The most discussed stories yesterday (5/19) on news/talk radio and related talk media according to TALKERS research:
1. Trump & Putin’s Russia-Ukraine Call
2. Big, Beautiful Bill
3. Moody’s U.S. Rating / Financial Markets
4. SCOTUS Venezuelans Deportation Ruling
5. Biden Cancer Diagnosis
By Holland Cooke
Consultant
TALKERS publisher Michael Harrison introduced the term in the 1990s, inviting us to think-beyond the real-time audio we were sending up those towers. What he described seemed conceptual, even futuristic, back then, when we were still logging-onto AOL via dial-up (screech).
The “Media Station” he reckoned we would be producing by now seemed more like a place than a show. It wouldn’t be bound by regulation or sponsor sensitivities or an on-air format. Content needn’t be 30- or 60-seconds or minutes. It won’t even have to be audio. Or governed by how long you can last between bathroom breaks or eating or sleeping, because it won’t be the real-time content that radio was confined to then.
Back to the future. Among headlines from 2025 Edison Research “Infinite Dial” research:
— 248 million Americans are on social media.
— 91% (262 million) own a smartphone.
— 101 million own a smart speaker.
— 40% of vehicles now on the road have phone integration.
— Though AM/FM is still the #1 in-car audio, #2 is online audio, #3: podcasts.
— 210 million listen to online audio every week.
— “Podcast consumption is at an all-time high.” 55% of Americans listen each month.
Anyone anywhere can publish something that is available to everyone everywhere.
Most who read this are probably content creators, many working full or part-time at radio stations, doing the station’s business. Using that same skill set, build your own, a Media Station. Most of the tools are free, including ChatGPT, which will even help you plan it.
What’s your area of expertise?? Your hobby? Your passion? Your media station could include:
— Podcasts
— Blog, inviting participation
— Tutorial videos about a craft or skill
— Tips-N-Tricks about ____
— Checklists/worksheets/recipes/other documents, as PDF downloads
— Stories about businesses or artists, traditions or customs, history, science, tech
— DIY projects, of any sort
— Makeover transformations
— Fitness routines and workout tips
— Money topics
— Food topics of all sorts, including restaurant reviews
— Relationship topics
— Travel
— Product reviews/recommendations
— Sports
— Amazon Associate links to earn commission on related products
— Whatever!
NOT saying: Build a media station so it becomes your livelihood after the next round of cutbacks. But, hey…
Holland Cooke (HollandCooke.com) is a consultant working the intersection of broadcasting and the Internet. Follow HC on Twitter @HollandCooke and connect on LinkedIn
The most discussed stories over the weekend on news/talk radio and related talk media according to TALKERS research:
1. Trump’s Big, Beautiful Bill/Moody’s Downgrades U.S. Credit Rating
2. Trump-Putin Conversation
3. Springsteen-Trump Spat
4. Mexican Ship Hits Brooklyn Bridge
5. Biden’s Cancer Diagnosis
Here are the most talked about stories of the past week (5/12-16) on news/talk radio and related talk media according to TALKERS:
Stories
1. Trump’s Middle East Trip
2. Big, Beautiful Bill / Medicaid Cuts
3. Birthright Citizenship Case / Universal Injunctions
4. Alien Enemies Act / Deportations / WI Judge Case
5. Tariffs / U.S.-China Trade War
6. Russia-Ukraine Peace Talks
7. Tapper & Thompson’s Biden Book
8. Air Traffic Control Troubles
9. Diddy Trial
10.Menendez Brothers Case
People
1. Donald Trump
2. Mike Johnson
3. Clarence Thomas / Brett Kavanaugh / Amy Coney Barrett
4. Hannah Dugan
5. Xi Jinping
6. Volodymyr Zelensky / Vladimir Putin
7. Joe Biden / David Plouffe
8. Sean Duffy
9. Sean “Diddy” Combs / Cassie Ventura
10.Erik and Lyle Menendez
To see the full TALKERS Stories, Topics, and People Charts, please click HERE.
The most discussed stories yesterday (5/14) on news/talk radio and related talk media according to TALKERS research:
1. Trump’s Middle East Trip
2. Big, Beautiful Bill
3. Russia-Ukraine Peace Talks
4. SCOTUS Birthright Citizenship Case
5. Immigration / Deportations
The most discussed stories yesterday (5/13) on news/talk radio and related talk media according to TALKERS research:
1. Trump’s Middle East Trip / Airplane Controversy
2. Immigration-Deportation Policy Lawsuits
3. Medicaid Cuts Debate
4. New Biden-Slamming Book
5. Diddy Trial
The most discussed stories yesterday (5/12) on news/talk radio and related talk media according to TALKERS research:
1. U.S.-China Trade Deal
2. Trump’s Middle East Trip
3. Qatar Airplane Gift Controversy
4. Edan Alexander Released by Hamas
5. Newsom’s Anti-Public Sleeping Campaign
By Holland Cooke
Consultant
Music radio’s competitors were vinyl, then tape, then CDs – before smartphone streaming and satellite radio offered more portability and variety. And before consolidation, broadcasters were under less of the revenue pressure that now commercializes many stations beyond listeners’ tolerance. TALKERS NAB Show coverage included Edison Research founder Larry Rosin lamenting “many, many [music] stations now loading all their spots into two interminable breaks per hour.” I cringe hearing FMs struggle to remain among listeners’ music appliances. And I fret that monologue-heavy talk radio is relinquishing interactive dialogue to social media.
