If you’re thinking the number of celebratory days on the calendar is out of control, we’re on the same page.
For every meaningful tribute and reason to take stock of a person, an accomplishment, or organization making the world a better place, it seems like there are a dozen self-congratulatory, empty recognitions of categories not worthy of a special day on anyone’s calendar.
Consider: Pi Approximation Day, Hot Mulled Cider Day, and Phileas Fogg Wager Day. And there are hundreds of other irrelevant time wasters on our calendars (and prep sheets!) because of this increasingly proliferating excuse to cheer on something frivolous, irrelevant, or both.
While radio and broadcasting celebrations aren’t acting over exuberant, it seems like every time we turn around, Facebook and other socials are overflowing with call letters and vintage photos of air studios with cart machines and turntables.
But today we pay official homage to World Radio Day, created by UNESCO in 2011, and officially endorsed by the United Nations General Assembly two years later.
This year, the theme of World Radio Day revolves around the 100th anniversary of radio broadcasting, exploring its past, its present and future. UNESCO encourages the participation of the many platforms of radio: commercial, public, and non-profit – and so do we.
Yesterday’s blog post about Bell Media’s divestiture of more than 40 of their radio stations, along with the layoffs of thousands of people across their portfolio was admittedly a bad day for radio in Canada – and perhaps beyond.
So, in the spirit of World Radio Day, we’re inviting you to proudly celebrate radio’s impact and incredible accomplishments over the past century. We’ve reached out to a number of our friends and colleagues to tell us their stories of radio’s impact – on their communities, their careers, and their lives. They represent many facets of our industry from the behind-the-mic perspective, including public, commercial, and Christian broadcasting.
While their backgrounds, market sizes, and experiences may vary, their views of their impact in this business are remarkably similar in tone and temerity. To a person, they love radio and express much gratitude for having the privilege of being on the air, especially during stressful or important times – in the world or in people’s lives.
Here’s what we asked them:
Tell us about your most memorable and/or rewarding moment on the airwaves – that time you knew you were having an impact on your audience in a truly important way.
I hope you’ll feel a sense of inspiration, appreciation, and pride as you read them. Some names you’ll know; others will be new to you. But keep in mind that to a person, they fully support the tenets of radio broadcasting while enthusiastically telling their stories.
I believe they are more typical than they are anomalous. Just about everyone in radio I know has that story where they learned – usually very quickly – about radio’s role and its power. For some, it’s being on the air during 9/11, a formative and shared experience many talk about now nearly a quarter century later like it was last week. For others, it’s about being on the air during a community fundraiser or public service campaign. And for still others, it’s the simple interaction with real people who live in the market, sharing many of their life experiences with the personality – or therapist – in the studio.
I hope you’ll use their stories as stimulus to tell yours – here in the comments below or on my socials (all @fnjacobs).
All of this is in the context with yesterday’s blog post about Bell Media’s “take” on where radio is going. Some of you shared the pessimistic outlook, noting how AM/FM radio has struggled, especially in public companies where the debt is steep and the stakes are high.
But many others pointed to the buyers of Bell Media’s stations – local operators optimistic about the future of representing their communities with hometown stations that know the turf. In fact, two of you sent me stories about these new owners and their plans – all sounding very “viable” – for their new acquisitions.
The first is from Jon Pole, co-founder of My Broadcasting Corporation, purchasing Bell Media stations in Kingston and Brockville, Ontario. You can check it out here.
The second is from Eric Jon Magnuson. It centers on another of these companies, Vista Radio, proud new owners of 21 former Bell Media properties in western Canada. Vista says there will be no layoffs of former Bell Media employees. You can listen to the interview with the company’s president, Bryan Edwards, here.
As UNESCO reminds us, World Radio Day isn’t just about a celebration of the past or even today. It points to a future – perhaps not fully defined, but one where radio shows its resilience by adapting – once again – to the environment around us.
To remain vital and relevant, it will be necessary to adapt, innovate, and be willing to utilize new technologies. But that’s the case for any industry that wants to remain vital and current. There is a world where broadcast radio transforms and transitions, but doesn’t lose its intrinsic value and purpose.
Happy World Radio Day 2024!
