So You Don't Have To

Next week's another convention week, this time the NAB and RAB's Radio Show in Indianapolis (motto: "What? No, I've Never Been There, Either"). It's been a few months since I last had to hit the road for a convention, so I'm a little behind on preparation. Oh, who am I kidding? I'm always last-minute for these things. I'll pack five minutes before I have to jump in the car and race up to LAX and catch my flight. It's how I do things.

But I've been getting requests for meetings and "a few minutes of your time" and the like, so I figured that maybe I should check the schedule and see where I have to be and when. So I went to check the agenda, and it's... well, I'll say this much, at least the theme has changed from "All Is Well!" to "Maybe We Have A Problem, But We'll Figure It Out." That's progress. But I've picked out the important threads running through the program, and I think I know what they'll be saying, so I thought I'd give you a little preview in case you're not going to be in Indianapolis (motto: "No, That's Columbus. We're The One With The Speedway"). Here's the rundown:

TOPIC: Millenials
PANELS: "Oh, Those Millenials!"; "What Are We Going To Do With These Millenials?"; "Get Off Our Lawn, Millenials!"
SUMMARY: What do Millenials want? We don't know. Let's ask some college radio kids.
WHAT THEY SHOULD SAY: Look at the media Millenials consume and who's making that content. Hire them. Oh, and remember: If you don't like it, that's because it's not for you.

TOPIC: AM Revitalization
PANELS: "Whither AM?"; "Let's Fix AM"; "Hey, There's Always Brokered Ethnic"
SUMMARY: We're studying all-digital, and we're working on the FM translator window. Hang in there.
WHAT THEY SHOULD SAY: Last rites.

TOPIC: HD Radio
PANELS: Oh, just kidding. Nobody's gonna talk about that.

TOPIC: Programmatic Trading
PANELS: "Let The Computers Handle It"; "Mamas, Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Account Executives"; "Wait, Then Who Gets The Commission?"
SUMMARY: It's coming.
WHAT THEY SHOULD SAY: I don't know. Do I LOOK like an agency type?

TOPIC: Social Media
PANELS: "Integrating Social Media"; "Twitter And You"; "This Radio Station Got A Facebook Page. What Happens Next Will Shock And Appall You"
SUMMARY: Watch what you post, and make sure it's all on-brand.
WHAT THEY SHOULD SAY: It's 2014. If you still need a panel about this....

TOPIC: Whatever the Big Name CEOs Want To Talk About
PANELS: Not panels. "Super Sessions."
SUMMARY: We're not "radio" anymore. We're "digital."
WHAT THEY SHOULD SAY: Hey, wanna hear about my trip to Burning Man?

There'll be more, and I'll be reporting on it all next week. Read the coverage in the Net News section, and follow me on Twitter @pmsimon for running snark and other commentary that I will stress is personal and not at all to be attributed to All Access and/or Nerdist. And if you'll be in Indianapolis (motto: "Let's Not Talk About Paul George"), look for me in the back of the room.

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All Access News-Talk-Sports will continue to chug away in my absence, primarily because I won't be absent- I'll be keeping things going from the road. And that includes our show prep bonanza, Talk Topics, where you'll find hundreds of items and ideas for segments on your shows plus kicker stories you won't see anywhere else. Click here for that. And the Talk Topics Twitter feed at @talktopics has every story individually linked to the appropriate item. And you should take a moment and read "10 Questions With..." a guy who's been a stalwart of radio news in Los Angeles for many years, Steve Kindred, now of 24/7 News Source/Total Traffic Network, whose career and insights make for an interesting interview.

And follow my personal Twitter account at @pmsimon, find me on Facebook at www.facebook.com/pmsimon, and at some point, I'll be updating pmsimon.com again.

Full Disclosure: I also serve as Director of Programming for Nerdist Industries (a division of Legendary Pictures), which includes the Nerdist Podcast Network, one of your major podcast entities.

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Oh, and sorry about last week- the trackpad on my MacBook Pro decided to cease its short functional existence just as I was about to start writing, and the time I needed to write the thing was spent in a futile effort to squeeze myself into the schedule at the Manhattan Beach Genius Bar. At least it's still under warranty.

Perry Michael Simon
Vice President/Editor, News-Talk-Sports
AllAccess.com
psimon@allaccess.com
www.facebook.com/pmsimon
www.twitter.com/pmsimon