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This is to certify that the

dissertation entitled

THE DECISION-MAKING PROCESS FOR TWO MAINSTREAM
(HIP-HOP) RADIO STATIONS: A CASE STUDY

presented by

Preston A. Blakely

has been accepted towards fulfillment
of the requirements for

Ph.D. Mass Media

degree in

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Ma or professor

Date December 4, 2000

 

MS U is an Affirmative Action/ Equal Opportunity Institution 0-12771

 

 

 

LIBRARY

Michigan State

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To AVOID FINES return on or before date due.
MAY BE RECALLED with earlier due date if requested.

 

" Inge DUE

DATE DUE

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JUN ‘37 2002
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6/01 chIRC/DatoDue.p65-p.15

___——

THE DECISION-MAKING PROCESS FOR TWO URBAN
MAINSTREAM (HIP-HOP) RADIO STATIONS:
A CASE STUDY

BY

Preston A. Blakely

A DISSERTATION

Submitted to
Michigan State University
in partial fulfillment of the requirements
for the degree of

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY

Department of Telecommunication

2000

ABSTRACT

THE DECISION-MAKING PROCESS FOR Two URBAN
MAINSTREAM (HIP-HOP) RADIO STATIONS:
A CASE STUDY
By

Preston A. Blakely

The purpose of this study was to investigate how two commercial radio
stations used the decision-making process in such areas as programming,
policy, sales, management, and personnel. In addition, this study also
addressed theoretical and regulatory issues related to radio station decision
making, FCC rule making, and concepts such as localism and low-power radio.

Two commercial radio stations were selected from the state of Georgia.
Anonymity and pseudonyms were provided for each owner, station, and
respondent participating in the interviewing process. Each radio station was
selected for its urban radio format (blacklhip-hop), market size, and African-
American ownership. WAAA-FM was selected from a metropolitan Georgia
market, and WBBB-F M was selected from a smaller rural Georgia market. The
method of inquiry for this study was qualitative in design and included various

aspects of field study, observation, interview, and case study.

Preston A. Blakely

Data collection and analysis were accomplished in three stages: site
visits to each station, review of station documents, and personal interviews.
Data collection involved documenting observer comments in field notes,
reviewing pertinent research literature and station documents, analyzing audio
tapes of interviews, and providing a final analysis of the research findings. Data
analysis for this study entailed three concurrent activities: data reduction,
narrative, and conclusion drawing and verification.1

Findings from the study include the following: Management of WAAA-FM
and WBBB-FM are against low-power radio, fearing competition and broadcast
interference. Managers of both stations think they are meeting the needs of
localism without regulation. Both stations followed the standard decision-making
process. Adjustments to the process were necessary, depending on the problem
being solved, the type of decision required, and the number of alternatives
available. Results of this study suggest that decisions may be influenced by
such things as ratings, record sales, and music chart listings. Therefore, similar
choices or alternatives exist for radio regardless of the Size of the market. The
study also found that goals were discovered throughout the course of making a

decision rather than set at the early stages of problem discovery.

 

1Matthew B. Miles and A. Michael Huberman, Qualitative Data Analysis:
A Sourcebgok of New Methods (Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications, 1984).

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I would like to thank the members of my dissertation committee, Dr. Kent
Creswell, Dr. Johannes Bauer, Dr. Howard Bossen, and especially my chairman,
Dr. Gilbert A. Williams, for their guidance during the development and
completion of this dissertation. The advice provided by Mary Catherine Sneed,
Frank Johnson, and Mike Roberts, managers/owners of broadcast media, was
also invaluable. Charles W. Logan and Brian F. Fontes, current and former
senior staff of the FCC, also provided the foundation for the discussion on
localism. None of this would have been possible without the Minority
Competitive Doctoral Fellowship (MCDF) provided by the Urban Affairs Program
at Michigan State University.

Finally, I would like to thank my mother, Christine C. Blakely, and father,
Preston B. Blakely (now deceased), who began this journey with me in 1992. A
very special thank-you to my best friend, Peggy J. Fitzpatrick, who believed in
me, accompanied me to numerous libraries and copy centers, and encouraged
me to complete the Ph.D. program. And a special thank-you as well to my two
sons, Preston M. Blakely and Kevin E. Blakely, who were both undergraduates
when this process began and have become successful family- and businessmen

during this journey.

I could never have completed this study without the help and support of
all of the above-mentioned individuals. And I will always remember the friendly

greeting from family and friends: “How’s that paper coming?”

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page
LIST OF TABLES ................................................ ix
Chapter

I. INTRODUCTION ...................................... 1
Introduction to the Study ................................ 1
Statement of Problem .................................. 4
Purpose of Study ...................................... 6
Methodology ......................................... 8
Notes .............................................. 1 1

II. REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE: POLICY AND
DECISION-MAKING .................................. 14
A Conceptual Framework for Localism .................... 14
Local Service Origination ............................ 16
Technical Aspects of Radio Signals: Coverage Area ...... 18
The Evolution of Radio Programming as a Local Service . . . . 20

Early African-American Contribution to Local Radio
Programming ................................... 22
The Deregulation of Radio ............................. 25
The Rise and Fall of the Fairness Doctrine .............. 28
Ascertainment: A Commitment to Localism .............. 29
Elimination of the Ascertainment Rule .................. 31
Minority Broadcast Ownership: Implications of Deregulation . 32
Lower-Power Radio: An Answer to Local Programming? . . . 35
What Issues Will Low-Power Radio Solve? .............. 38
Notes .............................................. 40

III. REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE: URBAN RADIO AND

DECISION-MAKING .................................. 45
The Unit of Analysis in the Decision-Making Process ......... 45
Types of Decisions ................................... 48

vi

Operational Definition of the Decision-Making Theory ........ 50

The Standard Decision Process ......................... 56
Defining the Problem ................................ 57
Specifying Goals ................................... 58
Developing Alternative Solutions ...................... 58
Selecting Alternative Solutions ........................ 59
Implementing the Alternative Solution ................... 59
Monitoring the Solution With Feedback ................. 60

Summary ........................................... 60

Notes .............................................. 62

METHODOLOGY .................................... 65

Selection of Stations .................................. 66

Identifying Decision Makers ............................ 68

Method of Inquiry .................................... 68

Data Collection ...................................... 69
Relevant Literature Review ........................... 70
Documents ....................................... 70
Site Visits ........................................ 70
The Interview ...................................... 71

Data Analysis ....................................... 73
Data Reduction .................................... 74
Data Display Narrative .............................. 74
Drawing ConclusionsNerifying Information .............. 75
Framework for Data Analysis ......................... 75

Research Questions .................................. 76

PRESENTATION OF DATA AND SUMMARY OF FINDINGS . . 79

Part I-Presentation of Data ............................. 79
Case I-WAAA-FM .................................... 80
The Company Profile: Background lnforrnation on
Rad Media, Inc. ................................ 80
The Local Station Perspective ........................ 82
Respondent Profiles ................................ 84
Localism/Community Programming (Policy) .............. 86
Programming/Personnel ............................. 95
Case ll-WBBB-FM .................................. 102
The Company Profile: Background Information on
Robots Communications, Inc. ..................... 102
Respondent Profile ................................ 103
The Local Station Perspective ....................... 106
Localism/Community Programming (Policy) ............. 107
Programming/Personnel ............................ 1 15

vii

Ratings and Competition ............................ 116

Part lI—Summary of the Findings ........................ 124
Research Questions ............................... 124
Themes and Categories ............................ 125
Case I-WAAA-FM ................................. 125
Case II-WBBB-FM ................................ 134
Notes-Respondent Interviews, Case I and Case II .......... 144
Notes ............................................. 145
VI. CONCLUSIONS, IMPLICATIONS, AND
RECOMMENDATIONS ............................... 146
Conclusions ....................................... 146
Commitment to Community and Profitable in the
Marketplace .................................. 146
Corporate Versus Individual Owner ................... 152
Implications and Recommendations for Further Study ....... 155
Localism ........................................ 155
Decision Making .................................. 156
Notes ............................................. 1 57
APPENDICES
A. List of Respondents ................................. 160
B. Standard Decision-Making Process ..................... 162
C. Radio Station Personnel Interview Questions and Responses
to Interviews Conducted With Senior Officials Associated
With the Federal Communications Commission ............ 164
D. Organizational Charts ................................ 206
E. Cover Letters and Consent Letter ....................... 209
F. Research Questions ................................. 213
G. Sample Public Service Announcement ................... 215
H. Miscellaneous Materials .............................. 217
BIBLIOGRAPHY ............................................... 223

viii

LIST OF TABLES

Table Page
1. Signal and Coverage Classes of AM Stations .................... 19
2. Signal and Coverage Classes of Commercial FM Stations .......... 20

CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

Introduction to Study

From its inception in 1934 until today, the Federal Communications
Commission (FCC) has encouraged localism for the commercial radio
broadcaster. Localism is reflected in radio programming that expresses the
needs and interests of the local community. Throughout the years, the concept
of localism has slowly changed from one of location or geography to one of
social context, including cultural tastes, values, and interests of the community.‘

By the mid-19505, specialized programming with varying program formats
had arrived. A strong community identity was needed to continue radio’s growth
during the early years of television. The rhythm-and-blues format or “Negro-
Appeal” radio was one of the first segment formats with local appeal to succeed
during a time when television was replacing network radio.2 Today, more than
360 urban radio formats provide local programming to fit the needs of the
African-American community. An urban format is considered a black format and
provides music, news, public affairs, and public service programming of interest

to a predominantly African-American audience.3

Deregulation, however, has threatened the need for local programming
M f 'f "“T-\

for the urban broadcaster.‘ The Fairness Doctrine and program ascertainment

 

 

have been abolished as a part of deregulation.5 Additional policy changes have
influenced radio programming with the passage of the 1996 Telecommunication
Act.6 This legislation removed all limits for national radio ownership and raised
the cap in local markets from four to as many as eight, depending on the number
of stations in the market being considered.’ This change has had an impact on

ownership diversity, as well as programming diversity for the minority owner and

14.7....— ' _‘Mmt

its Iistenership.

Many minority owners feel the 1996 Telecommunications Act favors large
conglomerates at the expense of the minority owner. Critics say the latest round
of radio consolidation, brought about by the 1996 Telecommunication Act,
allowed larger broadcast owners to buy up radio property of the smaller
broadcast owner, pricing out of business the one- and two-station owner. Ninety
percent of black radio owners own no more than one or two radio stations.‘3 The
minority population, which includes blacks, Hispanics, Asians, and Native
Americans, represents 30% of the United States population but owns only 3.1%
of the nation’s radio and television stations.9

In an attempt to equalize the playing field, on January 28, 1999, the FCC
proposed to license and sought comments on establishing new 1,000-watt, 100-
watt, and 10-watt low-power radio stations.10 It is the commission’s belief that by

establishing the/low;power stations/they will provide new opportunities for
- .K “WM/FM-

community radio broadcasting through providing diversity in local radio
programming and by increasing minority radio ownership.“

On January 20, 2000, one year after the FCC’s low-power plan was first
proposed, the FCC adopted rules to support the creation of a low-power radio
station. WW stations were approved in hopes of better
serving the local community. The new FM service will be available to only
noncommercial broadcasters. The FCC canceled plans for a 1,000-watt station
because of potential interference problems.12

Questions often arise over the ability of commercial radio to serve the
local community as well as deal with the demands of the marketplace. The
absence of rules and guidelines as a result of deregulation may limit
management’s programming commitment to remain socially responsible to the

local community. Critics of deregulation often argue that radio ismldngej

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concerned with meeting the needs of the public Others feel that a good radio
manager can be socially responsible and effectively serve the needs of the
public as well as the marketplace.13 And low-power radio may also provide
programming to the local community.

My work addresses theoretical and regulatory issues related to radio
station decision-making, FCC rule-making, and concepts such as localism and
low-power radio. Using the case study approach, I examine each of the issues
in depth, providing commentary and analysis, as needed, for interpretive

purposes.

Statement of Problem

Debate often arises over the ability of radio station management to serve
the public as well as the marketplace. The absence of rules and guidelines as a
result of deregulation has placed the decision of how best to serve the public
interest on station management.“ The removal of community ascertainment and
the Fairness Doctrine, and the FCC requirement of news and public service
programming for license renewal, has allowed managers more latitude when
deciding how to serve the public.15

Critics of deregulation have argued that radio is no longer concerned with
meeting the needs of the public. Radio managers, however, disagree with their
critics. Still, radio managers do have an obligation to their owners and
stockholders to maintain a profitable business. While the push for profits may
override the needs of the listener, many managers feel they can effectively serve
the needs of the public as well as meet the needs of the marketplace.13

Despite the deregulatory trends that many say have negatively impacted
the minority broadcaster, concerns over ownership concentration remain a major
regulatory issue.17 Radio concentration per market can be measured by the
number of radio station owners and the size of the audience each 0 wner
delivers to its advertisers. By lifting the ownership-cap limits nationally and
locally, radio owners are provided with an opportunity to develop market power
and control over the most popular radio stations. Economically, the new rules
benefit those companies with radio stations that can consolidate audiences and

generate more advertising revenue, thereby improving economies of scale.“

4

The profit potential of a radio station is a matter of maximizing revenues
and minimizing costs. A disproportionate share of the costs in radio is fixed,
meaning that costs are incurred regardless of the size of the audience or
advertising revenue generated. Thus, radio group owners such as Clear
Channel Communications, Inc., maximize their economic potential in the
marketplace by taking advantage of the economies of scale and spreading fixed
costs over a larger number of revenue-generating stations.“ Because the
number of radio stations that may be owned in lucrative markets is fixed,
broadcasters must merge or acquire existing stations locally and nationally to
grow.

Many minority stations receive high-price offers, think they cannot
compete financially, and sell to the broadcast conglomerate. The minority
station often is purchased by a group owner or conglomerate such as Clear
Channel Communications. Clear Channel now owns more than 1,000 radio
stations?0 As the consolidation trend continues, it will be increasingly difficult to
promote and protect the public interest goals of localism and diversity of
ownership." Today, radio’s challenge is to continue to serve local and diverse
audiences while remaining economically competitive.

The FCC hopes the minority broadcaster will survive or succumb
according to management’s ability to make programming financially competitive
while remaining responsive to the “public interest, convenience, and

necessity.””

How will the minority owner survive in this environment? Little is known
about the people who make programming decisions in urban radio. What are
the influences that affect their decisions? What kind of information does the
decision-maker need to guide him or her in making a decision? This study looks
at the decision-making process within the context of the urban radio
broadcasting industry.

The following research questions are addressed in this study:

1. How has urban radio remained committed to the community as well as
profitable in the marketplace, given all the pressures these stations face?

2. How is management, corporate, owner/president, department, or
committee involved in the decision-making process? What is the nature of the
debate, if any, about what to program or what to advertise?

3. How has multiple/single radio ownership influenced the decision-
making process for the commercial radio broadcaster?

4. What is the decision-making process for selecting programming for

two commercial radio stations, each representing a different-sized market?

Euroose of Study
Decision-making is at the heart of the managerial process. It is difficult to
think of any aspect of operating a radio station that does not involve the
decision-making process. Herbert Simon, considered by many to be the most
noted scholar in the area of decision-making, compared the process of decision-

making with the process of management. Both are equal.23

This case study investigates how two commercial radio stations have
made their decision-making process in the area of policy, personnel,
programming, sales, and management. Each radio station was selected
because of its urban (black) radio format and market size.

The pseudonym for the radio station conglomerate selected is Rad Media.
The pseudonym used for the radio station owned by Rad Media is WAAA-FM;
the station is located in metropolitan Georgia. In contrast, the station owned by
an individual is located in a smaller rural Georgia market; the pseudonym used
for this station is WBBB-FM. It is owned by Robots Communications, also a
pseudonym.

These stations were selected for the following reasons: The researcher
was provided complete access to management, programming, and sales
meetings; key personnel were made available, as necessary, for interviews. In
addition, the general manager of WAAA-FM is also chief operating officer of Rad
Media, the conglomerate that owns WAAA-FM. The general manager and chief
operating officer were able to provide management and programming insight
from the corporate level as well as the local level. In contrast, WBBB-FM
provided an independent owner who is a full-time on-site manager.

This study identifies and examines similarities and differences in the
decision-making process relative to the five categories of decision-making in
commercial radio, as reported by Barnes: policy, programming, sales,
management, and personnel?1 The effectiveness of the decision-making

process is discussed through interviewing selected radio informants (Appendix

A). Interviews also were conducted with a former official with the FCC who is
currently with the Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association. An
interview also was conducted with a senior official of the Policy and Rules

Division of the FCC.

Methodolo

What is the decision-making process for urban radio? To answer this
question and others, decision-making was analyzed relative to radio
programming and management within urban radio. Station analysis provided
information to better understand the process of effective decision-making by
individuals or groups within the industry. The process of selecting specific
situations, solutions, and alternatives was considered decision-making.25

This case study addresses theoretical and regulatory issues related to

radio station decision-making, FCC rule-making, and concepts such as localism

and low-power radio. The study examines these issues at two commercial radio

stations-WAAA-FM in metropolitan Georgia and WBBB-FM in rural Georgia.

The radio Stations represent two different-sized markets and types of ownership.

WAAA—FM is located in a large market and is owned by Rad Media. Rad Media

owns at least 50 radio stations throughout the United States. WBBB-FM is
located in a smaller market and is owned by Robots Communications, Inc.
Robots Communications owns four radio stations in the Middle Georgia region.

Both are owned and operated by African-Americans.

Specific criteria on how each station was selected will be provided in
Chapter lV—Methodology. The intention is to examine these stations and
observe their approach to decision-making as they attempt to balance the public
interest with the economic elements of the marketplace. This study offers an
opportunity to present findings on the decision-making process at two urban
radio stations representing two different organizational structures.

The method of inquiry for this study was qualitative and included on-site
observations, interviews, and analysis of station documents.26 Documents
included news releases, newspaper articles, magazine articles, music charts,
program logs, ratings information, and organizational charts. Findings were
drawn from an analysis of documents, interviews, and field notes from site visits.

The case study was used to organize the data obtained. As a research
strategy the case study method was appropriate for this study. According to Yin,
the case study is used in many settings, such as programming and management
research?7 Qualitative researchers take pride in discovering multiple points of
view of a case study. The interview is considered a source for discovery?8
Interviews focused on each manager’s approach to the decision-making process
and how it was applied to urban radio programming.

Data analysis for this study involved three concurrent activities: data
reduction, data display narrative, and drawing conclusions and verification.29
Data reduction involves narrowing the topic and making a final selection from all
possible choices. Data display narrative means an organized representation of

information 6r data in narrative form that permits conclusion drawing, such as

noting similarities and differences. Drawing conclusions and verifying
information through comparison with the literature review are also a part of the
data-analysis process.30 The data analysis presents a comprehensive

explanation of the decision-making process in urban radio.

10

NOTES

1. Alan G. Stavitsky, “Guys in Suits With Charts: Audience Research in
US. Public Radio,” Journal of Brogdcastirtq& Electronic Media. 39, no. 2
(Spring, 1995), p. 186.

2. Jack L. Ortizano, “Negro-Appeal Radio Stations Using a Rhythm-and-
Blues Music Format, 1947-1963" (paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the
Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication, Anaheim,
California, August, 1996), pp. 1, 13.

3. Venise T. Berry and Carmen L. Manning-Miller, ed., Mediated
Messages and Africh-American Culture (Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage
Publications, 1996), p. 218.

4. Benjamin J. Bates and Todd Chambers, “News and News/Talk
Formats as Public Interest: Availability and Diversity in Local Radio Markets”
(paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Association for Education in
Journalism and Mass Communication, Anaheim, CA, August, 1996), p. 1.

5. Michael D. Berg, “Fairness Doctrine: How to Comply as the Debate
Goes On,” Current, 17'March 1987, p. 3.

 

6. Jeffery L. Belvins, “Source Diversity After the Telecommunication Act
of 1996: Media Oligarchs Begin to Colonize Cyberspace” (paper presented at
the Annual Meeting of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass
Communication, New Orleans, LA, August, 1999), pp. 5-6.

7. Julian R. Rush and José Blanco, “A Political Economic Review of the
Telecommunication Act of 1996" (paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the
Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication, Baltimore,
MD, August, 1998), p. 14.

8. Bill McConnell, “Few and Far Between: FCC’S Kennard Finds
Boosting Number of Minority-Owned Stations ls Uphill Struggle,” Broadcasting
and Cable, 128, no. 41 (Oct. 5, 1998), p. 28.

9. Paige Albiniak and Bill McConnell, “Gore Stumps for Minority
Ownership, Says Consolidation Must Not Eliminate Minority Voices,”
Broadcasting and Cable, 128, no. 38 (Sept. 14, 1998), p. 7.

10. Federal Communications Commission, Creation of a Lower Power
Radio Service (February 3, 1999), Mass Media Docket No. 99-25.

11. lbid.

11

12. Bill McConnell, “FCC Powers Up, Expected to Approve Low-Power
FM This Week," Broadcasting and Cable, 130, no. 2 (January 17, 2000), p. 10.

13. Chris McConnell, “Low-Power Radio Brings High-Intensity
Response,” Broadcasting and Cable, 128, no. 19 (May 4, 1998), p. 22.

14. Victor E. Ferrall, Jr., “The Impact of Television Deregulation on
Private and Public Interests,” Journal of Communication, 39, no. 1 (1989), p. 8.

15. Bates and Chambers, op. cit., p. 1.
16. lbid., p. 1.

17. James P. Jeter, “A Comparative Analysis of the Programming
Practices of Black-Owned Black-Oriented Radio Stations and White-Owned
Black-Oriented Radio Stations” (Ph.D. diss., University of Wisconsin-Madison,
1981), p. 7.

18. Bruce E. Drushel, “The Telecommunications Act of 1996 and Radio
Market Structure,” The Journal of Media Economica (1998), 11, no. 3, pp. 3-20.

19. lbid., p. 5.

20. Elizabeth A. Rathbum, “NTIA Finds Minority Ownership Dwindling,”
Broadcasting & Cable (July 24, 2000), p. 18.

21. Andrew C. Barrett, “Public Policy and Radio—A Regulator’s View,”
Media Studies Journal, 7, no. 3 (1993), pp. 139-149.

22. David Bartlett, “News Radio-More Than Masters of Disaster,” Media
Studies Journal, 7, no. 3 (Summer, 1993), p. 46.

23. Herbert Simon, The Shape of Agtomation for Men and Management
(New York: McGraw-Hill, 1965).

24. Rey LeRoy Barnes, “Program Decision-Making in Small Market AM
Radio Stations" (Ph.D. diss., University of Iowa, 1970), pp. 10-12.

25. Helga Drummond, “Another Fine Mess: Time for Quality in Decision-
Making,” Journal of General Management, 18, no. 1 (Autumn, 1992), pp. 1-9.

26. Catherine Marshall and Gretchen B. Rossman, Designing Qualitative
Research (Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications, 1989).

27. Robert K. Yin, Case Study Research (Newbury Park, CA: Sage
Publications, 1989).

12

28. Robert E. Stake, The Art of Case Study Reseaych (Newbury Park,
CA: Sage, 1995).

29. Matthew 8. Miles and A. Michael Huberman, Qualitative Data
AnalvaLs: A Souycebook of New Methods (Newbury Park, CA: Sage
Publications, 1984).

30. Ibid.

13

CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE: POLICY

AND DECISION-MAKING

A Conceptual Framework for Localism

Localism or local radio programming continues to evolve in purpose and
content. Localism for the radio broadcaster reflects the needs and interests of
the local community. The FCC, with congressional and judicial support, has
always placed priority on the issue of localism and program viewpoint diversity,
as authorized in the Communications Act of 1934.1

Congress established the FCC in 1934 to serve and protect the “public
convenience, interest and necessity” in licensing of radio stations. The
Commission later supported the mandate of serving the public interest by
requiring radio station owners to serve and, if possible, reside within the
community in which the radio property was located and, as owners, participate in
the operation of the radio station. The Commission’s policy requiring integration
of broadcast station ownership and management was intended to increase
licensees’ sensitivity to local community needs.2

The Commission first adopted the integration criterion in 1965. However,

the Circuit Court of Appeals for the DC. Circuit Court struck down the rule,

14

concluding that “the Commission accumulated no evidence to indicate that the
policy achieves one of the benefits that the Commission attributes to it."3 This
essentially reflected the idea of localism, where the broadcasters maintained ties
with the community they served and provided programming or a voice that
responded to issues of importance to residents of that community.

The concept of localism and radio has slowly changed from a spatial
geographic definition to one of a social context. According to Stavitsky,
geographic localism is defined by physical borders requiring signal reach within
a designated area.‘ The spatial concept relates better with the policy of
localism, i.e., broadcasting that speaks in a local voice to the concerns of
residents of a specific geographic community. Social localism as conceptualized
by Stavitsky is constructed around shared cultural tastes, values, and interests
of a community. Social localism emphasizes commitment to radio programming
values rather than a commitment to a geographic area. The former concerns the
physical domain; the latter focuses on shared tastes and interests.s The concept
of localism is not just a United States policy; similar policies also are found in
China, Switzerland, and other countries.

The doctrine of localism is intended to ensure that broadcasters “serve
the needs of the local community" in which they are licensed to operate. The
localism doctrine has two components: the geographic distribution of licenses
and specific requirements of programming. The geographic component reflects
the statutory requirement that the FCC distribute broadcast licenses “fairly,

efficiently and equitably" throughout urban and rural areas within each state.“

15

The programming component, dating from the earliest years of broadcast
regulation, requires that stations, as part of the licensing process, provide
programming that meets the needs and interests of the communities in which

they are licensed.7

Local ervice Ori ination

Localism always has generated debate concerning its role in the
marketplace. The free and open marketplace was seen as an ideal setting for
citizens who enjoy both commercial goods (advertising) and political ideas
(public service). Radio broadcast regulation has been marked with tension
between the democratic idea of local service and providing regulation that meets
the needs of the profit sector. Today, managers of both AM and FM radio
stations want to remain committed to localism while continuing to remain
profitable. Ways in which a manager may approach this dilemma will be
addressed later in this study.8

Local service origination is a product of two broadly interrelated concepts:
( 1) the required geographic distribution of licenses to operate radio as
demonstrated by the Communications Act of 1934: “The Commission shall make
such distribution of licenses . . . among the several states and communities to
provide a fair, efficient and equitable distribution of radio service to each of the
same,” and (2) the station’s obligation to identify and program for local needs

and problems. “The principal ingredient of a licensee’s obligation is the diligent,

16

positive and continuing effort by the licensee to discover and fulfill the problems,
needs and interests of the public within a station’s service area.”9

The attainment of the second concept, a station’s obligation to identify
and program for local needs and problems, depends on proper implementation
of the first concept, required geographic distribution of FCC licenses to operate
a radio station. To a large degree, justification of the first concept—programming
for local needs and problems—depends on the acceptance and enforcement of
the second concept—adequate geographic distribution of the radio stations and
FCC licenses.1o

Today, fair and equitable radio broadcasting service has been provided to
all parts of the United States, fulfilling a legislative mandate that requires a fair
and equitable division of radio services to the states and communities. The FCC
has acted as a traffic controller for frequency assignments. In creating a pattern
of effective frequency assignments, the FCC has successfully fulfilled its
obligation of geographic distribution.11

Specifically, since the inception of federal radio regulation, efforts to
achieve local service have been central to regulatory policy. Thus, radio
licenses have been allocated on a geographic basis to serve the programming
needs of local areas. The emphasis on local service obligation remains at the

core of broadcast regulation.

17

Tech_nical Aspects of Radio Signals: Coverage Area

AM and FM stations use two very different broadcast systems. The older,
Amplitude Modulation (AM), uses the frequency between 540 and 1710 kHz.
Frequency Modulation or FM utilizes the radio band between 88 and 108
megahertz (mHz). The differences in frequency location and band width have a
considerable influence on the geographic coverage area of the radio station
signal.

AM coverage. The FCC groups AM stations into four classes of
frequencies according to their coverage characteristics.“Calafisshl stations operate

mm

on “clear" channels, meaning that they share the channel with only one or two

other stations in the country. Class I stations serve large metropolitan or rural

 

A __.-___-______'—'"" '- ‘5~\

._ wan-
‘ - _ Mu.
C.

areas and have very powerful signals (maximum operating power of 50,000
watts) that at night can be received hundreds of miles away. Class II stations
are similar to Class I stations in terms of power and coverage, although they
must direct their signals at night. Class III stations operate with a maximum of

( 5,000 watts and share “regional” channels with many other stations. Some must
cease operations at night and are known asifdflayti‘mgrSL”h~-Class IV stations cover
a small service area and operate with a maximum power of 1,000 watts during
the day and any/250watt’sfamight.’ They share “local” channels with other full-
time Class IV stations.

Table 1 lists the technical classifications of AM stations as assigned by

the FCC.

18

Table 1: Signal and coverage classes of AM stations.

 

Class

Power (Max)

Characteristics

 

50 kW

Clear channels (45 in US), with one or two stations on each
channel, serving large metro centers and remote rural areas. Most
clears have great nighttime signal penetration with a skywave
traveling 700 miles or more. There are a few daytime only stations
in this class.

 

50 kW

Secondary stations on 29 clear channels and separated from
primary clear channel frequencies so as to limit interference with
Class I stations. Most use directional antennas at night. Some in
this class are daytime only stations.

 

5kW

Share 41 Regional Channels with over 2,000, other “fulltime' and
“daytime only“ Class III stations.

 

 

 

1kW

 

Operate on six Local Channels. Limited power covers a small
service area. Some stations near us. borders must lower power at
night.

 

Source: Bruce Bishop’ Cheen and Mark R. Fratrik, Eair Market Value of Radio
flationa: A Buyer’s Guide (Washington, DC: National Association of
Broadcasters, 1990), pp. 7-13.

FM coverage. The technical aspects of FM radio are less complex than

those of AM radio.t\All FM stations are licensed for full-time operation. There

__ __._....__—.4..~.—_-_-—.-.--_ _. ..___.

 

M

are no FM daytimers. FM signals are static free; the Size of the coverage area of

an FM station is directly related to the height of itsantenna and poweroutput.

f..._________ a.” ——L‘--' -T‘H

Frequencies for FM stations are listed by community in Tables of Assignments

found in the Commission’s rules and regulations. Applications for new FM

stations can be filed only for frequencies listed in this table. Frequencies for AM

stations are not assigned to communities in Tables of Assignments.

19

 

The FCC has three main classes of frequencies for FM stations: A, B,
and C. Table 2 provides a summary of the various technical classifications of

FM stations as assigned by the FCC.

Table 2: Signal and coverage classes of commercial FM stations.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Class Power (Max. kW) Maximum Height (Feet) P2223363?
A 6 328 15—18
B 50 492 32
37 25 328 25
C 100 1,968 57
C1 100 980 45
C2 50 492 32
C} '25 328 25

 

 

 

 

Source: Bruce Bishop Cheen and Mark R. Fratrik, Fair Market Valge of Radio
_S_tation§: A Buver’a Guide (Washington, DC: National Association of
Broadcasters, 1990), p. 12.

The Evolution of Radio Programming
as a Local Service

The discussion about what is a community and how to better serve that
community through radio is reflected in the ambiguity surrounding the doctrine of
localism. Although policy drove local programming in radio’s early years,
commercial broadcasters discovered the economies of scale inherent in network
broadcasting and, by the late 19203, became affiliated with national or network
radio services.12 The Radio Act of 1927, which made limited mention of

networks, established the policy for broadcast regulation based on the licensing

20

 

of individual stations, emphasizing local programming and local talent.13
However, this policy was rarely followed during radio’s early years.

During this period, radio stations programmed in vertical format, providing
a variety of network programs with general audience appeal. Network
programming at this time consisted of first-rate comedy routines, soap operas,
dramas, and variety programs. The comedy format proved to be the most
popular network programming format during the Great Depression and World
War II. The network was also influential in providing quality programming with
popular actors at less cost to the local radio programming, providing a better
program than the local radio station could afford to produce on their own.“ In
addition, local programmers filled in scheduled network inserts with regional
news, sports, and informational programming, and provided the local listener
with public affairs programs, call-ins, and programs of local interest.

After the war, advertisers had less money to spend in a postwar economy,
leaving network producers with limited budgets. Additionally, television was
introduced in 1939 at the New York World’s Fair; eventually, many of radio’s
best network actors became stars on television.15 Although policy was originally
created for local radio, the idea of radio as a local service dominated various
FCC and congressional hearings following World War II. Those responsible for
radio began to direct their attention to program content and service to the local
community, in hopes of competing with television. Serious consideration for
local expression evolved, simply because radio’s role was perceived as being

changed by the arrival of television."3

21

Station owners redefined the radio medium to fit the new conditions-lower
budgets, less live talent, and smaller audiences. Without being able to afford
network programming, most local stations could not afford to underwrite large
variety shows or dramas, so they turned instead to prerecorded music with live
personalities called “disc jockeys." The notion of programming to mass
audiences was no longer realistic for the radio medium. Instead, stations began
to identify target audiences and created formats or niches to narrowcast to the
local listener.17

By the mid-19505, rock-n-roll, rhythm and blues, jazz, classical, country-
western, pop, and gospel were developed to appeal to the individual listener’s
taste. Strong local identity was essential for radio’s growth during the advent of
the television age, and'radio station programmers seized every opportunity to

demonstrate their commitment to their community.18

Early Africag-American Contribution
to Local Radio Programming

The rhythm-and-blues format was one of the first segment formats to
succeed during a time when television was replacing radio as the nation’s mass
medium. During the late 19405 and early 19505, the rhythm-and-blues format
was known as Negro-appeal radio and featured black announcers who played
rhythm-and-blues music targeted at a primarily black audience. The “Negro-
Appeal” format was among the first segmented non-network formats that
prospered during the early years of television. Although the television medium

contributed to the decline of live network radio broadcasting, it also influenced

22

the growth of locally based radio programs that featured prerecorded music.
Rhythm-and-blues radio also served as a model for other musical formats.

In the late 19405, much of the early rhythm-and-blues programming was
broadcast in block segments. For example, an individual could purchase an
hour of air time on a local radio station for the purpose of featuring rhythm-and-
blues music. Eventually, station managers in cities with substantial black
populations were encouraged to build an entire format around their audiences’
demand for rhythm and blues.19

Stereotyping began to decrease during World War II, in part because of
the high number of black people who joined the armed forces. Blacks and block
programming were encouraged in response to governmental concern over racial
conflict interfering with the war effort. The broadcast industry was asked by
government officials to help white Americans develop a more tolerant attitude
about blacks through radio programming.20 Encouragement by the military
forced many radio stations to accept blacks for on-air positions at white stations.
As their economic power and advertising market value improved, so did the
black image on radio.21

In the late 19405, WDIA-AM was instrumental in programming black
gospel music, as well as other black-oriented music, on Memphis radio. In 1949,
WDIA offered the first all-black format in the United States, providing local
programming for the African-American community in Memphis, Tennessee. The
station became famous for its public service or community announcements,

which included announcements for missing persons, lost personal property, and

23

church meetings. The station also solicited blood donors, helped reunite
families, and assisted listeners in getting jobs.22

Early African-American disc jockeys were also considered cultural heroes
to the African-American community. The backgrounds of the disc jockey and the
radio listener were very similar. The music and commentary of the disc jockeys
reflected what was being felt within their local communities.23

With the Civil Rights Movement in the 19605, Nicholas Johnson, then
Chairman of the FCC, maintained, “Minority stations have an important role to
play. No other institution inside or outside of government can match their power
to administer day-in, day-out therapy to the root cause of the worsening malaise
of our cities.“ Black radio was considered a way to control civil disturbances,
as well as addressing the problems of drugs, education, and employment.

It was not until 1968 and the release of the Kemer Report: Report of the
National Commission on Civil Disordeg, that the broadcasting industry began to
consciously pursue programming reflecting broader minority concerns than
music and entertainment. Although the Kerner Report criticized broadcast
media for supporting and helping perpetuate racism, the report is often cited as
a turning point in the radio industry’s awareness of minority needs and
interests.25

Today, there are at least 360 urban-format radio stations in the United
States; their musical programming includes rhythm and blues, jazz, dance, hip-
hop, and gospel. Urban radio stations, although not necessarily black-owned or

managed, have usually connected with their local audiences, offering

24

programming to fit the needs of the African-American listener. Urban radio is
different from other radio formats due to its unique commitment to the African-

American community.26

The Deregulation of Radio

The controversy surrounding deregulation was led by former FCC
Commissioner Mark Fowler. The impact of Fowler’s six years of deregulatory
initiatives (1981 -1 987) is well documented and will continue to be felt as a result
of the economic forces caused by deregulation. Deregulation has had a
significant economic impact, whether directly or indirectly, on the radio
industry?7 For example, by removing the FCC’s anti-trafficking rules, which
previously required companies to own a broadcast property for at least three
years, many now say Fowler paved the way for the increase in mergers among
radio broadcast properties.

