I'm 14 and wondering what the best thing to do to get started in radio would be, any advice?
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Need Some Advice
- Thread starter travisl5678
- Start date
travisl5678 said:
Go to Walgreen's. You can buy a radio for about $5.
Seriously, though, radio is not much of a career anymore. Used to be that someone could hang out at the local station, sweep the floors and eventually get to work the board, and then eventually do a late night or early morning fill-in shift. That was yesterday.
Today, it's rare that there is a "local station" because in most communities, even the tiny ones like Eureka, stations are in clusters owned by companies that have strict controls on who can enter the building, etc. And they don't usually need a janitor because they usually contract out for company to do that.
Also, it's rare if not impossible to get a fill-in shift nights or early morning or weekends because most stations are automated at those times. They're now staffed by DJs only during the times when there are lots of listeners, usually 6am to 7pm. And most broadcasters are not going to put someone untested on a DJ shift during those hours.
Probably the best thing you can do is see if you can help out with remote broadcasts in small towns such as Little League, high school, and college sports broadcasts. That's about as close to live radio and hands-on experience as you're going to get. And as much as you can, get to learn the radio automation software that's out there because radio today is computers.
Does your High School offer an ROP (Regional Occupation Program)? See if there is a TV/Radio Broadcasting, Mass Communications class offered. Most time the teacher of that class is in the business. They will be a great foot in the door for you, if you're good. Or the teacher will have connections for temporary jobs or internships.
Not to be negative, but the best advice is probably - don't go there unless you have some indication that you are seriously talented.
Being a radio-nerd as a kid, I actually looked into this. At about age 16, i called the Columbia School of Broadcasting. (Don't laugh). The guy I talked to on the phone actually spent a lot of time discouraging me - telling me that if I was even half-good, I would be working for years for low wages, and moving all over the country for low-paying jobs. What's that line from the WKRP theme? - "Got kinda tired packing and unpacking, town to town, up and down the dial."
Anyway, it was a strange sales technique, but Columbia School of Broadcasting ("not affiliated with CBS incorporated") seemed to actually had some scruples, and didn't want to promise people a career - because it was not likely to happen. In any case, I appreciated what the guy told me and thought about it, then decided to forget it. For me, moving around the country to get low paying jobs was not a happy prospect.
I had a couple of friends in high school (more talented than me, certainly) who went into radio, and enjoyed considerable success later, but not until they gave up working on-air, and found work in affiliated fields.
The best advice is probably to enroll in a well respected broadcasting and communications BA degree program in a regular and accredited college. San Francisco State University has an excellent program. Then be prepared to move a lot, and go into whatever is available - radio, TV, production, board-op work, etc.
Being a radio-nerd as a kid, I actually looked into this. At about age 16, i called the Columbia School of Broadcasting. (Don't laugh). The guy I talked to on the phone actually spent a lot of time discouraging me - telling me that if I was even half-good, I would be working for years for low wages, and moving all over the country for low-paying jobs. What's that line from the WKRP theme? - "Got kinda tired packing and unpacking, town to town, up and down the dial."
Anyway, it was a strange sales technique, but Columbia School of Broadcasting ("not affiliated with CBS incorporated") seemed to actually had some scruples, and didn't want to promise people a career - because it was not likely to happen. In any case, I appreciated what the guy told me and thought about it, then decided to forget it. For me, moving around the country to get low paying jobs was not a happy prospect.
I had a couple of friends in high school (more talented than me, certainly) who went into radio, and enjoyed considerable success later, but not until they gave up working on-air, and found work in affiliated fields.
The best advice is probably to enroll in a well respected broadcasting and communications BA degree program in a regular and accredited college. San Francisco State University has an excellent program. Then be prepared to move a lot, and go into whatever is available - radio, TV, production, board-op work, etc.
Don't overlook the concept of web radio. You can try things out and see what people think. Viewing the number of connections provides instant feedback. You can hear yourself and be your own critic. You'll never be big, but you can surely learn a lot and it's probably the wave of the future.
Dave B.
Dave B.
