Happy National Radio Day to all of you out there from your friends at Barrett Media. Radio is obviously a huge part of our business, and many of us here would not be where we are without radio. We are grateful for all of our friends in radio and thank you for supporting our coverage of the business.
In honor of the day, we asked several different people one simple question, “What does radio mean to you?”
Scott Kaplan, Host, ESPN Los Angeles:
I still love radio, it is far and away the most intimate of all mediums. I have been on the radio in SoCal for over 20 years, listeners come up to me all the time, they ask about my family, or they bring up a story I told, or they thank me for some inspiration I unknowingly provided. My listeners feel like we are all close friends, because we are together daily, and we impact each-other’s lives! So, I love radio, and now as we expand to audio, and video, as we use YouTube, and audio apps. It’s still the medium that brings us all together!
Amy Lawrence, National Host, Infinity Sports Network:
I’ve been a radio junkie since I was a teenager. I fell in love with the idea of telling a story or describing the action in a way that people didn’t feel like they were missing anything just because they couldn’t see it with their own eyes. Radio is my first love, my passion, my calling. And every time I turn on the mic for a show, I feel the same thrill and sweet anticipation.
Matt Fishman, Program Director/Operations Manager, 97.1 The Fan, Columbus:
Radio is connection. It’s personal and I’ve been lucky enough to make it my career. The best part of working in radio is the people. They are fun, quirky, creative, and unique. Radio, when done right, can make you feel. In his famous speech at the ESPYs Jim Valvano said, “To me there are three things everyone should do every day. Number one is laugh. Number two is think — spend some time in thought. Number three, you should have your emotions move you to tears. If you laugh, think and cry, that’s a heck of a day.” If you create radio that does that, you will not only have “a heck of a day” but a loyal and vibrant audience, no matter the challenges.
Bob Fescoe, Host, 96.5 The Fan Kansas City:
“Radio is the single best medium for connecting with an audience. Over the years our listeners have become family and friends. We’ve helped people in bad situations we’ve celebrated successes and had one on one contact with our listeners better than any other medium can provide”
Brad Carson, Brand Manager/Operations, Audacy Memphis
Radio means comfort. It’s life to me. It’s free. Radio, to me, represents comfort and familiarity. It’s like a town square where people gather and connect, or a friendly neighbor whose voice brings reassurance and companionship. In small towns it is farm reports, obituaries and (back in the day) my high school games being broadcast for my neighbors to hear on WSMI growing up in rural Illinois. My dad wasn’t even a baseball fan but he loved Budweiser and Jack Buck’s voice on his tractor radio from KMOX. He still listens to WSMI and KMOX some 30 years later. It’s free. Again, it’s like life. We take it for granted.
Radio to me is life. That’s probably why I’ve stayed in it all these years. It’s my friends at the station who tell stories and have fun. I’m not sure I could do anything else. This week feels good because football is on the radio. Radio is life to me.
Mike Hulvey, President/CEO, Radio Advertising Bureau:
I was an eight-year-old little boy walking into a high school gymnasium with my father when I saw my first radio broadcast. I looked up to the top row of the bleachers and I saw two broadcasters sitting behind a small table with a felt banner and headphones on. And my life has never been the same since. Radio has truly been a part of every day of my life since that moment. And I have seen it change communities. I have seen it change businesses. I have seen it change people. I’ve seen it connect in ways that you could only imagine. And radio is so important to the fabric of our country and our communities. To me, radio is just about everything.
95.7 The Game Brand Manager Matt Nahigian (posted on X):
National Radio Day is today. I’m the luckiest guy in the world to do what I do. It’s not about me and my radio career, it’s about the listeners and companies that have believed in the stations I’ve worked for. Thank you!
Others took to social media and posted about National Radio Day:
