Radio Show Content | Audio Breaks

Foxx and Annie, WCBS-FM, New York City with The 6:40 Feel Good

May 5, 2024

I’ve featured on this page examples of the positive news and content features done by many shows. Research has proven over the years that this feature resonates with the audience because the world can be such a negative place. I’ve always encouraged you to feature the good news from listeners instead of just finding good stories that you tell them. What works is letting listeners talk about their favorite topic – themselves! Foxx and Annie, WCBS-FM, New York City had a perfect example of this feature the other day in the 6:40 Feel Good when a listener called to boast about how she learned how to fix her washing machine from YouTube. Listen to this break and hear the listener’s pride!

Carlin and Brent, Indie 88, Toronto with Toronto’s Worst Bathroom

April 28, 2024

To make an idea sticky, you must push your verbiage to the margins. Language counts for something so to look for the best or worst of something is better than living in the mushy middle. Which is why Carlin and Brent, Indie 88, Toronto went looking for Toronto’s worst bathroom. No doubt their listeners have had to use many of them (so we knew it’d be relatable). We went about this differently than normal. The show curated a ton of audio and video content prior to us launching the competition, guaranteeing we’d have stuff for breaks long before we asked the audience to get involved. Here’s an example of a break they did after the launch. The winning store owner of the worst bathroom got the golden plunger award. Remember when doing something like this to push your language to the margins so it stands out.

Chris and Dina, WMAS-FM, Springfield, MA with the Celebrity Slowdown

April 21, 2024

When you have something to give out, how you give it out is way more important than what you have to give out. Yet, I still hear shows that believe the quality of the prizes equals the success of the show or still solicit for caller ten (ugh). How you entertain and engage the audience is much more important because earning that image captures the imagination of those not trying for the prize, which is most of the audience. That’s the concept of designing whatever you do for those who only come in to be entertained. Chris and Dina, WMAS-FM, Springfield, MA came up with a fun new game to prove this called the Celebrity Slowdown. My bet, as you listen, is that you’re playing along. So will the audience.

Carlin and Brent, Indie 88, Toronto with Drunk Doug Ford

April 14, 2024

You know what’s local? Making fun of (having fun with?) those larger-than-life personalities in your market. Do you know who they are? Carlin and Brent, Indie 88, Toronto do. Doug Ford is the premier of Ontario in Canada and comes from a long line of very colorful family members who are also politicians. Doug is ripe for being made fun of. Which is why the guys, on occasion when Ford says something that catches their ear, doctor the audio in a segment they call Drunk Doug Ford. Being local is about knowing the people and things happening in your town where, when they’re part of your content breaks, are only understood by those who live there.

The Daly/Migs Show, Rock 99.9, Seattle Digging Deep on the Bridge Story

April 7, 2024

I heard some creative excuses two weeks ago about why some shows didn’t touch the Baltimore bridge story. One said “we’re the escape” (no, you’re not – you need to reflect how the audience feels waking up to the story). Another said “it’s not local” (that doesn’t matter – it was topic #1 that day which validates being on it). Your audience wants to be tied to the topics of the day. Add your perspective and you define who you are. That is one way to do character development. Enter the Daly/Migs Show, Rock 99.9, Seattle who dug deep into the story. That morning, they not only talked with listeners who had bad bridge experiences, they also got on a guy who oversees the bridges in the state of Washington. Listen to their inquisitiveness to localize the story and give insider perspective they would not have normally had. Listeners lean in with this kind of relevance.

Kick-Ass Audio Breaks

Foxx and Annie, WCBS-FM, New York City with The 6:40 Feel Good

Carlin and Brent, Indie 88, Toronto with Toronto’s Worst Bathroom

Chris and Dina, WMAS-FM, Springfield, MA with the Celebrity Slowdown

Carlin and Brent, Indie 88, Toronto with Drunk Doug Ford

The Daly/Migs Show, Rock 99.9, Seattle Digging Deep on the Bridge Story

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