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The Letter
Archives
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March 10, 2017
Everything's FineIt occurred to me while listening to the panels at the Talk Show Boot Camp this week that what talk radio needs is a therapy session. There was a significant amount of self-congratulation by radio people here about the talk and news formats' good ratings fortune in ...
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March 3, 2017
The Next Next Big ThingDid you get in on that Snap IPO? All the cool investors did. Even a high school made millions on it. Snap is all the rage on Wall Street, because it's the next big thing. What? You're asking what the business model is? Oh, well, you know Snapchat, right? Yeah, ...
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February 24, 2017
Stunt CastingThe first thought I had when the idea of Chris Christie getting a sports radio job resurfaced this week, as it does from time to time, was, well, here we go again. After all, I have some experience with putting celebrities and semi-celebrities on the air to do radio. It ...
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February 17, 2017
The Chairman, The Radio, And The Incessant BuzzingThe new FCC Chairman, Ajit Pai, gave a talk the other day about radio, and it was mostly what radio industry people would want to hear, a Greatest Hits of radio boosterism. That "93% reach!!!" statistic that would be a good basis for a drinking game at NAB conventions ...
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February 10, 2017
Let It SnowIt was not surprising that there was a public reaction a few weeks ago when it dawned on people in Philadelphia that KYW was no longer doing school closing announcements on the air -- the decision was quietly made before the season, but it took actually being IN the ...
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February 3, 2017
Code OrangeWhat was I telling you not too long ago? Something about how times have literally changed and that there's no "off hours" anymore and the news cycle is now 24/7/365 and if talk radio doesn't adapt.... Last weekend, huge news broke late Friday and carried over all ...
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January 27, 2017
Always OnThis week, some thoughts that I'll probably disagree with shortly after sending this out. I reserve the right to argue with myself. Don't tell me you don't do the same thing.... All right, then. The Holiday 2016 ratings started to come out this week, and the ...
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January 20, 2017
You Against The WorldWhat would you do if you discovered that the most popular radio personality had suddenly moved to your time slot, competing against you? What would you do if EVERY really popular personality was on against you? Could you compete? Would you try to pull out all the stops ...
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January 13, 2017
The Return Of Mr. Do-BeeLast year, I wrote a lot about the need for political talk radio to be prepared for what to do after the election. I counseled that there could very well be a phase in which people would be tired of all the political stuff. Well, then. I had no idea. I don't think my ...
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January 6, 2017
Asked And AnsweredEvery year, there's a Big Thing at CES. Sometimes, the Big Thing never really takes hold -- how's that 3D TV going for ya? -- and sometimes its a Big Thing that becomes a Not That Big Thing But A Thing Nonetheless like drones, and sometimes, it's a Big Thing that carries ...