Dave Ramsey
Sean Hannity
Malzberg
Category: Features
Self-Syndication is Berry, Berry Good
By Mike Kinosian
TALKERS
Managing Editor/West Coast Bureau Chief
Meet Michael Berry
LOS ANGELES — Granted, it doesn’t quite convey the magnitude of Howard Stern’s “King of All Media” bravado, but “Czar of Talk Radio” is the tongue-in-cheek manner Michael Berry refers to himself. “If President Obama can name a czar for everything, then I’m the ‘Czar of Talk Radio,’” Berry reasons.
The moniker took off when he started it four years ago and Berry has capitalized on it. “Other talk hosts say they wish they branded it before I did.”
Catching up with Laura Ingraham
By Mike Kinosian
TALKERS
Managing Editor/West Coast Bureau Chief
LOS ANGELES — An even dozen years has elapsed (April 2001) since Westwood One filled its 7:00 pm – 10:00 pm ET slot with a then-36-year-old, meteoric-rising, dynamo.
Association with the Norm Pattiz-founded syndication powerhouse would last more than two years, before the conservative-slanted talk talent segued to 9:00 am-12:00 noon duties for Talk Radio Network in September 2003.
Can the Radio Station Overcome Smothering Debt and Become
a Viable Business Again?
Mike Kinosian, Managing Editor
RadioInfo and Talkers
LOS ANGELES — Chalk it up to misreading the economic tealeaves or perhaps to good old-fashioned avarice, but several radio groups have fallen victim to the, “(S)he who has the most toys, wins” hypothesis.
“Winners” managing to run the board in today’s all too real game of Radio Monopoly are rewarded by becoming further ensconced in deeper, darker, debt.
Administer sodium pentothal to a cross-section of radio managers and the overwhelming majority will vociferously state that, owing to its cookie-cutter nature and mounting pressure to deliver grossly unrealistic percentages to the bottom line, the business is no longer fun. Countless executives at high-billing, strong ratings performing outlets have been unduly placed in the gut-wrenching position of laying off personnel and making other vital cutbacks – forced to share the load of paying for what could be considered out-of-control acquisition sins at the corporate level.
A Serious Loss for Howard Stern
By Steven J.J. Weisman
TALKERS
Legal Editor
BOSTON — Sometimes it is, as Mel Brooks commented in his movie “The History of the World, Part One,” good to be the king. But other times it is not. Howard Stern, the self-proclaimed (and not too far off) “King of All Media” took a hit last week when the dismissal of his lawsuit against Sirius XM Radio, Inc. in which he sought more than $300 million in stock awards was upheld by the Appellate Division of the New York Supreme Court.
2013 NAB Show: “Metamorphosis:
The Changing Face of Media & Entertainment”
By Holland Cooke
Radio Consultant
LAS VEGAS – Even before 90,000 attendees step into the sprawling Convention Center, they expect change. The Las Vegas Monorail robo-voice invites them to visit The Cloud Computing Pavilion.
Atop the escalator, more evidence of the “Metamorphosis” that is this year’s NAB Show theme: Publication bins stacked with hard copies are being replaced by a wall-o-magazine covers. Scan the QR code, and you get the digital version.
Leave It To Leykis To Blow It Up
By Mike Kinosian
TALKERS
Managing Editor/West Coast Bureau Chief
LOS ANGELES — Master marketer Vince McMahon continues to build a vast “Sports Entertainment” empire largely owing to his uncanny knack of giving the “universe” of WWE fans the product they crave, a philosophy congruous with that of Massachusetts-born entrepreneur Marshall Field, who stressed that his Chicago-based department stores should, “Give the lady what she wants.”
Those taking heed of Messrs. McMahon and Field will – as Paul Simon & Art Garfunkel intoned in 1970 – “Keep the Customer Satisfied” (the “B” side of “Bridge over Troubled Water”).
Not only is the same applicable to an intensely entertaining and astute talk radio personality, it is his program’s cornerstone mantra.
Keeping It Local is KSCO’s Key to Success
By Jeff McKay
TALKERS
Special Features Correspondent
SANTA CRUZ, CA — The news/talk radio station in question is not owned by a hedge fund or multi-billion dollar conglomerate. Their ownership group doesn’t occupy the top floors of a big-city skyscraper. You will not see the morning or afternoon show brandishing seven-figure contracts, nor the corporate PD flying into town on the company Lear jet, or the “brand manager” moving from market to market implementing new strategies to grow the market cluster.
