Radiodays Europe 2015 – Day Three

Dennis Clark & Larry Gifford

Day three of Radiodays Europe in Milan, Italy kicked off with super insightful presentation by Dennis Clark, VP of Talent Development for iHeartMedia.

“These are the good ole’ days,” he started. Afterward I asked him for the Radio Stuff Podcast why he believes that. “Because if you’re good and you have an audience and listeners are connecting to you that is a product and they’ll follow you.” Clark referenced Howard Stern’s successful move to SiriusXM and Chris Evan’s jumps from BBC Radio 1 to Virgin Radio to Radio 2.

On stage, Clark offered a road map to building a successful radio show.

 

 

He talked about the importance of defining roles and shared the initial roles outlined for Ryan Seacrest’s Show in 2005. He suggests revisiting personality profiles two times a year because life changes and you need to be able to reflect those changes on air. For instance, you might get engaged, divorced, lose a lot of weight, or your young child starts going to school.

 

 

Clark made it clear there can only be one captain on the show and that is the host. “Every time you open the mic you have a new listener. Like a good party only one person opens the door to welcome the new people to the party. (On radio) that is the host. Introducing the around. Make them feel included.”

It’s also important to Clark for shows to identify what they do as either “branding” or “humanity.” In the slide below, the bigger the cloud the more dominant of a role it plays on the show.

There were great presentations throughout. Even I got a chuckle from the big room on Tuesday when I reimagined opening lines of famous novels to make a point about the power of a declarative sentence vs. asking a question.

Here is a link to a blog written by Steve Martin (Just as funny and talented, but this one blogs) for Earshot Creative summarizing the “30 Ideas in 45  Minutes” session. Thanks to James Cridland for snapping the photo (really you should sign up for his newsletter: JamesCridland.net — you know it’s a smart piece because it ends in .net) and loads of appreciation to Nik Goodman for having me on his session. You can check out his fine company BOUNCE, right here.

Some of my takeaways… 

You can’t innovate without action.

To do social media well you need to invest in people and technology. And you need to do social well. (Sidebar: Snapchat is where it is at right now. Though that trend could vanish in the next six seconds.)

Your enemies and your flaws aren’t terrifying and gruesome. Think of them as future partners and your true distinctive features. Embrace them both.

Visualizing radio is unneccessary and getting less clunky and more exciting to do and do well. Make sure it enhances the on-air content and the show brand.

Up Next

The convention concluded with the announcement that Radiodays Europe 2016 will be held in Paris, France.

Loads more Radiodays Europe talk on Thursday in this week’s Radio Stuff Podcast. Subscribe to the Larry Gifford Media “Radio Stuff” email and each Tuesday you’ll receive an email with all sorts of stuff about radio. Sign up here.

Counting Down the Top Posts of 2013 #15 to #6

As the New Year approaches we continue the 2013 Count Down of the year’s top blog posts (#25 to #16 here). Interesting to note, one of the blog posts below (#12) was written and posted in October 2010, yet still gets tons of traffic each year.  Another  (#15) was posted in May 2012.

#15 Brock & Salk Turn a Battleground into Common Ground

Despite being posted in May 2012, this post detailing the relationship and partnership of Seattle sports talkers Brock Huard and Mike Salk was popular, because Salk left the show for a gig in Boston this year.

#14 Does Internet Radio Value Radio More Than Radio?

Observations of a radio guy seeing signs of how the internet has hi-jacked the brand of “radio” that the industry has developed and earned through decades of blood, sweat and tears of building relationships with listeners.

#13 Recipe for a Paula Deen Parody

Oh, Paula Deen…

#12 Look Who’s Talking: Jim Cutler

Profiling one of the best voice artists in the world.

#11 The Producer Game Is Changing

I offer a response to a host’s open letter in Talkers about his producer and I offer 20 Tips on being a more effective producer.

