I'm a big fan of introspection. People always ask what is the best way to get into radio? I took the internship route. Some have simply hung around a station until someone gave them a job. For those dreaming kids (and adults out their); how did you get into the radio business?

CUE floodgates!

First of all, start young,in a small market. That's the only place you will ever get hands-on, real D.J. experience. And that's because many of those stations do not have Arbitron breathing down their necks and therefore, will be more willing to take a chance on somebody new.

If your young, Z100 will hire you. They will put pretty much anyone on the air today, Regardless if you have talent or not.

The "getting into radio" dynamic has changed quite a bit in the last 30 years. Back then, yep, you started in a small market for small pay, and if you were any good you moved up. There were thousands of these opportunities because radio usually was live 24/7, and overnights were a great place for someone to improve without a big risk to the station's sound.

Today, those type of jobs of course are fewer and the "way in" has changed. Agreed, internships can be a wonderful way to get experience, and if they like you, might even hire you!

One piece of advice that applied then AND now...avoid broadcast schools. They'll take your money, even might promise you a low-paying job, but it just isn't worth it, with rare exceptions.

School though, (I'm talking college here), is a great idea as radio is all about communication, and the more you know, the better you can communicate. (As an added bonus, most colleges have some sort of radio station operated by students). For me personally, this was my way in, followed by the small to bigger market course.

Sounds kind of simple, but that is my assessment of where we are in 2007.

The key is YOUNG with education....

Old with education and experience is just OLD.

Paul is right. Broadcast schools were fine through the 70s... After that, College degrees were all but mandatory. There are exceptions. Cleveland's Center For Broadcasting puts more than a few into intern programs and many of those start in larger markets then they otherwise would deserve, but it's a long hall from PT traffic and Board oping a Cleveland station to getting an actual regular airshift. Cost prohibitive though. Better to have a real degree.

KXOT public radio in Tacoma (ex KTOY) recently advertised for an announcer. Bet that the new person will be a recent UW grad. rather than an experienced commercial announcer.....

SKOOL, SKOOL, SKOOL, and be under 30!

Community College was my chosen means of entry. It's usually less expensive that University and, as Paul said, many have a student-run radio station. Make sure the advisor or station manager has a commercial radio background, and that the program will teach you how to be a DJ. The key is education though. Get at least a two-year degree. Learn as much about communications as you can.

Oh, and don't wait until your 40s to figure out a "Plan B". Go into sales? Commercial production? PR? Political flak? I dropped out when I got a paying radio job. MISTAKE!

I'm with Roger here. KIDS, STAY IN SCHOOL!

If the one thing you love about radio, the one thing you really want to do -- is be a jock -- you should consider counciling and a reality check.

Over the past 15 years, the number of "family wage" jobs for DJs has dwindled to probably 25% of what it was. And I don't see that situation improving. A stable long term career as a jock is about as likely as a stable long term career as a stand up comic, music theatre performer, or tennis player. Remotely possible, but unlikely. Radio Stars will still be born, but they will be fewer, and they will have to be born almost fully mature, because the days of nurturing and growing an airstaff are also gone.

If you love radio, and see jocking as only a small fun piece of it, you could have a terrific future. Go to college and major in marketing, sociology, or business administration. And set up an internet radio on your home computer, and jock your heart out. (Within a few years, I'd expect every college with a broadcasting program to have at least a half dozen internet stations set up.)

Because the jock hired in 2010 will hired to track middays, update the website twice daily, create compelling off-air content for that website, track a show for a smaller market in the group, and do a four hour shift a week in production. Right now, many of the jocks here in Portland have their bonus structure tied to web traffic rather than ARB ratings.

I join the chorus -- go to college... stay in college. And study to become a well rounded indivudual with a wide skillset useful in life as well as in radio.

And finally, avoid posting on boards like this. There are folks on this board who are considered poison inside a few corporate suites, because of their postings here. Last weekend a number of the over50radiofolk were laughing about how lucky we were that there weren't boards like this when we were getting started. We took our bitching to the Leaky, Hubers, and Cassidys -- where we privately complained to each other. It was a lot safer, and less likely to come back and bite you on the job application.

To sum it up in 7 little words: Learn To Manage Yourself, and Your Expectations.

