What is the business of public radio?

I’d like to cover three things in this presentation:

• A brief history of radio
• The current challenges to public radio.
• Three possible futures of public radio.

Slideshow
at Slideshare

[slideshare
id=1092718&doc=rossreynoldsevtrendsfinalpresentation-090302203809-phpapp02]

Radio was a disruptive medium. For the first time a voice could speak to
the entire nation in real time.

What was radio for? Education? Entertainment? To help citizens make
better decisions? Who should decide? Became commercially supported,
unlike in other countries, where it was felt this was too powerful for
anyone but government to control.

Government became a referee – merely assuring technical standards so
frequencies wouldn’t collide. But the desire to have radio serve the
public became embodied on broadcast law.

From the 1920’s – 1950’s radio was the pre-eminent form of media. It
connected a larger audience, the biggest entertainers had network shows,
evangelists, political demagogues siezed on the power of the medium.

By mid century TV began to take hold. Radio adapted – more local, more
music, fewer national programs.

• FM was originally developed in 1933.
  It provided a clearer, noise free signal compared to AM. But it
  required a new radio. Languished in early years except for at
  college and University radio stations. As part of their mission to edify
  the masses these stations broadcast classical music, which took full
  advantage of FM’s superior sound quality.
• In 1940 educational broadcasters succeeded in getting the Federal
  Communications Commission to set aside channels on the left hand end of
  the FM dial. There were rules – no commercials.
• 1960s social and cultural upheavel. Rise of underground FM radio
  brought many new listeners.

Then came public radio:

• 1967 the Carnegie Foundation funded a landmark report calling for
  public radio and TV. Congress authorized the Corporation for Public
  Broadcasting, which in turn set up National Public Rado.
• The manager of a Buffalo New York public radio station Bill
  Siemering wrote a consensus statement for National Public Radio’s
  purpose.
  

  “National Public Radio will serve the individual; it will promote
  personal growth; it will regard the individual differences among men
  with respect and joy rather than derision and hate; it will celebrate
  human experience as infinitely varied rather than vacuous and banal; it
  will encourage a sense of active constructive participation, rather than
  apathetic helplessness.”

  The goal was that broadcasting for a a higher goal, to help citizens
  understand their world.

• 1972 the first NPR show ALL THINGS CONSIDERED, followed by MORNING
  EDITION. A huge success. Today 26 million tune in to NPR through member
  stations.
• Surveys show public radio a highly trusted news source.
• Primarily funded through voluntary listener support from people who
  could listen for free. About 1 in 10 subscribe.
• But audience growth last 5 years static.
• In late 2008 and early 2009 many stations have missed revenue
  projections and have cut staff.
• National Public Radio announced in late 2008 it was laying off 7% of
  its staff and dropping two programs.
• The Corporation for Public Broadcasting estimates that public radio
  revenue will drop by 13% in fiscal 2009.
• The median age for public radio listeners is rising. For example
  KUOW-FM in Seattle has seen the listener median age rise from 40 in 1993
  to 50 in 2008. The upward trend has been steady.

Questions:

• How can public radio stations grow their audience?
• What do WE do? What is our essence? We do radio? We do audio? We
  gather and sort information, we interview, edit and produce. Right now
  we happen to reach most people through radio. Is our business radio? If
  so, we’re doing great, strong loyal audience. If you think we’re in the
  information business, our status is less clear. The web is a new
  formidable competitor for anyone seeking to provide in-depth news and
  information. It sets a new standard. The web allows people to get and
  send information whenever, wherever and from whomever they want.

Recommendation:

Public radio stations must re-imagine themselves as
providers of high quality news and information on all platforms, not
just radio.

• Re-purposing broadcast content for the Internet.
• Make it easy for station radio programming to be embedded in blogs
  and web sites.
• Build a community through social media