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		Volume 7, Issue 2 In this issue:
Stations Across The Country Have PSA Rotation, Despite No FCC Requirement To Do So Heat from FCC Fuels Firing On Radio Making the Case for Education Radio Reaches Out to the Growing Hispanic Audience The Politics of Politics

STATIONS ACROSS THE COUNTRY HAVE PSA ROTATION, DESPITE NO FCC REQUIREMENT TO DO SO

by Lynn Harris Medcalf

A new survey of 50 randomly sampled radio PSA directors in the top-50 markets, finds that 100% of stations surveyed have public service announcement rotation, with 78% having between one and ten PSA slots to fill in a typical week. Thirty percent of stations now use MP3s exclusively for the PSA content, with 46% still requesting CDs. Twenty-four percent of stations use exclusively copy and have their local on-air talent voice the PSAs.

Public service announcements (PSAs) are produced audio reports or written scripts, generally running :15, :30 and :45 in length that are generated for on-air use by radio stations and/or networks to promote a specific social message aimed at increasing public awareness or having listeners take action about a particular issue. Through PSAs, organizations can build and increase their image and stations can provide important information regarding compelling social issues to their audiences. Fifty randomly sampled stations in the top-50 markets were interviewed in August of 2004.

In 1996, the FCC dropped the licensing requirement that each station should provide substantial evidence of public service as a requirement of renewal. Despite the fact that stations are now not required to prove how they serve the public good, many, if not most stations, still provide public service content to their listeners on a regular basis. In fact, 100% of the stations surveyed said that to make it into rotation, a public service announcement must address an issue that is prevalent in their local community.

HEAT FROM FCC FUELS FIRING ON RADIO

by Martha Sharan

As we continue our ongoing look at the actions of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), we find that the organization is undergoing an enforcement wave of its policies to protect consumers and cracking down on broadcast companies and their programming. Radio companies are being fined heavily for on-air content considered unacceptable, obscene and offensive. In turn, radio personalities are being fired with many companies imposing "zero tolerance" policies.

With so much enforcement activity, the state of some radio stations is one of fear. Companies are afraid of losing licenses and DJs are censoring themselves for fear of crossing the line and winding up unemployed.

Here's the latest update on the FCC's crusade against broadcast indecency:

• August 12, 2004 — Emmis Communications agreed to pay $300,000 to resolve indecency complaints the FCC had been investigating

• July 22, 2004 — Tommy Smith, longtime Little Rock morning radio personality was fired by employer Clear Channel Communications — "zero tolerance" on radio indecency was the reason given

• June 22, 2004 — By a 99-1 margin, the US Senate approved an amendment that dramatically increases a radio company's fines from $27,500 to $275,000 for a single indecency incident? and slaps an $11,000 fine on-air talent, for a maximum of $3 million a day per on-air personality

• June 9, 2004 — Clear Channel Communications paid the U.S. Treasury $1.75 million for all indecency charges and other general complaints by listeners "

• May 13, 2004 — Two Portland morning DJs, "Marconi" and "Tiny" were fired for airing the audio portion of the Nick Berg execution in Iraq adding musical accompaniment and laughter to the horrific incident.

In fact, that last incident has the FCC looking at broadening the term "indecency" because technically airing the audio from the Berg beheading the way the KNRK-FM morning show did, doesn't fall under the FCC's definition of indecency — "language or material that, in context, depicts or describes, in terms patently offensive, as measured by contemporary community standards, sexual or excretory organs or activities." But, the FCC says, tougher enforcement and stiffer fines, may have awakened the conscience of the station's owner, Entercom Radio, to police itself and take matters into its own hands, and that's the result it hopes to have on other radio companies.

With the presidential election in November, where do the candidates stand on the issue of radio indecency?

President Bush supports tougher fines. The FCC, under the Bush Administration, has levied large fines against broadcast companies breaking indecency laws.

Senator John Kerry also supports tougher fines. As a member of the Sub-Committee on Communications, he voted to toughen standards of decency and punish stations, via fines or loss of license, that don't abide by it.

So, it appears the FCC has the green light to keep the pressure on and continue to "clean up" an industry that some believe has pushed beyond the boundaries of good taste into indecent programming. Stay tuned for more updates in future newsletters.

MAKING THE CASE FOR EDUCATION

by Susan Matthews Apgood

Just two weeks after the American Federation of Teachers' (AFT) annual conference in Washington, D.C., delegates traveled to Boston for the Democratic National Convention. Education has always been a critical issue, especially during election time. So for the AFT Convention, state presidents from the AFT reported back to their states via radio interviews about the annual salary survey released for the convention, then hit the road for Boston.

The airwaves were still reverberating from those first interviews, when just two weeks later, a whole new round of interviews took place from Boston. This time, the interviews matched Democratic delegates and members of the AFT attending the convention with local areas they represent in home states and cities to discuss the Democratic Party's education proposals.

The delegates were pitched to stations and networks in advance of the Democratic Convention in Boston to discuss Senator John Kerry's education proposal released on Monday, July 26, 2004. The outlined plan fully funds the No Child Left Behind Act and recognizes that teachers deserve respect, should be well and fairly compensated, and need support from parents and communities in doing the important work of educating our nation's children.