During the early 19805, there were calls for deregulation and reliance on
the marketplace to decide broadcasting in the public interest.28 To understand
deregulation, it is necessary to examine the regulatory models most frequently
analyzed. These two models reflect what Fowler identified as the trusteeship
and marketplace models. The former favors a stronger regulatory role for the
FCC, while the latter relies on a broadcaster’s good-faith judgment.29

Broadcasters are often perceived as eager to discard public affairs
programming in order to make available air time for more music and

commercials, thus increasing listenership and revenue dollars. This would not

25

occur with the trusteeship model, under which the airwaves belong to the people
and broadcasters are obligated to provide more than programming that appeals
only to the largest audience. The trusteeship model is a “voice of the
community,” providing access to the ainIvaves for those other than the
broadcaster. Another aspect of local service under the trusteeship model is
ownership. Local owners are usually preferred over absentee owners, in the
belief that the local owner will be more in touch with the community and less
concerned about profit.30

The second model is the marketplace model. This model reduces
regulatory control to a minimum “traffic cop” level, with the FCC ensuring orderly
use of the airwaves but not influencing program content. Market forces are
relied upon in the hope that broadcasters will use positive judgment and will
serve the public interest; those who do not will be driven from the market or at
least forced to change programming because they do not provide what listeners
want. This model relies on ratings; stations with the most listeners are
considered as doing the best job of meeting audience needs. The marketplace
model entrusts faith in the competitive forces, and hopes it will ensure that
broadcasters will try to determine local needs and develop programming to meet
those needs?1

Congress has never been clear when presenting its definition of a proper
relationship between broadcasting and free enterprise. The Communications
Act of 1934 implies that broadcasters should be limited by the FCC when

imposing programming priorities. According to Glasser, Congress intended the

26

licensee to “survive or succumb” according to his or her ability to make programs
attractive to the public while remaining responsive to the “public interest,
convenience, and necessity.”32

Today, broadcast stations are placed in a more competitive marketplace.
When one talks about localism and the marketplace, one talks about what the
consumer wants. If the tastes of the consumer are in conflict with local issues,
then those issues are not broadcast. Today, the FCC looks at the entire
community and the station’s contribution to that community. A broadcaster does
not have to air a program on every single issue that the community finds
important. Thus, the FCC emphasizes the competitive marketplace and lets the
public determine what type of programming should be broadcast within that
marketplace.33 I

There are advantages and disadvantages to both models. The
trusteeship model relies on the FCC to enforce policy relative to such issues as
community ascertainment and the Fairness Doctrine. The advantage: The local
community was assured of local programming concerning issues of importance
to their community. The disadvantage: Owners/managers were closely
monitored by the Commission, thus limiting the managers’ control over station
programming and operations.

The marketplace model reduces regulatory control to a minimum, with the
Commission limiting their influence over programming content. The marketplace
model requires management to serve the public interest without regulation while

also remaining competitive in the marketplace. The disadvantage: Researchers

27

have found that the marketplace model often encourages competition at the
expense of local programming. The advantage: Those managers with a
commitment to local programming will meet the need, and the station often

remains profitable, without heavy regulation of the Commission.

The Rise and Fall of the Fairneaa Doctrine

Another means of ensuring local service was the Fairness Doctrine, until
it was abolished in 1987. The FCC concluded that an open marketplace of
ideas made the Doctrine unnecessary. The Fairness Doctrine had been a part
of broadcast regulations since 1949. It required stations to provide opposing
views in their programming when addressing controversial issues. This
approach had two advantages: (1) It allowed licensees to remain responsible for
programming, leaving to their discretion decisions over which issues have public
importance and who should speak about them, and (2) It obligated licensees to
provide access to ideas other than their own.“

The Fairness Doctrine was enforced on a case-by-case basis by station
management. Typically, the FCC became involved when a listener complained
that a station did not air his or her view. Most complaints did not produce
sanctions by the FCC, and air time was provided by management to those who
complained."5 In practice, therefore, most Fairness Doctrine complaints came as
reactions to ideas that had already been discussed on the air, rather than as

complaints about the failure to initiate a discussion of an issue.

28

Because the Communications Act of 1934 required radio stations to serve
the “public interest, convenience and necessity,” the Fairness Doctrine was one
of the means by which the FCC attempted to influence broadcasters to fulfill this
responsibility.36 It was also the responsibility of management to regularly survey
community leaders in order to know what issues were important. Accordingly,
the Doctrine’s purpose essentially compelled radio station owners and managers
to provide valuable broadcast time, which ordinarily would not be available if left
to decisions based solely on marketplace forces. Others believed the Fairness
Doctrine provided valuable access for minority groups who otherwise would not
have had an avenue to have their opinions and needs heard.37

There were, however, problems with implementation of the Doctrine.
Despite the balance provided by the Doctrine, many broadcasters used their
stations to promote extreme positions on controversial issues, negligent to the
fact that as a licensee they had an obligation to offer opportunities for rebuttal.38
Abolishing the Fairness Doctrine in 1987 was a blow to local programming,
which no longer required owners and managers to provide air time for the

general listener.

Ascertainment: A Commitment to moans—m

On July 29, 1960, the FCC provided guidelines in its first major policy
statement on ascertainment and radio programming. The report and policy
statement reminded broadcasters that a principal ingredient in their public

interest obligation was meeting listeners’ tastes, needs, and concerns. The

29

report outlined several programming needs supported by the public interest
standard, including local expression, religious and children’s programming, as
well as news, sports, and public affairs programming. The FCC’s programming
ascertainment requirement mandated that radio broadcasters determine the
needs and interests of their community of license and program to meet those
needs and interests.39

According to Brian F. Fontes, a former FCC senior staff member and
currently senior vice-president for policy at the Cellular Telecommunication
Industry Association, the issue of localism has been an extremely important one
in broadcasting. For many years the FCC would regulate the type and amount
of programming a licensee provided by reviewing specific programming
categories during license renewal. This procedure was designed to ensure that
the broadcaster met his or her responsibility to the public, and would provide the
right type and amount of programming. This procedure also helped qualify the
station for license renewal. Fontes pointed out:

In fact, licenses were often challenged in the past for failure to meet

certain categories of broadcasting. If you didn’t air the correct percentage

of children’s programming or religious programming or public interest

programming, the licensee and the Commission would receive complaints

from the public, especially during license renewal.“0

The Commission intended ascertainment to become part of every
application and license-renewal proceeding. An applicant for license renewal
was required to conduct a survey of community leaders to ascertain the
problems of the proposed community of license and to suggest broadcast
programs that would discuss these problems. The FCC also provided a list of 20

universal categories of people to be questioned; questions included the needs,

30

problems, and interests of the community.“ The problems, needs, and interests
of the community were addressed in the interviews in the survey.

The 19605 ascertainment programming statement resulted in new license
application forms requiring applicants to demonstrate ascertainment of
community needs and interests and to list programs that had addressed these
needs in the previous year. Whether the programming statement greatly
increased the local content of radio programming is arguable. Many claimed

that it had little impact because the FCC seldom enforced it.“

Elimination of the Ascertainment Rule

In 1981, the Commission deleted the requirement for ascertainment of
local community needs. With deregulation, stations were no longer required to
file ascertainment and programming information with the FCC. Today, the only
ascertainment requirement is to have a general knowledge of the local
community and to continue to place Quarterly Lists of “issues” programs in the
public file.“3

The FCC has determined that many of the ascertainment rules were
nonproductive and broadcasters were actually doing more than what the
Commission’s rules required. Thus, the Commission moved away from heavy
regulation to light regulation.“

Supporters of ascertainment felt that dropping the requirement would
result in stations cutting back on the production of low-revenue local

programming. Former Commissioner Benjamin Hooks predicted that stations

31

previously providing public service programming to minorities would cease to do

50.45

Minority Broadcast Ownership: Implications
for Deregulation

 

In early February 1978, the Carter Administration announced a multi-
faceted program to increase minority ownership in radio broadcasting. Carter’s
plan included minority finance programs from the Small Business Administration
and the Economic Development Administration, as well as Distress Sale and Tax
Certificate Programs."6

The FCC’s policy was based on the assumption that “such measures
would result in programming reflecting the needs and interests of minority
groups.” This gave notice to minority owners that part of the burden for the
success of this policy, particularly programming, was their responsibility.
Therefore, it was expected that minority owners would increase minority
viewpoints through programming and ownership.“7

Before 1992, FCC regulations prevented any group or individual from
owning more than one AM and one FM station in a single market. This
provision, known as the duopoly rule, was designed to prevent concentration of
ownership in local markets, while continuing to allow local views.“

During 1992, however, declining revenues in the radio industry prompted
the FCC to revise its ownership rules in order to stimulate greater economic
growth. In an attempt to address the changing economic climate, the FCC

relaxed national and local ownership limits. In lifting the cap on ownership, the

32

Commission provided radio owners the opportunity to own several stations in a
market and enjoy such joint ownership efficiencies as consolidation of facilities,
staffs, promotion, and programming. Potential savings from such efficiencies
allowed station owners to compete more effectively in markets undergoing
significant restructuring.49

On February 8, 1996, the Telecommunications Act of 1996 became law.
Radio ownership limits had been expanded by the FCC in 1992. Now there was
no limit on the number of stations owned, except on a market-by-market basis.
For example, in the largest radio markets having at least 45 stations, a group
may own eight radio stations; in the smaller markets with 14 or fewer stations,
five total stations may be owned by a single entity.50

Many minority owners fear that further consolidation in the ownership of
stations would reduce the number of independently owned voices, which would
ultimately decrease the diversity of programming choices and localism as we
now know it.51 When the FCC was considering relaxing its radio ownership rules
to allow companies to own several stations in a market, some of the strongest
opposition came from minority broadcast owners. Many felt the 1996
Telecommunications Act favored large conglomerates at the expense of the
small minority owner. In fact, while favoring the 1996 Telecommunications Act,
FCC Chairman William Kennard and FCC Commissioner Michael Powell both
voiced concern over the small number of minority-owned stations. According to
the Commerce Department, only 2.8% of radio and television commercial

stations were owned by minorities in 1998, down from 3.1% in 1997.‘52

33

The Commission must continue to strike a balance between the economic
interests of the radio industry and the importance of the public’s interest.
Congress, the Commission, and the courts have all emphasized the importance
of diverse broadcast ownership and localism m §§J1-is-driven.by_thegy
W

FCC commissioners have weighed in on the matter of localism and
diversity of ownership. According to Chairman Kennard, the most dramatic
increase in radio consolidation in the history of broadcasting is now taking place,
and requires that both competition and diversity remain at the forefront of the
Commission’s concerns. Kennard continued, “Broadcasting remains the way
that most Americans receive their information about their local communities. . . .
Continuing diversity of‘ownership and an emphasis on local programming is vital
to the democratic process.”53

Commissioner Ness took a different approach and questioned the impact
regulatory policy has had on the smaller market radio stations that generate less
revenue than the larger market stations that generate more revenue. Ness
asked the following questions: How are smaller and less-revenue-generating
radio stations able to compete with larger and more-revenue—generating radio
stations? How are the smaller stations able to take a risk on new services and
talent? How are the smaller stations able to continue providing community and
charitable support which requires staff and time, but rarely contributes to the

bottom line? Are our ownership rules inadvertently causing the financial

suffocation of the small entrepreneurial broadcaster? Commissioner McConnell

34

argued, “Even where a station is owned by an organization hundreds of miles
from the radio station’s city of license, the need to provide local service to that

city remains paramount.”5"

Lowar-Power Radio: An Answer to
Local Programming?

According to Adam Clayton Powell Ill, you are what you hear, and through
radio you hear what you are. Radio is community. The need for community
radio still exists, but many feel the large corporate-owned, profit—driven radio
stations are not interested in the small towns and rural areas that require
adequate coverage and local programming. As large broadcast corporations
expand in an effort to increase profit, radio listeners find increasingly that
listening formats decrease in diversity."5

Critics of commercial radio often cite radio consolidation as one of the
reasons for limited local programming, providing justification for their request for
low-power radio.56 As proposed by the Commission, noncommercial low-power
radio would provide a low-cost means of serving urban as well as rural
communities with a local community programming emphasis. A 1,000-watt radio
station would serve a radius of 8.8 miles, and a 100-watt station will provide 3.5
miles of coverage. A third microradio class is also being considered.57

In January, 1999, the Commission proposed three classes of low-power

”mm flue-MN

 

WP“

radio service which would operate on the existing FM radio band: a 1,000-watt
-_.3 -'~ - ,..__ ._- “wafer-m

primary service, a 100-watt secondary service, and a 10-watt microradio service.

The public urged the Commission to create ways to increase public access to

35

the airwaves. More than 13,000 inquiries were filed from the public voicing
interest in starting a low-power radio station. In creating three classes of
stations, the Commission hoped to solve the need for local radio programming,
encourage opportunities for minority radio ownership, and promote program
diversitys'"3

On January 20, 2000, one year after the F CC’s initial proposal, the FCC
adopted a plan for the 100-watt and 10-watt noncommercial radio stations.
Licensees must maintain a local community emphasis. The FCC canceled plans

for a 1,000-watt service because of possible interference pro

KW“

blems.“

 

a
a..- . ,p-
- ‘45.. _ ,_.. e- ‘

,z

”and

Specifically, the Commission hopes to increase station ownership by
minorities and women because of extremely poor representation in radio station
ownership. Legally, stations cannot be reserved for minorities or women, but the
Commission hopes to create the availability of low-power stations so that more
minorities and women may participate in ownership.60

The 100-watt class would meet the demand of those who would like to
broadcast. to communities of moderate size. A 100-watt station would reach a
few hundred to several thousand listeners. As a secondary station it would not
be permitted to cause interference with the protected service of existing or future
primary stations, nor would secondary stations be protected from interference
from primary stations.61

The third class of low-power FM service, known as microradio (10 watts
or lower), is intended for those with limited financial support. The third class of

station would reach listeners within a localized setting. Microradio stations

36

would offer very limited coverage for schools, neighborhoods, subdivisions, and
town centers.62

What has really fueled the need for low-power radio? According to
Charles W. Logan, Jr., currently FCC Chief of the Policy and Rules Division,

There are a lot of very small community groups, churches, neighborhood

groups, even some state and local governments that would really like to

get their voices heard. Hopefully, this will also be an alternative to private
radio. Low-power radio is available to those who do not have the money
for a full-power radio station.
For those who say, “I don’t have the money to go out and buy a full-power radio
station . . . but I still have something to say and I still want to carve out this little
community radio station that serves my community and has a real voice in the
community,” low-power radio is the answer.”

Petitioners of the Commission argue that consolidation has made radio
stations too expensive for most individual owners; thus, the public is being
deprived of a local voice. Petitioners also criticize the loss of less popular music
formats, and they contend that low-power radio could serve the needs of the
niche listener.“

The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB), National Public Radio
(NPR), and a number of individual licensees oppose low-power radio.65
According to Logan,

Low-power radio has caused a lot of controversy in the existing broadcast

industry. They don’t like this idea . . . they’re afraid that this could

interfere with their broadcast signal. It’s also possible that they’re afraid
of increased competition. It’s a fair question. Is it possible to fit a low-

power radio station under existing standards? If the Commission really
wants to fit a sizable number of low-power radio stations, especially in

37

urban areas where there tend to be a lot of radio stations, it’s going to
have to adjust the current interference protection standards.”

Logan added that:

There is a need for low-power radio; to what extent it happens is still
unclear. It depends on the result of the interference studies. There are
real interference issues that will have to be reviewed. Chairman Kennard
is really on board with this, and that makes a big difference. I think the
real issue is how, to what extent can you establish service. How much
can we relax these current interference rules to create these new
opportunities for stations?"37

Many who have responded to the Commission’s proposal have
questioned whether low-power radio is a viable means of addressing local
autonomy. Fontes said,

When we did low-power television, that was very controversial. The
whole goal of low-power television was to allow people who previously
had not owned a broadcast station to get into the broadcast business. If
we turn around and look today at how many of those original low-power
broadcast licensees are actually broadcasting, it is far, far, far, far less
than the number of low-power television stations that were issued. The
bottom line is it takes money to run a station. And money is dependent on
the operations at the station, the money coming into the station is
dependent upon the number of eyeballs watching television or eardrums
hearing radio. And if you don’t have the programming, they are not going
to watch or listen. And if they are not watching or listening, you are not
going to get the advertising to get the money to buy the programming to
get them to watch in the first place. So it is really an uphill battle. A
phenomenal uphill battle. There must be ways to make money at this. Is
it possible? Absolutely. There are ways you can make it viable.
However, this isn’t beautiful, fabulous real estate, it is a starter home. We
all have to get into a house at some point in our lives with hopes of
moving up and having something better.“

What Issues WillLoyv-Power Ratio Solva?
Scores of communities across the United States are preparing to launch

low-power radio stations. Many researchers think America is losing a power

38

vehicle for diversity, as commercial radio stations are consolidated into fewer
and fewer hands. The FCC’s ruling of opening new space on the airways for

low-power radio is their answer to the recent consolidation trend. Ninety-five

 

percent of all music in this country is never broadcast over commercial radio.
f...

“fin-Aw" "‘ Mm --— —-.~ Mu'w'h- a“...— _~—-- -'—' -.—_._..t.,,.___....—— 4—-"‘" -—~—-‘___¢
“- “g“-

_,_.-..-o--" (.1...

Now, music and local community programming will be broadcast over low-power
radio.”

In addition, consolidation is pricing minority owners of one and two
stations out of business. The Commission sees low-power radio as a possible
alternative for the minority owner.7o However, many radio station members of
the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) say low-power radio presents no

MENW A..—

realecenemievaluefl-.-

39

NOTES

1. Eric D. Berkowitz, “Lower Power Television and the Doctrine of
Localism: The Need to Reconcile a Medium With Its Message,” Universitv of

San Francisco Law Review, 18, no. 3 (Spring 1984), p. 519.

2. Bechtel v. Federal Communications Commission, 957 F.2d 873 (DC.
Cir. 1992), p. 880.

3. lbid.

4. Alan G. Stavitsky, “Guys in Suits With Charts: Audience Research in
US. Public Radio,” Journal of Broadcasting 8 Electronic Media, 39, no. 2
(Spring, 1995), p. 187.

5. Xuejian Yu and Anne Sears, ”Localism in Chinese Media Context: An
Examination of a Closed Circuit Community Cable System,” Journal of
Broadcasting & Electronic Media, 40, no. 2 (Spring, 1996), pp. 208-211.

6. lbid.

7. Karen L. Slattery, Ernest A. Hakanen, and Mark E. Doremus, “The
Expression of Localism: Local TV News Coverage in the New Video
Marketplace," Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, 40, no. 3 (Summer,
1996), pp. 403-404.

 

8. Alan G. Stavitsky, “The Changing Conception of Localism in US.
Public Radio,” Journal of Broadcasting 8 Electronic Media, 39, n o. 1 (Winter,
1994), p. 21.

9. Tom A. Collins, “The Local Service Concept in Broadcasting: An
Evaluation and Recommendation for Change,” The Iowa Law Review, 65, no. 3
(1980), pp. 553-636.

10. lbid., pp. 553-636.
11. Slattery, Hakanen, and Doremus, op. cit, pp. 403-404.

12. Alan G. Stavitsky, “The Changing Conception of Localism in US.
Public Radio,” Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Medi_a, 38, no. 1 (Winter,
1994), p. 19.

13. lbid., p. 20.

14. Marilyn J. Matelski, “Resilient Radio,” Media Studies Journal, 7, no. 3
(Summer, 1993), p. 6.

15. lbid., p. 5.

40

16. Lawrence W. Etling, “Listener Perceptions of Localism in Radio
Programming: A Qualitative Study” (Ph.D. diss., University of Georgia, 1994).

17. Matelski, op. cit, p. 11.
18. lbid., pp. 11-12.

19. Jack L. Ortizano, “Negro-Appeal Radio Stations Using a Rhythm-and-
Blues Music Format” (paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Association
for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication, Anaheim, CA, August,
1996), p. 1.

20. Marilyn D. Fife, “FCC Policy on Minority Ownership in Broadcasting:
A Political Systems Analysis of Regulatory Policy Making” (Ph.D. diss., Stanford
University, 1983).

21. Venise T. Berry and Carmen L. Manning-Miller, eds., Mediated
Messages and African American Culture (Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage
Publications, 1996).

22. Ortizano, op, cit., pp. 2-4.

23. Gilbert A. Williams, Legendagr Pioneers of Black Radio (Westport,
CT: Praeger, 1998), p. 9.

 

24. Awar W. Carlson, “A Geographical Analysis of America’s Ethnic
Radio Programming,” Social Science Journal, 34, no. 3 (3 November 1997),
p. 288.

25. Fife, op. cit.
26. Berry and Manning-Miller, op. cit.

27. Victor E. Ferrell, Jr., “The Impact of Television Deregulation on
Private and Public Interest,” Journal of Communication, 39, no. 1 (Winter, 1989),
p. 8.

28. Andrew C. Barrett, “Public Policy and Radio—A Regulator’s View,”
Media Studies Journal, 7, no. 3 (1993), pp. 139-149.

29. Dallas W. Smythe, “Radio: Deregulation and the Relation of the
Private and Public Sectors,” Journal of Communication, 32, no. 1 (Winter, 1982),
pp. 192-193.

30. Benjamin J. Bates and Todd Chambers, “News and News/1’ alk
Formats as Public Interest: Availability and Diversity in Local Radio Markets”
(paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Association for Education in
Journalism and Mass Communication, Anaheim, CA, August, 1996), pp. 1-3.

41

31. Etling, op. cit.

32. Theodore L. Glasser, “Competition and Diversity Among Radio
Formats: Legal and Structural Issues,” Journal <1 Broadcasting, 28, no. 2
(Spring, 1984), p. 127.

 

33. Brian F. Fontes, Senior Vice-President for Policy and Administration,
Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association, interview by author, tape
recording, April 16, 1999. (Brian F. Fontes is former Chief of Staff for
Commissioner James Quello, Federal Communications Commission. Fontes
held several positions at the FCC from 1978 to 1994).

34. Kurt A. Wimmer, “The Future of Minority Advocacy Before the FCC:
Using Marketplace Rhetoric to Urge Policy Change,” Federal Communications
Law Journal, 41, no. 2 (April, 1989), p. 151.

35. Michael D. Berg, ”Faimess Doctrine: How to Comply as the Debate
Goes On,” Current, p. 3.

 

36. Kenneth D. Loomis, “Radio Public Affairs Programming Since the
Fairness Doctrine” (paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Association for
Education in Journalism and Mass Communication, Anaheim, CA, August,

1996), pp. 1-3.

37. Loomis, op, cit.

38. Patricia Aufderheide, “After the Fairness Doctrine: Controversial
Broadcast Programming and the Public Interest,” Journal af Communication, 40,
no. 3 (Summer, 1990), pp. 47-50.

 

39. Wimmer, op. cit., pp. 152-153.
40. Fontes interview.
41. Berkowitz, op. cit., p. 519.

42. Malcolm G. Stevenson, “Backing Up Your ‘lssues/Programs’ List,”
Qurrent, 24 February 1987, p. 13.

43. lbid.
44. Fontes interview.

45. Benjamin L. Hooks, “Reflections of a Former FCC Commissioner on
the Radio Deregulation Decision,” Journal of Broadcasting, 25, no. 2 (1981), pp.
209-211.

46. Fife, op. cit.

42

47. Loy A. Singleton, “FCC Minority Ownership Policy and Non-
Entertainment Programming in Black-Oriented Radio Stations,” Journal of
Broadcasting, 25, no. 2 (Spring, 1981), pp. 195-202.

48. Alan B. Albarran, “Consideration in Radio Duopoly in Dallas/Ft.
Worth,” Feedtgack: Educating Tomorrow’a Electronic Media Professionals, 37,
no. 3 (1996), pp. 13-14.

49. Eli M. Noam, “Are American Media Becoming More Concentrated? A
Decade’s Empirical Evidence” (paper presented at the Telecommunications
Policy Research Conference, Columbia University, New York, October, 1998).

50. Julian R. Rush and José Blanco, “A Political Economic Review of the
Telecommunications Act of 1996" (paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the
Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication, Baltimore,
MD, August, 1998).

51. Peter Viles, “Minorities Feeling Duopoly Squeeze,” Broadcasting and
Sable, 123, no. 50 (1993), p. 91.

52. Elizabeth Rathbum, “Powell Joins Kennard in Pressing for TV-Radio
Ownership Diversity,” Broadcasting and Sable, 128, no. 8 (1998), p. 7.

53. Federal Communications Commission, FCC Begins Inquiry Into

Broadcast Ownership Rules Pursuant to 1998 Biennial Regulatory Review
Reguirement, 1998-Mass Media Docket No. 98-35.

54. Chris McConnell, “Low-Power Radio Brings High-Intensity
Response,” Broadcasting and Cable, 127, no. 19 (1998), pp. 22-23.

55. Adam C. Powell, Ill, “You Are What You Hear,” Media Studies
Journal, 7, no. 3 (Summer, 1993), pp. 71-73.

56. Christy Jerding, ed., “Private Broadcasters Square Off Against F CC,”
The Freedom Forum and Newseum News, 5, no. 10 (1998), p. 9.

57. Federal Communications Commission, FCC Proppses Licensed Low-

Power FM Radio: Seeks Comment on Engineering, Service Rules for New
System, 1999—Mass Media Docket No. 95-25.

58. Federal Communications Commission, Creation of a Low-Power
Radio Service, 1999—Mass Media Docket No. 99-25, pp. 1-6.

59. Bill McConnell, “FCC Powers Up, Expected to Approve Low-Power
FM This Week,” Broadcasting and Cable, 130, no. 2 (17 January 2000), p. 10.

43

60. Charles W. Logan, Jr., Chief of Policy and Rules Division, Federal
Communications Commission, interview by author, tape recording, 16 April
1999.

61. Federal Communications Commission, Qreation of a Low-Power

Radio Service, p. 13.
62. lbid., p. 15.

63. Logan interview.

64. Federal Communications Commission, Qreation of a Low-Power
Radio Service, p. 5.

65. lbid.
66. Logan interview.
67. lbid.
68. Fontes interview.

69. Paul Van Slam Brouck, “Forget the Web. This Revolution’s on the
Airwaves,” The Ch_ristian Science Monitor (February 10, 2000), p. 1.

70. Bill McConnell, “Few and Far Between: FCC’s Kennard Finds
Boosting Number of Minority Stations ls Uphill Struggle," Broadcastin & able
(October 5, 1998), p. 28.

71. Chris McConnell, “Low Power Radio Brings High-Intensity
Response,” Broadcasting & Cable (May 4, 1998), p. 22.

44

CHAPTER III

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE AND ISSUES RELATED

TO URBAN RADIO AND DECISION-MAKING

According to Kharbanda and Stallworthy, two vital factors for successful
leadership are sound motivation and quick decision-making. A good leader must
be decisive as well as a good motivator. Often a decision must be made before
all the relevant information is available. This is where so many decisions fail.
Many managers wait for the last significant item of information, waiting until it is
too late to make an accurate decision. A good leader is prepared to make
decisions on inadequate and incomplete information, realizing that no decision is
perfect and that an imperfect decision is better than no decision at all. The best
sign of a good leader is the people who surround the leader-enthusiastic and

excited, preferring to work where they are than anywhere else.1

mum of Analvaia in the Decision-Making Process
Various units or departments operate within any organization. The study
of decision-making requires the analysis of at least three sets of variables: (1)
the decision-maker, (2) the goals of the organization, and (3) the culture within
which the action is to take place.2 The unit’s decision-maker, such as an

individual, committee or group, is subject to various organizational constraints.

45

Such constraints are considered requirements or limitations imposed on the
decision-maker. The constraints may arise from the radio station’s culture,
behavior of other units within the radio station, station goals or policies, or
individual agendas within a unit or department.3

Some organizations operate under a charter or mission statement-implicit
or explicit-with norms or roles that transcend the composition of any single
decision-making unit. Consistent communication patterns must exist between
each separate decision-making department of a radio station. The culture of
such operatives strongly affects the unit and the subsequent decisions made for
the station as a whole. Within the station, numerous units are involved in
decision-making in order to accomplish the organization’s objectives.‘

In addition, a decision maker is also subject to various external
constraints. For instance, the length of ownership of a radio station by the same
owner has an impact on the decision-making process and overall operation of
the radio station. The tenured owner is often the financially stronger owner.
Stable ownership of a radio station also aids in the development of long-term
relationships with the community and with advertisers. Research has shown that
new station owners, burdened with newly acquired debt and with less
management experience, have less commitment to the community than owners
with stronger ties to the community.

The number of radio stations owned by a single owner or group owner is
another way to determine the financial strength of that owner and his station.

There are clear economies of scale when controlling several stations due to the

46

cost advantages that come from operating efficiencies in combining otherwise
separate operations. Researchers have suggested that group owners receive
more favorable treatment than single owners when negotiating the purchase of
programming or the selling of advertising.

Other constraints include the band the station is located on, the station
power, as well as the size of the market. FM stations are more popular with
listeners than AM stations, and AM stations attract an older audience than FM
stations (which is less desirable to advertisers). A station with a higher
transmitter power (FM) has a larger potential audience than a lower powered
station (AM). Smaller markets have less advertising revenue per radio station
than larger markets; therefore, the approach to decision making will be different.
Such constraints as market size, daytime-only status (for AM), tower height (for
FM), frequency, location, and the number of competing stations per market all
have an effect on the decision-making process.5

The effectiveness of a decision may depend on the composition of the
decision-making unit. In many cases, individuals may make the best decision.
Group decision-making usually requires increased time to make a decision
because of the long process of forming a consensus among people with
conflicting opinions.

If timing is critical, individualism is better. If timing is not critical, and risk
and uncertainty are high, a slower group process has its advantages. The
inherent lack of speed in group decision-making is just one characteristic of

group decisions. When complex tasks are involved, groups have the advantage

47

of assigning specific responsibility to group members to thoroughly evaluate the
problem and recommend a solution. Dividing tasks among group members may
actually speed up the process, since no one person must learn the wide range of
information required for a complex decision.6

The final step is to establish that the decision is actually working and that
the anticipated results are being achieved. If it is not working, it may be possible
to take corrective action, but first it becomes necessary to establish why and
where the failure has occurred. Typical reasons for failure are: inadequate
planning for implementation, poor communication, and a lack of enthusiasm on
the part of management in pursuing station goals.

The growing complexity of commercial radio has given support to
attempts to develop a science of decision-making for broadcast media. Early
decision research was directed toward finding techniques that would maximize
the probability that the best choice among the available alternatives would be

chosen by the decision-maker.7

Types of Decisions
A programmed decision states that an action will take place once a
certain condition has been reached. Decisions are programmed to the extent
that they are repetitive and routine. A nonprogrammed decision does not have
the advantage of policy or principle. Programmed decisions are structured, with
established goals and procedures. Nonprogrammed decisions have a poor

structure, vague goals, and untested information. The greater the number of

48

programmed decisions, the more time a manager will have to review and
analyze difficult nonprogrammed decisions. Whether a decision can be
programmed depends on the uncertainty and risk involved. The lower the
uncertainty and risk, the more likely a programmed decision will work.8

The main reason for distinguishing between programmed and
nonprogrammed decisions is that different management techniques are required
to address each type of decision. Programmed decisions have a standard
operational procedure; nonprogrammed decisions require managers to exercise
judgment.9

Redmond and Trager offered two types of decisions: routine decisions
and nonsystematic decisions.1o Routine decisions are associated with repetitive
patterns of behavior that are procedure-oriented. Various kinds of decisions
meet the routine category. Generally, these types of decisions involve matters
that occur often and for which standard procedures have been developed.
Typically, routine decisions include budgeting, accounting, hiring, and firing—the
kinds of decisions based on routine procedures.

Nonsystematic decisions are the opposite of routine decisions. They
require a decision on a new development or program for which established
procedures have not yet been developed. They may be carefully considered,
but are not the result of an official process or routine. Nonsystematic decisions
are caused by new developments that require organizations to change.

Routine decisions require considerable organizational knowledge

because they depend on past practices and policy. Nonsystematic decisions

49

require just the opposite—an open mind able to understand the scope of
something that has not previously been experienced and then to think creatively

to resolve the problem.

Operational Definition of the Decision-Making Theog

 

Radio managers make decisions every day. Management decisions for
radio often involve routine responsibilities, such as budget approval, station
policy, program selection and scheduling, as well as personnel matters.11
Specifically, what is the process of decision-making for urban radio
programming? To answer this question and others, decision-making was
analyzed relative to radio programming and policy within the commercial radio
industry. The analysis provides information to better understand the process of
effective decision-making by individuals, groups, or committees within
commercial radio.

Researchers have defined effective decision-making as goal-directed or
action-oriented. From an etymological perspective, the verb “decide” is derived
from the Latin prefix “de” meaning “off” and the Latin word “caedo,” meaning “to
out.” In this sense, the cognitive process cuts off or selects a particular course
of action from among a set of possible alternatives. The process of selecting
specific situations, solutions, or alternatives is considered decision-making.12
Shull, Delbecq, and Cummings also viewed the decision-making process as a

conscious activity, not an automatic behavior response.“

50

Helga Drummond, another noted researcher, thought decision-making
was about shaping the future.“ According to Drummond, it is important to
distinguish between a decision and the decision-making process. The decision-
making process involves events leading up to the point of choice and beyond. A
decision means to cut and decide on a specific course of action. Many radio
managers fail to see beyond the decision to cut. The decision-making process
requires active involvement in implementation; to confront ambiguity, to
encourage staff members to seek clarification, and to modify ideas that are
clearly impractical at first glance. Decision-making is defined as a conscious
human process. Both individual and social phenomena are involved, which
leads to a choice of one behavior activity from among one or more alternatives
with the intention of moving toward some future desired state of affairs.

Decision-making may be simple in some instances, but in other instances
it may call for the most demanding exercise of a person’s judgment, reasoning,
and imagination. A decision can only be as effective as the process used to
reach it. Accordingly, for those called on to make important, difficult decisions, it
is always helpful to be thoroughly grounded in the various steps of the process,
to understand the theoretical and logical bases of the decision-making
process.“

The impact of decisions made in urban radio depends on the level of the
manager. What is important is that all decisions should be made or considered
at the lower level of staff or management (subordinate to the general manager)

because it is those staff or managers who know exactly what is going on.

51

Traditionally, the middle manager’s role has been one of implementation rather
than formulation and planning. Now middle managers are taking more of an
active role in the planning process as well as implementation of a decision.16
However, when it comes to adverse decisions affecting those at the lower level,
the full responsibility and final decision are with top management.17

Decision-making is one of the most important elements of the managerial
process. To make an effective decision, managers must understand the
decision-making process. Researchers often take different approaches to the
decision-making process. Huber emphasized differences between decision-
making, choice selection, and problem solving.“ Problem solving, according to
Huber, is used in the broadest sense and involves anything from identifying
problems to monitoring, maintaining, and reviewing solutions to the problem.
Decision-making also involves generating eltemetive solutions, selecting an
eltemetive, and evaluating the outcome.

According to Lyles and Thomas, the economic view of decision-making is
shown in the rational decision-making model.19 The authors believe this model
is the benchmark against which all other decision-making models are compared.
This approach requires the decision maker to make a rational choice. A
responsible manager provides personnel whatever is needed to secure the
necessary information so that the manager can make an intelligent decision.

Gore suggested that there are two decision-making systems: (1) the
rational system, in which the decision is conscious, logical, planned, and

quantifiable, and (2) the heuristic system, which is unconscious, intuitive,

52

emotional, and unplanned. According to Gore, the rational system is more
applicable to the quantitative decision-making process concerning money and
profit, whereas the heuristic system is more applicable to the intangible end the
qualitative.20

Moreover, the “maximization” concept is also discussed within this
context. It assumes that the most important goal in decision-making is the
maximum return for a given investment of time and money. Fleming" and
Barnes22 referred to this process as the condition of certainty, uncertainty, and
risk. Again, decisions are based on information relating to the possible outcome
of alternatives. Decisions are also tied to the assumption that in a world in which
not all alternatives are met equally, the element of probability is present. This
element of risk and the possibility of reversing the outcome is one of the
determining factors in choosing the most appropriate alternative for the problem.