#10 For Different Results – Change

In the wake of my resignation from KIRO Radio, I offer some observations. “Too often, I hear employees (hosts, producers, board ops, etc) want more, expect more, and demand more, but are unwilling to change to get it. There’s an overwhelming sense of entitlement in our business from the newcomers to the veterans…”

#09 Arbitron Panelist,”F— this!”

Real audio from a real panelist fed up with PPM.

#08 Wanted: A Passionate Disruptor or a Computer Literate Promo Assistant

One reason why traditional radio stations are having trouble attracting young, creative talent.

#07 77 Websites for Radio Hosts, Producers, Anchors and Reporters

A growing list of must-bookmark websites.

#06 The Keys to Sports Radio Success

The inspiration for this comes from a sports radio chat on twitter (#srchat). The question — what are your biggest pet-peeves of sports talk radio? — was posed to everyone on the chat including special guest Clear Channel’s VP of Sports Bruce Gilbert. I’ve taken their answers and turned-them-inside-out like a secret decoder ring to unveil the keys to sports radio success.

The top 5 posts of 2013 will be unveiled next week!

I Didn’t Die in 2013 and Other Great Things

It’s the time of year where I like to take stock. How’d we do? At Larry Gifford Media this burgeoning empire based on a blog, we – and by “we” I mean I – had a great year and I appreciate all the support. Just last week the blog hit a milestone of 25,000 page views. 10,000 of those coming in 2013.

THE WORLD IS WATCHING

When you dig into the numbers, visitors to the blog originate from 88 different countries. The most hits come from the USA, followed by UK, Canada, South Africa and Greece. (Side note: I’ve been to US, Canada and UK this year – looking for invites from friends in South Africa and Greece – hint, hint.)

SEARCHING FOR SOMETHING…

How are people finding the blog? Knowing this can be disturbing and fun.

Somebody searched “larry gifford obit june 2013” – Apparently, someone thought I died – or wished I had. That person was either heartened or bummed upon discovering I was alive and well. Another searched, “you’re mean go away cat.”  And for some reason the blog popped up for this search “if you spill something on yourself chance you’ll miss ‘mary tyler moore.’” I have to believe the people searching those terms were very frustrated in what they found. Hopefully that wasn’t the case for everyone.

I find people’s names attract the most people to the blog. Here are the top 13  search terms used to find LarryGifford.com

• Complaint
• ways in which radio  has embraced social media
• tom leykis
• steak shapiro
• larry gifford
• the nba
• keep looking up because that’s where it’s at (Kidd Kraddick)
• jim cutler voice over
• lex and terry fired
• life is good radio
• paula deen parodies
• jimi hendrix vocal range
• bruce gilbert fox sports radio

THE TOP POSTS OF 2013

In the coming days I’ll be unveiling the top 25 blog posts of the year.

Here are #25 through #16

25. Covering Colin Cowherd

24. Eight Things I Takeaway From HIVIO

23. TV Writers Taking Cheap Shots at Radio

22. Beware of “The Line”

21. How Do You Get Better? Improv(e).

20. Unsolicited Advice: Don’t Do This

19. How to Handle Host’s Controversial Comments

18. Lessons from NextRadio, London

17. Four Things Hosts Can Do To Improve Ratings

16. Seven Take Aways from Mike McVay

DON’T JUST READ, LISTEN TO ME

This year I also launched THE RADIO STUFF PODCAST with co-host Deb Slater this year. It’s been tons of fun and really interesting. A couple of the blog posts listed above were inspired by podcast segments. It’s been great flexing my “hosting” muscles again and extremely rewarding talking to so many interesting and remarkable people around the world who make radio so special.

Thanks to you and everyone who has read, listened, talked about, shared, liked, commented, or agreed to be interviewed. Wishing you and yours a great holiday and a safe, happy, ratings-filled 2014!!

Ideas Are Overrated

“We’ve all got great ideas. Everybody on the street has an idea.”

