Listener Opinion Tracking Made Easy Through LDR Technology March 13, 2012
Posted by jsadsinger in Uncategorized.add a comment
Growing listeners has always been the prime directive of all radio stations. In recent months we have seen technology jump in and help redefine how ratings are gathered, using the social network to control a stations playlist, and now a company called Listener driven radio is introducing a way to track hot topics being discussed on the Internet. What’s interesting about this new slice of technology is that it tracks everything from politics, to world affairs, sports, entertainment…everything…in real time. So now stations that subscribe to this new technology can be one (or 5 steps) ahead of their competition. Read More…
Teens Show How To Use Media To Communicate Bully Issues March 12, 2012
Posted by jsadsinger in Uncategorized.add a comment
We all know it happens. Many of us have either been victimized by it or been the one doing it…Bullying. In recent years we have seen the result of bullying that go from setting someone on fire to victimizing people on the social network to the point of suicide. But we usually don’t hear from the victims themselves or what might be the cause of bullying…until now. Thanks to a show created by Generation PRX and produced by WNPR, Connecticut Public Radio, teens are now producing a show from their prospective called “Bullied: Teen Stories From Generation PRX.” Way to go teens! With dialog can come healing and understanding. As someone who oversee’s college radio this got me to thinking about how we could use the airwaves for similar dialog about important issues. While these teens expose and discuss issues that might seem too taboo for some airwaves, what can we, as broadcast students, bring to the table to begin dialog that deserves exposure? Something to think about during programming meetings…don’t you think? Read More…
Image via Wikipedia
Like It Or Not Rush May Have The Last Laugh March 12, 2012
Posted by jsadsinger in Uncategorized.add a comment
I tried so hard to avoid this topic but it won’t go away so here’s my 2 cents worth (and a very good article to go with it). Since I have spent enough time in radio to know what drives the machine (sponsors and their money) and what goes on behind the microphone (it’s not about the music…it’s getting the most listeners) I can tell you that Rush is probably loving all of us talking about him. The more we talk the more attention he gets, the more curiosity there will be to listen to his show = more listeners! Stations/Networks understand this too. And here’s the thing…yes Rush has lost 98advertisers (so far) but he hasn’t lost listeners, in fact he will probably gain some simply out of curiosity (sort of like looking at a car accident) and this is key because what do advertisers want? Listeners! While some advertisers stay away from controversy others are fine with it…as long as it sells their product. So like him or not Rush delivers listeners…15 million of them and maybe more now and when the dust settles from all of this (and it will) Rush will continue to be the the same Rush we all know. Consider this-as Americans we always forgive and our memory is short. Want proof? Remember the Imus incident? He’s back on the air-with plenty of sponsors and doing just fine. Glenn Beck too. Anyone remember the name Monica Lewinsky-we still love Bill don’t we? If you don’t believe that new sponsors will find those (98 vacated slots now available) attractive then you don’t understand the business of radio. I also believe that many of the old sponsors who are walking away now could be back once we let go of this issue. After all It’s not Rush they are leaving it’s the controversy) and it won’t last forever. To be clear I think Rush made a stupid, irresponsible, arrogant, comment and deserves to be punished in some way. I am not a Rush Limbaugh fan nor do I believe his spin and outrage on most of what he says. But I will give him his due…he get’s response from listeners and has built a base of 15 million of them. Anyone in radio that tells you that it doesn’t take talent to do that is lying. You want to punish Rush? Don’t talk about him or listen to him. Tell friends not to listen. Boycott the products he advertises. Lack of listener support will do more damage to him then any wide spread social network petition could ever hope to do. What I wonder though is why are we so surprised at this latest incident? Do we not already know this guy? Rush has been doing this stuff for years. Did he go too far? Yep…and this doesn’t make it right but isn’t that what some people listen for? Howard Stern listeners-listen for the same reason and he’s still going strong too. Read More…
Image via Wikipedia
College Internet Radio…Driven by Passion March 6, 2012
Posted by jsadsinger in Uncategorized.add a comment
Being part of any radio station with a mission to do “more than the ordinary” means that there’s a common bond with everyone involved at the station. Even so, sometimes, it feels like we’re out here all alone. thoughts like ”Are we the only ones who get this?” often runs through the minds of those who have a passion for radio and delivering something different than the dribble heard on commercial radio. So what’s the attraction? Some want to be a part of something creative, others plan to pursue radio as a career (yes there will always be some form of radio out there) but all have one thing as a driving force…there’s a passion within that urges us on even though personal schedules are tight. This article is dedicated to all of those creative minds that volunteer and share their talents at their college station. You are not alone!