Two models were used by the above-mentioned researchers. One of the
models is termed “economic man” and is similar to the maximization concept.
The economic men model deals with real-world issues, reviewing all information
and possible alternatives before making a decision. With the economic man
model, decisions are based on maximum return.23

The second model is the “management men” approach, which has the
following characteristics: the outcome of possible alternatives is difficult to
predict, limited information and resources are available to the decision maker,
the decision process often is influenced by external factors, and the end result

for management man is a sense of satisfaction rather than monetary gain.“

53

Some of the difficulty in understanding the decision-making process is
due to the confusion in the use of the terms “economic man” and “management
man.” In classical economics, the decision maker or economic man was a
person who was completely rational and selected a course of action from all
altematives presented under conditions of complete and accurate information.
This course of action led to the maximization of profits because of the ability of
economic man to determine the conditions under which marginal costs equaled
marginal revenue.25

According to various scholars, management man is a more realistic
portrait of the decision maker. With management man the decision-making
process starts by defining the problem and ends four or five steps later with
implementing the decision. Fleming, for example, pointed out that this decision
process is more realistic than the economic model. Thus, management men
brings to the process his personality, his experience, and his aspirations-
himself.26

In the work of Mintzberg, Raisingheni, and Theoret, the economic man
model is replaced by management man because environmental factors are not
considered in the economic man model.27 With this theory the decision effort is
directed toward “satisfying” rather than “maximizing” efforts. The list of
environmental factors that influence the decision-making process includes
economic health of the radio station, station competition, impact of FCC policy

on station operation, and the impact of technology such as the lntemet on the

54

broadcast marketplace. Knowledge and control of such factors allows
management to make effective decisions.”

The standard description of decision-making—identification of goals,
search and evaluation of eltemetives, determination of the best course of
action-has been criticized by Anderson.” According to Anderson, this model
overestimates the information-processing capability of those involved.
Moreover, the path from goals to the final choice is not a fixed sequence of
events but could include varying cycles, thus overlooking the social interaction
involved: discussion, debate, and evaluation. Anderson’s critique refutes the
standard model of decision-making but falls short in proposing an eltemetive.

According to Nutt, the decision-making process is composed of a set of
events that begins with the identification of a problem or issue and ends with
action being taken. Nutt’s research found the decision-making process to be
solution oriented, restricting innovation and limiting the number of alternatives
available.30

According to Paul Anderson, in the standard decision-making process,
decision makers confront a problem and look for a solution. They face many
competing courses of action and select the alternative that best solves their
problem and achieves their goals. The standard decision process assumes that
making a decision involves choosing one eltemetive from a set of competing
alternatives." The potential success of a decision improves when the number of
alternatives increases.32 One must be knowledgeable of the positive attributes

of the altemetives available to support decisions that may be controversial.”

55

Finally, the standard description of decision-making assumes that the
purpose of decision-making is to solve a problem. Anderson suggested that
what decision makers are looking for is note solution to a problem but a course
of action that does not have a high probability of making matters worse.
Whether the action will solve the problem is of secondary concern.“

Once the agreement on goals has been reached, the eltemetive often
follows as a matter of course. Goals are discovered through a social process
involving argument and debate in a setting where justification and legitimacy
play an important role. Not just any sort of a goal will be discovered. It will be
one that is consistent with shared goals of the radio station.

It is clear that numerous researchers over the past four decades have
investigated and written about decision-making from a variety of perspectives
and approaches.” Despite the attention decision-making has received,
theoretical dilemmas often blur rather than clarify the decision-making process.

The need to understand decision-making as a process still exists.”

The Standard Deciaion Proceaa
Decision-making is a process in which managers collect information, set
direction, evaluate eltemetives, and implement the best eltemetive.37 Despite
the use of phrases to characterize decision-making, most models of decision-
meking are similar: classify the problem, define the problem, specify what the
decision must do, seek the right decision, build in the action component to make

the decision happen, and use feedback to test the effectiveness of the

56

decision.” Huber listed five steps in his decision-making process: determine
the problem, develop eltemetive solutions, select eltemetive solutions,
implement the selected eltemetive, and monitor and encourage feedback.”
Often an individual or organization has little understanding of what is
involved when making a decision, or the route taken to its solution, or what the
solution might be, or how it will be evaluated once it is decided."0 As previously
discussed, there are many decision-making models available for consideration.
The decision model that provides a backdrop for this study is shown in Appendix
B. As the model illustrates, collection, evaluation, and analysis of information
are the focus of the decision-making process.”1 Strengths and weaknesses of

this decision model as they pertain to urban radio will be shown in Chapter VI.

Defining the Pgblem

The first step in defining the problem is to ask: Is the problem unique?
Problems that are unique in content should follow a rule, policy, or principle
before final implementation. Once the right principle has been applied to the
problem, other similar situations can be handled according to that principle.“2

Defining the problem also involves the collection of information about the
problem. This information must be analyzed in a way that allows station
managers to properly frame the problem. The question, “What caused the
problem?” must be answered. Each problem has several possible causes. It is
the manager’s and staff's responsibility to define the problem in such a way that

the causes can be accurately identified. The severity of the problem can be

57

determined by analysis of the station’s performance and any deviation from the

station’s goals.”3

Specifying Goals

What goals will be attained by the decision? What conditions must be
met? Goals are needed where performance and results directly affect the
survival and effectiveness of an organization. Goals provide direction for an
organization. Goals indicate the proper course of action and reasons for that
action.“ Goals should be as specific as the problem will allow. All goals should
have a deadline for accomplishment. Specific goals should allow monitoring and
force a station manager to use detailed information analysis. The crucial aspect
of goal setting is the degree of specificity; one must collect as much information

as possible and analyze it as effectively as possible within the time allotted.“5

Developing Alternative Solutions

The next step in the decision model is developing alternative solutions.
Two questions are asked: (1) Will the alternative selected actually accomplish
the proposed goals? (2) Will the costs of the solution be more than the potential
gains to the station? If the answer to the first question is no, then the eltemetive
should not be selected. If the answer to the second question is yes, then the
alternative should be discarded. All alternatives must be considered before a
final decision is made."6

In deciding alternative solutions, the decision maker must be guided by

his previous steps-the objectives and goals of the organization, the problems

58

identified and defined, the hypothetical solutions to the problem, and the
information collected and analyzed. The objective in making a decision is to
select from among the most promising alternatives the ones that will produce the

largest number of desirable outcomes.47

Selecting Alternative Solutions

Selecting a final alternative depends on the costs and benefits of that
alternative. Often more than one solution will work, so the correct option is the
one with the best return-one that is beneficial to the station. One solution, for
instance, may generate more listeners than another, but the costs may be so
high as to consume the increase in profits. A solution may also be inexpensive,
but the results may not increase Iistenership. A search for alternatives is where
internal and external environments are analyzed for information to fulfill the

station goals.“

Implementing the ALernative Solution

Once the alternative solution has been selected, it must be implemented.
The decision will not be effective unless a commitment has been built into the
process. In fact, no decision will be made unless it has become someone’s
responsibility. Until then, it is only a good idea. Managers are more likely to be
enthusiastic about decisions they have made then about decisions that have
been given to them."9

Again, the collection and analysis of information is important at this stage.

Much of the information required now deals with internal organizational issues

59

such as budget, timetable, and delegation of responsibility. It is important to
note that those responsible for implementing the solution must be given the

power and budget to do 50.50

Monitoring the Solution With Feedback

Monitoring by station management should allow feedback on the progress
being made toward the goals selected and be part of their implementation.
Feedback must test the effectiveness of the decision against the actual course of
events: How is the decision being implemented? Are the assumptions on which
it is based appropriate? A solution that is not working should be given adequate
time for success. Information monitoring and reporting must be built into the
decision-making process to provide continuous testing of the alternative
solutions selected. These solutions must be tested against other decisions to
ensure that the right decision has been made. If the solution is not working, a

new cycle of decision-making is started and the process begins again.51

Summit

Issues discussed in the previous chapters offer factors that influence
radio decision making regarding programming, policy, and personnel, as well as
sales and management. Each station must take an individual approach to the
decision-making process. The Telecommunication Act of 1996 changed the role
of broadcast radio; consolidation and radio concentration now challenge the
owners and managers of urban radio stations and their commitment to local

programming and financial survival.

60

For instance, many factors influence radio programming decisions. One
consideration is the programming already available in the station’s listening
area. A new format of hip-hop music may be decided upon because no other
station in the market offers that type of music. However, if there are only a few
hip-hop fans in the market, this format will not draw a sizable audience. Radio
station decision making evolves around the economics of the station.
Advertisers, the sole source of revenue for commercial radio, prefer a carefully
researched and successful format.” Effective decision making in the areas of
policy, personnel, sales, and management mean positive cash flow for the radio

station.

61

NOTES

1. O. P. Kharbanda and E. A. Stallworthy, “Managerial Decision-Making
Part I: Conventional Techniques,” Management Decision, 28, no. 3 (1990), pp.
4-9.

2. F. A. Shull, A. L. Delbecq, and L. L. Cummings, Organizational
Deciaion Making (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1970).

3. B. M. Bass, Qrganizetional Decision Making (Homewood, IL: Richard
D. Irwin, 1983).

4. lbid.

5. Joseph Borrell, “Radio Station Characteristics and the Adoption of
Satellite-Delivered Radio Programming,” The Joml of Media Economics, 10,
no. 1 (1997), pp. 20-23.

6. Stephen Lacy, Ardyth B. Sohn, and Jan LeBlank Wicks, Media
Management: A Casebook Approaah (Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum
Associates, 1993), pp. 2-16, 291-294.

7. Rey LeRoy Barnes, “Program Decision-Making in Small Market AM
Radio Stations” (Ph.D. dissertation, University of Iowa, 1970), pp. 10-12.

8. Herbert Simon, The New Science of Management Decision
(Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1997).

9. lbid.

10. James Redmond and Robert Trager, Balancing on the Wire: The Apt
of Managing Media (Boulder, CO: Coursewise Publishing, 1998), pp. 249-250.

 

11. Alan B. Albarran, Management of Electronic Medfi (Belmont, CA:
Wadsworth Publishing, 1997), pp. 275-276.

12. Shull, Delbecq, and Cummings, op. cit.
13. lbid.

14. Helga Drummond, “Another Fine Mess: Time for Quality in Decision-
Making,” Journal of Cianeral Management. 18, no. 1 (Autumn, 1992), pp. 5-6.

15. James W. Dean, Jr., and Mark P. Sharfman, “Does Decision Process
Matter? A Study of Strategic Decision-Making Effectiveness,” Academy of

Management Journal, 39, no. 2 (April, 1996), p. 369.

62

16. Warren Keith Schilit, “An Examination of the Influence of Middle-
Level Managers in Formulating and Implementing Strategic Decisions,” Journal
of Management Studiea, 24, no. 3 (May, 1987), p. 288.

17. O. P. Kharbanda and E. A. Stallworthy, op. cit, p. 5.

18. George P. Huber, Managerial Decision Making (Glenview, IL: Scott,
Foresman, 1980).

19. Marjorie A. Lyles and Howard Thomas, “Strategic Problem
Formulation: Biases and Assumptions Embedded in Alternative Decision-
Making Models,” Journal of Management Studies. 25, no. 2 (1988), p. 135.

20. William J. Gore, Administrative Decision Making: A Heuristic Mod
(New York: John Wiley and Sons, 1964).

 

21. John E. Fleming, “Study of a Business Decision,” Qalifomia
Management Review. 9, no. 2 (Winter, 1966), pp. 51 -56.

 

22. Barnes, op. cit, pp. 1-10.
23. Fleming, op. cit, p. 51.
24. Barnes, op. cit, pp. 8-9.
25. Fleming, op. cit, p. 55.
26. lbid., p. 51.

27. Henry Mintzberg, Duru Raisingheni, and Andre Theoret, “The
Structure of ‘Unstructured’ Decision Processes,” Administrative Science
Quarterly, 21, no. 2 (June, 1976), pp. 246-255.

28. Dean and Sharfman, op. cit, p. 377.

29. Paul A. Anderson, “Decision Making by Objection and the Cuban
Missile Crisis,” Administrative Science Quarterly, 28, no. 2 (1983), p. 201.

30. Paul C. Nutt, “Types of Organizational Decision Processes,”
Administrative Science Quarterly, 29, no. 3 (September, 1984), p. 414.

31. Anderson, op. cit, pp. 201-204.

32. Paul C. Nutt, “How Decision Makers Evaluate Alternatives and the

Influence of Complexity,” Management Science: Journal of the Institute for
Qperations Research and Management Sciencaa, 44, no. 8 (August 1988),
p.1158.

33. lbid.

63

t

34. Anderson, op. cit, p. 203.

35.

David Cray, Geoffrey R. Mallory, Richard J. Butter, David J. Hickson,

and David C. Wilson, “Sporadic, Fluid and Constricted Processes: Three Types
of Strategic Decision Making in Organizations,” Journal of Management Studies,
25, no. 1 (January, 1988), p. 13.

36. Albarran, op. cit, pp. 270-276.

37. Nutt, “How Decision Makers Evaluate,” p. 1148.

38. E. G. Collins, Executive Success: Making It in Management (New
York: John Wiley & Sons, 1983).

39. Huber, op. cit.

40. Mintzberg, Raisingheni, and Theoret, op. cit, pp. 246-253.

41. Drummond, op. cit, pp. 1-13.

42. Collins, op. cit.

43. Lyles and Thomas, op. cit, p. 134.

44. E. Frank Harrison, The Managerial Decision- -Making Process

 

(Boston: Houghton-Mifflin, 1975).

45.
46.
47.
48.
49.
50.
51 .

52.

Lacy, Sohn, and Wicks, op. cit.

lbid.

Harrison, op. cit, p. 32.

lbid., p. 27.

Kharbanda and Stallworthy, op. cit, pp. 4-9.
Huber, op. cit.

Collins, op. cit.

Lynne Schafer Gross, Telecommunications: An Introduction to

Radio, Television and the Developing Media a,(Dubuque IA. Wm. C. Brown,

1983).

CHAPTER IV

METHODOLOGY

This study investigated the decision-making process for commercial radio.
Two commercial radio stations were selected from the state of Georgia for this
study. Anonymity and pseudonyms were provided for each owner, station, and
respondent participating in the interviewing process. The pseudonym for the
radio station conglomerate is Red Media. The pseudonym used for the radio
station located in metropolitan Georgia and owned by the conglomerate is
WAAA-FM. Rad Media owns more than 50 radio stations in the United States.

As suggested by Horvath and McMillan,1 the restriction to just two stations
was decided to provide as much in-depth information as possible within the time
and resources available. A two-case study is an appropriate design for the
following reasons: The theory previously presented for this study has a set of
assertions or questions that must be answered. To confirm, challenge, or extend
the theory, one or both cases may meet the conditions for testing the theory. A
two-case study can represent a significant contribution to the knowledge of
theory building without the advantage of generalization."’

Final selection of the two stations was based on the following: The

general manager of the station located in metropolitan Georgie (WAAA-FM) is

65

also the chief operating officer of the African-American conglomerate that owns
WAAA-FM. The chief operating officer/general manager is able to bring a
unique perspective on decision making from the corporate as well as the local
level, a rarity in the radio broadcasting industry today.

In contrast, the station representing rural Georgia is owned by an
individual. This African-American owns four radio stations in central Georgia, a
smaller market, and approaches decision making from a single-owner
perspective. The owner/operator was given the pseudonym Robots
Communications; the station pseudonym is WBBB—FM. The single owner works
daily at WBBB-FM and brings a very different view to the study then does the
corporate owner.

Radio broadcast experience and previous research in the field of decision
making have reinforced the belief that too little research has been focused on
the decision-making process in urban radio. With the limited amount of research

literature available on this subject, an exploratory study was warranted.

Selection of Stationa
Two urban, contemporary radio stations were selected because of their
programming format, market size, and ownership. An urban format requires that
75 percent or more of the listening audience be nonwhite.3 The urban format
consists of various forms of music, including rhythm and blues, black or soul,

hip-hop, and oldies.4

66

This study looked at two urban-format stations that program a black-
oriented music format with local news and/or informational programming. Using
the Broadcasting and Cable Yefibook 1997. the M Street Radio Directom, and
the American Radio Winter 1997 Report. the author identified these two stations
as having an urban fonnet and African-American ownership.5 As suggested by
Singleton, each station was contacted by telephone to confirm ownership as well
as programming format.‘5

The smaller-market station was selected within a 100-mile radius of the
larger-market station. To determine whether the market size influences the
decision-making process, two radio stations were selected according to their

market rankings in the 1997 Broadcaating and Cage Yearbook.’ Stations in

 

markets 1-50 are considered large-market stations, 51 -250 are medium-market
stations, and markets above 250 are identified as small-market radio stations.”
This study looked at a large-market station, WAAA-FM, metro Georgia,
and a small-market station, WBBB-FM, rural Georgia. These stations were also
selected for their unique ownership and management structure. The choice of
these stations was also based on new ownership and the current programming
format. WAAA-FM is considered a start-up within the broadcasting industry,
recently entering the metro Georgia market and presenting the first hip-hop
music format for this market. WBBB-FM was purchased in July 1997 and also

broadcasts with a hip-hop format.

67

Identifving Decision Makers
As suggested by Kriger and Barnes,9 initial contact was made by letter to
the chief operating officer of WAAA-FM and the owner of WBBB-FM. Upon
approval of the research project, the ranking officials identified personnel at their
stations who they thought shared in the decision-making process. Those
persons selected represented positions of responsibility and leadership at each

station.

Method of Inquiry

The method of inquiry for this study was qualitative in design and included
various aspects of field study, observation, interview, and case study.
Considerable time was spent at each station interviewing research subjects,
reviewing documents, recording data for analysis, and writing descriptions of the
findings, as suggested by Miles and Huberman.‘°

Evert Gummesson stated that qualitative research has unique
characteristics. For example, the researcher or investigator must be concerned
with the perspective of the participant. Further, research should be analyzed
inductively, and qualitative researchers should be concerned with the process
rather than the result. Moreover, qualitative research is descriptive; therefore,
data collected are in the form of words rather than numbers. Finally,
Gummesson pointed out that qualitative research encourages a setting where
direct sources of data are available, and the researcher is the key instrument to

seek out that information.11

68

As a research strategy, the case study is appropriate for this type of
investigation. “The case study allows an investigator to retain the holistic and
meaningful characteristics of real-life events—such as . . . the managerial
process.“ According to Yin, “various sources are highly complimentary, and a
good case study will want to use as many sources of evidence as possible.”13
The case study helps to answer the questions of “how" and “why" through
qualitative methods of evidence instead of statistical data.“ In an effort to
answer the four research questions for this case study, three sources of
evidence were used: documentation, interviews, and observation. As a means
of analyzing and reporting the data collected for this study, the case study was a

valid research tool for studying the management and decision-making process.

Data Collection

Single case study research is quickly becoming a scientific tool for the
business-oriented researcher. If you want to understand in-depth mechanisms
of change, you no longer have to study a large number of cases.15 Yin agreed;
the case study is used in many settings, one of which is organization and
management research.‘6 Most of the evidence for this study was provided by
field interviews conducted on-site with radio station management. The
interviews focused on the manager’s approach to the decision-making process

and how it is applied to urban radio programming.

69

Relevmiterature Review

The literature review included articles from journals and professional
magazines. Information was also provided by broadcast and journalism
associations. The author read dissertations, newsletters, reports, textbooks, and

newspaper articles to complete the literature review section.

Documents

Additional print material from each manager was requested. Useful
documents included station budgets, organizational charts, brochures, media
kits, related magazine and newspaper articles, copies of promotional initiatives,
news releases, and mission statements (see Appendix D). Budgetary

information was reviewed on-site at each station.

Site Visits

The intention of the on-site visits was to investigate the management and
decision—making styles of station management. Further purposes of these visits
were to meet with interview respondents face to face, as well as inquire into the
computer technology and music product/format used at each station. Interviews
were conducted at the time of the site visits. Direct observation was used to
collect data during the site visits as well as to observe the management and
operation of each station. Field notes, which included audiotaping, collection, or
on-site review of station documents, were used to develop a case study of each
station. Observations of programming, sales, and promotion meetings as well as

on-air shifts were also conducted.

70

The Interview

The principal uses of a case study are to obtain descriptions, and the
interpretations of others. Qualitative researchers take pride in discovering and
portraying multiple points of view of a case study. A qualitative case study
seldom proceeds like a survey, with the same questions asked of each
respondent. Rather, the respondent is expected to have had a unique
experience in a particular subject area and is allowed to explore those
experiences during the interview. The interviewer hopes to get a telling
description of an episode or explanation of a situation during the interview.17

For this study, on-site semi-structured interviews were conducted during
May, July, and September 1999. In semi-structured interviews, questions can be
customized to individual respondents and therefore may not be identical, and
answers may vary accordingly. Given the exploratory nature of this research,
however, this was considered a strength rather than a weakness because
interviewees were expected to provide different views on decision making and
localism, and thus provide new insight into these issues.18 Each month’s on-site
station visit lasted several days. The interview consisted of 20 open-ended
questions (Appendix C). As suggested by Eisenhardt and Bourgeois, these
questions were supplemented with additional support questions as necessary.19
The interviews typically lasted 90 minutes per respondent but could run much
longer depending on the respondent’s answer. Twelve people were interviewed

from both radio stations.

71

Each interview began with the author asking for a description of the
station and its position within the local market. Managers were also asked to
discuss their station’s competencies, success factors, program influences,
personnel skill level, and general background. These issues provided the study
with a sense of the culture of the station. Detailed interview notes were
completed within 24 hours of each interview.”0

The use of multiple informants also provided a check and balance of the
various decisions recalled by the respondent, overcoming possible bias
concerns when relying on the recollection of only one respondent."

Interview questions. The interview questions were designed to
encourage responses that would apply to the four research questions that follow
in this chapter. The format of the questionnaire and wording of each question
were influenced by Mildred L. Patten, author of uestionnaire Research.”
Questions were structured to be read orally and to be answered orally. The
respondent was allowed to answer each question at length. As necessary,
supplemental questioning and probing was done by the investigator to clarify the
responses given. The questionnaire was composed of the following categories:
programming/decision making, personnel/decision making, policy/ decision
making, and local community/decision making.

In addition to the scheduled interviews, an effort was made to obtain
additional information concerning the station and the personnel within each
station through informal discussions. In a number of cases it was possible to

discuss station matters with the manager, owner, and other station personnel

72

during lunch, dinner, or informal meetings. This information was noted and later
used to better understand the operation and management of each station.

Informed conse_nt. All interviewed were ensured anonymity for
themselves and their radio stations. Therefore, no respondents or stations are
identified by name in the study. Each respondent received a cover letter that
described the purpose of the study and the method of data collection (Appendix
E). They were asked to sign the informed consent form if they agreed to
participate in the study. Everyone interviewed and included in the study signed
the form.

fla_rticipa_nt recollection. Participant recollection is considered a data
source often used in the study of decision making.23 Rarely is there an
opportunity for a researcher to observe a decision in process; thus, participant
recollection was used for this study. According to Schwenk, decision making
occurs at different stages and is always goal directed.24 The stages include
problem identification, selection of an alternative, evaluation of the alternative,
and formulation for action. Data from other sources can also be used to confirm
information obtained through interviewing and participant recollection; this

avoids using transcripts and other records as a primary data source.25

Data Analysis

Data collection was accomplished in three stages: site visits to each
station, review of station documents, and personal interviews. Analysis of data

took place after the collection of data was completed. The analysis involved

73

writing observer comments in field notes, reviewing pertinent research literature
and station documents, transcribing audio tapes of each interview, and providing
a final analysis of the research findings. Data analysis for this study entailed
three concurrent activities: data reduction, data display narrative, and

conclusion drawing and verification, as suggested by Miles and Huberman.26

Data Reduction

Data reduction refers to the reduction of “raw" data that appear in the
researcher’s field notes. The reduction of data in this study included completing
summaries, writing memos, and selecting key themes from the field notes and

interview transcripts.

Data Displav Narrative

Data display narrative is an organized presentation of information that
permits conclusion drawing. The display for this study was narrative in text.
One way of presenting interview data is to organize excerpts from the transcripts
into categories. The interviewer then searches for connections or themes
among the categories that emerge, and presents the information in narrative
form. Identified themes should relate to the literature review and should confirm,
extend, refine, or contradict previous thesis. Miles and Huberman also
recommended extensive quotations as proof that the collected data produced

the reported concepts as well as preserved the language of the respondents.”

74

Drawing ConclusionsNerifvinglnformation

Drawing conclusions and verifying information with the review of literature
of the study was also part of the data-analysis process. To evaluate the
decision-making process in urban radio, data were reviewed and organized to
allow for comparisons between WAAA-FM, located in a larger market, and

WBBB-FM, located in a smaller market.

framework for D,a_t§ Analysis

The author also made an on-site visit to the FCC, where two senior staff
were interviewed. There, he met with policy analysts who explained low-power
radio and their views of how they thought it would work in today’s radio
marketplace. In addition, the author met with a former FCC employee, who
provided background materials and expertise on the history of policy making at
the FCC and offered suggestions for interpreting and understanding the policy
processes in Washington, DC.

In the data analysis, the researcher attempted the following:

MEX. Define the policy/culture of the two selected stations. What are
the similarities in policy/culture of the two selected stations? What are the
differences in policy/culture of the two selected stations?

Decision-making process. Define the decision-making process in use at
the two selected stations. What are the similarities in the decision-making
processes at the two stations? What are the differences in the decision-making

processes at the two stations?

75

Ownershipl ma_rket size. What role, if any, does ownership/market size
play when deciding program format, content, and so on? What are the
similarities in the role of ownership/market size? What are the differences in the
role of ownership/market size?

Responsibility for decision mamg. Who is responsible? Is the decision-

making process a bottom-up or top-down approach?

Resea_rch Questions

The following research questions were addressed in this study: How has
urban radio remained committed to the community as well as profitable in the
marketplace, given all the pressures these stations face? How is management,
corporate, owner/president, department, or committee involved in the decision-
making process? What is the nature of the debate, if any, about what to
program or what to advertise? How has multiple/single radio ownership
influenced the decision-making process for the commercial radio broadcaster?
What is the decision-making process for selecting programming for two
commercial radio stations, each representing a different-sized market? What

new questions are raised by all of this?

76

NOTES

1. Dezso Horvath and Charles J. McMillan, “Strategic Choice and the
Structure of Decision Processes," ntemational Studies of Management and
Organization, 9, no. 3 (1979), pp. 88-90.

2. Robert K. Yin, Case Study Research: Design and Methods (Newbury
Park, CA: Sage Publications).

3. James H. Duncan, Jr., and Thom Moon, American Radio Winter 1997
Report (Cincinnati, OH: Duncan’s American Radio, LLC, 1997).

 

4. M. Street Corporation, The M Street Radio Directog (New York: Focal
Press, 1992).

5. E. Kizar (Ed.), Broadcasting and Cable Yearbook (New Providence,
NJ: R. R. Bowker, 1997).

6. Loy Singleton, “FCC Minority Ownership Policy and Non-entertainment
Programming in Black-Oriented Radio Stations," Journal of Broadcasting, 40, no.
3 (1996), pp. 403-413.

7. M. Street Corporation, op. cit.

8. K. D. Loomis, “Radio Public Affairs Programming Since the Fairness
Doctrine” (paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Association for
Education in Journalism and Mass Communication, Anaheim, CA, August,

1996).

9. Mark P. Kriger and Louis B. Barnes, “Organizational Decision-Making
as Hierarchical Levels of Drama,” Journal of Management Studies, 29, no. 4
(July, 1992), p. 442.

10. Matthew 8. Miles and A. Michael Huberman, Qualitative Data
Analysis (Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications, 1984).

11. Evert Gummesson, Qualitative Methods in Management Research
(Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications, 1991).

12. Y in, op. cit., p. 13.
13. lbid.

14. lbid.

77

15. Gummesson, op. cit.
16. Yin, op. cit., p. 61.

17. Robert E. Stake, The Art of Case Stugr Reseafih (Thousand Oaks,
CA: Sage Publications, 1995).

18. R. Wimmer and J. R. Dominick, Mass Media Research: An
Introduction (Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, 1991).

19. Kathleen M. Eisenhardt and L. J. Bourgeois lII, “Politics of Strategic
Decision Making in High-Velocity Environments Toward a Midrange Theory,”
Academy of Management Journal, 31, no. 4 (December, 1988), p. 792.

20. lbid.

21. Susan Miller, “Implementing Strategic Decisions: Four Key Success
Factors,” Organization Studies, 18, no. 4 (1997), p. 581.

22. Mildred L. Patten, Questionnaire Resea_lrch: A Practical Guide (Los
Angeles, CA: Pyrczak Publishing, 1998).

 

23. Charles R. Schwenk, “The Use of Participant Recollection in the
Modeling of Organizational Decision Processes,” The Academy of Management
Review, 10, no. 3 (July, 1985), p. 496.

24. lbid., p. 497.

25. lbid., p. 502.

26. Miles and Huberman, op. cit., pp. 21-23.

27. lbid.

78

CHAPTER V

PRESENTATION OF DATA AND SUMMARY OF FINDINGS

Part luPresentation of Data

Chapter V presents the findings of this study and focuses on localism and
decision making for the radio broadcaster. As suggested by Yin,1 there are four
primary sources for conducting case studies: (a) documents, (b) archival
records, (c) interviews, and (d) direct observation. The case study approach is
useful in analyzing and summarizing the findings from the two radio stations
selected. To maintain the anonymity of the two stations selected, they are
referred to by pseudonyms: Case l—WAAA-FM and Case lI-WBBB-FM. When
a respondent is quoted directly, a title is associated with the quotation. When
exact wordings are used within the text, these are enclosed in quotation marks.
Informal discussions are summarized and used within the body of the text.
Interview questions are denoted by bold italics.

This chapter includes the data collected, which assists in answering the
research questions as listed in Appendix F. This helped form the conclusions,

implications, and recommendations discussed in Chapter VI.

79

The data obtained from the two radio stations are presented in two case
studies. Case l-WAAA-FM represents a station located in the metro Georgia
region; Case lI—WBBB-FM represents a station located in the central or rural
Georgia region. The findings are presented in the following order for each case
study: The company profile, station profile, respondent profile, and response to
questionnaire. The respondent profiles are reported to provide the reader with
pertinent information on those individuals who were interviewed one-on-one for
the study.

The researcher observed four meetings held at WAAA-FM: programming,
promotion, sales, and a manager’s meeting. The researcher also observed a
live broadcast.

The data collected will provide insight into the decision-making process
for station operations, sales, and programming from a multiple-owner standpoint.
Several examples are provided that illustrate decision responsibility, influences,

and types of information necessary to make a decision.

Case l—WAAA-FM

The Company Profile: Background
Information on Ra_d Medi_a. Inc.

Considered by many an overnight success, Rad Media, founded in 1980,
will celebrate its twentieth anniversary this year. Catherine Liggins Hughes and
her former husband, Dewy Hughes, bought their first radio station, WOL-AM,

located in Washington, DC.

80

Today, Rad Media is considered the largest radio broadcasting company
in the United States targeting urban listeners. Upon completion of pending
acquisitions, Rad Media will own or operate more than 50 radio stations; many
are located in 9 of the top 20 African-American markets.2

Since January 1998, Rad Media has purchased 43 of its 50 stations. Rad
Media’s management strategy is simple yet aggressive: Target cities with
African-American communities, buy stations, and reprogram them with adult or
young adult urban-contemporary formats, also referred to as black music
formats. Rad Media stations are a mixture of urban contemporary music, gospel,
and talk for young and old, with an overall African-American audience of 70%, a
demographic group whose population growth and income are outpacing
mainstream America. Other goals include increasing individual station ratings
and cash flow. Rad Media plans to be in 22 cities by 2004.3

In March 1999, Rad Media filed with the Securities and Exchange
Commission for approximately $125 million of its common stock to be offered
publicly on NASDAQ. According to Hughes, “Going public at this time of our
development will provide the capital necessary for expansion and a chance for
our listeners to own a piece of the rock.” All stations owned or managed by Rad
Media as of December 31, 1998, were ranked first or second in their market in
both audience and net broadcast revenue share, which totaled $60.8 million for
1998.4

Catherine Liggins Hughes is chairperson of Rad Media, Inc., located in

Lanham, Maryland, and signs off on all acquisitions and strategic initiatives. Her

81

son, Alfred C. Liggins III, is president and CEO. They own 71% of Rad Media’s
shares of $428 million, as of May 7, 1999. Both manage Rad Media's more than

700 employees, of whom 75% are African-Americans.5

The Local tation Pers ective

Background information pn WAAA-FM. WAAA-FM is one of 50 stations
owned and operated by Rad Media, Inc. In completing this study, WAAA-FM
was analyzed, specifically looking at localism as well as management’s
approach to the decision-making process concerning sales and programming.

Mission statement: Alfred Liggins, CEO of Rad Media, stated his
company’s goals in an article appearing in Radio Ink. Those goals are to
increase ratings, revenue, and cash flow, and to double the value of any station
purchased within three to five years. Liggins prefers to purchase
underperforming stations and improve their programming and revenue, thus
increasing shareholder value. Additional goals include becoming the
predominant provider of urban radio programming by having a presence in the
top 30 markets.6

The following discussion provides background information on the local
radio station, WAAA-F M.

Does your station operate with a mission statement, strategic plan,
or policy initiative? The general manager/COO responded:

We have a mission statement, and I couldn’t even tell you what it means.

. . . All I know is that the environment has to be a place where people like

to come to work. It’s fun, and you can be creative and successful at the
same time. I don’t know that we’ve got time for a mission statement.

82

Things move too fast here for us to be fooling around with stuff like that.
(Transcripts, 7126/99)

The station manager concluded that the main goal is to “make budget . . .
that's the main goal . . . and to stay on the air" (no technical problems).

Organizational chart: See Appendix G.

Annual budget: $11 million.

Target audience: 12 to 34.

Core audience: 12 to 25.

Wattage and coverage area: 7000 watts; metropolitan Georgia and
northern suburbs.

Format: “The only station where hip-hop lives: WAAA-FM" is the logo
and identifier for metro Georgia’s hip-hop station. WAAA-FM went on the air
July 3, 1995, with a core target demographic of 12 to 24. Through research,
Rad Media determined that there was a segment of the population being ignored
in the metro Georgia market. WAAA-FM became the first full-service hip-hop
station to service the metro Georgia market. Although there are four established
urban stations in the market, no one programs hip-hop exclusively, 24 hours a
day.

Management at WAAA-F M approach this program format as though every
listener is a member of the hip-hop generation. Those who understand it
appreciate it as a lifestyle. Today, hip-hop includes television programming,

publications, fashion, language, and music. And for advertisers, the 12 to 24

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year old has money and buying power. WAAA-FM’s listeners tune in to hear

special programming geared to the 12- to 24-year—old market.

Respondent Profiles

Several participants from WAAA-FM were interviewed. Their titles and
responses to the first interview question are presented in this section (see
Appendix C for interview questions).

What are the types of activities you do in your job, and why do you
do these activities?

General manager and chief operating officer (COO): Attended Auburn
University and upon graduation accepted a position at a “little” station in
Huntsville, Alabama. Later programmed WSM-AMIFM in Nashville, Tennessee,
then moved to Atlanta as program consultant for Cox Broadcasting. Before
accepting current position at Rad Media, Inc., was executive vice-president of
the Radio Division for Summit Broadcasting. Currently holds the position of
general manager and COO of Rad Media, Inc.

Station manager: Responsible for the day-to-day operation of the
station; checks sales orders, makes sure appropriate rates are applied, monitors
production orders as well as program logs, and so on. Also assists general
manager in finalizing and implementing station budget. Responsible for
management of station when general manager visits other stations as COO for

Rad Media, Inc. The station manager has a Ph.D. from Bowling Green State

University and has worked in the nonprofit, higher education, and public radio
arenas.

Program director: The program director, at age 23, is currently working
in his third program director position. He joined WAAA-FM in March 1999.
“Responsible for everything you hear on the air—programs, production, remotes,
music, announcers.” Supervises 20 announcers, including 5 staff for
promotions, 2 for production, and 1 music director.

Business manager/human resource administrator: Responsible for all
financial aspects of station and serves as financial liaison with corporate office.
Also responsible for Human Resources Department and Traffic Department.

Traffic manager: Responsible for reviewing production quality of all
commercials. Reviews commercial log to determine availability of time,
schedules all commercials and prepares log, schedules around competitive
advertisers, keeping all competitors separate. Avoids scheduling spots or
commercials at the same time every day, thus avoiding tune-out. Avoids
scheduling same voice on several spots in a row. “There’s that tune-out factor.
. . . You keep hearing it, and after a while you just don’t hear it any more, and
that’s the kiss of death.”

Program consultant: Currently serves as program director for WAMG-
FM, an oldies station located in Atlanta and owned by Rad Media. Also assists

WAAA-FM program director as necessary.

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Sales manager: WAAA—FM sales manager has extensive experience as
sales manager in the Atlanta market. Requires a minimum of five years’
experience when hiring account executives.

National sales manager: Responsible for contacting national sales
agency. Required to interact with national account representatives requesting
placement of national advertising on WAAA-FM. Responsible for at least 25% of
station advertising. National advertising includes Reebok, Nike, Hershey’s,
Microsoft, and others. Previous experience includes national sales manager for

a commercial FM station in San Diego, California.

