The Jacobs Media Blog

He can certainly get information out of Sangala terrorists.  And he can even weave his way through the labyrinth of Senate hearings.  But can he sell you your next car?  That's a good question. Hyundai is moving Ford over, and integrating its brand into 24 in the hope of building awareness and moving some cars […]

The insanity in the music business continues as artists like Sheryl Crow, Emmylou Harris, and others testify to Congress about how they aren't getting their fair share from radio.   Has everyone lost their collective minds?  On the one hand, Crow recently played a private concert for Northern Trust (yes, a bailout money recipient), and you […]

We talk a lot in this space about how stories trump data, about how personality will always beat jukeboxes, and about the passion that radio so desperately needs to rekindle.  And Paul Harvey's passing over the weekend only reinforces those notions – and takes them up to the tenth power.  I remember listening to WKDF […]

I was reading Tom Taylor the other morning, and happened across this news item out of Boston: John Hogan, David Field and Peter Smyth meet in Boston for today’s Ad Club “Radio Day.” CBS Radio is also participating in a presentation for the Ad Club that starts with a keynote from Hill Holliday CEO Mike […]

Jacobs Media's Keith Cunningham provides insight on the importance of connecting with our listening audience. Yes, we can.  Yes, we did.  Yes, we will. I’m sure you recognize those words. And while there are a number of reasons Barack Obama has been catapulted into the political and popularity stratospheres, there’s one key element deserving of more attention […]

Here's an interesting story about taking care of your customers.  I recently had a birthday, and my wife decided to buy me the new Kindle, Amazon's wireless reader.  For someone who travels and reads as much as I do, it seemed like the perfect gift. But the Kindle has been so popular that it takes […]

As mentioned in an earlier blog, I attended Radio Ink's tech conference a couple of weeks back.  The strong turnout was one of the most impressive aspects of the event.  At a time when companies discourage convention attendance for any number of reasons, a big meeting room was jammed for two full days.  It is […]

Here's a guest blog from Paul Jacobs about a timely issue for radio: Imagine going into work today and finding out that you'll be paid for that work sometime this June.  You go to your boss to protest and he tells you, "Tough rocks – if you want to keep your job, those are the […]

During a terrible time in radio where it seems that everything we read about is stations laying off even more employees, here's a story that reverses that trend.  In Ann Arbor, Michigan, morning host Martin Bandyke was fired by Cumulus' Ann Arbor's 107.1 earlier this month.  Stated reason?  Budget cuts, of course.  But the story didn't […]

Two Paul McCartney blogs in one week? Check out "The Colbert Report's" interview with Sir Paul, a truly funny piece of video that is enjoyable for any Beatles fan to watch.  That's an interesting observation since I've personally seen and heard countless interviews with McCartney over the past 40 years. The Colbert ReportMon – Thurs […]

Two Paul McCartney blogs in one week? Check out "The Colbert Report's" interview with Sir Paul, a truly funny piece of video that is enjoyable for any Beatles fan to watch.  That's an interesting observation since I've personally seen and heard countless interviews with McCartney over the past 40 years. The Colbert ReportMon – Thurs […]

What does it say about the state of Alternative and Indie Rock when Coachella announces that Paul McCartney will be headlining this year's festival? Roger Waters appeared at last year's festival, so there's a precedent for a legacy entertainer appearing at this event.  Obviously, McCartney makes Coachella a destination for older rockers, while opening up […]

What does it say about the state of Alternative and Indie Rock when Coachella announces that Paul McCartney will be headlining this year's festival? Roger Waters appeared at last year's festival, so there's a precedent for a legacy entertainer appearing at this event.  Obviously, McCartney makes Coachella a destination for older rockers, while opening up […]

While Sirius XM was being bailed out by Liberty Media yesterday, another key announcement was overshadowed by the news.  The NAB's negotiation with SoundExchange for more than reasonable royalties on radio's Internet streams is an open invitation to broadcasters.  Consumers aren't about paying for satellite radio.  But they want to simply receive audio entertainment on […]

Jay sums up what we've been hearing in focus group after focus group for nearly ten years…

In one of the more interesting stories to break this year, Google has pulled out of its radio foray, and analysts are left to wonder what happened.  And whether this is good or bad for radio. Well, it may be all of those things, and none of those things.  But it sure isn't surprising.  Supposedly […]

A recent MediaPost commentary by Per Lofgren, director for EuroContactPool, asked the question, "Is email marketing next for extinction?" The issue is based on Lofgren's realization that youth have moved away from email, preferring instead to communicate with one another via text, social networking sites, and web messaging.  In fact, Lofgren notes that while the […]

Today's blog is a treat, especially for the legions of Apple fans out there.  We're all used to seeing Steve Jobs get on the stage at MacWorld with his signature black sweater and jeans, extolling the virtues of whatever's cutting edge this year at Apple.  Sadly, his health prevented this year's appearance, but YouTube is […]

I'm at Radio Ink's Convergence 2009 this week, preparing for a panel called "Radio On Demand."  First, major kudos to Eric Rhoads and company for putting together an incredibly well-attended conference.  In this year of crisis for our industry and America, it is truly amazing how many people are here. It all got going with […]

This graphic by Ji Lee literally jumped at me from this past Sunday's New York Times.  It asks an important question as many Americans grapple with lowered expectations, a smaller nest egg, and ratcheted down dreams.  It made me wonder how many formerly happy radio people are now asking themselves this question, whether it's been […]