Driving across the country with the radio on left Hubbard Media that Connects Washington, DC President and General Manager Joel Oxley with a complaint and a challenge. Too many stations, he says, could have been anywhere in the US. His fix for a changing industry starts with doubling, even tripling, how local they sound.
Oxley, who is retiring after nearly 35 years at WTOP and receiving the 2026 NAB National Radio Award, discussed it with Summer Johnson on NAB’s Airtime podcast.
Oxley told stations they cannot cut and paste content from one platform to another, and that they need to be experimental and willing to fail fast. He commented, “You must be relentless in your pursuit of constantly being compelling. That’s really what it’s all about. And that, as it always has, means connecting with 30- to 50-year-olds. That’s where success is.” He recommended studying the demographic by pulling their databases, using AI, and interviewing employees.
Oxley detailed a recent cross-country road trip listening to stations in markets including Seattle, Billings, Sioux Falls, Chicago, and Columbus, and reported hearing little local content.
“I think you really got to work hard at tying back into your market in every possible way, tying back into your local market. It takes time, and it takes creativity, but you got to track how often your product really ties back into your local market. And then what do you got to do? You got to double it or triple it. It really takes time and creativity, but it will pay off.”
NAB will present Oxley with the award at the Marconi Radio Awards Dinner on October 20 at the Edison Ballroom in New York City, the evening before NAB Show New York opens.