Localism/Commpnitv Prog_ra_m_ming (Policv)

Low-power radio. What problems, if any, can be expected for the
radio broadcaster with the advent of low-power radio? Alfred Liggins, CEO,
responded for an article in Radio Ink: “We have enough of a challenge
competing against the larger companies that have five FM’s in the marketplace,
to our two.” Adding low-power stations to a metropolitan area means they will
probably offer an urban format and compete against a Rad Media station.
Liggins continued, “That hurts our stations. It’s difficult getting a good
complement of stations in some of these markets. Then we must compete with
smaller stations that we can’t own. Adding more licenses is not good for

anybody.”7

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The station manager agreed: “Three years ago, 3,000 to 6,000 watts was
considered low power; now 100 to 1,000 watts is low power. It is still our
competition, regardless of the power.”

Qommitment to community. What role have local programming and
community service played in remaining committed to the community?
Today, a station’s commitment to community is defined in many different ways.
The station manger responded:

Yes, you are responsible for meeting the needs of the community. The

FCC guidelines specify that the licensee should serve the public, and you

do that by trying to understand the pulse and conscience of the

community you serve. In this particular market, we have to know what is
going on in the community . . . what issues are important to our listeners.

[For instance], a week or so ago there was a huge fire in town, and on

that particular day a couple was burned out of their home. They were

expecting a child; all their belongings were burned in the fire. Well, our
morning show announcer and producer thought the station and the
community should do something, so we had an on-air drive the next
morning, and out of that drive we raised over $5,000 in contributions.

People also brought in clothing as well as an automobile. The station

received positive publicity from the local media, and the station was able

to rally the community to help someone in need. The station tries to take

on the personality of the community. (Interview transcript, 7l26/99)

According to the station manager, public affairs programs on school
safety have also been produced to respond to the large number of students hit
by automobiles at school crossings. Station personnel have also attended
meetings to encourage the city council to place warning signs or increase
crossing guards at school crosswalks. He concluded, “These are the kinds of
things the station does to get the public to respond to issues involving their

community.”

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The program director cited specific programming that met his definition of
local programming at WAAA-FM:

On Monday nights at 9:00 pm, we do a program called “Check Yourself,”

a talk show geared to teens where community issues are discussed. We

also broadcast the “Money Talk“ feature each morning during our morning

show. (Interview transcript, 7126/99)

The “Money Talk” program runs five minutes in length and includes financial
information for the listener. The program director is also committed to providing
air time for local musicians in the area. Many of these artists reside and perform
locally but have national popularity.

Community as part of station. How do you make the community feel a
part of your station? The program director supported the station manager’s
previous comments:

We adopt a school . . . and volunteer at that school. A family was burned

out with nowhere to live or clothes to wear. Our morning show

announcers asked the community for help, and people started dropping
things off; the whole community came together. (Interview transcript,

7/26/99)

In addition, each announcer is required to do six community events a
month, which totals more than 120 community events per month for the station.
These events are coordinated by the news director of the “Morning Show" and
are generated by public service announcements (PSAs) sent to the station by
community organizations. Each PSA is assigned to one or more announcers,

and they are required to participate at the assigned event (see Appendix G for

events).

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The program director asked the question “Why do we do this?“ and then
answered as follows:

We don’t want to be perceived as just a clubbing, partying, or hip-hop
station. We want people to know that we are a shoulder they can lean on
if there is a problem. We don’t want to be seen as a bunch of kids that
are just here to have fun and can’t do anything right. We want to show
that hip-hop has a better image than previously given. We want people to
know that we are here for you. (Interview transcript, 7126/99)

The general manager and COO took a different perspective on the
“commitment to community” issue:

I think the community’s role is vital. When we put the station on the air it
was because we knew we were going to do a format targeted toward
African-Americans, and we did the research that told us what the format
hole was in our market. Every week we have a company out of Detroit
that does research for all our stations. They call 100 people per station.
(Interview transcript, 7126199)

She continued:

You can’t program a station from a corporate level. It has to be local
because that’s what radio is. It’s all about being local and appealing to
your market, and knowing what your market needs, and what’s going on
in your market. (Interview transcript, 7126199)

Qompetitivg marketplace. How have you been able to meet this goal
and also remain competitive in the marketplace? The station manager
explained:

If you are going to pay several million dollars for a license, then you have
a financial responsibility not only to yourself as an investor but to other
investors, and to the community itself, to run a sound business. What
drives a radio station is being able to be in touch with its community,
knowing what the listener wants, playing the music that people want to
hear. This also drives sales. We wouldn’t be able to do any of this if we
didn’t have a solid sales team . . . you must make money so you can do
the other things for the community . . . and the station wouldn’t be able to
sell the product if the station didn’t have a product that the people liked.

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What drives this station is the popularity of the product. (Interview
transcript, 7126/99)

The station manager reviewed the sales and collection process:

You get a certain commission for new orders, you get a certain
commission for regular recurring orders . . . you get a certain commission
for club orders. . . . If it is a new order you get a little more money. . . . The
incentive is that if you can go out and bring in new business you get a
little more money . . . you get that incentive one time at a set rate. If you
get a commission today and money is never received through the
business office for the order, then that money is deducted from your
check. If money is not forwarded from the advertiser, then the sales
representative must return to the advertiser and collect the money. If the
money is not provided by the advertiser, then money must be backed out
of the sales representative’s next check. This is incentive for the sales
person to collect the money. If the sales representative does not collect,
then the account is turned over to the business office for collections. You
don’t want the business manager to get involved because their approach
is much different and they may ruin your relationship with that business.
(Interview transcript, 7126/99)

Role of business office. What is the role of the business office, and
what types of decisions take place during the work day? According to the
business manager,

The role of the business office is to handle all financial aspects of the

station as they relate to the basic operation of the station. A salesperson

goes out and meets with a potential client, presents a package, and the
client decides whether they want to buy advertising time. The
salesperson would then write up a sales order. If it is for a specific event
or a first-time advertiser, cash is required in advance until credit approval.

For existing agencies or previous clients, a line of credit is provided.

(Interview transcript, 7126199)

For the first-time advertiser, the salesperson would provide that business
with a credit application. Once the application is completed and approved, the

traffic department puts the commercial into the system. The business office is

responsible for monitoring all revenue.

90

We are the gatekeepers of the revenue, and as a result that's why the
traffic department reports to the business office. I want to see exactly
what we’re putting on the air. What’s been approved. What’s not been
approved. Whether or not we have received payment. (Interview
transcript, 7127199)

And all payments are turned in to you? The business manager responded,

Correct. I do have an assistant within the business office itself. The
person that’s making the deposits and collecting the actual cash . . . is not
the person that’s actually posting the cash. Once this is done, we review
our trial balance. That’s the document that’s produced after we have
completed the sale and the order gets into the system. We run the spots.
We do the posted log and then we create invoices and generate that
document which is a subsidiary of our general ledger. It’s called a trial
balance. From that document I normally would review with my general
manager and general sales manager any accounts that we are having
problems collecting. (Interview transcript, 7127199)

What is the tum-around time?

Our terms are net 30 [days]. Most people pay within 45 to 60 days.
Sometimes it goes into 90 days, but we try to maintain our receivables 90
and over. Our goal is to maintain it at 6% or lower. Part of my
responsibility is also maintaining control of our revenue, managing the
revenue, and a disbursement of cash through accounts payable.
Therefore, I am always monitoring our spending and our daily operations
in terms of our spending because I am responsible for preparing the
budget

Budget decisions. What types of decisions are required in
preparation of the station ’s budget?

In the past we would do their [staff] budgets and give it to them. Last year
I took it upon myself to train the department heads to understand the
purpose of a budget and to actually prepare it based on what they know
their needs are, specifically, and work from there. . . . We then compare
what we have in the budget, what we budget for, and based against
actual, what we’re spending. It’s another thing to actually incur the
expense, and it all goes back again to the revenue; if we are not meeting
our revenue goals, everything becomes “No.“ (Interview transcript,
7129/99)

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Do you and the general manager set the budget, or is that pretty
much up to you?

It’s my responsibility to make sure that we prepare the budget, do our
presentation, and make sure we meet our goals. I also meet periodically
with the general manager, who is also the chief operating officer for the
company, to inform her of what my estimates are based on. (Interview
transcript, 7127/99)

The station manager continued:

Each station will develop a budget according to what they think they will
need as a market. The general manager will finalize the budget. The
chief financial officer [for Rad Media] will review budgets for each station
to determine if you are justified in your request. He will do some number
crunching and determine what amount of budget should be approved.
Budgets are determined from what was spent the previous year. . . . You
try to make sure sales can pay for whatever you are asking for. (Interview
transcript, 7126199)

Pro'ections re orts deadlines. What is the role of the business office
at the local and corporate level?

Every Monday by 1:00 pm, I report to my corporate office in terms of
what we’ve projected, what we actually have on the books, and how we
will perform based on history. We want to be able to project where we will
be in the future, also known as forecasting our numbers. Sales managers
are supposed to give figures on Friday so we can report to Corporate by
1:00 pm. Monday. Sales managers know what is pending, what’s
scheduled for closing during the week . . . that’s what the forecast
numbers are based on. Sol have to interact directly with sales
managers, which include my national and general sales manager.

For me, month-ends mean that at the end of the month, we have to
actually create our invoices that we send to our clients, and that’s when
we prepare our financials. So my interaction with corporate is really with
the financial department of the corporate office. We try to plan this in an
expeditious manner because it’s month-end or it’s quarter end, and we
have to report externally to our public. (Interview transcript, 7127199)

Resolving decrease in sales. What happens if sales projections are

short for the month? As business manager, do you talk to the sales

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manager, or is that done by the general manager? How is the problem
resolved?

On July 27, 1999, at a department managers’ meeting, the general sales
manager informed the general manager/COO and the business manager that
sales would be $21,000 short for the month of July. There were only four days
left for the sales staff of 10 to sell the necessary advertising. The business
manager, however, thought the sales manager should have met his monthly
sales quota since sales projection reports were required each week. According
to the business manager, there was enough time to adjust sales projections and
avoid the $21,000 loss. The sales manager, however, implied that the difference
could be corrected in August. The business manager responded:

That’s what we were discussing in our meeting yesterday. . . . The

general manager is trying to ascertain from the general sales manager

where they are actually in terms of what we projected, and they know
where they are going to fall. . . . That’s why she was concerned when the
sales manager was telling her about August and we’re like, we’re still in

July. . . . We are really much lower [in sales] than what we budgeted for.

How can we make up the difference? That’s why we were concerned

about it. . . . For now, let’s just try to deal with July. That’s why we

brought it up in our department head meetings . . . and it is their

responsibility to meet with their staff. (Interview transcript, 7127199)

80 you estimate the annual budget for each year. Did you
overestimate for this year’s budget? The business manager responded,

“I’m not sure if we overestimated. The market on a whole, its national sales,

they are down and it’s across the market. It’s not just our station . . . we have

several special events that we believe will pick up the shortfall this year.” Also, it

93

is possible they will have to depend more on local and less on national sales for

next year.

Limited understanding of the role of national sales manager. What

 

issues may have influenced the decline in national advertising revenue?
The national sales manager responded,

The national side is looked at as a necessary evil by radio managers. I’m
called a national sales manager. I’m not really a manager. . . . When I
came here I was department head. Now, I’m not. I used to report to the
general manager as department head. Now I report to the general sales
manager. I’m a manager without teeth, essentially. . . I’m an island. I’m
kind of an enigma . . . as far as local sales people, a lot of them don’t
even understand how I’m different than they are as far as my side of the
business. . . . When I got here a year ago, our billing was so messed up,
our advertisers weren’t even receiving their invoices because they weren’t
being mailed to them. We had $292,000 that was past due over 90 days
national, just national. . . . I found out what the problem was and worked
with the business manager on this and really got it cleaned up. Today,
our over-90-days aging is under $100,000. (Interview transcript, 7127199)

Are the national spots more than the local spots?

Sometimes yes, sometimes not. The reasons for that are more esoteric
than they are statistical. The national rates are higher than the local rates
because of the local perception of hip-hop. A lot of local advertisers say,
“I don’t want to advertise on that rap music station.“ On the national side,
AT.&T, Taco Bell, Reebok, Nike, these are corporations that have realized
that they can increase their sales dramatically by associating with the hip-
hop lifestyle. So they’re willing to spend more money and drive rates up.
(Interview transcript, 7127199)

Ratings. The national sales manager had this to say with regard to
rafings:

But the bottom line is, when a buy is up, they got to look at these
numbers. They want to buy these day parts. They’ve got this much
money to spend and this is how many rating points they want to buy. . . .
With local it’s different; the local advertisers, many of them, don’t even
know what a rating book looks like. . . . To them it’s like, “I like the music
and yeah, I think that people who listen to that music would buy my

94

product or service. They would come into my store.” Locally, it’s more
about selling. You go out and say, “This is who we are and this is what
we do,” and they don’t care how big your audience is. What they care
about is are you going to be able to help them get rid of all the product, all
the inventory in their store. (Interview transcript, 7127199)

Cost per spot. The national sales manager continued,

You know, [metro] Georgia is a very, very unusual market in that we are
the most under “radioed” market in the country. We have fewer radio
stations per capita than any other market in the country. . . . If there’s
money coming into the market and there are fewer outlets, meaning radio
stations, it drives the price higher because you want to get on and we set
the rates so the advertiser can get on. That’s what really sets the rates.

. . . In January if there’s not much demand, I might be selling spots at
$200 a spot because we need the money and there’s so much revenue
out there, everyone is going to cut the rates because they have inventory,
but when you’re talking about July, August, and September, and it’s youth
radio like we are, there’s going to be a lot more demand in the summer
than there is in January . . . and we’re more limited with inventory per

hour due to the demand, so now we sell it for $500 a spot. . . . It’s still
25% to 30% of the total revenue so you need it. (Interview transcript,
7127199)

The general sales manager agreed: “People often want to buy time
during parts of the day when no time or inventory is available,” warranting an
increase in cost per spot for time available. According to the general sales
manager, a local spot averages $350 per 60 seconds. In the final analysis,

prices are determined according to what the market will bear.

Programming/Personnel

Format and research. How did you decide on the current format?
How does music research contribute to the process? According to the
station manager, “A perceptual and format opportunity analysis was completed.“

The firm responsible for this analysis met with station personnel and discussed

95

station goals and potential music positioning for the station. Demographics of
the target audience were also discussed, as well as analysis of local stations
that “have listeners we would like to attract.” The goal was to develop a new
station image for the marketplace. A market survey was also conducted to
determine what was being played in the market.

We hfla firm and conducted a music test on the market. The research
will tell yOIWTFIEre are any holes in the urban format in this market. We
can then find something that will generate an audience that advertisers
would want to go to. . . . Once the research is completed and we decide
what format we are going to use [must be an urban format], we then do a
music test, and then after you do a music test that’s when you bring in
yourfopus groups and you ask people what type of music they would like
to hear. Based on their response, a library Is developed which is inputted
into the computer. There are no compact discs or albums, all music is on
computer hard drive. (Interview transcript, 7126199) ‘

 

Selection of music. What role does the announcer play when
selecting music for broadcast? The station manager responded,

That’s the difference between old-time radio and new radio. Everything
we do here is by computer, so when a jock goes into a studio all that jock
has to do is what the computer tells him, including when he should talk
and what music he should play. The computer will kick him out if he talks
too long. If necessary, the computer can run the entire show with jock
imaging. . . . It sounds like the person is actually there . . . you can use
the voice of a jock and drop it in and the computer will run it. [This is
done for holidays and emergencies] (Interview transcript, 7126199)

Preprogrammed computer selects music. What role does the computer
or other technology play in the decision-making process? The station
manager responded, “It used to be you had a jock on the air and the jock had

A
say-so in what was being played . . . and the program director was still ultimately

W

in control.” Today, the process has changed. The corporate office,

96

programming committee, and consultants now contribute to the process. The

station manager continued,

If an announcer programs his show and follows the way the computer
says and the way the test says, normally you get numbers you hope for.
And if you don’t get those numbers, heads don’t roll the way they used to
because it was a group decision. If an announcer returns to the old days
when you could play around with the music. . . that announcer would get
fired. (Interview transcript, 7126199)

For instance, the announcer opens the microphone; the computer tells the
announcer how long to talk and will cut him off if he talks too long. Commercials
are set at 60 seconds and will begin automatically. “The computer is set up so
you average 8 to 10 minutes of commercials per hour with at least 50 minutes of
music. Breaks are at 20 minutes after and 38 minutes to the hour for
commercials.”

Mm and decision making. How involved is Rad Media in
making programming decisions for WAAA-FM? The general manager/COO
explained:

Well, this station is a little different from many stations. I think my
program director is the youngest program director in the country [age 23].
But this is a young station so you have young people. Sometimes it can
be really frustrating, but also they have so much energy and they don’t
have a lot of preconceived notions . . . they’re just like sponges. Our
listeners are between the ages of 12 and 34, primarily 12 and 25.

[Rad Media] stations are programmed separately, but there’s
support from corporate if you need it. . . . l have leaned on my vice-
president for programming lately because I realize that the program
director needs a little more attention, but you can’t program a station from
the corporate level. I’ve been drawing the vice-president for programming
more into the mix to get him to spend more time with the program director
because when we hired him we just threw him into it and he didn’t know
this market. . . . He has so much to learn, and it's our job to make sure
that he learns everything he can to be successful. (Interview transcript,
7126199)

97

The station manager continued,

The company has a programming plan for our station. Similar to football,
the play we give the program director to run on the field, he runs the play,
and if he runs the play provided by the company, then he is guaranteed
success. Some announcers have thought they were smarter than
corporate and began to tweak the music. . . . You can go into the
computer and change the music. . . . The computer will show what has
been changed; then you know someone has been messing with the
computer. Those announcers thought they knew the music better than
corporate. They deviated from the plan and were terminated. (Interview
transcript, 7126199)

Responsibility of program director. What role does the program
director play in the decision-making process? According to the station
manager, the program director has an influence on the programming of the
station, but any decision to select or change music requires the approval of the
company vice-president for programming and/or the local general manager.
According to the station manager,

As long as you can explain, as manager, why you choose to do

something, and it sounds logical and rational, you will get support on it.

Nobody will listen to you if you can’t explain it. You must also take

responsibility and be accountable for all the decisions you make.

(Interview transcript, 7126199)

The program director must “establish his brand and position the station,”
while following the programming philosophy of the company. For example,
according to the station manager, the program director

. . . changed the music mix in the morning. . . . You can look at your

numbers and tell when your numbers are flat . . . so you have to make a

judgment call . . . Is it the music mix or is it the on-air personality?

Research doesn’t answer all the questions . . . sometimes you can feel

the problem. In this case it was determined that the music mix was too

old school for the young target audience we were trying to reach. . . . You

have to remain edgy . . . you don’t want to be too safe . . . are you playing
one song too much, or are you not playing a song long enough? . . . He

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must make a judgment call as to what to put in and what to pull out . . .
who to hire, what jocks to rotate . . . so he can have his own brand on the
station. (Interview transcript, 7126199)

Station brand or image. How does the program director place his
brand on a station that receives so much input from corporate,
consultants, and the general manager? The program director responded,
“You have to learn to work together. It is a team effort.” For instance,

A change in the morning show would require approval from the general

manager, then run it by the vice-president for programming to see what

his thoughts were. . . . All three of us would get on a conference call and
discuss the changes and decide what will be done. (Interview transcript,

7126199)

According to the program director, he “oversees everything in
programming, everything you hear on the air, promotions, production, music,
announcers.” Every special event sponsored by the station is produced and
promoted by his staff. Promos must “sound good enough to attend . . . to make
our listeners come out and want to be a part of it . . . oversee production . . . to
make sure spots are hype [exciting] enough.” The promos must reflect the hip-
hop image, “to look for a certain sound and to make sure the production team is
putting that sound across the air."

The sound of the station. How is your station ’s sound different from
the sound of another market?

You must play the universal records every market will play, the top 20;

then, for instance, Washington, DC, has GO GO, we have the booty-

shake music that no one else will play, what is known as dance music. . . .

Each market caters to a particular type of music. (Interview transcript,
7126199)

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Ratings. How do you look in the metro Georgia market? The program

director responded,

Ratings are very important. We rank 10 in the market out of 25 stations.
. . . You must try to find ways to make your ratings go up . . . contests,
promotions, changes in the music . . . we are trying to attract those who
love hip-hop music. You can’t force it on people who don’t like it or are
totally against it. We just want our share of the hip-hop pie. (Interview
transcript, 7126199)

The program director continued, “We avoid the negative rap artist; we play
nonoffensive rap. We want to present hip-hop as responsible music with a
positive image—happy hip-hop.”
How heavily do you rely on ratings? How important are ratings?
The general manager/COO responded,
I think sometimes there is too much research. I don’t think we do too
much research, but I think some companies have gotten themselves
bogged down in research so that you almost lose the heart and soul of
the station. It can get very sterile, and programming is part art, part
science. So I think we have just about the right amount. It seems to be
working for us. (Interview transcript, 7126/99)
Describe the decision-making process required to produce the
morning program. The program director commented,
Every day after the morning show. . . we do a morning show meeting . . .
review that day’s morning show. . . decide on future guests . . . try to
have a very energetic, entertaining show. When your alarm clock goes
off, you are not just hearing something boring; our goal is to make you
hear something funny or up-tempo that will make you jump up and move
. . . make the listener say, “That’s my song playing,” . . . make you want to

get up, take your shower, and get ready for the work day. (Interview
transcript, 7126199)

The program consultant commented on how music is added for the

morning program and other programs at WAAA-FM:

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If a record is testing well but it’s getting to the 40% burn mark, then what
you do is drop it in rotation to a category called “stay current,” which
means you are still going to keep it current. It’s still going to be fairly
aggressive, but you’re going to slow it some. Everything you play doesn’t
make it to the current category. You want your stay current and
recurrents to be the best of what you keep. (Interview transcript, 7126/99)

How does the call-out work?

In terms of making decisions when you have a current, recurrent radio
station with a recent or current mix, call-outs are very valuable in helping
you make your decisions. What you are trying to find out with call-outs
are, number one, is the song familiar to the listener, number two, what is
the preference score on a one to five basis? That’s a one to five score,
where one is dislike and five is favored. The third thing you are looking
for is burn . . . are they tired of hearing the song? Then you break it out
based on the demographics you’re interested in . . . male and female 16
to 25. (Interview transcript, 7126199)

How many records are tested during a call-out?

You always need to test your A’s and B’s . . . your powers and your
secondaries . . . that’s about 20 records. . . . Then you bring in an
additional 10 records that have enough spins to test in addition to the A’s
and B’s. But the main thing is you need to test A’s and B’s every week
because those are the presence of your station in terms of the mix.
(Interview transcript, 7126/99)

So the listener actually tells you what to play? “Yes.” According to
the consultant, call-out listeners are first screened according to demographics
and station preference.

Then we play hooks of these songs down the phone line and they

respond to it. That’s the way you make the decision about current music

on a station that plays a lot of current material. You have to know what
your station is about. . . . You can’t use the call-out research until a record

has been on the station long enough to test. (Interview transcript, 7126199)

How does the program director know what to add?

You got to know the format. lwouldn’t pretend to know the music like [the

program director or the vice-president for programming]. That’s where the
art is. You must know the new song by the core artist and know it is going

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to be a hit. Once you add the record . . . you’ve got to have some
emotion with the science. You’ve got to say, “Boy, this new JZ record is
going to be a hit. I’m going to put that in my power new category and
hang my hat on that record.” Those are records you’re going to bet on.
Then the other records must meet the needs of the station, such as an
artist that we always play, or it’s just a good song. After they’ve been on
the station for two to three weeks and have enough spins, plays on the
station, then they go into the call-out and the listener either validates the
hypothesis of adding the record or says “Mistake, see ya later.“ But the
listener ultimately makes the decision. (Interview transcript, 7126199)

The general manager/COO commented on listener research and the role
of the program director:

The record people come in on Thursdays with new product. On Friday
the program director and the music consultant will sit down and figure out
what they’re going to add and if they are going to move any of the songs
out of rotation. In the control room we have somebody that’s always in
there answering phones and writing down the requests, but you can’t just
rely on requests. . . . A lot of times record labels will hire people just to
call up for their record, so you have to be careful. That’s where [the
program director] is so important . . . because the audience can only tell
you what they think about a record after they’ve heard it a couple of times,
but [the program director] is the one who figures out what records to put
on the air, and there aren’t a lot of people really that do that and do a
good job of it. (Interview transcript, 7126199)

Case lI-WBBB-FM

The Company Profile: Background Information
on Robots Communications Inc.

 

Mike Roberts, owner of Robots Communications, the only African-
American owner and the third largest radio operator of radio stations in central
(rural) Georgia, owns two AM-F M combos with the following formats and power:

AM Urban gospeI--1 ,000 watts

Simulcast/satellite programming

FM Urban gospel—3,000 watts

AM Urban oldies—10,000 watts (CD automation)

FM Urban mainstream (WBBB-FM)—6,000 watts

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The stations are sold and marketed as two stations, gospel and urban
mainstream. No commercials are broadcast over the AM urban oldies station.

Only WBBB-FM is fully staffed.

Respondent Profile

Owner/president: Mike Roberts has been a morning announcer and
program director at a top-40 rhythm-and-blues station located in a metropolitan
city in Georgia. Originally from Buffalo, New York, he purchased WBBB-FM and
three other stations in central Georgia in July 1997.

General manager/national sales manager: Previous position was in
“corporate America," in Los Angeles, California. “I was not working in radio but
always had a passion for radio.” The general manager has an undergraduate
degree in broadcast journalism from Florida A&M University. He wanted to
return to the South to be near family and friends; he has held the position for two
years.

Program director: Also holds the position of music director, morning
show announcer/producer, and promotion director. Also assists as traffic
director and receptionist, as necessary. (There is no receptionist, secretary, or
voice mail at WBBB-F M.) According to the program director, the owner serves
as program consultant because he has the most programming experience at the

station.

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Local sales manager/account executive: Started working in radio sales
in 1978. Has been employed as account executive at WBBB-FM for two and
one-half years; has been sales manager for one and one-half years.

Mpg. Do you have separate staffs for each station? The owner
responded,

Right, but now they’re blending more and more together. We actually
now have on our gospel station two people that actually work for both
stations, and we consider them to be two stations because the oldies
station we really don’t market or promote very much . . . and the gospel
station is simulcast so it’s really two stations, an urban mainstream and
gospel station, and that’s kind of how we sell them. . . . One doesn’t carry
any commercials, by design . . . it’s being automated rather cheaply, and
frankly the reason we don’t put spots on it is it’s a pain in the butt to do it.
What we do is record 15 hours of music on CD and we use a CD changer,
so you only hear dead air one time per hour when the CD changer is
changing . . . everything is prerecorded. The downside is if you listen to
the station long enough you can kind of predict what is going to come
next. I try to rotate the music and change the hours periodically. . . .
Because we run it that way there is really no simple way of running
commercials on it without having a human being going in there and
stopping the CD changer. . . . If we have a client and it’s worth it, we do
that. But I don’t encourage selling it until we put a real automation system
in. We actually run it as a spoiler right now. . . . What that means is it’s
on the air to hurt somebody else more than to make revenue. (Interview
transcript, 9120/99)

How did you get in the business?

The telecommunications bill came through, and all the big boys started
lining up . . . and I said . . . “If I am going to do this, I better do this.” And
so I got a call from a friend of mine who was running one of the stations

. . . and he needed some financial backing . . . so I said, “OK, I’ll help you
out.” So after getting involved with the radio station . . . he said, “Hey,
how would you like to buy it?”

The funny thing about broadcasting, once you’re in the buying
mode everybody knows, so I get a call from a broker, who says, “I hear
you want to buy a combo; I’ve got another station in central Georgia that’s
up for sale, and it will complement what you’re doing pretty well
signalwise,” and he was right. One signal came out of the northwest part
of town, and the other signal came out of the southeast, so if you wanted

104

to simulcast you could pretty much cover the market with both stations. It
made sense, plus there were already two owners who owned most of the
stations in this market, so it would make sense to come in with four
stations rather than with one or two, considering I would be going up
against groups who at that time had, respectively, five and seven stations.

Once I became a financial backer, I said, “Why should I continue to
pour my money into it? Why don’t I just buy it? Getting the funding is
something I stumbled on . . . Nation’s Bank came to me. Frankly, they
needed to do a better job supporting minority businesses, and they
needed a poster boy and I was more than willing to be the poster boy.
They said they would like to get SBA to do part of this . . . so Nation’s
Bank ended up financing 70% and 30% by SBA. The process took nearly
a year . . . we closed in July of 1997. Total purchase price of the whole
group was $1.1 million. Originally, two stations were on the market for
$750,000, which I thought was ridiculous since there was no revenue from
either station. And the other was on the market for $650,000. I had two
motivated sellers, and I talked them both down to $550,000; that’s how we
ended up with a $1.1 million package.

When you are an owner of a station or a small group of stations
that have to go up against a conglomerate, you have to have a vision, and
secondly you have to share that vision with your staff. If the staff is on
board with you, you can accomplish tremendous feats. We operate like a
family, and I think that plays a major role in our ability to survive. I wish
we could pay our people better. The economics are simply that we are
still losing money. I’m still dumping a great deal of my own money into
the company. (Interview transcript, 9120/99)

According to the program director, small-market radio is

more exciting. . . . That’s why so many are leaving major-market radio and
returning to the smaller markets. . . . You don’t have to deal with the
corporate president of the company in another town. . . . You can walk
down the hall and talk to the owner. (Interview transcript, 9120/99)

The general manager continued:

We can do and get away with a lot of things big radio stations can’t. I like
to refer to our employees as independent contractors. Everybody has a
job. Everybody knows what they’ve got to do. . . . We’re too small . . .
everybody wears too many hats to be standing . . . over somebody’s
shoulder. . . . You’ve got to carry your own weight, and if you’re not . . . we
don’t need you here. We try to let our people do their job. We will step in
when we need to step in. We’re small market. . . . l dressed up for you
today. . . . Normally, I am in a pair of shorts and a shirt . . . unless I’ve got
a meeting with somebody. We’re kind of relaxed here and it works well

105

for us, and that’s one of the beauties of small-market radio. (Interview
transcript, 9120199)

The Local Station Perspective

Mission statement. Does your station operate with a mission
statement, strategic plan, or policy initiative? (See Appendix D for mission
statement.) The owner responded:

The overall vision of the station is to be a successful minority-owned
broadcast company. I try to create an environment that doesn’t pressure
our people to the point where they are unhappy and stressed out and
can’t perform. My competitor has a lot of problems with that. He’s had
tremendous turnover, and it has definitely affected their ratings as a
result, and they got a lot of unhappy people. . . . But our presence doesn’t
help matters any . . . because when you are the big gun and there is a lot
of pressure in your office and then you’ve got the little station down the
street giving you fits, it demoralizes you.

That’s the process I go through. I have always tried to hire people
who have a tremendous amount of talent, easy to work with, a desire to
learn, and are self-motivated. The interesting thing is none of these
people are getting rich working for us. But they never complain about
money . . . and they all see this as an opportunity and that’s who I want
working for me . . . people who see an opportunity and share a vision . . .
that’s important. If you don’t share the vision that l have or the
management team has, then you’re not going to do a good job. I strongly
do not believe in throwing money after people to motivate them . . . that
won’t work. . . . There has to be something burning in their heart. . . . Get
them to work hard, then pay them. . . . You don’t throw money at them to
force them to work hard . . . that’s not going to happen. (Interview
transcript, 9120199)

The program director agrees with the owner and continues with his goal,
“to build a team in order to be the best station they can be.“ To compete with
other stations they must develop “their own sound,” a sound that is set apart
from the other stations. Specific goals include (a) to be number one in the 18 to

34 age group and (b) to continue to increase women listeners (“If women

106

listeners increase, then overall numbers will increase”), and redirect all
promotions so they focus on increasing women listeners. The program director
wants the station to be female friendly; he stated,
Women drive the market . . . and women control the largest percentage of
the spending dollar. Stations that are too male dominated are often not
successful. . . . This station has continuously improved its share in the
past three years by including women. . . . Women do like rap. [Rap and
hip-hop music considered same in this context] (Interview transcript,
9120/99)
Organizational chart: See Appendix G.
Annual budget: $45,000 per month, $540,000 per year.
Target audience: 18 to 34.
Core audience: 18 to 25.

Wattage and coverage area: 6,000.

Format: Urban mainstream (hipchop).

Localism/Sommunity Programming (Policy)

Low-power radio. What problems, if any, can be expected for the

 

urban radio broadcaster with the advent of low-power radio? The owner

responded,

Well, the politically correct thing to say is that it’s going to create
noninterference for existing broadcasters. The truth is it is going to kill
minority broadcasters. . . . Most of, not all, but many of your targeted
black-owned radio stations are not licensed to the city they serve. We get
our listeners from central Georgia because there is no licensed station
there serving the black community on the FM band. All of us are
suburban-licensed stations. We just happen to be minority owned.

You put a lower-power stick downtown in the middle of the city,
even if it is noncommercial, even if it is only 500 watts, now I’ve got an
instant competitor that will split my audience. I see no way that existing
broadcasters, particularly minority-owned broadcasters, are gong to be

107

able to survive when we already have a gazillion obstacles in generating
advertising dollars, dealing with our signals reaching our audience and
fighting with the big conglomerates that are entering the market. Then I
would ask the commissioners, you’re going to put a bunch of stations on
the air, many of which are not going to have enough money to run
properly, so how does that help our industry, by putting a bunch of bad
broadcasters on the air . . . 1,000-watt bad broadcasters all over the
country. On top of that, what markets do you think they will squeeze
these low-power stations into, the small markets, not the major markets;
they’re already crowded, they already have enough interference. So they
are going to end up in markets like Macon, Augusta, and Savannah,
which are already struggling for audience; add to that the interference
problem.

You put a low-power station next to me at 107.3 on the dial, put
that stick downtown, you won’t hear me at 107.3. It won’t happen. It’s a
bad idea. If the FCC wants to fix the mess they’ve created, then they
need to go back to the minority tax certificate and they need to look at
some of the proposals that some of the broadcasters have offered to bring
more minorities into the business. . . . But to kill the existing broadcasters
makes no sense at all to me. I’m not going to continue to fight for a little
piece of the pie if I can turn around and sell this station at a profit [now]
before you add more competition in the mix; it just wouldn’t be worth it.
The net result is you’re going to have major broadcasters and minorities
[owners] replaced by the low-power broadcasters, and I don’t think that
serves the community interest at all.

At least I am now in a position to offer quality programming,
promotions, and be involved in the community, but once my revenue
stream gets strained I couldn’t do it. At least I'm able to pay insurance for
my employees and offer them benefits. The low-power stations won’t be
doing those kinds of things. When I took over these stations they didn’t
get paid for holidays, they didn’t get paid vacation pay, the employees
didn’t get paid for sick days, none of those things were available. The
only way I can continue doing these things is by increasing our revenue. I
just think it is a bad idea. . . . There is a need for diversity in voices; I think
the key is to preserve the voices that are there, rather than put only weak
voices on the air! (Interview transcript, 9120199)

Commitment to communitvlcommunity a part of station. What role have
local programming and community service played in remaining committed
to the community How do you make the community feel [that it is] a part

of your station? The owner responded,

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The reality is most black people . . . get it [news] from the music station
they listen to. . . . Therefore, we have to provide news so we can keep
them informed. Historically, black listeners have always gravitated to the
black station in town to find out what’s going on in the community, plus
they will get a perspective different from the white community. For
example, we didn’t announce the election of [central Georgia’s] first black
mayor as an upset. Why would it be an upset when the city is majority
black? But that’s the way the white media presented it. We bring a
valuable, viable perspective. . . . As our revenue stream grows, we will be
able to hire a full-time news director. (Interview transcript, 9120/99)

The general manager provided his opinion:

We have a responsibility to deliver what our audience needs to know.
For instance, let’s go back to when Tupac was killed. Let’s go back to
when Biggie was killed. That’s our demo [target demographic group].
That’s a big issue. Not only did we lose two big rap artists, but it also
addresses the problem that we have with black-on-black crime and our
youth killing each other. We could talk about welfare reform here in
Georgia . . . our listeners could not give a flip about it. . . it’s sad to say
. . . they could not care less.

