actions taken will improve programming and the station.

“He said 2DU has a special place in his business and his heart.”

Mr Caralis said he also recognised the sense of ownership Dubbo residents had of the 75-year-old-station, which has the motto ‘live and local’.

“The real test will be how the community perceives (the changes),” Cr Smith said.

“The local community tell me it won’t (strengthen the station) ... Mr Caralis tells me it will.

“I have no reason to believe that he didn’t believe what he told me.”

One sceptic is former 2DU announcer and Dubbo City Councillor Richard Mutton.

Cr Mutton plans to take his concerns about local content to Parkes MP Mark Coulton.

He feels legislation requiring regional stations to broadcast a minimum of three hours of local content per day isn’t enough.

“It should be six hours a day, seven days a week - that includes local news,” Cr Mutton said.

Ten years ago Cr Mutton appeared at a Senate inquiry examining regional radio but he said little had come of it.

In his submission to the 2001 inquiry Cr Mutton, who worked at 2DU for 10 years until 1999, took aim at Mr Caralis.

He said local programming had declined at 2DU after Mr Caralis bought it and new FM licenses came onto the market.

“Specifically in three major areas - news, community service announcements and activities as well as outside broadcasts,” he said in his submission.

“The diversion of money away from 2DU has reduced and watered down its once good program content.”

A decade on and Cr Mutton hasn’t changed his view.

Coming up to Easter “there will be no one in that (2DU) building for five days”, Cr Mutton claimed.

“With the Nyngan flood in ‘90 we worked rotation shifts twenty-four-seven to help with the flood, Caralis would never dream of doing that,” he said.

“That’s what local radio has gone from to what it is now.”

Mr Caralis did not respond to a request for an interview.