Tell Me A Story…
The premise of 60 minutes according to its creator and producer Don Hewitt is based on, “The four words every child knows…tell me a story.”
Yet, it remains a rare talent in talk radio today. Talk hosts (regardless of format; sports – conservative - liberal – car talk – cooking – news) need to tell remarkable stories that add entertainment, information, insight, context, understanding, and evoke emotions. While many hosts believe they are telling stories, few do. A story has an arc (beginning, middle and END that makes a point regarding a specific topic), is rich with details, and transports people to your world. Instead of telling stories, most hosts that I’ve listened to cull together personal anecdotes or bullet points from life experiences and list them out believing they are telling a story, but like Elaine Benes’, “yada yada yada” on Seinfeld, they leave out the dazzling details. Don’t do this.