He continued:

We try to get our announcers out as much as possible because being in
the street is very, very important. Last week, being the kickoff season for
football, one of our announcers went to a couple of the pep rallies that the
high schools had called . . . our demo [target demographic] audience, so
we’ve got to be there for them . . . gave away T-shirts, CDs . . . did a
tailgate party at one of the big rival football games. The owner’s
philosophy on radio is that radio has always been community based and
we have to keep it that way. We are a black-owned radio station. We’ve
got to serve the black community . . . we’ve got to let them know that
we’re here for them and we want them to be there for us. (Interview
transcript, 9120199)

Competitive in Larketplacg. How have you been able to meet this goal
and also remain competitive in the marketplace? The owner responded,

The change in format has had a direct impact on revenue. Is it tough to

sell hip-hop? Yes and no. Since we didn’t position the station as a hip-

hop station, because of advertisers, it has not been as big a hurdle as you

might think. What we present advertisers with is a strong position of
young adults 18 to 34. What we say is, here is the active African-

109

American market in [central Georgia]. It is not necessarily 23 to 54 [the
preferred market]; it is 18 to 34. We are ranked third in the market . . .
number two 18 to 34 among blacks in this market, and that has been our
pitch. So, as a result, advertisers have accepted that position and they
get the results because we do have a very active audience. (Interview
transcript, 9120199)

Bple of owner/budget decisions. What is the role of the business
office/owner, and what types of decisions take place during the work day?
The owner responded,

I typically come in Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. A lot of what
I do is to try to assist everybody else in their job . . . and to make sure the
bills are paid. So, for example, with the program director, I try to give him
more time to do what he needs to do. I run the music computer for him

. . . I help him schedule the music. . . the computer does all the
scheduling and I do the editing [changing music selections in rotation].
He adds all the songs and I put them in the computer, and that’s one less
thing he has to do. In the case of the general manager, I assist him with
sales packages . . . l assist him with making sure production is done,
sometimes writing scripts, voicing spots [commercials], getting them in the
computer system in time to go on the air. And with the sales staff, I try to
help them with their presentation as well as their packages.

The majority of my day, when I am not doing those things, is to try
to look for ways to expand the company . . . to take care of the day-to-day
operation of the company. . . . I’ve got reports required by the bank, I’ve
got to make sure the bills are paid . . . even though we have an
accountant, I write all the checks. I pay all the bills because I know how
the money is coming in. . . . Now, when the cash flow gets to a point
where I can say, “Here’s the bills, pay them,” then I will just sign the
checks. . . . lam always going to sign the checks. Until that happens, I
must now say, “That’s the phone bill, we need to pay that first.“ Since I
am also the computer guy, we’re in the middle of Y2K, so I am trying to
get all the computers updated. (Interview transcript, 9120199)

R_esolvinggecre§e in sales. What happens if sales projections are
short for the month; how is the problem resolved? The urban mainstream
station carries the other three stations. The general manager explained:

We were losing money; we were not making budget. We were losing
$20,000 a month on that station, and we couldn’t afford it [referring to

110

gospel AM/FM combo]. So we had to syndicate it and let people go. The
advertising dollars at first weren’t there. . . . If you go to Coca-Cola they
will pay our competitor their spot price, but they want to beat us down
because we are black. They are going to beat us down to as low as they
can get us in price. US. Broadcasting only has one urban station in their
mix, and it’s gospel. They have all these white [format] stations, and
they’re getting all the dollars. I have to fight national sales people to give
us money; I beg, and they don’t have to do that over there . . . and that’s
not just us, that’s everybody. . . from V103 [black format station in
Atlanta] to Rad Media . . . it’s hard.

When you start looking at our national sales, our national sales are
pretty good. I have a good rapport, I get along with everybody. . . . I could
sell you this ink pen . . . I’m just being honest with you . . . it’s about
relationships . . . you earn their trust and confidence . . . and they will buy
from you. The majority of people we buy from are white. . . . “Oh, he’s a
black guy!” Yea, I’m black. . . lwant you to buy from me . . . what can we
do about it? (Interview transcript, 9120199)

The general manager continued:

This actually happened last week. A car dealership wants to buy from us;
their demo is 18. She is sitting there looking at the same Arbitron screen
. . . and says, “I want to buy from you guys, but I cannot pay your rates.“
We quoted her the same rates as the competition. So I sit there and I
have to make a decision. I have a budget that l have to make. Do I say,
“We’ll compromise with you on these rates,” or do I say, “This is what our
rate is” and stick with it and lose the dollar because she will go to our
competitor. So what I end up doing is compromising. . . . “Okay, we can
do this . . . but I can’t give you morning drive [prime], but I can give you
afternoon drive” [less money means less visible location for spot to air].
You come up with ways that everybody walks away happy, but ultimately
the station loses some money. Yes, the station gets the buys and gets
the dollars, but it’s not comparable to what other stations make. (Interview
transcript, 9120199)

The general manager referred to what is known as minority discounts and
“urban/Spanish dictates” within the radio industry. A minority discount is the
practice of reducing the cost of advertising on minority-owned and -operated
radio stations because of the station’s ethnic audience. This practice is used by

advertisers and ad agencies.8 The best way to explain the discrepancy is on a

111

dollar scale. General-market stations are paid about $1 per listener, minority-
formatted stations are paid $.78 per listener, and minority-owned and -formatted
stations are paid $.71 per listener.9 Lee Bailey, CEO and executive producer of
Bailey Broadcasting Services, which produces urban-based programming, said
the following:

You have a whole segment of the listening audience whom the

advertisers are not reaching because the agencies or the buyers think

that they don’t have enough disposable income to use the products. The

audience is stereotyped as poor and indigent. There is no logic behind it.

It is outright discrimination.1o

A study recently chartered by the FCC focused on practices called “No
Urban/Spanish Dictates.” Based on comparisons of nationwide data, the study
found that stations that target minority listeners are unable to earn as much
revenue per listener as stations that air general programming. Based on
interviews and an analysis of radio-industry data for 3,745 stations, the FCC
study found that stations owned by “majority” firms collected about 29% more
revenue per listener than minority-owned stations targeting minority listeners.
The report recommended that advertisers adopt a code of conduct that outlaws
“dictates" and that the federal government consider an executive order
prohibiting businesses from contracting with advertising agencies that employ
discriminatory practices.11

Influences on local/national sales. What issues have influenced
national and/or local advertising revenue? The owner responded:

My competitor will tell you in a heartbeat, “Why advertise with WBBB

when we have a mainstream urban, we’ve also got an adult
contemporary, and we have a gospel station. Spend all your money here

112

and cover the market“ [implying that advertisers can reach a broader
audience because the competition owns several stations in the central
Georgia market]. And your response is, “Yeah, you cover almost two-
thirds of the market, but you have left out one-third. . . . Can you afford to
do that?“ So we are now in a better position because our one-third that
does well does very well. . . .

Now, we don’t have American Express on the air and we don’t
have Delta Airlines on the air . . . we don’t have Parisians [upscale Atlanta
department store] on the air, but we do have Belk [popular department
store]. We also have Rich’s, and Rich’s is owned by the same people
who own Macy’s. K—Mart buys us locally, and we have been trying to
make inroads in the automotive category.

The strategy was always if you bulk up 18 to 34 it would give us
decent numbers 25 to 34 and 25 to 49, and it has. And, in fact, we
probably have the same numbers 25 to 49 as we would have had, had we
continued as an urban adult contemporary station. But we also have the
added element of teens and, actually, we have used our teen audience to
our advantage. All of the major concerts that wme to town, we get a
piece of the pie . . . we get a majority of the buy . . . we get a huge piece
of the Coca-Cola buy. Before, it was all going to one organization
[competition] before we came on the air. Coke is very interested in young
adults and teens, but because we’re new and because we have seen a
sudden growth in ratings which has transferred into a sudden growth in
revenue, we haven’t encountered a whole lot of negatives because
everything is happening so fast. . . . If we had been on the air for ten
years, I could probably give you a bunch of negatives about people we
have gone to. l have a small sales staff. We don’t get a lot of objections;
we also don’t target a lot of advertisers that we know will say no. We get
very few objections to the format. . . . Again, we don’t walk in . . . and say,
“Buy from the rap station." (Interview transcript, 9120199)

What percentage is local sales versus national sales? The general
manager responded, “It’s probably 50-50 right now, and that’s changing every
day.” He continued,

Our sales have gone out of the roof since we’ve finally gotten some
numbers. Our national sales are going up as well as local sales. . . .
National advertisers are now seeing us on their books. They were
accustomed to buying only one urban in the market, and that’s another
big battle that we fight now. A lot of agencies who were just accustomed
to only buying one urban now have to buy two urban stations or they split
and maybe buy us one quarter and buy them [the competition], and it is
just education . . . teaching them that it’s okay to buy two urbans because

113

you want to cover the market the best with the demo that you’re trying to
get. It’s been difficult because the advertiser often says, “Oh, I can’t buy
two stations.” (Interview transcript, 9120199)

The pie is cut in other ways, as well. The general manager explained:

U.S. Broadcasting, which is the largest broadcaster in this market, has
65% to 70% of all the revenue. U.S. Broadcasting owns five stations in
the market and makes up to 65% to 70% of all the revenue in the market.
So, you can see, out of that that’s left, it is split between everybody else,
and that’s a pretty small part. Their budget this year is $8 million.
(Interview transcript, 9120199)

Cost of sms. The general manager said,

Right now we are running around $65 for Morning Drive, which is 6 am.
to 10 am. Then we’ll drop down to $45 for 10 am. to 3 pm. From 3 pm.
to 6 pm. goes back to $45 to $50, and then 6 pm. to 10 pm. we are at
$60 a spot, then from 10 pm. to midnight $35 and then from midnight to
5 am. we drop to $25.

You send a salesman out; does he get leads, does he go out and
drum up his own business? The general manager responded,

Beat the bush. However you can get a lead, if you know somebody who
knows somebody who knows somebody or you just cold-call. We run an
ad on the radio station that says, “We appreciate our advertisers. If you
are interested in advertising with us, please call us at this number.”
(Interview transcript, 9120199)

The sales manager/account representative continued in detail:

I go out daily and I cold-call people. I pick an area and I just go door to
door. . . . Itell a little bit about my company. . . and once I tell a little
about my company I ask a little about theirs. . . . That’s how I determine
what we can do to help them out. A lot of it is just prayer . . . just hoping I
get that sale. Most businesses are looking for packages. Most of the
people I go to are mama’s and papa’s . . . small businesses, and they
can’t afford a lot of money. On some days I spend three to four hours a
day listening to other stations so I know exactly what’s running and what’s
not, and if I don’t have those particular customers, then I solicit them . . .
that’s part of my schedule. I try to make 11 to 15 cold calls per day. If I
fall short of that, it’s because I spent too much time at a business!
Sometimes you get the doors closed on you, but that’s very, very seldom.

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Naturally, with sales you have to sell yourself . . . and you get them to
trust you. If you can get them in the first three to five minutes to trust you
. . . it may not be that day but eventually you will get the sale. Once I get
that one foot in the door, I’m in and I can take it from there. That’s all I
need. If I don’t get the sale, I continue to follow up on it. People get tired
of seeing me. I try to wear that joker out until he gives me the sale.
(Interview transcript, 9121/99)

The pitch:

This is how I make my living . . . I want to help you out. What can I do to
take your business and turn it around? This is what we have to offer. . . . I
have a list of people who can vouch for it. Let them look at the list . . .
name recognition. I just wear them out . . . sometimes they see me in my
tie . . . sometimes they see me in my short pants . . . sometimes it is after
hours, I pop by . . . and I might go in and spend $5, $10, $15 and still try
to work on that account. A lot of times when they see you spend money
in the place of business . . . they say, “This guy really wants to do
something . . . he’s interested in what we are selling.” I become a
customer as well as their salesman. So I make myself known just like I
am part of the family. (Interview transcript, 9121/99)

Honesty:

I am very particular about who I do business with. I don’t want to do
business with anyone who might hurt the station. I try to work with people
who are established and well known in the community. I want people to
be able to say, “He really helped me." They have enough faith in me to
give me their business. Some of the people I talk to consider $100 big
money. I have to go in there with an attitude that it’s a lot to me, too. I’m
in it to make money, but I’m not in it to make a killing. (Interview transcript,
9121199)

Pro rammin Personnel
Format and research. How did you decide on the current format?
The owner responded,
When I took over. . . it had been a variety of stations . . . classic music
station . . . country station, it had been a top-40 station and a jazz station
. . . and not a very good jazz station. The reality is it had a 1.0 share,

meaning it was only reaching 1% of the listeners in the market at any
given time. . . and it was ranked dead last in the ratings in the market. . . .

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It had never been higher than a 2 sharenpretty low ratings—for the entire
history of the radio station . . . for nearly 25 years.

We originally changed the format to urban adult contemporary . . .
and were able to get it up to a 2.3 share after one book . . . we were
happy. The reality is that the station we hurt the most was a R&B oldies
station . . . and thus they decided to go urban adult contemporary [AC].
There was already an urban AC . . . that now makes three in the market.
Once the oldies station made the change, that put my station back down
to 1.0 share. So we can either fight for this audience or we can do
something else. So after being in the position where there were three
urban ACs in the market, we decided it just wasn’t wise to continue to fight
for our third of that share.

We have always been hesitant to go up against the other
mainstream urban station . . . but they have the biggest share of the
audience . . . they have no direct competitor, it makes no sense for us to
continue to fight for the adult audience . . . even though it is more of a
salable audience. I thought that if we had huge numbers as a young end
station that would be better than small numbers as an adult station, and
the result has proven to be true. So in February of last year [1998] we
switched to where we are today—a young-end mainstream urban station.
In our first book we went from a 1.0 share to a 6.8, so we knew we made
the right decision. (Interview transcript, 9120199)

Ratings and Competition
The general manager explained:

This is where we are now, at a 7.7 for Spring ‘99, which just came out.
Our Fall ‘98 book was a 6.8, and in Spring ‘98 we debuted at a 6.3. So
we went from a 6.3 to a 6.8 to a 7.7. Now the fall previous to that we were
at 1.0 . . . and that’s when we changed our format from adult
contemporary to hip-hop. Our direct competition . . . was sitting up here
in the number-one position with like a 14, 15, 16 share. So you can see
when we went head to head . . . what it has done to them. They’re sitting
in third. We’re sitting in fourth. (Interview transcripts, 9120199)

So what do you think has to be done to overtake the competition?

We’re a 10,000-watt [actually, 6,000] station. They are a 25,000-watt
station. They’re the big guys. They have been here longer than we have.
We just wanted to share the market . . . we never anticipated numbers like
this. . . . Will we ever beat? I say “No," because their reach is so much
greater than ours . . . they’ve got a stronger power. There are still a lot of
places here in [central Georgia] that our signal will not get into. They

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reach one of the demos, which is Peach County, which we don’t get into
well . . . so we’re losing diaries and books there. They reach a lot of
places we don’t . . . but we would like to close the window as close as we
possibly can. (Interview transcripts, 9120199)

Why use urban mainstream instead of hipohop? The owner
responded,

We use the phrase “urban mainstream” . . . but for all practical purposes it
is a hip-hop station. The dirty little secret is that’s what it is . . . but we
don’t promote it that way because of a variety of reasons. One, we were
always told that a hip-hop station wouldn’t work. Two, we were always
told that advertisers won’t accept young-end radio stations . . . and there
is some truth to this. I talked with other managers, and I said, “If you were
in our shoes and you didn’t have to use the term, would you use it?” They
said, “No.” . . . And I talked to a number of people who said that if you
don’t have to market yourself that way for programming purposes, then
don’t.

Now, had my competitor decided that they were going to call
themselves “the home of hip-hop,” we would have had to position
ourselves that way. . . but since they didn’t want to take on that position
. . . we didn’t have to take on the position. . . . So it was a strategic move
from a programming and sales standpoint . . . our listeners know what we
are. (Interview transcript, 9120199)

The general manager continued the discussion:

I’ll tell you why we use the term “urban mainstream." We use urban
mainstream because of advertising dollars. Advertisers, the white
advertisers who buy radio, tend to stay away from hip-hop music, the hip-
hop scene, the whole hip-hop generation, that whole hip—hop culture
because it has gotten a rap of being very, very violent. It has become
gang related . . . yet people like the fact that it’s a $7 billion industry.
Advertisers like the fact that it is a young target audience. Everybody
knows that the young kids are the ones that are out spending $200 for a
pair of sneakers. Advertisers want that business . . . but advertisers don’t
want to be associated with hip-hop . . . so we refer to it as urban
mainstream. Urban mainstream means we will play everything from
Whitney Houston . . . to Snoop Dog, Outcast, Juvenile, and Pastor Troy.
Our station is really unique. We’ve got a huge number of white listeners
because young white kids in this market are very in tune to hip-hop music
and hip-hop culture . . . because we target the young end; that’s where all
our listeners are. Those [white youth] are also the people that are more

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likely to fill out Arbitron diaries and send them in. (Interview transcript,
9120199)

Selection of mI_Js_ic_:. What role does the announcer play when
selecting music for broadcast? The general manager responded,

The music selection is very, very simple for us. We play what appears in
the top 5 to top 10 on the Radio and Record chart and the Billboard
charts [music trade magazines with various music lists], as well as what
we get off the request line. So everything we play is a hit. We are not a
hit-making station, meaning we’re not going to take a song that our kids
are not familiar with and make it a hit. If it’s going to be on our station, it's
going to be a hit. So that’s why we have the slogan “We play the hits“
because, literally, we do. . . . It may be doing well, but if it is not a hit we
won’t play it. An example, the CD “Miseducation of Lauren Hill,“ her latest
release “Everything Is Everything” was moderately successful. Our
competitors played it. It never peaked on Billboard, never peaked on
38$, and we never got any phone calls on it. We didn’t play it. A good
song . . . but it was not a mega hit. (Interview transcript, 9120199)

If your instincts thought a song was going to be a hit, would you

play it? The general manager answered,

We do have a program during the evenings where we’ll put certain songs
on, called “Battle of the Flavors,” and if it wins for a certain period of time
then we’ll put it in light rotation, which means it will never reach heavy
rotation. Our heavy rotation is a very tight rotation. We play the most-
requested songs, the hits. (Interview transcript, 9120199)

Explain heavy rotation.

It’s going to be played every hour and a half . . . that’s what the kids want
to hear. . . they’re constantly calling. So it has to come back up . . . and
that’s a very, very, very tight rotation. Let’s say you have five records that
are in that hour-and-a-half rotation period. You could see where you
would hear them pretty often. Stations that are number one in the market
or number two-a lot of times what you hear about pop radio is “Ah, man,
they play the same things over and over again.” Yeah, we have to
because it’s a hot song and people want to hear it. If they don’t hear it,
they’re saying, “I got to go all over the radio to find a song that I want to
hear.” So you have to play it for them to hear [and not lose listeners].
(Interview transcript, 9120199)

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What kind of burnout can you expect?

It’s quick and really depends on how quickly it falls off the chart and what
our phones are doing on it. If it is in heavy rotation . . . it may stay there
for maybe a week, two weeks, and then it will just go to a lighter rotation
where it won’t rotate every hour and a half. It may rotate every two hours
or every two and a half hours, and then on down the line until it is rotated
out. . . . And then it may be reinserted as a recurrent, which means it may
come up once or twice a week. (Interview transcript, 9120199)

Specialty programming/special eventa. The general manager explained,

From 6 pm. to 10 pm, you’re going to hear heavy, heavy, heavy hip-hop
records. That’s like the true party hour. We do programs from 6 to 10
pm. At 7 o’clock we do the top 7, which is a countdown of the most-
requested songs that day, and then from the top 7 at 7 we do “The Booty
Shake at 8" and then from 9 to 10 pm. we do “Scramble Jam,” . . . where
he mixes up a couple of songs and the callers call in and try to
unscramble the songs. We also do “Where You From” during this hour,
and the listener comes on the air . . . and what we do is put kids on the air
as often as we can because it’s like ministers . . . they love to hear
themselves on the radio. Our announcers are all pretty much on the
same level, meaning you could take the announcer from the morning
show and put him in that 6 to 10 pm. spot. . . . All our announcers are
interchangeable because they’re all hittin’ that same demo. So we don’t
really have to match announcer personalities to day parts. (Interview
transcript, 9120199)

The program director concluded, “Young people or youth rule the radio
after 6 pm. The evening jock has an opportunity to fill two slots per night with
new, untested music. You provide what the market demands“ (Interview
transcript, 9120199).

The program director is also responsible for promotions. “We try to keep
the 6 pm. to 10 pm. announcer in the street.” He is the announcer who should
know everything going on in the city and should promote those events heavily on
his show to attract listeners. The 6 pm. to 10 pm. announcer has sponsored

male strip shows for the women listeners, beauty pageants, and concerts. The

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program director considers these types of events an experiment in small-market
radio that has worked. “In a smaller market, things are up for grabs. . . . You
have to keep trying things to see what works” (Interview transcript, 9120199).

Basponsibilitv of program director/general manager/owner. What role
does the program director, general manager, or owner play in the
programming decision-making process? The owner replied,

When it comes to music, we are a hit-music station. We are a young,
leading hit-music station. So with that said, because our target audience
is young African-American and because the focus is real young, we are
looking for music that appeals to them. Right now that appeal tends to be
hip-hop. . . . The request lines can drive records on our radio station . . .
video can drive records on our station. But at the same time we tend not
to jump on product until it starts proving itself. That’s more a positioning
of the station that has worked more than anything else. The reason why
our competitor tends to be early on everything is because they have a
much broader play list than we do. We tend to be more of a follower than
a leader . . . and we are trying to be as familiar as we possibly can so that
when anyone turns us on they hear their favorite song . . . and it has
worked from a ratings standpoint. We do use national charts . . . and we
do use local record sales . . . but the song has to appeal to our target
audience as well. So, if Whitney Houston has a number-one record,
there is a chance we are not going to play it because Whitney doesn’t
appeal to young African-Americans, not any more. (Interview transcripts,
9120199)

Is there a hip-hop chart?

Yes. The Billboard Monitor tracks air play across the country, which is
more important to us than charts that are hyped by somebody over the
phone. The ley to adding records on our station is national charts like
Billboard, record sales locally, and the request line. And because we are
a young station, we tend to pay more attention to the request line than
other stations might. (Interview transcript, 9120199)

The owner is also responsible for the selection of announcers. He

responded,

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Most of our staff is from [metropolitan areas in Georgia]. We are looking
for people who will appeal to the audience we are targeting, and are
hungry and willing to grow . . . and we’re giving them an opportunity to do
something they wouldn’t be able to do in Atlanta or a major market. So
most of our announcers, in fact all but one, have never held a full-time
shift anywhere else. These are people with weekend or overnight
experience. [The program director] used to be producer of my morning
show [in Atlanta]. He wanted to do a morning show. Well, it wasn’t going
to happen and he knew it; on top of that, he wanted to program. So I
said, “I need a morning guy and I need someone to program the station,
also someone to help run this radio station. Come work with me. . . . And
he has a great head on his shoulders for promotions . . . so he also
serves as promotion director. . . that’s how he got the job. Our afternoon
guy was doing overnight weekends in a [metropolitan area in Georgia],
but they weren’t going to put her on during the week and she felt nobody
was working with her to get her up to speed . . . so we said, “Come join
us.” I spent some time with her, and lo and behold she started to
blossom. Our night guy, an older brother, was in promotion in [a
metropolitan region in Georgia]. He always wanted to be on the air. . . .
Our competition did not use the opportunity to get much more seasoned
talent, so they weren’t going to hire these people. Again, he had never
hosted an air shift before, but he knew the music and had the vibe, had
natural talent and ability, and really, really wanted to give it a shot on his
own. Now he’s number one in the market after six months, probably the
most well-known announcer in this town. (Interview transcript, 9120199)

The general manager agreed:

We are a young-end station . . . so we’ve got to have announcers that will
appeal to that audience. They’ve got to be energetic. They’ve got to be
knowledgeable of what’s going on in what we call “the streets.” They’ve
got to know what the kids are into . . . what the fashions are and what the
lingo is. Young kids, they’re all about what’s going on today. What’s right
now. You have got to have somebody on the air that can relate to the
kids, who the kids can relate to, who they can identify with, but at the
same time is a positive role model. They’ve got to be good, of course.
They’ve got to sound good. I like to say that because we’re in a small
market, small-market radio has a tendency to fall into sounding like small-
market radio. An example of that would be if you went to a small market
and you turned on the radio and you heard an announcer speaking very
regional. I’ve always thought that a radio station, in order to sound
mainstream, has got to sound what we call “midwestern” in broadcast.
We’re also starting to see announcers getting younger and younger to
appeal to that younger group, and unfortunately, when that happens, you

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see announcers at 30 peaking out. . . . They’re like the grandfathers of
hip-hop.

Are you training them for the next level?

Well, we would hope so. . . . We say, “Keep training to where if you need
to go to an adult contemporary format.” That’s real hard to get through to
some of these young kids who are coming into radio . . . the hip-hop end
of it . . . has a very short life span. (Interview transcript, 9120199)

Information/inflpences for morning program. Describe the decision
process required to produce the morning program. The general manager

responded,

There’s certain templates . . . that are standard in radio . . . morning drive,
people are getting up . . . they want to know what happened while I was
sleeping. What’s the weather going to be so I know what to wear, and
what time it is . . . and they want to be entertained. We want to . . . start
your day. We do local and national . . . headlines. Every time we open
the mike, we’re going to let them know what time it is . . . and we’re going
to let them know what the weather is. That’s important to a morning
person. If we were in a major city that had traffic problems, we would give
them traffic . . . but we don’t have to worry about that.

So that’s the advantage of local programming in morning drive.
Unfortunately for us, we’re a very small, black-owned company with very
little-and I probably need to add five more “very"s there—working capital.
The “House Party" is the morning program, and the announcer does it by
himself . . . and he does a great job. But if you think about the fact that
this morning show is called the “House Party" and he’s actually at the
party by himself . . . it is difficult to party by yourself. As soon as we get
more capital in, we would like to add more people to the morning show to
make it more of a party. . . . Our competitor’s got five, six people on, which
makes their morning show entertaining. The more characters that you
have, the more entertaining it is. (Interview transcript, 9120199)

The program director, also the morning announcer and morning producer
of “House Party,” has tried to play songs that people want to hear, and
determined this through the request line, clubs (what’s “hot” and makes people

dance), and music retail outlets, as well as listening to “what’s hot in other

122

markets and determining if it will work in this market. With such a young demo,
the program director would like to sponsor “alternative entertainment to what is
already being provided in this market." Before he joined WBBB-FM, young
adults only went to the movies; now they have alternative entertainment each
week sponsored by WBBB-FM.

What impact do the nationally syndicated morning programs have
on the local market?

Morning radio is very competitive. You’ve got Tom Joyner and others as
the competition now. . . . We are the only local morning show on urban
radio. How do we compete? We have to take advantage where we have
it. The advantage that we have over the other guys is that we’re local.
People can call in to us and get through . . . they can call in without
having to call a 1-800 number and compete with somebody 2,000 miles
away. They can get birthdays . . . they can win prizes . . . and pick them
up. They can be on the radio. They can participate in the bits. We give
localized information. We’re not interested in what’s going on in Dallas
[location of syndicated program]. We’re interested in right here in your
city. These types of things build loyalty. (Interview transcript, 9120199)

What is the main difference between a large-market station and a
small-market station? The owner explained:

The main difference would be the budget and the staff. At a station in
metro Georgia, you are going to have a program director who is off the air
. . . you may have a music director that is off the air. . . you are going to
have a general manager, and that is all the general manager does is
manage the operation. . . . And you will have a local sales manager and a
general sales manager. . . and a national sales manager. At our radio
station we have one person that does all four of those jobs . . . we all
carry multiple hats. . . . I try to give them as much autonomy as I possibly
can, but being the owner and the one with the most experience, a lot of
things end up falling on my shoulders. I do a lot of our own books
financially, I meet with advertisers, I am the programming head when it
comes to programming, since this is my strength and background. . . . I
am also the computer, I fix the computers when they die . . . and cut the
transmitter on when it goes off due to a storm . . . all of these things are
things the owner would never do in a major market. There’s also a big

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difference, obviously, in facility; it’s like night and day. Metro Georgia

stations have plush facilities in bank buildings downtown, and here we are

in the boonies in a very worn six-room house next to our transmitter site.

(Interview transcript, 9120199)

What do you see as weaknesses in the way decisions are made?
The general manager concluded,

We’re so young, and my coming from LA, the owner from Atlanta, and

most of our staff from a larger market . . . our weakness is we don’t know

where the bones are buried. . . . We haven’t been able to completely

understand how the market thinks . . . what’s going to work here . . .

because we are all from a different market. We’re coming in and trying to

learn . . . and central rural Georgia is different. It is its own monster, and

you have to understand the monster. That would be our weak point . . .

trying to understand the monster. (Interview transcript, 9120199)

Earl lI-Summarvpf the Findings

The data presented in this section represent a summary of responses

provided by respondents interviewed for this study. Each station is presented as

a case. Case I is WAAA-FM, and Case II is WBBB-FM.

Research Questions

1. How has urban radio remained committed to the community as well as
profitable in the marketplace, given all the pressures these stations face?

2. How is management, corporate, owner/president, department, or
committee involved in the decision-making process? What is the nature of the
debate, if any, about what to program or what to advertise?

3. How has multiple/single radio ownership influenced the decision-

making process for the commercial radio broadcaster?

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4. What is the decision-making process for selecting programming for

two commercial radio stations, each representing a different-sized market?

Themes and Categories

Commitment to Community and Competitive in the Marketplace
Low-power radio
Commitment to community
Competitive in the marketplace: sales and programming

Who is Responsible for Implementation of Decisions? What Are the
Decision Influences?

Corporate
Owner/president
Management
Committee

The Decision Process
Goal or mission
Alternatives
Influences

Solutions

Qa_se l—WAAA-FM
Commitment to commpnitv ang competitive in the marketplace.
Research Question 1: How has urban radio remained committed to

the community as well as profitable in the marketplace, given all the
pressures these stations face?

125

The data relative to this research question have been organized
according to the responses of respondents interviewed for this study regarding
the following three themes: (a) low-power radio, (b) commitment to community,
and (c) competitive in the marketplace: sales and programming.

Low-power radio: WAAA-FM is one of at least 50 radio stations owned
and operated by Rad Media, Inc. The mission for Rad Media includes three key
goals: to increase ratings, to increase revenue and cash flow, and to double the
value of any station purchased within the next three years. Management of Rad
Media prefers to purchase underperforming radio stations and improve their
programming and revenue base, with a long-range goal of becoming a provider
of urban radio programming in at least 30 markets.

Management of Rad Media views low-power radio as an unnecessary
distraction to their mission. Rad Media, a broadcast company that owns two to
three radio stations in various markets across the United States, now competes
with larger broadcast corporations that own more stations. Those broadcast
companies that own five or more stations in a market where Rad Media owns
only two have a revenue advantage in that market.

Many broadcast owners, commercial and noncommercial, think a low-
power radio station will split the revenue in an already competitive market,

I possibly causing existing minority stations more difficulty in operating at a
profitable level. As Liggins, CEO of Rad Media, concluded, “Adding more

licenses is not good for anybody.”

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Critics of the FCC, however, argue that radio consolidation has made the
purchase of commercial radio stations too expensive for the independent owner;
thus, the public is being deprived of a local community voice. Therefore, the
Commission created low-power radio as an answer to those critics. In addition,
supporters of low-power radio think commercial radio broadcasters have not met
their commitment to the community because they are no longer required to
conduct community-ascertainment surveys or produce local news and public
affairs programming as required before deregulation.12

As proposed by the Commission, low-power radio would provide a low-
cost means of serving urban as well as rural communities with local
programming. The Commission also hopes to increase station ownership by
minorities and women through the purchase of low-power radio stations.13

The owners of WAAA-FM, as well as other commercial radio
broadcasters, disagree with critics who say they are no longer committed to
localism and local radio programming. The findings of this study show that their
approach to localism may have changed with the advent of deregulation.
However, they are still committed to the concept of localism, regardless of the
type of owner, geographic location, or size of market. Currently it is left to the
broadcaster and the marketplace to determine what is local programming. Often
the issue involves how to present local programming so that it will have a
positive effect on the community as well as station revenue. Today, WAAA-FM
utilizes its morning show to feature local programming of interest to the

community.

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Commitment to community: Today, commercial radio’s commitment to
localism and the community involves unique programming and community
outreach, both produced with a focus on increasing Iistenership and revenue.
For instance, WAAA-FM’s fund-raising effort for a family recently left homeless
by fire is just one way that WAAA-FM meets its commitment to the community.
In addition, such special programming as “Check Yourself’ and “Money Talk”
also meets the needs of the local listener. Other community outreach efforts
such as adopting a school and volunteering in the community are examples of
many ways that the station meets the needs of the community. Adopting a
school, for example, supports the needs of the community while also increasing
interest in the radio station, thereby increasing Iistenership and revenue.

The most important avenue for local programming for WAAA-F M is their
morning program, “Ray in the Morning,” broadcast from 5:30 am. to 10:00 am.
each weekday morning. The morning program offers local and national guests,
local and national news, local and national sports, local traffic and weather, and
special features from a local perspective. Special-feature programs encourage
listener interaction through calling in and discussing issues of importance to the
community. This is what the urban mainstream (hip-hop) radio broadcaster
considers local programming. The morning show at WAAA-FM has a staff of five
including a host, news director, sports director, audio engineer, and producer.
As WAAA-FM’s chief operating officer/general manager commented, “It’s all
about being local and appealing to your market and knowing what your market

needs, and what’s going on in your market.” The management of WAAA-FM

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strongly disagrees with their critics who say they are not meeting the needs of
the local community. They believe they are meeting the needs of their
community and that deregulation helped them do it.

Competitive in the marketplace--sales and programming: Community
outreach, local programming, production, and sales all work toward one common
goal: generating revenue. Most local programming is packaged within the
morning program and is designed to provide information as a public service as
well as increase Iistenership. The local need is being met while the station
continues to strive for increased revenue, which is a priority. To remain
competitive in the marketplace, one must know what the listener wants.
Broadcasting what the listener wants will increase Iistenership and drive sales.
According to the station manager of WAAA-F M, there is a charge for every
second of broadcast time at WAAA-FM, including public service programming.
Increasing Iistenership and increasing revenue are at the forefront of every
decision. For instance, rather than broadcast public service announcements
throughout the day, station personnel participate in more than 120 public events
each month, making public appearances, producing live remotes, all designed to
meet the needs of the community as well as increase Iistenership and revenue.

Responsibilig for implementing decisions-decision influences.

Research Question 2: How is management, corporate, owner/president,
department, or committee involved in the decision-making process?

What is the character of the debate, if any, about what to program or what
to advertise?

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Corporate decision influences: The chief operating officer/general
manager stated, “You can’t program a station from the corporate level. It’s all
about being local and appealing to your market and knowing what your market
needs.“ However, the corporate office often plays a major role in the decision-
making process for the local radio station. The following discussion provides
insight into the types of decisions necessary between the corporate office and
the local station.

Business-office decision influences-local and corporate: The role of
the business office is to handle all financial aspects of the radio station as they
relate to the basic operation of the station. First-time advertisers receive a credit
application. Once their application is approved, the traffic department inserts
their commercial into the computer for rotation and broadcast. It is important for
the traffic department to creatively schedule the spot to avoid listener tune-out.

If all goes well, spots are run, invoices are created, and trial balance ledgers are
completed. Most people pay within 45 to 60 days. Receivables are maintained
at 6% or lower. The business manager monitors daily budgetary spending.

Budget influences: The business manager assists other department
heads in preparing their budgets. The department heads specify their budgetary
needs. The business manager, the chief operating officer/general manager, and
the chief financial officer from Rad Media decide whether their requests are
reasonable. “We compare what we have in the budget . . . what we budget for
. . . and what we are spending. . . . If we are not meeting our revenue goals,

everything becomes ‘No.”’

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The chief financial officer for the corporate office reviews the budgets for
each station (50) to determine whether requests are justified. He makes final
approval of all budgets according to one’s success in reading previous sales
projections, as well as looking at the sales projections for the next year. The
sales manager for each station, including WAAA-FM, supplies sales figures
weekly to the corporate office. These sales figures alert the local station as well
as the corporate office to anticipate any potential revenue problem within the 50-
station system. These types of decisions are considered routine or programmed
decisions.

National spots and local spots—decision influences: According to the
respondents at WAAA-FM, national sales rates are higher than local sales rates
because of the local perception of hip-hop music. Many local advertisers will not
advertise on a hip-hop music station because of the perception of violence
associated with the music and the artist; therefore, the station must lower its
rates. However, national advertisers such as AT&T, Taco Bell, Reebok, and
Nike want to reach the hip-hop audience, and rates remain high. Although
national sales were down at WAAA-FM, national advertisers are not concerned
with the violent image of hip-hop. In commercial radio advertising, the season
and demand for inventory often set the cost per spot. Depending on one’s
location in the ratings, ratings may also influence the cost per spot. If there is a
demand for inventory, prices are high. If the ratings are good, prices are high.
For instance, in January, inventory was low, there was no demand, and therefore

prices were low. During the summer months, companies want to sell their

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seasonal items, spot inventory is in demand, and thus the cost of advertising is
high.

