my 2 cents

Tuning in

Amidst all the hype about the changing media landscape, it's easy to overlook radio.

TV and cable grab headlines  when they announce their  fall lineups, and they make news every week as even the general public follows the ratings race.  The downward trends of newspapers continues to make news, while the expansion of digital media gets lots of ink and airtime.

But radio quietly is still around.  As broadcasters have options to expand their service via digital service, radio broadcast licenses may once again prove to be the gold mines they once were.

A recent study, reported in MediaLife, shows that FM radio is the top listening choice, accounting for 39 percent of listening time among those surveyed.  FM beat out mp3 players (23 percent) and CDs (18 percent).  The three prominent forms of radio -- FM, AM and online radio -- together account for 56 percent of listening time.  Satellite radio, which is fast-growing as more automakers offer them factory-installed in new cars, will add to radio's dominance.

Once you have the listeners, though, how do you get them to stay tuned for the ads which, after all, pay the way?  That sounds like a question the TV execs are trying to figure out.

Music formats that play several songs in a row can be problematic from an advertising viewpoint.  You'll get listeners while the music's on,
but if they know once a commercial break starts that they have 2 - 3 minutes of ads, many simply hit the dial to find more music.

News and talk stations have it a bit easier because they can take more frequent commercial breaks, which can then be shorter.  WINS, an all-news station in New York, uses that concept in its pitch to advertisers.  Rather than using commercial clusters, they let each ad stand on its own.  More commercial breaks, but less clutter.

Radio's strength, like that of newspapers, is that it's local.  WINS radio is successful, with 2.4 million unique listeners every week, making it the most listened-to station in the U.S.

Keeping it local, to me, is what makes radio special -- as a listening choice and as an advertising choice.

A few years ago, radio giant Infinity Broadcasting changed its "oldies" station WCBS-FM to what was then a hot new format called Jack FM.  The automated format, which had pre-recorded nameless announcers between songs, was lifeless, devoid of local personality and quickly plummeted in the ratings.  It turns out the suits at Infinity didn't know Jack about what makes radio special.

The answer?  It's LOCAL.

As if we haven't had enough...

From Crain's New York Business e-news...

Sirius debuts Client 9 Radio

The channel will explore the political and psychological aspects of the story, and include commentary, interviews and caller discussion.

March 14. 2008 11:37AMBy: Tommy Fernandez

   

       Bloomberg News    

   

Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. announced Friday that it will launch a talk show radio network devoted to breaking news and the fallout of the Eliot Spitzer prostitution scandal.

Dubbed Client 9 Radio, the service will air from 5:00 p.m. March 14th to midnight March 17th on Sirius channel 126. The channel will explore the political and psychological aspects of the story, and include commentary and interviews conducted by Sirius hosts. Listeners will also be able to call in and discuss hot topics.

In a statement, Manhattan-based Sirius said the channel will serve as a forum that will “explore the story from every angle,” including breaking news, facts, fallout and implications of the scandal. It will take in live calls from around the country as well as offer expert legal advice and insight.

Contributors to the channel will include regular Sirius hosts such as Judith Regan, who only recently recovered from her own scandal after failed efforts to published O.J. Simpson book If I Did It. Other hosts include actor Ron Silver, former Secretary of State Bill Bennett and music commentator Larry Flick.

What do YOU think will be in vogue?

As we ring in the New Year, many of us make resolutions.  Lose weight, stop smoking, be more patient, etc.

Some also make predictions.  What will the coming year bring? 

In travel, experts are saying to expect more luxury, like in-flight spas ...for a price.   In autos, we're being told to expect more "green" cars and before you know it, driving a green car will be a badge of distinction on the road.  In films last year, the trendy theme seemed to be unwanted or surprise pregnancies -- Knocked Up, Waitress, Juno.  What will 2008 bring us?

In fashion, we're told to expect the glamour of old Hollywood to return, with "the ladylike shapes of pencil skirts and classic colors, cropped jackets paired with skirts, and fitted jackets matched with full skirts, as hemlines are getting longer, coming below the knee or right at the knee," according to the Winter Fashion Trend Report.

And what about our favorite things -- media, advertising, marketing, public relations, social media?  What will 2008 bring in these areas, where so much seems to be changing so quickly?

Advertising:  I think we'll keep seeing ads pop up in more unexpected places and in unexpected ways, trying to break out from clutter even as they create more of it.  More ads on the web?  Definitely.

Media:  The writers strike looks like it will change the traditional way network TV has been bought by advertisers. 2008 may be the year the much-debated Upfront disappears, finally.  But will the buyers -- advertisers -- finally have more control over the process?  Don't count on it.  The networks still seem to hold the key cards.

What changes in newspapers?  More newspaper closures and more content and advertising moving to online newspaper editions.

And what will be heard on Radio?  Will new people meters give stations better tools to sell with, or will they make it tougher for them?

Marketing:  Will more marketers try to tie hitch their products or their message to the "green" bandwagon?   Will more marketers get a conscience and  tie their campaign to causes of goodwill, like the much ballyhooed RED campaign last year?  At the same time, will we see more "premiumization" of products along the lines of premium water Bling H20, at $17/bottle, or Evian's "Palace" bottle, selling only at certain restaurants and bars for about $15... for water, damnit.

Public relations:  Publicity, or media relations, will face a growing challenge of dealing with an ever-expanding media universe that includes social media including millions of blogs online.   And maybe (but don't count on it) our profession will learn how to properly target its news releases and pitches, so we stop pissing off so many journalists.