The fact of the matter is none of the above elements – which have become somewhat commonplace in today’s radio industry – at this station exist.
Mohr Radio Dreams Come True
By Mike Kinosian
Talkers
Managing Editor/West Coast Bureau Chief
LOS ANGELES — Anyone connecting the dots to the impressive vitae and past history of one of America’s brightest comics/rock solid actor will not be the least bit astonished that agent “Bob Sugar” in the mid-1990s smash “Jerry Maguire” is on his way to establishing a potent presence in sports talk radio.
Second-year (2009-2010) plotline for CBS-TV’s “Gary Unmarried” called for its lead character to lessen his role as a housepainter as he transitioned to what he had always wanted to do – host a call-in sports radio program. “It is this crazy scenario that I actually wound up doing in real life what I was doing in a make belief sitcom,” remarks Jay Mohr, whose “Jay Mohr Sports” debuted January 2 on Fox Sports Radio.
Hey Joe, Where Are You Going with That Mic In Your Hand?
Picking the right topics when working in multiple markets
By Joe “Pags” Pagliarulo
Radio Talk Show Host
(EDITOR’S NOTE: Joe “Pags” Pagliarulo – a member of the TALKERS Heavy Hundred – is the host of mornings on KPRC, Houston; late afternoons on WOAI, San Antonio; weekends locally on KOA, Denver and weekends nationally on The Weekend show. He is also a major “go to” fill-in host for such hosts as Glenn Beck, Todd Schnitt and many others.)
HOUSTON/SAN ANTONIO/DENVER/EVERYWHERE – “Good morning, Houston.” “Good afternoon, San Antonio.” “Happy Saturday, Denver.” “Good Weekend, America.” These are all things I’m lucky enough to say either every day or every week. It’s a supreme compliment to have the support of the stations in these markets and from Clear Channel and Premiere and quite a challenge. Each show has its own feel, flow and audience make up and reaction. So, over the last 11 years, I’ve learned what works everywhere and what is market specific.
Hey Bad Guys – Watch Out!
TALKERS Spotlight: THE WATCHDOGS
By Mike Kinosian
TALKERS
Managing Editor/West Coast Bureau Chief
LOS ANGELES — Contrasted to national talk radio hosts who can sometimes get deeply mired in a monotonous right against left (or vice versa) onslaught, many of their local counterparts emerge as bona fide folk heroes for standing up against a coterie of injustices inflicted on their fellow residents.
Actions taken by this band of “watchdogs,” in the overwhelming number of instances, have nothing to do with political leanings or a partisan playbook.
Legendary for rooting out the “bad guys,” afternoon talk hosts “John & Ken” (John Kobylt & Ken Champiou) expose what they consider dirty dealings to their very large audience on Los Angeles’ KFI. Meanwhile, on the other side of the country, WRKO, Boston’s Howie Carr is a thorn in the side of the “powers that be” in New England. Everywhere in between, intense professional satisfaction comes when they go toe-to-toe with pit bull-like tenacity against the establishment. In that same sort of imagery, “hold their feet to the fire” has actually become a talk radio slogan as on-air talents attempt to expose and defeat “the bad guys.”
Gun Control Issue Surges as Talk Radio Topic
By Kevin Casey
TALKERS magazine
SPRINGFIELD, Ma. — The Newtown, Connecticut tragedy has stimulated a tremendous amount of talk about guns in America. Usually it is one of those topics — like abortion — that hosts and programmers try to avoid because there are seldom new angles and little give and take between sides. Sandy Hook has changed that. It is this week’s number one talk radio topic. So, how have talk hosts and stations been handling this issue?
Premiere Networks and Fox News Channel superstar Sean Hannity says, for him, it’s about more than the isolated issue of America’s gun laws and his programs are approaching it from a larger perspective. “On the specific issue itself for me it is simple; we protect our money with armed guards, we protect our elected officials with armed guards, and our “Hollywood stars” 
with armed guards. If we really want to keep our children safe in school, why not hire retired armed police officers? Do they deserve less? Many college campuses already have such guards. The other huge issue I am focused on is the abuse of power and an emerging imperial presidency. The Constitution is America’s rule of law, we have co-equal branches of Government, separation of powers etc…Obama making recess appointments when the senate is not in recess; Obama using executive orders to adopt amnesty provisions of the failed Dream Act; Biden threatening that executive orders will be used to bypass Congress on the Second Amendment. Imagine if George Bush tried to bypass Congress on a First Amendment issue! Pelosi and Democrats are encouraging the president to use the Fourteenth Amendment to bypass Congress and raise the debt ceiling. All examples of an executive branch power grab. I am also asking one simple question. If, God forbid, somebody breaks into your house or place of work, how will you protect yourself?
