At the time, I supported the Telecommunications Act because I felt it was a necessary lifeline for a lot of struggling stations. Financially, the radio industry is no doubt stronger because consolidation, among many other things, centralizes a lot of functions, eliminates redundancies etc., etc. As with all consolidations, being leaner and meaner almost always results in job losses – it’s just reality.
We should get beyond WHY the law was needed and look instead to the overall product consolidation has given us. On a positive note, I really do believe radio, especially at the local level, has a lot of dedicated, creative and skilled employees who want to win.
One of the downsides to large corporate radio is the expertise and knowledge of the market that often does exist with the local team, is rarely considered when decisions that affect format(s) in that local cluster are made. When employees believe they are not valued, or they have no voice or they are made to feel they really don’t matter in the success of the enterprise – it is demoralizing. From a business standpoint, this never made sense to me because motivated employees is one of the keys to success.
I was in the banking business for a long time. With each merger, acquisition and consolidation I felt the straightjacket was tightened to a point that I just got out. Many very talented people in radio, even by their own choice, have gotten out too. To me – it’s a loss and it has diminished radio and it really doesn't have to be that way.
For the record, I am not anti-big corporation. There are bright spots. More than ever, I believe that when corporate gives a little more latitude to local managers, the results can prove a win-win for both the company and the listeners and ultimately the advertisers too.
In this string, Gnarly Charlie was brought up a few times. He’s a high-energy, bigger than life kind of personality who stands out because he is unique. If he was a typical sweeper line reader, I doubt he would have been mentioned. I've listened to him longer than I can even remember and I have lots of choices. It takes the right PD and the right GM to earn the confidence of the company to get that important voice and to build success.
Cox Media in Miami kicks very serious butt. I’m convinced Cox is very successful there because local rules. Gnarly is allowed to be Gnarly and he is the perfect partner to a lot of upbeat, rhythmic music. Speaking of music, WFLC (The Coast) had a very long track record of going retro on the weekends featuring a very unique mix of 80’s, then 80’s/90’s songs. I never heard many of those songs anywhere else. It was great. Being local and inclusive of the community brings wonderful results. It’s obvious; the playlist is not cookie-cutter. Look also at the tremendous success of WFEZ – a format I’d love to see catch on for other local markets especially here - to build upon. It's been a joy witnessing competence at work.
On the flipside, when corporate ignores the expertise of the local team and/or when the local management team just doesn’t get the market, the results can be disastrous. Earlier, it was mentioned had the Telecommunications Act not been passed, we would have had increased syndication in music. Well, we have evidence of that already. National, generic playlists designed to eliminate the need for a PD, especially among adult-oriented formats does exist and it is gaining momentum. I understand format brand but regionally created playlists that don't allow any input from those who not only know their market but know what other stations play will rarely be the optimum business decision.
Here in Jacksonville, we were exposed to CC’s Premium Choice classic hits programming heard part of the time on the former WJGH. Here’s a perfect example to show that corporate edits and a local, upper management team who didn’t understand the potential of the format helped create a no-win situation.
I may be ignorant about a lot of aspects of radio. But one thing I do know and that is beyond subtle dayparting, no format should sound different during various parts of the day. In the case of Premium Choice, the playlist was bland, ultra safe, boring, burned-out and sounded a lot like what we already had in the market with Eagle.It had differences from what WJGH ordinarily presented. I’m sorry. That was a very poor decision. It’s clear, add it to the list why listeners grew uneasy and tuned out.
Decisions have consequences. They can lead to loss of livelihood, loss of format, listener disruption and a lot of it can be avoided. Apologies for going on here but to sum up, I do see a lot of merit to what the Telecommunications Act was designed to accomplish. I just believe, a little more local latitude is in order to take advantage of those unique market situations that no one at the corporate level could begin to understand.
There was a time those in local radio management lived and died by the sword based on their decisions. Today, they are among the first to go when they aren’t even the captains of their own destiny. I see it as a critical deficiency in the corporate jungle. Radio can be better overall when it truly reflects the community served. I tried to make the case explaining Cox in Miami and earlier how effective CBS Radio is with their local approach to classic hits. Why we don’t see more of this – I don’t know. It has a great track record in working. You would think we would see more of it. IMO, it’s a better strategy than the one most use today. Thanks.
