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10 Questions with ... Phil Mackey
June 18, 2019
Have an opinion? Add your comment below. Here's how I'd frame it up: You may THINK you're in the radio business. But you're really in the audience building business. From a macro perspective, your job is to build audiences or create tribes and find ways to monetize. Radio makes up one part of this equation, but there are several other platforms on which audiences can be cultivated. 1.) Be active where your audience is active. 2.) Produce content specifically for those platforms
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BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:
Talk show host since 2010 on 1500 ESPN and now SKOR North. Former Minnesota Twins beat writer for 1500ESPN.com. Former poker industry entrepreneur.
1. What got you into radio in the first place? Why radio?
I feel like most people have these romantic stories about how they listened to radio every night in their rooms as a kid, dreaming about being on the microphone someday. My story is a lot lamer than that, lol. I needed a summer job after high school, and I knew I wanted to work in sports – so I went to the local radio station in town (AM 1360 KRWC in Buffalo, MN) and asked for a summer internship. The station manager said KRWC didn’t do internships, but they were looking for someone to call radio play-by-play for amateur baseball games. I said yes, having never done play-by-play before. And that’s how I became the next Vin Scully. Wait, not quite… But that experience showed me I had somewhat of a natural talent on the microphone, and I ran with it.
2. You're not just afternoon co-host, but also oversee a lot of what makes SKOR North different from a regular radio station. So... what IS the SKOR North concept? Is it digital first, a radio station with a digital component, or what? How do you describe the change at 1500?
SKOR North is Minnesota sports. Anytime. Anywhere. We create, produce and customize content for radio, podcasts, the SKOR North mobile app, and multiple social media platforms. The two biggest differences between 1500 ESPN and SKOR North (we re-branded and changed our direction entirely on January 15) are a shift in distribution strategy and a re-emphasis on local sports. 1500 ESPN was a radio station. SKOR North is a Minnesota sports content production hub that uses AM 1500 as one of its distribution channels. I think we’ve acknowledged that there’s a huge gap between the number of Minnesota sports fans in the market and the number of Minnesota sports fans who listen to AM radio. It’s on us to deliver content where those people want to consume it.
3. You've established yourself as a digital content maven at a time when a lot of radio talent is being urged to develop digital skills -- podcasting, social, video. The first question is: How did you develop your skills and knowledge of the digital space? Did you go out to specifically learn that, was it part of your college education, or did you learn everything on the fly through trial and error?
I WISH I would have learned more of these skills in college. I actually went to school for marketing and copywriting, and I probably spent more time playing online poker than actually studying for tests… So, pretty much everything I’ve learned in radio, podcasting, social media, etc. is through trial and error (if I don’t know something, I will bury my head and spend a full day or week studying) or finding mentors who know more than me. I’m a huge proponent of finding mentors, even if it’s just studying people you’ve never met that are further along the path.
4. The follow-up to the last question: What digital skills would you emphasize that a radio person should develop first to remain relevant (and employable) as things change? Assuming that, ultimately, we'll all be podcasting and streaming video and living on social media, what specific skills should a talent or producer emphasize first? Where do they start? (I know, it's incredible that some people in radio are still not really up to speed on all of this in 2019, but it's true....).
Here’s how I’d frame it up: You may THINK you’re in the radio business. But you’re really in the audience building business. From a macro perspective, your job is to build audiences or create tribes and find ways to monetize. Radio makes up one part of this equation, but there are several other platforms on which audiences can be cultivated. 1.) Be active where your audience is active. 2.) Produce content specifically for those platforms.
5. How do you see your role on "Judd and Mackey with Ramie"? What role in the show does each of you cover? And do you approach your role with Judd the same way you did with Patrick Reusse, who is a larger-than-life presence (not that Judd is a shrinking violet, but there's only one Reusse)?
Mackey and Judd with Ramie has only been around since January, but it honestly feels like we’ve been working together for years. Judd is the salty, quirky cynic. I am the youthful, eternal optimist and stat nerd. Ramie is a stand-up comedian from Chicago via Milwaukee, and he brings a completely different energy and perspective. It’s easily the most fun I’ve ever had doing shows. With Reusse (between 2010-2014), I really had no idea what I was doing for the first couple years, because I was like 25 years old and had no experience doing daily radio. But I think the show worked well because of a 40-year age gap between us, and our sparring matches made for some compelling stuff. I would actually love to take another stab at that show, being a few years wiser.
6. On the play-by-play front, SKOR doesn't have the local pro teams' game broadcasts other than Minnesota United. Both for your show and for the digital content you produce, how does NOT being the teams' flagship inform your coverage? Do you feel more free to criticize the teams and their management without the contract concerns? Does that trump the access afforded the flagship radio partner?
It probably is easier to criticize teams when you don’t have a business partnership to worry about. But, then again, it would be foolish to burn bridges with local sports teams and risk losing important access and promotional opportunities. The reality is, regardless of flagship rights, we want to have good relationships with teams. We try to keep all of our criticism “above the belt,” so to speak. I think you’ll find that when SKOR North personalities criticize teams and players, it’s usually rooted in fact rather than personal vendetta.
7. Who have been your influences, inspiration, and mentors in the business?
Tom Pelissero (currently at NFL Network) and Patrick Reusse taught me how to find unique angles while entertaining audiences. Cory Cove and Henry Lake taught me how to have fun with sports. Paul Allen gave me a weekly, 60-minute spot as a 22-year-old. I should also mention the late Lyn Shepley from KRWC, who allowed me to be his baseball broadcast partner for two summers. And among people I’ve never met, but who I respect and have studied – Covino and Rich, Max Kellerman and Bill Simmons.
8. Of what are you most proud?
Lasting 10 years in a top-15 market as a daily talk show host. But that’s a pretty low bar. I’m hopeful the best is yet to come.
9. Fill in the blank: I can't make it through the day without __________.
...green tea and yacht rock music.
10. What's the most important lesson you've learned in your career?
Empathy. And grind.
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