ASIA

Russia’s liberal “Ekho Moskvy” (Echo of Moscow) radio, which was taken off air in March this year, shortly after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, has found a new home in Berlin.Considered one of the last independent voices in Russia, it was one of the many  media outlets forced to shut down following a clampdown by the Kremlin over coverage of the war.A number of the its employees, including 38 year-old deputy editor-in-chief Maxim Kurnikov, left the county.  While Kurnikov  has made a new life in the German capital along with several former colleagues, others have headed for Latvia, Lithuania and Georgia.Since earlier this month, Kurnikov and his team have restarted their broadcasts on an app simply called “Echo”.“It works just like a radio,” Kurnikov told AFP, claiming that the app was fast becoming one of the top downloads in Russia.The new outlet also brings content being produced on other platforms by former Echo of Moscow journalists under the same roof. “Echo” aims to broadcast live for 10 to 12 hours a day, with replays filling the rest of the time. A website and two Telegram channels are also part of the project.“We have combined all of our team’s YouTube channels. We want to offer our audience a complete picture of what is happening in Russia,” Kurnikov said.Around 20 journalists are currently working with “Echo”, and around 10 more people are expected to join in the near future, he said.The plan is for much of the “Echo” team to eventually work from Berlin, in offices and a studio paid for by donations.Moscow born, Berlin-based German writer Vladimir Kaminer, was one of the driving forces behind the “Echo” comeback. He has worked closely with Kurnikov to bring the project to life.There will also be insight from within Russia. The radio station’s veteran editor-in-chief Alexei Venediktov — who has been with Echo of Moscow since its founding in 1990 — has remained in his home country and is part of the new project. […]

Content from BPR sponsored by Newtones BrandingIt struck me recently that I do not hear much about radio’s ability to create theatre of the mind nowadays. When I started in radio “theatre of the mind” (TOTM) was one of the key concepts underpinning radio’s psychological advantage relative to visual mediums like TV and print. I recall lots of people talking about TOTM and it really resonated with me. It was the idea of radio’s ability to conjure vivid, limitless imagery in the mind of the listener through sound alone that really got me excited about working in radio.One of the earliest references to TOTM is contained in the memoir of Joseph Julian, who described radio not as a theatre of the mind but as a theatre in the mind, however my favourite quote is from The late and very great Steve Allen (left) when he said, “Radio is the theatre of the mind: television is the theatre of the mindless”, Which coming from a person who started their career in radio and finished it in television is really saying something.One of the most famous examples of TOTM is War of the Worlds which was narrated and directed by Orson Welles in 1938 as part of “The Mercury Theatre on the Air” on the CBS Radio Network.  As it transpired many people who missed the opening of the show had the impression they were listening to an actual invasion by Martian’s, and it created a certain amount of panic in the community.  The subsequent publicity surrounding the disruption caused by the War of the Worlds Broadcast was the launch pad for Welles’s career at the age of 23.So, what is theatre of the mind on radio?  It’s when you use words, music, sound effects and emotion to create imagery in the mind of the listener which transports the listener to another place or to visualise something you want them to see.  Conjuring TOTM is very much about using a relatable context rather than just facts. For example, 1,149 metres is a measurement most people would have difficulty conceptualising but if you tell them, it is the length of the Sydney Harbour Bridge then they have a pretty good idea of what 1,149 metres looks like…they can see it in their mind.TOTM is primarily about creating an emotional reaction in the mind of the listener.Why is TOTM important? The more you can create an emotional reaction in someone’s mind, the more they remember what you said and who you are.  In effect, you “connect” with them better.So, isn’t TOTM just story-telling?  Not necessarily, TOTM is how you tell it and most importantly, telling a story worthy of being remembered…but that’s another story.By Wayne Clouten, BPRNote:Stephen Valentine Patrick William Allen (December 26, 1921 – October 30, 2000) was an accomplished American radio presenter, television personality, musician, composer, actor, comedian and writer. He first became a presenter on KFAC in Los Angeles in the 1940’s later moving to a nightly comedy show before joining KNX Los Angeles to present a nightly talk show. Steve Allen was the first radio presenter to ever take a microphone into a studio audience live and ad lib. Allen achieved national fame as the co-creator and first host of The Tonight Show, which was the first late-night television talk show. […]

