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10 Questions with ... Kevin McCullough
June 16, 2009
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NAME:Kevin McCulloughTITLE:Talk Host ("Xtreme Radio"), Syndicated Columnist, Author, CEO Xtreme Media of New YorkSTATION:197 nationwide including flagship WNYM/New YorkMARKET:Syndicated, six of the top 20 markets, 15 of the top 40COMPANY:Xtreme Media LLCBORN:Springfield, MissouriRAISED:Ft. Worth, Texas
BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:
Dallas, Chicago, New York, Syndication (in that order)
1. How did you get your start in radio? Why radio?
I was the geeky kid that used to listen to the Ranger baseball games every night in my tiny bedroom in a little house in Ft. Worth, Texas. Hearing the Ranger announcers describe "Mick the Quick", the "Nolan Express", and the Charlie Hough knuckleball were so much more vivid in my imagination than watching them the few times a year they were on television. I created a "radio studio" in my bedroom when I was only an early teenager, and hardwired the output of the amp to the input of a CB radio (complete with an antenna running out my window and magnetized to the roof). My independent broadcasts would include rogue replays of Bill Cosby records, or faked play by plays of classic Lakers/Celtics championship series. The spoken word has for the majority of my life fascinated me, held my attention, and made my heart beat faster. I still love dial surfing late on a Sunday night when I'm in a foreign city to see if there is a rerun of an old radio drama somewhere. Sadly the art of aural communication has been hammered into some fairly two dimensional perceptions... Guess I'm hopelessly under the conception that radio's greatest glory is still to come, and I don't know if I would ever be able to imagine a world where it was not part of my life...
2. What is the concept of "Xtreme Radio"? What makes it extreme?
Xtreme Radio w/ Stephen Baldwin & Kevin McCullough is simple. Drawing on the universe that is the pop culture/Hollywood/Celebrity of Stephen Baldwin, and the public policy, news punditry, and editorial commentary that is Kevin McCullough we had a desire to do something very different. We aim to examine the somewhat complex and always morphing moral dilemmas of life, create great discussion, and every now and then provide a small glimmer of hope for the future. It's not about left/right. It's not about Bush/Obama. It's transparent, it's funny, it's mind-blowingly honest, and it's about real life. What makes it extreme, sad to say, is the amount of common sense that overflows from the discussions. It's sort of a collision of common sense running headlong into the ultimate "It's all about me" society we are forced to live in. And sometimes you can literally hear the wheels turn in people's minds as they are examining themselves, the culture around them, and their place in it. It is unlike anything I've ever done, it is the most fun I've ever had, and I genuinely think it's doing the most good for people that can be offered.3. How did you hook up with your partner Stephen Baldwin? How do you see your individual roles on the show?
Stephen has been a talk radio junkie since he was a kid growing up on Long Island. He has called talk radio shows almost since they started putting callers on the air. When I was brought to New York in 2003 to do a daily local show for AM 570 WMCA (an historic signal in the tradition of talk radio) he stumbled across the show almost by mistake. The story goes that he came down to his kitchen one afternoon to hear his wife talking... out loud... to... no one. When he inquired who she was talking to she spun on her heels and pointed the butcher knife she was using to cut carrots towards Stephen's face and said, "YOU!!!!!!! (pause) (she spun back around) ...need to be more like 'that guy!'" As she then pointed the butcher knife to a small plastic box on the counter known as a radio. With that sort of forceful endorsement he began listening, called in two weeks later, and then frequently would participate in the show. He even guest-hosted for me once when I needed to be away for a day. Out of our friendship and a common passion we have to instill common sense in the culture (particularly the generations coming behind us) we felt it was important to begin work on a new radio product that was unlike anything (to our knowledge) that had ever been on the air previously.
4. The show airs on both secular and religious stations as well as online. How are you balancing the different areas of content -- secular, political, religious? Do you see the mix changing if the affiliate list adds more secular outlets?
No, we really don't see or analyze any content mix. We are who we are, and from week-to-week, the show is a reflection of what is going on in the world and how we view it. The show is a discussion product. It is, by its design, intended to be a place where a collision of ideas run into each other. But at the end of the day, we greatly desire it to be a discussion that points people to hope, contentment, and clearer thinking about the issues they face in life. Stephen and I both have a significant profile within the Christian community and discussion in the nation today. But we don't emphasize jargon, topics, or content that exclude anyone. We come from our world view and our belief system--but we engage anyone and everyone who is willing to pick up the phone and make a call. Stephen is very spontaneous; I'm very analytical and intense. His wit is vaudevillian, mine is dry biting sarcasm. We could not be more different as people, but we have so much fun on the air. And I believe that living life transparently on the air builds trust with those who listen better than anything else. We are already on a number of News-Talk outlets across the country and seem like we add more each week. It's my belief that we offer something that everyone is looking for... answers to the dilemmas of life.
5. About what are you most passionate these days?
In terms of personal passion, my family has been and will always be the number one. But beyond that I would say my philosophical passion is the need for clarity in life. Thinking clearly seems harder for the masses than ever before. So I love engaging them, shaking up the mental snowglobes and then allowing the discussion to reorganize, resettle, and recoordinate our ability as a society to think.
6. Who have your mentors and influences been, in radio and in life?
The most influential personality in terms of who I've observed would be Rush. Learning to be THE reason why someone comes to your show makes the show the absolute best it can be. In terms of professionally, Valerie Geller helped me think like a producer in terms of creating fabulous content every time out. In terms of performance, I would have to say Peter Thiele can get into your head and rattle your cage better than any PD I've ever had the privilege of working for. Tommy Kramer was the best coach in terms of breaking me of bad habits. And Dave Armstrong was the best GM anyone in radio could ever have the extremely high honor of knowing and working for. In fact Dave Armstrong (who personally recruited me to come to New York) taught me more about how to genuinely work well with people than any other person I've ever known. In life my Grandfather taught me how to work hard. Hugh Hewitt taught me how to work smart. Mike Gallagher demonstrated how to genuinely express gratitude for each and every affiliate station. And my former Pastor, Dr. Ray Pritchard, taught me perhaps the most important lesson of all, "There IS a God, and I'm not Him!"
7. If you hadn't gotten into the media -- if you couldn't do radio, write, do TV -- what do you think you'd be doing now?
Perry, that's such a hard question for me. Media is all I've ever done. I was BORN to create content. My mind never turns off. And I've been blessed to be able to help supply content in so many forms, print/text, radio, television, film, live events, music, and public speaking. If I hadn't done this, I wouldn't even recognize myself.
8. What do you do for fun?
First off, I LOVE everything I do. I recognize that that is highly uncommon so I just want to point out how grateful I am to be given the opportunities I have been. I am a highly experienced musician, I've done a lot of live playing, and quite a bit of studio work. To me it's just an extension of everything else I do. But if there is one little thing that I do that I genuinely would say is the most peaceful, enjoyable thing ever... it would be playing golf--sometimes even alone.
9. Fill in the blank: I can't make it through the day without ______________.
...my Lovely Bride. She is the air I breathe. She's the most support I would've ever dreamed of having, and she has given up a great deal in helping me succeed.On a much more silly level... Sugar Free Red Bull...
10. What's the best advice you've ever gotten? The worst?
BEST - "Don't die stupid!"PRETTY GOOD - "Use narrative in everything..." (People can envision ideas best when they see how they work in a story)
WORST - "Question everything..." (One of the dumbest things ever said. Question things that don't add up. But at the end of the day there will be some things you can't explain to the enth degree... you just know the still small voice inside you pushes you towards what's right)
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