Last year, KIRO Newsradio 97.3 FM afternoon host John Curley lost his partner — Shari Elliker — as part of cost-cutting measures. He now hosts The John Curley Show solo.
Navigating how to manage interviews as a member of a two-person show is significantly harder than doing them by yourself. Like every other aspect of a team program, there are so many more things that go into producing content with a partner that you just don’t experience when you’re piloting a program by your lonesome.
With that in mind, I wanted to take a look at Curley’s interview style now that he’s had some time to get a rhythm as a solo host. We’re coming up on the one-year anniversary of Elliker’s exit, meaning John Curley has had plenty of time to get accustomed to handling these discussions solo.
I listened to an interview from Curley with King County councilmember Regan Dunn from last week. I always like these types of interviews because I really truly do go into it blind. And I don’t know what the top pressing issues are in Seattle and the surrounding area. So, I don’t have a preconceived notion of what the topics and subjects but should be, and really get to focus on the formatics of the interview.
The discussion with the councilmember began with a statement, not a question. Curley began by noting that the politician had a plan to return marijuana tax revenue to local law enforcement agencies. He ended his statement by saying “I didn’t know it was going anywhere else.”
And while I’m a known hater of failing to ask questions in an interview, I think it’s ok to start a conversation similarly to this one.
First of all, it goes into an issue that the politician wants to speak about. I don’t love that strategy, but I do recognize its effectiveness, especially in regard to how it is likely to open up the leader for better answers down the line. When you appear friendly off the jump of the conversation, you’re much more likely to get answers for your listeners later in the discussion.
The interview got disjointed by a bad connection from Dunn, who was appearing via video conference call rather than a phone line. In a multimedia world, having your interview subjects on video sure makes your digital efforts better. After establishing a connection, Curley did a good job of following up his original statement by asking a better question: “When did (the government) redirect (marijuana tax revenue away from local law enforcement) and who was involved in redirciting it?”
That’s a much better question because it sounds like a query that listeners would want to ask and would want the answers to. If there was a bait-and-switch with taxpayer funds, concerned citizens would likely ask that exact question and deserve that answer.
His next question was another great one local residents would want to know, asking where the tax revenue is currently directed and how much money was at stake. It’s a great chance to contextualize just how much money the area brings in marijuana tax revenue, and allows the listener the opportunity to weigh whether they think the way the money is currently dispersed is correct or not. Which likely leads to a topic down the line with engagement opportunities on the phone lines, text lines, social media, etc…about the listener’s thoughts. Bang up job here.
The answer, also, likely generates clips that can be played throughout the station on other shows or newscasts that informs those not listening in afternoon drive. It creates additional promotional opportunities to listeners in other dayparts for why they need to listen all the time.
The topic then shifted to the legislator’s stance about potential auditing a government agency in a DOGE-like fashion. I count this as another win, because the topic of government efficiency — whether you love it or hate it — is at or near the top of virtually every news/talk radio listener’s list right now. And being able to localize a national topic, with a local politician on the line, is a grade A work by John Curley.
Overall, the interview didn’t last significantly longer, with the focus mostly asking where the council sits on potential votes on issues Dunn supports or is against.
Was it a bit “buddy-buddy”? Absolutely. But it wasn’t a love-fest, either. John Curley did a great job of asking questions of a local politician that local listeners would be interested in hearing the answer to. And that’s a big key. If you can serve as someone who is a voice for the community, all it does is build credibility and affinity within your audience. That’s the name of the game, isn’t it?
John Curley handled this interview spectacularly. Sometimes, when you get in a position that you feel like an interview needs to span an entire segment, the questions can really be lacking because you’re more worried about getting to the finish line rather than what you’re accomplishing on the way to the finish line. Curley didn’t do that. Especially now that he finds himself as a solo host.
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Garrett Searight is Barrett Media’s News Editor, which includes writing bi-weekly industry features and a weekly column. He has previously served as Program Director and Afternoon Co-Host on 93.1 The Fan in Lima, OH, and is the radio play-by-play voice of Northern Michigan University hockey. Reach out to him at Garrett@BarrettMedia.com.
