The Problem with Ryan Seacrest

"On-Air with Ryan Seacrest" is a microcosm of what's wrong with radio right now. The problem has nothing to do with the show being created in Hollywood and syndicated to local radio stations across the country. The trouble is the show's content. It's ordinary, average, and forgettable. Mindless, soulless, lowest common denominator stuff the media, including most cookie cutter morning radio shows, are saturated with -- vacuous interviews with celebrities hyping their latest projects, a steady stream of superficial celebrity news and Hollywood gossip clipped from the pages of People, Us, and The National Enquirer and read breathlessly with much manufactured enthusiasm and amazement by Ryan and his cohorts. This is sad stuff.

Here's what's really scary. In the past few months, "On-Air with Ryan Seacrest" has spread to approximately 140 markets, including most of the 50 largest cities in America. How did this happen? The show has no record of ratings success. The content is no different and no better than the average local radio morning show. Okay, Ryan gets more and better celebrity guests, but who cares. There's absolutely nothing special about his interviews -- no intimacy and no revelations. Listeners can get the same information by reading the press release for the new movie, CD, book, or other project the celebrity guest is hyping. Make no mistake about it; these are not Howard Stern-like interviews. There are no surprises in Ryan's fawning and shallow conversations. The show is not live, but that probably doesn't matter given its content. It's just a bunch of unoriginal recycled bits from Ryan's morning show in Los Angeles, which by the way, is not even the highest rated show on KIIS FM. So, what's going on here? Why is this show spreading? It's definitely not a virus.

"On-Air with Ryan Seacrest" exists for two primary reasons neither of which has anything to do with what comes out of a radio’s speakers or making radio listeners’ lives better. First, Ryan Seacrest is famous -- not for extraordinary talent, not for producing amazing radio content, not for producing stellar Arbitron numbers. Ryan Seacrest is famous for being the host of American Idol. Ryan Seacrest is famous for his boyish good looks. Ryan Seacrest is famous for hanging out with Simon Cowell. Second, "On-Air with Ryan Seacrest" is cheap programming -- a money-saving alternative to paying local personalities in 140 markets. So radio station operators blinded by fame and celebrity and driven by the need to reduce expenses are programming this drivel. Yikes!

Radio is in deep doo doo right now. Radio needs to create relevant and original content to survive. Radio needs rebels, mavericks, characters, passionate artists and innovators. Radio needs people to challenge the status quo not perpetuate it. "On-Air with Ryan Seacrest" is the status quo -- a very ordinary and average version of it. Exactly what radio doesn't need right now.

Radio is headed for extinction if things don't change quickly. How did it come to this? Lee Abrams provided some pretty good answers in a recent interview conducted by Al Peterson at NTS MediaOnline. Here's what Lee had to say about the radio business and the source of great ideas. "Radio was one of the last great bastions of creative thinking. There were no rulebooks, you could come up with a new format idea in your basement, take it out and try it somewhere, and if it worked you were in business. Unfortunately the radio business, which was once a place with very few rules, evolved into a business with a whole lot of rules.... all great ideas start emotionally then you use science to determine whether or not you're full of it. In most big media today everything starts scientifically and the whole emotional component gets left out entirely."

Lee's description of how radio's best programming ideas came to be and where great ideas begin sounds remarkably like what's happening on the Internet today. All kinds of goofy original ideas are being created. There is lots of experimentation going on. People are creating stuff in basements and garages all over the world and putting it out there in cyberspace to see if it flies.

Big ideas like Google, Facebook, Pandora, and YouTube started as little experiments in a basement, garage, or dorm room. These ideas began with emotions, instinctive reactions to real life in the real world. The creators didn't do focus groups or seek approval from the corporate office. They just began to create stuff that they thought was missing in their lives, stuff they wanted and needed. They didn't try to predict how their ideas would be received or if they'd be accepted. They just created stuff they thought was cool and necessary. They created stuff that would make their lives and/or the lives of their friends better, more interesting, more fun.

This is exactly how many of radio's most successful formats and shows came to be. Rush Limbaugh created the show he wanted to listen to -- a show reflective of his ideals, his values and beliefs -- a show that broke the rules and challenged the status quo. He discovered there were lots of listeners just like him who were looking for a place to hang out and connect with like-minded people who shared their conservative values. Howard Stern created the show he wanted to listen to. Lee Abrams created a format with the music he wanted to hear. Both discovered lots of listeners just like them who liked what they liked.

Now radio creates stuff for some mythical target audience defined by simplistic and superficial research. No one breaks the rules or challenges the status quo. There's no experimentation. No risk taking. No new ideas. No innovation.

