KSLZ, Phoenix Who Was Fonzie’s Girlfriend?

There are ways of doing political content without doing politics.  You just have to figure out how to insert pop culture into it.  Vice President Mike Pence was coming to town to do a few speeches and fundraise.  Mark and NeanderPaul, KSLX, Phoenix decided to test listeners’ knowledge by answering the phones (these were recorded) and asking if the caller knew the VP’s name.  No one did.  Then, to take things a step further, they asked callers a different set of questions – like “who was Fonzie’s girlfriend on Happy Days” (all things from our childhood we’ve held on to forever).  As you would guess, the listeners knocked every one of those questions out of the park.  They openly say on the show they do not do politics.  But here’s one way they did – by diverting the audience’s attention into pop culture to help create the humor.  Here are the two breaks where they did both.

 

Mr. Whiff It

With the start of baseball season, the guys on your show should invite the other guys on the air staff for a yearly competition called Mr. Whiff It.  Take everyone out to a batting cage and each guy gets ten pitches – let’s see who whiffs at the most to earn the title.  Build this organically by calling them during your show to “pitch” the idea.  Then have an online poll asking listeners to guess who’ll win.  Go one afternoon and grab video for social media and audio for the next day’s program as you crown this year’s champ.  For your production value, use Devo’s “Whip It”.

Hot List April 1, 2019

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Final Four

April Fool’s Day

Taxes

Brexit

Mick Jagger

Jussie Smollett

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Game of Thrones

Us

Nicolas Cage

Elon Musk

NAACP Image Awards

Coachella

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KSON, San Diego Marry the Opposite

A simple technique to create some fun is to marry the opposite of a topic to create some humorous tension.  It seems like everyone is into Game of Thrones (its final season premieres on HBO in April).  It’s quite easy to convince yourself that everyone watches and loves the show, which is untrue.  When you look at the actual numbers, close to 98% of America doesn’t watch it.  The threshold for content choice is if the audience is aware of it, and this topic passes that test.  Now marry the opposite of that conventional wisdom and you have a relatable break done in a fun way.  John and Tammy, KSON, San Diego approached people who know about the show, but do watch it, and asked them to describe the program, using their limited knowledge of its plot and characters.  They then aired the most fun replies and talked around it with cast members on their show who know all and are deeply passionate about the program.

Hot List March 18, 2019

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March Madness

St. Patrick’s Day

Taxes

Paris Jackson

Michael Jackson

Admissions Scandal

 

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Captain Marvel

The Flu

R. Kelly

Robocalls

Spring Training

Game of Thrones

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The School Play

No doubt a kid of a listener is in a middle or elementary school play in the spring.  Find one and then create a narrative where the most theatrical person on your show gets a part in the show – then make a very big deal over it, loading the audience with listeners – and treat it like a Broadway premiere.

Hot List March 11, 2019

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St. Patrick’s Day

Daylight Saving Time

R. Kelly

J Lo & A-Rod

Michael Jackson

The Flu

Taxes

Gayle King

Alex Trebek

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The Jonas Brothers

Pete Davidson

Kylie Jenner

Luke Perry

March Madness

Spring Training

Justin Smollett

Jan-Michael Vincent

Game of Thrones

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B105, Cincinnati Spray Painting the Potholes

No doubt an emphasis at every radio show is social media engagement.  This requires us to not only share certain audio segments of the show on our social channels, but to develop unique content there, too.  The Big Dave Show, B105, Cincinnati do fun videos, generally centered around something local, that engage the audience.  They recently saw a news report about a local guy who spray painted orange circles around potholes so approaching motorists could steer clear of them.  They went out with the guy and helped him.  Local, fun, and highly relatable after the Cincinnati winter.  They wrap the video up with info where people can report potholes to have them fixed.  While they did use some of this audio on their show to push people to Facebook, the content mostly lived on social media and has been viewed over 14,000 times so listeners who engage them there leave the video understanding that they live in town and their sense of humor.  View the Pothole Tagging video here.

Why Mommy Drinks

Because her kids do nothing but play Fortnight when at home.  Because her kids never pick up their room.  Because her son failed math at school.  Dana and Jayson, ALT 94.9, San Diego do a humorous weekly feature around Dana’s life called “Why Mommy Drinks.”  It’s silly fun that positions Dana as the mom on the show, with Dana recording these as she encounters them in the home then presenting them to the audience in a produced feature each week.

KSLX, Phoenix First Hand on Scooters

One of the more resonate qualities of the great show Mark and NeanderPaul, KSLX Phoenix is the guys reflect the values of the target audience (adult men).  We regularly joke that we’re all “men of a certain age and part of the ‘get off my lawn’ demo.”  They decided to take on the topic of rentable scooters now being seen in many major cities, and what a nuisance they’ve become.  Specifically, a story about the first DUI on one.  You can just chat about a story, or you can find someone with a truer connection to it.  In this simple, relatable break that connects the show to the audience by their shared view to the topic, the team talks with an emergency room doctor who has first-hand knowledge of and stories to tell about scooter accidents.  What makes this short break work is the doctor’s take and perspective on the topic, with the team asking the next natural question, which displays their curiosity and allows for all to showcase their most natural sense of humor.  It’s having the doctor on that draws listeners in and keeps their attention.