Traits Of Great Talents

August 28, 2009
Traits Of Great Talents
While surfing through the archives of the many features I’ve written about
Talk radio in the past dozen years or so, I came across some notes in my
files on the traits of top Talk talents. What is it that makes the great ones,
great? What makes one talent stand out in a crowd above all the others?
Although I posed those questions to a number of broadcast luminaries
nearly five years ago,
their insights and
advice are as fresh
and relevant today as
they were then. While
the industry may be
changing, and the
devices over which a
talent is delivered is
growing, in the end it
is always great talent
that makes great Talk
radio. Which is why the sage advice, offered this week by a number of
individuals who are always looking for great talent, is well worth sharing
with NTS MediaOnline Weekly readers again.
Issue 112
articulate; they have genuine ‘star power’ and are able to develop
followers, not just ‘fans’; they wake up every single day with a show in
their head that’s just screaming to get out; and they’re slightly ‘wacky’
and demanding of excellence from all who are around them.
Tom Tradup, Salem Radio Network
Be yourself and be original. If I had a dime for everyone who tried
to convince me that they are the black Rush Limbaugh, the gay Rush
Limbaugh, or the female Rush Limbaugh, I’d be as rich as -- well, as
the real Rush Limbaugh. That kind of thinking gets you a one-way trip
into the circular file.
Never forget the power of one-on-one communication. Every great talk
show host—local or national, male or female—exhibits one quality
that generates consistent success in Arbitron and that is understanding
the power of communicating and debating an idea with another human
being, one-on-one. Even though you offer listeners the opportunity to
address an entire city or the whole country via the telephone, it all boils
down to the solid relationship you build one person at a time through
the strength of your personality, your sense of humor and—weird as it
sounds—the fairness with which you deal with guests and callers.
Phil Boyce, Talk Radio Network
Greg Moceri, Moceri Media
There are many things that separate the great ones from the good ones
when it comes to talent, but the characteristics that top the list, in my
opinion, are these: The great talents are driven to succeed; they have
a fascinating personality; they can point to at least one major area of
accomplishment, not necessarily in radio; he or she is really smart and
The really great talent has the spirit of an entrepreneur, the risk taking
ability of a Mt. Everest climber, and huge life experience married
to extremely high IQ. Great talent also has incredibly high reactive
powers to input, and the lightening quick ability to provide both clarity
and persuasion at the same time. All that must be topped off with a
(continued on page 3)
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August 28, 2009
NTS MediaOnline Weekly
PERSON-T0-PERSON
Clear Channel/Macon Market Manager Bill Clark relocates for
the same duties at the company’s Akron-Canton cluster as Dan
Lankford segues to the same role at CC’s Allentown-Harrisburg,
PA stations … The NAB is offering a special $179 registration rate
for “free agents” who’d like to attend next month’s NAB Radio Show
in Philadelphia. More info at www.nabradioshow.com … Birthday
Shout Outs: Among those in Talk media blowing out the candles on
some cake this week are: Radio America exec Michael Packer, Air
America host Lionel, WDUN/Gainesville, GA talker Martha Zoller
and WTOP/Washington’s Jim Farley … From our “Not Exactly
Talk Radio News” department: San Diego morning mainstays Jeff &
Jer remain off-the-air in America’s Finest City after parting ways with
Clear Channel Hot AC KMYI over a contract renewal dispute. The
duo -- who have always done essentially a morning talk show on the
otherwise music FM’s where they’ve worked -- say they’ll be back on
the air soon and are updating fans at www.jeffandjer.com.
EMERGING TALK MEDIA
Page 2
NETWORK /SYNDICATION NOTES
Talk Radio Network syndicated host Michael Savage says
time is running out for the British government to apologize
for putting his name on list of terrorist-related individuals
unwelcome in the U.K. Savage is demanding a public apology
from former British Home Secretary Jacqui Smith or else he’ll
move forward with a defamation suit against Smith and the Brit
government … Talks Shows USA-syndicated Gun Talk host
Tom Gresham adds a cable TV show to his media arsenal. Guns
& Gear airs on the Versus Network (formerly the Outdoor Life
Channel) Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday mornings … The
Money Pit Home Improvement Show with Tom Kraeutler and
Leslie Segrete adds WLRS/Louisville, WWOW/Conneaut, OH,
WELW/Willoguby, OH (Cleveland), WRSC/State College, PA,
KPRK/Livingston, MT, WSFB/Quitman, GA, WNRV/Radford,
VA and KMMS/Bozeman, MT.
