Always A Family

It's a rare week when an air talent in some market, somewhere around the world, doesn't complain to me about how it is impossible to create impactful content given his/her time constraints.

They'll ask me if other PDs I work with are as strict and unyielding as their PD, who limits them to two or three minutes every half-hour.

"And that's all! They expect me to be compelling in two minutes! It's not possible."

Actually, as they already know, it is possible, as I will show you. Here, watch...

Always A Family

If you take away the time devoted to intro and credits for this video, the audio content lasted 2:22 - so if your PD will fire you for going 22 seconds over the imposed limit, I want to talk to her/him.

Because it is not about the length of your content; it's about the impact.

And if your PD believes listeners automatically tune out as if their attention span was controlled by an egg-timer, they're in the wrong business.

And if you, as an air talent, keep using the time limit excuse as a way to mail it in and pick up your check without going through the effort - the incredibly hard, grinding work of finding and sharing compelling, memorable stories - you're in the wrong business too.

Radio has to get back to hiring air talent that creates impact when they speak.

Talent that is noticed.

Talent that is missed when it's gone.

And until we do, we will remain vulnerable to music services that are less cluttered and offer more individual bells and whistles.