There’s a lot to worry about at a radio station, including dead air, music thieves, graffiti, smells, and now…proper music filing. Unfiled and misfiled music is a huge pet peeve for radio staffers, who often try to track down the miscreants who can’t take the time to file or who are alphabet-challenged. The hilarious thing […]
Archive | Op-Ed
Opinions, editorials and fun stuff.
12 Days of Radio Station Signage: Day 5 – Never Use Swear Words
Although there are some rules that are universal at FCC licensed terrestrial radio stations, it’s clear that there are DJs out there who need constant reminders. Today’s sign makes it abundantly clear that swearing and profanity are forbidden, although the consequences aren’t spelled out. I love the line “we are dead serious to point that […]
Marc Maron’s do or die holiday girlfriend gift advice
12 Days of Radio Station Signage: Day 4 – Zero Tolerance Graffiti Policy
On the 4th Day of Radio Station Signage we arrive at KZSU at Stanford University, where this folksy sign reminds station staffers of the zero-tolerance graffiti policy. The amusing part of this sign to me is that it is covered with tags and graffiti. The not so amusing part of the sign is that those […]
12 Days of Radio Station Signage: Day 3 – You are Being Monitored
Radio station signs come in a variety of forms, but often they are created by radio station staffers in order to discourage bad behavior. We’ve already covered not spraying, avoiding dead air, and now we move on to one of the most important: don’t steal music. Radio station music libraries are supposed to be sacred […]
Dinosaurs remember commercial radio
A friend send me a link to this edition of Dinosaur Comics where a T-Rex offers his snarky memories of commercial radio: Now go read the whole strip and be prepared to laugh (or cry).
12 Days of Radio Station Signage: Day 2 – Dead Fish
There are a lot of things to worry about when doing a live radio show and dead air is on the top of that list. Ask any DJ about recurring nightmares and the “dead air” nightmare is extremely common. For me it has completely replaced the cliched “it’s the final exam, and I haven’t been […]
12 Days of Radio Station Signage: Day 1 – Do Not Spray
After touring at least 30 different radio stations, I’ve amassed a small collection of photos and have begun to obsess about the different categories of objects, personalities, and oddities that I’ve spotted while on my field trips. Although I’m running a bit late with the “12 Days of”… theme, is it ever really too late […]
Can you picture that? Week-long Muppets Radio comes to SiriusXM for the Thanksgiving weekend
OK, I know this is just a shameless marketing blitz for the new Muppet Movie. But as a child of the 70s and 80s, the Muppets are a treasured memory. I’m certain that I wore out my LP of the original Muppet Movie soundtrack, and the Muppet Show first exposed me to the likes of […]
Podcasting, satellite, internet and broadcast: it’s all RADIO to us
We, your humble Radio Survivors, are unabashed fans of broadcast radio. That much should be clear to anyone who peruses our site. But we hope that readers also see that we don’t limit ourselves to the AM, FM and shortwave dials. It’s vitally important to recognize that every time a new audio distribution technology comes […]