RADIO MAGIC
Ando Media reported this week that ESPN Radio has the most
listened-to online stream of any terrestrial broadcaster in the world …
Meanwhile CBS Radio websites Last.FM and Metacritic.com have
been named by Time.com as two of the “50 Best Websites of 2009”
… The RAB reports that digital and off-air revenues are on pace to
account for 13% of this year’s radio industry billings … CRN Digital
Talk Radio launches Healthline with clinical nutritionist Dr. Bob
Marshall. The half-hour show airs Monday through Friday at 5:30pm
(ET) and Saturdays at noon … Get breaking news alerts by following
NTS MediaOnline on Twitter, or friend us on Facebook. Find directconnect links to both at www.ntsmediaonline.com.
GIG ALERTS
CBS Radio FM Sports/Talker WXYT/Detroit is looking for a PD
with at least five years radio/programming experience. This one’s a
big time major market gig for the right candidate. Get more info and
apply at the CBS Radio online career center at www.cbsradio.com …
Got a gig open? Looking for a new challenge? Email details and
contact info to al@ntsmediaonline.com and we’ll post it here as a
free service to Talk media industry professionals.
Former Los Angeles Lakers star and NBA Hall-Of-Famer Earvin
“Magic” Johnson sat down for a one-on-one chat with FOX Sports
Radio host Tony Bruno at the Harold Pump Foundation dinner and
fundraiser for cancer research held recently in Beverly Hills.
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August 28, 2009
NTS MediaOnline Weekly
(continued from page 1)
love of being on stage, performing with zest and humor, plus a touch of
irreverence and mischievousness. And what’s the final ingredient? The
willingness to spend whatever time is needed to prepare and learn, despite
their innate gifts.
Bruce Gilbert, Red Zebra Radio
What makes great talent great? Great talents – those who are dynamic,
engaging on-air personalities – are men and women that are genuine.
They are people that are perfectly comfortable slicing themselves open
and exposing their heart and guts every day. They aren’t afraid to open up
and share their opinions, feelings, hopes and fears while still being able
to inform the audience on the subject matter that affects their lives. They
have the ability to inform and the talent to entertain. They are likeable,
self-deprecating, witty, intelligent, twisted and capable of saying the
things that you’d like to say, but can’t.
Genuine means being yourself, but only a chosen few can be themselves
and be good enough to stand out in spoken-word radio. Some of us, while
being ourselves, just aren’t engaging and interesting enough to pull this
off for three or four hours a day. It takes a special talent to be able to do
this day in and day out.
A great talk show host possesses an unmatched and prodigious curiosity.
That curiosity leads to unique observations that provide perspective,
causing the listener to think. To top it off, the great hosts are able to
present that perspective in a storytelling fashion that sucks you into the
radio. Great storytelling, with a plot and a payoff, keeps you listening and
makes you feel you’ll miss something if you tune away or miss a day.
Great hosts understand that their entire life and every event - from
picking out a pair of shoes to having a baby - is potential fodder for their
show. They see the humor and hypocrisy in real life and are capable of
articulating those observations through colorful storytelling that paints
pictures using dazzling details and relatable language for the target
audience. Furthermore, their style of storytelling is designed to always
be taking you somewhere. The great talk show hosts always have a
destination - they know where they are going and they teach us things
along the way.
“
A great talk show host
possesses an unmatched and
prodigious curiosity.
”
At the end of the day Arbitron is a voting process and nobody votes
for people they don’t like. This is politics - it’s an election. The talent
that wins is the talent that can garner the most votes through any means
possible. It’s why they prepare fervently, execute flawlessly and are never
afraid to fail.
CONTACT NTS MEDIAONLINE
Al Peterson
858-486-7559
al@ntsmediaonline.com
Brooke Trissel
512-218-8228
brooke@ntsmediaonline.com
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