Programming/decision influences-program format: The final decision
for selecting the hip-hop programming format for WAAA-FM was reached
through research, a Perceptual and Format Opportunity Analysis Survey. The
survey was conducted in the metro Georgia market to determine what format
“holes” were in that market. The firm responsible for this analysis met initially
with station personnel and discussed goals and music positioning of the station.
Such areas as demographics and station competition were discussed. The goal
was to develop a new format and image for the metro Georgia market, i.e., an
image and format never before offered in this market. Music tests and focus
groups were also conducted to support the final decision for a hip-hop music
station in metro Georgia.

Announcer/management influences: Announcers at WAAA-FM no
longer select the music during their air shift. A computer is programmed by the
program director and tells the announcer what to play, how long to talk, what to
say, and when to break for commercials. All programming decisions must be
approved by the corporate office and the chief operating officer/general manager
before music data are entered into the computer. The vice-president for
programming for Rad Media meets regularly with the chief operating officer,
station manager, program director, program consultant, and music director to

discuss and debate the value of a song. The researcher for this study observed

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the programming meeting and found that the vice-president for programming
usually made the final decision on programming issues relative to WAAA-FM.

R_eae_a[ch Question 3: How has multiple/single radio ownership

influenced the decision-making process for the commercial radio

broadcaster?

Rad Media, a multiple station owner, influences the decision-making
process for WAAA-FM, specifically in the area of sales and programming. For
example, the sales department at WAAA-F M was $21,000 short in advertising
sales for the month of July. The researcher attended a department-head
meeting where the loss was discussed. Management did not express urgency in
seeking ways to correct the loss. Several possible solutions were provided by
respondents interviewed for the study. The business manager thought the sales
manager had adequate time to prevent the loss; after realizing the first-week
sales projections were short, he could have increased his sales staff output.
Although the national sales manager said the hip-hop youth market generated
strong sales, national sales revenue for the month of July was down at WAAA-
FM. Closer monitoring and an increase in local and national sales goals may
have resulted in an increase in overall sales. The department head meeting
ended with the sales manager saying, “We will make up for the loss next month.“
An immediate decision was not required of staff, alternatives were not
discussed, and choices were not made to solve the problem of the loss.

Research Question 4: What is the decision-making process for selecting

programming for two commercial radio stations, each representing a
different-sized market?

133

WAAA-FM readily uses research consultants to determine programming
format and musical selection. The station is located in a major African-American
market and can safely market its image as a personality-driven hip-hop radio
station without concern for loss of advertising. Rad Media operates several hip-
hop stations in various markets across the United States. The vice-president for
programming for Rad Media is actively involved with each station.

The hip-hop music format for WAAA-FM and metro Georgia has been
fine-tuned and requires only routine or programmed decision making by local
management and the vice-president for programming. However, the producers
of the morning program, “Ray in the Morning,” are able to produce the nonmusic
components targeted at the metro Georgia market, including local interviews,
local musicians, local telephone calls to discuss a topic or make a request, or
produce skits of interest to the local community. The corporate office usually is
not involved in production of the local components. The vice-president for
programming’s responsibility is to oversee the addition or deletion of musical

selections each week.

ase Il-WBBB-FM
Commitment to community and competitive in the marketplace.
Research Question 1: How has urban radio remained committed to
the community as well as profitable in the marketplace, given all the
pressures these stations face?
The data relative to this research question have been organized

according to the responses of respondents interviewed for this study regarding

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the following three themes: (a) low-power radio, (b) commitment to community,
and (c) competitive in the marketplace: sales and programming.

Low-power radio: “Low-power radio will kill the minority broadcaster,”
said the owner/president of WBBB-FM. Today’s minority broadcaster must
contend with generating advertising dollars in an extremely competitive and
hostile environment. Today the independent owner, such as the owner of
WBBB-F M, must compete with large conglomerates. These conglomerates buy
several stations within a market and supply varying formats to reach each
station’s audience. Specifically, U.S. Broadcasting owns five stations and
covers two-thirds of the central Georgia market, maximizing their leverage in
audience and advertising dollars, leaving less than one-third of the market for
the independent broadcaster. According to the owner, low-power radio,
regardless of wattage or commercial or noncommercial frequency, will split the
market further, causing additional loss of Iistenership and revenue.

This is already happening in markets where the independent owner is
struggling for market share. Many minority broadcasters, including the ownerl
president, think low-power radio is simply a way for the Commission to “pacify”
the minority broadcaster as he is slowly being squeezed out of the profitable
markets by the larger conglomerates. The owner/president continued, “The
Commission should find ways to preserve the minority stations on the air, not
create policy that provides additional competition for the minority broadcaster.“

Commitment to community: News and local programming are important

to the management of WBBB-FM. “Historically, black listeners have always

135

gravitated to the black station in town to find out what’s going on in the
community, plus they will get a perspective different from the white station in
town.” WBBB-F M broadcasts news and public affairs programming targeted at
teens, community issues are discussed, and the listener is encouraged to call in
and ask questions. “Money Talk” is a program broadcast every weekday
morning. This program is a five-minute feature and provides financial
information for young adult African-American listeners.

Competitive in the marketplace-sales and programming: The owner
and president of WBBB-FM has been able to improve programming, increase
ratings, and increase revenue after only three years. All programs are produced
with the purpose of attracting listeners, increasing ratings, and increasing profit.
WBBB-FM hires full-time announcers and managers, many of whom have held
part-time or lower-tier broadcast positions in larger markets. These personnel
are hired in full-time professional or managerial positions at WBBB-FM, a
smaller market, and paid a very low salary, freeing up money for other station
operations.

The morning program, entitled “House Party,” is another example of how
money is saved, enabling WBBB-FM to remain financially competitive with larger
conglomerates in the market. WBBB-FM’s “House Party” does very well in the
ratings and sounds as professional as any morning program in the market.
WBBB-FM, however, has only one announcer, whereas the other stations in the
market have a “morning crevV’ of five. “House Party’s” on-air personality

answers telephones, plays music, reads headlines from the local newspaper,

136

and conducts interviews. The host of the morning show is also music director,
promotion director, and morning show producer. The limited finances of the
independent owner require personnel to perform several positions. Small-
market independent radio has always combined positions to achieve profitability.
WBBB-FM has remained competitive in the marketplace through adopting a new
format, increasing ratings, and using ratings to convince advertisers to buy
advertising. They have been innovative in station management and operations.

Ebonsibilitv for implementing decisions—decision influences.

Research Question 2: How is management, corporate, owner/president,

department, or committee involved in the decision-making process?

What is the nature of the debate, if any, about what to program or what to

advertise?

Owner/president decision influences: The owner/president of Robots
Communications (WBBB-FM) works four days per week at WBBB-FM. He
assists the station’s employees in various duties, including. loading computers
and scheduling music, assisting new staff in development of sales packages and
presentations, as well as writing scripts and producing commercials. The owner
is also responsible for meeting budget projections, securing loans, paying bills,
and completing bank reports. He also assists the general manager in soliciting
and selling national advertising. According to the owner/president, the music
broadcast over WBBB-FM is hip-hop; however, calling the format urban
mainstream makes the music more accessible to the white advertiser. The

owner selected urban mainstream rather than hip-hop for the following reasons:

He was always told hip-hop would not sell, advertisers would not buy the young

137

demographic (18-34), and white advertisers would not buy advertising from a
hip-hop station. To avoid these problems, urban mainstream rather than hip-hop
is used as the format name.

Who is responsible for making decisions? The owner and the
program director make the final decision on selection of music. “We are a
young, leading hit-music station. We are looking for music that appeals to the
young African-American listener.“ Request lines and videos assist in
determining the hits, but the Billboard magazine trade publication is the primary
source for the Top 20 hits. In addition, the owner, program director, and entire
staff assist in determining the special-feature programming.

Owner and program director-selection of announcers: Many of the
staff were recruited from Atlanta, Georgia, where they had worked part-time at a
larger radio station. WBBB-FM, located in a smaller market, provides full-time
employment and opportunity for advancement—young adults, age 23 to 35, who
can relate to the 13—to-34 target audience. They are people who have
experienced missed opportunities in a larger market and have been given a
second chance to prove themselves in a smaller market.

Decision influences/decision making: Is it difficult to sell urban
mainstream? Yes. But according to the general manager, who is also
responsible for national sales, it is difficult for an African-American owner to sell
any radio format. WBBB-FM was positioned as an urban mainstream station
rather than hip-hop to attract advertisers. The owner requires the account

executive to sell the demographic group rather than the music. WBBB-F M is

138

ranked third in the central Georgia market, second among African-Americans 18
to 34. The account executive pitches to the advertiser, “We have a strong
position of African-American males 18 to 34.” The advertiser wants to reach this
target with his product. The urban mainstream format for WBBB-F M has brought
results. For instance, Iistenership, advertising, and revenue have all increased.

Ratings: Improvement in ratings has caused local and national sales to
increase. Previously, advertisers would only buy one urban station, WCCC-FM,
in the central Georgia market. Today, with WBBB-FM’s increase in sales,
advertisers buy WBBB-FM as well as the competing station, WCCC-FM. The
cost per spot is determined by the popularity of the program and the asking price
of the competition. The season and available inventory also are factors in
setting a price.

Sales/promotions: The researcher attended a sales meeting where
sales territory, sales projections, selling technique, and promotions were
discussed. All operational expenses were discussed, approved, and included in
the weekly sales projections. For example, the program director/promotion
director needed $300 to purchase auto decals for a station promotion. The
sales manager instructed the sales staff to sell $300 worth of advertising to
cover the cost of the auto decals. Any unplanned expense must be approved by
sales and management at WBBB-FM and included in sales projections
accordingly.

Decrease in advertising dollars—minority discounts: The general

manager for WBBB-F M stressed the following: “National advertisers will pay

139

WBBB’s competitor their spot price but will try to talk WBBB down on their spot
price because we are a black station.” Many white advertisers think the African-
American consumer has less disposable income to spend and, therefore, will not
purchase their product. African-Americans are stereotyped as poor and
indigent. Therefore, stations that target African-American listeners are unable to
earn as much revenue per listener as stations that broadcast general market
programming. The general manager/sales manager of WBBB-FM often must
negotiate a broadcast time and cost for the advertiser, always accepting less
money in the process.

Research Question 3: How has multiple/single radio ownership

influenced the decision-making process for the commercial radio

broadcaster?

The urban mainstream format has had a direct effect on station revenues.
Adding another urban mainstream format in a market with an established urban
mainstream powerhouse, WCCC-F M (25,000 watts), was not the owner’s first
choice. WBBB-FM was purchased in July 1997 by Robots Communications.
During the past 25 years, WBBB-F M has offered a variety of formats to the
central Georgia Iistenership. Such formats as classical music, country, top 40,
and jazz all proved unsuccessful. For 25 years, WBBB-FM averaged a 2.0
share and was not profitable. Knowing the history of the station, the new owner
changed the format of the station to urban contemporary, thinking this alternative
was the answer. After one ratings period, a competitor also changed its format
to urban contemporary, making three urban contemporary stations in the central

Georgia market. The addition of another urban contemporary format caused

140

WBBB-FM to drop to a 1.0 share. The owner considered other formats and
decided that, with only one urban mainstream (WCCC-FM) in the market with a
14- to 16—point rating, he would try that format and hopefully split their
Iistenership and ratings. By changing the format to urban mainstream, WBBB-
F M went from a 1.0 to a 7.4 rating and split the competition’s audience. Today,
WCCC-FM, the competition, is number three in central Georgia. WBBB-FM is
number four.

Although the increase in ratings has been impressive for WBBB-FM,
competing against US. Broadcasting, Inc., for advertising dollars has been a
greater challenge. U.S. Broadcasting, Inc., owns five stations with varying
formats in the central Georgia market. US. Broadcasting offers such formats as
urban mainstream, adult contemporary, gospel, and country. Their sales pitch
is, “Spend all your money here and cover two-thirds of the market.” The staff
and management of WBBB-F M think they can survive and become profitable if
they can reach that one-third of the market with an urban mainstream format-
one-third of the market split between several stations. For WBBB-FM to
accomplish this, the station will have to undercut the competition in cost per spot
and convince advertisers that it is all right to buy two urban mainstream stations
in the same market.

The general manager explained it best: “Our sales have gone out of the
roof since we’ve finally got some numbers. Our national sales are going up as
well as local sales . . . advertisers are now seeing us on their books.” Revenue

has increased because of an increase in ratings points. However, the increase

141

in revenue is not an accurate representation of the dollar value of WBBB-F M
because the advertising inventory for an African-American station often is
undervalued when sold.

Bfiaarch Qu_estion 4: What is the decision-making process for selecting

programming for two commercial radio stations, each representing a

different-sized market?

Decision influences: Selection of music for the morning program,
“House Party,“ is very simple. The owner/president and the program director
program the top 5 to top 10 songs from the hip-hop chart appearing in Radio and
Records or Billboard magazine. Music videos, CD sales, and the request line
also influence music selection. Selecting the top 10 of both charts means
broadcasting only the hits.

Heavy rotation only includes the most requested songs. If a song is in
heavy rotation, it will be broadcast every hour. This is considered a very tight or
heavy rotation. The heavy rotation is designed to increase the listeners’ “time
spent listening.” Listeners will continue listening for long periods of time rather
than search other stations for their favorite song.

Radio burn-out depends on how fast a record drops or decreases in
popularity on the hip-hop charts. Usually a popular song will stay in rotation one
to two weeks, then move to a lighter rotation where the song is heard every two
hours or every two and a half hours until it is rotated out; then it may reappear in
the recurrent category once or twice per week. This is the model or formula for a

young hit-music station. The management feels that “If you are 18 to 34, any

time you turn on WBBB-FM, you should hear your favorite song.”

142

The preceding example meets the definition of a programmed decision.
There are no surprises; every song is a hit-thus, “Your Hit-Music Station.” The
result is that WBBB-FM has successfully increased its rating share from 1.0 to a

7.7 share in less than a year.

143

NOTES: RESPONDENT INTERVIEWS
CASE I--WAAA-FM

General manager and chief operating officer. Interviewed by Preston A. Blakely,
Atlanta, Georgia, July 26, 1999.

Station manager. Interviewed by Preston A. Blakely, Atlanta, Georgia, July 26,
1999.

Program director. Interviewed by Preston A. Blakely, Atlanta, Georgia, July 26,
1 999.

Business manager/human resource administrator. Interviewed by Preston A.
Blakely, Atlanta, Georgia, July 27, 1999.

Traffic manager. Interviewed by Preston A. Blakely, Atlanta, Georgia, July 27,
1 999.

Program consultant. Interviewed by Preston A. Blakely, Atlanta, Georgia,
July 26, 1999.

Sales manager. Interviewed by Preston A. Blakely, Atlanta, Georgia, July 27,
1999.

National sales manager. Interviewed by Preston A. Blakely, Atlanta, Georgia,

July 27, 1999.

NOTES: RESPONDENT INTERVIEWS
CASE lI—WBBB-FM

Owner/president. Interviewed by Preston A. Blakely, Macon, Georgia,
September 20, 1999.

General manager/national sales manager. Interviewed by Preston A. Blakely,
Macon, Georgia, September 20, 1999.

Program director. Interviewed by Preston A. Blakely, Macon, Georgia,
September 20, 1999.

Sales manager. Interviewed by Preston A. Blakely, Macon, Georgia, September
20, 1999.

144

NOTES

1. Robert K. Yin, Case Study Research (Newbury Park, CA: Sage
Publications, 1989).

2. Robyn D. Clarke and Derek T. Dingle, “The New Blood,” Black
Enterprise, 29, no. 11 (June, 1999), p. 96.

 

3. Keith L. Alexander, “[Rad Media] Stock Offering Spins Gold,” LISA
Today (May 7, 1999), p. 12B.

4. Clarke and Dingle, op cit., p. 96.
5. Alexander, op. cit, p. 128.

6. Ed Ryan (Ed), “[Rad Media] Revolutionary,” Radio Ink (May 10, 1999),
pp. 28-31.

7. Ibid.
8. “Inner-City Innovator,” Radio Ink (March 15, 1999), p. 24.
9. Ibid.

10. Ibid.

11. Paul Farhi, “Advertisers Avoiding Minority Radio,” The Washington _
Post (January 13, 1999), p. F1.

12. Chris McConnell, “Low-Power Radio Brings High-Intensity Response,”
Broadcasting& Cable, 128, no. 19 (4 May 1998), p. 22.

13. Ibid.

145

CHAPTER VI

CONCLUSIONS, IMPLICATIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS

The purpose of this study was to investigate two commercial radio
stations and their approach to the decision-making process relative to
programming, policy, sales, management, and personnel. This study also
addressed such issues as localism and low-power radio. The review of literature
included such areas as localism, deregulation, the Telecommunication Act of
1996, black or urban radio programming, and the impact of radio consolidation
on the independent radio owner.

The method of inquiry for this study was qualitative in design and included
various aspects of field study, observation, interview, and case study. This
study attempted to address some of the influences that affect the decision-
making process within the context of the urban radio broadcasting industry. This

chapter provides conclusions, implications, and recommendations for this study.

Conclu_sions
Research Question 1: How has urban radio remained committed to

the community as well as profitable in the marketplace, given all the
pressures these stations face?

Commitment to Commanitv and
Profitable in the Marketplace

The doctrine of localism is intended to ensure that broadcasters “serve
the needs and interests of the community” in which they are licensed to operate.

146

The localism doctrine has two components: geographic distribution of licenses
and programming that must meet the needs and interests of the community in
which the station is licensed.‘

The fear of whether commercial radio broadcasters will remain committed
to localism without the mandate of the FCC, hereafter referred to as the
Commission, is not without merit. The success of localism depends on
broadcasters recognizing and supporting its value and worth, identifying the
factors relevant to the community, and taking steps to implement that which is of
importance.2 The findings of this study indicate that the urban radio
broadcaster, in small and large markets, thinks he is meeting the needs of
localism in his community. Both stations in this study have owners, however,
who live in a geographic location other than the location of the station.

However, when comparing localism in a historical context, the concept of
localism has changed considerably since deregulation. Historically, localism has
been the bedrock of commercial radio broadcasting.3 Since its inception, the
Commission has attempted to ensure local service for everyone. Community
ascertainment was just one way the Commission attempted to regulate local
programming for commercial radio. The community-ascertainment survey
required broadcasters to survey their community to determine issues of
importance and to provide programming addressing those issues.‘

The Commission’s support for deregulation required the abandonment of
most traditional policies ensuring at least minimal local programming. This
included the removal of quantitative guidelines for nonentertainment

programming, community-ascertainment procedures, program logs, and the

147

Falmess Doctrine. The result, according to critics, is programming that has in
many ways become less community responsive.5

The return to community ascertainment is not encouraged by
management of WAAA-FM or WBBB-FM. The management of both stations
think they are meeting the programming needs of the local community through
their morning program and special-feature programming available throughout the
day. Although neither station offers a web site, managers of each station
encouraged listeners to call in during appropriate programming and voice their
concerns.

As the findings for both stations show, the morning program has become
the showcase for local programming. Management of both stations prefer the
Commission to continue their deregulation initiative and not interfere with station
operations or programming content. It is unlikely the Commission will return to
community ascertainment, given the recent trend of radio consolidation.

Commitment to community. The need for local radio still exists, but many
think the large corporate-owned, profit—driven stations are not interested in local
radio. Respondents from Rad Media’s corporate office and WAAA-FM disagree.
The vice-president for programming at Rad Media, as well as the station
manager and program director of WAAA-FM, all voiced support for their
weekday-morning show as a local program that provides local news, sports,
weather, and interviews. Other local programs are also offered during the
evening that involve call-in opportunities for the listener to interact with the
producer or the on-air personality. With the trend toward radio consolidation,

the definition of localism has changed from one of talk, news, and public affairs

148

programming to commercially sponsored news, talk, and call-in programming
targeted to a specific audience and produced as a revenue-generating source.

Low-@wer raga. The squeeze on the African-American owner is
occurring on two fronts. First, the consolidation war is pricing the one- and two-
station owner out of the marketplace. Second, virtually all of the Commission’s
minority ownership policies have been eliminated, so it is very difficult for a
minority owner to purchase a station in today’s financial climate.“

The latest round of industry consolidation started with the passage of the
Telecommunication Act of 1996, which eliminated the national ownership cap for
radio stations and relaxed local ownership rules.7 This deregulatory policy has
increased radio station prices and increased the number of radio stations,
purchased by conglomerates using economies of scale to boost their profits.
Ninety percent of African-American owners own only one or two radio stations,
whereas the broadcast conglomerates control as many as eight stations per
market. The eight-station conglomerate often causes the African-American
owner to lose a large share of the advertising dollar, eventually going out of
business.‘3

Several hundred low-power radio stations could be created during the
next few months, depending on the application response by the public. The new
PM low-power service, which would operate between 10 and 100 watts, would
be open only to noncommercial radio broadcasters, and was created by the
Commission as a means to increase minority ownership and to provide local

programming. Initially, the purchaser will be limited to only one permit in a

149

single market, and those broadcasters who own full-power stations will not be
allowed to purchase a low-power service.9

The research findings for WAAA-FM and WBBB-FM are in agreement
with the opinion of members of the National Association of Broadcasters.
Respondents from both stations and the association are strongly against low-
power radio. Their concerns include possible broadcast interference as well as
increased competition for listeners and advertising/underwriting dollars.
Although noncommercial low-power radio only broadcasts between 10 and 100
watts, both owners think a new competition for revenue in their market is
detrimental to the established owner in that market.

Competitive in the marketplace. The Telecommunication Act of 1996 has
resulted in policy that has increased radio consolidation, increased the price of
broadcast properties, and encouraged fierce competition in the radio
marketplace.10 The increase in competition has proven difficult for all
broadcasters, but especially difficult for the African-American broadcaster, who
often represents small-market radio. The African-American broadcaster,
particularly those who own small radio groups or stand-alone stations, are often
in the enviable, or perhaps an unenviable, position of receiving a high-price offer
from conglomerates to purchase their property. Many stations are struggling
financially and are accepting these offers.11

Although Rad Media now has at least 50 radio stations, respondents
interviewed at corporate Rad Media and WAAA—FM did not consider Rad Media
big business or a large conglomerate. Their response was, “Larger companies

are buying several stations per market, while Rad Media is only able to buy one

150

or two stations in that market.” Rad Media’s two stations are often in competition
with the larger eight-station conglomerate. In their view, many of their concerns
are similar to the individual owner who also competes against the larger
conglomerate.

The owner and president of Robots Communications takes a different
view. His criticism toward low-power radio also includes possible interference
and competition. However, he also sees low-power radio as a means to pacify
the minority broadcaster who is unable to receive funding for profitable
broadcast properties located in profitable markets. Lending institutions are no
longer offering money to entry-level minority broadcasters, according to the
owner/president of WBBB-F M. He argued that low-power radio is the
Commission’s attempt to quiet minority dissension as they are systematically
squeezed out of broadcast ownership.

Today, most venture capitalists want to invest in companies that plan to
go public, and they want their money back plus a good return in three years, and
certainly no more than five years.12 Everyone, not just the minority broadcaster,
is being affected by the size of the conglomerates and their purchasing influence
in large and small markets. However, WBBB-FM, small-market radio with an
individual owner, has been successful through planning and innovative decision
making.

Research Question 2. How is management, corporate, ownerl

president, department, or committee involved in the decision-making

process? What is the nature of the debate, if any, about what to
program or what to advertise?

151

Cogporate Versus Individual Owner

The findings of this study strongly suggest that the majority of decisions
for the two urban radio stations studied were made from the top down and not
from the bottom up as suggested by Kharbanda and Stallworthy.” Kharbanda
and Stallworthy’s research suggested that decisions should be made from the
bottom up because it is the employees at the bottom who actually know what is
going on. The findings of this study show that decisions at WAAA-FM and
WBBB-F M are made from the top down as suggested by Nicholas.“ Both
stations usually require the final decision of the corporate vice-president of
programming, the president/owner, general manager or station manager, or chief
operating officer/general manager. Thus, when it comes to major decision
making, the responsibility for the decision is top management.

Research Question 3. How has multiplelsingle radio ownership

influenced the decision-making process for the commercial radio

broadcaster?

Programmed decisions require choices or actions that routinely reflect the
station’s policy or mission statement.15 Station policy guides the everyday
operation of collections, commissions, credit approval, and budget
appropriations. Nonprogramming decisions often fit the category of judgment or
intuition decisions.18 Often critical decisions must be made, requiring the
decision maker to create a rule, policy, or programmed procedure to follow.

Additional guidelines often are determined once a decision is made. An

unstructured or unprogrammed decision requires the following characteristics:

152

Alternatives are unknown during the initial process, discovered during the
decision process, or the alternative is not well defined.17

Soelberg and other decision-making theorists often refer to the “search
for alternatives” as implying that the decision maker has several choices or
alternatives when making a decision.18 The individual owner of WBBB-FM, with
limited finances, often has only one or two choices or alternatives to solve a
problem. If there are only two alternatives, the decision-making process may be
much faster.19 The poorly financed small-market owner must be creative and
innovative in competing against the broadcast conglomerate. Thus, nonprogram
decisions fit well in the culture of the small—group or individual radio owner.

The researcher’s observations indicate that Rad Media operates with a
programmed approach to decision making, usually requiring each corporate-
owned station to follow company policy, whereas the owner of Robots
Communications was much more creative and innovative in the decision-making
process. WAAA-FM also has the financial support of Rad Media; therefore,
problems are not as urgent, and time is available to consider several alternatives
to solving a problem. For instance, minority discounts for advertising are a
problem for WBBB-F M and often require nonprogrammed decisions for the sale
to benefit the account representative and the radio station. Minority discounts
for WAAA-F M were never mentioned by respondents. Their advertising
emphasis follows company policy and does not allow for nonsystematic decision

making.”

153

Research Question 4. What is the decision-making process for
selecting programming for two commercial radio stations, each
representing a different-sized market?

First, the standard decision-making process (see Appendix A) assumes
that one must make a decision by choosing one alternative from a set of
competing courses of action.21 Results of this study suggest the following:
Decisions may be influenced by such things as ratings, record sales, and listings
in various industry magazines. Thus, there are choices or alternatives for urban
radio regardless of the size of market.

Second, the standard decision-making process assumes that decision
makers identify goals as a first step. In this study I found that goals were
discovered throughout the course of making a decision rather than set at the
early stages of problem discovery. Third, the standard description of decision
making assumes that the point of decision making is to solve a problem. The
evidence from this study suggests that this is true. However, what decision
makers are looking for is a solution to a problem and a course of action that
does not have a high probability of failure.

Managers or decision makers in urban radio usually follow the standard
decision-making process. For instance, at WAAA-FM research was used to
determine the format hole for the metro Georgia market. The firm responsible
for this analysis met initially with station personnel and discussed goals and

music positioning of the station. Music tests and focus groups were conducted,

alternatives considered, and a hip-hop music format selected.

154

At WAAA-FM, the vice-president for programming meets regularly with
the chief operating manager, station manager, program director, program
consultant, and music director to discuss and debate the value of a song. In
commercial radio all programs are produced with the purpose of attracting
listeners, increasing ratings, and increasing profits. This is no different for
WBBB-FM. For instance, selection of music for the morning program, “House
Party,” requires the owner/president and the program director to program the top
5 to top 10 songs from the hip-hop charts. Alternatives are considered and a
song is selected that meets the goals and needs of the station.

Both stations followed the standard decision-making process as
suggested by Lacy22 and other theorists. Adjustments were often necessary,
depending on the problem being solved, the type of decision required, and the
number of alternatives available. The sequence of the decision-making
process—problem definition, alternative choices, refinement, and solution23—was

followed at both radio stations.

Implications and Recommendations for Fprt_her Sttgy

Localism

The FCC is mandated by the Communication Act of 1934 to ensure that
broadcasting serves the public interest, convenience, and necessity. This study
has shown that local program content is important to a large number of listeners.
As a policy objective by the Commission, localism has effectively been

eliminated through deregulation and the Telecommunication Act of 1996. If the

155

Commission still considers localism a valid objective, it will have to take steps to
ensure its survival.

It is recommended that a regional case study (several stations, similar or
different formats) be conducted on the current forms of local radio programming
offered by the commercial radio broadcaster. This study would provide a
historical perspective on how localism has changed with the recent advent of
consolidation. Such issues as reenactment of the community-ascertainment
policy by the Commission should be considered, as well as a new definition for

the concept of localism.

,Dfiecision Making

The decision-making data collected for this study raised additional issues
that researchers might want to investigate. This might involve conducting a
regional case study on decision making in a large or small market, using a larger
sample, comparing the types of decisions, influences, and the decision-making
process required for an independent African-American or minority-owned radio
station, and an African-American or minority-owned multistation conglomerate.
In addition, a researcher might look specifically at the differences in financial
support for each owner and what effect money or lack of money might have on

the decision-making process.

156

NOTES

1. Lawrence W. Etling, “Listener Perceptions of Localism in Radio
Programming: A Qualitative Study" (Ph.D. diss., University of Georgia, 1994).

2. Alan G. Stavitsky, “Guys in Suits With Charts: Audience Research in
US. Public Radio,” Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, 39, no. 2
(Spring, 1995), p. 186.

3. Etling, op. cit.

4. Malcolm G. Stevenson, “Backing Up Your ‘Issues/Programs’ List,”
Current, 24 February 1987, p. 13.

5. Chris McConnell, “Low-Power Radio Brings High-Intensity Response,”
Broadcasting & Capl_e, 128, no. 19 (May 4, 1998), p. 22.

6. Bill McConnell, “Few and Far Between: FCC’s Kennard Finds

Boosting Number of Minority-Owned Stations ls Uphill Struggle,” Broadcasting &
Cable, 123, no. 41 (Oct. 5, 1998), p. 28.

 

7. Julian R. Rush and Jose Blanco, “A Political Economic Review of the
Telecommunication Act of 1996" (paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the
Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication, Baltimore,
MD, August 1998), p. 2.

8. McConnell, op. cit.

9. Bill McConnell, “FCC Powers Up: Expected to Approve Low-Power
FM This Week,” Broadcasting & Cable (January 17, 2000), p. 9.

10. Elizabeth A. Rathbum, “NTIA Finds Minority Ownership Dwindling:
Roundtable Participants Agree Money Is Tight, Prices High," Broadcasting &
Cable (July 24,2000), p. 18.

11. Ibid.
12. lbid.

13. O. P. Kharbanda and E. A. Stallworthy, ”Managerial Decision-Making.
Part I: Conventional Techniques," Management Decision, 28, no. 3 (1990), pp.
4-9.

14. Ian J. Nicholas, “Organizational Climate and Strategic Decision-
Making,” The Journal of Genera Management, 7, no. 3 (Spring 1982), p. 61.

157

15. Peer 0. Soelberg, “Unprogrammed Decision-Making,“ Industrial
Management Review, 8, no. 2 (Spring 1967), p. 19.

16. Richard M. Cyert, Herbert A. Simon, and Donald B. Trow,
“Observation of a Business Decision,” The Journal of Business, 29 (1956),
p. 238.

17. Soelberg, op. cit.
18. lbid.

19. L. J. Bourgeois Ill and Kathleen M. Eisenhardt, “Strategic Decision
Processes in Silicon Valley: The Anatomy of a “Living Dead,” Qalifomia
Management Review. 30, no. 1 (Fall 1987), p. 56.

20. James Redmond and Robert Trager, Balancing on tha Wira: The Art
of Managing Media (Boulder, CO: Coursewise Publishing, 1988), pp. 249-250.

21. Paul A. Anderson, “Decision Making by Objection and the Cuban
Missile Crisis,” Administrative Science Quarterly, 28, no. 2 (1983), p. 201.

22. Stephen Lacy, Ardyth B. Sohn, and Jan LeBlank Wicks, Media
Management: A Casebook Approach (Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum, 1993),
pp. 2-16, 291-294.

 

23. Paul C. Nutt, “Types of Organizational Decision Processes,”
A_dministrative Science Quarterly. 29, no. 3 (September 1984), p. 414.

158

APPENDICES

159

APPENDIX A

LIST OF RESPONDENTS

160

RESPONDENT INTERVIEWS
WAAA-FM

General manager and chief operating officer. Interviewed by Preston A. Blakely,
Atlanta, Georgia, July 26, 1999.

Station manager. Interviewed by Preston A. Blakely, Atlanta, Georgia, July 26,
1 999.

Program director. Interviewed by Preston A. Blakely, Atlanta, Georgia, July 26,
1999.

Business manager/human resource administrator. Interviewed by Preston A.
Blakely, Atlanta, Georgia, July 27, 1999.

Traffic manager. Interviewed by Preston A. Blakely, Atlanta, Georgia, July 27,
1 999.

Program consultant. Interviewed by Preston A. Blakely, Atlanta, Georgia,
July 26, 1999.

Sales manager. Interviewed by Preston A. Blakely, Atlanta, Georgia, July 27,
1999.

National sales manager. Interviewed by Preston A. Blakely, Atlanta, Georgia,
July 27, 1999.

RESPONDENT INTERVIEWS
WBBB-FM

Owner/president. Interviewed by Preston A. Blakely, Macon, Georgia,
September 20, 1999.

General manager/national sales manager. Interviewed by Preston A. Blakely,
Macon, Georgia, September 20, 1999.

Program director. Interviewed by Preston A. Blakely, Macon, Georgia,
September 20, 1999.

Sales manager. Interviewed by Preston A. Blakely, Macon, Georgia, September
20, 1999.

161

APPENDIX 8

STANDARD DECISION-MAKING PROCESS

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163

APPENDIX C

RADIO STATION PERSONNEL INTERVIEW QUESTIONS AND RESPONSES
TO INTERVIEWS CONDUCTED WITH SENIOR OFFICIALS ASSOCIATED

WITH THE FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

164

Radio Station Pfiersonnel Interview Questions

To answer the research questions and to identify the decision-making
characteristics of each station, a questionnaire was developed for all
respondents. Respondents were asked the following questions, as appropriate:

1.

10.

11.

12.

13.

14.

Does your station operate with a mission statement, strategic plan, or
policy initiative?

What are the types of activities you do in your job, and why?

What problems, if any, can be expected for the urban radio broadcaster
with the advent of low-power radio?

What role has local programming and community service played in
remaining committed to the community?

How do you make the community feel a part of your station?

How have you been able to meet this goal and also remain competitive in
the marketplace?

What is the role of the business office, and what types of decisions take
place during the work day?

What types of decisions are required in preparation of the station budget?
What is the role of the business office at the local and corporate levels?
What happens if sales projections are short for the month? As business
manager, do you talk to the sales manager, or is that done by the general

manager? How is the problem resolved?

What issues may have influenced the decline in national advertising
revenue?

How did you decide on the current format? How does music research
contribute to the process?

What role does the announcer play when selecting music for broadcast?

What role does the computer or other technology play in the decision-
making process?

165

15.

16.

17.

18.

19.

20.

How involved is “The Company” in making program decisions for WAAA-
FM or WBBB-FM?

What role does the program director play in the decision-making process?
How does the program director place his brand on the station that
receives so much input from corporate, consultants, and the general
manager?

How is your station’s sound different from the sound of another market?

How heavily do you rely on ratings? How important are ratings?

Describe the decision process required to produce your morning program.

166

10.

11.

12.

FCC Policy Queationnaire

Please provide us with an overview of the current status of low-power
radio. What happens next?

Does commercial radio (NAB) consider low-power radio a threat? Why?
Why not? (Iistenership, advertising dollars, interference)

With the advent of low-power radio, will commercial radio have any
responsibility for local programming? Has the FCC abandoned localism
on commercial radio?

What is the priority for low-power radio? (increasing minority ownership
or improving local programming)

Who do you anticipate owning the low-power station? What will it cost?
Have studies been conducted to determine the potential for financial
success for a low-power station owner? How will they make money?

How do you envision the program format differences between low-power
radio and commercial radio? Can low-power radio be competitive? If so,
how?

Will there be a regulatory policy similar to community ascertainment to
determine if low-power radio is meeting its commitment to local
programming?

What are the differences in cost to purchase a low-power urban radio
station compared to that of a commercial urban radio station?

How will you decide whether stations will be supported by commercial
advertising or public radio underwriting? Where will stations be
located-AM, FM, commercial, noncommercial?

Will commercial broadcasters be allowed to purchase low-power stations?
How many stations may be purchased by one owner?

It has been stated that consolidation of commercial radio has priced out
the one- and two-station owners. If it is decided that an owner may
purchase up to five low-power stations, as mentioned in Broadcasting and
Qable magazine, will consolidation again have a similar effect on the
“mom and pop” low-power radio owner?

Are you still considering a minimum power of 100 watts and maximum
wattage of 1000?

167

13. There are more than 100 pirate stations across the United States. Do you
see low-power radio as an option for the pirate broadcaster? What
happens to the pirate broadcaster broadcasting under 100 watts?