Before moving to all-news, and eventually news/talk, I worked in music formats less-structured than today’s. So now I hear music radio as an outsider, more like a consumer. Which got me wondering: How does my format sound to music consultants? So, I asked several whose work I respect.
Beware the one-joke act
Mike McVay reckons that “listeners want to know a little bit about a lot of things,” a point other colleagues echo. Explaining that “music radio is all about variety,” adult contemporary specialist Gary Berkowitz: “To me, listeners are tired of all this political back and forth. Sure, it has its place, but it’s like if music radio only played five different artists!” Jon Holiday – who customizes station playlists for a variety of formats – asks “are talk listeners getting what they want?” Calling some formats “very artist-heavy,” he thinks stations were right to play so much Taylor Swift in 2024, certainly her year. And 2025 sure is Trump’s, but Holiday calls “banging the same drum all day, every day” the most common flaw he hears on talk radio.
McVay says listeners like “stories that pull on their heart strings. It’s why “NBC Nightly News” ends with a touching story. It’s not fluff. It’s information relief.” He also recommends topics you are likely to overhear at the next table during lunch: “Discretionary Time Information” (binge-worthy shows on Apple+, Max, Netflix). Health. And – lately more than ever – what Mike calls “purse” stories (think: eggs). Been to Costco? On weekends it’s mobbed. Ask any member and they’ll recite a shopping list of Kirkland-brand bargains.
Play the hits
When Gary Berkowitz – then an accomplished music programmer – took over stately WJR, he “approached it like it was a music station, the only difference was my ‘songs’ were my personalities, news coverage and, at the time, play-by-play of all the major Detroit teams.” He bought a jingle package “to ‘decorate’ the station;” and “got ‘JR involved with everything that was happening in Detroit. All I did was put it all together and present it like my top-40 upbringing taught me.”
I can relate. Before I programmed all-news WTOP, Washington, I had no news experience. I came from a music FM. The WTOP staff I inherited was impressive, and their work was solid, but the station wasn’t “programmed enough.” I was sent there to convert Cume to Average Quarter Hour – the blocking-and-tackling formatics fundamental to music radio. We owned “the Top news…instantly” image, and we said those very words LOTS. But research told us that traffic and weather were “the hits;” and how we presented them moved the needle.
Great talkers are great listeners
In every transaction, consumers now expect to interact; and “listeners like to hear others’ voices,” Mike McVay observes: “When the audience is comfortable enough to weigh in with an opinion, their own story, or a reaction, you’ve created a ‘friend circle.’” Jon Holiday tells morning shows he works with to “take time going into breaks to be topical and interact with callers.” And engage by texting and social media. And don’t just push-TO listeners. Be quick to REPLY, and you will make them feel special.
Yet, in three decades coaching talk hosts, the most unwelcome word I say seems to be “callers.” Imitating gifted Rush Limbaugh, many hosts are prone to windy monologue, rather than inviting the busy dialogue that makes a station sound popular (something local advertisers notice). DJs deftly weaving interactivity into music shows often sound more inviting than sermonizing talkers. Holiday remembers El Rushbo as “a master at having fun, particularly in his early days as a syndicated personality.”
Prescription: Local
Twenty years ago at the TALKERS conference, publisher Michael Harrison’s advice was elegantly simple: “Give them something they can’t get anywhere else.” Especially now, with so many non-local audio competitors. Regardless of format, helpful local information can increase Occasions of Tune-In per week.
Simply doing local news is a start. But does yours enable the listener by telling what an item means to him or her? On any given day, what you’re overhearing at lunch is something big that’s happening somewhere else. Can you explain the local impact? “National news needs to mean something to me, my community, my region or state,” according to McVay.
With weather so erratic in so many places, owning that image is gold. If you’re news/talk, don’t assume that you’re the market’s weather station. If you’re music, don’t assume you can’t be. Noting typical news/talk demographics, Jon Holiday surmises that, “as we get older, we seem to be more interested in weather.”
And as successful music stations have always done, show up! Gary Berkowitz had WJR go all-in on Detroit’s Thanksgiving Day parade, “with our people all over the parade route. It was better than the TV coverage!”
