Radio Ink is on the hunt for good news, wins, and comebacks that remind us why radio is the best industry in America. We reached out to General Managers and market leaders across the country and asked, “What is some good news from your market?” Here’s what we heard from Dawn Ciorciari, General Manager of Bold Gold Media’s New York Region.
– Editor-in-Chief Cameron Coats
As consolidation, automation, voice tracking, and now AI continue to reshape the radio industry, many broadcasters have reduced their investment in local programming and community engagement. At Bold Gold Media, we’ve made a very different decision. Rather than stepping back from local, we’ve doubled down on it.
Our philosophy is simple: radio’s greatest competitive advantage has never been playing music or delivering all syndicated content. It has always been its connection to the communities it serves. Listeners don’t just want another playlist; they want to hear familiar voices talking about local events, local businesses, local victories, and local challenges. They want to know what’s happening in their hometown.
We’ve expanded our lineup of local programming because we know the best local storytellers are those who live here. Our on-air talent work here, volunteer here, raise their families here, and support the same organizations as our listeners. Their shows are real and authentic.
Our commitment extends far beyond the airwaves. We partner with organizations like the Sullivan County Chamber of Commerce on signature community events such as the Bagel Festival. We work alongside local government to provide media and marketing training opportunities for young people. Through our “Bold Gold in Your Community” initiative, we showcase our team’s involvement in local events and activities because being part of the community isn’t a marketing promotion; it’s who we are.
The results speak for themselves. When listeners hear content that reflects their lives, they listen longer and engage more. When local businesses see broadcasters investing in the same communities they’re investing in, they become long-term partners rather than transactional advertisers. Community involvement builds trust, trust builds audience, and audience builds revenue.
In an era when many media companies are searching for the next digital solution or technological advantage, we believe one of radio’s greatest opportunities has been here all along: being indispensable to the communities we serve. Localism isn’t nostalgia. It’s a competitive strategy. And while others may be moving away from it, we’ve found that doubling down on local has strengthened our brands, our business relationships, and our bottom line.
Have good news in your market? Share it with Radio Ink at [email protected].
If more radio broadcasters felt this way and operated in this manner,operators wouldn’t be shutting stations down because they aren’t performing. Radio has been murdered by corporate people doing nothing but squeezing every last penny out of the operations from selling the tower sites and land to eliminating the staff, the people that make the radio station. Anyone can start an on line radio station with a boring music format like satellite radio or most of the big corporate stations and compete head to head with similar nothing formats. It takes a real broadcaster who is in it to do what is needed,and not just to squeeze out all of the cash to get an audience. Too much emphasis on money and dashboard displays and not enough on the product, programming.
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