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General talk for under 55

  • Thread starter Deleted member 109580
  • Start date

For years, all sports radio was tried in los angeles. Never caught on. Now look at it now.
Maybe klsx fm talk, or hot talk, was ahead of its time, and now may be just that right time. I prefer live radio to prerecorded podcasts which just are not that fresh. Live is what makes radio unique to all other mediums. But in all honesty, my teen son and daughter just dont listen to radio..not at all. Sad but true
 
Last edited by a moderator:
radio fan 41840 said:
Live is what makes radio unique to all other mediums. But in all honesty, my teen son and daughter just dont listen to radio..not at all. Sad but true
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They need a reason to give it a listen. The music isn't enough of a reason. At one time, radio was the only place for music. Not any more.

This is where events come in. At one time, KLSX and KROQ held events where people would show up, and along the way they'd discover the event they were at was put on by a radio station. Then they'd listen because of that experience. I know KROQ is trying to revive the weenie roast and a few other stations will occasionally do things.
 
TheBigA said:
It depends on what topics you believe should be discussed. Most cultural issues are handled by the morning shows on music stations. Sports on KSPN. World affairs on KPCC. Pacifica on KPFK. Black talk on KBLA. What do you consider a general topic?
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I agree with BigA. I think you need something a little more spicy and specific than "general talk" as a format descriptor. "General talk" sounds like two old corn flakes reminiscing about a time one of them missed their Greyhound in El Paso in 1976. B-O-R-I-N-G

I also think it is interesting that this was posted in the LA forum. KFI is probably as close to "general talk" as you get on a top ranked station in a major market.
 
PTBoardOp93 said:
I also think it is interesting that this was posted in the LA forum. KFI is probably as close to "general talk" as you get on a top ranked station in a major market.
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I was thinking the same thing. They made a concerted effort years ago to put the political talk on KEIB. Which is something iHeart did in Orlando, so as not to compete with WTKS.

The problem with KFI (which may be more to the OP's point) is that KFI is over 55. Truthfully, WTKS is pretty close to that age too. This is a big problem within the talk format: What to do when the current listeners pass away? They've tried to introduce new people (KFI is doing that in the evening), and it's a hard thing to do, because people have their favorites. You see what happened when Bean decided to leave KROQ. The whole station fell apart.
 
radio fan 41840 said:
Would a talk radio station with general topics, not ranting political, for those 55 and younger work in los angeles? What's the current ones, kfi and kabc going to do when their aging over 65 audience dies off? Krla and keib are way too political for a general secular audience.
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In the core 25-54 and 18-49 demos, LA is much less than 25% non-Hispanic American born white people. How is English language talk going to appeal to the bulk of the market's population?
 
One problem with "hot talk" is that a lot of what was permitted in the format isn't lucrative or worth the risk to ownership, much less current sensibilities. When I listen back to some of what was allowed and popular on those stations in an era where it worked, a large amount of the content wouldn't fly today with advertisers, even if the audience went for it. The content isn't "clean" enough, and the stunts would be a legal liability, and the wacky callers aren't going to be calling. At best, they'll text.

Look at KQBZ - The Buzz, which had a pretty successful run in Seattle. Robin & Maynard (long since off the radio), Leykis (done with radio, perceived as a misogynist) Don & Mike (no longer a duo - Don got canned from his last gig for comments about a female reporter) and BJ Shea (who remains on the airwaves in Seattle, much more tame in content.) That station wouldn't fly in modern Seattle in my opinion.

As to non political, entertaining talk, while I love it (for example, I was a huge fan of Gary Burbank on WLW) you still have to invest a ton in talent and develop the shows. That's time and money most companies aren't going to spend. The stations where it works, like KISW, are built on shows that in some form were around mostly before digital bit into the audience's time and attention. The Mens Room has been around since 2005. BJ Shea anchored mornings, and the remaining show is built around his former cast plus the former nighttime talent.

Also, a lot of the talent doesn't need radio. Joe Rogan does great with young men and there's little reason he'd need a radio show where his language and time were controlled.

Now, why it works so well in Florida, I've no idea. It's a concept I love but I think the business has moved past it. There was a window where you probably could have created more "Real Radios" but the time seems to have passed. And Real Radio had Stern to build around in the first place. I appreciate the Bone, but a lot of their talent had been in the business for some time. Garabo got his start at WTKS, JP & Roger had been in mornings for some time at WBAB, and so on.
 
Andy Travis said:
As to non political, entertaining talk, while I love it (for example, I was a huge fan of Gary Burbank on WLW) you still have to invest a ton in talent and develop the shows. That's time and money most companies aren't going to spend.
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When they do spend time and money, as they did with Adam Corolla, he leaves for his own deal in podcasting. This is why radio looks to podcasting for its talk talent. Thats the farm team now for talk talent. You don't start from zero, because it's such a long shot.
 
