Good Reputation

The first monthly ratings affected by the pandemic are arriving, and while there are exceptions, the share bump for news and talk radio materialized as expected. Naturally, I have some likely premature thoughts about this, because I always do.

One of the striking things about the ratings bump is the kind of stations showing the big gains. Again, there are exceptions, but we've seen big numbers for three kinds of stations: all news, public radio, and talk stations that a) have a strong news position in their markets and b) have strong local programming. That should tell you something about why more listeners sought those stations out, and what they're looking for from you. It may be what they want from you from here on out, after the pandemic has ebbed.

Credibility.

People need accurate information. They find confusing, conflicting, often inaccurate information all over social media. In times like this, credibility is king. All-news stations have that, because they're not perceived as having opinions one way or the other. Public radio has that, and before you go with the "NPR is liberal!" thing, public radio has that serious, sober, in-depth-reporting image even if you're among the distrustful. Local news organizations, the ones that are left, offer what fewer and fewer other media outlets can, information tailored to the local audience, because people want to know what's happening in their neighborhood, city, and state. If your station and show have that credibility, you're likely to have a lot more people turning to you. Your reputation is still important, and it will be important for the future. People will not forget that, in a crunch, you were there for them.

You can get an audience with misinformation, too, and so we have a lot of talk hosts resorting to... okay, not gonna get political here, I'm just going to remind you that people are dying and jobs are disappearing and toilet paper is still hard to get and did I mention that PEOPLE ARE DYING and your listeners are scared and needing accurate information and support, not politically motivated misinformation and quackery. We're all trying to sort out what's going on and what's going to happen. Nobody is certain and nobody is safe. There will always be P1s who mistrust science and mistrust the truth and want their opinions validated, but that's, well, that's very 2019. The majority of Americans are looking for something else right now.

And so, the ratings. We'll see how it plays out over time -- we're not going to be "back to normal" for a long time if ever -- but now is a time that calls for credibility, and if you're in talk or news radio, you need to offer that. It's kind of reassuring to see stations that are fighting that good fight getting rewarded in audience share (if not advertising, but that's beyond anyone's control at the moment). In a world battered by virus and years of social media disinformation, there will always be a need for the facts. That's where radio can shine. Let's hope the stations that are doing that can hold on and keep doing that through the cutbacks and lockdowns and for a long time to come.

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Find credible things to talk about -- always from reliable sources -- at Talk Topics, the show prep column at All Access News-Talk-Sports, which you can find by clicking here and/or following the Talk Topics Twitter feed at @talktopics with every story individually linked to the appropriate item.

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I would have been in Las Vegas for the NAB Show, but, obviously, nah. And I would have been on a panel at the BEA conference there, too, but... well, yeah, I WAS on that panel, which we -- Valerie Geller, Dan Vallie, Andrew Curran, David Crider, and my stupid face -- did via a Zoom conference. If you're a member of the BEA, you'll be able to see the panel on demand via the BEA's VirtualVegas conference right here. I'm available for Zoom conferences, radio and podcast interviews, and whatever else you need, too. Drop me an email.

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