December Sports Scoreboard
Conclusion of a Three-Part Special Feature
By Mike Kinosian
Talkers
Managing Editor/West Coast Bureau Chief
LOS ANGELES — It has been an exciting and historic week in sports radio.
In a special feature series, we have outlined what has been taking place and detailed some possible ramifications.
Our look at the ever-expanding sports format concludes with a December 2012 ratings overview.
Spoken-word stations were particularly vulnerable in the December sweep when at least one station per market generally started playing all-Christmas music.
Peacock Sports Network Playing The Hits
Part Two of a Special Feature
By Mike Kinosian
TALKERS
Managing Editor/West Coast Bureau Chief
LOS ANGELES — As sure as 2013 has arrived, personal resolutions have been made, and a plethora of prognostications will bombard us.
Equally as predictable is that not long into this brand new year, those well-meaning self-promises will be severely compromised, and one’s forecasting ability becomes cloudy-looking, at best.
Here, however, is something that could actually be a trend this year: Don’t be surprised if clusters with multiple talk stations jettison one of those signals to sports.
Associated with that, we very well might witness a spate of under-performing (primarily talk) outlets transition to sports.
A Tribute to Ray Briem
By Doug McIntyre
KABC, Los Angeles
LOS ANGELES — The great talk radio host Ray Briem died yesterday (12/12/12) at age 82. For nearly 30-years Ray owned overnights in Southern California. Ray was heard weeknights from Midnight to 5:00 am and his show was mandatory listening for the night people. Ray was one of the principle architects of the Prop 13 movement in California, providing Howard Jarvis a regular platform to pitch his historic tax reform measure.
Years before anyone was talking about immigration, Ray did a broadcast from a helicopter over the Mexican border to report on the then-rarely discussed but emerging issue.
He was a passionate supporter of big band music and the great American Songbook and regularly featured interviews with music legends including folks like Les Paul and Artie Shaw and going back in time, Louis Armstrong. He was invited to Sinatra recording sessions and was in the studio when Sinatra recorded “Come Fly With Me.”
Eyes and Ears on the Storm
By Mike Kinosian
Talkers
Managing Editor/West Coast Bureau Chief
LOS ANGELES — American voters are conditioned every four years to believe that the presidential ballot they are about to cast will be the most crucial such decision they will make in their entire lifetimes.
That was certainly a dominant theme of the 2012 campaign, yet less than 10 days before Election Day, something else began percolating that had approximately 20% of the country hitting the “Pause” button to politics: “Sandy.”
Innocuous as the name sounds, “Sandy” unfortunately arrived as advertised and now, weeks later, harsh reality remains in its wake.
CES Unveiled, Christmas Unwrapped
By Holland Cooke
Radio Consultant
NEW YORK — You’ve seen those lines whenever a new iPhone came out? During the recession, and now in recovery, consumer electronics (CE) has been a conspicuous bright spot, and will continue to be. On-track to grow 5.9% to a $206.5 billion business in the USA alone in 2012, CE is projecting a 4.5% increase to $215.8B in the new year.
Each November, the Consumer Electronics Association does a press preview of its Consumer Electronics Show, the mammoth, mind-boggling January convention I cover each year for TALKERS. Here are my notes…and radio should take note, for four reasons:
Political Talkers Take Stock of Positioning
in Post-Election Environment
By Kevin Casey
TALKERS magazine
Executive Editor
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – Contrary to the stereotype often depicted by the mainstream and political press that news/talk radio hosts all fit a standard model, TALKERS magazine observes that this is hardly the case – especially now that the all-consuming election of 2012 is in the history books and political talk show hosts are assessing their personal position strategies for the new chapter of history at hand. Actually this is a process that has been in play for several years and not exactly a brand new trend sparked by the election. Key players such as Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Glenn Beck, Michael Savage, Jerry Doyle, Rusty Humphries and Michael Smerconish have had significantly different takes on the conservative side of the dial as have hosts the likes of Ed Schultz, Thom Hartmann, Stephanie Miller and Alan Colmes been diverse in their approaches from the left. However, recently concluded elections – especially presidential contests – have a way of making talent in this arena reassess and reflect upon their strategies.