There is lots of cloning and copying. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of Rush Limbaugh and Howard Stern wannabes trying to duplicate everything these originals do. Nearly every morning show has a boy and a girl. Most are obsessed with presenting "pop culture" defined by superficial and sensational celebrity news and Hollywood gossip delivered by the girl. They talk about the same current events and news stories. Try finding a radio morning show this time of year that isn't talking about American Idol. Yes it's the top-rated show on television, but it's watched in less than 20% of homes with TVs. Radio morning shows across the dial and around the country use the same show prep services for their inspiration. Formats, music, and imaging -- all the stuff of radio programming -- have become fully homogenized at a time when the real world -- fueled by abundant entertainment and information choices made available by technology and the Internet -- has become anything but homogenized.

The problem with "On-Air with Ryan Seacrest" and far too much of the programming heard on the radio these days is that it's not distinctive, it's not relevant, and it's not essential to listeners because it doesn't make their lives better. That's why mobile phones, iPods, and computers are far more important in people's lives than radios.

Trust

Trust is the foundation of long-term relationships that matter. You trust your best friends. You trust your husband or wife. You trust your mom and dad. You trust God. If you commit precious time each day to listen to a radio personality, it's likely trust is a big reason.

Sadly, trust is becoming a rare commodity. The list of things and people we don't trust seems to be growing. We don't trust politicians. We don't trust "the media". We don't trust our bosses. We don't trust many of the people we work with. We don't trust salesmen. We don't trust advertising. I could go on and on, so could you.

Consumer skepticism about advertising has made live-read personality endorsement commercials increasingly popular with radio advertisers and radio sales people. Advertisers know they gain instant credibility from the trust relationship successful radio personalities have with their listeners. Radio sales people love live-reads because they produce great results and repeat business from their clients.

While personality endorsement commercials are great making money tools for advertisers and radio stations, Jonathon Brandmeier reminded me that live-reads pose a real dilemma for radio personalities concerned about keeping their listeners. During his recent presentation at TalenTrak 2008 he told the audience, "I don't like live-reads". He explained, "Listeners know when you're faking on the air. I can't read a commercial for something I don't care about or believe in. I can't compromise." Therein lies the difficult choice for radio personalities. Do you go for the money or protect the trust relationship with your listeners?

The right choice in this dilemma is contained in the old adage, "short-term pain produces long-term gain". Trust is becoming more rare and more valuable each day. Guarding the trust established between radio personality and listener preserves this essential element of their relationship and increases the likelihood it will continue for a long time. Protecting this trust also ensures the ongoing value and effectiveness of live-read personality endorsement commercials.

There are plenty of money making opportunities for radio stations and personalities contained in the products and services personalities really love and actually use.

Measure of Great Radio Personalities

Bob Lefsetz is a music lover, brilliant music critic, and remarkable philosopher. I subscribe to his "Lefsetz Letter".

After watching the CMA Awards the other night Bob wrote, "I felt strangely disconnected from last night's CMA Awards... The music. That's what bugged me. It was just too formulaic." He went on to describe what he thought was missing. "Our stars used to sing about real life. They used to tell us about us. By exploring the fringes, the limits, delivering insight that eluded us."

Reading Bob's words, I got to thinking, isn't the ability to explore real life -- it's fringes and limits -- and deliver insight that eludes listeners a measure of great radio personalities, too?

Timeless Wisdom from Radio Legends

TalenTrak was an annual event in Chicago created by The Conclave to inspire and educate radio personalities. The year I attended, it delivered big-time on both accounts.

Radio legends Larry Lujack and Jonathon Brandmeier were the featured speakers. They put on quite a show. Their passion for radio and its possibilities lifted the conference room at Columbia College. Their performance demonstrated radio's unique ability to create intimate human relationships. The stories they told about their lives in radio -- the ups and downs, the successes and failures -- really resonated with the audience. Lujack and Brandmeier established a real connection and emotional bond with everyone in that room. It was great radio.

Here are some nuggets of wisdom for aspiring radio personalities from the success stories of Uncle Lar and Johnny B:

Don't copy anyone. Be yourself and you'll be distinctive. There is nobody exactly like you. Lujack said it this way. "One of my advantages was not being able to hear big-city radio growing up in Caldwell Idaho. I never copied anybody because I didn't have anyone to copy." Here's Brandmeier's perspective: "I don't know what's going on in radio. I don't listen to other shows. In my head, I'm the only guy on the radio."