Tamar Charney, public media consultant & storyteller (and accomplished photographer)
I could tell a story about being on-air in the hours after the Twin Towers fell. Or about driving through pitch blackness racing to the generator powered backup studio at the transmitter during the 2003 east coast blackout in order to keep local news on the air. Definitely two very memorable times when I knew what I was doing in radio really mattered. But the work I’ve done in the industry that was most rewarding was working on NPR One.
I joined the project to help figure out how to translate the magic of local radio to a new technology – an algorithm controlled localized news listening app. It was an honor to spend my time thinking about what made radio special and captivating. And how qualities like trusted voices, powerful storytelling, serendipity, intimacy, and a sense of place could be expressed on the emerging platforms that were replacing radio in people’s day to day lives.
Technologies come and go, but the essence of radio is the power of audio to tell a story whether through spoken word or music. I hear that essence, that DNA of radio, across all sorts of technologies where people are being entertained, getting information, and finding connections. And I know that I played a small role in helping stations and radio pros see a future beyond terrestrial towers.
Mo, air personality on Hubbard’s KDKB/Phoenix – ALT AZ
I actually struggled with the idea of a “most rewarding moment in radio” because every day, there are rewarding moments. From a listener dubbed “Justin the Pool Guy” calling every day to BS about life, to meeting a local musician that’s grateful I gave his band a chance to get played on my local show, “Homegrown.”
But if there’s anything that really stands out, it’s when I got moved from mornings to middays on ALT. I never realized how many people enjoyed my company on the air. Like most hosts, there’s a bit of imposter syndrome. I feel like no one is listening and I’m just speaking out into the void.
In reality, I’m the passenger in the car getting people through a stressful drive. I’m the co-worker you can’t see that makes the day go by a little faster, with way more entertainment than most co-workers (yes, I’m looking at you Helen in billing). I’m forever grateful to bring some type of entertainment to people’s lives. I don’t think I could ask for more.
Johnny Spezzano, morning personality on Community Broadcasters’ WBDR/Watertown NY – The Border
I always remember the first year we did the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals’ “Radiothon” on the air. Of course, it included local stories of children in the hospital. On Day 3, these three big, burley, dirty dudes came walking into the lobby, dressed in DayGlo orange. They said, “We’re out of town flagmen working road construction on the bridge project. We kept seeing all these slow moving vehicles driven by women with tears rolling down their eyes. We asked ‘Why the tears?’ They pointed at their radios. We knew we had to listen, and then we knew we had to donate, too.”
That changed me as a broadcaster. From that moment on I knew I could use this microphone for more good .
A few years later I would wake up in the morning of January 12, 1998 – the beginnings of a catastrophic ice storm. I made my way to the radio station and everything was fine. By the time my shift was over at 10 a.m., there would be no power anywhere. The roads were impassable, and telephone poles were shattered with powerlines covering the icy winter highways. Soon, all the roads would be closed
None of our other DJs could make it in and I was stuck in the studio for 30 hours broadcasting by myself to an ice storm-ravaged community with no power. For years, people knew me from the ice storm, because I was the familiar, friendly, and only voice they had while sitting home in the dark with their families. I was trying to inform them while also entertaining them.
This was before the Internet and cell phones were very basic. My radio station was the only one operating under generator power, and it was another big moment for me as I was there, helping save peoples lives, while keeping them company during a very rough situation. We all made a big connection during that disaster. And to this day, people come up to me and mention that I was there for their family.
Matt Stockman, brand director, Pillar Media
The day on the radio that really stands out to me above all the rest in terms of really impacting people in a meaningful way was September 12th, 2001. At the time, I was doing morning drive in Nashville, and was on the air as planes started hitting the World Trade Center, and the world as we knew it began changing right in front of us on what we now know as 9/11. We never finished the show that morning, because all of our stations flipped over to all-news coverage within an hour after it all happened.
The next day, we were back to regular programming, and as a Christian music station, we had a unique opportunity to bring some peace and comfort as we tried to figure out what our nation had just experienced. Starting right at 6 that morning, we played music and opened the phone lines to let people talk, and cry, and be sad/hurt/frustrated/angry. Artists called, pastors called, and dozens and dozens of listeners called.
The majority of the listeners we heard from said that was the first time they had listened to our station. I guess we were all just seeking some way to make sense of the things that had happened. To me, that morning was one of the most powerful, cathartic, unforgettable examples of how radio can connect a hurting community and help them start to heal.