Be Prepared for What Could be Another
Perfect Storm
By Howard B. Price, CBCP/MBCI
ABC News
Director of Business Continuity and Crisis Management
NEW YORK — Last year, it was the Halloween Snowprise – an early cold snap fed by a lot of moisture that produced a foot of snow in some places, and felled leaf-laden trees and power lines, blacking out parts of the northeast US for days.
This year – Halloween Week could bring a trick some meteorologists are already calling “potentially historic” – a strong tropical storm or hurricane named Sandy, with the Northeast again in the crosshairs.
This rare climatic event could be what one network weather anchor called an “atmospheric bomb” – produced by a hurricane colliding head-on with a strong cold front. The jet stream bows northward as it approaches the coast, sucking the storm closer to land, instead of pushing it out to sea.
The scenario is eerily reminiscent of the 1991 “Perfect Storm,” which left 12 people dead and more than $200 million in damage after it slammed into the East Coast. Power outages and flooding were widespread.
The Young Guns of Talk Radio
By Kevin Casey
TALKERS magazine
Executive Editor
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – There’s a perception held by many – especially those working in the consumer media – that all talk show hosts doing shows on news/talk stations are men 50 years of age or older. They further postulate that when those hosts retire (or die!) there will be no one left to work in the format.
Given the radio industry’s general lack of a farm system, it’s hard to blame those who think it’s an industry of old white men. But the truth is there are young people breaking into talk radio and working successfully at stations across the country. We asked some of them what influence they believe their youth plays in hosting a radio talk show on a news/talk station.
Even Late – Political Dollars Are Great
By Mike Kinosian
TALKERS magazine
Managing Editor/West Coast Bureau Chief
With less than six weeks remaining before the presidential election, radio account executives in battleground or “swing states” such as Ohio, Florida, North Carolina, and Colorado are most likely experiencing carpal tunnel, owing to the fast and furious amount of sales orders they are writing.
In locales however where the race for the White House is already a forgone conclusion (“Blue” or “Red”), things are generally not as rosy – at least not yet. “With the exception of a few states, there does seem to be a lull,” observes Portland (Maine) Radio Group president/general manager Cary Pahigian.
Huddling with several national rep folks last week in Dallas though, Pahigian was told some political dollars could be forthcoming as we inch closer to Election Day on November 6. “Their advice is to hang on and expect some late money,” he notes.
That slow ramp-up has been somewhat of a pattern the last couple of years. “Depending on the landscape and circumstances, television is first in line and radio is second,” Pahigian reports. “Everything changes though if there are issues and/or a tight race going on.”
Where Radio Fits: Radio’s Strengths
in the Media Landscape
by Holland Cooke
Radio Consultant
DALLAS — This was the best session I attended at the NAB/RAB Radio Show. A summary is available for free download on Arbitron’s client website. This document is a powerful selling tool, and real instructive to programmers and on-air talent…especially on-air talent that sells (and smart on-air talent does).
The presenter was Arbitron senior VP/marketing Bill Rose: “Radio provides opportunities to reach consumers when advertising is relevant to what they are doing.”
The sample for this study is “the buying demographic of 25-54, because that’s where the money is,” per conventional wisdom. Data Bill presented was from USA Touchpoints, a national sample that captures media usage, shopping behavior, emotional mindset, via smartphone app, every half hour, from 10-day panelists.
The Adventures of “Poorman”
By Fred Lundgren
KCAA, San Bernadino/Riverside
CEO/President
SAN BERNADINO — Jim Trenton, the original “Poorman” of California radio and creator of Loveline will turn 60 next year. The fame he enjoyed while co-hosting the show has become a distant memory. The successful radio and TV series is primarily associated with Dr. Drew Pinsky.
Trenton’s stardom quickly faded after he was fired from Loveline for encouraging thousands of listeners to join him for a midnight surprise birthday party on the front lawn of a co-worker…and listeners showed up, by the thousands…but that was almost 20 years ago.
