Sunday Morning Odds & Sods

33° - light snow at 12:02pm

Snow! Woke up this morning to snow just starting to come down here in Mid-Michigan. Enough had fallen in just a few hours to motivate #2 son to go out in the backyard and take advantage of the changing season.

He's outside and away from the computer and the TV...cool!

Listening this morning to Bob Stroud on Chicago's WDRV. This morning Bob featuring the music career of Joe Walsh. Later: WKLH/Milwaukee and Steve Palec - who's featuring Aerosmith this morning. Nobody does puts together sound bites (especially on the local level every week) like Steve Palec.

FMQB: The magazine has a great piece online this week: a cover story interview with KSWD/Los Angeles (100.3/The Sound) PD Dave Beasing. Read here. One highlight of the interview is Dave's enthusiasm for his employer - Bonneville:

"This company sees an economic slowdown the way Warren Buffett does, as a good time to invest. Our marketing director, Sammy Simpson, is brilliant, and he’s going to be just as aggressive throughout 2009 as he was during our first few months."

And on The Sound and the AAA format:

"In many ways, AAA is today’s Album Rock radio. It’s simple, really. We’re playing good music from all eras and artists. There are several good Rock stations here already but they only play a tight list of hits, and that’s a smart strategy for them. But there’s room for one station that dares to be different."

Radio stories. This week Rick Kaempfer's Chicago Radio Spotlight shines on Jeff Schwartz. Jeff not an on-air talent, but someone who's been behind the scenes at some of the Windy City's top radio stations.

Among some great stories - Jeff shares how the infamous 1979 "Disco Demolition" came together. A great read here.

And if you want video - here's a 25th anniversary Keith Olbermann broadcast remembering the event:


More video on YouTube here.

And...back on Tuesday, I heard an interview with Howard Stern sidekick Artie Lange this past week on NPR's Fresh Air program. Artie holds nothing back with Fresh Air host Terry Gross. Listen here.

Added: Caught this on The Consumerist website: "Sirius XM Merger Reveals True Face: Fewer Channels And 'Sanitized' Programming". Read here.

Have a great Sunday.

Monday Monday; Talkin' Local

This past Friday Night following Letterman on CBS, I flipped over to NBC to catch Conan. It was a rerun from May 2006 - the last from four nights in Chicago.

During the program O'Brien and Andy Richter did a skit about a driving tour of the city - hitting various landmarks and other "colorful" areas of the city.

Watching got me thinkin' about the great music stations - the ones you listen to and can feel the vibe of the city on the air.....between air talent (morning drive and otherwise), imaging, promotions (and in some cases - the music).

And I've heard my fair share of those that were local - but might as well been satellite fed from anywhere.

Perhaps on your next day long "out-of-the-office monitor" of your station, note how many elements relate to your market: people, places, sports teams, landmarks and the like. If most of your local "color" revolves around nothing more than news and weather, then maybe you've got some work ahead.

Grant permission and challenge your airstaff to "think local" when they open the mic. Do likewise with your imaging director as he produces and writes.

Don't do it with pre-written "local" liner cards - it'll likely sound forced and awkward....too "formula". It really won't take much to compliment the sound of your station.

Just some early morning thinking.

Added - Dave Beasing (Jacobs Media) writes this morning on The Lost Art of Being Local: "At the end of the day, it's your ability to connect with the locals on their home turf - a quality that new media will never have." Read here.

Added 1/29: Dave Martin writes about "local, local, local" and connecting - here.

Let's use our biggest asset to its fullest.

Monday Monday

63° - sunny & clear at 9am

The start of another great week.

Morning Drive starts at 5. In many markets. Run hour-by-hour in Maximizer. Get up, hop in the car and drive your market starting at 5. (when was the last time you did that?)

Dave Beasing of Jacobs Media notes: "5 AM listening levels aren’t much less than in afternoon drive". Read more here.

Added: McVay Media's Dave Lange posted a great piece this morning about what "getting local" in your community really is. Its not just fund-raisers and marathons. Read here.

Added: Dave Martin continues his excellent management series. "We focus not on the goal but on the gap." "What must we do to reach the goal?" More here - including some words from Dave about Merv.

Talent hiring tip - from consultant Mike Donovan (via Harv Blain): "Out of the blue in an interview or while sitting around chatting ask the potential talent to tell you a story. It’s been a great indicator as to one of the main abilities for a great morning host."

"And almost every time I or the clients have tried it, it’s been an eye opening experience."

Radio needs great storytellers; anybody can play the tunes. And thanks to Harv for the kind mention over the weekend!

Refresh your packaging. When was the last time you put on a new coat of paint? Mark Ramsey offers some comments here based on a recent New York Times article.

Fall book starts September 20th.

More Beasing. Lots of ideas and thoughts from Dave in his latest "Beasing Buzz" from Jacobs Media here.

Van Halen. Press conference to officially announce dates scheduled for 2pm eastern today from the Four Seasons Hotel in Los Angeles.


And via Mr. Beasing: a quote from one of my fav actors: "People still come up to me and call me 'Pig Vomit', which is delightful" - Paul Giamatti.

Paul has been awesome in so many great flicks since his role in "Private Parts". His performances in "Man On The Moon", "American Splendor" and "Sideways" immediately come to mind.

Sunday Morning Odds & Sods

Left: Down my street. 11am Sunday.

Green. Wore an old green sweatshirt yesterday for St. Patrick's Day; and also for Michigan State's appearance in the NCAA. (They lost last night to North Carolina 81-67).

Back to our show - already in progress:

Nuts & Bolts: $20,000 a month to promote your morning show. Its yours right now. Read why and how to use it best with this from Rich Van Slyke.

Superfans. Get them to listen longer and write it down! Jaye Albright writes about what two country stations are doing here. Could this be adapted for classic rock?

WLUP 30th Anniversary Part 3: Exchanged email Friday with Tom O'Toole - one of the original Loop air talents. Here's Tom writing about the early days: "We did have a fun time in those early Loop days--just a bunch of crazy ass punk kids having fun on the radio!" More WLUP here.

Roadmap. Check out this story of an alternative station in Salt Lake City. Many of the strategies related to its success can be applied to any classic rock station.

Be sure to note "A Surprise In Every Daypart"; "Location, Location, Location" (especially when it talks about imaging); and "Good Casting". Thanks to Dave Beasing of Jacobs for sharing.

Related. I've been fortunate throughout my radio career to have a lot of great influences and mentors. Here's one: Jack Evans.

When he was in Denver with Jacor in the early 90s, Jack taught me that the real power of a radio station was between the records. You heard it on his KRFX (The Fox) - and emphasized its importance as my consultant.

Added 10/07: An update on Jack Evans here.

Since then - when I drive into a market, I punch around the dial to see who "gets it" or not. I hear a lot of radio stations with perfect music rotations and good air talent - but miss it when it comes to integrating the local market into its content and imaging. Do I hear the vibe? Who would I rather compete with? Do I hear opportunities?

Did I mention that I'm not a big fan of most national "show prep" services? As a PD, I've come close to doing away with them more than a few times. In fairness, they're good in small doses - but give me local market content first.

Have a great Sunday!