Tdanner, regarding posting on this site, I think you make a good point.. But as a former drinker, (as you have admitted in the past), I wonder if it was really "safer"? Afterall, gossip has always been a part of our biz, and I'm not sure a webpost is any worse than a "did you hear what so-and-so said last night?" In some ways, a post is more implicit in that there is no denying the words that were written. But gossip and heresay opens up misquotes, unintended contexts, etc., and in general, less clarity about what was actually said and meant. However, one MAJOR difference, is that in your scenerio you were sharing your thoughts with a limited number of friends/co-workers, not EVERYONE!) But in the end, I agree, if you post here or on similar sites, be very aware of your words, and be very aware of the message you are putting out there! (Kind of, common sense, huh?)

Trust Terry and what she says, Paul..the woman has good sense. Learn to Manage Yourself, and Your Expectations. I might add...Manage Your Demons too.
College, yes, Speech, Acting,yes...be willing to work for practically nothing, yes..be willing to travel, yes...Radio is addictive and it will drive you nuts...be ready to commit for the long term.

Dan, buddy, never was disputing what tdanner was saying, just wondering what the real difference is between webposts and idle bar talk. What comes around, goes around!

BTW, what is happening with the CC to BC change? Please share what you can!

Somebody ought to point out that there's still plenty of opportunity in sales.

Isn't Google trying to muscle in on that too? (sales)

Differences between bar talk and web / Internet talk:

Internet talk often has a very long life. I've been doing regular searches to find my first words on the net. For the first time this year, I can no longer find them! They were written, on USENET in 1991! Some venues archive a long time, others do not. This site averages a few years between resets, so that's the time expectation, given nobody makes their own archive!

I started doing this about 8 years ago as a metric for online postings. The reason was simple and selfish: I posted some bullshit that I wondered how long it would take to fade from the net memory. The news is in: It can take a good long while!

Internet postings can be expected to survive maybe 5 to 10 years. They remain relevant and easily found for 3 to 5 for sure.

This is based on my online experience and via a fairly large number of venues, of many different kinds. (e-mail, USENET, message boards, blogs, op-ed articles, etc...)

Long ago I feared this. I don't today. Why? It's simple really. If one posts, knowing the time expectation, then it's a simple matter to keep things in line. And there is the danger right there.

What you write online people, needs to be defensible period. If it's not, it's gonna bite you in that you are setting expectations with people you don't know for a good long time.

If it is defensible, then you've zero worries and this is why:

The solid people, in other words those who are worth working for or with, will see this for what it is. There are some older exceptions, who will slowly die out, leaving just post Internet people. No biggie --and no offense intended to anyone, just a statement of fact! (we all tip over someday!)

Those not so solid people will leverage this stuff, more or less self-correcting things for those who express themselves in a just and true way.

Google yourself some day. It's a worthy exercise in that you can catch a glimpse of yourself that's difficult to get otherwise. Read that person and see if it fits or not. If not, consider some self introspection and make some changes. It does matter, IMHO.

There is one issue and that is willingness to surrender ones values for dollars. If this is you, seriously reconsider your online efforts, because they will impact your ability to present as necessary for the dollars. This isn't my scene, but it is for a lot of people.

Just FYI.

The primary difference between Internet talk and bar talk is one of scope. Hose it up too badly with bar talk, and one can move outside the scope and try again. Radio is a small club, so this is more limited than usual, but still applies, IMHO.

The secondary difference is one of duration and accuracy. Bar talk is retained in our grey matter and will fade with time and the mixture of day to day impressions. We know one another better when talking in meat space. This allows for some slack in how things are taken.

We don't know one another on the net, unless we have engaged on a fairly real level for a significant length of time.

So context issues are more prominent on the Internet than they are in meat space too.

Stephen King recently published a book, "On Writing" that is an excellent read into the art of the written word. It is focused on fiction, but his accounts of his early life, the troubles he ran into with writing, etc... are very insightful in this regard. A few words sums it up nicely:

"Write what you know cold."

Do this, and I believe you have no worries of any kind --ever. Don't do this, and you risk misrepresentation of your self --often to your own self, that you will have to live up to.

Edit: There really is very little anonyminity on the net, despite the illusion. If somebody really wants to know who said what, the answers are there more often than not.