Covering Breaking News
How news/talk radio stations can take ownership of breaking news events
By Kevin Casey
TALKERS magazine
VP/Managing Editor
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — News/talk stations covering breaking news have a challenge in this era of shrinking news departments and pared-back staffs. In order to be the place to which people turn for coverage of breaking news and then the talk about the news, stations must have a pre-planned approach and use their people creatively in order to compete for the consumer’s attention. With the recent case of the Aurora shootings last month, stations beyond Denver woke up to a major breaking story from out of market that was the only thing people were talking about that morning.
The Rolodex of the well-run news room can help the station respond to such complex cases where gun law experts, psychology practitioners, crime experts and others are used by stations to bring local analysis to the story. How stations prepare for and execute coverage of breaking news and the talk about that news determines how “on top of the story” a station and its talk hosts sound.
A Tribute to Mike Francesa
By Richard Neer
WFAN, New York
Talk Show Host
NEW YORK – Mike Francesa is the number one sports talk host in the country.
Although there are nationally syndicated names that may claim to have a wider cume than Mike Francesa, Mike is the king of sports talk in the number one market in the nation. He is appointment listening. Love him or hate him, New Yorkers need to hear his take on major stories. He cannot be ignored.
What does Francesa bring to the table? His years as a researcher at CBS television were merely a prelude of what was to come. His relentless curiosity and work ethic along with his relationship with some of the biggest names in television broadcasting gave him unique insight. He learned to dig deep into the numbers, but he also understood that the games have a heartbeat. They are populated by human beings – replete with all their flaws and all their glory. Mike dreamed of someday being able to share his knowledge behind the mic instead of behind the scenes. His opportunity came after ceaselessly lobbying the management at WFAN to give him a chance for his voice to be heard.
Niche Audio Service Springs from Telecom Executives’ Efforts
By Kevin Casey
TALKERS magazine
VP/Managing Editor
NEW YORK — An audio content aggregator service that uses a call-in phone number may seem a bit counterintuitive in the face of the trend toward apps and web destinations but ZenoRadio’s success of pulling together listeners and audios sources over the past 12 months is a case study in serving an information-hungry, niche community.
ZenoRadio allows users – the bulk of which are immigrants here seeking radio stations from “back home” – to dial a phone number and hear their favorite radio show, personalities, soccer matches, etc. on their phone (mobile or otherwise). Founder Baruch Herzfeld dreamed up the idea after a security guard in his building, who comes from West Africa, expressed his boredom and the desire to hear radio from “home.” Herzfeld’s hobby was doing an internet radio show and in his mind, one thing led to another and ZenoRadio was born. Herzfeld’s experience in the telecom business provided him with the experience to build a back-end interface that allowed the broadcasters and radio hosts to monitor active calls and streams, and a front-end interface that allowed listeners to change channels using their handsets.
TALKERS Conference – New York City – New Media Seminar – 2012 – Picture Gallery
The first of two installments of TALKERS magazine’s innovative and economical one-day model for the New Media Seminar seems to have struck the right chord – at least for the approximately 400 industry professionals who recently packed the Concierge Conference Center on Manhattan’s East Side on Thursday June 7. Photo, videos and letters of praise clearly indicate that the first half of the talk media industry’s longest running and most important national convention was a home run that soared, as the saying goes, out of the park. Now as the editors of TALKERS magazine begin to post pictures, videos and comments from the Big Apple “happening,” the industry begins to anticipate part-two of the exciting event scheduled for Thursday October 11 in Los Angeles.
A sampling of excerpts from letters received from industry leaders shows strong and resounding approval of the new NMS format and its results in New York City. See the letters and the NMS picture gallery. click here.
The State of News in News/Talk Radio
By Kevin Casey
TALKERS magazine
VP/Managing Editor
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — It’s understood by anyone in the radio business that the big news stories of the day – whether they are local or national stories – generate the topics that drive the conversation on news/talk radio. But what are the roles of the newsroom, the reporter and the regular newscasts on today’s news/talk stations? The move of all-news to FM signals, the development of more national and regional radio news products and the addition of newswheel programs to some of the country’s most respected talk stations seem to indicate radio news has received a shot in the arm. But the decimation of many radio news departments that occurred in conjunction with consolidation still affects many radio operations and raises questions about the relevance of news elements to the successful operation of the modern news/talk station.