A total of 30 interviews were completed on the morning of Monday, July 26. There were more than 11 and a half million listeners, and there were a total of 5,724 airings of the interviews on 3,926 stations and network affiliates across the United States. Interviews were completed nationally on Associated Press Broadcast, USA Radio Network and statewide networks in Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Iowa, Ohio Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin, as well as top news and news-talk stations in key markets.

The AFT represents more than 1.3 million pre-K through 12th-grade teachers, paraprofessionals and other school support employees, higher education faculty, nurses and other healthcare workers, and state and local government employees.

RADIO REACHES OUT TO THE GROWING
HISPANIC AUDIENCE

by Lynn Harris Medcalf

During the 1990s, Hispanics became the fastest growing minority in America. During that time, the Latino suburban population grew 71 percent. As many as 18 metro areas across the country have been called "hypergrowth destinations." In each of these 18 locations, the Hispanic population grew by more than 300 percent—or twice the national Hispanic population average—after 1980. Altogether, the combined Hispanic population of all these metros jumped 505 percent between 1980 and 2000, making Hispanics 13 percent of the total population.

Given the explosive growth of the Hispanic population, radio has rushed to fill the need for programming for Hispanics. With over 600 Spanish-language stations and networks in the country, there is great potential to reach the Hispanic population via radio. According to Arbitron, "radio is a medium of steady popularity among Hispanic Americans" with listenership to every Spanish-language formatted station remaining steady or rising over the past five years.

To reach out to Hispanic listeners, there is information you can be armed with to ensure the best possible results. The following are tips to maximize your radio outreach to Hispanic radio:

1. If you have an English-language script that you want to modify for the Hispanic population, always have a native speaker translate the script. Doing a direct translation via translation services or worse, computer programs, will often not be sensitive to cultural traditions or meanings. Having a native speaker translate ensures that your message gets to the Hispanic population in the most accurate and meaningful way.

2. Ensure that pitching and follow up are completed by a fluent Spanish speaker. This will ensure that the stations fully understand the story and the pitcher is able to explain the relevance to the Hispanic community.

3. There are as many formats of Hispanic language stations as there are English counterparts. Hispanic stations, like all stations, are looking for stories that are relevant to their audience so carefully target your campaigns to the appropriate age and demographic of listener you want within the Hispanic market. A list of formats, is included on this website.

4. Be aware of trends in Hispanic radio and how your story will fit in. Simply translating an English script without providing context for the Hispanic audience will often not yield the results you are looking for. Use statistics that affect the Hispanic audience specifically.

Be aware of trends in Hispanic radio and how your story will fit in. Simply translating an English script without providing context for the Hispanic audience will often not yield the results you are looking for. Use statistics that affect the Hispanic audience specifically.

A member of News Generation media relations team, "A combination of script and pitch customization , along with knowledge of the radio station formats, their audience demographic and their proportion of East and West Coast listeners, pitched by a native Spanish speaking person can truly make the difference in effective communication to the Hispanic population in the US."

The states with the largest number of Spanish Language Stations include: 1. Texas 167; 2. California 159; 3. Florida 51; 4. Arizona 26; 5. New Mexico 22; 6. North Carolina 20; 7. Washington 18; 8. New York 17; 9. Tennessee 14; and 10. Georgia 14.

For more information on how popular and dynamic Hispanic radio listening is, please visit Arbitron's study at www.arbitron.com/downloads/hispanicradiotoday04.pdf.

THE POLITICS OF POLITICS

by Curt Gill

With the pending presidential elections, the political climate has been raised dramatically in the country, but what political stories are being heard on radio? Radio stations are apt to discuss policy with groups who might have political objectives, as long as there is a strong local tie to their state and issues affecting their listener. Issues concerning the status of our schools and students, concerns over prescription drug costs and stories about the ongoing conflict in Iraq have all played very well since they speak to issues that affect listeners in their daily lives.

Radio stations recognize that their listeners are directly affected by these topics regardless of the parties affiliated with the source. Viable data that directly relates to a specific area and population will provide the best avenues to get your message on the air.

The challenges in pitching that we have encountered involve the more controversial or political topics that may not always have a local connection. To help our clients in developing a story with a politically affiliated message, there are a few simple guidelines that will help craft your message:

1. How do I determine if my politically related story will play on radio? Take a look at the content of the story. The story should address issues important to listeners in the audience. Stories occurring thousands of miles away do not always generate this type of response, but local schools and the varying viewpoints on the best interests of the students will score every time.

2. How do I hone my story to make it more attractive to radio stations? The most important point is to localize the story as much as possible. If the story can be refined with localized stats, even on a statewide level, this helps dramatically. In lieu of that, a local spokesperson can really help. If the story is concerning a topic that is happening on a national level, find a spokesperson who can address the topic on a local stage and is willing to support that topic locally. "If it can happen there, it can happen here."

3. How do I present a story without a perceived political bias? Let the facts speak for themselves. Try not to appear to be presenting an opinion piece, but instead provide information that does not need to be affiliated with any political group, like statistics and survey data. The focus should remain on the story itself and not the group supporting it. It is much easier to win that coveted air space with a pocketful of raw data supporting an argument.

Keep it simple. Make sure that if you are going to have a topic that is politically charged, you have facts to support your argument and that the facts have a local connection when possible. Reporters are no different than any other average hard working American. They want to know how the information being provided is going impact them or their families.

Tuning In newsletter is produced and distributed bi-annually.  The goal of the newsletter is to educate clients on radio trends and industry tips, as well as highlight case studies and release survey information.