10 Questions with ... Matthew Potter

BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:

WYBB/Jan 2006-present

1) What was your first job in radio? Early influences?

Started out as a Nickelback T-shirt wearer at all events (unpaid.) Then became BS Administrator, then PD.

2) What led you to a career in radio? Was there a defining moment that made you realize "this is it"?

I dig music; I was actually trying to get a job in sales but couldn't get a job after college because I didn't have "two years' experience." How the Hell do you get two years experience if you can't get a job to get those two years? I've met salespeople who don't seem to have two years' experience in elementary school. They gave me a shot and I was way better at on-air and programming, so I stayed there.

3) If you were just starting out in radio, knowing now what you didn't then, would you still do it?

Absolutely not, Chick-Fil-A has an awesome 401K plan.

4) What career path would you be following had it not been for this industry?

I'd be working in food and beverage probably. I did it while I traveled and throughout college, but I'd probably be strung out, too.

5) What makes your station or market unique? How does this compare to other markets or stations you have worked at?

Charleston is awesome; the girls look like the preppy chicks who wouldn't talk to you in high school, but now they want you for being yourself in high school, and you want them to, too. Music-wise, Charleston is made up of a bunch of islands; you have to go through every part of town to get to any part of town. Every demo is here.

6) How have the recent FCC regulations impacted the way you program your music and the station's dialogue on the air? What are your feelings about these recent changes?

Honestly, haven't been affected, we knew we had to be careful around our corrupt politicians in the first place.

7) How have music file-sharing services affected the way you program to your audience?

If anything, it gives a little insight on what people want to hear, so I check the downloads in town, and use it accordingly.

8) How do you feel terrestrial radio competes with the satellite radio and Internet these days?

We still dominate, I always argue that the day Stern comes back to terrestrial, the first words out of his mouth will be "Well, that sucked...."

9) Where do you see the industry and yourself five years from now?

I'll probably be coaching Under-6 racquet ball.

10) What do you view as the most important issue facing radio today?

I've only been in radio a few years, so with an outside look, owners want money and programmers want identity. Unfortunately, the listener is lost in that.

What is the biggest change that you'd like to see happen in the business?

Rename our genre to generic hard rock if that's what we're gonna play; ACTIVE sounds so inviting to all genres.

If you could add any one full-time position to your budget with no questions asked, what would it be?

I missed the good part of being a DJ in radio. I'd bring back the "you get to eat and drink for free."