We got our wish

I was just doing a spot for a station rep who explained that a 20 donut hole was going to be filled by the client doing a personal read. When I asked whether they'd be coming down to the studio to cut it and what kind of read they were, the rep just said, 'they have a computer, a microphone and a small home recording program. They'll do it at home, mp3 it to us, and we'll sweeten it here.' While the technology and simplicity is truly amazing, I got a slight pang of sorrow. Here's why.

Used to be, that being 'on the air' was a big deal. Maybe not to us-- after a while radio pros get jaded about the mystique. However, to the 'civilians' (the listeners), whether we knew it or not, there was a magic to being on the air.

At one time, we treated it that way too. We used to hire professionals to do the shows, not just anyone off the street. People who were callers one week, never became show hosts the next. Plus, if a client wanted to voice their own spot, they would come to the station, and a producer would monitor the spots. It was special.

Along came corporate radio with sweeping changes, including an attitude that was all business, very little entertainment, and all about the bottom line. Now, anyone could be on air--and certainly, if a client wanted to, they could just phone in their read. They never had to see the station. What that meant was, we showed everyone the man behind the curtain-- and the magic disappeared.

Today, for about $500, anyone can have a home studio and, in fact, run their own show on the internet. We got our wish-- we demystified the business, making it pedestrian and ordinary. We showed the world that anyone could be on the air-- that it didn't take skill, experience, talent or even the ability to communicate clearly. The audience and the clients got the message.

We got our wish--- radio today is easy and impersonal. However, the magic is gone. Our loss.