Thinking about your radio station or the ones you’ve worked for in the past, the truly great, successful ones very likely had a “standard bearer,” that one personality who stood out above the pack. In today’s competitive information and entertainment environment, they’ve never been more important to the success of the operation. In “listener speak,” the question is, “Who do you want to have a beer with?”

Have you heard about the Google Home glitch that prevented most radio streams from working—for weeks? Neither had I until consultant James Cridland surfaced the problem in his “Radioland” newsletter over the weekend. It’s a cautionary tale for radio broadcasters, especially when most PDs are wearing multiple hats while trying to ensure quality on a growing number of devices and platforms. How can we prevent these glitches from becoming disasters while ensuring there’s no “next time?”

The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland is as well-known for its controversial omissions and inclusions as it is for the music that originally put the place on the map. And now, a new campaign to promote the induction of a musician, performer, and “Renaissance man of all media” who has been systematically ignored by the Rock Hall. Perhaps next year, this oversight will finally be corrected.

There I was at 35,000 feet over Nebraska when I spotted a Mashable article on Twitter with this title: “Old, boring radio remains strong—but this app wants to change that,” complete with a sepia-tone photo from the 1940s featuring a family listening to old time radio. So today’s #TBT blog post is a message to all those media, tech, and entertainment reporters who just love to take that cheap shot at radio.

Radio has enjoyed long periods throughout its storied past where habitual listening became deeply rooted in the American psyche. But in recent years, big historical moments like COVID have spurred behavioral and perceptual shifts that are significant. In today’s post, I’ve picked out three areas where the data suggest consumers are modifying their lives—and perhaps their radio listening. See if you agree with my logic and let me know how these shifts impact your ongoing success.