Category Archives: Radio

Ole Camp Meetin’ Time

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Nostalgia Alert: We’re going back to 1947 in this post.

When KBOA went on the air (July 19, 1947), one of their first –and most popular– programs was “Ole Camp Meetin’ Time.” It was the creation of Ray Van (Hooser), the station’s first program director. The program featured hymns and gospel music but was far more than a “record show.” And it was immediately and immensly popular.

Sometime in the early ’50’s, Rudy Pylant (“Mr. Rudy”) took over Ole Camp Meetin’ Time and gave it his own special flavor (think Will Rogers-meets-Jerry Clower). The program continued to be hugely popular.

I was reminded of Ole Camp Meetin’ Time this week when my (life-long Kennett) friend Joann sent me one of the original Ole Camp Meetin’ Time Song Books. Published in late 1947, the radio staiton gave away thousands of these. Seems hopelessly quaint now but in 1947, these were like iPods.

If you grew up anywhere within a hundred miles or so of Kennett, Missouri, in the late 40’s or ’50s… you probably have memories of sitting at the breakfast table listening to Ole Camp Meetin’ Time. As I write this, I realize I don’t have the skill (or perhaps it is not possible) to convey how important this radio program was to the people that listened to it every monring. But, fortunately, I have some oral history that might come close.

You can read the introduction to the song book by station manager Paul C. Jones, after the jump.

So here we are sixty years later (gulp!) and it ain’t your father’s radio anymore. I have no illusions about returning to those days. But as I listen to the men that built KBOA talk about their love of radio (I’m not sure they would have said “the business” of radio)… I wonder if that same passion still exists today. I’m not in many stations these days so the flame might be burning brightly and I would not know. I’ve turned the comments on for this post for those than might.

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Website: Expense or investment?

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Mark Ramsey poses the following questions to broadcasters:

1. Is the purpose of your website just to put online what is already on the air, or is it something else?
2. Are we investing the necessary resources and talent in the development of our website, or are we having an intern update stuff in his spare time?
3. Are we giving people what they go to our station for in all its shapes and sizes on the web? Or are we offering one stream and a bunch of photos of our personalities?
4. If the content described in this article (Fast Company) can generate considerable traffic, can we convert that traffic to revenue? If so, why aren’t we investing for traffic instead of seeing our websites as expensive necessities?
5. If we keep crowing about how “local” our radio station is, exactly how does our website express that or service that?

Chicken LittleA couple of days ago, a broadcaster called me for advice on possible speakers/topics for an association meeting next spring. She wanted someone to come talk to them about “new media.” I asked her why?

“Uh, we need to figure out how to make some more money.” Or words to that effect.

I imagined thirsty villagers taking buckets and empty containers to a nearby well in hopes of finding water for their thirsty families.

I suggested that before you’d have anything to sell (to advertisers), you’d need to build an audience and that would take time and money. An investment.

“No, our owners won’t let us spend any money. We need to find some more money. That’s why we were thinking about the Internet.”

To completely exhaust the metaphor… if you don’t have the will or the resources to drill a new well… pray for rain.

Google (still) moving into radio

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“Web search leader Google Inc. is hiring scores of radio sales people and is spending heavily in a bid to expand its position in the $20 billion radio industry. Google spokesman Michael Mayzel said this week that the company will begin a public test of Google Audio Ads by the end of the year. Advertisers will be able to go online and sign up for targeted radio ads using the same AdWords system they use to buy Web search ads.” — Reuters

Thirty years of election coverage

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The first election covered by The Missourinet (a network owned by the company I work for) was in 1976. News Director Bob Priddy orchestrated that first election night and every one since. Prior to The Missourinet, radio stations throughout the state focused on local races and relied on the wire services for news and numbers from throughout the state.

The Missourinet brought the sounds of election night from the state capitol and campaign headquarters throughout Missouri to the hometown audiences of our affiliates.

The technology has changed… and is changing… but insight and understanding Missourinet reporters bring to their election night coverage remains the focus of their reporting. Bob reflects on the past 30 years in this 10 minute video.

Should Google buy Clear Channel?

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Article in AdAge briefly explores that question. The phrase that jumped out of the story at me was, “automated sale of remnant ads.”

“Right now, through Google’s year-ago acquisition of dMarc, a radio systems company, it has been able to create an automated way to sell what is mostly remnant radio inventory, which remains unsold until the last minute. But, noted Mr. Bank, Google Audio is making several high-profile hires in the radio sales field in major radio markets. Now why, if Google Audio’s selling of remnant ad time is so automated, would there need to be so many high-priced radio ad sales folks.”

I’m pretty sure a big chunk of my salary for the past 20 years has come from acquiring and selling “remnant radio inventory.” Should companies that trade services for commercials on radio stations (we call it barter) be concerned about this? My guess is most station managers would rather have cash for his unsold commercials.

The Google-Clear Channel idea is an interesting one. CC has lot of stations and Google has figured some things out about advertising.