At The Radio Show last month, I was fortunate enough to spend a major chunk of a dinner with an Austrian morning show duo, Dani Linzer and Meinrad Knapp. When I asked Dani about her impressions of the convention, she told me that while it was wonderful to be there, she was surprised by how OLD everyone looked. So, today’s post addresses the “age issue” in radio, courtesy of Edison Media research guru, Larry Rosin:
Two years ago, I got myself into a spot of trouble when on a panel at the NAB Radio Show in Philadelphia, I noted that at the age of (then) 47 I was among the youngest attendees at the conference. I provided the most quoted line of the meeting when I said: “We are fast becoming an industry of old men.”
Now before you feel the need to reprise the response I received two years ago, I know full well three things:
- Men over the age of 50 still have a lot to offer the radio industry, not the least of which is their experience but of course also their talents and energies.
- There are also many, many women contributing immensely to the radio business.
- Radio is not devoid of fantastic young people who are helping move us into our future.
And with that third point in mind, I and my colleagues at Edison are bringing back our talent search: “30 Under 30.” Several years ago, we launched this effort to help showcase the new young talent driving our industry. I have long argued that radio’s biggest problem is not encroachment from new technologies; it is a Human Resources problem. We are simply not recruiting nor attracting enough of the best young minds in America (or the world) to develop the next versions of what radio can be and will be.
I recently ran into someone we had selected in our 2007 talent search, and he told me that the recognition had made a huge difference in his career. It is at the top of his resume and he felt the endorsement had helped him succeed. I was slightly stunned by this news, but of course thoroughly touched.
So please help the radio industry and the life of one of our young talents by nominating him or her for this year’s “30 Under 30.” Nominees can be from any aspect of the business – programming, sales, digital, production, engineering or something else – we are simply seeking 30 great people who we think will be the leaders of radio’s future. You can nominate them by going to www.30under30.net.
In addition to the recognition, this year’s “30 Under 30” will get free registration for the Arbitron Client Conference and Jacobs Media Summit in Baltimore in December. And each of the 30 will be invited to apply to receive free travel and registration for Jim Hooker’s Future of Radio conference in March. As I mentioned to Fred, if even one of the “30 Under 30” comes to these meetings, he or she will bring the average age of the attendees down by about ten years!
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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