It is this that drives the write what you know bit, and nothing else.

the difference between idle bar talk and web postings? Web postings go on for ever..papertrail and such.
Idle bar talk..is just that...idle..it was the booze talking...lots of excuses.....
CC and BC good question.....see above...web posting.

I must say that I really find this website entertaining and once in a while I think I even learn something new. Tdanner even lectures to contribute if you find the site enjoyable. (Kind of like contributing to OPB - more of us should give to Public Broadcasting.) I hope pdxradio.com pulls in a ton of dough. I take anonymous posts with a huge dose of salt, or scotch, whichever happens to be closer. Because of the above "bar chat" reference I thought I'd chime in that several of the market's most successful formats were dreamed up in bars...defined on the back of napkins, AND legible the next day. The most successful promotion in the history of the market came from a promotion director wandering the isles at Toys Are Us then detailed in a bar. The older we got we stopped drinking at lunch and opened up the bar in the office at 4:30. Most stopped drinking altogether. (Terry, Tom, Mike, Mike, CW, Alan, Michael - sissies!) Anyway, it was never about the booze. It was about losing a few inhibitions and making sure we kept the art intermingled with all the science of producing, or trying our best to produce, compelling radio. Still a great place for a career whether you've coming out of MHCC or Portland State or one of the many pushed out because of consolidation. The business is just changing. Phil Bernstein has good advice: don't forget sales! My advice to those who want to get into the biz...remember cab fare.

Dan,...of course there is a paper trail with postings, my point is that sometimes "bar" conversations are even more dangerous in that everything can be mis-quoted, mis-remembered, and completely out of context.

As for CC to BC, what posting "above" are you referring to? (I have a guess...but not sure)...

Minck: If you'd haul your hind-sight back to Portland for a visit sometime we'd all join you at Cassidys to invent formats til the cows come home. (And I'll tell you about Mike Phillips doing cow research for a Research Group client!)

And then there is another question, getting into radio and staying there ! When you get Old and, 56 that is. I have been around radio stations for about 31 years. Much of it as a partimer. Oldies stations are becomming something of a rarity these days. Especially here in the Tri Cities, Wa. I am working on getting back in, once you do it for so long its hard to stay away from it.

Reading the mail and Hi to Paul Walker, I think its the same Paul Walker I used to work for at OK95. Or is it OK 94.9? No, now its ' 94.9 'The Wolf"...and time marches on.

Al Cook, the Kennewickman.......................

Yes, Hi Al!!!

You were one of my favs. Great pipes, great personality...sorry I had to reign you back a couple times. Not your fault, really.

It was eventually "94.9, OK95", only because we had this tremendous fear that these new fangled digital radios in autos were taking over! Of course,we OVER-thought everything back then!

Hope you are doing 'big-al well"!

I guess I bucked the odds. I went to a broadcast school, and my first job was part-time on-air at the #1 12+ station in market 34. But, that was 1975...

Al, it is possible to get back into radio at age 56, but it probably screams "old" when your screen name is the same as the Pacific Northwest's most famous ancient corpse!

I believe there is a replacement on the short horizon for the role once filled by small market stations. Once this nationwide format-fixing agreement among the big chains expires, those HD channels will become the new farm teams. Anyone willing to jock as a contractor for a percentage of revenue will have an outlet.

At least, until the broadcast spectrum is re-farmed for mobile digital use in 15 years...

I believe Don Imus broke into radio that way except he had to spend a few months in a small town to begin with.

I just happened to be in a radio station as a Marketing and Advertising rep for a local firm when the PD approached me and asked me to cover a shift. I had never done radio before has asked me. And the shift was now, not later.

Reluctantly, I agreed and proceeded to puke in a trash can in the studio. I was terrified.

20 years later in radio, no more puking except on the monster truck ads.

"Author: Philbernstein
Saturday, June 23, 2007 - 10:00 pm
Somebody ought to point out that there's still plenty of opportunity in sales."


What he said.

Hi Minck and TDanner

OMG, Mikel, you are living the dream, man! My one unfulfilled dream in radio was to do a monster truck commercial. Too bad I learned how to write and went into news instead.

