OMG, how true.
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What if a station targeted a *really* old audience?
- Thread starter tall_guy1
- Start date
I am thinking back on my 45 year radio career and was only fired once at a midwest AC station at age 25. I never got a good explanatation of why. But that is common. I was later let go for format changes a couple of times, though. Kind of comes with the territory.
Bottom line is radio is tough to get into today. The medium has homoginized so much where local barely exists, except in large markets. I don't see this changing back to the way it used to be anytime soon. We are in a position of national shows for the most part, and local shows are only in big markets, with some rare exceptions. Try searching for small market radio openings these days. They generally don't exist. So where do young talents get their experience? Probably they just don't. Sad.
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The misconception is thinking that only the elderly listen to Oldies. Not always true. I do mobile DJ work every weekend and teenagers, also people in their 20s and 30s, all enjoy and sing along with "Shake Rattle & Roll", "Hound Dog", "Rock Around The Clock", Jailhouse Rock", Johnny B. Good", "Blueberry hill", "Tutti Fruiti", "I'm A Beliver", ""Hanky Panky" "Doo Wah Diddy" and more. I cannot begin to tell you how many times people have said they wished those songs were played on the Radio, all people under 40.
They get their experience in ways you couldn't. Doing online radio or podcasts. That's how some of today's new talent get discovered.
That's what Ben Shapiro and Don Bongino did. They were so popular online that radio companies sought them out.
On the other hand, Bobby Bones got discovered doing mornings on a small station in Arkansas. Now he's a national multi-media star.
Well, in their case, being right-wing reactionaries helped propel them. Getting people riled up can really make you a living.
Or -- some businesses and offices my play it as background music. The last time I took my mom to a specialist they had a local, Seattle soft AC/70s soft pop station playing on their small stereo. The dentist office has a Christian station that can be heard.
I got into the business through an internship (I just called around). This, of course, was in the late 1980s, and things are different now. Then I did some time at a community station. There was no pay, but it was an education in radio.
Today the field is more varied. I see a lot of YT vlogs and podcasts, and that seems to be the wave of the future in "broadcasting", where people have their own 'content' channel.
As for having a backup, I would think that should apply, if possible, to any career field. One of the first things they tell you when you go to a state unemployment office seminar is to remember that no one is irreplaceable. Always be prepared, because you never know.
Today the field is more varied. I see a lot of YT vlogs and podcasts, and that seems to be the wave of the future in "broadcasting", where people have their own 'content' channel.
As for having a backup, I would think that should apply, if possible, to any career field. One of the first things they tell you when you go to a state unemployment office seminar is to remember that no one is irreplaceable. Always be prepared, because you never know.
It's no different for the left wing yakkers. You want to get people to subscribe to your content you want to provoke them in some way. With all politics-based content it's riling them up a bit -- even if you're using the truth, you present it in a way that provokes.
In the case of the left wing podcasters and video creators, you generally don't hear them on the radio. Progressives and politically liberal people get their political rhetoric from the internet.
And the internet is the future of 'broadcasting', as eventually it's all going to be content channels. But radio will still be with us for a few decades.
Totally anecdotal data to arrive at a conclusion. A few liquored-up folks at a mobile DJ dance isn't indicative of the greater mass audience. I seriously doubt those same Millenial-generation attendees actively seek out those periods of music the following day, let alone year. Seeking out the masses is what 'broadcasting' is all about.
Back to topic. Targeting a really old audience is the toughest way to go. When you look at radio as a business, you tend to look at the easiest way to grab a slice of the advertising pie. The more difficult that becomes the more potential you have for failure. Let's change radio for restaurants. You can start a Pizza or Hamburger place or authentic Greenlandic dishes. Which choice would you make if your dollars were invested? Which one do you think has a better chance at success? Certainly there are way to many burger and pizza joints but those foods are so universally liked, chances are you can get the monies you need. Greenandic dishes would be a struggle to locate fans and supporters.
There's a place for formats targeting 'really old audiences' but the economics of radio makes it the hardest choice and perhaps the most likely to fail. There might be a place or two in the USA a small local station can pull it off but that is very rare.
There's a place for formats targeting 'really old audiences' but the economics of radio makes it the hardest choice and perhaps the most likely to fail. There might be a place or two in the USA a small local station can pull it off but that is very rare.
Because that was the music of their youth?
OK, but do we assume they have no other interests?
What would those other interests be? What we see statistically from surveys and Nielsen ratings are their radio format interests are: Oldies, News, News/Talk, AAA, Americana, public radio.
The media age for Oldies is 60. That's not an assumption. Yes, some young people like Oldies, but it's less than 10%.
The only way to LEGALLY do an unpaid internship is you have to be enrolled in a school/program , and you can't be used as free labor to replace what would be a paid position, There also has to be a bona fide educational aspect to it.
Being an intern and your whole time is being part of a "street team" handing out tee shirts at events does not cut it according to the Feds
Ask CBS
Ask Warner Music
The way I understand it, the station streams but they charge for it. That dates back to when Sirius/XM temporarily cancelled Escape except as an online service until they were overwhelmed with complaints and had to put it back on the radios. KAHM during the crisis couldn't handle all the extra traffic.
Radio Disney used to play oldies along with the CHR sounding music.
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