Radio Survivor

John Bergmayer of Public Knowledge has a great interview with Ken Freedman, station manager of WFMU-FM in Jersey City, New Jersey. WFMU is a trailblazing radio station which was in the forefront of both the free form and dot.com eras. The dialogue is a terrific read, because it encapsulates all the dilemmas facing Internet radio right now.

“The way the Internet is built right now, there’s a catch 22, which is that the more people who use it [online streaming radio], the less well it works,” Freedman says. “And that’s just not the case with FM, or broadcast television, or cable. But, the Internet doesn’t have to be like that, but I don’t see much realistic hope for changing that.”

The economics on broadband streaming are “just terrible,” Freedman adds, “which is very frustrating to me because that’s where all the market is going. And at this point now, my radio station WFMU has twice as many people listening online as we do over FM, whereas it was only two years ago that we had finally crossed that barrier, where we had more people listening on the Internet than we had listening over FM. Now, two years later it’s twice as many.” (more…)

Continuing its series of workshops–which are more informal than hearings–on a variety of important topics, the FCC will hold one on the topic of “Public and Other Noncommercial Media in the Digital Era.” This workshop is part of the Commission’s project on the Future of Media and the Information Needs of Communities. This day-long workshop is happening next Friday, April 30, and will be streamed live online. You can also read a PDF announcement and agenda.

The frame of the workshop is the Public Broadcasting Act of 1967, which created public radio and television as we know it today in the US. This is the topic of the first presentation ” A 1967 Moment… A Vision for Public Media.” Of course, noncommercial and public service broadcast media existed in the US prior to 1967, from the very beginning of broadcast. Nevertheless, the Act marks a significant moment when the value of public service broadcasting was acknowledged and solidified.

Radio is represented throughout the workshop’s panels. I’m glad to see that there are representatives from the National Federation of Community Broadcasters and Prometheus Radio Project, alongside representation from more mainstream public radio organizations like NPR. Unfortunately I see no representation for college radio, which we Radio Survivors certainly argue stands as a unique service distinct from community and public radio, even if many public stations are owned and operated by higher education institutions.

I think this oversight is notable because college radio continues to be the place where many of tomorrow’s public broadcasters get their start, while simultaneously providing valuable cultural and informational service to communities. At the same time college stations face unique challenges brought on by budget pressures at their home institutions and the desirability of their precious spectrum space that other would-be broadcasters covet. It would certainly be great to see the FCC invite someone who can speak on behalf of college broadcasters.

I will be tuning in to the webcast Friday and will certainly have some thoughts to report here.

Yesterday Edison Research and Arbitron (ARB) released the latest findings from their ongoing series of studies about the convergence of radio and technology. The Infinite Dial 2010: Digital Platforms and the Future of Radio is based on a February, 2010 telephone survey of more than 1700 people in the United States and serves as a point of comparison to studies that Edison Research and Arbitron have been conducting since 1998.

Although radio is still very popular, with 92% of respondents saying that they listen to AM/FM radio; people are less likely to say that they are profoundly impacted by it or use it as a way to discover new music. Only 22% of those surveyed say that AM/FM radio has a “big impact” on their lives. People are much more likely to report that their cell phones (64%), broadband Internet (49%) and even satellite radio (27%) are having a big impact on their lives.

One of the most interesting (and sad) findings to me was that radio is becoming less and less of a tool for music discovery. When asked, “Among internet, television, radio and newspapers, which do you turn to first to learn about new music?”, 39% of respondents said “radio” and 31% said “Internet.” Although more people said radio, this is a huge decline from 2002, when 63% of respondents said that they turned to radio first to learn about new music. Most strikingly, among 12 to 24-year-olds, the Internet (52%) has surpassed radio (32%)  as a the first place to turn when seeking out new music.

Other interesting findings include:

-84% use/own a cell phone

-52% of those surveyed have listened to online radio

-44% of those surveyed own an iPod/digital music player

-12% use/own satellite radio

-31% said they were aware of HD radio and 3% use/own HD radio

-The use of an iPod/MP3 player has the most impact on radio listening for 12 to 34-year-olds, with 23 to 27% reporting that they spend less time listening to terrestrial radio due to the use of a digital music player

On the positive side of this, though, among young people ages 12-24, 40% said they would listen to AM/FM radio “a lot more” or “somewhat more” if they were able to access it through a cell phone radio tuner. Additionally, 51% of all respondents said they would be very disappointed if their favorite AM or FM station was no longer on the air, with 78% of respondents saying they would listen to as much AM/FM radio in the future as they currently do “despite increasing advancements in technology.”

