The Tough Questions

How predictable are you? By "you," I mean talk radio hosts, and by "predictable," I mean... okay, let's ask this: Do listeners know what to expect when they tune in to you? Are you giving them the same stuff every day, because you're superserving them with "more of what they came for?" Are you McDonald's, a safe choice because even if you're nowhere near special, at least whatever you order, what you get will be exactly what you expect?

I ask that because I heard an interview I DIDN'T expect during the holiday break, and it reminded me of what's missing in talk radio. You may have heard or read about it: it was on ESPN Radio, when Dan Le Batard had Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred on the line and basically tore the Commissioner a new one over the Miami Marlins' trade of Giancarlo Stanton and the fire-sale-in-progress that has Miami fans angry. Le Batard asked tough questions, did not take bland noncommittal platitudes as answers, and generally grilled an obviously angered Manfred. It was uncomfortable, it was certainly inhospitable... and it was impossible to tune away, even though, as a fan of a different team in the same division, I'm not overly concerned with how that trade went over with Marlins fans.

The novelty, of course, is that the host, for once, did not offer softball questions to his guest. He did not let the guy off the hook for anything. And, of course, it should be noted that ESPN is a partner with MLB, so it was pretty fearless. Yes, MLB reportedly complained, and yes, Le Batard says his bosses asked him to back off, but it was precisely the kind of interview that SHOULD be commonplace on radio and isn't.

And why isn't it common? Most of what I hear on political talk radio is total acquiescence, total obsequiousness. Outrageous claims and outright lies go unchallenged. Non-answers are glossed over. Everything's agreeable and polite, even from hosts who are acidic and fiery when talking about the "opposition." And there are a few reasons for that. One's homerism -- like a homer sportscaster, our guys are great, the other guys are bad, and that's the sum of it. The other, one I suspect is the primary reason, is that you don't want the guest to never come back. I mentioned this in a column before the holidays: Hosts tend to want to be the guests' friends. (I've heard hosts crow about interviewing the President before he was President. He's not your friend.) They don't want the reputation of being tough interviewers. I can't identify with that. You WANT to ask the questions others don't ask, because that's how you get answers others don't get. That's how you get the news. You have a politician on the line? You aren't their press agent. You represent your listeners and your own interests. You should be asking the questions that elicit the answers people want and need to get. And if a politician is dodging those questions, you're the one who should be calling him or her out on it.

Or you could just pal around with the guest, which really doesn't serve your audience, does it? It's like being at a party and watching two other people chatting and being friendly. That's nice, but it doesn't do you any good. That always left me cold about some prominent talkers, hearing about their golf outings with politicians or dinner with Hollywood celebrities. I'm not living vicariously through them. I don't care who you had dinner with. I care that you have a politician who voted on a bill that affects me, and you're not asking hard questions about that, just taking the platitudes at face value because you don't want to upset the dessert cart. Your job is to upset that cart.

And it's also better radio. How many times have you been told that talk radio needs conflict? Well, palling around with politicians isn't conflict. Representing your constituency against a politician who may not have them in mind? That's GOOD conflict. That's what I heard Le Batard do when he represented his Miami constituency against what he saw as baseball plundering the market once again. You didn't have to agree with him to be riveted.

Do that. Be tough but fair. Don't worry that the guest will never come on your show again; they need you more than you need them. Use interviews to challenge authority and stand up for people who can't do it themselves. That's good talk radio. Let's have more of that in 2018.

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Okay, we're back, mostly. Talk Topics, the show prep column at All Access News-Talk-Sports is back to regular updates; find it by clicking here and/or by following the Talk Topics Twitter feed at @talktopics with every story individually linked to the appropriate item. And there's the Podcasting section at AllAccess.com/podcasts. After CES, everything should be normal, which is, as always, relative.

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Next week, as I do every January, I'll be covering CES in Las Vegas. I plan to write about my impressions in next week's column, so there's that. The future's always an interesting topic.

Perry Michael Simon
Vice President/Editor, News-Talk-Sports and Podcast
AllAccess.com
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