Dear Radio Executive:

Some I've spoken to this week who are outsiders to our business, the professional media writers, the financial analysts and even the private equity funders actually and unanimously think that Hurricane Katrina was such an important event for traditional radio that the story has revived our industry to some extent!

I was appalled at the insinuation but after some thought and after putting myself on the sidelines where all of these folks are sitting, I can sort of understand their shallow perceptions.

Indeed, the news cycle that many news/talk managers have been discussing over the last few months got a shot in the arm. Bridge Ratings has just completed a long-term study of talk radio listeners to determine why the format has been experiencing softer shares in some markets. One of the problems was an uninteresting news cycle resulting in non-compelling talk radio. Katrina gave it a boost.

The massive hurricane destruction and all of the human drama provided a revitalization to radio overall primarily because it gave the industry focus and renewed purpose to do what it does best - providing solid reporting and information quickly and frequently.

However, radio has a problem it can't shake and that is that in general terms it finds it difficult to invent or provide new programming or content that is compelling and magnetizes the audience to it. Radio still does the best job of any media organization at covering stories just like Katrina, but as the story of the greatest natural disaster to hit the U.S. begins to return to more normalcy, radio will likely find itself back in the doldrums.

The other issue of concern is HD radio. Bridge Ratings has been interviewing adults 18-64 over the last few weeks about HD. There is little interest in it. And while it may be true that those interviewed generally haven't heard HD or any of its possible new format concepts our industry will invent, when described (see full description here), there was lukewarm reception. The response that received one of the highest percentages of comments was "Why do we need that?"

We're still unsure about HD radio's ability to revitalize the industry, if that is what it is intended to do. There are still many unanswered issues. However, what we do know is that Katrina came along and not only blew strong winds across the southern U.S. and disrupted millions of lives, but it also just may have had the same affect across the nation on the radio industry. It shook things up; it gave the industry a focus which resulted in some of the most compelling programming heard on AM or FM stations in some time.

There is a lesson in there somewhere and it is one the radio industry will greatly benefit from.

Your feedback is vital to our company's on-going success. I look forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,

Dave Van Dyke

President