So, although technology is nipping at terrestrial radio’s heels; there’s still room for radio to remain relevant for young people if it continues to reinvent itself and expands its reach to mobile platforms. To get more details on this study, see the full report (PDF) on the Edison website.

I am rereading portions of German composer Bertold Brecht’s famous 1932 essay “The radio as an apparatus of communications,” and I am confused. Is he really talking about radio?

The medium, Brecht wrote, “is one-sided when it should be two- . . . ”

“It is purely an apparatus for distribution, for mere sharing out. So here is a positive suggestion: change this apparatus over from distribution to communication. The radio would be the finest possible communication apparatus in public life, a vast network of pipes. That is to say, it would be if it knew how to receive as well as to transmit, how to let the listener speak as well as hear, how to bring him into a relationship instead of isolating him. On this principle the radio should step out of the supply business and organize its listeners as suppliers. Any attempt by the radio to give a truly public character to public occasions is a step in the right direction.”

Correct me if I’m wrong, but this is a guy who is talking about the Internet, not radio. Or at least that’s what he seems to want. Given how distant the reality of the ‘Net was to 1932, however, he probably meant something along the lines of community radio. Brecht thought little of schools and other institutions where people go to receive an “education” that “leads nowhere and has come from nothing.” He loved the interactivity of the theater—his career at its height with the Weimar era release of his and Kurt Weill’s masterpieces: Three Penny Opera and Mahagonny. (more…)

Next Tuesday the Federal Communications Commission will reveal the entirety of its National Broadband Plan, over a year in the making. Required by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which authorized $7.2 billion in broadband stimulus spending, The Plan will weigh in on about a thousand broadband related subjects—how to help more people get it, how to help industries provide it, ways to encourage innovations that the FCC hopes will stimulate more broadband adoption, like IP video.

The chances are, though, that it won’t have much to say about radio

Oh yes, it will talk about “radio” spectrum a whole lot—in the sense of licenses from 500 KHz to 2.5 GHz that licensees use to transmit video, voice, text, audio, and whatever. But unlike every other broadband related medium, from social networking through web video, almost no one has anything to say on a policy level about radio delivered over high speed Internet, either through desktops, laptops, netbooks, or smartphones.

Indirectly, however, the National Broadband Plan will no doubt have an impact on both Internet and broadcast radio. Here are my speculations as to why and how. But nota bene, this is strictly thinking out loud stuff; as the saying goes, ‘I’m just talking.’ (more…)

There was once a time when a rare breed of radio DJ could scare up controversy and big ratings–not to mention FCC indecency fines–using just his voice, a few on-air cronies and whole lot of bravado, innuendo and hot air. Remember Howard Stern? Arguably the original “shock jock” he was one of the few American radio DJs able to make a nationwide name for himself, including late night talk show appearances and even producing an autobiographical feature film. He made big news in 2004 when he abandoned broadcast for Sirius satellite radio. But once Stern made the transition at the beginning of 2006 he pretty much faded from the mainstream limelight. CBS Radio made attempts to fill the void–such as tapping former Van Halen signer David Lee Roth, who lasted about four months. But no new jock has been found who can replicate Stern’s nationwide morning show dominance.

Chicago-based Mancow Muller was one potential candidate for the King of All Media’s throne. Just as Stern prepared to exit the broadcast airwaves Mancow was experiencing a boost in the number of station’s carrying his “Morning Madhouse” program, and was even beating Stern in the ratings in his home market. Yet only a half-year into Stern’s absence from terrestrial radio Mancow was booted from his home flagship station, Chicago’s Q101. Though the Madhouse continued to air in syndication, Mancow’s candidacy to replace Stern seemed to fade.
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So, I guess now it’s my turn. What is Radio Survivor (the blog)? It’s all about the idea that radio is a hardy, useful, practical and proven medium with a lot of life left in it. A Radio Survivor (the person) is someone who continues to believe in the medium. A Radio Survivor is not a luddite clinging to her transistor radio while eschewing iPhones and netbooks, nor is he a retro fetishist stuck in the past. Rather, a Radio Survivor recognizes the simple power inherent in broadcast audio, which can be done inexpensively and bring people together in a community.

I’ve been a radio broadcaster working in college, community and public radio since 1989, with just one year off from May 1993 to May 1994. And while I’ve had some sporadic work in radio, most recently as a college station adviser, as Matthew emphasizes, my approach is more as a listener and enthusiast rather than an industry insider. Much of what is written about radio is for the industry insider, and is therefore concerned more with profits, ratings and staffing changes than with the place of the medium in our society and everyday lives. Also often missing from insider coverage is critical analysis that challenges the business orthodoxy.

