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OK, picture this fantasy scene…. It's the 2009 Grammys, and the winner of the best Rock song or Rock album takes the stage, grabs his/her Grammy, and says the following, "I would like to thank Rock radio for helping me win this prestigious award." I know… it's a fantasy. But during the recent CMA Awards show, […]

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Schadenfreude.  We all feel it from time to time, some of us more than others.  It's that emotion that causes us to feel good when someone else suffers.  Many people are feeling it about Wall Street brokers and the Detroit 3 CEOs right now.  Whether it's rational or even nice, it's hard not to sometimes […]

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JacoBlog reader Bruce Barber drove me to Seth Godin's blog about what The New York Times coulda shoulda woulda done to save itself from becoming downsized and obsolete.  It's a great read that says a lot about the Times…and about radio, and about other businesses that are trying to make the transition.   I am reminded […]

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If there's been a more exciting event in broadcast radio in the last couple of decades than PPM, I can't recall it.  While the PPM rollout has had its ups and downs, it is the buzz of the radio industry.  Last month, markets like Detroit, Washington, and Dallas were added, and as more come online, […]

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The growth of the iPhone is truly amazing, especially since Apple opened up its wildly popular App Store to outside developers.  The range of cool, useful, and whimsical applications makes owning one of these devices a real adventure.  iPhone owners regularly check to discover new apps that are free or require a small fee. In […]

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It's probably not a surprise that those Saturday Presidential radio addresses were started by none other than Hall of Fame broadcaster President Ronald Reagan.  Of course, radio speeches were first popularized by FDR when he took office in the 1930's before the days of television. But President-elect Obama realizes that in order to better communicate […]

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The announcement that Nielsen is back in the radio ratings game now that Cumulus and Clear Channel have signed on for 50 small and medium small markets has achieved "breaking news" status today.  But what does it tell us about the state of our industry, and its inability to get on the same page? PPM […]

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There's been a lot of talk about Joe Scarborough's F-word miscue last week on his MSNBC, "Morning Joe."  Oddly enough, I was watching in real time (while reading email, of course), and just about fell off my chair.  Yet, the lack of reaction afterwards from just about every corner, is even more shocking. First, Scarborough […]

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The sands are shifting very quickly in the world, in our country, and in our business.  It is noteworthy that some companies are "getting it," and responding to the changing emotion of the American consumer, while others are missing it entirely.   In the midst of their new Yankee Stadium project, many luxury suites are going […]

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Wanna hear the new Springsteen song, "Workin' on a Dream?" Don't turn on MTV.  Or iTunes or Sirius or even the new Guitar Hero. And don't listen to it on your favorite Classic Rock station because it won't be there either. You'll hear it at halftime on Sunday night's NFL game between the Cowboys and […]

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Today's guest blog is from our own Paul Jacobs, who stresses to radio that their sales models must change for them to be successful in the future. I was at a family function a few months ago talking to a relative who owns a small fence-building business.  He knew I'm in media, and had a […]

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More and more, it is becoming painfully obvious to programmers, managers, researchers, and yes, consultants, that the simple business model that has guided radio since Marconi is broken.  It used to be that your ratings simply translated into sales.  The higher your rank, the higher your rate. For many stations, the basic transactional basis of […]

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While you're trying to determine what the hot got-to-have toy/gadget will be this holiday season, I'm thinking that the '09 award will go hands-down to the Beatles' new game, which MTV and Harmonix (who makes Rock Band) announced last week.  It's not just that the Beatles have finally committed to a video game (and you […]

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Say what you will about Michael Bloomberg's plan to run for New York Mayor for another term; the guy is proactive, and knows when to take the bull by the horns.  Realizing the impact on his city that all these media layoffs are having, Bloomberg is launching a multi-level plan designed to help the media […]

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It is interesting that as media outlets proliferate, actual reporting deteriorates.  Many of you are well aware that because of the growth of online and cable media, staffs are stretched, and there is even more pressure to come up with news to fill all that space.  Now that the election is finally over, there's an […]

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OK, I'm getting a little political with this post, but it's a great illustration about the power of using personality and warmth to connect through newer digitally communiqués, such as emails and text messages.  Marshall McLuhan taught us all about the importance of "hot" and "cool" media and messaging, and the Obama campaign has figured […]

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No, not Archie Bell and the Drells (from Houston, Texas), but what's happening in radio (and every industry these days) as the economic pressures and falling stock prices force every company to rethink everything. Some of you may remember playing Pick-Up Sticks as a kid.  It was a mental and physical challenge to carefully remove […]

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Our blog last month about the difficult terrain the industry is facing in the sales arena motivated a variety of responses, posted on the site and off-line.  Clearly one of radio's biggest challenges is figuring out how to monetize its digital offerings.  One of the more interesting came from digital consultant, Mel Taylor, who spends […]

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In a shot heard 'round every newsroom in America, the venerable Christian Science Monitor announced last week that it will no longer print its daily edition, ending a 100 year tradition.  Instead, the bulk of the publication's material will only be available online.  This is an event that newspaper veterans have seen coming for years, but now […]

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