Radio Pakistan is going to launch a full-fledged sports channel to meet the demand of its listeners.For this purpose, FM-94 Dhanak Channel is being converted into Sports Channel.This decision was taken by Director General  Muhammad Tahir Hassan during a visit to the channel.The Director General was informed that a large number of Radio Pakistan’s listeners have been demanding such a dedicated sports channel to promote variety of sports.As a part of this initiative, FM-94 will start broadcasting special updates on the ongoing men’s T-20 Cricket World Cup from Thursday. […]

DNAV, a full-service systems integrator and manufacturer’s representative specializing in broadcast, audio-visual and public safety systems, has hired a proven sales and business development leader to manage current accounts and drive future business growth. Brian Walker joins the company as National Sales Manager effective immediately, bringing more than 30 years of broadcast and professional audio experience to the growing company. Based near Seattle, Brian will be responsible for all North American business and report to DNAV principal executives Daniel Hyatt and Nick Straka.Daniel and Nick are responsible for a large part of DNAV’s sales initiatives. Brian’s appointment frees them to focus on the company’s expanding schedule of design and integration projects, which include TV and radio facilities, houses of worship and networked AV/IT systems for businesses and event venues. Brian will also work with Daniel and Nick to build the company’s manufacturer’s representative side of the business, which today includes Sierra Automated Systems, a manufacturer of studio consoles, mixers and Audio over IP routing systems for broadcast and AV facilities.“DNAV’s growth trajectory has taken the company into exciting places as a full-service dealer, installer and technical services provider,” said Hyatt. “Brian’s sales experience, customer relationship skills, industry contacts and business leadership qualities will allow us to more effectively coalesce our vision as a company and establish a strong foundation for continued business growth.”Brian joins DNAV from Sennheiser, where he took on roles of increasing responsibility over his eight years with company. With an initial focus on customer satisfaction and quality control, Sennheiser soon leveraged his diverse professional background to identify new business opportunities, generate product demand, drive training initiatives, and manage complex engineering projects. These were all natural roles for Brian, given his previous experience as a TV/radio broadcast engineer and later as a sales manager for Professional Video and Tape. It was here that Brian gained valuable insight into the systems integration process over his 16 years with the company – a vision that positions him for success with DNAV.“To succeed in broadcast and AV sales, it’s necessary to understand the processes and dynamics of the business you represent,” says Walker. “I have worked closely with integration teams to source products for complex installations on short notice, and manage customer relationships to ensure that their needs are addressed with speed and accuracy. These experiences, along with the ability to offer technical support, recognize industry trends and develop strategic initiatives to meet customer requirements, will allow me to effectively service current DNAV accounts and help Daniel and Nick grow the business.”While Brian brings TV and video experience to DNAV, he notes that audio is his first love and looks forward to growing the SAS brand. “Most modern radio broadcast facilities will have between three to eight radio stations in one facility, all controlled out of one technical core,” he said. “SAS allows broadcasters with multiple professional studios to move voice, music, satellite feeds and more over a single category cable, and Daniel and Nick were among the first integrators in North America to bring Dante and other networked audio solutions into broadcast facilities.”Brian notes that DNAV’s networking experience extends into IT infrastructure to support modern broadcast and AV facility needs, as well as long-distance networking applications including STL links between broadcast studios and transmission sites. […]

Selling Radio Direct with Pat BrysonYou’ve probably heard the discussion on transactional versus relational buyers. Transactional buyers are mainly concerned with price, with acquiring what they need and getting on with their lives. Relational buyers are concerned about relationships. Price is not as important to them. They are more likely to become long-term customers.Which brings us to the discussion of how we sell to our clients. Are you a transactional or a relational seller?Let’s explore the difference.In transactional selling, the focus is on the product. It forces the buyer to make the connection between their needs and what we are selling. Often, they can’t do this because what we offer them doesn’t fit their needs exactly.Selling packages falls under transactional selling. The price is usually small, schedules are for a short time (I’ve rarely found a package longer than 3 months). As a transactional seller, you might present this way:“We have this new package out… It’s only $99, $150, $250. I thought you might like it.”“This package has the cheapest rates of the year. But you have to do it today.”“I know you want to support the team, community, etc.”“We have these Holiday greetings. It’s only $99.”Sound familiar? While I realize we do need some packages, especially if we are selling sponsorships to something, but I encounter the “package du jour” weekly. I call this “selling a ‘thing.’” The “thing” is the package. Because most transactional sellers haven’t progressed to selling a concept, they sell the “thing.”Relational sellers focus on the product needs and personal needs of their buyers. They fit their offering to those needs. They present what the client needs to buy, not what they need to sell. They tailor the campaign to the specific goals of the buyer. They understand the buyer’s needs and goals because they discovered them by doing a detailed customer needs analysis. They spend more time developing the relationship with the buyer and understanding how that client’s business works. The upfront time is longer: the payoff is bigger.Today most of us sell radio, digital, outdoor, print. Successful salespeople sell campaigns, not a few “spots”.Here’s the point: 60% of dollars involved in selling are sold in the consultant (relational) posture.What type of seller do you want to be in 2023?re You Transactional or Relational?P.S. My book, “Successful Broadcast Sales: Thriving in Change” can give you a roadmap to transitioning from a transactional seller to a relational seller. Or, you can get your managers to hire me to teach you how. […]

