from Jacobs Media
Broadcast radio is often criticized for its quantity of commercials, especially during the medium’s modern era where music stations almost universally only run two (long) stopsets per hour. But it’s the QUALITY of radio ads – especially locally – that have made radio more vulnerable to other ad platforms. At CES 2025, we saw AI models focused on producing quality commercials efficiently and effectively. Maybe the bots can help radio solve what has become a chronic problem and a glaring deficit.
Read MoreHow can broadcast radio best be described in 2025 – in just a single word? That was the challenge I issued here earlier this week, and hundreds of you answered the bell. The result is a word cloud – or word salad – that has to be seen to be believed. It depicts an industry in flux, and a study in contrasts by the current and former pros who submitted a response. What does it mean? Anything and everything.
Read MoreWhat are the values that drive listening in today’s crowded audio environment? Is it about being live and/or local? Does music curation matter? What about breaking new music and discovering new artists? In 2025, many of the elements originally foundational for broadcast radio have been altered by the ravages of digital competition. Or have they? Apple Music is testing the boundaries, a radio experiment worth watching. It’s the topic for today’s blog post.
Read MoreOn this MLK Day holiday, a simple question for you. How would you describe the year ahead for radio in just one word? Click “READ MORE” and i’ll take it from here.
Read MoreWe’ve spent a good chunk of the week finalizing the themes and compiling content from our trip to CES as we prepare for the annual…
Read More“Is rock dead?” That’s a question radio and label execs as well as music critics have been debating for years. And how do they explain the classic rock phenomenon, a sub-genre of rock that has kept the music alive and popular? In today’s JacoBLOG, we not only let the data do the talking, but we turn over the conversation to analysts who have made it their mission to better understand music’s impact on pop culture – and on US. Get ready to nerd out.
Read MoreSince Donald Trump took that fateful ride down that escalator in Trump Tower back in 2015, the news cycle in this country has been greatly altered. “Breaking news” is persistent, forcing news organizations to redefine their coverage parameters. And that’s true whether we’re talking commercial, public, Christian, music, or spoken word radio. What is the audience telling us about broadcast radio’s “job to be done” in this rapidly changing environment?
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Broadcast radio is often criticized for its quantity of commercials, especially during the medium’s modern era where music stations almost universally only run two (long) stopsets per hour. But it’s the QUALITY of radio ads – especially locally – that have made radio more vulnerable to other ad platforms. At CES 2025, we saw AI models focused on producing quality commercials efficiently and effectively. Maybe the bots can help radio solve what has become a chronic problem and a glaring deficit.
Read MoreHow can broadcast radio best be described in 2025 – in just a single word? That was the challenge I issued here earlier this week, and hundreds of you answered the bell. The result is a word cloud – or word salad – that has to be seen to be believed. It depicts an industry in flux, and a study in contrasts by the current and former pros who submitted a response. What does it mean? Anything and everything.
Read MoreWhat are the values that drive listening in today’s crowded audio environment? Is it about being live and/or local? Does music curation matter? What about breaking new music and discovering new artists? In 2025, many of the elements originally foundational for broadcast radio have been altered by the ravages of digital competition. Or have they? Apple Music is testing the boundaries, a radio experiment worth watching. It’s the topic for today’s blog post.
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