Hear 2.0

Reality TV: Nature's Way of Signaling the Apocalypse

For those of you who don't think I'm very funny, I challenge you to read this.

My favorite line: "Does your cup size determine whether that cup is half full or half empty?" And even though I wrote it I'm allowed to have a favorite line.

It's a piece I wrote for the newsletter published by my friend Richard Laermer's company, RLM Public Relations. Richard is one of those guys who knows everybody who's anybody, and for some reason he also knows me.

It just goes to show you, I can rip on the TV people, too.

Can your research guy do that?

Don't over-do the iPod metaphors

Putting the station on "shuffle" and being a station so broad "you don't need an iPod" are two of the tactics currently in vogue at many stations around the country.

But beware: The iPod metaphor gets stale fast.

A radio station, no matter how diverse, is not an iPod because it's not playing MY music. But beyond that it strikes me as strategically weak to leverage iPod lingo when we should be coming up with lingo that makes people think of US, not iPods.

Listeners will buy their iPods without you going out of your way to sell them with your marketing-speak.

It's not "cool" to say "shuffle." It's only derivative.

All credit to Apple for coming up with a more compelling synonym for "mix," but the list of synonyms doesn't begin and end with "shuffle."

So Chicago's Q101 is going to play 1,000 songs.

My fear would be that any Alternative station playing that many songs is going to be an Alernative to what anyone wants to listen to.

The saddest part is where the station evidently acknowledged to the Chicago Sun-Times that it had been playing a mere 200 songs which isn't a lot to you and me, but to the audience it's NOTHING.

Unfortunately, this is another example of a station attempting to alter its DNA without changing its brand package first.

In the world of the consumer's mind, you can't have it both ways. You can't be the same old station and yet entirely new at the same time.

Ever heard of "New Coke"?

Then again, this change will occur on April Fool's Day, so you know what that means.

And I have another question...

If what the audience to Q101 wants is to hear 1,000 songs, then why have they been playing a mere 200 all this time? Have they deliberately under-satisfied their fans? Or are they simply reacting in anticipation and fear of what might be to come?

Do you prove your claims?

If you want people to believe them, you'd better.

WYSP in Philly, for example, argues that it plays more Rock after their (Stern) morning show than arch-rival WMMR, and they back up that claim with graphic evidence, portrayed hour-by-hour.

Anyone in search of proof is directed to the website, and there it is, updated daily.

Yes, daily.

Talk about reinforcement.

Proof that JACK has legs

From a Bridge Rating study of America's first JACK station in Denver:

"KJAC-FM is converting over 50% of its weekly audience to favorite station status. Conversion at this level is unique to this format.”

Their conclusion after one year: JACK has legs.

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Interesting postscript:

The ratings for JACK in Denver don't look as sweet as the Bridge Ratings' glowing report would predict. Denver is a fairly special case because the signal is marginal, but the fact remains: JACK in Denver may have legs, but he also walks with a limp.

The expression "you will eat your words" comes to mind

Said the newly retired Roy Laughlin in MusicBiz.com on the subject of LA's newest Radio Station, JACK FM:

"Could the nickname I have heard of '93.1 Joke FM, a CBS Blink for the West Coast' arrive after the initial interest in the new station subsides?"

My guess is that Roy heard that nickname from his former Clear Channel underlings, not from the audience where the buzz in LA, I'm told, is building and palpable.

It's only a matter of time until Clear Channel invents their own version of JACK.

Then the nay-saying will magically vanish.

Podcasting for Fun and Profit

LoyalEars, a Radio industry loyalty rewards company, has announced a turnkey system for radio stations to sell Podcasts for download by listeners.

For every 98 cent download your station pockets 60 cents.

The details are a bit sketchy, but they can be found here.

Saga fights for Radio's exclusive content

The following is a memo from Saga Communications head Ed Christian to his group's Program Directors. It is unedited and reprinted here with permission.

The emphasis is mine.

To: All Saga Program Directors, especially those at News Talk Stations

From: Ed Christian

I wanted to drop you an e mail and let you know what is going on in this company regarding syndicators that supply product to terrestrial radio stations and also to XM and Sirius.

Perhaps many of you are not aware that between XM and Sirius, those two companies employ between 12 and 19 PR firms at any given time. It should come as no surprise to you that the majority of the newspaper, magazine, TV stories on the demise of terrestrial radio have their genesis from XM and Sirius PR firms, in fact one journalist said that if he had a nickel for every story idea called into him on satellite and terrestrial radio by a PR firm, he would be rich.

Candidly, it is a brilliant strategy. If you are the newcomer trying to establish your product and gain market share, one of the easiest ways to do so is to paint your competitor as possessing obsolete technology, out of touch, outdated, over commercialized, canned, etc, etc. I think you get the idea.