Content from BPRThe recent death of Queen Elizabeth II is an important reminder of the sensitivities the media faces in dealing with such news. It’s not just the way the announcement is made and the commentary following but also, depending on the station’s format, the surrounding content.If anyone in Britain was prepared for the emotional fallout of the death of Queen Elizabeth II, it was the country’s radio announcers and producers.According to Ben Cooper, Chief Content and Music Officer at Bauer Media Audio UK at the time of the Queen’s death, blue “Obituary Lights” flashed in radio stations around the country. Long-standing protocols, known as “Obituary Plans,” quickly kicked into gear. There would be no more advertisements. No on-air competitions. Prepared playlists flooded the airwaves.As the country was still processing the death, British radio had already turned down the dial on the fun and begun providing listeners with more sombre sounds: Coldplay’s The Scientist, for example, Simon and Garfunkel’s Bridge Over Troubled Water, The Cars’ Drive and a lot of Adele, according to Cooper.At least they were well prepared. However, there have been many occasions where radio stations have failed to put systems in place to prevent insensitive content going to air.Recently in Australia, a leading and popular sporting identity committed suicide. He was loved by sporting fans, players and the media.Naturally, radio presenters in his home town were discussing the tragedy on air.So picture this. The presenters, some of whom were his friends, on one station (a Talk station) were discussing the topic interspersed with music (a recent addition to the Talk station). However, no one bothered to check the logs to see if the songs were appropriate for the topic.The songs played during the discussions included Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive”, Australian Crawl’s “Downhearted” and Queen’s “Don’t Stop Me Now”.To give the presenters credit, they didn’t refer to the songs in any shape or form. But surely someone at a programming level should have made the call to check the logs to ensure that every song would fit with what was one of the day’s big topics. Or even drop the songs entirely……as mentioned, music is a new addition to the format.It’s like the time an announcer was doing an Outside Broadcast to raise funds for bushfire victims. The bushfires were some of the worst in that country’s history. The announcer was doing the live top of hour over a song intro per usual. A good, heartfelt top of hour….only trouble is the song was Billy Joel’s “We Didn’t Start The Fire”. Many other stations during this time put songs that mentioned fire, burning etc on hold…..”I’m on Fire”, “Burning Down the House” and the aforementioned Billy Joel song.Then there’s the other side of the coin where quick thinking by an announcer stopped an inappropriate song going to air. As mentioned above, most UK radio stations have an “Obituary Plan”, which is a plan of what to do in the unexpected death of someone prominent. It includes a list of “appropriate music” to play. The announcer in question was solo, presenting a networked show in the early hours of Sunday 31st August 1997, when the “Obituary” alarm was triggered around 4:30 am in response to the death of Diana, Princess of Wales. The announcer opened the Obituary folder to find out what “appropriate” music to play, and the first track suggested was “Drive” by The Cars! As he ran down the list, almost every song had some sort of inappropriate reference to driving, accidents, broken hearts. With about 90 seconds to spare before making the official announcement and then playing the first song, he decided “Candle in the Wind” by Elton John was the least-worst choice given the circumstances.A good call!We all know mistakes happen. But preventable mistakes such as those above should not.Check the logs…….. and know the lyrics to the songs.Events like these don’t happen often. However, a misplaced song can damage your station’s reputation across all media platforms.By David Kidd, BPR […]