Constantly expand what you know. If you don't know more than your listeners, you can't add much to their lives. Lujack “read newspapers and magazines for seven hours a day” to expand his knowledge. Brandmeier said, "I read everything. You gotta to be aware of the world around you. The more you read the more you have to react to. It's like filling a cooler with meat. I just keep filling it."

Don't present anything on the radio that you don't really care about. If it doesn't ring your emotional bell, if it's not interesting, meaningful, or fun to you, forget it. It won't matter to your listeners if it doesn't matter to you. Brandmeier put it this way, "if you're not curious about it or care about it, don't talk about it. The audience knows."

Find the right boss -- someone who totally believes in you. Don't go to work for people who want to change you and what you do. They'll make your life miserable, destroy your confidence, and then fire you. Lujack and Brandmeier's careers took off when they found PDs who believed in them. Lujack was fired repeatedly by bosses who didn't understand or appreciate his often "cynical, sarcastic, negative" attitude on the radio and insisted he change. He refused because, "it was easier to be me than somebody I was not. I believed me would work." It sure did once he found Pat O'Day at KJR in Seattle. "He was the first PD who encouraged me to be me." Brandmeier found Don Benson who heard him breaking format doing a midday music show in Milwaukee. Brandmeier recalled, "I would start talking to listeners on the radio the minute the programmers left the building for lunch. I figured they wouldn't hear me while they were eating." Benson heard him. He called Brandmeier with an offer that changed his life. "There's a voice inside you that wants to get out. How would you like to let that voice out on a morning show in Phoenix?" Brandmeier took the job at KZZP. The "voice" Benson heard attracted a few listeners. "They let me do whatever I wanted", remembered Brandmeier, "and the ratings tripled."

Anticipation

"We can never know about the days to come
but we think about them anyway.
I was thinkin' about how right tonight might be.
Anticipation, anticipation
Is keepin' me waitin'."

Carly Simon's lyrics from her hit song speak about a strong sense the best radio personalities create in their listeners. Anticipation drives their listeners to tune in and keep listenin'. They turn on the radio with an expectation of experiencing at least one magical life enriching moment.

I was reminded of the powerful effect anticipation has on radio listening when I read a just-released study, "The PPM DNA of Rush Limbaugh", prepared by radio researcher Jon Coleman. The stated goal of the study was to "learn as much as possible from Arbitron's measurement of radio audiences via its Portable People Meter (PPM) service and understand what it can teach us about how consumers use radio."

The major finding of this study is that anticipation drives Rush's listeners to tune in and keep listening to his program no matter what content is presented. The PPM data reveals the show's average audience share changes very little when Rush switches subjects or when he is interrupted by commercials. The clear implication here is that Rush's listeners, like the subject of Carly Simon's song, keep "waitin'" and listenin' for that magical moment or moments they know will come.

The study makes a big deal about commercial breaks at the top and bottom of each hour that appear to generate slightly higher audience shares (5-8% higher) than the Rush content that follows. The study should make a big deal about the anticipation that drives the tune in for these commercials. To be fair the study speculates, "what is likely happening is that many people are tuning in to hear what Rush has to say, with some of them then electing not to stay" after they find out what Rush is talking about. Unfortunately, this insight is buried in the text of the study.

Think about this finding. Anticipation drives Rush's listeners to tune in early, during commercial breaks at the top and bottom of each hour, so they won't miss the first words out of his mouth as he begins each half-hour of his program. They tune in early rather than taking a chance of missing that magic moment they expect from Rush each day.

Anticipation is a wonderful thing for Rush and his advertisers. Anticipation ensures continued listening and high-level attention for all kinds of content, including commercials. Audience shares for Rush's program vary little no matter what kind of content it presents.

So what is this anticipation that drives listeners to tune in and keep listening? It's the expectation of experiencing magical moments that make life more interesting, meaningful, and fun. It’s the expectation of laughing out loud, crying, marveling, or understanding something for the very first time. It's the expectation of a unique and often emotional experience that can only be had in the presence of a beloved friend or true character. It's the expectation of meaningful and remarkable experiences that really are life enriching. It's the expectation of things that would be sorely missed if they were taken away. This is the anticipation successful radio personalities create in their listeners.

If you're a radio personality, ask yourself what your listeners anticipate from you and your show? Do your listeners truly expect you to make their lives more interesting, meaningful, and fun? Do they expect you to create magical moments they can't experience anywhere else? Would your listeners be saddened if they turned on the radio one day and found you were gone? What would they miss the most? How important, how strong, and how distinctive is the sense of anticipation you've created in your listeners?