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Charese Fruge’ (@MCMediaonline) Talks To Brooke Fox
September 13, 2022
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Brooke Fox is one of the hosts of the internationally syndicated show “Brooke & Jeffrey in the Morning.” The show airs on 50 stations across the nation. She graduated from Journalism school at the University of Montana, then went to work in TV where she got to work in the KXLY newsroom in Spokane. “With only part-time hours, I was desperate for any work,” says Fox. “They happened to have an opening on the show I grew up listening to, ‘The Breakfast Boys,’ and to my surprise I got the gig!”
“Within a year, I was hosting my own morning show, which as far as I know, was Top 40 radio’s first all-female morning drive show,” adds Fox. “I next served as Music Director and Morning Co-host in Portland (KKRZ-FM) and then started another all-female morning show in Seattle (KQMV-FM), where they haven’t been able to get rid of me since!”
“Our current show is incredibly labor intensive,” says Fox. “While we create space for funny to happen naturally, we also don't cross our fingers and hope. We plan, prep, write, re-write, and then write some more to ensure we don’t waste a second of our listeners’ time or miss a joke. That means it's all hands on deck. Every person on our show is also a writer, content producer, and contributor,” she says. “Our executive producer, Steve Boyd, serves as the mastermind to make it all come together seamlessly, and sets an incredibly high bar for our show's comedic standard. Outside of the creative collective, as a host I do my best to serve as a leader and mentor on the show. I also work as a liaison between sales and syndication and do my best every day to help create an environment where every member can thrive.”
The last nineteen years of Fox’s journey in radio have been very exciting. “My career has been full of once-in-a-lifetime opportunities, incredible moments on big national stages, more intimate moments with celebrities and truly amazing honors, like the Marconi Awards. (Definitely VERY high on the list to say the least),” says Fox. “But there are two things that I'm most proud of. The first is the reason I love this job, and that's when a listener will thank me for giving her and her teenager something to bond over. When that mom tells me that she’s struggling to find common ground with her kiddo and we're the one thing they have in common, it really gets me. I am so moved by that,” she says. “And the second thing is the team of people we have brought together. It has taken over a decade to create a space where we celebrate each other's wins and inspire each other to do better. I've surrounded myself with passionate, talented people and I’m so much better because of them.”
It hasn’t always been a walk in the park for Fox. Like everyone else, she’s had her challenges. “There was definitely a period in my career where I spent a lot of time crying in my car in the parking lot, and it all stemmed from personnel issues,” says Fox. “I think everyone in radio can think of that one person, who maybe out of insecurity, believed the only way they could personally win was by bringing everyone else down around them. In those times, I've chosen the Michelle Obama way – ‘When they go low, we go high.’
“These types of negative relationships have honestly pushed me to the brink of wanting to give up on radio all together, but I’ve been so fortunate to have an amazing husband, family and executive producer who have reminded me during that dark period, why I love this job and why it's so important to bring laughter to this world,” says Fox. “I've tried my best to not listen to the noise, concentrate on what’s in my control, and focus on how I can better myself and our show. This is not a business for the faint of heart and if you can find a way to not just survive, but thrive, you win. Always.”
Her advice for young women wanting to get into the business: “Don't let the ‘no's’ take you down. I have sadly heard from people I thought I could respect that ‘women aren't funny’ or ‘women don't want to hear other woman lead.’ Even though you get a thousand compliments, it's somehow easier to remember the one negative criticism, but you just have to let it go,” says Fox. “Their opinion is not your truth. Stay the course, believe in the process, and remain focused. Don't let them be a distraction.”
Speaking of which, it’s easy to get distracted when your show transitions from local to national syndication. I asked Brooke how they find the right balance to be successful on both levels. “Funny is universal for us. That is our main focus always,” she says. “It's why syndicated television works across the country. And it's why our show wins. Funny wins. Localization happens next. We spend a lot of time cutting liners and videos, interacting with listeners on social media and our text board, and getting out in not only our community, but also our syndicated markets! (We are so excited that market visits are finally happening again post-pandemic!) I really think naming a city doesn't make a big difference,” says Fox. “Making a listener feel like your friend is what makes you feel local to them. That's why listeners are often shocked when they realize we’re from Seattle and not their hometown.”
