By Walter Sabo
CEO, Sabo Media Partners
A.K.A. Walter M Sterling
Host
WPHT, Philadelphia – daily
Talk Media Network – Sundays
When recently starting nightly on WPHT, Philadelphia, I asked program director Greg Stocker if there was anything else management needed from me. Greg said, “Do your show.”
Since that luncheon meeting his words have sifted through my fevered brain and I realized that at this moment in time, his words were profound: Do your show.
What he did not say:
Meet with sales.
Meet with HR.
Be sure to hit the live reads on time.
Don’t annoy (fill in the blank).
Get all the spots in.
Make sure the studio is clean when you’re done.
David Field listens so be careful.
Meet with sales.
I do my show and nothing else and I’m very happy. The endless whine coming from our colleagues can be traced to ignoring the prime directive: Do your show.
Talk radio is magic, it’s free-form radio. Your music station brethren envy your freedom. They have to call for permission to change the order of pre-programmed songs! You don’t have to do anything which means you can do what you want… which means you can do something great.
Walter Sabo has been a C Suite action partner for companies such as SiriusXM, Hearst, Press Broadcasting, Gannett, RKO General and many other leading media outlets. His company HITVIEWS, in 2007, was the first to identify and monetize video influencers. HITVIEWS clients included Pepsi, FOX TV, Timberland, Microsoft, and CBS Television. He can be reached at sabowalter@gmail.com. His nightly show “Walter Sterling at Night” is heard on WPHT, Philadelphia. His syndicated show, “Sterling On Sunday,” from Talk Media Network, airs 10:00 pm-1:00 am ET, now in its 10th year of success.