1. Broadcasting, Cable, the Internet and Beyond Chapter 8 Quick Facts zNumber of Americans who listen to radio each week: 250 million zNumber of Americans who listen to Rush Limbaugh each week: 19 million (est.) zPercent of radio audience under age 35: 55% zRadio’s most important time of day: 6 to 10 A.M. zMost popular program on National Public Radio:“Car Talk” zFavorite sport of talk radio listeners: Football zNumber of direct broadcast radio satellites in U.S. orbit: 5

2. Broadcasting, Cable, the Internet and Beyond Chapter 8 Radio Regulation and Format Design zRadio stations can choose their own programming ySection 326 - Communications Act - gives broadcasters freedom from censorship zAmerican Radio has ‘format freedom’ zTask - provide attractive programming to meet informational and entertainment needs of audience

3. Broadcasting, Cable, the Internet and Beyond Chapter 8 Matrix of Radio Programming zLocal Programming - original programming produced by radio station zPrerecorded or Syndicated Programming - obtained from a commercial supplier outside the station zNetwork Programming - obtained from radio nets such as ABC, CBS or National Public Radio

4. Broadcasting, Cable, the Internet and Beyond Chapter 8 Kinds of Radio Programming zMusic - most popular form of radio programming yPrerecorded or syndicated y9 out of 10 stations use music as programming backbone yNetwork music programming has undergone a renaissance zNews/ Talk - yLocal shows includes news, sports, weather, traffic yPopular talk personalities are syndicated via satellite

5. Broadcasting, Cable, the Internet and Beyond Chapter 8 Modes of Radio Production zLocal, live Production - station employs its own announcers and newscasters zLive-assist Production - station uses syndicated programming but retain local announcers zSemiautomation - station uses syndicated producer for majority of programming zTurnkey automation - station is fully automated yVoice tracking - computer automation makes it possible to program more than one station with same personnel

6. Broadcasting, Cable, the Internet and Beyond Chapter 8 Creating the Radio Format zFormat - the overall sound and image of the radio station yIncludes station’s approach to talk, music, promotion, ads community relations, personalities, etc zKeys to successful format yTo identify and serve a predetermined set of listeners yTo serve those listeners better than the competition yTo reward listeners both on and off the air, make them consistent customers for the products and services advertised on the station

7. Broadcasting, Cable, the Internet and Beyond Chapter 8 The Format Hole zProgramming Strategies yDo a better job at a specific format than the competition yDevelop a niche that will deliver a large enough audience to attract advertising revenue to the station zInternal Factors yStation ownership, dial location, power, technical facilities, management philosophy zExternal Factors yGeography, population characteristics

8. Broadcasting, Cable, the Internet and Beyond Chapter 8 Audience Analysis zGoal of radio programming - attract and maintain an audience zTarget Audience - the primary group sought by the station is defined by yDemographics - age, education, racial/ethnic background, sex yPsychographics - attitudes, beliefs and lifestyles

9. Broadcasting, Cable, the Internet and Beyond Chapter 8 Listener Demographics zRadio has phenomenal reach yReaches 250 million people each week yJust under half of all 12+ listen between 6 and 10 A.M. yBetween 6 A.M. and 6 P.M. radio reaches more people than TV, cable, newspapers, magazines and online services zDemographic categories - age breakouts (e.g. 18-24, 18- 34, 18-49) zIdeal Target Group - women, mid-30s

10. Broadcasting, Cable, the Internet and Beyond Chapter 8 Listener Psychographics zCurrent research rage - measures qualitative research (values and lifestyles of listeners) zAttempts to understand yAttitudes yBeliefs yLeisure pursuits yPolitical interests z“Radio W.A.R.S.” example of classic study

11. Broadcasting, Cable, the Internet and Beyond Chapter 8 The Hot Clock zThe “format wheel” - looks like the face of a clock yUsed to plan and execute the station’s sound yShows where music, commercials, news, occurs within the program schedule yStations may use different clocks for different dayparts

12. Broadcasting, Cable, the Internet and Beyond Chapter 8 Radio Dayparts yMorning Drive 6-10 A.M. - most important time yEvening Drive 3-7 P.M. - second most important time yDaytime - 10 A.M. - 3 P. M. - about one in five people listen yEvening and late night - after 7 P.M. ratings drop as people watch TV yWeekend radio - Saturday late morning and early afternoon are most important

13. Broadcasting, Cable, the Internet and Beyond Chapter 8 Radio Programming Terminology zThree main types of information on hot clock: yCommercial time positions yPromotional position yProgramming - music and news/talk segments zClutter - when too many commercials have been placed on the format ymost stations program between 8 and 18 minutes of commercials per hour

14. Broadcasting, Cable, the Internet and Beyond Chapter 8 Radio Programming Terminology zSpot sets - the commercial and promotional segments of the hot clock zSubcategories of musical segments yCurrent hits - given most airplay yRecurrent - recent hits still popular yGold - oldies zSegue - overlap one program element with another zSweep - musical set

15. Broadcasting, Cable, the Internet and Beyond Chapter 8 Format Evaluation zPlaylist - stations publish list of songs played on specific formats - used by major record labels to guage what gets airplay zTip Sheets - Billboard, Radio and Records zCall-ins - requests to station are logged in zCall-outs - ‘hooks’ are played over the phone zAuditorium tests - 200+ song hooks tests with large group zFocus group study - in-depth interviews about musical preferences

16. Broadcasting, Cable, the Internet and Beyond Chapter 8 News/Talk and Sports Formatting zTalk formats are as complex as music formats zFour common programming elements yNews yTalk yBusiness ySports zFormat wheel - shows various program segments yAll News - cyclical format yNews/ Talk - news segments mixed with talk segments

17. Broadcasting, Cable, the Internet and Beyond Chapter 8 Noncommercial Radio Programming zThree classifications yPublic - Approximately 400 CPB qualified stations rely NPR and PRI for programming yCollege - Approximately 800 stations licenesed to colleges. Operated as student activities. Mixed formats yCommunity - Operated by civil and religious organizations, school boards, charitable foundations. Programming is mixed. Block programming used zMicro-Broadcasting (Lower Power FM) - new authorization for very-low power FM stations yNon-commercial - ideal for small community organizations

18. Broadcasting, Cable, the Internet and Beyond Chapter 8