Radio has never been known as a stable career, but these days, job security is an oxymoron. And it’s just radio. Employees across the spectrum are less likely to work for the same companies before moving on to the next opportunity. What does all this mean to the overall forecast for radio as in industry? Fewer say they’ll spend the rest of their careers in radio, another factor that makes the business even shakier.

In a tough 2024, radio has quietly made something of a comeback this month – its version of an “October Surprise.” And when you total up some of the amazing things that have happened on the radio airwaves this month, it’s a great reminder about how impactful the medium can still be.

It was inevitable.  Earlier this week Fred Jacobs tipped me off to a streaming radio station where all of the content is created by AI. Every song, every production element in the stream was created by an engine like Suno.AI or Udio. After listening for a while, it’s apparent that even though the content was all newly-created AI-audio, the songs and overall…

Anytime I see a legacy media brand stage a comeback, I don’t just get celebratory. Or nostalgic. Instead, I dig in to try to figure out how they did it. Once such triumph recently occurred for a magazine that was first launched in 1857 – before the Civil War. The fact it’s enjoying great success in 2024, a trying time for all media – makes it worthy of our time.

The relative health of the radio broadcasting industry is always a hot topic and a subject of much debate. But back in October of 2020, those conversations were being overshadowed by the pandemic, an event that even back then we knew would be a game changer. Four years ago, it was a different world – but not really. I think when you take a look back with me, you’ll gain some perspective about where we are now as an industry. And even better, you won’t have to social distance or wear a mask!