I am a BCA graduate from SFSU and will agree it is an excellent program. Upon graduation I did move to a small town and had the freedom to work in nearly every aspect of the business except sales. But I would agree that breaking into a good-paying job is hard, hard work being performed by fewer and fewer individuals every year. Nothing about the business is safe from down-sizing and consolidation. I also agree that jobs ancillary to traditional broadcasting occupations probably maintain the brightest outlook for those interested in the medium. Although I never settled into a viable paying job in the field, the communication skills I honed at SFSU is an asset which I was able to carry into any career field I chose.Lkeller said:
I'm lucky enough to be going to Clayton Valley HS in Concord with its own KVHS, I applied and they wanted me in the program, but per the school district its a liabilty issue 
travisl5678 said:I'm lucky enough to be going to Clayton Valley HS in Concord with its own KVHS, I applied and they wanted me in the program, but per the school district its a liabilty issue
What's the liability issue?
As to KVHS, you can't get better. Between Melissa McConnell and Tom Wilson there's a lot of good solid broadcasting experience to draw from. I worked with Tom for several years at KWUN and he is a thorough pro in all phases of broadcasting. He's especially a production wizard,and production is 90% of what radio is about these days.
Thanks for some of the suggestions for how the broadcasting major can adapt to the Social Media age. I dropped out of Broadcasting and switched into Biotech and pre-pharmacy mainly because I feared that the broadcasting major would become obsolete sometime this century.
DaveBayArea said:
my history teacher suggested writing letters to all the companies in SF and telling them that I'm willing to do whatever I can around there building (fetch coffee, scrub toliets) to get my foot in the door if they give me a chance, anyone think this could work?
I'd rather work programming or sales, I know there's not a great career in on air alone
DavidKaye said:travisl5678 said:I'm lucky enough to be going to Clayton Valley HS in Concord with its own KVHS, I applied and they wanted me in the program, but per the school district its a liabilty issue
What's the liability issue?
As to KVHS, you can't get better. Between Melissa McConnell and Tom Wilson there's a lot of good solid broadcasting experience to draw from. I worked with Tom for several years at KWUN and he is a thorough pro in all phases of broadcasting. He's especially a production wizard,and production is 90% of what radio is about these days.
Have to second that. KVHS is a fine operation that has put a lot of people into the business. Back when I was attending Washington High School in West Sacramento our instructor arranged for a field trip for a small group of students. We had started our own campus radio station, KWHS, a 10 watt FM and wanted to see what an established high school radio station looked like. KVHS was impressive and had at that point been around for a good 15 years. They had courses for sales, engineering and on-air talent and we were blown away. They even had a couple of blind students on the air with a studio and carts that were labeled in braille. We were blown away!
Our station only lasted about 5 years because of some extreme short sightedness by our school district, but we managed to put at least 10 or more people in the radio business including myself in that time. I made it to LA and another of our deejays, Lisa Kaye got as far as WPGC in Washington D.C. Some even went into TV. I only wish there were more high school stations out there to give kids a start.
travisl5678 said:
That used to work when radio stations were each individually owned and you actually got to meet the owner or manager. Today, radio stations are run in clusters of 3, 4, or 5 stations, and the janitorial stuff is done by some professional company. There really is no way to get your foot in the door at these places. The only option if you're going to take that route is to approach one of the very few independently owned stations such as KLIV in San Jose. But be aware that everybody else is approaching them, too.
If your interest is in developing programming, I'd suggest creating podcasts. The next generation of listeners is getting their "radio" via podcasts. I know several people who listen to NPR programs not via their NPR affiliate, but via podcasts. If I'm in the car I'll listen to KALW or KQED-FM, for instance, but if I'm not and I want to hear "Radiolab", or "All Things Considered", I'll listen online or download the podcast.
1. Travis; please dont listen to anyone who's posted before me.
2. at 14 you can only legally get into podcasting, you've got a computer and some crap to talk about go for it. invite ya friends over and go nuts, podcast weekly, until you get into college. stop.
3. when you get into college; community or state or uc, they all have internships courses. take one.
4. find a radio station you like in the area. apply. before your interview stalk the radio stations websites like an ex girlfriend and know everything about it.
5. dont screw up your interview, listen you will be working for free they just want to know if they hire you; a. you wont attack anyone b. you wont steal anything c. you wont burn the place down
6. when you get an internship, introduce your self to everyone. like everyone. be cool. dont be a d**k. this is a small world of radio and we all talk. if you can get attached to a show/air shift thats great. good start. otherwise you'll be working in promotions which is even easier to get paid.
7. work hard. like stupid hard. work as much as you can, LEARN everything because you are free right now but you move on you only get a set number of hours after that per week. after that you'll be the weird kid that doesnt leave.
