Ask a radio programming director anything

32 Questions

Last Answer on July 22, 2019

Do radio stations have to pay royalties or licencing fees to the artists in order to play their songs on the radio?

Asked by dan79 about 11 years ago

Hi dan79! It works this way...all stations are required at different intervals of the year to submit a log of every song they play including the composor/writer. These logs then get turned in to BMI or ASCAP (whoever is requesting the logging). Logging is required by law & the station then must perform the logging as per their request & it must be accurate. If a certain song is played a lot the royalties can be large & rewarding for the artist. The type of song (pop, old, rap, country etc) does not matter...all songs must be logged. While stations have various methods of logging, the end result is the... Read More +

1377 Votes

Why do stations in every major market use the same 'slogan' or word in their title or before their call letters? Like, every city I've lived in has a Q---, or a station that goes by "Mix---", or "xxxx, The Rock"? Are all the "Q's" affiliated?

Asked by Al about 11 years ago

Good question Al...these are more strategic names than slogans. A slogan might be "The greatest hits" while the name could be Q-104.5....Stations use these names because they are easy to remember, give you quick info about what they do & sound cool. Let's face it...Q-104.5 is easier to say & remember than WXWX! This is very common in any market size...large, medium or small. A station might use "mix 106" as it says who they are along with what you might expect...in that case a mix of different music. Slogans & names do not mean they are affiliated. You may hear a "Rock 93.1" near you & another with the same name in the... Read More +

1289 Votes

Have you ever worked at a station with someone who went on to be famous?

Asked by Nicki1997 about 11 years ago

Hi Nicki1997! If by famous you mean known country wide as opposed to only a certain part of the country yes...it has happened. Most recently that I recall was someone joining CBS news. It has happened the other way around too where we have hired someone who would be considered famous. It's not an everyday event but it does indeed happen. Appreciate the question...thanks!

1262 Votes

Is the best talent these days on terrestrial radio or Sirius? Can terrestrial possibly match the huge contracts you hear about Stern and other famous radio personalities getting?

Asked by lolDUKE about 11 years ago

Greetings lolDUKE! "Best" is usually a matter of opinion but there are some talents you can hear on both terrestrial radio & Sirus/XM. Broadway Bill Lee for example is on Sirus/XM as well as WCBS-FM in NYC at different times of the day. Depending on budget & talent, there are indeed terrestrial stations offering very nice contracts to various talents across the country. There are of course plenty of very talented people who work without a contract & are paid very nicely as well. An example would be a talent that has worked with a contract in a large market until the end of... Read More +

1175 Votes

Also on Jobstr...

Call Center Employee (Retail)

Do you think it's just a matter of time before all U.S. companies move their customer support overseas?

HR Executive

How do you feel about employees working remotely?

Flight Attendant

How do you handle belligerent passengers?

What did you think of the whole Don Imus nappy-headed-hoes scandal? I'm not saying the guy's a humanitarian, but that just felt like a guy getting completely railroaded.

Asked by JimDuensich about 11 years ago

JimDuensich - I think Don himself summed it up very well with his apology as stated here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don_Imus

Will I still catch his show when I get the chance? Sure...life goes forward not backward.

Thanks for the question!

1171 Votes

Both Adam Carolla and Jimmy Kimmel used to work in radio and they often describe the management folks in radio as extraordinarily stubborn and mired in the "old way" of doing things. Do you agree? Is radio stuck in the stone age, philosophically?

Asked by MANSHOW about 11 years ago

Hi Mainshow..I started in radio in the stone age (LOL) & clearly remember what stations sounded like & what they did in my market. While there are some stations that try to bring back this type of format, they still have to compete & be progressive on & off the air. Radio, like anything else is a business that needs to be with the times in order to survive. That does not mean playing current music necessarily...an oldies station may play older tunes, but they too need to be on top of current things going on in their market. Some "old school" rules still apply because they are successful & they work but every station... Read More +

1169 Votes

What's your insider's take on how good a radio host Howard Stern is? Is he objectively GOOD? Or is he just a shock jock type who was in the right place at the right time and blew into the stratosphere?

Asked by Stern almost 11 years ago

I don't think anyone could argue that he is successful...whether being successful means you are good is opinion. It's true I am in the same business but that doesn't mean my opinion is worth more than anyone else's. In other words, if you are wondering if I can look "objectively" & find something that discredits him or makes him "not good" I cannot. He may have been in the right place at the right time a long time ago but his talents have taken him where he wants to be. We all kind of need to be in the right place to get going. Howard is a radio personality that builds an audience & knows the business.... Read More +

1138 Votes

Showing 1 - 7

Show All

21 More Answers by Radio program/music director

1 2 3 4 5

Next 7 Answers

Radio program/music director

Ask me anything!

What do YOU do?

Do radio stations have to pay royalties or licencing fees to the artists in order to play their songs on the radio?

Why do stations in every major market use the same 'slogan' or word in their title or before their call letters? Like, every city I've lived in has a Q---, or a station that goes by "Mix---", or "xxxx, The Rock"? Are all the "Q's" affiliated?

Have you ever worked at a station with someone who went on to be famous?

Is the best talent these days on terrestrial radio or Sirius? Can terrestrial possibly match the huge contracts you hear about Stern and other famous radio personalities getting?

Also on Jobstr...

What did you think of the whole Don Imus nappy-headed-hoes scandal? I'm not saying the guy's a humanitarian, but that just felt like a guy getting completely railroaded.

Both Adam Carolla and Jimmy Kimmel used to work in radio and they often describe the management folks in radio as extraordinarily stubborn and mired in the "old way" of doing things. Do you agree? Is radio stuck in the stone age, philosophically?

What's your insider's take on how good a radio host Howard Stern is? Is he objectively GOOD? Or is he just a shock jock type who was in the right place at the right time and blew into the stratosphere?

Radio program/music director

Ask me anything!

What do YOU do?

Do radio stations have to pay royalties or licencing fees to the artists in order to play their songs on the radio?

Why do stations in every major market use the same 'slogan' or word in their title or before their call letters? Like, every city I've lived in has a Q---, or a station that goes by "Mix---", or "xxxx, The Rock"? Are all the "Q's" affiliated?

Have you ever worked at a station with someone who went on to be famous?

Is the best talent these days on terrestrial radio or Sirius? Can terrestrial possibly match the huge contracts you hear about Stern and other famous radio personalities getting?

Also on Jobstr...

What did you think of the whole Don Imus nappy-headed-hoes scandal? I'm not saying the guy's a humanitarian, but that just felt like a guy getting completely railroaded.

Both Adam Carolla and Jimmy Kimmel used to work in radio and they often describe the management folks in radio as extraordinarily stubborn and mired in the "old way" of doing things. Do you agree? Is radio stuck in the stone age, philosophically?

What's your insider's take on how good a radio host Howard Stern is? Is he objectively GOOD? Or is he just a shock jock type who was in the right place at the right time and blew into the stratosphere?

Login

Forgot Your Password?

Register