168

Responses to Interview With Charles W. Logan, Jr.
Chief. Policv & Rfiules Division. FCC. Mass Media Bureau

April 16, 1999

. . . This year, uh, the Commission issued a notice of proposal [unclear]
proposing to establish a low-power radio service, and it sought comment on all
variety of issues—how, what power levels should the low-power radio service be
operated at. . . . There were three basic proposals of 1,000 watts, I think it’s 100
watts, and the smallest would be must micro radio, very low watt, low power, and
that the power levels, of course, determine the coverage areas that the lower-
power radio stations would have, and it also affects the potential interference
problems that these low-power stations might pose to existing radio stations. . . .
The notice also sought comments on . . . we have a whole set of interference
protection standards now for, and this is . . . Keith can get into more about this
later, but the . . . we have a whole bunch of interference protection standards
now that apply to existing radio service, and they were established at a time,
quite a few years ago, based on the then existing radio receivers. Today’s radio
receivers are, have gotten much better, much able to, to capture the signal that
they, that it’s turned to . . . more able to prevent interference, so it may be
possible to sort of reduce the current interference standards. And if that’s the
case, that would mean you could establish more low-power radio stations. You
could actually fit more of them in . . . Keith will be much better explaining this
than me. Aside from those sort of technical issues, the notice also sought
comment on how would these low-power stations be licensed. Would you
restrict the number of low-power stations any one person could own, how would
they be licensed, would they be auctioned off, would it be a commercial service
or noncommercial service or a combination of both, what type of . . . or would
any sort of public-interest programming obligation apply to them. A whole
variety . . . you’re just creating a whole new service, and you have to go through
those basic issues with it. I can get you a copy of the notice if you’d like. Okay.
Now the . . . right now we’re waiting to—the comment deadlines-this has caused
a lot of controversy in the existing broadcast industry. They don’t like this idea;
they’re very much afraid that this could interfere with their signals, fitting in these
new low-power radio stations.

Is that what NAB is opposed to?

Yeah, yeah, very much so. You know, it’s also possible that they’re afraid; you
know, aside from interference problems, that they might be afraid of, you know,
increased competition. But they, they don’t put it in those terms; they’re
concerned about the interference and [pause] I don’t . . . they may know bones
about their opposition to it so, . . . And what’s happening now is . . . is NAB and
CEMA, which is the Consumer Electronics Manufacturers Association, are going

169

to do testing to see whether these proposed low-power radio stations can be
established without posing harmful interference to existing stations. And my
understanding is it’s supposedly going to be lab testing, testing in the lab. The
FCC is also to do its own testing. NAB and CEMA came in about a month ago
and asked us to extend the comment deadlines. We have comments and then
reply comments; That’s standard procedure in any kind of notice . . . proposed
rule making. They wanted it as an extension into the fall. The Commission did
grant an extension, but not as much as they wanted. The comments are now
due June first and reply comments are due July first.

Could you go back over that again-exactly the process for this notice for rule
making? ‘Cause I’m not familiar with that; ldon’t know [interrupted]. . . .

Sure
if you’re familiar with it.

We’re actually, the commission can establish new rules and policies or eliminate
old rules and policies, but any time it does either one of those things, it has to
first propose to do so. We’re required by law-it’s called the Administrative
Procedure Act-to before we, the Commission, decides anything that has a
substantive impact on people, it has to give notice to, publish the notice publicly
of what it plans to do and seek public comment and give people a chance to
comment on it. And only then can the Commission go forward with a report-it’s
called a Report and Order—with an actual decision that, that changes a rule or
adopts a new rule or adopts a new service in this case. It’s meant to sort of . . .
it’s meant to be a public process [pause]; it’s a sort of-it’s a combination
between typical court hearings where you hear testimony and the legislative
process where it’s more free-form.

Um hum.

It’s meant to be—it’s not as formal as a court process. The comments that people
can file don’t have to be . . . they can just be giving someone’s opinion. They
don’t have to be based on hard evidence, although we welcome that.

You can just write a letter and say . . .

Um hum.

[clears throat] I’m in support of it; I think it’s a wonderful idea.

Um hum.

Uh, I’d like one for my community, that sort of thing?

170

Yup, yup.

Or someone could do something more formal, saying . . .
Right.

given the engineering . . .

Right.

uh, dynamics of Washington, DC, a low-power radio station is likely to have an
impact upon. . . .

Exactly. Right. The real range of things we get, and it’s meant to sort of help us
make a decision. It’s meant to ensure that the whole public gets a chance to, if
they want to, to comment and give us their views. What we’re required to do
after we get all those comments is respond to the basic issues they raise. We
can’t ignore, if someone raises a significant issue in our comments, we just can’t
ignore it; we have to respond to it. We don’t have to agree, but we have to in the
decision the Commission writes up, we have to write up a decision; we have to
respond to it in some way. And then the Commission’s decision itself that’s,
that’s issued, adopting whether to establish the service or not, that’s reviewable
in the Court of Appeals. Any party can challenge it in the Court of Appeals, and
the court is . . .

Um hum.

reviews it, it gives us under the statute that governs this whole process, the
Administrative Procedure Act, the court can only reverse us if we’re, and this is
the key term, arbitrary and capricious. So the court sort of gives the agency the
benefit ofthe doubt, but it, it is a meaningful review. We can’t make up reasons;
we can’t ignore arguments that parties raise.

What’s the court that the FCC must respond to [unclear] second appeals?

It’s actually any federal US. Court of Appeals.

Oh, is that right?

They typically. . . people . . . it’s up to the party challenging it. You can, if you
lived in California and you had filed comments and felt we’d ignored your
comments, you could file in the Court of Appeals in California, the 9th Circuit.

Those people tend to file in, in DC. [unclear] US. Court of Appeals for the DC.
circuit [interrupted]

171

Right.
just because it’s here. But it could be any Court of Appeals in the US.
Okay.

That’s the overall process. So what happens next is, the Commission is
conducting a study, I think right now, the Commission engineers, and these
outside parties are conducting their own studies. People are putting together
their own comments. The comments will come in June first; then people will
have a chance to reply to those comments, written comments, that are due July
first, and then the Commission over the next few months has to analyze those
comments. The Mass Media Bureau rep makes a sort of an internal
recommendation to five commissioners, and then they vote on it and [we hope?]
some time this year [if things go well?].

Um hum

And then the decision, a written decision, is issued adopting new rules or
deciding not to adopt the service.

Um hum. Um hum. Okay.

Go on to the second question [unclear]. Does commercial radio NAB consider
low-power radio a threat? Why? Why not? Yeah, yeah. I mean, I think it’s fair
to say that based on what we’ve heard, that existing broadcast industry, the
radio people, represented by NAB, have, are very much opposed to low-power
radio. And the reasons they’ve given have primarily been a concern about
interference. It’s a fair question. I mean, we fit a lot more than, I mean it’s
possible to . . . especially in rural areas, to fit in some low-power radio stations
under existing standards, but it would just be a handful. If the Commission really
wants to fit in a sizable number of low-power radio stations, especially in urban
areas where there tend to be a lot of radio stations, it’s going to have to adjust
the current interference protection standards. So there’s a real debate, and
Keith can get into more about this, about how far can we adjust those
interference protection standards without degrading existing radio service. And
it’s a [big issue in the?] proceeding. The industry, the existing broadcast
industry, thinks really we shouldn’t go down this road at all. They just think it’s
going to open up more interference to existing service. The other thing they’re
concerned about is today’s radio is analog, sort of the

Um hum.

172

current technology. Radio stations have a number of parties have proposed that
we convert existing radio stations from analog to digital, sort of like TV, what TV
is going through right now.

Does that mean that. . . how is the signal . . . I don’t know if you can tell me in
layman’s terms, but how is the signal propagated differently with digital as
opposed to analog?

I think it’d be better if Keith explained that to you; I’m afraid . . .
Okay.

I’d get it wrong.

Okay.

I’m just a lawyer. I could take a shot at it, but I’m afraid I’d mess it up, so let’s
hope . . . Keith should be, at some point, right around 10:30 [He can answer
that?].

Okay.

But . . . the plan is to, for radio, this digital conversion is very much a
contingency. And they think they can do it without getting, using their same
existing channels. Today’s radio stations have ideas about converting to digital
on that same channel. And [Lucent?] has proposed a system that [unclear]
called us. Audio Digital Radio, USADR, has proposed a system. I think another
group has proposed a system as well that could do this, but they’re still being
developed. Broad . . . existing broadcasters are concerned that if we authorize a
low-power radio service it could prevent them from converting to digital, ‘cause

it, this digital plan, may require a little additional interference protection, so
they’re afraid that that would throw a wrench in their plans to go to digital, so
that’s another reason they give. [Pause] I think it’s, they, broadcasters haven’t
emphasized this so I, this is just speculation, but I’m sure—I mean, it would be
reasonable if I were an existing radio station I’d also be concerned. If the
Commission starts authorizing new radio services, low power, I’d be concerned
about my, the bottom line—new competition. It’s yet another outlet that will try to
be taking listeners away from my radio.

Um hum.
And, I mean, radio stations that as time goes on there are more and more things
to compete with. There’s now satellite-delivered radio service, which the

Commission adopted a few years ago, which is a national service, but still it’s
another outlet competing for the people’s attention. There’s the lntemet.

173

There’s cable. There’s all sorts of things that are taking up other people‘s time,
so it’s just, then, I’m sure a lot of them are concerned about that. Having said
that, I think the Commission has made pretty clear that we’re not here to protect
any certain existing incumbent industry from competition; that’s not really our
role. I mean, we’re here, the Commission is here to promote benefits for
consumers, to make sure the spectrum is efficiently and well used, and we’re not
here to protect anyone’s sort of industry segment from competition; it’s sort of
not our job.

Hmmmh; so they, they think that digital is going to have a negative impact upon
their bottom line, is that so?

I, you know, they haven’t said that, so I have to be fair. NAB has based all their
objections on . . . it’s mainly this interference [unclear] problems.

Well, what’s, what has been impetus for low-power anyway? I mean . . .

Um...

Was it engineers came to the FCC and said, “Hey, look, we’ve got this new
technology out there, it’s going to help more people get radio service.” What
was the impetus to even offer a comment on, a notice for rule making?

There’s, I think there’s, it’s a couple of things. There are a lot of very small
community groups, churches, neighborhood groups, even some state and local
governments that would really like to sort of get their voices heard. There’s also
been this, I don’t know if you’ve heard of this problem . . . of pirate radio?

Yeah.

These people will just, without getting a license, just start operating a little, tiny
little radio station out of the garage. And the Commission has shut that down
because it would, can cause bad interference because they just plunk it in
[unclear], including interference to aviation facilities,

Sure.

which is very dangerous. But, I mean, a lot of the arguments that these pirate
radio broadcasters make is, “I can’t . . . I don’t have the money to go out and buy
a full-power radio station. To transmit at those power levels requires a lot of
money. I don’t have that kind of money. I still have something to say and I still
want to carve out this little community radio station that serves my community as
a real voice in that community.” And the other thing that, it’s . . . our chairman,
our new. . . he’s been chairman for about a year [Bill Cannard?], has really
taken this up and shown a real interest in this, and he sees it as a way to really

174

add a lot of diversity to what people get over the airways . . . and have stations
that are, are very much connected to their communities. What we’ve seen in the
past few years, especially since the passage of the 1996 Telecommunications
Act, is a great deal of consolidation of ownership in the existing radio industry.
And some of these radio owners now own over 400, 500 stations across the
country.

You mean like [Chancellor] and Clear Channel and those groups?

Yeah. And that, I mean that has its benefits. I mean, they can take care of, take
advantage of economies of scale

Um hum.

and, uh, it helps them compete against, in this new world of what I was
mentioning, lntemet

Hmmmm

and all these other services. But some people think that’s sort of taken away
sort of the local flavor of radio stations. It’s made it more homegeneous,

Oh, yeah.

less idiosyncratic.

Um hum.

So the chairman is really, he’s in a, he hasn’t decided the proceeding yet ‘cause
it’s still outstanding, but he has indicated he’s very . . . assuming the interference
issues can be worked out . . . I think he’s very much in favor of this, this idea.
It’s a way of promoting not just diversity but entry by people who have never,
who don’t have access to either the money or just the wherewithal to get on the
airways.

Okay.

Here’s Keith right here.

Hey, gentlemen.

Good morning

I’m Keith Larson.

175

Gilbert Williams.

Pleased to meet you.

Preston Blakely.

Pleased to meet you.

Okay.

We were just talking about low-power radio.

I’ve got fifteen minutes [unclear] be back at the [unclear] another meeting.
I had a question.

Sure.

The question has to do with the propagation of the digital signal as opposed to
the analog signal for radio.

Okay.
What’s the difference in terms of how those two are propagated?

Well, I think the jury might be a little bit out on that one right now. There’s a field
testing that’s going on for the rest of this year. The three [IBOC?] components
are going to be doing extensive field testing, but generally if I can extrapolate
from the experience of digital television . . .

Okay.

it’s somewhat similar. One of the primary characteristics is that in the analog
service you have, when people refer to them as graceful degradation. In other
words, as you, you’ve probably experienced this yourself, as you get further and
further away from the station, you get a little more static, you know. In FM it’s
more of a fading thing; the signal comes in and then it comes out and then it
comes in, so the reliability of the signal quality is less. You’re more susceptible
to impairments from other stations or, from a phenomena called [multipath?]
where your radio receives different versions of the signal at different times.

Uh huh.

Now in digital, it is more TV, it is more you see it, now you don’t. You know, you
got, you have a perfect picture right up until you get what’s called the clift. And

176

all of a sudden you have no picture at all. And there is some of that same
phenomena in radio, but the [IBOC?] designers are trying to design around that.
They are aware of that phenomena and so they’ve got these algorithms called,
for blending, what they call blending, where they can kind of send the signal
twice. For example, you drive under a bridge, you lose the signal because you
are under the bridge. However, they have set another signal with a time delay
so that that signal will get you when you get outside of the bridge. So there is
some redundancy in the way the system will be designed to try to take that
account for that kind of, those kind of problems. It is, uh,

Okay.

that’s as much as I know about it, but they are very concerned about the “clift”
effect

Uh huh. Uh huh.
in digital radio.
Okay.

Keith, could you, I started getting into this a little bit, but it is sort of beyond me.
Could you talk a little bit about the different power levels and the significance of
those?

Yeah. We don’t believe a one size fits all is going to work in low-power radio.
We think that just from what we’ve seen, in all of the inquiries that we've gotten,
that people have different ideas about what they need to do or want to do, low-
power radio. There are some folks that would like to operate commercial
businesses with radio. And you know, and radio, about 80 percent, I’m told
about 80 percent of the listening is done in the automobile. And so if you have a
very small area, I mean then you really don’t have a mobile audience and you
are basically just talking about a neighborhood broadcasting service or
something like that. So if you want to run a business station, you need enough
power to have a mobile, a mobile environment. And so we proposed to create
this 1,000-watt service. That would have a protected service area, a circle about
18 miles of diameter, which probably would allow you enough space for cars to
run around and listen to your station in that area.

Uh huh.

Now, mind you, if you don’t have any other stations in that part of the country to

interfere with you, your signal will probably go out even further. You may go out
twice that far. What I’m talking about here is a protected area where you would

be protected within our circle of about eight or nine miles in radius.

177

Suppose you broadcast at 106.7
Yeah.

and then there is an FM station, another 1,000-watt station also on that
frequency.

Uh huh.
How is, how are you going to protect the two?

Well, you wouldn’t, we wouldn’t grant you a license for 106.7 unless you met
certain mileage spacings

Oh, okay.

to that other guy on 106.7, and the spacings are designed, not only to protect
him, but to protect you from him.

Uh huh.

Okay. It is a two-way street. So you are ensured some protection because of
those spacings. Now, if that other guy who is a full-power station wants to
upgrade his station to a higher class or power or move closer to you or
whatever, he would have to protect you because we have proposed that those
1,000-watt stations be full primary stations. So you would be low powered, but
albeit low power, you would be a full-service FM station.

Uh huh.

Unlike that class, we proposed a second class, a 100-watt class, which is kind of
more like low-powered television right now. It is a lower power, secondary
service.

Do you guys know what secondary service is?

Secondary service means that you cannot cause interference to the reception of
a primary service and you have to accept any interference.

Even from a new guy that comes.
Albeit whether it is an existing primary station or one that came on the air after
you were already there. The tradeoff, though, is that [unclear] the secondary

stations were lightly regulated [unclear] than the primary stations. And they
would work, I think, in areas where you don’t have so much frequency

178

congestion, number one, and number two, for people who want to broadcast
within a very small area, maybe a couple, three miles, very small towns or
segments within larger cities.

Uh huh.

But the key, the key I think is being relatively certain that, as a practical matter,
for whatever reason, you are not likely to be displaced, even though you are a
secondary. And if you do get displaced, that there will be other frequencies
available that you can switch over to.

Uh huh. What’s the coverage area of 100 watts, about?

Coverage area of 100-watt station would be about a radius of three and a half
miles. Which, from the old location where the FCC used to be, down on 20th
and M Street, would take you across the Potomac River and into Arlington
someplace.

Uh huh. What’s the difference in the cost between a 25,000 or 50,000 versus a
1,000 watt; is it the transmitter?

Well, 50,000, year, it is; I think the largest expense probably is going to be in the
tower.

The tower.

We have proposed to limit the antenna heights of radio stations for the 1,000-
watt stations, 60 meters, about 200 feet, couldn’t go any hither than that. So,
you know, you don’t have to worry about 1,000-foot tower; we wouldn’t let you do
it.

Uh huh.

So your costs are going to be lower there. You wouldn’t have to be on a tower,
you could be on a building. You could be on a church steeple, you could be on
a water tower.

Okay.

Ah, a telephone pole. I mean, with the 100-watt station, we are only talking
about half that antenna higher, 100 feet. So there the cost, you wouldn’t need a
tower probably. You could just, you’d be just, you’d be on a building.

Is there much difference in transmitters, the cost of the transmitter?

179

Well, lwas going to get to that next. Yeah, sure there is. The 100-watt
transmitter may be, I’m guessing here based on what the people tell me, it could
be a couple thousand dollars.

Uh huh.

Or maybe even less if you get a used one.

And what’s

The 50,000-watt, we are talking hundreds, maybe $100,000.
Is the electricity bill going to be higher?

Oh year. Yeah, they’ll be for a 50,000-watt transmitter, the electric bill will be a
lot higher.

Uh huh. And there is a micro radio, right? Was the proposal?

We’ve asked for comments on a third class. Even lower power. Now to put this
in perspective, up until 1978 as you probably know, the Commission used to
license noncommercial Class D, FM stations. Now these were limited to 10
watts transmitter power, so if you use an antenna with a gain [?] on it, you’re
probably talking about 50, maybe 50 watts coming out of your antenna, radiated
power switches. More on the order 100-watt station that I was talking about,
because we are talking about radiated power when we talk about 100 watts and
1,000 watts. Not the transmitter power.

ERP.

that’s lower. ERP, exactly. But the micro station, we were talking about limiting
you to like 1 to 10 watts ERP, so 1 watt ERP, you might have a transmitter that’s
may be 100 milliwatt or something way down there. There we are talking about
a range of, you can get it if you got a good clear path, maybe a mile or two. Now
that’s truly neighborhood radius.

Uh huh.

I mean, these are for the people right now that use carrier current that would be
something a little better than carrier current.

Uh huh.

You know, you want to cover the college dormitory.

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Right.

or, or

The campus.

The campus, yeah, or, or your um . . .

Your church is

I’ve got, I live in a subdivision called Green Acres over in Fairfax, near George
Mason University. A micro radio station might get me six blocks, and I could,
you know, talk to my neighbors.

Uh huh.

I can’t run a business on that, I guarantee you. I can’t run a business, at least I
don’t think I could, it would be tough. But I could get on the air and I mean I
could be the voice of my neighborhood. And you know these neighborhoods
that you send out these, these newsletters every once and a while, I’m talking
about the issues that are going on, you know, show up at the city council
meeting ‘cause they are going to be talking about what they are going to do with
this road or that road or putting in this development. I mean, that’s the kind of
stuff people could do on neighborhood radio.

Now, how are people supposed to make money out of this?

They wouldn’t, not in micro radio. I mean,

There is no money.

There are some very creative people out there that might try, but my personal
belief is that it wouldn’t be for that purpose.

You mean like a hobby or just . . .
Oh, yeah.

That’s why I say, though, the one size fits all doesn’t seem to work here, and
that’s why we are proposing options.

Okay.

And I got to run to Roy’s office now.

181

Thanks.

Okay, thank you.

Thanks, Keith.

Thank you. Where are you folks from?

Up at Michigan State.

All right.

Michigan State University.

I’m from Minnesota originally, so I’m not too far away.
Okay, one of the Gophers.

Thanks again. Take care.

I’m glad he got a chance to stop by because he certainly knows more about the
technical part of this.

That’s great.
Pick up where the questions were.
Where were we? Uh, what is the priority for low-power radio. I mean, it is

Do you think it is going to happen, or is it, you know, are we just in a process or
do you see favor, favor or

I think

complaint and negative or

It is hard to predict. It is really controversial.
Okay.

I think it will happen. Um, to the extent to which it happens is unclear. It
depends on how these interference studies that are being conducted.

So the controversy is really with the commercial stations?

182

Yeah.
Their complaints

These interferences. And there are real interference issues that we have to look
into. The chairman is really on board with this, and that makes a big difference.

I think the real issue is how, to what extent can you establish a service. How
much can we relax these current interference things to created these new
opportunities for the stations? And that’s going to be, a lot of that is just a
technical issue and the lab work. We have to figure out how far we can go.

I think my, my views that I think is going to be, you are going to have
experimentation. [Unclear] you going to have, they are going to allow it and it’s
going to be

A [unclear] in the water first.

Yeah, it is going to be in some places we don’t have that many radio stations,
probably in rural areas, but first to see, that’s my view, that’s my prediction.

Or it could, similar to that it could take the approach where we just are relaxing
interference standards just a bit, real conservatively now, and see how that
happens and permit somebody to, and permit radio stations, low-power radio

stations [unclear] to those assumptions and then if that works out, maybe go
farther.

Uh huh.

Things can be difficult to predict with the Commission. To be honest, there are
political considerations.

How is that, Congress, and, uh,

There is, well we’ve got some, there is some, uh, members of the House of
Representatives, Bonier,

Yeah.
and
Michigan, David Bonier.

Uh huh, and a couple of other members of Congress have written the
Commission a letter supporting this. But a lot of other members, including some

183

very powerful, the chairs of our oversight committees, [unclear], has criticized
the Commission pretty harshly for [unclear].

He’s from Louisiana.
Yeah.

Uh huh.

Yeah.

You want to move away from lower power? Now we want to deal with some
policy issues.

Did we cover pretty much everything?
Let him

Okay.

Okay.

What is a priority for low-power radio? I mentioned this a little bit before, but it
is, I think it is to increase minority ownership, ownership by women, it is very low,
very little, very low representation of those groups in existing radio service. The
Commission under some more recent Supreme Court decisions have prohibited
us from adopting any sort of race-based measures or measures based on
gender [unclear] directly try to promote that.

To increase ownership?

Yeah. So what we are left to do is try to increase the size of the pie, so more
people, and create new outlets. We can’t reserve specific stations for minorities
or women, but we can try to create more stations with the hope that, you know, it
just increases the supply of these stations so more people can get to them.

Uh huh.

Other than minorities and women, more community groups, entrepreneurs, small
business owners, [unclear] development community people that Keith was
talking about. And I think the other part, and this goes hand in hand, is to
improve local programming, to give more sort of variety, more local variety, more
of a local connection to the community.

184

So in a sense of, of not so much, but there appears to be an increasing amount
of syndication of radio syndication into various markets where you have Don
Imus or Owen People all over the country, and they take out maybe the morning
drive or something like that.

That’s what we’ve heard. We’ve heard from quite a number of people that radio
has become less local.

Uh huh. Yup. See number 5, who do you anticipate owning the low-power
station? What will it cost? Have studies been conducted to determine the
potential for financial success?

Keith talked about this a little bit. I mean, who do we anticipate owning the low-
power radio station depends on the class, I mean the entire class, the 1,000-
watt, would be, I think, maybe not that much different from the current radio
owner, on the small side, somebody you think could probably make a go of it
commercially. It would be possible to sell advertising. You’d have enough of a
coverage area. What will it cost? Keith commented on that. I really, to be
honest, I don't know much more about it than Keith.

Okay.

Umm,

He pretty much answered that.

Okay. Have studies been conducted to determine the potential for financial
success? I have to tell you no. But that’s, that’s one of the things we hope to
get in the comments that come in. How will they make money? Well, I mean it is
really, to the extent they do make money, it would be selling advertising. That’s
what people anticipate.

Nowadays they would be commercial and noncommercial.

Well, it is one issue that’s been raised in the proceeding, whether, let me start
again. I think the micro radio station that Keith mentioned

Noncommercial, yeah.
If it is not noncommercial, in effect it will be because it is hard to sell ads on such
a small station. The 100 watts, who knows, maybe it would be possible to sell

some ads.

Okay.

185

The 1,000 watt could be commercial. The Commission has asked the question
in the proceeding whether this whole service should be noncommercial.

That’s what I read somewhere.

Yeah. So it is an issue in the proceeding. Number six, how do you envision the
program format differences between low-power radio and commercial radio?
Again, it depends on the class of the lower power radio station. I think the 1,000
watter would be similar to a small radio station. But probably more local in
nature because it has a somewhat smaller coverage area. But it could be quite
similar to a small radio station. The 100-watt and the micro radio almost by
necessity will tend to be very local in nature, we think. And the micro radio, I
mean format, it would be very interesting. It could be very [unclear]
idiosyncratic.

Uh huh.

Can low-power radio be competitive? If so, how? I think the answer would be
the 1,000 watts.

You think so.
What if a business bought one of these like Home Depot?
Uh huh.

And then just used it to advertise Home Depot’s products 100 percent of the
time; would that be improper?

It might be. One of the things we’ve asked about, it is an issue in the
proceeding. What programming obligations, if any, do we impose on this? Do
they have to provide some local and public affairs program? So that’s an issue
in the proceeding. I mean, it is,

You couldn’t have a 24-hour advertising channel?

Well, it is an issue in the proceeding. I mean, it would be interesting; would
anyone actually ever listen to that channel? Just 24-hour ads. Would anybody
tune in? And if no one tunes in, would Home Depot even bother doing that?
Well, it might be something like a home shopping channel or maybe

Yeah, yeah. That's, I mean that’s possible. If someone could actually make
money on it.

186

Classified radio.
Yeah. Yup.
Classified ads on radio.

But one of the, I mean one of the questions the Commission has to answer is,
would it allow something like that? What would be the basic programming
obligations? And it has to walk a fine line between preventing, that’s that
scenario you painted is not a very attractive one, so it should have some type of
programming obligation. On the other hand, the Commission sort of learned the
hard way over the past 50, 60 years. It is very difficult to impose programming
obligations without, that don’t raise too many First Amendment concerns, that
can be enforced. That give stations flexibility to actually make money and
continue to operate. It is a very, it is a very tricky line to walk.

But you could, you could set commercial time; then, it is like there are so
Yeah.

many 18 minutes or 12 minutes per hour, something like that, depending on the
class.

It’s possible. I think the Commission used to do that long, you know, 20 years
ago.

Right.

I think it is more likely now that we would just require some amount of public
interest programming. We’d have some new, some public affairs programs.
Like Home Shopping channels on TV, they can do home shopping, but they
have to do three hours a week of children’s educational 1V. They have to do
some type of public or public affairs programming.

Okay.

Will there be a regulatory policy similar to community ascertainment, determine if
low-power radio [unclear] local programming. I doubt the Commission will go
down that road and oppose specific ascertaining obligations on stations. I think
the Commission . . .

Are there any requirements now for the Commission?

No. There used to be.

187

That’s what I thought.

Yeah. In the 705, 60s and 70s, there was a whole very rigorous set of
ascertainment guidelines. But the Commission got rid of those in the 1980s, in a
deregulatory era. And its reasoning back then was that it wasn’t worth the
burden. I think the Commission reasoned that broadcasters had every incentive
to figure out what the needs of their Iistenership is and try to deliver it, and all
these ascertainment guidelines amount to is a bunch of bureaucratic paperwork.
So I think it is unlikely we’d adopt something like that here, especially given that
these, these low-power radio stations, if they are adopted, are going to be, you
know, they are going to have minimal resources, especially in the beginning.
And you don’t want to saddle them with a lot of regulatory burdens. It could
almost defeat the purpose of creating them in the first place.

Uh huh.

What are the differences in cost to purchase a lower power urban radio station
compared to that of a commercial urban radio station? I think . . .

You already answered that.

Keith got that, okay. How will you decide whether stations will be supported by
commercial advertising or public radio underwriting? The Commission has
asked that question. Ithink, Ithink the things it will be looking at are. . .

What do the commentators say about that? The key question is, I mean is it
reasonable to require all these to be noncommercial, is there enough sort of
underwriting and public funding out there to support this? If not, what’s the
point? Should let some [unclear] commercial. Ithink another question is, would
it be allowing some to be commercial stations, would it promote competition?
Which, you know, gets advertisers low prices.

Uh huh.

I think another factor that goes into it is whether it is commercial or noncommer-
cial [that] affects programming formats. How much Iistenership, and it is hard to
predict, but those are, those are general factors the Commission has to take into
account. deciding whether to have these guys become commercial or
noncommercial. Where will stations be located in AMIFM, commercial,
noncommercial? This, my understanding is right now, this is all for the FM band.
Whether it is commercial or noncommercial, it is unclear. It is an issue the
Commission has to decide. In terms of geographic areas they’d be located, right
now it is anywhere in the country; the Commission is [unclear] on locating these
things anywhere in the country where they can be fit in without causing
interference under acceptable interference standards. The effect of that is, it is

188

going to be tougher to fit these lower power radio stations in metropolitan areas
where there already are a lot of radio stations. Just because of the spacing
[unclear].

Hum.

But, of course, that’s where the demand for radio stations is, that’s where people
are more likely to want to build a [unclear] radio station.

Right.

Will commercial broadcasting be allowed to purchase low-power radio stations?
How many stations may be purchased by one owner? The Commission has
proposed to limit, it saw comment on preventing, allowing someone to only own
one low-power radio station. And prohibiting an existing radio station from
owning a low-power radio station. So to insure . . .

You can only own one?

That’s one idea that has been proposed. Or if not one, some smaller number.
Within the class.

Yeah.

So somebody might own 1,000 watt and they might own a 100 watt and a
microwatt.

Possibly.

But they couldn’t own 3,000 watt [unclear].
Right, some type of ownership on that.

Uh huh.

The whole idea is to promote entry by new people, not just existing owners. And
what would we gain if, if we allowed, created this new low-power radio service
and, you know, Chancellor could just come in and buy up all the [unclear]; it
would sort of defeat the purpose. So that’s one of the key questions the notices
ask. It has been stated that consolidation of commercial radio has priced out the
one- and two-station owners. It has decided that an owner may purchase up to
five low-power radio stations, as mentioned in Broadcasting & Sable magazine.
Will consolidation again have a similar effect on amount of [unclear] radio
[coughing] . . .

189

You don’t think that will happen?

I don’t think so. I mean, there may be good reason to allow someone to own up
to five low-power radio stations. It just, it makes it easier to have a sort of a
viable financial operation. And maybe you don’t let them own five in one city,
maybe it is nationwide. I mean, there is a real tradeoff. There is, on the one
hand, very strict ownership rules, insures, you know, real diversity, as much
diversity as you can get. And promotes entry by new people into the industry.
On the other hand, there are benefits to sort of large, larger group ownership.
This economy is scales and efficiencies that make it so, make it, gives you an
ability to compete, makes you at least break even. You know, drawing those
lines is tough, and it is usually we don’t have hard evidence to figure out where
to draw the lines; it is often a judgment call. So it is sort of balancing this thing.

You do economics studies though to find out what, what's kind of optimum to
make some predictions though?

Yeah. We try, we have a group of economists at the Commission who study
those things, but it is, you know, often the data we get, can get is very limited.
There are just so many factors in play it is hard to control for the various things
that influence the bottom line or how much diversity you get. Are you still
considering a minimum power 100 watts and the maximum wattage of 1,000? It
is what Keith had mentioned, sort of the three classes.

Okay. And the micro [unclear] is 10 watts, right?

Yeah, I think so.

Yeah.

I can get you a copy of the notice.

Okay, that will be good. Which, uh,

I’d suggest you read that ‘cause it has all the specifics.

Okay.

There are more than 100 pirate stations across the United States. Do you see
low-power radio as an option for pirate broadcasters?

To some extent. yes. I mean . . .

Can they afford it? [unclear]

190

I think certainly the micro radio, it could. The item, the Commission did say that
to the extent of lower pirate radio operate out there continues to violate our rules
and transmit without a license and even does so after he has been notified that
he has to stop broadcasting. If he just sort of thumbs his nose at us, that person
might be disqualified from applying for a low-priority radio station. It just, it
indicates someone who is resistant to any sort of reasonable regulations. It is
almost you can’t trust them to operate within, you know, a low-power radio
license.

This person might be irresponsible in terms .of a lot
Right.

of things, like Safe Harbor.

Right.

For kids, any kind of thing, and they may put anything on, so they, that’s why I
can see [unclear]

I mean the Commission has been very firm, even after it has proposed a low-
power radio service, to continue to enforce the existing rules against transmitting
or broadcasting without a license. It continues to shut down pirate radio stations
because they can cause real interference to not only radio stations, other
existing radio stations, but air traffic control [Unclear] crash. And the whole idea
of low-power radio is to create it, to license it, to ensure it doesn’t cause
interference to any of those things.

Okay; uh huh.
But we hope, I mean, we hope if a low-power radio service is created, it is a
legal option for people who are the private. What happens to pirate

broadcasters broadcasting under 100 watts? Is that on right now?

No. that question is assuming that was the lowest wattage. Okay, ldidn’t know
about the micro.

Yeah, there is a micro.

From what I was reading, I didn’t know about the micro, so I guess they would be
directed more toward the microwatt?

I would think so.

191

Right. Okay. Anything to add? Anything that we missed that you think we
should know about?

It just, there has been a great deal of interest in this. I mean positive, too. A lot
of, a lot of people are excited about this. One group is sort of independent
musicians who feel they can’t get air time on today’s radio stations. They see
this as a new outlet for their, to get their music out. So they are pretty excited
about it. A lot of local and state governments sort of like this idea. I think they
like it because, I mean, their community, the people in their community can get
radio stations, but also I think some local governments want to get their own low-
power radio stations and transmit their own public service announcements.

Uh huh.
All sorts of community groups.

I thought you were going to ask him some questions about localism. And the
concept of localism and how it, where it developed.

Uh huh, okay. I mean, it goes back to the very beginnings of radio in this
country. To the beginnings of regulation in radio.

Isn’t it sort of like the bedrock of the American broadcasting system?

Yeah, very much so. I mean, it is, it is basically the reason why we license or
allocate radio stations as we do. You could, I think in some countries you could
have very high power levels. Radio stations that cover very large areas. But,
with few exceptions, we have not followed that model in this country. The
Communications Act [coughing] in Section 3078 of the Communications Act,
requires us to license radio stations through the various communities, states,
and local communities in the country. And the Commission has, since 1934,
interpreted that to mean, to make sure in allocating stations to different
channels, to different communities, that they are evenly distributed across the
country, that they not all go the big urban areas, and that they are not, not just a
few of them operating at huge power levels that would have this big national
signal. But, but have smaller powered stations and more, more of them. And
the economics of that system means that the owner can only reach a certain
area, which means they don’t target this programming a little more [unclear]
target that, so you can see this localism theme and how we allocate frequencies,
allocate broadcast channels. Another way we’ve seen it is in how, over the
years, the Commission has adopted sort of programming, public interest
programming obligations that are all happening to try and get stations to address
the local needs of its community and respond to those. And they’ve taken
various forms over the years. At one time we had guidelines that required that
the station set aside a certain percentage of its time to local programming.

192

That’s been eliminated because they thought it was too sort of inflexible. But
[coughing] every broadcaster’s primary public interest obligation to day is that
they serve the needs and interests of their local communities in their
programming. And they have a lot of flexibility in how to do that. But they have
to, they have to put together a list of programs that do that and place those in
their local public file, which is open to the public to look at.

So has this concept of localism changed from a geographic or spatial concept of
being, uh, fixed to a particular community to more of a philosophical approach of
serving certain demographic groups?

It is still, there is an overlap there.

Okay.

But I think it is mainly still sort of the community.

Okay.

We’ve tried, it is mainly focused on the community, rather specific demographic
groups.

Okay.

