I am a young radio guy, I have been fortunate to have worked in some GREAT markets with some great people. I think I do my show a little different than..."that was...and this is...heres whats comin up...and its 7:35...25 mins before the hour" I am a bit out there...I get praise from some...and I get "YOU SUCK" from a bunch of the older radio peeps...I am guessing they never really made it to where they wanna be in their careers. Is this normal? Is this something I have to expect in the future? I believe in progressive brave new radio...I cant reinvent the mic but I sure can make it more rewarding for the listener.
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Is radio stranded to ego and "the old way"?
- Thread starter whatifitwas
- Start date
whatifitwas said:
The first question when someone says "I do my show a little different(sic) than..." is whether you were allowed to be yourself where you worked, or were you breaking the station format and rules? In either case, did your ratings outperform the station or underperform? The answer is in the determination of whether you followed the orders of your supervisor and whether what you did was verifiably good per the ratings. If the answer in both cases is not in the affirmative, then you need to stop blaming others, as you appear to be doing.
What does "stranded to ego" mean, anyway?
My ratings have been pretty good if not #1 in some places. The "ego" thing is this....
Most of the radio people I have talked with or worked with are the crappy (insert fake voice here..."Lets do Birthdays, horoscopes and stock reports...now lets give some artist info and the time and hit the button") they would be #1....then I would come in and speak of my life, family, dogs....Paris Hilton? pop culture on a country station or an adult AC and wipe the floor with them...and I will say if I were beaten..I would shake someones hand and ask them HOW? In my experience they say "it was luck, there is one way to do radio...YOU SUCK!!" its all EGO, while I pull a small salary and win..they get fired of pulled back because radio is changing and people like me are the face of this new radio...and their egos wont let them learn...old dogs new tricks?
Most of the radio people I have talked with or worked with are the crappy (insert fake voice here..."Lets do Birthdays, horoscopes and stock reports...now lets give some artist info and the time and hit the button") they would be #1....then I would come in and speak of my life, family, dogs....Paris Hilton? pop culture on a country station or an adult AC and wipe the floor with them...and I will say if I were beaten..I would shake someones hand and ask them HOW? In my experience they say "it was luck, there is one way to do radio...YOU SUCK!!" its all EGO, while I pull a small salary and win..they get fired of pulled back because radio is changing and people like me are the face of this new radio...and their egos wont let them learn...old dogs new tricks?
whatifitwas said:
You’re question about radio being stranded in ego is interesting. One could say that ego, and radio go hand in hand. Radio is loaded with ego. You have one, we all do. Some are bigger than others. Some let their ego rule their behavior, others know how to control it. A deejay here in LA told me once that he had a Program Director tell him early in his career that one’s ego should work for you, and not against you. Sadly, many don’t know this, or if they do, they ignore it. But it’s great advice.
I’ve always heard that if you break the format, you better make it good. To break formatsimply because you want to, is letting your ego run away with your show and that will get you into trouble every time. The greats of radio who broke format were great because what hey did happened to be good radio. You don’t hear about the ones who did, and did it badly, they disappear.
What you need to remember about a lot of people in charge at stations on the programming level is that they aren’t always very good on the air. That’s why they moved to the PD chair. That’s not to say that there aren’t really great air-talent who move to the PD job, because there are many. Another problem, more prevalent than ever now is the PD who can tell you what he or she doesn’t like about your air-work, but has no clue as to how to help you change it, and make it better. Again, many PD’s have made it to the job without experience on the air and it shows, just listen to radio today, many stations suffer from this problem, especially those with formats aimed at younger audiences with younger air-staffs.
At first I thought you sounded bitter in your post, but I’m going on the assumption that you really want to know. David gave a really good answer, and I agree with him. I might add that the way I always went at the job was to try and make what personality I was allowed to bring to my air-work fit into the format. I resigned myself long ago to the fact that if I wanted to work on the air, I wouldn’t be doing exactly what, or in some cases even remotely what I would like to do. It’s a fact of life, if you’re not the boss; you have to adhere to someone else’s ideas about how it should be done. That’s a fact in any business, not just radio. As for being told “YOU SUCK”, well I can only speculate why, could be jealousy, and could be that they just don’t like your work. I mean everyone has an opinion and some are more right-on than others. Some are dead wrong. It’s all a matter of perspective. Do you take direction well, or do you resist? Constructive criticism can be a great help, but without knowing more, I just can’t say…
By the way, don’t dismiss the old ways so easily. Many of the old ways of doing things still work; many are just dressed up with new names. A great many older radio people do have experience that can help you. They know because they did it back when you were in diapers, and lived through many of the same problems you may be experiencing now. Get the advice while you can because many of these talented and experienced people are being eradicated from radio by younger people who fear those who they see as threats, or simply see as a bunch of “older radio peeps” who give them opinions that they don’t like…
Remember; make your ego work for you, and good luck.
