Welcome to #TBT and a 10-year trip back to the past where I visited with a famous radio on-air icon. It was 2014, and I had just returned from Morning Show Boot Camp 26 in Chicago where I saw him tell the revealing and often soul-bearing story of his long, challenging, and precarious rise to the big time. Ten years later, it holds up very well.

As our entertainment options proliferate, it has become incumbent on content creators to be mindful of how they can stand out in an ever-increasing crowd. The dual battles for attention and for ears are real, putting pressure on us to make our brands distinctly different – or pay the price. Today’s blog post quotes a television icon with wisdom, sarcasm, and wit to get us going. So, what makes you think you’re so special?

Today brother Paul takes control of the JacoBLOG keyboard. It’s an ambitious post about the state of radio digital transformation. It’s a tough read, but an important one we hope will stimulate thought, criticism, and new ideas. Change is hard. But not changing is even harder.

As the political season hits high gear this fall, pundits are looking for the key word(s) that sum up the vibe of the country. More and more, it is looking like “joy” fits the bill, and today’s post not only discusses its impact but illustrates how any radio station can lean into it. Just click on READ MORE to feel the joy.

As the media world becomes increasingly more crowded, a legacy medium – like radio – might have to re-establish its core mission. Guest blogger, Edison Research’s Larry Rosin, has new data to shaare to help us better determine “What was radio ‘made for?'” It’s a good read.