8. as an intern you will have to do whatever it takes. now a days this is what a great intern can a. find any story, about anything, online. b. be able to write a blog c. be able to answer 100 phone calls in 4 minutes d. be happy dont bring ya drama to the station but if your drama is juicy expect to put your entire life on the radio at a moments notice. e. be ok with being made fun on the radio its a good thing it means the djs like you.
9. dont let it go to your head, you aint s**t right now, interns are new every semester. if you do well you will be invited back for another internship (3-4 months).
10. if not invited back, repeat steps 4-10
Also, Unless you are "full time" at a radio station you will always need a second job. even most full times got side gigs. dont work in radio for money, if you want money, sell radio. You can intern in the sales dept just might have to do it via a business internship.
You can also just stay with podcasting, i know people who make great money doing it. if its funny and creates and audience you can make money.
but you 14 so ignore all of this and get off the computer and enjoy being a teenager....just saying.
-Chunk
2. at 14 you can only legally get into podcasting, you've got a computer and some crap to talk about go for it. invite ya friends over and go nuts, podcast weekly, until you get into college. stop.
3. when you get into college; community or state or uc, they all have internships courses. take one.
4. find a radio station you like in the area. apply. before your interview stalk the radio stations websites like an ex girlfriend and know everything about it.
5. dont screw up your interview, listen you will be working for free they just want to know if they hire you; a. you wont attack anyone b. you wont steal anything c. you wont burn the place down
6. when you get an internship, introduce your self to everyone. like everyone. be cool. dont be a d**k. this is a small world of radio and we all talk. if you can get attached to a show/air shift thats great. good start. otherwise you'll be working in promotions which is even easier to get paid.
7. work hard. like stupid hard. work as much as you can, LEARN everything because you are free right now but you move on you only get a set number of hours after that per week. after that you'll be the weird kid that doesnt leave.
8. as an intern you will have to do whatever it takes. now a days this is what a great intern can a. find any story, about anything, online. b. be able to write a blog c. be able to answer 100 phone calls in 4 minutes d. be happy dont bring ya drama to the station but if your drama is juicy expect to put your entire life on the radio at a moments notice. e. be ok with being made fun on the radio its a good thing it means the djs like you.
9. dont let it go to your head, you aint s**t right now, interns are new every semester. if you do well you will be invited back for another internship (3-4 months).
10. if not invited back, repeat steps 4-10
Also, Unless you are "full time" at a radio station you will always need a second job. even most full times got side gigs. dont work in radio for money, if you want money, sell radio. You can intern in the sales dept just might have to do it via a business internship.
You can also just stay with podcasting, i know people who make great money doing it. if its funny and creates and audience you can make money.
but you 14 so ignore all of this and get off the computer and enjoy being a teenager....just saying.
-Chunk
So what's the "liability issue" that's keeping you from putting in time at KVHS? If you go to the school and are interested in going through the program, what's stopping you?
Your obvious interest and enthusiasm in radio should be something they welcome. Heck, they should be grateful to find someone like you. It's tough enough to find anyone interested in going into the industry as a career these days, let alone someone your age who even knows what a radio is.
And a lot of people in radio who are now "of a certain age" got started (either professionally or with a Radio Shack transmitter kit) by your age -- or younger. Hey, Don Geronimo got his first real gig in radio when he was 13!
Meet some people (positive people, and there are lots of them) who work in radio. Find a mentor in the business. Do some vocal training. Learn as much as you can about the engineering side of the business (some of the best jocks I know are engineers with long careers). And who knows, you may end up with a career in broadcasting ... whether you like it or not.
Your obvious interest and enthusiasm in radio should be something they welcome. Heck, they should be grateful to find someone like you. It's tough enough to find anyone interested in going into the industry as a career these days, let alone someone your age who even knows what a radio is.
And a lot of people in radio who are now "of a certain age" got started (either professionally or with a Radio Shack transmitter kit) by your age -- or younger. Hey, Don Geronimo got his first real gig in radio when he was 13!
Meet some people (positive people, and there are lots of them) who work in radio. Find a mentor in the business. Do some vocal training. Learn as much as you can about the engineering side of the business (some of the best jocks I know are engineers with long careers). And who knows, you may end up with a career in broadcasting ... whether you like it or not.
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