Do Florida "Radio Farms" Exist?

[John FL]

While we hear so much about cutting talent to save bucks, I still wonder if there are those who hire recent communication major grads and who actually invest time and effort in mentoring them to be broadcast professionals?

For music stations, I’ve always thought opportunity is there to supplement the limited talent roster by having one or a couple of these “trainees” to voice track off hours such as late evenings or overnights and/or have a weekend live gig to help with remotes and to give the station a degree of life so it sounds less automated. Salaries wouldn’t be a budget buster. I would think the opportunity to list radio experience on a young person’s resume would be worth a lot to them.

News doesn’t stop on the weekends. Especially for the small news/talk operations, I would think having one or two apprentices on board in off hours would help enusre the station doesn't miss the opportunity to inform it's listeners about local news events.

I’m just curious if these kinds of things are done anymore and if there are those in the business who are willing to devote the time and effort in developing the talent of tomorrow. It would be good to hear some success stories so we can actually use this forum to give recognition to those who have earned it.

 

[Goat Rodeo Cowboy]

I assume you are using the term "Radio Farms" much like baseball uses the term "Farm Clubs".

My question would be... do they exist ANYWHERE in this day and age?

 

[John FL]

Hey thanks, Goat Rodeo and yes you are right. I wanted to make a sports comparison but forgot to explain the term. Perhaps it's a case of how business in general runs today. Many companies have a track record of success resulting from hard work and effective teamwork. Perhaps I'm naive but I would at least hope mom and pop radio operators would still embrace some of these so called old-fashioned work ethics. It would still be so cool to hear some success stories right about now.

 

[jcolletta275]

And as your question implies, unfortunately the answer seems to be "no." Between consolidation, new technology, a lousy economy and the slow, constant loss of listenership in not only younger but also, increasingly, older demos, the entire industry has been shrunk to a relatively minuscule size (and it was already a small business to begin with!). That being the case, the incoming talent, the funding, the desire and the need for such "farm stations" just isn't there. It disappoints me greatly that our once-great medium has taken such a horrendous turn over the past thirteen years or so. Some might say it goes back further than that, but even leading right up to Telecom '96, there were still countless reasons why I loved this business. Then around 1998, it started to sour, and by 2001, I could barely stand what I was hearing anymore. Today, I hardly ever turn on my radio. That poses the question: even if such farm teams DID still exist, why would we expect anyone to play for them when many of us already IN the industry aren't pleased with the game ourselves?

 

[Goat Rodeo Cowboy]

Josh: I think we all have our moments of pessimism about radio today, but let me suggest that in your last post you came down with a sour grapes view of the world that may not be accurate. I think if the two of us jumpied in a car, set aside a couple of weeks to start touring and visiting radio stations we would be surprised to come across some "audio oasis spots" in what looks like a big broadcasting dessert. If as we stopped, rather than just go down the road from station to station on our list, we started asking at each stop: "We want to visit some interesting stations. We want to see some bright spots. Who do you recommend?"

I think in two weeks time we could discover some marvelous radio that you are assuming doesn't exist at all. Give us six weeks on the road and we could publish a book that would inspsire radio people to jump in and try harder... for it still can be done.

 

[oaktree]

Goat Radio Cowboy makes some extraordinary points. Outstanding, GRC, as most of your posts are.

Here's another one to ponder:

Don't sweat the "farm system." They are few and far between these days. Too many people out on the beach looking for work. I'll tell you what, though, right now, there was NEVER a better time to "OWN" the farm system ... and that's YOU.

Invest in your future. Head now ... not by walking, but by running, to the Internet. And do it NOW.

Your best investment is in yourself, Josh. And don't stop with just "listening" to "mainstream" radio all over the "internet" dial from coast-to-coast. That's only a start. And when you do, don't forget the small burgs and 'burbs out there that also stream. Give 'em a listen.

Yeah, sure, there's plenty of horrid radio out there, but, as GRC said, there's still good radio, too. And don't worry about the "but I hate voicetracking radio stations." Your future might very well be doing so, so LEARN it. And learn to do it WELL. You'll be miles ahead of the game in doing so.

Now, that said, your "education" will cost you a few bucks. Buy a decent desktop computer. Buy some software like that frequently mentioned on these boards, then beg, borrow, or steal any music you can find from your collection, your sister's, your friends, your family, your neighbors. Put it into your computer and BUILD your own radio station.

Work it to death. It will take you, oh, three weeks to do it and do it right. Learn how to voicetrack on it so you can talk up to records like "they do in radio," (you'd be surprised how many don't know how to do it on the Internet .... so, they don't go to the effort.) DO IT and do it well.

Then, play with the programming. Learn why what works works ... and what doesn't doesn't. You ain't a star and you don't need to be. You're learning to be a broadcaster, not Ryan Seacrest.

Then, go to your local ISP and buy some bandwidth. Better yet, go, legally, to Live 36S, SWNetworks or Loud City. Put your radio station "on the air," for all to hear. It'll run you a few bucks that will be healthy for you. But a lot less than sitting there doing nothing while you wait for the next shoe to drop at your local station.