Image via Wikipedia
Is Corporate Radio Good For The Business? February 22, 2012
Posted by jsadsinger in Uncategorized.add a comment
Everyone I know in and out of broadcasting debates the above question. As you might expect the corporate position is, “of course it’s better for radio”. While the locals in radio keep being slowly replaced by syndication or downsized by automation. Have you noticed radio getting any better where you live? Really it depends on how you look at things. The big boys certainly have the deep pockets to bring in some well known talent and put them on their 800 plus station for all of us but what do we lose in the process? Do these hired guns have any personal identification with you or your city’s culture or sports teams or any of the stuff that spontaneously goes on in your area? Don’t we lose some of our identity in this process too? To me, radio has become way too homogenized, predictable, and scared of losing listeners and I blame corporate radio and their one size fits all attitude for that. With due respect to Clear Channels CEO about his statement that the numbers still favor radio over Internet – fair enough statement…for now. If we are being weened off of local radio all together and expected to get everyone comfortable with a less of a local feel then let’s just wait and see how much loyalty to so called local radio there is when everyone has the same access to the Internet that they currently have with their car radios. Read More…
What Can Radio Learn Through Social Media? February 20, 2012
Posted by jsadsinger in Uncategorized.add a comment
How valuable do you think it is for any radio station to discover what their listeners are saying about them? Of course stations pay lot’s of money for research to discover a listeners music likes/dislikes (hence why you hear what you hear on the air) but now there’s a new way to find out more information, than music taste, from listeners and it’s already out there waiting to be harvested. Radioscope, a radio consultancy has published a study on the influence of radio stations’ social media reachthat is a powerful tool and uses information from Facebook and Twitter to discover just what impressions listeners have on stations they listen to. Can you imagine the benefits of knowing exactly
Image via Wikipedia
what you are doing right or wrong straight from the customers candid chats? Read More…
College Radio…Are You Missing Out By Not Tuning In? February 20, 2012
Posted by jsadsinger in Uncategorized.add a comment
With so much music available in so many forms it’s a well known fact that radio is in a transitional phase. What will come out of the transition is anybody’s guess. But one form of radio broadcasting that may deserve a second look…uh…listen…is “college radio”. Of all the choices to listen to college radio still offers a unique perspective on everything from music to specialty programming, even sports! College radio treats it’s listeners to what FM radio used to do all the time… programming unpredictability presented by people who are more interested in creativity and expression than ratings.
AIDS on the Air: Campus Radio Station Enlivens HIV Testing (Photo credit: Internews Network)
Is FM Radio’s Problem A Matter Of Time? February 14, 2012
Posted by jsadsinger in Uncategorized.add a comment
Less than 3 minutes used to be considered a reasonable length for a hit song (way back when). Why? From a business standpoint it’s simple math…more time playing songs means less time for advertising. While songs and music sweeps are longer on main stream radio than the good old days…so are their commercial breaks. (How long do you endure 10 minute commercial breaks?) Which brings us to Internet radio. While it’s still in it’s early stages one of the reason Internet radio is growing so rapidly is, in part, because it’s in a similar position now, that FM radio used to be in…available “Time”. Looking back FM had several big things going for it that AM radio simply couldn’t compete against A. Stereo (not static) B. Less commercials. C. And, due, in part to fewer advertisers, they had “time”. Time to play the “unedited” versions of songs we used to hear on AM. Time to play longer cuts from bands we never heard before but still intrigued us. Time to talk “TO” us not “AT” us. Because FM was new it had few advertisers, and while that’s not the business model you want to spend lot’s of time in, if you want to be in business, they took advantage of the opportunity that “time” gave them. There was no road map for FM’s success at the time so they made up their own rules. FM was in a “no lose” situation so they could experiment with music and, instead of the constant repetition and “playing it safe” attitude that AM radio had, FM took chances on up and coming bands we never heard before like Crosby Stills, Nash, & Young, ZZ Top, Bob Seger, Fleetwood Mac, Santana, Journey, and on an on the list goes. They also let the DJ’s choose the music so a play list didn’t exist. So how did we get to where we are with FM (main stream) radio? Does the Internet really have the advantage in taking over radio’s current position?
Image via Wikipedia
The Consumer Electronic Buzz Word This Year Internet Connectivity February 6, 2012
Posted by jsadsinger in Uncategorized.add a comment
The 2012 Consumer Electronics show proved that not only could we bring Internet to the car but showed us how to utilize the Internet for much more than simply enjoying our favorite tunes
Image via Wikipedia
College Station Turns Down Chance To Join I Heart Radio February 6, 2012
Posted by jsadsinger in Uncategorized.add a comment
Let’s say you’re a college station and the mega media giant, Clear Channel, offers you an opportunity to become a part of their “I Heart Radio” Internet line up? Pretty cool huh? The folks who run KRLX,
KRLX art (Photo credit: Northfield.org)
the Carleton College radio station were given that opportunity to do just that! While many college stations would jump at the chance Carleton College’s campus station said no thanks. Read More…
