The art of hosting a talk radio show is quite a difficult thing. Are you interesting? Are you predictable? Your show must have surprises.
There are many two-dimensional hosts. According to classical physics, there are four dimensions. Many hosts that I hear are limited in their ability to delight their listeners. Without naming these artisans, I am going to share the dilemma and give a few ideas.
Even though this is a news/talk radio column, this applies to anyone in spoken word radio. There is a sports talk host that I met briefly early in his career. Talented, and that has paid off with weekend shows on several of the sports talk networks where this individual works today. Unfortunately, he is totally predictable. Seemingly worried about offending the suits and/or the audience, his show has zero wrinkles or water cooler talk moments.
If I was to have the pleasure of coaching him, I would try to figure out why he is so reserved. It may just be him. He may be a very predictable and uninteresting man who just has an encyclopedic knowledge of anything related to sports. He obviously loves sports but has muted takes.
If a host is going to make it to the next level, this is not a recipe for greatness. Dan Patrick, Colin Cowherd, Pat McAfee, and Stephen A. Smith are defined by their strong opinions and unique observations. If you want to be great, these hosts are perfect examples, whether you are a sports talk or news talk host. So, this host that I am referencing has hosted by himself or with a partner and cannot be overly compelling.
Obviously, the guy is not a terrible host. Unless he can become more interesting, he will be relegated to a weekend shift and likely never move to even a weekday fill-in role.
There is a well-regarded conservative talk host who often just reads the opinions of others. As I have stated before, this is audio plagiarism. Even though the host will mention the writer of the article once, he will read that article from beginning to end. This is very lazy radio.
Listeners should be enjoying this guy’s thoughts, opinions, and observations. This particular host is unable to give them. I don’t know if this is a timid fellow who is unable or unwilling to put himself front and center. He has solid but unremarkable ratings. He must be producing enough return on investment for his employer so that he keeps his job. Reading someone else’s thoughts and observations is a sign of a lack of original thinking. This is not good.
People come to a radio show for the host’s opinions and observations. The host is the star. It is problematic to dilute that impression. I have often warned against reading opinion pieces. It is too damn easy to adopt a compelling argument that may differ from your point of view. I’ll make a compromise, though. If you are enamored by a point in a piece, read one sentence. Build your topic off that.
Every great radio topic is like a three-legged stool. These three essential ingredients are the host’s opinion, personal observations that helped form said opinion, and actual news stories or dilemmas. These legs to your topic help create an intimate bond between host and listener.
Radio is an intimate medium. As people commute or listen to the radio station’s app, your opinion is a non-negotiable ingredient. Opinion allows the listeners to build a personal reference point with the host. Most people — and sadly some talk show hosts — cannot state a clear opinion on many things.
For the spoken word host, the most important trait is someone who has an opinion over everything. Simon Conway of WHO Radio is exactly that kind of person. Without prompting, Simon will tell you about his clear opinion over anything. I mean anything. This is one of the great reasons he is a top talk show host. I hear many hosts who have a problem clearly stating their opinion. This would be a disqualifier for many great program directors to hire an otherwise talented host.
Try this as a thought experiment: find your favorite sports talk or news talk host. Listen to their show’s setup. You will always hear that clear opinion. Stephen A. Smith, Clay Travis, and Mark Levin are as opinionated as anyone. These people always share a straight, unvarnished opinion. There is no wobbling on their thoughts.
So, take an hour a day over the next week and evaluate the host on the three criteria of opinion, observation, and the actual news story. You will find all of those ingredients. You will then be able to listen to an hour of your personal show and see if you hit those marks.
If you are falling short on one or another thing, you will be able to pivot. I find more shows informational, which can be very problematic. Speaking about a big news story or community happening does not create a bond with your listener.
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Peter Thiele is a weekly news/talk radio columnist for Barrett Media, and an experienced news/talk radio programmer. He currently serves as News/Talk Format Captain for Zimmer Communications. Prior to joining Zimmer, Peter held programming positions in New York City, San Francisco, Des Moines, Little Rock, Greenville, Hunstville, and Joplin. Peter has also worked as a host, account executive and producer in Minneapolis, and San Antonio. He can be found on Twitter at @PeterThiele.