Janda Lane, air personality, Hubbard’s WDRV/Chicago, The Drive
One of the most amazing moments I’ve ever had on the air happened just last fall when I played the “new” song by The Beatles, “Now And Then,” for the first time here on WDRV. It still sounds funny to me to say that out loud, because The Beatles broke up before I was born, and in no way did I ever in a million years ever imagine that I would be announcing any “new” material from this band in my lifetime.
But yet there I was. And there our audience was, ready for it. It was the first time in my life that I ever immediately played a song by any artist, upon delivery to the radio station. So we heard it together for the first time, me and our listeners, as it was being played. I believe I could FEEL a quiet fall over the city of Chicago that cold fall morning as the song went on. I never took my headphones off for a second. My hair stood up when I heard John Lennon’s voice. It was just all too much, to picture Lennon and to hear his voice blend together one more time with the voices of Paul, George, and Ringo.
I was just completely overwhelmed and by the time the song ended, there was nothing I could do about my own composure. That was gone. I told our listeners, through tears, that I was totally knocked out by what we had all just heard together, and they immediately let me know that they were in the same boat, working through their own kaleidoscope of emotions just the same as me. Even now when I think about that moment it totally humbles me. It was a strange sensation, in this chaotic world we live in, to know that for just a little while, me and everyone who was listening to the radio station right then were all moving in the same stream. I don’t know if I’ll ever experience anything like that again, but I know I’ll never EVER forget it!
Nancy Wilson, air personality/program director, Cox’s K99.1 FM, WHKO/Dayton
I know we have made an impact with our Radiothons for Dayton Children’s Hospital, as part of the Children’s Miracle Network. Having done these for 26 years on WHKO, it’s a cumulative effect when you realize our listeners have donated over six million dollars to buy life saving equipment for kids right here in town. Every year we do the Radiothon, there is something impactful that happens to me and we pass it along to listeners.
I distinctly remember one particular moment, but not the exact year. Maybe in 2013 or so? A young man, maybe around 12, came up to us at the broadcast booth at the hospital. All I could see was his large brown eyes (he was masked up), that he had no hair and was pushing his own IV pole. Here he is, battling for his life against leukemia (which he sadly lost a few months later), thanking US for sharing his story and the wonderful care he was getting at the hospital. When those big brown eyes teared up with gratitude, I lost it, breaking out in sobs on the air. My on-air co-host let us “have our moment” as I stressed what a difference our listeners were making for these kids….
I will never take for granted the impact we can make with our listeners and how having the “gift of gab” allows us to speak for those who can’t….
Scott Kaye, air personality/program director, Alpha’s 92.9 The Eagle, Lincoln, Nebraska
One of my most memorable moments is when I woke up on September, 11th 2001 getting ready for another day at my fairly new gig at 95 Rock in Lincoln. I had been hired as Program Director/On Air Talent in December 2000 so I had been in Lincoln less than a year. We had The Bob And Tom Show in mornings, with a local guy doing local news/sports/traffic/weather in between the segments.
I poured my first cup of coffee and was in my robe watching the morning news as the Twin Towers were hit. I knew this was something big. Luckily, we had rented an apartment just two blocks from the station. I rushed, got dressed and headed straight to the radio station where our morning guy was monitoring what was happening on the studio TV.
As I was making the decision to cut from Bob and Tom and “go live”, they decided to basically “go live” as well and dump the comedy to get the serious business of informing the public who were not around a TV. We continued the coverage locally until early afternoon, when we decided as a music station to return to regular scheduled programming and update people throughout the day.
I felt connected to my fellow Americans that day and felt good at least we did what we were supposed to do as broadcasters. To inform the public and our listeners of what was happening, to try and make some sense of what was going on without panic or personal input. Not only did we feel closer to our listeners as Americans but what we did that day was what being a broadcaster is really all about.
I find it interesting that as individual as these experiences are, the common threads – 9/11, raising money for local causes, being that voice – and companion – during emergencies and stressful times emerges in several stories.
So what about yours? On World Radio Day, feel free to add your story about how radio changed your life, and how you changed others’ lives by being part of the global radio community.
At Jacobs Media, we salute you all.
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.