Has anyone ever listened to 102.3 NOW! Radio from Edmonton, AB? I enjoy that format and the music with conversation. They’re very interactive and think it’s just a fun format. I like the conversation and they seem to pick fun things to talk about with their listeners. Their website says they’ve reached 10 million texts. I also think the NOW! Trucksicle is a cool idea for the summer. They do stops all summer long and pass out free popsicles!

I definitely think the under 55 crowd would enjoy something similar in the United States. I think they have enough talk and conversation, but not too much, as it’s balanced out with music. They’ve been #1 or near the top of the ratings in the Edmonton PPMs, ever since their sign on in 2010.

www.1023nowradio.com

102.3 NOW! Radio

Join the conversation! Text 56789 *std txt rates apply Phone 780-489-4NOW (780-489-4669) http://facebook.com/1023nowradio http://twitter.com/1023NOWradio http://1023NOWradio.com/
www.1023nowradio.com www.1023nowradio.com
www.instagram.com

NOWtrucksicle (@nowtrucksicle) • Instagram photos and videos

722 Followers, 508 Following, 622 Posts - See Instagram photos and videos from NOWtrucksicle (@nowtrucksicle)
www.instagram.com www.instagram.com

Would this work in LA or any other markets in the US?
 
chriscervantez said:
Has anyone ever listened to 102.3 NOW! Radio from Edmonton, AB? I enjoy that format and the music with conversation. They’re very interactive and think it’s just a fun format. I like the conversation and they seem to pick fun things to talk about with their listeners. Their website says they’ve reached 10 million texts. I also think the NOW! Trucksicle is a cool idea for the summer. They do stops all summer long and pass out free popsicles!

I definitely think the under 55 crowd would enjoy something similar in the United States. I think they have enough talk and conversation, but not too much, as it’s balanced out with music. They’ve been #1 or near the top of the ratings in the Edmonton PPMs, ever since their sign on in 2010.

www.1023nowradio.com

102.3 NOW! Radio

Join the conversation! Text 56789 *std txt rates apply Phone 780-489-4NOW (780-489-4669) http://facebook.com/1023nowradio http://twitter.com/1023NOWradio http://1023NOWradio.com/
www.1023nowradio.com www.1023nowradio.com
www.instagram.com

NOWtrucksicle (@nowtrucksicle) • Instagram photos and videos

722 Followers, 508 Following, 622 Posts - See Instagram photos and videos from NOWtrucksicle (@nowtrucksicle)
www.instagram.com www.instagram.com

Would this work in LA or any other markets in the US?
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It works in Puerto Rico. David E. pioneered the format in PR and got double digit shares in its heyday. And since it was on station with a dying format like salsa, he likely extended the shelf life of that station.
 
Keep in mind that podcasting is different from live interactive radio. You listen to a podcast. You engage with a radio talk show. Those are two different things. If all you want to do is listen to something, podcasting works fine. But if you want to talk back, there's no opportunity for that with a podcast. You might be able to call while they're recording, but you can't engage in real time.

The other aspect to podcasting is there's usually no music. Music licensing rights for podcasts are pretty high. If you sell a podcast with music, the view is you're selling music, so the musicians should get a share of your podcast fee. Whereas playing music on the radio, with talk is covered by the radio licensing fee.
 
TheBigA said:
The other aspect to podcasting is there's usually no music. Music licensing rights for podcasts are pretty high. If you sell a podcast with music, the view is you're selling music, so the musicians should get a share of your podcast fee. Whereas playing music on the radio, with talk is covered by the radio licensing fee.
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I just wanted this important point to be repeated. Thanks, BigA, for saying it so clearly.
 
radio fan 41840 said:
For years, all sports radio was tried in los angeles. Never caught on. Now look at it now.
Maybe klsx fm talk, or hot talk, was ahead of its time, and now may be just that right time. I prefer live radio to prerecorded podcasts which just are not that fresh. Live is what makes radio unique to all other mediums. But in all honesty, my teen son and daughter just dont listen to radio..not at all. Sad but true
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BTW the plural of "medium" is "media".
 
CTListener said:
Unless you're talking about psychics.
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But elsewhere, I learned that anything ending in -um may require the plural form to end with -a.

Since Radio Discussions is a "forum" I'm reminded that several such websites would be "fora" but it is now acceptable to say "forums" as well.

Pardon me while I go to find another nit to pick.
 
DavidEduardo said:
Not all of us had five years of obligatory Latin in High School! :rolleyes:
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I took no Latin, but it helps to at least know the rules of the various languages that fed English if you're going to work with the written language for a living. A similar situation to mediums/media occurs with the plural of antenna. If you're talking about radio, it's antennas, but it's antennae for moths.
 
The “general” talk format I wish was still viable is what I think was referred to as “service” talk, with call in advice talk shows focusing on relationships, personal finance, real estate, food/dining, etc.
 


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