Radio Beyond The Pandemic

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(By Mike McVay) During last week’s Morning Show Bootcamp in Chicago, I was honored to moderate a panel that included several of the heads of programming from four of the major broadcast companies. Our conversation covered a wide range of topics. It was apparent that while all of the companies have similarities in their approach to radio today, there were also differences in what talent should do an how Program Directors should program. What was clear is that all of these leaders are engaged and positive about radio today.

Joining me were Jon Zellner, President of Programming Operations at iHeart Media, Greg Strassell, Executive Vice President Programming for Hubbard Radio, Tony Coles – Division President/Metro Markets and President/Black Information Network, John Reynolds – John Reynolds, Beasley VP of Music and Entertainment and Operations Manager for Beasley Charlotte – Beasley Media Group and Pat Paxton – who most recently served as Chief Programming Officer at Audacy.

The discussion, in front of several hundred attendees that included mostly talent and some programmers, focused on what air-talent need to know about radio in this post-pandemic era. What’s changed in the business, what’s expected of personalities, how are we doing at adapting to the change we’ve undergone and what needs to happen for further adoption of the seismic shift accelerated because of Covid-19?

The approach to companies plans for returning to the studio and offices varied somewhat. Most approached the “return to work” question with agreement that personalities should be in the studio, but those who are more comfortable with voice-tracking, were more open to the talent working remotely as it’s been the direction in which their company has been evolving. The date by which employees return to in-studio/in-office seems to be fluid while we wait for the Delta variant of COVID to run its course.

The same goes for whether or not proof of vaccination will be required. The panel was somewhat cautious as to how they addressed that polarizing subject. The concern for the safety of their employees was universal. The date when Return to Work will occur was not consistent from company to company.

The level of competition is greater than ever. It’s logical that competition will continue to increase, as it’s done for radio since the digital age began. Our panel of Corporate Programmers, when asked “what radio needs to do to continue to compete?” and “What’s expected of personalities post-pandemic?” responded with a focus on personalities performing at a high level on-air, but doing so much more beyond their show. Working with sales and promotion, assisting in securing endorsements, partnering with promotions to make appearances and become involved in events.

I believe that all who were on that stage respect Talent and believe in the value of Talent. That wasn’t clear to all who were in that room, based on an answer that Pat Paxton responded with to a question from the audience. He shared that the role and value of talent has changed since the pandemic. Those talents that endear themselves to the audience and show that their performance on and off the air adds to revenue, are those personalities who will be most secure in their jobs. That comment left some wondering if they can ever satisfy their employers despite performing at a high level and attracting a large audience. That was disheartening to hear from those that I spoke to after the session.  It’s obviously disappointing to hear that building an audience is no longer enough.

There have been several very positive approaches for media to come from the Pandemic and from the Social Unrest that we saw in the summer a year ago. One being that iHeart launched the BIN/Black Information Network. Tony Coles, President of BIN, shared how the network evolved and grew quickly. That underscored the benefit of radio being mobile, fluid and easy to adapt quickly.

If you read the national papers, in a spin on the Buggles song title Video Killed the Radio Star, one would think that Digital and Podcasting have driven a stake in the heart of Radio. Yet, if you have an honest discussion with executives at any of the DSP’s you hear that they wish they had the reach of radio. Spotify CEO Daniel Ek said that “The honest truth today is radio is still a massive part of how people consume music and audio widely.”  Yet we have a huge inferiority complex in our business. This is a focus of our panelists. Acknowledge our strengths and don’t buy into the naysayers.

The same can be said for podcasting, which is an ever-growing audio arena, but pales in comparison to mass media. It’s safe to say that audio on-demand will grow. Podcasting requires Mass Media to drive it as its Niche Media. During Podcast Movement, in a session with Amplifi Media’s Steve Goldstein, iHeart Media Digital Audio Group CEO Conal Byrne said “I’ve been surprised at the power of broadcast radio to market to podcast listeners, and a lot of them are new podcast listeners. When you can level 150 GRP at a new podcast for multiple weeks in a row, that’s a multimillion-dollar marketing campaign that would have otherwise had to try to get there through word-of-mouth.”

Fox News is leading in the Cable TV News Ratings. Television journalists are screaming about it from the rooftops of media. What’s lost on these journalists is that their overall ratings are lower than they were a year ago. And no one acknowledges that the Top-5 radio stations in NYC, all have more listeners individually than what Fox News TV has in the way of national viewers during prime time. Our panelists acknowledged our strength versus the video medium, but they also acknowledge that there’s much we can do to connect to the markets they’re in, and they see personalities … be they local or imported … as important to that improvement.

 Mike McVay is President of McVay Media and can be reached at [email protected]

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