Alan Cox Talk Show Rocks Cleveland on WMMS-FM
By Kevin Casey
TALKERS magazine
VP/Managing Editor
CLEVELAND — There’s still not a lot of talk on FM radio. Yes, there is a lot of sports talk and more and more news/talk finding a home on the FM band lately, but talk – or as consultant Walter Sabo calls it – targeted talk is not prevalent on radio in America. Certainly there is WTKS-FM, Orlando; New Jersey 101.5; and Cox has just stripped the music away from WHTP-FM, Tampa with Bubba the Love Sponge in AM drive and Cowhead in PM drive and newly developed shows in the other dayparts. But apart from those examples and many morning drive shows on music stations (more on that later), few operators have been inclined to develop talk targeted to young people – often called “hot talk.” Except at Cleveland’s legendary rock station – WMMS-FM – where the Alan Cox show gets big numbers in afternoon drive.
A quick glance at Cox’s resume: He began his performance career doing stand-up comedy in college; produced Jonathon Brandmeier at WLUP-FM, Chicago in the early 1990s; hosted mornings at a classic rock station in Kalamazoo; hosted PM drive at WXDX-FM, Pittsburgh where he replaced Howard Stern in AM drive when CC dropped Stern (Cox proudly states it was “one of the only Stern stations that didn’t completely tank” after that); was part of the ensemble cast that replaced Mancow on Q101 in Chicago; and he’s been at WMMS-FM, Cleveland for the past two-and-a-half years. Read More
In Memory of Radio Legend Pete Fornatale
By Richard Neer
WFAN, New York
Talk Show Host
NEW YORK — He wasn’t a talker in the sense that he hosted programs on traditional news/talk outlets. Indeed the content of most of his programs featured more music than talk. But when he did crack the mic, you couldn’t find a more intelligent voice observing pop culture than the late Pete Fornatale.
Pete got his start at WFUV-FM, the Fordham campus station and, ironically, that is where he did his final program in mid-April. In his own way, he was every bit the pioneer that radio legend Alan Freed was in exposing popular music to the masses. The difference was that while the early rock ‘n’ rollers spun “silly love songs” that you could dance to, Fornatale cared more about the lyrics, not the beat.
He was one of the first to string together songs in a meaningful fashion – the art of the segue – as it became known. There was a purpose behind every record he played. When CSNY rushed the single, “Ohio” to radio stations to protest the Kent State killings, Pete was the first to play it, indeed repeating it several times before enhancing it with his own emotional comments on the tragedy.
Peter also paved the way for talkers with unconventional voices. His own was slightly nasal with a higher pitch than the sonorous tones listeners were used to on big city radio. But in New York, that qualm quickly passed with astute listeners who were enlightened by the content of what he said. He was probably the first real musicologist on commercial radio who presented rock and folk music as an intellectual as well as emotional experience.
He wrote books, taught classes on many levels, gave lectures and hosted multimedia presentations. Unfortunately, in the early 1980s consultants took over what had been free form FM radio. They didn’t understand Peter’s appeal and lobbied to oust him from the midday shift he had occupied for so many years. When I was program director of WNEW-FM I tried to hold out as long as possible against some of the more radical changes the consultants wanted to affect. For Fornatale, my idea was a weekend program that played to his strengths, a show that was to be called “Mixed Bag,” after the Richie Havens album of the same name. He would play folk and country rock, songs with lyrics on a deeper level. When I broached the subject with him, he was excited and immediately expanded and refined my rough concept and made it his own. It became his hallmark program.
He took it with him wherever he went, from WNEW-FM to K-Rock and eventually back to WFUV-FM. He was a great interviewer and a dear friend to many artists, ranging from Garland Jeffries and Richie Furay (Poco) to Art Garfunkel. Musicians were comfortable talking to someone who truly understood and appreciated them.
Peter was always a pleasure to work with. Even if he didn’t agree with a particular direction, after expressing his views, he executed whatever he was asked with loyalty and dedication to his craft. He welcomed newcomers to the station with open arms and helpful advice. One major regret I have about writing my story of those years, FM:The Rise and Fall of Rock Radio, is that I wasn’t able to interview Pete extensively, since he was working on a similar project and wanted to be heard in his own voice. Although he’s still a prominent character, his personal recollections would have made it a better book.
