Do you know an expert? I have had this question posed to me by news/talk radio hosts, news anchors, producers, and program directors. Many hosts want an expert to expound on the topic of the day — perhaps just to keep up with current events, like an expert in psychosis elaborating on the Lindsay Clancy case.
It is seen as a good get to find a great academic to give more color to the event. But do your listeners actually care? Does your show really need the granular examination of the topic?
There was a time when the expert was everything. Whatever the subject, there was an author who wrote this amazing best-selling book. There were a lot of parents who were raising a new generation in the 1960s and ’70s who followed the dictates of Dr. Benjamin Spock.
People changed the way children were raised because of one book. Apparently, we used to beat children. I have been to the grocery store; there are some children who need a swat on the keister. But Spock’s theory was that children should be respected and given affection, and many parents started to be too permissive and tried to develop friendships with their tots instead of setting firm boundaries for their kids. Spock’s theories have morphed over time to justify poorly behaved kids. This man wrote a book, and many parents tossed out everything they experienced growing up from their own family structure. To be fair, there is no such thing as a perfect household or parent — everyone makes mistakes.
So, the theories of one expert changed how parents did their job. These were very different days, when information was a rarity and it took real effort to educate yourself. Today, the expert class is so diluted because anyone can start a YouTube channel or a website.
The experts are everywhere, and most of the information is incomplete, wrong, or just opinion. What can people do now?
When the Algorithm Replaced the Expert
Segmentation is the name of the game, and the algorithm is the mechanism to focus our attention and interest. There are over 60 million channels on YouTube covering a wide variety of interests, hobbies, and information.
Many people use these channels for projects around the house. Some of the information is quite good. There is bad information as well. How do you figure out the difference?
Now, that is a good question.
There are thousands of so-called experts, and it’s a real challenge for consumers to know who to trust.
The News/Talk Radio Expert Problem
OK, let’s get to news/talk radio or TV news. Following the experts has been part of what we do. We feel like they can address things that we cannot. There is a certain amount of reasoning to it. What if your audience doesn’t care? What if the information was wrong? There was this guy named Anthony Fauci.
When COVID popped up and there was a worldwide pandemic, Fauci was the expert. Tony was on TV constantly giving advice, and a lot of it was just guesses. To be fair, Fauci was in the Kobayashi Maru. The federal government was trying to keep Americans safe. Washing your hands? Good advice. The COVID vaccine stopping the spread? Not so much.
Here is what occurred: the expert class was essentially neutered by COVID. We also had people who were working from home researching on their own — hey, we should all try to learn new things.
But some people fail to realize this truth: there is terrible advice online.
Sharpen Your Questions, Not Your Guest List
So, your great guest may not mean anything at all to your listeners. It is a security blanket for the host in many cases.
Your fans are coming to your radio station or show not for detailed explanations of tax policy or the war on drugs. They come for the observations, opinions, and feelings of their favorite host. It is really that simple.
Information is everywhere, instantly. Artificial intelligence is available to anyone — but are people good with their prompts and at evaluating the actual result? Yes, artificial intelligence should be cross-checked. AI is not usually making the error; it is set by the prompts from the human initiator.
If your show is guest-heavy, how are your questions? Are the questions short and probing? If the guest makes a provocative or loony claim, how are the follow-up questions?
The Guest Booking Trade-Off
My stations are Fox News Radio affiliates. One of the news reporters available to us is Tonya J. Powers. She is awesome. We have her on as the need dictates. Tonya and my Wake Up Missouri team have conversations about one of the biggest news stories of the day. All the information is shared, but Tonya feels comfortable with my show’s team. It is always a great segment.
Now, most guests are there to pimp their sh*t alone and rarely help create compelling moments. It is a trade-off: the guest gives their expertise, they give their pitch for a website or book, and their publicist gets paid. I have a big suggestion for my hosts or news anchors: don’t use a publicist to book a guest you can book yourself.
Use a publicist if it is a tough-to-get guest. I used a publicist to book Michael Ian Black — that is a guest I could not have booked otherwise. Perfect. I have yet to find a host who thinks they are booking bad guests. Every host I have ever worked with loves every guest they have on their show. Evaluate the segments.
Your listeners come to your station or show because they feel a connection. The power of opinion, observation, and feeling is the hook. Any robot can ask a lame guest questions, but that robot cannot make a personal connection with the listener. Your listeners remember what you say.
No radio listener remembers a dull interview with the mayor about the next city council meeting. No listener will stop you at the hardware store to compliment you on that great question about the new traffic circle. Make connections by sharing what makes you tick.
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