B
Bob_Hudson
Guest
Someone once said that all DJ's are Leos.
Never ask a radio person to critque your act: you never get an honest answer. It's tempered by bitterness or false flattery.
I once went to work at station where my job consisted of doing taped pieces that ran throughout the day. My first week on the job was spent preparing pieces to run the following week. After I'd been on the job a few days the program director stuck his head in the door and said, "Bobby, you're sounding great."
Which was fine...except: I had not been on the air yet.
Decades ago I had a PD who was good friends with Boyd R. Britton who went on to become a long time LA news guy. The PD was really crushed because Boyd had just told him, "Ted, I'm surprised you haven't developed an act to make up for lack of a voice." Ted was what we used to call a "time and temp guy" and really had no unique act and did not have the kind of deep voice all we radio types aspired to way back then, but he was not too pleased that his good friend apparently gave the rare honest critique.
Never ask a radio person to critque your act: you never get an honest answer. It's tempered by bitterness or false flattery.
I once went to work at station where my job consisted of doing taped pieces that ran throughout the day. My first week on the job was spent preparing pieces to run the following week. After I'd been on the job a few days the program director stuck his head in the door and said, "Bobby, you're sounding great."
Which was fine...except: I had not been on the air yet.
Decades ago I had a PD who was good friends with Boyd R. Britton who went on to become a long time LA news guy. The PD was really crushed because Boyd had just told him, "Ted, I'm surprised you haven't developed an act to make up for lack of a voice." Ted was what we used to call a "time and temp guy" and really had no unique act and did not have the kind of deep voice all we radio types aspired to way back then, but he was not too pleased that his good friend apparently gave the rare honest critique.
Radio's full of ego, but even worse it's full of dishonesty. One minute another deejay is your pal, and he's saying "Dude that was an awesome show today. I loved..." and you're exchanging laughs and chatting. Then maybe one day you part ways because that's the business of radio, town-hopping station to station. Then months later your old deejay friend is on the air somewhere else talking about how much you suck and how he never liked you and how you're ripping off some other jock.
B
Big E
Guest
Or worst yet, egos that critize people in the biz, when they themselves could'nt make it or never made it at all, and resort to being bitter arm chair PD's 
! Sure new talent is always needed, but when "Fresh" or "Real" sounding people take the place of TRUE professionals with proven track records, it just makes for bad radio. And unfortuneatly, bad radio is what we have today.
! Sure new talent is always needed, but when "Fresh" or "Real" sounding people take the place of TRUE professionals with proven track records, it just makes for bad radio. And unfortuneatly, bad radio is what we have today.Remember that everything is subjective...from the music you play, to the jocks that play it.
In the past, I can think of a PD or two who thought my work was crap...but another thinks I'm golden. It's all subjective.
I do agree that if you break the PD's rules (whether YOU agree with them or not), you better have a damn good reason...not just: "it was a good bit". And speaking as a PD, this isn't about my ego, it's about an employee who doesn't put themselves above the team or the station and follows the guidelines that they were hired to work within. If he/she wants a "time and temp" jock, be the best "time and temp" jock you can. These are the things you should have discussed before your hiring.
In fact, I can remember firing a very good jock back in the 80's. Not because he wasn't talented, but because he couldn't work within the boundaries I gave him. As a supervisor, you can't have the inmates run the prison. You're supposed to get that out of your system doing college radio.
Good luck!
In the past, I can think of a PD or two who thought my work was crap...but another thinks I'm golden. It's all subjective.
I do agree that if you break the PD's rules (whether YOU agree with them or not), you better have a damn good reason...not just: "it was a good bit". And speaking as a PD, this isn't about my ego, it's about an employee who doesn't put themselves above the team or the station and follows the guidelines that they were hired to work within. If he/she wants a "time and temp" jock, be the best "time and temp" jock you can. These are the things you should have discussed before your hiring.
In fact, I can remember firing a very good jock back in the 80's. Not because he wasn't talented, but because he couldn't work within the boundaries I gave him. As a supervisor, you can't have the inmates run the prison. You're supposed to get that out of your system doing college radio.
Good luck!
Extremely well said.
You're hired not merely for your creativity and "uniqueness" -- but for being part of a "team" and the ability, hopefully, to follow the rules.
You can change the rules, certainly - but just not here...
And the best and wisest advice I ever heard: "You're only as good as your last show. What think you are doesn't much matter in the scheme of things. It's how you just did that counts."
You're hired not merely for your creativity and "uniqueness" -- but for being part of a "team" and the ability, hopefully, to follow the rules.
You can change the rules, certainly - but just not here...
And the best and wisest advice I ever heard: "You're only as good as your last show. What think you are doesn't much matter in the scheme of things. It's how you just did that counts."
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