RE: College radio talent

[Dan Billings <billingsdan@yahoo.com>]

My thoughts on going to school for broadcasting and
starting out in the business today:

1.  There is still entry level jobs in markets like
Portland.  The pay sucks and you will start out
part-time, but if you can manage to hold another job
to pay the bills and you make yourself available to do
all the worse shifts, you will get plenty of valuable
experience.

2.  Some kind of training will make it a lot easier to
get such a job if you have no radio experience.

3.  I started working at a radio station behind the
scenes when I was in high school and was working
full-time in radio on the air when I was 18.  I don't
think a broadcast school would have helped me much. 
However, I had several skilled pros, like Bob Grady
and Chuck Igo, who went out of their way to help me
learn and improve.  I wonder if that kind of mentoring
is going on today?  

4.  Making a living in a small or medium market today
is really tough.  When I started out, if you had
decent skills, you could always go across the street
and get a job.  Today, in markets like Portland, there
are only three places to work so your options are much
more limited.  Unless someone getting into the
business today is willing and able to move around from
city to city, I would look for another career.

-- Dan Billings, Bowdoinham, Maine



__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Finance - Get real-time stock quotes
http://finance.yahoo.com