Do a three hour shift around the clock of all the formats you can think of. Not the one's "you" like. Because you quite probably won't be working at "what you want" all your life.

Then, listen to yourself. Listen to others and realize that now, radio is so competitive, that there aren't many willing to take time to teach you ... but I'll tell you this, Josh, walk into a station with a good appearance, a willingness and ASK someone to listen to your Internet radio station. I'll bet you get a few takers. Maybe a jock. Maybe a PD. Maybe, if you're lucky, a GM.

Leave a one page resume. Leave your phone number and ask if you can come back for some "input."

And watch what happens. Next time an opening exists for a voicetracked Saturday nite, you'll get the gig if you do it right. No, not in New York City or even Dayton. But maybe in your hometown at a station that's off the beaten path.

And, oh yeah, how do you get the money to pay $50 a month for your station and for your software and computer? Easy.

You sell it.

You go out and talk to advertisers. You talk to radio people who do SALES. You show an interst. Because someone has to PAY for a radio station for YOU to be on it. Fact of life. Get used to it.

Will someone buy your little Internet station? Yes, if it's worth buying and you're good enough to do it well. If not, keep paying the bucks until it is good enough. Go in with some buddies and have them help foot the bill with you.

Every PD in America will then have access to you at anytime, in any time zone. GM's too.

The finest resume in the world has, after 40 years, in this business taught me a lesson: Take a chance, invest in yourself and don't let the b**tards get you down.

Today, I make money with Internet radio after a great career. And I get job offers to not only voicetrack stations, but to program. Two management offers and one GM job.

Why?

Because it's not just what experience you have (and I started at 16 in Wilmington, DE) ... it's what you do NOW that counts.

The better you do in communicating and showing people what you can do stands head and shoulders above the "wanna-bes" think that "jocking" is the end all to "great radio." It's not. As you'll find out for $8 an hour to start.

But ... doing your OWN thing and doing it well, making some friends in high places and learning "the attitude" to have will open doors that no farm system could ever do for you.

Again, it's the SKILLS you have ... not merely the experience.

So, go do it. Round up some friends and for $25 a month each, you're in business.

Good luck ... and thanks for sharing and reading. Thank you too, GRC and all who lent an opinon here.

JB

 

[TheBigA]

Back in the old days, you needed expensive equipment to do radio. At the minimum, you needed a tape recorder. That was the first thing I got when I wanted to get started. That wasn't cheap. $200. You got to sell a lot of newspapers to earn $200. Today, everyone has a computer with audio software. If you don't have one at home, you can use the school or library computer. You don't need to get a job at a radio station. You can make home podcasts and videos. You do that as a teenager. Then you go to college, and just about every school in the country has some form of college radio station. So there's four years of try-outs. Then if you want to work at a station, you intern for a few years for no pay. Volunteer at a public or community radio station. Along the way, you try out as a traffic reporter. Maybe that gets you noticed somewhere, and you can do fill-in work.

But the fact is, you don't need to actually work at a radio station to do radio. That's what's made radio work so expendable. Anyone with a couple of turntables and a mixer can call himself a DJ.

 

[oaktree]

Oh, I disagree.

Radio is not about being a "DJ". There's more to it in 2009 than that, or, you become one of the 2400 lost souls (and many talented) who were canned in awful ways by the likes of Clear Channel ... and a few hundred more by others.

If you're destined to be a "DJ" ... do some dances. Do some weddings. Make some money for learning. That "CD" combo and a mixer can come in handy outside your bedroom. It can, with a microphone, make you some money ... and valuable training.

But the BigA is right on one thing ... you don't have to be in a radio station to "do radio." Not anymore. I broadcast from home and my equipment sounds better than what the stations I work for use. And it didn't cost an arm and a leg. Yeah, it did cost something, but those dances and weddings paid for it, several times over over the last couple of years. In fact, I bought a new system just a couple of years ago.

It's about LEARNING radio ... not just doing it. And today, as you'll find, the "voices" of radio are, literally, a dime a dozen. That's sad, but those days of twirling pots, sliding faders, punching carts and running boards with engineers and now "board ops" are over.

It's still radio, it's just different radio. They don't use turntables anymore and Radio Shack mixers won't cut it in production rooms at home or on the air anymore.

Hell, audio processing comes in a box of software and rivals anything that a $13,000 Omnia or Optimod can put out there.

You just have to know how to use it and keep your hands off it once it's set up.

And get a good mike, not a $69 Shure from Radio Shack.

Again, education isn't "free" ... and nor is your skill set which is more important than your experience today.

 

[Nostalgia]

As Porky Pig would say " I wanna be a D-D-D-D-DEEE, D-D-D-D-DEEE, D,D,D,D,D,D,D,D,D,D,D.....radio announcer."

Seriously though : I think any of us talking about getting our start as teenagers at the local AM station are showing our age. Now you have radio cirriculum at some colleges, plus the college radio station, internships, the Columbia School of Broadcasting and of course fewer mom and pops and a corporate culture that would keep kids like me from just hanging around the radio stations. Perhaps someone will do a "Radio Announcing for Dummies" book.

