re: Better radio programming= ever to be?

[Bob Nelson <rac_cooney@yahoo.com>]

- ---Tim Davisson <timdav@bright.net> wrote:

> Those of us in the radio industry, ex-industry folks, and radio fans
mostly
> agree: most 
> music-based radio programming is boring, boring, boring. 

A sort of free-form station blending album cuts
with interesting folk,blues,reggae,soul,world beat,
and so on...that would be interesting. But would it
get ratings? Probably not. It may be boring playing
the same old Springsteen/Led Zep/Aerosmith, but if
people want it, they'll get it.
I've mentioned it before, a line from the first episode
of "WKRP in Cincinnatti" where the station's owner,
Mrs. Carlson, confronts the new PD, Andy Travis,
who has just changed the format to rock and roll.
She tells him, "Young man, this radio station is a
BUSINESS. It is not here for your listening pleasure."

He replies that he knows it's a business, and that's
why he had to change the format from Lawrence Welk
to raucous rock. That's where the money was. Again,
such a station may be boring, but if it brings in the
ratings...

> But has a significant trend emerged in focus groups, on Arbitron diary
> reads,
> etc....where listeners have literally said "I don't listen to the
radio
> because they
> play the same songs over and over..." 

Which results in promos like "W--- brings you the
no-repeat workday"...wow, an incentive to listen all
day long at work--knowing that songs won't get
repeated. More variety! Well,at least they listened
to the complainers ("same songs over and over").
Yeah,maybe those focus groups helped to bring that
about.Even though they still have a small amount
of songs in their playlist, in the long run.

> > And will anybody care? The product is so horrendous now, the
public may
> just
> > have given up and turned to CDs and/or DBS. 

Don't forget cassettes with music or "books on tape".
Then again, there are some people (drive-time commuters
and otherwise) who have the radio on as a sort of
background, not really listening. I picture someone
stuck in traffic, "listening" to music,but their
mind is occupied by thoughts on various things.
They're not fully listening, and hearing the same
song over and over may not even be noticeable.

My own college station (WMWM) has different types of
music (alternative,jazz,blues,world music,rap,etc.).
And within those genres,there's a wide variety of
artists and album cuts. But a station that wants to
make MONEY will limit themselves to a small niche,
musically.Same music, same artists, same songs.

_________________________________________________________
DO YOU YAHOO!?
Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com

------------------------------