But fortunately, he leaves books of his own and numerous recordings, many available at his website. Peter passed away quietly the morning of April 26, 2012, but his voice will be heard for generations to come.
Richard Neer is a sports talk host at WFAN, New York, an anchor on A Touch of Grey, and sports editor of TALKERS magazine. He can be e-mailed at info@talkers.com.
Return to Main News page here.
Social Media: Handle with Care
Since this story was published on the morning of Friday, January 27, KTRS, St. Louis talk host JC Corcoran has responded with illuminating details that add even more to the fascinating subject of social media use by talk broadcasters. Read his letter here.
By Kevin Casey
and Mike Kinosian
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. –– Using social media such as Twitter and Facebook to promote one’s radio program, the station brand or to interact with P1s is what most talk radio practitioners are expected to do these days. After all, used properly, most digital experts agree the explosive nature of social media can reach people –– including potential new listeners –– in a way other media can’t. But are there damaging aspects to social media? Is there a potential downside?
Consider the cases of KTRS, St. Louis talk show host JC Corcoran and Current TV (and former MSNBC and ESPN) personality Keith Olbermann.
Corcoran is a very successful, longtime St. Louis radio personality. Last fall he got into a back-and-forth argument via Twitter with a listener –– complete with salty language –– about his prediction the Cardinals would re-sign slugger Albert Pujols. Management at KTRS suspended Corcoran briefly for how he handled the exchange. The theory being that although the FCC’s jurisdiction is limited to only what goes out over the airwaves, a host’s general public image is the concern of station ownership regardless of the venue upon which it is conveyed –– licensed or unlicensed.
The Changing Program Director/Talent Dynamic
Critiquing talk radio talent in the modern era proves challenging as the role of the PD and structure
of the industry undergo massive changes
By Mike Kinosian
Special Features Correspondent
“This could hurt your feelings, but it is being said for your own good.”
Such verbiage has been the basis for any one of countless program director-conducted aircheck sessions throughout the years in every conceivable radio format.
Quite possibly even more so than ever and as hyperbolic as it may sound, a program director supremely performing duties as a motivating talent coach is worth his or her weight in gold, silver, bronze and platinum.
“Directing” is, of course, a derivative form of the program director title. Analyzing on-air personalities while simultaneously providing key components of constructive criticism, positive encouragement and guidance was once a basic calling card for anyone aspiring to be an upper-echelon programmer. To say it is a dying, if not lost, proficiency is the height of understatement. It is however clearly a two-way process, deeply rooted on a foundation of reciprocated trust. If or when that is shattered, progression for the two parties becomes tenuous at best.
Achieving the elusive goal of “success” can have its downsides since that particular nebulous description can lead one to think he or she is above any form of critique or direction – especially from someone they perceive to be a “lowly” program director. Chaos becomes the inevitable and seamy result.
Qualitative aspects of the talk radio audiences
By Michael Harrison
TALKERS MAGAZINE
Publisher
NEW YORK –– Continuing with a fall tradition, the latest numbers have been compiled for TALKERS magazine’s annual release of its Talk Radio Research ProjectTM (TRRP). Primarily designed as an in-house vehicle to provide the TALKERS editorial staff with intelligence about the national talk radio audience as a resource for general background and to help answer basic questions from the press (such as “What kind of people listen to talk radio?”), the publication began honoring requests from radio stations to share this information. It has proven extremely valuable as a supplemental sales tool that provides a thumbnail qualitative overview of several leading spoken word formats’ audience profiles including demographics, political orientation, income, education and consumer tastes, habits and disposition. These include the mainstay news/talk format as well as the recent additions of the sports talk and pop culture talk genres.
The latest figures indicate that news/talk radio maintains its historic position as the most reliable attraction to draw adult audiences and inspire them to action in all audio broadcast media. At present, the news/talk format predominantly focuses on discussion about politics, but it does reserve room within its scheduling for specialty programs about relationships, finance, health, technology and home improvement, among others which are taken into consideration when compiling these percentages.
News/talk radio is not alone in displaying these attributes. So do the relatively recent additions of sports talk radio and pop culture talk radio (with several specific differences indigenous to these formats). These spoken-word genres also deliver attentive and highly desirable audiences that consume foreground radio with passion and attention. The people who regularly listen to news/talk, sports talk and pop culture talk radio are more than listeners –– they are radio fans!