Social media:  The arena is changing so quickly, with easier ways to podcast and vidcast, mobile blogging, and all the online social communities that have been distracting some of us from blogging.   What will it look like a year from now?

I'm asking lots of questions, but leaving it for you to fill in the answers as you think they'll turn out.   Comments are open, so fire away.  Take your best shots, and a year from now we'll see how good we are at reading crystal balls.

TV Strike may help newspapers and radio

The writers strike that has shut down production of scripted programs on TV may benefit other media that have been having a tough time recently.

Advertisers and media buyers are searching for ways to reach large audiences, especially as the critical season approaches for retailers, Hollywood films and makers of just about anything that can be marketed as a Christmas gift.  For some, it's a do-or-die situation where they absolutely MUST reach the masses with their sales messages.

In his new blog The Media Age, media guru Gene DeWitt says newspapers and radio -- the long-suffering "other" mass media -- should be getting a closer look by advertisers who are faced with higher ad prices, fewer ad positions available and greater difficulty in reaching a broad spectrum of customers with TV sales messages.

Newspapers and radio, he says, offer relatively low production costs and quick turnaround.  Newspapers, especially, can offer attractive ad rates in order to get the business.

Is the internet also an option for TV-deficient advertisers, Gene asks.  Yes, but big  reach on the internet is costly and not always easy to get, he notes.  Radio and newspapers, on the other hand, offer an opportunity to reach half or more of America in a morning.  That's a fact that too often gets overlooked in the midst of all the gloom & doom talk about newspapers.

 

Reluctantly joining the fray

I had no intention of posting about the Don Imus debacle.  I don't like Imus. I'm tired of hearing about him.  But after reading a couple of posts about it, including excellent ones by Drew McLellan, Bob Glaza and Eric Frenchman writing at MPDailyFix, I just had to add my 2 cents.

Imus has been in the New York market for a long time -- way before Howard Stern, I think.  I remember when he first came on New York radio.  He was being touted as the best thing to happen to radio since, well, Jack Benny.  He was on the station I normally listened to in those days, so I gave him a try.  I didn't like his humor, his sarcasm or his nastiness.  And for a guy on radio, he slurred and mumbled a lot.  I tuned him out and that was that.

What he said about the Rutgers women was insensitive and offensive.  It wasn't even close to funny.  I know he's said stupid and offensive things before, targeting Jews, gays, Catholics and many others.  But that's his job -- or was his job -- to say things that shock and provoke.  That what brings brought listeners and, in turn, the advertisers wanting to reach those listeners.  The audience and the advertisers have, over the years, enabled him.

I think it was timing that did Imus in.  This time his stupidity caught the attention of master media-manipulator Al Sharpton, who did a good job of using the media to make a national issue of Imus' poor attempt at humor.  Possibly it was the media's conscience -- or perhaps guilt -- that caused them to jump on this and make it Page One news for more than a week.

Should Imus have been fired?  I don't know.  I despise the idea of censorship, but I do think there should be some boundaries of good taste and respect. 

Were advertisers right to jump ship?  They all knew Imus has crossed the line before, so his latest offense couldn't have come as a surprise.  But they had to do something in response to the public outrage that's been brewing, and the easiest thing was to bail out.  Had I been a marketing exec at P&G, I probably would have done the same.

What impact does this episode have on our society? For one, it's elevated race, gender and other bias back into the national spotlight.  It's good that these things are discussed openly.  I believe discussion (in this age of conversation) will, over time, help bring people together and promote understanding and respect.

I also hope it brings back into the public eye a disturbing underlying factor.  Such offensive and demeaning language seems to be common and accepted amoung many young people in the black community.  They routinely call each other names that my mother would still wash my mouth out with soap were I to utter them, which I wouldn't.  I think Imus, whether he is a racist or not, was trying to be cool by using terminology that's out there on the street in the black community.

Hopefully this event will put more pressure on leaders in the black community to work toward changing how young people talk about themselves.  I know many black leaders have called for civility in language long before Imus uttered those dumb words.  Athletes and recording artists should be setting a positive example instead of encouraging young people to demean each other in such a nasty way.

It's got to change, from within the community.  If it does, self-respect will eventually spread outward and it won't be "cool" for anyone -- black or white -- to use such demeaning words.

Star Wars

The proposed $13 billion merger of XM and Sirius, the only satellite radio services available, is being positioned by the two as "good for the consumer."

Despite the fact that both services, when they were granted their licenses by the FCC, promised never to merge in order to avoid a monopoly, they're now asking Congress and the FCC to ignore that promise.

It's good for the consumer, since the combined company will offer a broader choice of programming at a better price.  At least, that's the public line they've been touting.   

Wednesday's New York Times reported there's now some confusion over the honesty of those claims.  FCC Chairman Kevin Martin is questioning the words of Sirius CEO Mel Karmazin, inferring that they may be misleading, or certainly unclear.

The issue appears to be pricing.  Karmazin says the combined company would charge consumers less than they now pay.  But does he mean less than the $12.95/mo. for either XM or Sirius, or less than the $25.90 you'd now pay if you subscibed to both services?  (How many people do you know who now subscribe to both?)

If it's unclear to the FCC Chairman, who's been sitting through hours of testimony, what's your guess?

Sirius and Karmazin have a public relations problem.  The company's  credibility and the trust of consumers may suffer.  Perhaps Mr. Karmazin doesn't care, since his would be the only game in town...
for now.