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Sometimes Life Gets In The Way Of Radio …
September 22, 2020
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Ratings and the bottom line are not always the determining factor for continued employment. Sometimes people just don’t like you.
Some Situations Are Just Strange …
One station stands out the most from my own experience. I reminded the general manager of someone from his past and it worked in my favor. However, oddly enough, the morning personality apparently flashed the general manager back to somebody who was not a good memory for him.I Could Do No Wrong …
I was involved in a situation where I was the good guy and my friend who did mornings was viewed as the anti-Christ by the GM. His ratings were better than mine, yet he always got the short end of the stick. For example, I over-stayed my new hire hotel privileges for a month. The OM eventually told me I needed to find a place, surprisingly the GM defended me: "Sam has come in here and hit the ground running; he can stay a little longer if he has to." His words are still etched in my memory.The Morning Guy Got the Short End …
While I was daily signing off on room service with generous tips, my morning show buddy was catching hell for everything from his on-air name (The Deadly Dr.) to the volume of his voice around the office place. He was getting good ratings, but it didn’t seem to make any difference.We figured It Out …
The GM just did not like the morning talent, case closed. We figured it was something outside of his conscious awareness. Whoever I reminded him of was named Steve. Occasionally he would accidentally call me Steve and then correct himself. That’s how the morning guy and I were able to unravel the mystery of why the general manager was constantly favoring me and being a jerk to him.Say It Ain So ...
Unfortunately, the OM who hired both of us was fired and the morning guy was demoted to overnight. When the GM realized The Deadly Dr. was not going to quit because of his demotion, he paid him the remainder of his contract.A Valuable Lesson ...
That station had the most insecure group of people I have ever worked around, but it taught me a lesson. I learned to stay focused and not let anyone throw me off my game. I became a student of not letting my ego be the elephant in the room. It made no sense for the AM drive personality to have good ratings and get canned.I Saw The light …
That’s when it dawned on me, radio is not always about ratings, but the unmeasurable, human reaction to another human being. In other words, sometimes it’s a case of “life getting in the way of radio.” -
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