One of the biggest challenges we face as an industry is attracting and maintaining younger audiences. How do we do it? How do we find the balance between the older and younger generations“ Communicate in the same way Gen Z and Millennials do - on their time and on their platforms,” says Fox. “Social media and podcast growth are key. I know there is a reluctance to send radio listeners to podcasts for fear of losing more radio listeners, but I actually think it can only make you stronger in both. And imagine what could happen if we start finding podcast listeners and turn them into radio listeners?”
“There is so much room for growth here. As we've seen our ratings grow on radio, we've also seen our podcast numbers grow. They can and should work together,” says Fox. “We are #1 in Seattle and are now up to more than three million downloads a month! And that's true for all our markets. The higher rated the show is on radio, the more podcast listeners we have. We have never seen podcast downloads go up and ratings go down. It just doesn't happen.”
“In terms of growing our younger audience, we have to find and develop younger talent and give them real opportunities,” adds Fox. “That also means that the more seasoned radio vets need to move away from the idea that it was ‘hard for me’ so it must be ‘hard for them.’ Who wants to work in a place like that? Yes, I missed my best friend's wedding because I couldn't get time off. Yes, my first contracted job was for $17,000.
Yes, I worked every weekend for years before I got two days off in a row. And do you know what? It sucked,” she says. “How can we attract Gen Z talent in environments like that? We should want it to be better for them. It doesn't mean that you aren't passionate, or that you don't really want to succeed if you also want competitive pay and a healthy work/life balance. We have to make radio a place where Gen Z also wants to be.”
Another challenge for the industry right now is the lack of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion? I asked Brooke if we’ve moved the needle at all towards improvement and what we can do better. “Yes, a tiny bit. But it's all been done by the hard work and tenacity of women, BIPOC and LGBTQ+ communities,” says Fox. “Radio leadership is far from a true reflection of what our listening audience looks like. It doesn't take much to realize that. A prime example is looking at any radio convention. Almost every panel is full of white men with one token female on it. They put together a diversity panel that is out there giving great ideas and answers, but who's in the audience? Who's listening?” she asks. “I think every panel, every boardroom and every studio should reflect our listening audience’s diverse backgrounds. It's just good business. How can we super-serve our community when we don't reflect the community?”
After all of Brooke’s hard work and success over the years, she says the one thing most people would be surprised to know about her is, “I never thought about going into radio. My heart was set on being a director for long-form documentaries. In fact, I put off my one required radio class until my senior year of college,” she says. “It was only after I got my first job in radio that I was hooked.”
What keeps her up at night? “Outside of my five-year-old, I'm blessed to say not much,” says Fox. “When you work with a team of talented people who truly strive to bring joy and laughter to the world, it's pretty easy to sleep at night.” But she’s still working on a good work-life balance she says. “My husband told me he was so proud of me this week, and my response was ‘I don't know how since I'm always on the verge of disaster.’ Ha! Really though, I think the power of ‘no’ is incredible,” she says. “That goes for overextending myself in my social life and my career. I’m really trying to concentrate on doing fewer things very, very well. When I stretch myself too thin, every part of my life suffers. It's not a novel idea but it's taken me 20 years to learn.”
“And truthfully, I can't believe I'm this far into my career - it honestly feels like I just started. But there is SO much more coming from our team. We are truly striving to give our listeners a 360-degree, all-encompassing experience with our show. We're pushing our content, how we deliver our content, and how it's consumed. I'm more excited about radio now than ever.”
Follow Brooke on social media @BrookeFoxFox everywhere, except Twitter: @BrookeFox. And follow @BrookeandJeffrey on all platforms!
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