1200 stunting as Gaffe 1200

[Garrett Wollman]

<<On Mon, 13 Aug 2012 13:01:03 -0400, Donna Halper <dlh@donnahalper.com> said:

> Not trying to be a killjoy here, but comedy as a format has a noble 
> history of being tried and then failing miserably in the ratings.  

On the other hand, BBC Radio 4 is extraordinarily successful with
comedy and satire[1] as an important part of a larger overall
spoken-word format.  A big part of that, of course, is that they keep
it fresh by commissioning new series every six weeks, something that I
doubt any U.S. broadcaster would ever take a chance on.

I am a bit dubious that an all-comedy format can be a long-term
success, and I don't think commercial interests would really allow for
better spoken-word formats than currently exist here.  (Certainly NPR
member stations have shown no interest in filling that void -- quite
to the contrary!)

-GAWollman

[1] And those shows regularly win Sony Radio Awards, which are the
British equivalent of the NAB's Marconi awards.  Something just a
little bit ironic in that naming....