I am in full agreement with all those below who are advising newbies (and oldies like myself) to reinvent yourself into a "content provider" via the internet. I have a home studio for doing a few voiceover jobs, which has led to an oldies show a few hours on a local station , which has led to a couple of internet stations wanting to put my show on their stream, which has led to a little part 15 FM in my neighborhood, which has led to a local company wanting to do tourist related music and ads around a resort area hiring me to set his system up and do some content for him, which has led.......... you see where I am going with this. Back in the day when I was on the radio full time would I have ever thought I would be doing more on the internet than on terrestial radio. There are ways to learn and hone your craft. I sat in the can (good reverb!) reading the newspaper into an old revox reel to reel. Now, as pointed out, you can get everything right on your computer and with much more quality and performance. Do it, have fun and enjoy radio while you can and who knows you may make a buck or two along the way!!

 

[TheBigA]

a corporate culture that would keep kids like me from just hanging around the radio stations.

Maybe I'm misunderstanding you, but that isn't my experience. Every month I visit broadcasting classes at area colleges and invite the students to hang around our place, and in 3 years only one person was interested. To me, that shows a lack of dedication, and this is an industry that if you're not dedicated, you get lost in the shuffle.

 

[John FL]

The beauty of starting a subject post is that sometimes it can take an unexpected turn. Overall, as I have read the responses I was reminded of something I've always believed - we are the captains of our destiny. Listeners can complain about the current state of radio and wax nostalgic about how things used to be but that just feeds depression. I was actually inspired by many of the comments that offered ideas and solutions for those who choose to be in radio communications, even if it represents a different form.

Even in terestial radio, bright spots do exist in markets of various sizes across our country. I suppose we all have different definitions to how we define or measure success. Many today put forth very little effort and that has been a huge source of my personal frustration with the current state. Typically we see formats chosen in a cluster that represent the best billing scenarios regardless of how many stations do the format. This reduces listener choices and it doesn't reflect the diversity of the community. Putting the listener in the center of the decision making is somewhere way down the list. It's azz backwards IMHO but the marching orders come from the top down. Middle management wants to hold on to their jobs and so creativity goes on hold.

Back to Josh, I understand what you are saying when you discuss turning the radio off. We are all consumers and if something no longer has appeal, we are within our rights to seek alternatives and luckily they exist. Since April of this year, I haven't listened to a single note of music from any FM station where I live in Jacksonville. I only listen to news/talk and morning talk shows like Bubba and/or Lex & Terry to name a couple. I wish it weren't this way but when radio forgets that it's a communication medium and just wants to become mp3 light with a restrictive playlist and song-sweeper-song sweeper over and over with no immagination, where the hell is the incentive to listen? If enough turn off the radio, maybe someone will "get it."

So, all in all I do feel encouraged from what I have read in this string. The future belongs to those who will strive to make a difference and will work hard to earn real long-term success. Meanwhile, I have my speakers on loud and proud listening to WCBS-FM in NYC. Even in the #1 market in the country, old-fashioned principles of going the extra mile and fighting for every listener exists. What a delight they are to listen to as it's my kind of music many don't have the guts to play. There are lots of gems out there in radio land and with dedicated people as well, radio I believe will still remain viable.

Thank you all for the great posts and putting a needed smile on my face.

 

[Nostalgia]

a corporate culture that would keep kids like me from just hanging around the radio stations.

Maybe I'm misunderstanding you, but that isn't my experience. Every month I visit broadcasting classes at area colleges and invite the students to hang around our place, and in 3 years only one person was interested. To me, that shows a lack of dedication, and this is an industry that if you're not dedicated, you get lost in the shuffle.

BigA, first and obvious question is do you work for one of the "C" corporations or other media conglomerates? If so I congratulate you and agree it is sad that so few took you up on the opportunity. But I did say colleges and internships which are typically tied to course curriculim in a media major. Many stations are looking for free labor nowadays and I guess an internship is the way to go. I doubt your corporation (or any of the big "C"s) would extend the same open door policy to little 15 year old johnny nostalgia hanging around your station (nope, too young), helping your DJ schlep equipment to the Friday night sock hops (uh-oh, workers comp issues if he drops a speaker on his foot), sit in the studio and answer the request line in the afternoons after school (corporate rules, studio off limits to non-employees). Read back through many of the posts from those waxing nostalgic of the good old days. That is how many of us got in the door while still in high school (these particular examples happened in 1965). Only pre-requisite was that our voice had already changed . Getting taught how to run the board so they could take longer potty breaks or entertain groupies in the transmitter room. Diction lessons: double-yew NOT dubya. Good old on the job training, thats what this thread is all about!

 

[TheBigA]

BigA, first and obvious question is do you work for one of the "C" corporations or other media conglomerates?

No.

I doubt your corporation (or any of the big "C"s) would extend the same open door policy to little 15 year old johnny nostalgia hanging around your station (nope, too young),

Unfortunately, you're right. 15 IS too young. One thing that's changed about work now vs 30 years ago is the rules regarding minors. They didn't exist years ago. That has nothing to do with me or my company, but all about the state government. We have NO rules about studios being off limits to non-employees, and we have young visitors all the time. But if we ask them to do something, the state government wants to get involved.