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An Open Letter to Holland Cooke

Ultimajock

Ultimajock

I have been a radio broadcaster in one form or another for 40 years now. I am now physically disabled, but I wish there was some way to avoid having to collect SSI-D for the rest of my days.

I wish to spend the remaining years of my life working for a radio station whose owner has the decency to actually reside in the community s/he is licensed to serve. One where I would be allowed to utilise my imagination and talents to enrich the lives of those who see fit to tune into my program. One where I would be able to respect my audience enough to actually be present at the microphone at the moment of broadcast rather than becoming a disembodied voice on a computer sound file. One where I would not be required to insult the taste, politics, spirituality or sexuality of those into whose homes, cars and lives I would be invited. One where what I say into a microphone would not be dictated by some anonymous executive thousands of miles away. One where I would be allowed to be a neighbour to my audience in every possible sense of that word.

The following questions are asked in the greatest of sincerity, and are not mere rhetoric.

Does such a radio station still exist anywhere in the United States of America? Can I possibly still work at such a station? Or would I be better advised to find a corner where I am not in anybody’s way, like an old family cat, and simply await death?
 
Ultimajock, sorry to hear about your disability. I'm not Holland Cooke, but maybe this info would be a help.

In Wilmington Delaware, we have a network of stations, Delmarva Broadcasting, that has numerous stations (AM and FM) music formats, news/talk formats in Delaware and Eastern Shore Maryland where the executives live in the area. From what I've heard, as a listener, I've never worked for Delmarva, but do know several people I've worked with at other radio stations in past years who really like being at Delmarva Broadcasting. The news/talk station WDEL in Wilmington gives its live and local talk show hosts much freedom to be themselves and they've become the leader in local Delaware radio news coverage (you can listen to them online www.wdel.com). Country station WXCY Havre de Grace Maryland has decent jocks who do more than voice track, at least when I've listened(they are the top rated country station in the Wilmington market against Philly's WXTU and Dover Del's WDSD. Delmarva has rock stations, country, oldies, news/talk, etc. Now as to whether or not are any of the Delmarva stations are hiring, you'd have to check that out.

Hope this helpful to you.
 
First, let me second, what-MikefromDelaware offered RE Delmarva Broadcasting: FIRST-RATE company.
Full-disclosure: I consulted Delmarva for years, so (a) I'm less-than-objective, and (b) I KNOW.

Bigger-picture: Two thoughts:

1. APPLAUSE for wanting what-you-do to aim-higher-than Talk Radio fare that tends to "insult the taste, politics, spirituality or sexuality of those into whose homes, cars and lives I would be invited." Talk Radio lets itself become a caricature...then wonders why listeners are wandering-off-to new media, lining-up for iPad, etc.

2. GO THERE YOURSELF if you can't find a station that "gets it." At the Super Bowl, the NFL now credentials BLOGGERS. Turn on cable, and you'll see panelists with new-platform bylines (i.e., Politico, et al) side-by-side with byliners from legacy publications like The New York Times. As local radio cuts-back local content, self-publishers are now filling-in-the-blanks. Example: www.TomScottReports.com, local "radio" content that it's hard to find on-the-radio in Connecticut any more.

If you haven't yet, see-and-hear: http://www.blip.tv/file/3449761

MAKING-A-LIVING self-publishing is the challenge.
It CAN be done, but many are merely making beer money there.
But you no longer need The Man's permission to "do radio."

Give it a try...if only to produce an online "audition tape."

HC
www.HollandCooke.com
 
Following MikeFromDelaware's post in adding another recommendation of a market to work in which has the qualities you speak of: New London, CT, specifically, Hall Communications. Two FM's (country, oldies) and an AM (talk or standards). Their oldies stations has a morning host who's worked there for 40 years!
 
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