Chapter Seven: Radio, Recording, and Popular Music

Radio and Its Audiences

• Radio had to change its scope and nature after the advent of TV.• Before TV it was national with well known stars and formats.• Today it is local, fragmented, mobile, specialized, and personal.• 94% of all Americans will listen to the radio in an average week.• 60% get their first news of the day from the radio.• Radio listening is declining:• 17% list radio as “their most essential medium” (down from 26%)• Factors are online music, unimaginative programming, and

hypercommercialization.

Scope and Nature of the Radio Industry

• There are just under 14,000 radio stations in the U.S.

• 4,700 commercial AM stations• 6,200 commercial FM stations• 2,800 non-commercial FM stations• Commercial FM stations bring in 75% of all

radio listeners.

Scope and Nature of the Radio Industry

• Radio is local: ad rates are much lower than local TV stations.

• Radio is fragmented: the number of stations in an area is function of population and proximity to other towns.

• Radio is specialized: radio uses format and narrowcasting to attract audiences and will change formats or DJ’s if there is declining ratings or even narrow its format even more.

• Radio is personal: radio used to be listened by the whole family together; now it is a singular activity.

• Radio is mobile: we listen to it at work, in the car, on the go.

The Business of Radio

• Advertisers have a homogenous group of loyal listeners that they can pitch inexpensive products to.

• Deregulation and Ownership: there are no national ownership limits. Since the Telecommunications Act of 1996:

• 10,000 radio stations have been sold.• There are now 1,100 fewer stations.• Giant chains have emerged. • Local news and public affairs broadcasting has

lessened.

The Scope and Nature of the Recording Industry

• U.S consumers buy 1/3 of the world’s recorded music.• Four companies control 88% of the recorded music in the U.S.; two

control 60% of the world’s global music market.• The trends of conglomeration and internationalization:• Cultural homogenization: derivative and manufactured artists

dominate. • The dominance of profit over artistry: major stars are signed to

huge deals, minor artists are dropped and there is infringement on artistic freedom; drops in sales can be blamed on this as much as media piracy.

• Promotion overshadows the music: marketable artists are created from scratch so they can get corporate sponsorship; radio is controlled by corporations that play the same playable, marketable artists.

Trends and Convergence in Radio and Sound Recording

• The Influence of MTV turned concerts into extravagant performances.

• Satellite: use for syndication by radio networks. Also the birth of Sirius and XM and DMX.

• Mobile Phones: the music industry will reap $7 billion as people download ringtones and music t their phones.

• Terrestrial Digital Radio: improves on sound fidelity for both AM and FM; hundreds of stations have committed and it is hoped all channels will commit by 2017.

• Web Radio and Podcasting: There are tens of thousands of radio simulcasts online plus web only radio stations and Podcasts.

• Digital Technology: artists are using the Internet for their own production, promotion, and distribution, bypassing radio and the recording companies.

The Internet and the Future of the Recording Industry

• Development of the MP3: makes piracy relatively simple. It is also the technology of choice for music listeners.

• Industry approved downloading: iTunes; the distribution and sale of music via the Internet is the standard. Hundreds of music stores have now closed.

• PSP downloading: despite a recent Supreme Court decision illegal downloading occurs. Serious questions about copyright remain.