Chapter 6: Radio: It's Personal

Radio has been described as the "most personal" of the media. I believe this is due to several factors.
For one thing, listeners have very personal control over the radio. Most people drive alone in their cars the majority of their time (who else from your family would come with you to work everyday?) As such, the lone drivers have complete control over what is played, and can decide what they want to listen to with the twist of a knob. I know of very few people who sit and watch television all alone for hours on end. It's just so lame and anti-social! In contrast, lone radio-listening in the car is perfectly socially acceptable. When you are the only person to satisfy, you have complete control over what is played.

Another factor that makes radio more personal than magazines, newspapers, or television, is that it brings a live human voice with no indicated audience right into your car or room.
For example: I turn on the Rush Limbaugh Radio Program. Rush starts ranting, telling me "Do you know what's wrong with this country? I'll tell you what's wrong with this country!" I can't see who he's looking at to see who he is addressing, but his voice is loud and clear as if he were present in my car. I feel like he is talking directly to me. Singers have the same effect. I hear "Desperado" by the Eagles, and I feel like they are playing and singing right to me, like they KNOW me. This phenomenon is not present in television, where messages come from a box, and images clearly show that the speakers are either not looking at you, or else addressing you insincerely. They don't know you! Magazines and Newspapers don't know you either, they just prepared their information for the masses. Radio, on the other hand, with it's floating and poignent voice floating out of thin air to you, feels much more personal. You can sing along to music, (most people do, I bet :) or argue with talk radio show hosts (at least I do. :) because it feels like they are right there with you in the car.

Music is an essential element of radio programming because it provides ambience in an obscure location and advertises new songs. These two functions make it appealing to listeners for several reasons. Let's take "If Everyone Cared" by Nickelback, as an example:

-SOCIAL FUNCTION: A kid turns on the radio in his car because he wants to impress his friends with his savvy "in-the-know" knowledge of music. He hears "If Everyone Cared" and remembers to ask his friends, "Have you heard Nickelbacks new song?" to boost his social status.

-ENTERTAINMENT FUNCTION: A man turns on the radio and hears Nickelback. He starts drumming on his dashboard and singing along. He enjoys the music and is entertained on an otherwise boring drive (or boring afternoon at work.)

-EMOTIONAL FUNCTION: A tired and discouraged civil rights activist hears the song on the radio and it lets out her frustration. She revels in the defiant and powerful message of the song and feels better after hearing it.

ADVERTISING FUNCTION: A producer from a record label which sponsors Nickelback wants to get their music out there and boost sales. They put it on the radio and sales go up.


Talk radio also is a popular part of radio. Why so? I personally love listening to Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, and Michael Savage or calling in on local talk radio shows. Listening makes me feel more informed and aware of what is happening in the world. My priest quorum used to discuss stories and topics we had heard from Glenn Beck all the time. I am also entertained by these speakers, and my personal political views are vindicated on the air. Many conservatives in America don't speak out because they feel like they have a minority view. This is probably due partly to the (debatably) liberal television and print media bias. Radio is the last truly conservative media. Listening to a conservative soap-box speech from a powerful speaker is justifying and refreshing. It is also rather entertaining. For these reasons talk radio is popular and probably will continue to be so.