I write for Radio Survivor because I wish to challenge myself and others to consider what radio can be, not just be content or discontented with how it is. We can recognize the damage wrought by consolidation without giving in and leaving the medium for dead. We can highlight the stations and places where innovation is happening and 21st century is in the making. We can encourage new or lost listeners to give radio a new chance.

Radio, as a medium, has a great chance to survive because of the internet, iPods and mobile phones, not in spite of them. Just because Clear Channel and its mostly bankrupt consolidating brethren were too busy buying up stations, firing staff and elminating local service to notice the internet revolution doesn’t mean that the internet has to kill radio. I believe that there is still an audience that pines for local news, information and culture that is still hard to find on the internet, that doesn’t require a monthly broadband bill or data package and is there in the car, in the home or a hundred miles away from the nearest wi-fi hotspot. And as internet access becomes more ubiquitous and less costly radio can still be a complementary part of our information environment.

That’s Radio Surviving.

As I said in my introduction to our subjective and opinionated review of radio in the 2000s, I still think it was darn near impossible to predict how the medium of radio would end up at the beginning of 2010. Sure, the seeds for satellite radio, HD radio, low-power FM, internet radio and MP3s were already planted by the turn of the century. But home broadband–nevermind wireless or mobile–was a relatively exclusive luxury. MP3 players were lucky to sport enough memory to hold about a hundred minutes of music and weren’t integrated into cell phones. Satellites for Sirius and XM were launched, and HD Radio was being experimented with, but no stations were on the air. Clear Channel was flying high for more than $90 a share.

Anyone taking a broad view of the radio industry in 2000 could certainly see a lot of balls being thrust up into to the air, but it would have taken a psychic to predict where they would land. Nevertheless, for all of the churn we can say very safely that audio-focused content is alive and well.

It’s become clear to me that we Radio Survivors do consider radio to be greater than just the traditional electromagnetic broadcast medium. While we included the RF-based college radio, pubic radio, LPFM, HD Radio and satellite radio in our review, we also touched upon internet radio, Pandora and digital downloads. I believe we are first and foremost fans of terrestrial broadcast radio, but that does not cause us to ignore or discount new audio media. Nor does it cause it us to claim that they are not, in essence, radio services.

The homogenization and delocalization of the broadcast dial caused listeners to seek alternative places to hear more interesting and diverse content. At the same time the popularity of MP3 players and Pandora shows that people were also looking for customization.
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I spend a lot of time thinking about how changes in technology are affecting radio.

I worry that the “kids” (college radio DJs as well as everyday folks) are getting lazier and lazier, bypassing physical music for digital, thinking that it’s easier to find and play.

I also worry that the pleasure of enjoying an entire album is being lost; even though there are still albums being created that beg for a complete listen.

In a piece in The Boston Globe, Steve Almond nicely captures some of these fears as he takes a look at his own feelings of nostalgia for physical music as he converts his record collection to digital files. He writes:

An interesting filing from the National Association of Broadcasters in response to the Federal Communications Commissions’ call for feedback on ways that broadband can help smart grids. The NAB says let FM radio stations lend their subcarrier channels to the cause:

“Smart Grid devices, implanted in home appliances, thermostats, and plug-in hybrid vehicles, could receive data information via an FM data subcarrier channel at anytime, day or night. That data could, for example, tell appliances when to turn off or down or tell thermostats to increase temperatures by a few degrees during peak load times. The resulting decrease in demand could help save billions of dollars each year in energy costs.”

Smart Grids are electrical power sources that use computer networks to monitor their performance and serve energy more efficiently. An FM subcarrier is a signal that sends voice/data about the main FM transmission. These signals can also be used for other purposes. In the early 1980s the Federal Communications Commission deregulated them, allowing radio stations to lease them out for various commercial purposes with a degree of FCC supervision.

NAB proposes tapping into these subcarrier channels via the Radio Data System protocol, which moves bits at about 1,100 per second, not the fastest speed in the world, but “well-matched to the requirements of the Smart Grid load management application, while still allowing ample opportunity for other, simultaneous uses.”

If the idea works, it could put some extra money into the pockets of FM stations, which they certainly need at this point. But hopefully this wouldn’t divert Radio Broadcast Data Systems resources from some of the other purposes to which they are used, such as radio reading services for the blind.