You’re probably thinking that the holiday isn’t even here yet, and I’m already slacking by turning over the blog to a guest writer – two days in a row. Actually, we seem to have a New Jersey theme this week, as you’ll read in a moment.
Bill Jacobs has been consulting stations for our company for 25 years, and has seen it all. But last month, even he was pleasantly surprised by a radio station story that was deserving of more attention than it got. I’ll let him tell it. – FJ
A Rock station? Taking top honors for news coverage for an entire state? We’ve seen a number of strange pairings in recent years – Kid Rock with Sheryl Crow, Robert Plant doing bluegrass, Chris Christie bear hugging President Obama. But Greater Media Rock station WRAT/Monmouth-Ocean – The Rat – pulled off a real stunner, taking top honors by winning the Best News 2012 Award given by the New Jersey Broadcasters Association for its Hurricane Sandy coverage.
Great stations aren’t defined by the music they play. They make their mark by how they reflect their local communities and serve their constituents. Program Director/Morning Show Host Carl Craft’s team did just that under strenuous circumstances. For WRAT’s staff, this wasn’t just a news story – it was real life.
Unlike most other disasters, this one hit home, as some station staffers lost their homes in this devastating (and still continuing) disaster. So did their families, long time listeners, business owners, advertisers, and more. The area needed help and The Rat made the decision to break format, and go into “community mode.” As Carl puts it, “This was personal – our lives and livelihoods were under attack and this is Jersey. We don’t just take that sitting down. We had only one choice – rise higher than the flood waters.”
Unless you’ve been in a natural disaster like Hurricane Sandy, you can’t realize the extent of the devastation, anguish, and loss suffered by the people of a hometown community. But as much as we always hear and preach about “the power of local radio,” many music stations don’t provide much beyond the bare essentials due to syndication, voicetracking, and staff cutbacks. Greater Media – WRAT’s owner – has long believed in live and local programming, and it’s times like these where the differences can be felt.
The Rat quickly transformed into a clearinghouse of information for its community, first by determining the type of assistance needed, and then using their reach (on-air and social media) to pass along critical information for the tens of thousands of people who were in need. Everything from food, ice, fuel, ATMs, hospitals, blood banks and more. Listeners called the station with information and The Rat would quickly turn it around so the rest of its audience could stay plugged in and informed.
Beyond that, The Rat did it all with a sense of humor. That’s the style of the station – its brand essence – the way it interacts with fans. There were more than enough places to hear dour predictions, bad news and reporters standing outside knee-deep in flood waters. Instead, The Rat chose to give listeners a chance to breathe and periodically escape from the chaos by artfully injecting moments of levity.
There’s no way to predict where and when the next disaster will strike, where it will hit, who it will affect, and its scope. Whether you believe in climate change, gun control, or terror prevention – or none of those things – it is very apparent the last several years have brought more violence, disasters, and community shaking events – and on an almost regular basis. While the East Coast had experienced hurricanes before, they’d never experienced one of this magnitude. Smart stations are prepared and there’s no time like now to re-visit or create a plan for when the unthinkable occurs.
- Develop a playbook – Have procedures in place where everyone in the station knows their roles. How are things supposed to work when disaster strikes, and does everyone know how to communicate with everyone else in the operation?
- News sources – Strike up a relationship with a network television source, as well as lay out the technical details, for flipping quickly to wall-to-wall or partial coverage.
- The local angle – You’re not CNN and you’re not the Weather Channel. As The Rat showed, it’s all about bringing the crisis down to the street level of their local community. Any station with a local staff can do this, but it requires a commitment and leadership.
- Expert voices – Line up key contacts (financial, weather, legal, law enforcement, etc.) to turn to during these trying times. Most music personalities aren’t qualified to intelligently discuss these circumstances, but they can ask the right questions of credible experts.
- Identify your emergency responders – Which staffers are in charge of your digital and social assets when disaster strikes? Who can socially “break news” in a conversational and consistent voice? Who’s in charge of text messaging to alert locals about important information? Who oversees email and database communication to direct people to the appropriate landing page on your site? Who will be your content curator to assemble all of the information as it comes in?
Preparedness is key but so is knowing your role as a music station – in your company, cluster, and community. Stations like The Rat show that being hyper-local, reflecting the emotional state of the community, and being a conduit for crucial information can go a long way toward earning you kudos, not only among the broadcasting community, but from the men, women and children whose lives are forever changed by unpredictable events.
Are you ready?
Jacobs Media has consistently walked the walk in the digital space, providing insights and guidance through its well-read national Techsurveys.
In 2008, jacapps was launched - a mobile apps company that has designed and built more than 1,300 apps for both the Apple and Android platforms. In 2013, the DASH Conference was created - a mashup of radio and automotive, designed to foster better understanding of the "connected car" and its impact.
Along with providing the creative and intellectual direction for the company, Fred consults many of Jacobs Media's commercial and public radio clients, in addition to media brands looking to thrive in the rapidly changing tech environment.
Fred was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 2018.
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