Scourge Of The Pundits Based on what’s being put out lately, I must presume there are severely slim pickin’s for the cadre of coaches, consultants, and corporate programmers out here. Besides all the retreads of admonitions that are over 50 years old, there hasn’t been much in the way of newer, interesting, or more effective strategies being provided for on-air talent and copywriters.
The more recent offering from one of the better-known programming honchos has been about on-air etiquette. – as if that was a thing. Essentially, he droans on about the need for the on-air gang to respond – in the most pleasant of nine-nice ways to the comments coming in from listeners through the phones, social media or carrier pigeon.
Doing so, it is purported, will enhance the positive experience of the listeners – as if they remember they made a comment and are tuned in when the on-air response is eventually given,
Now, I don’t mind responding to listener input so long as it is semi-cogent and has some semblance of grammatical solidarity. Adjudicating the quality of listener feedback can be a tedious and frustrating chore. It also carries with it the danger of the talent becoming jaded right smartly and wondering, “Who
are these slugs?”
Further, talent is encouraged to make nice with the other performers at the station, especially on the air. Whether they are engaged in dust-ups in the parking lot between shifts, everything between them, so far as a listener is concerned, is just peachy and going along swimmingly.
That a pundit would have to strangle this cat openly in the first place leaves me somewhat confused and perplexed. Am I to understand this little chat is necessary?
Further, and unless it was implied and I missed it, there were no references to ”couth”. For me, as it applies to performing on-air, couth has always been a subjective term, brimming over with nuances and vagaries. Those of us who toiled by “talkin’ dirty and playin’ the Hits were always operating at the abyss of crossing over and falling into raging poor form or abject nastiness, rudeness and callousness. It was a line many of us tap-danced around while some of us outright stomped on.
I am reminded of a chat I had with my PD.:
(PD) “Have you no couth?”
(Me) I have lots of f***in’ couth.”
(PD) “You get very rude on the air.”
(Me) “That’s part of the job. But I do have f***in’ couth - oozing from my pores and falling out of my ass.”
(PD) “But you are upsetting some listeners.”
(Me) So, are we running a Christian retreat and phustercluck?”
(PD) I am glad we could have this little chat.”
Meanwhile, talent is roaming the halls trying to avoid any eye contact with their PD’s while being utterly ill-prepared to take on a contemporary radio audience. They have yet to be educated on the basics, never mind the subtleties and nuances of broadcast communications. Then they are expected to produce meaningful verbalizations to an audience that is starving for anything with substance and worthwhile content.
Someday they might also learn the techniques of delivering those uncouth mutterings in ways that actually make them acceptable to their audiences. It can be done.
Today’s priority, however, is to make especially nice to the audience and to respond, without malice or sarcasm, to their highly valued and appreciated commentaries. Control rooms all over the country are going to have to start supplying complimentary barf bags.
Please note: I am inviting reader comments to be sent to my email address (below).
Ronald T. Robinson
info@voicetalentguy.com