I Hate (Most) Morning Show Prep Services.
I woke up Monday morning and did my usual tour of morning shows. That’s what a talent coach does. When I heard three different shows in different parts of the country doing the same phone topic, I screamed. It’s the damn morning show prep service.
There are certainly days when the hot story grabbing America can and should be a phone topic for multiple morning shows. But when it’s a simple evergreen topic — and you even hear it on two shows in the same market — it means someone was too lazy to focus on a topic for their own show.
The National Day Nonsense
But wait, that’s not all. I heard that it was National Nurses Week. That’s fine, as long as you have unique content to salute the hardworking nurses in your audience.
I also heard that it was National Eat What You Want Day (mentioned by more than one show), National Twilight Zone Day, and even Hostess Cupcake Day. (Do you think Hostess could actually be responsible for that one?) Another show told me it was World Ego Awareness Day. STOP — NOBODY CARES!
Birthdays Nobody Asked About
I found a show that talked about Sabrina Carpenter celebrating her 27th birthday. I wonder if that was because their listeners would be calling Sabrina — they have her number, right? — to wish her a happy birthday. You may say that Sabrina is one of the most played artists on radio, so it made sense to talk about her birthday.
But if that’s the case, why did the same show mention that Irving Berlin was also born on this day? Yup, Irving Berlin. His songs aren’t getting a lot of airplay in May. I even believe he’s dead, so nobody will be calling him today.
Prep Services: Idea Starters, Not Content Breaks
I can’t tell you how many barter spots the stations I’ve programmed over the years have run for morning show prep services. I’ve had shows that needed three or more at one time. Many of these services are either useless or are being used improperly. They can be idea starters, but not content breaks as written.
The Three Content Buckets
Content for your show should come from three different buckets: local (if you are a local show, you need to lean on this heavily), pop culture/topical, and personal.
We live in a time where many of your listeners know what’s going on before you tell them. You need to share your take — your unique treatment of today’s topics.
Personal means your life and what you observe. Nate Bargatze has made a boatload of broadcast-friendly millions with his brand of observational comedy.
A Different Take: The Ted Turner Example
I was genuinely excited last week when two of the talents I’m working with had a totally different take on Ted Turner. He was an icon, and if you’re living under a rock, he passed away last week. Most people thought of him as the founder of CNN, the man responsible for TBS, and the former spouse of Jane Fonda.
But one morning host talked about his significant contribution to the world of wrestling. This was a male-targeted rock show, so the topic aligned with their audience and offered a different take on Ted’s contribution to society.
Another show pointed out that Mr. Turner gave us the animated series Captain Planet and the Planeteers. It seems Ted Turner was ahead of his time on protecting the environment, and Captain Planet was his effort to teach kids about things like recycling.
Neither of these takes came from a morning show prep sheet.
Use the Internet. Use AI.
Everything you could ever want to find out about is on the internet or on social media. ChatGPT or some other form of AI needs to be part of your prep process — more so than most prep sheets.
I just asked ChatGPT about the worst moments on the radio. It said dead air, songs accidentally restarting, DJs insulting the wrong person on a hot mic, and painfully awkward interviews.
That means I, as a human, have to add one more to that list: talent reading morning show prep services verbatim on the air.
You can all do better than that.
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Jim Ryan is a Music Radio columnist for Barrett Media. In addition, he runs Jim Ryan Media LLC, a consulting company which assists major market radio brands and top talent including national radio personality Delilah. Prior to relaunching his consultancy in 2025, Jim spent 15 years with Audacy/CBS Radio, serving as SVP of Programming. Among his responsibilities included programming WNEW-FM and WCBS-FM. His career includes additional programming stops in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Houston. Jim was voted the #2 PD of 2024 in Barrett Media’s Top 20 series in the AC category. He can be reached by email at Jim@JimRyanMedia.com.
