Radio is changing, and so am I

It’s been way too long since I blogged last…I have missed it.

Not that I haven’t wanted to blog.  I was just hoping to be able to make some very cool, profound announcement.

But as I look over the last few months of being outside of a radio/media career, I realize: it may be a while before God moves me to the next thing.

There are things that I am learning in my waiting.  Things that I think I needed to learn.  Like how to be grateful, how to depend on God, how not to get so stuck in that “should have, could have, would have” cycle that many of us get stuck in.

I think Job from the Old Testament felt that way.  He lost everything, and came back stronger than he was before.  More grateful, more purposeful.  But he did not enjoy the waiting.  In fact, he had “friends” around him that made the waiting more difficult.

Thank God I don’t have that.  I have friends who are understanding, supportive, and encouraging.

In a nutshell, I will tell you what I am learning in this waiting period…Let’s face it:  our world has changed considerably.  Internet has changed everything. 

Want something?  Google it, Bing it.  Want to search a topic for your kid to research? Find it on the internet.  Missed your favorite television moment: YouTube.  Want to find the best price for a car? Find the dealerships on line near you and let your mouse do the walking.

And then, there’s radio.  Internet has changed radio–a whole lot!  Free apps for your iPhone and Blackberry so that you can take your radio with you. Iheartradio is amazing!!  I can listen to The River in Austin, KTRH in Houston, and WSIX in Nashville at the touch of a screen.  And don’t forget about free radio customized to your tastes in the form of a website/app called Pandora. 

Advertising in radio has changed too.  You can hear an entire show which is completely a sold segment and not even realize it…especially on weekends.  How many colon cleanse programs have you found in your market?  Or Garden/Home/Saving for Retirement shows.  That stuff apparently sells, otherwise they would not buy a whole hour of time.

I’ve been told and have discovered that the talk radio market is tough.  You have to be syndicated to go anywhere, and if you really want a show locally you need to buy your block of time and go after advertisers yourself.  For me, a stay-at-home mom who has recently gone into the work force to support her family, that is not a feasible situation.  If I buy my own time block, and my advertisers back out, I am still liable for that time contract. And I have an opportunity to do my own internet radio show for free, but it would take an advertiser/financial backer to pay me to book the guests and produce the segments the right way.  I don’t do anything halfway.  Producing is what I excel in; you can’t just throw anything together and have it turn out correctly.  It has to be purposeful, it has to add value to someone’s life, or it isn’t worth doing.

So, Sean Hannity, Glenn Beck, and a host of other shows are the ones I am studying right now, on both radio and television.  I look at guests, show run down, mechanics of the programs.  The way I look at it, I’m going to the university of preparation.  I don’t know what God has in store for me right now.  But you can bet I’m keeping my face on the floor seeking His will for me and learning along the way.

So, thanks for checking in on me.  And if you think about it, pray for me to be strong and keep my focus on what I have in front of me.  After all, Lot’s wife looked back and she became salt!

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