Although, you know, we have ownership rules that are, that try to ensure that
any group of stations in a community are owned by a variety of people, and part
of that is to, is to ensure that at least one of those stations will target to the
different demographic groups. And for a number of years we had policies
specifically promoting minority and female ownership. To make sure those
groups, which tend to be underserved sometimes, are represented. Now,
because of the Supreme Court decisions, we can’t do that right now.

Was that the Adaland [?]?
Yeah, yeah.
Hum, okay.

Which actually wasn’t an FCC case. I think it was a Department of
Transportation program

Right.

which had set aside some minority contractors, but that was struck down. The
implications of that sort of handcuffed us.

193

So the thing, for example, the tax incentives, comparative merit, I think there was
another aspect where the FCC encouraged sales of [unclear].

Sales, yeah. Those are no longer possible under the Supreme Court rulings, is
that what you are saying?

Well, they are no longer in effect right now. Congress appealed the Tax
Certificate Program a couple years ago, and minority incentive, minority
ownership incentives have been [unclear]. The distress-sale policy’s no longer
in effect. The Supreme Court did leave an opening, a little small one, but it said
that if the government comes up with a really compelling case for minority-
specific or female-specific incentives, it could adopt them. And the Commission
is doing studies right now to try to build that case, but it is tough, the court’s
become real demanding.

Uh huh, uh huh.

Another form localism took is, this was years ago, when there were competing
applications for the same broadcasting channel, the Commission had to decide
which, which applicant won the channel. And one of the criteria used was the
so-called integration criteria, where the, if the owner of the station was going to
be actively involved in the operation of the station and also if it was local, the
owner actually lived in the local community and managed the station, it would
sort of get an advantage to the comparative process. That was, I think could be
said as an effort to promote locals. The courts actually struck that down. They
didn’t think the Commission’s rationale for that had been well reasoned when
backed up by evidence.

Hum.

And aside from that, Congress now requires us to auction off, when we get
multiple people seeking the same channel, we now have an auction and it goes
to the highest bidder. Although we are trying to establish bidding credits for sort
of small businesses.

Uh huh.

Which can include minorities.

But the integration criteria was an attempt to enforce some concept of localism?

Yeah, it, I mean it was based on that sort of policy. It was driven by that policy.

Uh huh.

194

That the local owner would be more apt to log local community programming,
more responsive to local needs.

And the low power in assigning licenses for low power, would that also be an
auction process?

We think, we saw a comment on that. We think it probably will be because the
statute probably doesn’t give us room to do anything else. Now if it is
noncommercial, it can be something else, but if it is a commercial, low-power
service, then I think it will probably have to go to the highest bidder.

Uh huh, okay.

Okay.

195

Responses to Interview With Brian F. Fontes.
Sanior Vice-President for Policy and Administration
Cellular Telecommunications Industry A_asociation

April 16, 1999

My names is Brian Fontes. I worked at the Federal Communications Commis-
sion from September 1978 to May 1994. During that time I worked in the Office
of Plans and Policy. I’ve worked in the Mass Media Bureau, Policy and Rules
Division, and I worked for several years as an advisor to Commissioner James
[Cuello?], who served as chairman for about a year, and then I served as his
chief of staff for the agency when he was chairman. So I’ve had a few positions
within the FCC. Prior to that I was assistant professor at the University of
Massachusetts in Amherst. I received my Ph.D. from Michigan State University
way back in 1977. It has been [unclear].

Is that right?

Yeah.

Twenty-two years ago?
Thank you [laughter].
Twenty-two years ago.

So quite a long time ago. Boy, oh, boy. The issue of localism, I think, has been
an extremely important issue in broadcasting, going back to the initial allocations
of broadcast stations, both television and radio. Our country, the Telecommuni-
cations Act of 1934, took a position that broadcasting should not be, in essence,
nationwide in terms of its operation. Its license area. This is in contrast to many
other countries. When we go back to 1934, if you look around the world, many
of the countries licensed broadcasting as a countrywide license area to pay
licensees, and by and large those are often govemment-owned broadcasting
institutions. They go back to the origins of the BBC and other broadcast entities.
They were very much state owned, controlled, operated, for the large part, and
their coverage area essentially covered the nation as a whole. They may have
done it regionally, but bottom line is the region’s collective formed the country
basis for broadcasting. This country took a very different perspective,
recognizing that, I think, there is a big fear in centralized government, and if we
go back there is always the yin and yang in Congress and debate on the
Constitution over federal versus state or central government versus a
decentralized government, and certainly broadcasting, like print media, has
always played an important role in the politics of a country. It has also played an

196

important role in information and so, by taking the position that broadcasting
should be local, it was taking more of the almost like the newspaper model. In
essence, in trying to make sure that broadcasting reflected the opinions, the
viewpoints, the ideas, the thinking, etc., of local communities and that there
should be multiple broadcasters across the country and even multiple
broadcasters within communities. To go back again and look at the newspaper
market, you see the kind of the rise and fall of the two-newspaper towns, you
know, there was competition, there was kind of diversity, [unclear] as limited as it
was. And then we’ve seen the evolution to, you know, one local newspaper.
And then today, we have like USA Today, the Wall Street Journal, LA Times,
New York Timea, major city newspapers that are available in other markets
throughout the country. So broadcasting in many respects, I guess, followed the
print journalism model in terms of the newspaper model. So localism was, in
fact, an important issue. Broadcasting like, unlike other services licensed or
regulated by the FCC, was a distinguished part, an inseparable part of the
Communications Act of 1934. And Congress deemed that broadcasting was, in
fact, different than common carriers and, as a result, imposed a different set of
requirements on broadcasting than it did on common carriers. Common carriers
[unclear]. And this is where we had the institution of public interest, and over the
decades of FCC regulation and court decisions, public interest evolved, and its
definition, it changed, you know, it just really did kind of evolve into what it is that
we know it to be today in terms of public interest. For many years, the FCC used
to regulate how much programming a licensee provided by very specific
categories. News, entertainment, sports, educational, religious, children’s
programming, and they used to have guidelines that, you know, 3 percent of
your schedule or 5 percent of your schedule, or 1 percent of your schedule, and
that was designed to ensure that the broadcaster in its public interest
responsibility would provide these types of programs to be responsive to
community concerns or interests or needs in order to qualify for license. In fact,
licenses were challenged in days of war for failure to meet those categories of
broadcasting. And the percentages of programming you should have for those
categories. In other words, if you didn’t air enough children’s programming, if
you didn’t air enough religious programming or public interest programing or
educational programming, whatever, licenses would have complaints filed
against them, particularly at renewal time. And the Commission would take a
look at that to determine, you know, whether or not the licensee was really living
up to his or her responsibility as a broadcaster in that local community.

Now, was that the case with WLBT? When their license was withdrawn?
I’m not . . .
WLBT, Channel 3 in Jackson, Mississippi, was not being responsive to the

African-American community, and it was one of the, I think it is one of the few
times that a license was actually, was revoked.

197

Yeah; to be truthful, I’m not familiar with the details of this Jackson broadcast
station. You know, I’m not qualified to comment on whether or not that was the
sole reason. There may have been a number of reasons, including that.

Uh huh.

So they may have a track record of violation of the Commission rules. Usually if
the license is revoked, it isn’t for a one-time offense. Usually, a track record of
grievous actions, so, or the action, if it is a one-time event, was so significant
that it would warrant revoking a license. So, you know, broadcasters have the
responsibility to program historically through these various categories. The
Commission eliminated in the, I guess it was the early 1980s, the requirement to
program two specific categories. And during this time, remember, in days of
your broadcasting, broadcasters actually had to go out and do surveys in the
public, or surveys of the public, to determine what the interests and concerns of
their consumers were, of the citizens, listeners, viewers.

Was that called ascertainment?

Ascertainment [unclear]. They had to do all these ascertainment studies, and
that was, in part, submitted in the record, either in a condensed version of it:
Here are the issues and here is what we were programming to meet these
issues. They had to actually identify the issues, identify the programs and do
ascertainment studies, which were methodologically sound research studies.
You couldn’t just sit somebody in front of a movie theater on a Friday night and
say, “Hey, what do you think the issues are?” They had to be actually bona fide
to get in the studies. And some broadcasters were challenged that their
ascertainment studies were not reflective of the community, so broadcasters
were required to do these ascertainment studies. And then, through those
studies, identify what the issues are in that community. And once they identified
the issues in that community, they had to identify the programming that they
aired that would meet those issues.

To address those issues.

Exactly. So that was a pretty rigorous requirement imposed on broadcasters.
The Commission modified that and said, “Look, you have to, we are not going to
tell you how you are going to have to do your study. We are not going to tell you
all the details, but we will tell you this. You have to identify the issues.“ Is it 10
now? I forget what the current number is. “You have to identify the 5 or 10
Issues?

Ten most salient issues in your community.

198

Ten most salient issues in your community. Golly, you remembered the number
10. And you can do this by interviewing civic leaders, you can do this by any
number of means to identify what the issues are. And you should be able, if
challenged, to defend that you have actually provided programming to address
those issues. You could address a number of other issues as well, you are not
limited to those 10. But you should clearly address those issues. The
broadcasters were given flexibility. Their, they eliminated the requirements of
X percentage of your program had to be, a minimum of X percent, had to be
[unclear] news, entertainment, education. They eliminated those categories with
the exception of children’s television, which is a different law that was passed—
that broadcasters have to air children’s programming. So the Commission, over
time, imposed significant rules on broadcasters to ensure that they were, in fact,
meeting the needs of the community. Now, they have gone through a process
where they modified a lot of those requirements or eliminated them, concurrent
with providing for more broadcasters in the market. And they opened up the low-
power TV docket, which, you know, is probably licensed to lose money, but
nonetheless, they opened it up. They also, there was an increase, even though
there was a number of allocations, there were broadcast channels that are
[unclear]. And so there were more broadcast channels that came online—not
online, that’s a computer term—that were powered up and were actually
broadcasting.

Like a UHF band, Channel 50, 53.
Yeah, exactly.
So on and so forth.

Right in the broadcast [unclear], the television context. UHF was developed.
Now, the Commission, I remember working this one proceeding where we used
to collect a lot of financial information from broadcasters. And the reason that
we would do this, we, the Commission, would be that if any broadcaster violated
the rule, you would know what type of forfeiture to impose on that broadcaster.
Based on, we know that their gross revenues are, we know their gross
expenditures are, the net income is, etc, so you can assess a forfeiture that
would sting, but not cripple, a station. Come to find out, we collected this, I
mean it was voluminous, we rarely used it. Because, number one, the
Commission didn’t impose a lot of financial forfeitures. And usually when they
did, there is part of the investigation to determine whether there is a punishment
for a misdeed. They would get the information necessary to assess how
significant a forfeiture they should impose. And what happened was,
interestingly enough, they collect all this [unclear] information, it was used by
broadcasters, not by the Commission, to determine, it was presented in
aggregate form on a date on a market basis, so they know what the market was

199

relative to the market. So it became a tool used by broadcasting, rather than a
tool used by the agencies to actually do forfeitures. I use this as an example
because the Commission went to this process, it really started in the late 703
and carried through, completely through the 805, where they went back and all
of their regulations that they imposed on broadcasting to make sure that they
were doing, you know, programming to local interests, to make sure that they
were doing the hiring practices in having real programs in place to make sure
that there was a limited number of ownership of stations, they were falling within
what was prescribed by law, FCC rules and regulations, to make sure that they
were doing the ascertainment studies. To make sure they were doing all these
things to be a broadcaster. Because, after all, they were licensed to serve in the
public interest. So, in reviewing all those rules, the Commission decided that,
you know, many of our rules are nonproductive, and broadcasters are actually
doing more than what our rules require. So why are we requiring them to do,
you know, 3 minutes or 12 minutes of advertising and 9 minutes of children’s
programming, etc., when in reality, in the competitive environment, you know, if
they want to do 13 minutes of advertising, people most likely will probably
change the station. Or they really are interested in watching the advertising.
Therefore, you know, the public demands have to be served. So the Commis-
sion decided to take a different tack, and that was to kind of move away from all
of the specific rules, and that’s why, when it comes to the public interest and the
issues that are of importance to the public, broadcasters now need to identify 10
of them, that they are not specific how they do their study, you know. They are
given a great deal of latitude and flexibility to derive those 10 issues. And then,
of course, they program to those issues as they see them to think is best served
by their program. In other words, they have the choice of how to program, to
address those issues. Now, in large markets, there is [unclear] too. There is a
great deal of competition, and the Commission has kind of moved from heavy
regulation to light regulation, so that broadcasters can more quickly respond to
the community which they serve. And you also will have what I call the more
granular type of broadcasting. For example, here in Washington, let me think of
what I program on my radio. This is what I program. I have one public
broadcast station program, I have one classical commercial station program, I
have one jazz station program, I have one oldies station program, I have one, it
is funny, it is not, they describe themselves more as classic rock, not oldies. It is
a little more current than the oldies station. And then one rock station; there are
six programs, I think that’s six. And, you know, that’s my choice in the market to
choose these stations. Now since I’ve lived in Washington, I need to see how
these stations have also changed their formats. There is a station that is kind of
easy listening, 99.5, what’s its caller’s name, WJAY. And I remember that
station when it was some other format trying to be just kind of easy listening
station, and now it is going to become, I believe, a jazz station. So they are
going to be changing their format, as well. I remember when, you know, you
used to be able to turn to any radio station at the top of the hour and hear news.

200

Well, you know, radio stations are not necessarily all hearing news all at the
same time.

Uh huh.

They realize that, hey, maybe somebody wants to listen to music at 8:00 and at
8:10 we go into the news or traffic update or whatever. So broadcasters are now
given, I think, or at least have a lot more flexibility in their advertisement program
schedules than what they’ve ever had before. And at the same time, too, they
are placed in a much more competitive market, and therefore they need to have
that flexibility in order to remain viable in that competitive market. And so when
we talk about localism, you have the, the kind of general requirements of
government coming head to head with what takes the consumers off. And if the
tastes of the consumers are conflicting with the local issues, then, you know, you
are probably not really gaining a full assessment of the local issues. Because
these broadcasters would probably want to keep your pulse on the community,
know what the issues are. You know, in the radio context, I think it is a lot easier
to do because there is not a lot of, particularly during drive time periods, there is
not a lot of public interest programs. Those are your peak commercial hours.
Where you get into the large audience, that’s where advertising goes, etc.

Radio stations of 10, midnight, two or three in the morning may, in fact, change
their format to get more, the [unclear] station I like is kind of a lot of music at
night. I’m not really interested in listening to someone talking [unclear].

Uh huh.

So the flexibility that broadcasters have there. Now, still, if I am a broadcaster
and I ignore totally what the issues are within the community, particularly on the
television side of your [unclear], then I think you’d probably end up losing your
show. I mean, it is only common sense that if you are going to attract the viewer
of television, you want to do or air on television what they are interested in
watching or hearing or learning about. I remember Jim Quello, a former
broadcaster, he said, and this is a typical Jim Quello, he says, you know, if a
new station was getting started or if you station is having a little difficult time, if
they are changing their personalities, he said, the thing that I would always do is
I would get a camera crew out there or tape crew out there. I would interview
people on the street. And, he says, if you want to hear yourself, tune in tonight
at 7:00. Well, what happens? I mean, that person clearly [unclear], that every
person that knows that person will tune in at 7:00 because, hey, that’s my friend
on television or whatever. Get your 10 seconds in the sun or whatever. And so,
you know, what Jim is really saying is, it is really local. And it is like all politics is
local; all broadcasting should keep its pulse, you know, should keep its finger on
the pulse of the local community.

Uh huh.

201

That’s how you are going to [unclear]. Taste in music, taste in how you present
yourself, your image within the community. And broadcasters are truly a
corporate citizen. And they will need to be visible with local events, and many
broadcasters all are. You know, whenever crises hit communities, we oftentimes
will see broadcasters are out there, you know, helping to, you know, get people’s
attention to the crises and also helping to, you know, this is where you can send
money or this is where you can send, you know, aid or the blood bank needs
more blood, and they really are an instrumental part of the community. So, in
many respects, they are the fabric of the community. And to ignore the fabric,
you may find yourself basically with a small audience.

With what you just described, localism hasn't changed as [unclear], or has it?

I think localism, in a broadcaster’s sense of localism, probably has remained
pretty constant. I think the FCC’s procedures to demonstrate that you are
factoring into your broadcasting local concerns have changed significantly over
the years.

[talking to each other] pretty much the same.

Probably so. I mean, it is not that I think that broadcasters have had some
greater degree of flexibility more recently than historically. So that I think you
can as a broadcaster, correct me if I’m wrong, in the television sense, there is
70, you can look at the whole environment in the local community in terms of
what’s available. So if, as a television broadcaster, if your competitor is airing,
you know, a lot of public interest programming on lyme disease because it is
springtime or something and kids are out of school and they are playing and
they are going to get bitten by ticks or fleas and then carrying lyme disease, and
you look at that and say, “I’m not going to do lyme disease; in my community
what’s important to them is road rage. So I am going to do maybe a couple little
feature stories in my newscasts about road rage.” Well, even though lyme
disease may be one of the 10 concerns or whatever that citizens in the
community have, I think broadcasters, and I think the FCC would say, you know,
the fact that you didn’t do a story on lyme disease isn’t that critical when the
community had available to it, you know, 18 hours of programming on lyme
disease.

Uh huh.

Where you have provided, you know, three or four programs on road rage, which
is another issue identified. So I think the Commission in its interpretation of what
you have done to meet those local needs allows the broadcaster a greater
degree of flexibility because you can then look at the full market. I hear the
Commission was also in children’s programming, looking at what’s available in
the videotape sections of libraries and looking at the multimedia video

202

environment instead of just that single broadcaster. So there is, there is a
greater degree of flexibility in terms of what broadcasters can do to meet the
needs, and I think there is a great deal of relaxation, I don’t mean it in the
negative sense, the Commission is not interested in. I think that when I say
relaxation of Commission rules, that they are looking at the total local community
and your contribution to that local community. So it is not that every single
broadcaster has to air a program on every single issue that the community finds
absolutely important and do the same amount of programming on each of these
issues; they don’t do that any more. They look at, you know, this broadcaster‘s
doing a lot on this, that broadcaster is doing a lot on that, another broadcaster is
doing a lot on something else. Each of them may touch on these other issues,
but in different proportions and different levels. And still the Commission would
find that absolutely acceptable.

In other words, one size does not fit all.
Exactly.

Does ownership have any impact upon how localism is interpreted? For
example, would someone like Clear Communication or Chancellor had a
different view of how they would interpret what they would mean, what they, how
they saw ownership, as opposed to, say. if I as an African-American owned one
radio station in Detroit, am I going to see it differently? In your experience, have
you seen that to be?

Yeah. What I found, you know, what I found differently [unclear] is, let’s take
large corporations [unclear]. Large corporations have different management
styles. For example, Cap Cities, when they were just growing, not to the level
that they are today, but back when Jim Cole was a vice-president of Cap Cities,
how Cap Cities, even though they owned a lot of television and radio stations,
they would allow each station to be its own autonomous broadcaster. All Cap
Cities was interested in was if that broadcaster was [unclear]. I shouldn’t say
[unclear] . . . the important thing to Cap Cities was the financial viability of that
asset

Uh huh.

And not making programming decisions from a community, you know, X, when
the broadcast station’s in community Y. And they, they pretty much let the local
general manager do the programming, make the decisions, and be every bit a
part of that local community.

A decentralized approach to . . .

203

Yeah, yeah, very much so. Very much so. Just kind of decentralize the
management and the operations. But just like anybody that [unclear] you want
to make sure that, you know, there is fiscal responsibility, that, you know, this is
a good asset in terms of its generating money, but a bad asset in tennsof, you
know, chewing up money. So they were concerned about asset management,
you know, in the true sense of the word. And respected the ability of their
managers of these various stations to operate very much as a local manager of
a broadcast station. So it was kind of a decentralized structure in terms of
control over the programming, the issues, etc., within the local community. Now
they may gripe about the fact you paid how many millions of dollars for that air-
time personality when you could have probably gotten another person for a little
less. I mean, they may argue about fiscal issues, the financial issues, but by
and large [unclear], quite [unclear], and many times they, they kept a lot of the
same management structure. So, I mean, that’s one approach. Another
approach would be to have more centralized decision in programming, etc., so
that you can get the economies of scale and syndication and buying more of a
package for your, or buying more stations for your package or your package for
more stations [unclear] works. And in that situation, you may have what I call a
hybrid situation where part of the broadcast schedule is kind of centrally
determined and part of it is locally determined.

Uh huh.

So, I mean, it really does not say one a large corporation would do it one way
would be a misperception of how corporations manage their assets. And so,
you’d almost have to kind of look at each corporate structure and see how the
decision making at the local level is done. Whether it is, you know, centralized
programming unit at corporate headquarters or is it done at the local level.
Radio talent, on-air talent, are they all hired by the central core or are they hired
and determined and paid for by whatever at the local level? So these are the
types of things you look at in a corporate structure. Now, saying that, if you are
looking at a corporate operation versus sole proprietorship or sole ownership or
whatever [extremely loud noise right in microphone]. The Commission is
granting licenses and renewals, and challenges of renewals used to pay a great
deal of importance to localism in ownership, management, that if you can
demonstrate that you are living in the community, that the person managing your
station is living in the community, etc., those were always plus factors in the
decision the Commission would, plus factors in the overall decision the
Commission would make.

Is that called integration criteria, something like that?
Yeah, integration; I’m trying to remember the correct terminology. Oh, gosh.

That’s okay.

204

Yeah. But it is the same concept; it is the idea that it is going to be locally
owned, locally operated.

Uh huh.

And the Commission would favor, give extra points, to that type of ownership
and control. Now, with the change in the ownership laws, etc., that has been
lessened substantially. But the bottom line is, you know, the whole bowl was
trying to create a broadcast environment that was local in nature, run by local
individuals and owned by local individuals, etc. And in this ever-evolving world
of corporate structure, a lot of that has changed in terms of corporations coming
in and buying these assets up.

Uh huh.

So, yeah.

Now does market size have anything to do with it?

Yeah, well, market size limits the number of stations anyone can own within a
market. For example, under the Commission’s rules, interpreting the law on the
number of broadcast stations a single company can own is based on . . .

Or if it has 14 stations on the market.

Right, exactly.

Eight if they are 22.

Whatever.

So on and so forth.

Right.

205

APPENDIX D

ORGANIZATIONAL CHARTS

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207

Organizational Chart-WBBB-FM

 

CEO/Owner
Vice-President & General Manager Business Manager—CPA
Sales Manager Operations Manager Station Manager
WALJ WFXMIWXKO
Sales Staff Air Staff Air Staff

208

APPENDIX E

COVER LETTERS AND CONSENT LETTER

209

May 20. 1999
Chief Operating Officer/General Manager
Rad Media
Atlanta, Georgia

Dear

 

I am writing to request your assistance in completing a research project I
am involved in at Michigan State University. We met three weeks ago when l
toured your station with my two sons and granddaughter. Your station manager
has suggested I contact you concerning my research needs.

I am currently enrolled in the Mass Media Ph.D. program at Michigan
State University and would like to utilize your station as a case study in
completion of my dissertation. The key research questions will be:

1. What is the decision-making process for selecting local and other
programming at your station?

2. What personnel are involved in the decision-making process, and what
is the character of the debate, if any, about what to program?

3. What are the structural variables linked to the decision-making
process (market size, demographics, station policy, format)?

4. How do the experiences at your station suggest strategies that might
be useful for other urban stations when management is involved in the decision-
making process? What new questions are raised by all of this?

I would like to interview three or four of your key staff. The interview will
take approximately one hour per staff member. The case study will also require
support material such as newspaper articles, mission statement, organizational
chart, and budgetary projections. The results of this study will remain
confidential, and you and your staff will remain anonymous in any report of
research findings.

If you have any questions concerning my participation in the doctoral
program, please feel free to contact Dr. Gilbert Williams at 517-353-9151. I will
call within the next few days to confirm our meeting.

Sincerely,

Preston A. Blakely

210

August 14, 1999
President
Robots Communications
Atlanta, Georgia

Dear

 

This letter is provided as a follow-up to my telephone message left a few
days ago. After meeting with recently and reviewing interviews
conducted with her staff, I really would like to include your station in my
dissertation study.

I am currently enrolled in the Mass Media Ph.D. program at Michigan
State University and would like to utilize your station as a case study. The
theme of the dissertation is the decision-making process of a single-owner,
smaller market radio station compared to the decision-making process at a
larger market station. The research questions will be:

1. What is the decision-making process for selecting local and other
programming at your station?

2. What personnel are involved in the decision-making process, and what
is the character of the debate, if any, about what to program?

3. What are the structural variables linked to the decision-making
process (market size, demographics, station policy, format)?

4. Do the experiences at your station suggest strategies that might be
useful for other urban stations when management is involved in the decision-
making process? What new questions are raised by all of this?

I would like to interview three or four of your key staff. The interview will
take less than one hour per staff member. Support materials such as newspaper
articles, mission statement, organizational chart, and budgetary projections will
also be needed for the case study. You and your staff will remain anonymous in
any report of research findings.

If you have any questions concerning my participation in the doctoral
program, please feel free to contact Dr. Gilbert Williams at 517-353-9151.
Please call me at 517-355-5993 so we can discuss the details.

Sincerely,

Preston A. Blakely

211

June 1, 1999

Dear Colleague:

As a part of my research project for my doctoral dissertation, I am
investigating two commercial radio stations in the United States that have been
identified as having successful urban radio formats. Your station has agreed to
participate in this study.

Specifically, the case study will reflect how two commercial radio stations
have used the decision-making process when selecting programming for an
urban radio audience. The study will identify and examine similarities and
differences in the decision-making process in order for researchers and station
managers to better understand the process and, if necessary, to make
improvements to that process.

My research must include an interview with you at your convenience. The
interview will consist of thirteen questions and will take approximately one hour
to conduct. A tour of your station is also required; printed materials will also be
requested.

The results of the study will be treated with strict confidentiality, and you
and your station will remain anonymous in any report of research findings. All
materials will be stored in a secured, locked location. Your participation in the
study is voluntary. You may refuse to respond to questions, discontinue the
interview at any time, and/or decline to provide any support materials. You may
request that no audiotaping be done, or if it is done, you may ask that the taping
be stopped at any time.

You indicate your agreement to participate in this study by completing and
returning the enclosed Consent Form. If you have any questions or concerns
about your participation, please contact the undersigned at 517-355-5993 or the
dissertation director, Dr. Gilbert Williams, at 517-353-9151. Thank you for your
participation in this study.

Sincerely,

Preston A. Blakely

212

APPENDIX F

RESEARCH QUESTIONS

213

ReseaLch Questions

1. How has urban radio remained committed to the community as well as
profitable in the marketplace, given all the pressures these stations face?

2. How is management, corporate, owner/president, department, or
committee involved in the decision-making process? What is the nature of the
debate, if any, about what to program or what to advertise?

3. How has multiple/single radio ownership influenced the decision-
making process for the commercial radio broadcaster?

4. What is the decision-making process for selecting programming for

two commercial radio stations, each representing a different-sized market?

214

APPENDIX G

SAMPLE PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT

215

CHECK YOURSELF LIVE BROADCAST
AIDS WALK ATLANTA

CAU BONE MARROW DRIVE
CHILDREN'S RESTORATION NETWORK,
EASTER GALA V
CHILDREN’S RESTORATION NETWORK
MOTHER'S DAY DINNER

CHURCH'S HABITAT FOR HUMANITY
COCA COLA ATTENDANCE COMPETITION
COOL GIRLS BOWL-A-THON

GA STATE COMMUNITY SERVICE DAY
HOSEA WILLIAMS FEED THE HUNGRY
LIVE BROADCAST

HOT 97.5 “ROCKS THE VOTE"

HOT 97.5 HAIR CUTS FOR THE
HOLIDAYS

HOT SHOTS DIABETES B-BALL GAME
HOT SHOTS FOR HOPE GAME
AMERICORPS CELEBRITY B-BALL GAME
MAKE A DIFFERENCE DAY W/COOL
GIRLS @ PLANET HOLLYWOOD
MARIETTA HIGH CAREER DAY
MORELAND AVE. WOMENS/CHILDREN'S
SHELTER CLOTHING/FOOD DRIVE

216

APPENDIX H

MISCELLANEOUS MATERIALS

217

 
   

WEEK V722?
I 0
2 2
3 3
. 5 0
4 5
e G
a 0
7 8
10 9
II 0
12 $
9 12
16 3
14 Q
13 15
I7 16
25 0
20 G
19 Q
1! 20
22 0
23 a
so Q
27 ®
6
2‘ 25
23 Q
21 23
25 29
®__._

 

Urban A 0 hp 30

® September 15, 2000

ARTIST TITLE LABEL/S) %

TONI BRAXTON Just Be A Man About It (LaFace/Arista) 94D

YOLANDA ADAMS Open My Heart (Elektra/EEG) . 895

JOE Treat Her Like A Lady (Jive) 666
633

_eovz II MEN Pass You By (Universal)

GERALD LEVERT Baby U Are (EastWesVEEG) 561
KEVDN EDMONDS Love Will Be Waiting (RCA) 5II7
BEBE WINANS FIMCKNIGHT & JOE Coming Back Home (Motown) 495
DONELL JONES Where I Wanna Be (Untouchables/LaFace/Arista) 489

SISOO Incomplete (Dragon/Def SouV/DJMG) , 425
RACHELLE FERRELL Satisfied (Capitol) 420
CARL THOMAS Summer Rain (Bad Boy/Arista) 413
WIII'INEYIIOIISTINI a DEBORAH COXSameScript, Different... (An'sla) 4CD
NORMAN BROWN FNESTA Rain' (Warner Bros.) 375
ERYIIAH BADU Bag Lady (Motown) _ 31D
LV Woman's Gotta Have It (Loud) 358
KELLY PRICE As We Lay (Def SouVlD/MG) 343
CHARUE WILSON Without You (Ma/or Hits) 309
JILL SCOTT Gettin’ In The Way (Hidden Beach/Epic) 297
AL JARREAII Just To Be Loved (GRP/VMG) 297
RUFF ENDZ No More, (Epic) 291
LUCY PEARL Dance Tonight (Overbmok/Pookie/Beyond) 282
NEXT Vlfifey (Arista) ' 276
TEMPTATIONS Selfish Reasons (Motown) 266

BONEY JAMES & RICK BRAUN Grazin' In The Grass (Warner Bros.) 240
PHIL PBIRY Keep Me In The Dark Tonight (PealvPriIate/Mndham Hill) 239
MEIl-IRONE Loving Each Other 4 Lite (C/atown/Capitol) 231
IDEAL Whatever (Noontime/Vlrgin) 219
WILL DOWNING F/CHANTE’ MOORE When You Need Me (Motown) 217
AVANT Separated (Magic Johnson/MCA)1II7
KELLY PRICE You Should' ve Told Me (T-Neclr/Def SouMDJMG) 171

218

+49
, -5

-41
+13

EXAMPLES OF “NO URBAN DICTATE”

ACCOUNT
Starbucks/BBDO
Nestle Corporate
Pepperidge Farm
CompUSA
Weight Watchers
Auto Nation
Continental Airlines
Stouffers Lean Cuisine
Northwest Airlines
America West
Life Savers
Glaxo Wellcome
HBO-Apollo Series
Paternal Importers
Perrier
Penske Auto
Tobasco Brands
Isuzu
Rex Healthcare
Planet Rx

Compaq

219

STATUS
Turn Around
No NUD
Turn Around
Turn Around
Pending
NoNUD
Turn Around
NoNUD
Pending
Turn Around
Turn Around
NoNUD
Turn Around
Pending
Pending
Pending
Pending
Turn Around
Pending
Pending

Pending

ACCOUNT
O.M. Scott
PCI NET
Volvo
Ethan Allan
Busy Body/Fitness
Tenet Healthcare
Mondavi Wines
Builders Square
Don Pablo/Gleason
Aruba Tourism
Lexus
UPS
Ciba Vision
Kindercare
Grady Restaurant
Calico Comers
TCBY
Joseph A. Bank Clothier
Land’s End
Park Davis Pharm.

Loreli

220

STATUS
Pending
NoNUD
Pending
Pending
Turn Around
Turn Around
Turn Around
Turn Around
Turn Around
Pending
Pending
Pending
Turn Around
Turn Around
Turn Around
Pending
Turn Around
Turn Around
Pending
Pending

Pending

 

OFFICE OF
RESEARCH
AND
GRADUATE
STUDIES

University Committee 0
Research Involving
Human Subjects
(UCRIHSI

‘.l {moan Stale UniverSIlv
;.-.e immigration Burlomo
East _ansing, Michigan
48824-i046

SIP/3552180
FAX 5l7/353-2976

MICHIGAN STATE

UNIVERSITY

July 6, 1999

TO: Dr.Gilbert WILLIAMS
422 Comm. Arts & Sciences
MSU

RE: IRB# 99397 CATEGORY: 1-C.E
APPROVAL DATEzJuIy 6, 1999

TITLE:SAMJ-FM AND WFXE-FM: A CASE STUDY IN DECISION-MAKING FOR
COMMERCIAL RADIO PROGRAMMING

The University Committee on Research Involving Human Subjects‘ (UCRIHS) review of this
project is complete and I am pleased to advise that the rights and welfare of the human

subjects appear to be adequately protected and methods to obtain informed consent are
appropriate. Therefore, the UCRIHS approved this project.

RENEWALS: UCRIHS approval is valid for one calendar year. beginning with the approval
date shown above. Projects continuing beyond one year must be renewed with the green
renewal form. A maximum of four such expedited renewals possible. Investigators wishing to
continue a project beyond that time need to submit it again for a complete review.

REVISIONS: UCRIHS must review any changes in procedures involving human subjects, prIOl
to initiation of the change. If this is done at the time of renewal, please use the green renewal
form. To revise an approved protocol at any other time during the year, send your written
request to the UCRIHS Chair, requesting revised approval and referencing the project's IRB#
and title Include in your request a description of the change and any revised instruments.
consent forms or advertisements that are applicable.

PROBLEMS/CHANGES: Should either of the following arise during the course of the work
notify UCRIHS promptly: 1) problems (unexpected side effects, complaints, etc.) involvrng
human subjects or 2) changes in the research environment or new information indicating

greater risk to the human subjects than existed when the‘protocol was previously reviewed and
approved.

If we can be of further assistance. please contact us at 517 355-2180 or we email:
UCRIHS@pilot.msu.edu. Please note that all UCRIHS forms are located on the web:
http:l/wwwmsu.edu/unit/vprgs/UCRIHS/

 
 
 
 
 
 

 
  

avid E. Wright, Ph. D.
UCRIHS Chair

DE . 'd
c: Preston Blakely

221

 

OFFICE or
RESEARCH
AND
GRADUATE
STUDIES

University Committee on
Research Involvlng
Human Subjects

ll‘ . State ll . 'l
246 Adninistration Building
East Lansing. Michigan
48824-1046
517/355-2180
FAX 517353-2976
:0: Wham/berths
E-Mail: wihsOmsuedu

MICHIGAN STATE
U N I V E R S I T Y
Jun86,2000

 

TO: Gilbert WILLIAMS
422 Comm. Arts & Sciences
MSU

RE: IRB # 99-397 CATEGORY: 1-C,E
RENEWAL APPROVAL DATE: June 2, 2000

TITLE: SAMJ-FM AND WFXE-FM: A CASE STUDY IN DECISION-MAKING FOR COMMERCIAL
RADIO PROGRAMMING

The University Committee on Research Involving Human Subjects‘ (UCRIHS) review of this project
is complete and I am pleased to advise that the rights and welfare of the human subjects appear to
be adequately protected and methods to obtain informed consent are appropriate. Therefore, the
UCRIHS APPROVED THIS PROJECTS RENEWAL

RENEWALS: UCRIHS approval is valid for one calendar year, beginning with the approval date
shown above. Projects continuing beyond one year must be renewed with the green renewal form.
A maximum of four such expedited renewal are possible. Investigators wishing to continue a project
beyond that time need to submit it again for complete review.

REVISIONS: UCRIHS must review any changes in procedures involving human subjects, prior to
initiation of the change. If this is done at the time of renewal, please use the green renewal form. To
revise an approved protocol at any other time during the year, send your written request to the
UCRIHS Chair, requesting revised approval and referencing the project's IRB# and title. Include in
your request a description of the change and any revised instruments. consent forms or
advertisements that are applicable.

PROBLEMS/CHANGES: Should either of the following arise during the course of the work, notify
UCRIHS promptly: 1) problems (unexpected side effects, complaints, etc.) involving human subjects
or 2) changes in the research environment or new information indicating greater risk to the human
subjects than existed when the protocol was previously reviewed and approved.

If we can be of further assistance, please contact us at 517 355-2180 or via email:
UCRIHS@pilot.msu.edu.

 

David E. Wright
Chair, UCRIHS

DEW: ks

cc: Preston Blakely
2843 East Grand River, #124
East Lansing, MI 48823

BIBLIOGRAPHY

223

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