RADIO RADIO

I love my job. I really do. Every day, I get to sit around with a bunch of talented, funny people talking about things that matter, and things that don’t. I meet lots of celebrities, go to interesting places, and start every day with laughter. And I do this for a living, meaning I actually get paid for my efforts. People ask me how I manage to get up so early every day (3:30 A.M!) but honestly? I don’t mind it a bit. There’s no other shift I’d rather do. Mornings are key in radio, and besides, I’m a strong napper.

That being said, it is NOT the easiest job in the world, although we try to make it seem that way. Plenty of people think they have a radio show in them, just as they have a book in them, but as any successful novelist will tell you, good stories don’t just come to you on the wind. In radio, you have to churn through a lot of content, read and watch everything you can, be informed, have an opinion, be funny but not too offensive, not go too long or too short, and hit the post in the song on your way out. Furthermore, you have to do it before most people have rubbed the crusty bits from their eyes. It takes a fair amount of effort to make it sound effortless.

What’s more, radio, like any medium, can be a particularly cruel business. It’s very hard to get into. You often have to move around a lot, working in small markets to get experience. It’s lonely. and often leads to substance abuse and divorce. It doesn’t pay very well, unless you are at the very top of the scale. And you will inevitably get fired, at least once. When you DO get fired, especially if you’re on air, it won’t necessarily be because the company is going in a new direction, or whatever blather they offer you. It will essentially be because people, meaning listeners, didn’t like you that much, or didn’t care enough to listen to you in numbers large enough to justify your salary. Yes, it’s personal, and it stings.

Am I whining? I don’t mean to, largely because I’ve managed to avoid getting fired, though luck, circumstance and, occasionally, some expensive legal advice. I’ve never had to work anywhere but my hometown. I met my husband through work, and we have stayed married, despite the odds. And I love my current employers. As Christian Bale would say:

Yes, good for me. I am very grateful and a little bit proud to be eking out a living in this ridiculous business. And I would encourage young people to try to do the same, but only if they really really want it. I’m not even sure radio will be around much longer in its present form: between the internet, self-driving cars, and just the fractured nature of personal entertainment in general, broadcasting is evolving into something else entirely. I DO know that people will always want to connect, especially in the morning. They will always want a friendly voice, or face, coming at them through a box, a screen, or as a 3D hologram, keeping them informed, making them laugh, telling bad jokes.

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