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Lessons Are All Around Us …
May 5, 2020
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The best lessons I ever learned about the art of programming came from a well-traveled veteran Program Director which is code for professional radio transient.
He communicated well with the air staff but stayed to himself and never got personally close to any of the talent. However, one night the transmitter malfunctioned, and we went off the air in the middle of my evening shift on a Friday night.
Mr. Engineer …
I had already called the engineer and was in the process of phoning the PD when he walked into the studio and wanted to know why were off the air. I was surprised and had no idea he was still at the station; it was sometime after 9pm. I had walked by his closed office door several times and had no idea he was still in there working. Anyway, I told him I had just reached out to the engineer and he had me try a couple of things, but the transmitter would still not turn back on. I also told him that the engineer said he was headed to a party and would go to the transmitter site when he could; at the time nothing could be done by remote.I Never Blush …
The PD headed out of the studio and had me follow him to his office. He called the engineer and caught him before he had left his house. I heard word combinations which would have made a sailor blush. By the time he was finished, the engineer immediately headed for to the transmitter site. The PD hung up, smiled, and let me see another side to him.I’ll Have Some …
He opened a drawer and out came a bottle of wine and a few other recreational items. This was out of character because as far as I knew he never socialized with air staff except at the annual Christmas party. I accepted his offer to have some wine.We Talked …
He started to tell me about some of the pictures on the walls of his office and where he was when they were taken. We were having a conversation about all sorts of things. He even shared his philosophy on marketing a station prior to the release of new ratings.Over the years he learned to have a station involved in a community event to coincide with the release of new ratings numbers. His strategy was to always align with an existing successful cause or organization and market the event heavily.
Wise Words …
Experience had taught him that such an occasion guaranteed TV coverage and lots of pats on the back for the GM from local businesses and civic leaders. If the new ratings came out and were good, it was a cherry on top. And if the ratings were flat or down, the blowback was a lot less severe.Stockholm Syndrome …
The PD told me that because of the timely feel good community moment, most of the GMs he had worked for did not jump to the conclusion it was something programming was doing wrong. Instead they blamed the methodology which allowed the PD time to fix what needed fixing (if anything) and explain the entire situation, including the role methodology had played. When he had finished telling me his method of being ready for whatever comes at ratings time, I realized that programming required the skill of a political strategist. What he said proved to be invaluable, “you can’t control the outcome, but you can control the circumstances surrounding it.”That was the one and only time in 2 years he ever let his guard down and shared anything with me other than a programming directive.
A Valuable Lesson …
That incident gave birth to my theory “keep turning the knob because one night the locked door will open.” I always encourage air personalities to pay attention because lessons happen every day, and sometimes they happen at the oddest times. -
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