XM and Sirius as much as they protest too much and say "No we don't compete with radio..we are different". Indeed they are our enemy. Don't kid yourself. They are out to rip off your listeners any way that they can. As an industry we cannot sit back like a child in Oliver Twist and say "please sir my I have some more porridge?"

Think of World War 2. If you read your history, nobody really complained when Germany seized their first, even second, and not much...their third country....finally everyone realized what was going on..and by then, events were already in motion. Much the same is going on here. First it was just music, then..oh maybe we will add some content...now, they are seizing our major league baseball and college football and basketball rights, nascar rights, etc.

The rational from the syndicators is simple: "We just want to "fill in" the part of the country where we don't have coverage. and the question is "What about MY PART of the country where there is ALREADY coverage?" and the answer is...."Well...we are just satellite and it probably doesn't matter and it won't hurt you".

My answer is: Anything that threatens the erosion of my audience base by offering the identical product is a threat. We wouldn't tolerate Rush Limbaugh on another station in town if we had the program. THE SAME PRINCIPLE APPLIES to syndicators who give us the exclusive right in our market and then give it also to XM and Sirius. Can you imagine what you would say to a syndicator if you had the show on your FM station and suddenly it popped up in town on an AM station or vice versa?

In my opinion, they have to make a choice...and it is their decision. Either run on a Saga station exclusively and not on satellite...or don't run on a Saga station and run on satellite.

One of our board members, Brian Brady said that radio needs to take a lesson from television. Had TV years ago held firm on syndication they wouldn't be in the sad shape that they are today. Even so, networks such as ABC have their "soap channel" and re-purpose their soap operas, etc. Re-purpose is a polite word that television networks and syndicators have invented to assuage the affiliates' feelings.

So, some of you are going to lose programming. That is the bad news, but the good news is that there is a lot of good programming that is terrestrial exclusive, and maybe once the message gets to the syndicators, more and more of the programming will be terrestrial exclusive. We are starting with weekend programming and a little of the weekday programming and moving forward.

First off, as some of you know, we canceled Glenn Haegae and the Handyman Show. This was particularly painful to me as I know Glenn and Rob David personally and Glenn has even been to my house for dinner. We did give them a choice which was stay on satellite and lose Saga...or think through what satellite does bring to you.

The MAJOR question to any syndicator is: "Where do you make your money?" Satellite or terrestrial? The answer is obvious.

Glenn and Rob have notified us that they will cancel their satellite contract and remain on Saga stations. Syndicators need to take a lesson from the famous bank robber Willy Sutton. When asked why he robbed banks, he replied "That's where the money is".

We also have notified the Dr. Laura people, even though it runs on only two of our stations.

Tomorrow Warren Lada will be sending out letters notifying Bob Brinker, the Satellite Sisters, and Alan Colmes, of our decision and reason. More letters on other programs will follow as we identify them.

My hope is that other broadcasters will stop being sheep and also follow this track and stand up for their rights and not be pushed around by XM and Sirius.

John Locke said it a long time ago "All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing". Saga will not be passive and I do need your support and understanding on this business decision. You must adopt the mind set that you are righteously indignant if a program is offered to you and is also available on satellite.

Remember....car radios only know AM/FM and XM (or Sirius). To a car radio and a driver...it is only a punch away to find that program on another frequency. Saga will not allow our exclusive rights to be tampered with and treated lightly.

I am available at any time to talk with you personally should you have additional questions. As far as those stations who will be losing programming, both Steve Goldstein and Cary Pahigian stand ready to find quality (terrestrial) replacement programming.

Thank you for taking the time to read this and letting me vent.

Ed Christian

This is what I call "leadership."

Bravo, Ed.  Bravo, Saga.

Adam Curry: "It is totally going to kill the business model of radio"

Adam is talking about his babe-in-arms, Podcasting, in this article.

All I can say is this: Desktop Publishing didn't kill the business model of booksellers and Desktop Video hasn't killed Hollywood. But they have enriched the consumer experience nonetheless.

I think Podcasting is in the same category.

And I certainly don't see why this tachnology can't be used by a Radio Station for fun and profit if it can be used by a 12-year-old in his bedroom as a hobby.

Note a key section of this article:

One [Podcaster], Eric Rice, has won sponsorship from Warner Bros. He can now legally play the music of a band Warner Bros wants to push.

That is, Podcasting is being used for promotion. Can't you smell that $, Radio?

"Stripped" for Profit

Now here's an example of a Radio company that understands how to mobilize the power of its websites. Congratulations to Clear Channel for "Stripped."

Like I said before, I trust Clear Channel to get good content and monetize it. Listeners will pay for what's worth buying. It's about time "free" Radio figured that one out.