– ESPN Radio host Colin Cowherd

What’s the difference between a good show and great show? Topic development. At least that’s the case if you ask ESPN Radio Network host Colin Cowherd who discussed it at length in an interview with the Radio Stuff podcast.

“The one thing I’m really proud of is topic development. We love Wednesdays. Monday and Friday we’re trapped talking about football, but we love Wednesday shows. You come in and find a little blip on a transaction wire and we’re like, ‘that’s funny!’ and ‘that makes me think…’”   

4 KEYS TO TOPIC DEVELOPMENT ACCORDING TO COLIN COWHERD

Don’t worry about being right, be interesting.

“I take stuff from my kids, I take stuff from sit-coms, books, ideas. I always think – just try to be interesting. It’s not about being right. Guys tend to want to be right, instead of get it right. Just be interesting. Try to find compelling topics that everybody can play along.”

Personalize the story

“I think how would I react? I think about that with athletes; Would I retire now? Would I take less money to be surrounded by better teammates like Kobe Bryant now? Because, we’re all human no matter if you’re rich or a school teacher or a basketball player or you’re a local dentist or a baker. We’re all human beings. Men have the same basic needs and wants and ego. Women have the same needs and wants. We’re all the same. It’s just some people have different economic stratus and different interests.” 

Put in the hours

“I think about my radio show a lot. Radio never leaves you. It’s not like being a garbage man where your run is done for the day and you’ve done it — or a mailman and then you go home and you don’t have to worry about it until the next day. Radio is with you almost like being a doctor. You’ve got clients, you’ve got things that are constantly swirling in your head and I write down notes several times a week.”

Get a producer who wants to produce

“A really good radio producer, to me, doesn’t want to be an on-air person. They want to be a producer. And they get really good at it. And they try to elevate the on-air person with good guests, playing to his strengths, playing to her strengths, staying away from weaknesses.”

LISTEN to Colin Cowherd on The Radio Stuff Podcast

102 Websites for Radio Hosts, Producers, Anchors and Reporters

We all have the same sources and information to produce news, talk and, but it’s what we do with that information, how we tell the stories, how deep we dive and how we surprise our audiences that sets us apart. So, why not share our favorite bookmarks?

One must know website is www.headslinger.com. A site which allows you to view headlines from all your favorite sites in one spot. Check it out.

I asked 20 hosts, producers, reporters and anchors what their ‘go-to’ websites are for stories. Aside from social media sites, especially twitter, here are the 72 sites they listed and additional sites submitted by readers. Special thanks to Eric Jon Magnuson at North American Network, Inc. for contributing great international and humanitarian news sites.

UPDATED: 11:50 a.m. 01/03/2014

National Newspapers & Magazines

Chicago Tribune www.chicagotribune.com

Daily Beast www.dailybeast.com

Dallas Morning News www.dallasnews.com

The Guardian www.guardiannews.com

Los Angeles Times www.latimes.com

New York Times www.nytimes.com

Newsweek http://www.thedailybeast.com/newsweek.html

San Francisco Chronicle www.sfgate.com

Seattle Times www.seattletimes.com

Time Magazine www.time.com

USA Today www.usatoday.com

U.S. News & World Report — http://www.usnews.com

Wall Street Journal www.wsj.com

National News Sites

Associated Press http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/fronts/HOME?SITE=AP