Much has changed since then. I wouldn't advise any young person to make a career out of radio because I honestly don't believe it will be around in its current form for very long. Go to college and, if you are cut out for it and must do radio, learn to sell air like Phil Bernstein. If you can sell air, chances are you can sell anything.

If you haven't already, take six minutes and watch this video titled "Shift Happens." If you're one who believes radio -- or anything else -- will last forever, this video just might change your mind.

http://www.albinoblacksheep.com/video/shifthappens

Lee,

that link is great, I have seen it before, but not as highly organized as the You Tube.It is true , all of it, especially the business about how technology changes so fast. I have seen a cordless shaver that can be recharged by plugging it into a USB PORT ! Any USB PORT..I guess we have a lot of people out there who dont like carrying around those bulky shaver chargers eh?

Have you heard of the Broadcast Engineer/ Owner now retired , who back in the 70s developed a way to kill cancer tumors with radio wave fields and trace metals injested into a human body? The metals gravitate to the dense tissues of TUMORS. Then you radiate them and the RF kills the tumor. Well, medical science was leary of this , as it was too dangerous to injest the metal residues, they thought, and didnt use his approach. Well this Engineer/ Owner morphed this technology around and discovered here a few years ago ( he is now retired and about 70 years old )that he could 'burn salt water' with RF. Or 'crack it'as they say in the petroleum industry. We crack crude oil now to make it into refined gasoline and other fuels. He cracks salt water and gets H2 some O2 and the byproducts are recombined water vapor and salt, no CO2 no Hydrocarbons. Its like a fuel cell, but it creates a hot flame. So , see , what an old man with an Idea can do? We might be seeing an old Broadcast Radio fart in suspenders and gray hair, saving the whole damned planet !Thats my kinda guy.......You can tell I was an engineer before I was behind the mic...ah ha..

Paul,

It was good you reigned me in. I was a spoiled radio brat at age 39 ! I ( we all ) took LIVE RADIO for granted back then didn't we? After 9 years at SRO and they were good times for the most part, I must say. I remember once when you quit and went back to Seattle, then a week later heard that you were comming back, I was sooo relieved, believe me !

I went over to the Triathalon group in 95'. I stayed 12 years, suffered thru 3 additional ownerships the last one is/was the worst, but had a lot of fun doing Oldies with some really fine people. The last 2 years I was 7 to midnight (voice tracked) on Thundercountry 94.9 right back where I started here in the Tri-cities.

My last month and a half Nov 2006 to Christmas 2006 was spent reading a nightly christmas story during a christmas music format change. Fred Danz would roll over in his grave ....wall to wall Christmas Music on OK95, I rolled in my grave and Im not even dead yet ! Then they took me off the air, but DIDNT FIRE ME. I am still on the roles. I finally turned in my front door key after being off the air for 3 months , telling the HR person that I was uncomfortable having it and not working. I have never quit, they have never fired me and the new OM tells me he wants me on the air, but wont tell me when or where. LOL ROFL , these people are from a different planet !

I dont understand this, are all ownerships like this????

are all ownerships like this.......

Just the ones who use radio as a cash cow, milk it till it's dry, then sell it as do it yourself steaks to some other starry eyed fortune seeker who thinks that you can put no effort into the local interest programming side and just sit and take orders from car dealers, who are dying to saturate the airwaves with new cars thousands under cost, 5000 dollars for any trade, and if they can't beat the deal, they'll give you the car FREE!!!

Radio done right is great. Not so many great ones left.

What can of worms did I open? I love the internet. You all are right you have to watch what you say. Chat rooms; blogs; myspace; have all become breeding ground for gossip and some rather dangerous folks. Then you have kid's trashing other kids; adults trashing other adults; honestly does anyone actually realize that just like snail mail once the text is sent there is hardly ever a way to get it back.

Yo, K-Man:

Yes, the USB shaver charger boggles the mind.

So does this telco-powered shaver: http://www.sandman.com/telco.html

(Note this great pitch: "Just because you live like a caveman, doesn't mean you have to look like one!")

The for the $89 price on that telco-powered vibrator, you could buy an awful lot of penlight batteries for the cheaper one sold at Spencer Gifts.

I bet you could find one at frys electronics for cheaper. ask 1lossir