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10 Questions with ... Bob McLain
January 6, 2009
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NAME:Bob McLainTITLE:Director of News and ProgrammingSTATION:News Radio WORD (WORD-WYRD-WYRD-FM)MARKET:Greenville-Spartanburg, SCCOMPANY:EntercomBORN:August 19, 1946RAISED:Arlington, VA and Burlington, NC
BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:
13 years in Top 40 radio during the "Golden Age" (1963-79), moved to TV for 20 years, then returned to radio in 1999.
1. How did you get into radio? Why radio? And why, after years in TV, did you decide to get back into it?
I was in high school and had a friend who had talked WEAM, the big top 40 station in suburban Washington, DC, into giving him a show they could count as public affairs programming. It was a local version of American Bandstand's Rate-a-Record feature. One of the kids who was supposed to be a guest got sick and the host knew I lived near the radio station so he called me and asked me to take his place. The PD, Mark Holliday (a real top 40 name) followed this show and heard me and asked if I was interested in working there part time. Since my job at the time was throwing the Washington Post onto people's roofs, I said "sure."Why radio? I quickly realized it paid more than being a paperboy, and there was no heavy lifting involved.
Why, after years in TV, did I decide to get back into it? I was sick of the politically correct world of TV News. That, and I got tired of the anchor always saying, "How about that rain, Bob?!"
2. About what are you most passionate these days?
Still radio. Programming; new ways to do things better, more efficiently and in a way that entertains and makes a profit the company. I'm also excited about the ways we can expand our footprint in cyberspace through additions and expansion of our web presence. And I love the audience interaction doing my show.
3. What would you say is the most profound change in the business from your Top 40 days to today -- good or bad?
The loss of localization and voice tracking. Both of the FMs for the 2 radio stations in Burlington, NC, where I had my first fulltime job, have been moved out. Both were bought up by the big guys and moved to larger markets. The result of voice tracking is there are very few entry level opportunities for kids wanting a career in radio. There are few local all night shows that serve as a training ground today. I learned how to do a morning show from hanging around and watching the "Flying Dutchman," Pete Berry, at WTOB after doing the all night show. We had better give some thought to where the next generation of radio talent will come from.
4. Do you sense that the economic downturn has changed your audience's interests and expectations from talk radio? Is it changing what you and the station are doing, and if so, how?
Yes, yes and yes. The economic downturn is macro, and broadcasting is not excluded. The slump presents opportunities and challenges though. It forces us to examine how we do everything and find ways to do it better. Not everyone will survive, but the ones who best serve their audience and customers will.With Bill O'Reilly giving up his show we have added Dave Ramsey, who does financial advice and the response has been great. We also air the Wall Street Journal This Weekend and Neil Cavuto's financial reports 3 times a day, plus current stocks in hourly newscasts.
5. Of what are you most proud?
I've been a part of TV shows that won Emmys and received awards from Associated Press and others for news coverage but I'm most proud that I have been able to grow and continue to learn through all the changes our industry has experienced. I have made great friends over the years and cherish the opportunity America has provided me. I often tell the kids today to try and find a career in a field they love. If you do that, you'll never work a day in your life. I consider finding a career in a radio and TV to have been a great blessing.
6. You've done a lot in the media, from sportscasting and weather to writing and years as a jock and a programmer. But had you not gotten into the media, what else do think you would have been doing for a living by now?
Most of the men in my family were lawyers, and until I accidentally discovered radio, I had thought that's what I would do as well. On reflection, I realize I wouldn't have lasted long in the judicial world and would probably have been locked up for contempt within about 5 minutes. I do love golf and flying, so it would probably have been something related to one or the other of those.
7. Who have your mentors and inspirations been in the business?
Wow, where to begin?Bill Diffee, who just passed away, was the first PD to hire me fulltime at WBAG in Burlington, NC. He never worked any big markets, but loved radio and passed the love of creativity and personality presentation along to me. The "Flying Dutchman," Pete Berry, was the guy I learned personality morning radio from at WTOB in Winston-Salem, NC. Others with whom I worked with and learned from included "Big Jack Armstrong," John Larch, one of the all time great top 40 jocks. Jack did nights when I did morning drive at 13Q in Pittsburgh. Dr. Don Rose, who I traded bits with when I worked at WHBQ in Memphis. George Johns, one of the great programmers, whom I worked with at WIBG in Philadelphia. Terrell Metheny at Southern Broadcasting Co. and WMCA, New York.
In TV, Dow Smith, the News Director at WJLA-TV, Washington, Bill MacPhail, who hired me at CNN, and Mason Granger at WMC-TV, Memphis.
There are many more.
8. What do you do for fun?
Play golf. I know, "Nixon plays golf." (Caddyshack).
9. Fill in the blank: I can't make it through the day without _________....surfing the web for show prep, even if I don't have a show that day!
10. What's the best advice you ever got? The worst?
Best: Mark Holliday, the PD at WEAM, told me, "Kid, there are 5 stages to your radio career...'Who the Hell is Bob McLain?'... 'Get me Bob McLain'... 'Get me a Bob McLain type'... 'Get me a young Bob McLain type'... and 'Who the Hell is Bob McLain?'"2nd place: C.A. Frye, football coach at Williams High, Burlington, NC: "Son, if you think you're indispensable, stick your hand in a bucket of water, then pull it out and see how big a hole you leave."
Worst: "Get out of this business, kid, it's a dead end and you'll never make a nickel." Too many sources to mention.
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