The Business Insider www.businessinsider.com

Consortium News http://consortiumnews.com/

The Economist — http://www.economist.com

NewsLink – LINKS All US Papers, Radio & TV http://newslink.org/

Reuters www.reuters.com

Salon www.salon.com

Science News www.sciencenews.com

Yahoo News http://news.yahoo.com/

Aggregators, Entertainment, Gossip, Commentary

All Access Talk Topics www.allaccess.com/talktopics 

American Journalism Review http://ajr.org/

Boing Boing www.boingboing.net

Breaking News  www.breakingnews.com

Breitbart www.breitbart.com

Bust Magazine – fierce, funny, and proud to be female www.bust.com

Buzz Feed www.buzzfeed.com

Cracked www.cracked.com

The Daily Caller www.dailycaller.com

Daily Swarm – music news www.dailyswarm.com

Digg www.digg.com

Drudge Report www.drudgereport.com

Fark www.fark.com

Gawker www.gawker.com

Google News https://news.google.com/

Head Slinger “All the news, half the time” http://www.headslinger.com/

The Hollywood Reporter www.hollywoodreporter.com

Huffington Post www.huffingtonpost.com

Movie City News www.moviecitynews.com

Newser www.newser.com

The Onion – parody – www.theonion.com

Reddit – www.reddit.com

Rolling Stone www.rollingstone.com

TMZ www.tmz.com

Politics/Political Commentary

538 Blog by Nate Silver www.fivethirtyeight.blogs.nytimes.com

Data Ferrett www.dataferrett.census.gov   data analysis and extraction tool-with recoding capabilities-to customize federal, state, and local data to suit your requirements.

Foreign Policy — http://www.foreignpolicy.com

Hot Air www.hotair.com

McClatchy’s national/international-news portal — http://www.mcclatchydc.com

National Review Online – conservative commentary – www.nationalreview.com

Real Clear Politics www.realclearpolitics.com

Reason (almost certainly the best source of libertarian news and commentary in the U.S.) — http://reason.com

Slate www.slate.com

Talking Points Memo –Commentary from a political left perspective www.talkingpointsmemo.com

Technology & Digital Culture

Geekwire www.geekwire.com

Gizmodo www.gizmodo.com

Mashable www.mashable.com

Nerdist www.nerdist.com

Wired www.wired.com

International News Sites

ABC (Australia) — http://www.abc.net.au/news (main news section) and http://www.abc.net.au/news/australianetworknews (subsite for Australia Network [related international TV service])

AllAfrica — http://allafrica.com

BBC www.bbc.com

CBC www.cbc.ca

Daily Mail www.dailymail.co.uk

Euronews — http://www.euronews.com

France 24 (related international TV service) — http://www.france24.com

Global Voices — http://globalvoicesonline.org

International Business Times (Newsweek’s new owner) — http://www.ibtimes.com

Inter Press Service — http://www.ipsnews.net

News.com.au (main portal for News Corp.’s Australian properties) — http://www.news.com.au

One World http://us.oneworld.net/

Radio Australia (related international service) — http://www.radioaustralia.net.au

Radio France Internationale — http://www.english.rfi.fr

The Sun www.thesun.co.uk

Humanitarian News Sites

Christian Science Monitor — http://www.csmonitor.com

Deutsche Welle — http://www.dw.de

GlobalPost — http://www.globalpost.com (including aggregated wire-service content at http://www.globalpost.com/wires)

Integrated Regional Information Networks — http://www.irinnews.org

ProPublica — http://www.propublica.org

ReliefWeb — http://reliefweb.intThomson Reuters Foundation — http://www.trust.org

The Road to the Horizon – Blogs by aid workers around the world http://www.theroadtothehorizon.org/2010/06/blogroll-aid-blogs.html

Voice of America — http://www.voanews.com

National TV Networks & Shows

ABC New www.abcnews.com

CBS News www.cbsnews.com

CNN www.cnn.com

Fox News www.foxnews.com

MSNBC www.msnbc.com

NBC News www.nbcnews.com

OWN – www.oprah.com/own

PBS NewsHour — http://www.pbs.org/newshour

Today Show – www.today.com

Sports

Bar Stool Sports www.barstoolsports.com

Deadspin www.deadspin.com

ESPN www.espn.com

Fox Sports http://msn.foxsports.com/

Grantland www.grantland.com

SB Nation www.sbnation.com

Sports Grid www.sportsgrid.com

Sports Illustrated www.si.com

Sports Press Northwest www.sportspressnw.com

Yahoo Sports http://sports.yahoo.com/