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All I hear on the radio today are corporate play-lists. In your need to have ratings have you forgotten about the people?


Ever since the Dixie Chick scandal, the word “corporate play-list” has become a buzz word for those who cover the media. Let me answer the ratings question today and I’ll discuss how we choose our music on Monday.

Those who cover the media have painted the word ‘ratings’ in a bad light – and I understand that. A critic who loves a movie, song, tv show, etc. that doesn’t resonate with the public as a whole will typically end their analysis with something like

“As long as it gets ratings, it will be on (tv/radio).”

Translate that to real people talk and it becomes

“As long as people like it, it will be on (tv/radio).”

I loved the show Arrested Development and watched it religiously. Nobody else did. As I am not a critic, I don’t have to fess up with the fact that my tastes are not those of mainstream America. I accept that fact. I loved The Office – apparently American does too. Go figure?

Radio stations in Milwaukee (and all across America) choose a format they think can attract a sizeable audience. Wouldn’t you? Imagine a restaurant in the Bayshore Town Center that served food that very few people liked. They wouldn’t last long. Sure, they would have regulars, but if those regulars didn’t generate enough money to pay the high-rent of being in a high-traffic location – they go under.

In Milwaukee radio, there are rock, country, oldies, talk, jazz, and pop stations. Compare that to a food court in the mall where you might find pizza, burgers, burritos, Chinese, etc. There are usually more than one of the most popular offerings (pizza & burgers). Why? The demand for pizza is big enough to attract a big customer base to both places. If one of the pizza places closed and switched to fondue – they would probably lose every thing.

If your response is “But I Love Fondue,” great: but mainstream American does not.

The only way to drive ratings is to respond to the people. So they are not forgotten – they are being counted.

I firmly believe that without a ratings system, what you see on TV or hear on the radio would be of much less quality. The good stuff would all be on HBO at probably double the rate.

In other businesses, you can substitute ratings for other words like patrons (restaurant), customers (retail), subscriptions (newspaper). That is why everyone wants to have a Packers promotion – from the neighborhood bar to the Packers Insider in the newspaper. To drive their version of the ratings – by giving the people what they want.

By the way, one of the hardest things to do when you become a programmer in the media is to realize that your tastes are your own – and not necessarily those of the majority. In our biz, making that realization is the first step you have to take in this career.

Monday – I’ll discuss corporate play-lists and answer the allegations that we do indeed play music to drive ratings (you can probably jump ahead here ...)