- In 2024, The Forecast Calls For Pain - December 23, 2024
- Old Man, Take A Look At My Ratings - December 20, 2024
- In The World Of On-Demand Audio, How Do We Define Success? - December 19, 2024
I have been honored to be doing so many fundraisers and good things as I am now working in year 50 of my career, Fred. One that comes to mind came in the days just after 9-11. I was PD of Saga’s WKIO-FM in Champaign, Illinois. As a group, we dedided to collect money for the victims in three days of 12 hour broadcasts at the U of I parking lot. In that 36 hour time period our three stations raised well over a quarter million dollars for the Red Cross. Over the years I have been involved with the old Muscular Dystrophy Association telethons (I litterally worked all 30 hours of those a few times), participated in my current station fund raisers…everything from cash for the local Children’s Hospital to School Supplies for kids whose parents couldn’t afford them. That radio still has the power to do these things tells me the business may be troubled today, but is still kicking and won’t go “quietly into that good night”.
Starting New Stations has been the greatest thrill to building lasting service and encouraging great talent. July ’68 WWUH-FM, West Hartford; WBZ/FM Boston Dec ’71; WCOZ Boston Sept ’75; Softrock on CBS WEEI/FM Boston Sept ’77; WMVY Martha’s Vineyard Mar ’83; WOTB Newport Jazz May ’86; WNNH NH Oldies 99 Nov ’89; WHOB, Nashua NH, WCIB Falmouth MA, WNLC New London CT, WBOS Boston, WTPL Concord NH, combined radio/TV news & weather. 1220watx.com June ’21. And many other broadcast stations in between as advisor. Hooray for continued licensed radio connections. And, World Radio Day is the new mile marker around the Sun. Broadcasting and the real people involved are excellent!
While the Portuguese stations that I follow apparently aren’t doing elaborate WRD-themed events this year (possibly because today is also the end of Carnaval [i.e., Mardi Gras/Fat Tuesday]), Bauer’s Smooth FM and (especially) M80 have posted professional videos with their talent giving their own radio stories. Meanwhile, the group’s flagship (Rádio Comercial) got various musicians to record their own testimonial videos about how they reacted when they first heard a song of theirs on the radio…
https://www.facebook.com/RadioComercial/videos/feliz-dia-da-rádio/1539888250123706
Growing up listening to Miami radio in the 1970’s taught me a lot about the sheer diversity of popular music – there were any number of stylistic choices to be explored across the dial.
A spin through the major FM stations on any typical day might include music from Frank Sinatra, Celia Cruz, Jimmy Buffett, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Miles Davis, Peter Tosh, KC & The Sunshine Band, Dion, Chicago, Waylon Jennings, Donna Summer – the list goes on and on.
I don’t think I can overstate how important radio was to me. I know this phrase gets thrown around a lot, but it really was an education.
Personally, I didn’t realize just how much radio means to me until I tried to “retire” from it.
Instead of being retired, I’m programming a station in Albuquerque (remotely from L.A.), consulting three other stations in the cluster, and also consulting the owner on a couple of start-ups he is acquiring. (And he also has a side business which may result in the format I’m programming from here being cloned to other markets.)
Now I don’t know when — or even if — I’m going to really retire.
Got a call from a gentleman who needed help. He was a woodworker who couldn’t find any work and we were his last attempt at finding some. We put him on the air, he was compelling and you could tell he was hanging on by a thread. Well, a company heard him and called us for his number. A few months later a beautiful Southwestern wooden frame was dropped off at our front desk for us as his way of saying thank you for helping him find work. That frame still hangs in my house thirty years later reminding of the good we can do on the radio.
I’m playing catch-up with some past blogs so I don’t know if this comment will even be seen. But I just have to say, what a great story, Tony. What a great reminder of what radio can and should be — touching lives between one on one side of a microphone and one on the other side of a speaker. It reminds me of perhaps my all-time favorite line I heard, that I taught a listener to “smile again.” When you’ve done that, you’ve done real radio.
Purely as a listener here.
Listening to the callers on the local sports talk station the day/night after the Cubs won the World Series.
Good one!
It’s all about serving your brother or sister, and these stories illustrate that. Sometimes it’s good to be reminded of this – helps one deal with the doomsayers. From a behind-the-scenes person, I’ll say there is satisfaction in assuring that words spoken by talent are delivered to the ears that need to hear them.
It’s basic stuff and that’s why it works.