Holland Cooke (HollandCooke.com) is a consultant working the intersection of broadcasting and the Internet. Follow HC on Twitter @HollandCooke and connect on LinkedIn
The most discussed stories over the weekend on news/talk radio and related talk media according to TALKERS research:
1. U.S.-China Tariff Rollback
2. Newark Airport Troubles
3. Trump’s Middle East Trip / Qatar Jet Gift
4. Prescription Drug Executive Order
5. Big, Beautiful Bill
Here are the most talked about stories of the past week (5/5-9) on news/talk radio and related talk media according to TALKERS:
Stories
1. Tariffs / The Economy / UK Trade Deal
2. Alien Enemies Act / Deportations
3. Big, Beautiful Bill / Medicaid Cuts
4. India-Pakistan Tensions / Russia-Ukraine War
5. Newark Airport Woes / Air Traffic Control Staffing
6. Conclave Elects New Pope
7. DOJ to Drop Abortion Pill Suits
8. Trump’s Alcatraz Order
9. Surgeon General Nominee
10.Columbia Pro-Palestinian Protests
People
1. Donald Trump
2. Jerome Powell
3. Scott Bessent
4. Mike Johnson
5. Keir Starmer / Mark Carney
6. Pope Leo XIV
7. J.D. Vance
8. RFK Jr.
9. Janette Nesheiwat / Casey Means
10.Elon Musk
To see the full TALKERS Stories, Topics, and People Charts, please click HERE.
The most discussed stories yesterday (5/7) on news/talk radio and related talk media according to TALKERS research:
1. Big, Beautiful Bill / Potential Medicaid Cuts
2. Fed Keeps Interest Rates Steady / The Economy
3. Surgeon General Nomination Swap
4. Columbia Pro-Palestinian Protest
5. Tariffs / UK Trade Meeting
The most discussed stories yesterday (5/6) on news/talk radio and related talk media according to TALKERS research:
1. Trump-Carney Meeting / Tariffs
2. Trump and the Alien Enemies Act
3. The Conclave
4. Newark Airport Scrutiny
5. Pakistan-India Tensions
The most discussed stories yesterday (5/5) on news/talk radio and related talk media according to TALKERS research:
1. Trump NBC Interview
2. Trump Alcatraz Order
3. Abortion Pill Suits
4. Tariffs / U.S. China Trade War
5. Newark Airport Chaos
The most discussed stories over the weekend on news/talk radio and related talk media according to TALKERS research:
1. Tariffs / U.S.-China Trade War / The Economy
2. Trump’s Alcatraz Plan
3. Trump’s NBC Interview
4. Houthis Strike Israel
5. Student Loans Payback Resumes
Here are the most talked about stories of the past week (4/28-5/2) on news/talk radio and related talk media according to TALKERS:
Stories
1. Trump’s First 100 Days / Polling Numbers
2. Tariffs / U.S.-China Trade War / The Economy
3. U.S.-Ukraine Minerals Deal
4. Russia-Ukraine War
5. DOGE / Musk and Tesla
6. Canadian Elections
7. Deportations / Abrego Garcia Case
8. Trump vs Harvard
9. Kamala Harris Speaks Out
10.Belichick-Girlfriend Flap
People
1. Donald Trump
2. Xi Jinping
3. Volodymyr Zelensky
4. Vladimir Putin
5. Elon Musk
6. J.D. Vance
7. Mark Carney
8. Kilmar Abrego Garcia
9. Joe Biden / Kamala Harris
10.Bill Belichick / Jordon Hudson
To see the full TALKERS Stories, Topics, and People Charts, please click HERE.
The most discussed stories yesterday (4/30) on news/talk radio and related talk media according to TALKERS research:
1. Trump’s First 100 Days
2. Tariffs / U.S.-China Trade War / The Economy
3. U.S.-Ukraine Minerals Deal
4. DOGE
5. Russia-Ukraine War
The most discussed stories yesterday (4/29) on news/talk radio and related talk media according to TALKERS research:
1. Trump’s First 100 Days
2. Tariffs / U.S.-China Trade War / The Economy
3. Deportations / Abrego Garcia Case
4. Trump vs Harvard
5. Canadian Elections
The most discussed stories over the weekend on news/talk radio and related talk media according to TALKERS research:
1. Trump Approval Ratings
2. Tariffs / U.S.-China Trade War
3. Colorado Underground Nightclub Raid
4. Deportations-Detentions
5. Pope Francis Funeral
Here are the most talked about stories of the past week (4/21-25) on news/talk radio and related talk media according to TALKERS:
Stories
1. Tariffs / U.S.-China Trade War
2. Financial Markets / Fed Chair Powell’s Status
3. Russia-Ukraine War / Israel-Gaza War
4. Abrego Garcia Deportation Case
5. Pope Francis Dies
6. Google Anti-Trust Ruling/Meta Anti-Trust Case
7. Hegseth Signal Chat Controversy
8. Iran Nuclear Talks
9. State Dept. Reorganization
10.“60 Minutes” Producer Quits
People
1. Donald Trump
2. Xi Jinping
3. Jerome Powell
4. Volodymyr Zelensky
5. Kilmar Abrego Garcia
6. Pope Francis
7. J.D. Vance
8. Elon Musk
9. Pete Hegseth
10.Bill Owens
To see the full TALKERS Stories, Topics, and People Charts, please click HERE.
The most discussed stories yesterday (4/23) on news/talk radio and related talk media according to TALKERS research:
1. Tariffs / U.S.-China Trade War
2. Russia-Ukraine War
3. Francis Funeral-New Pope Selection
4. “60 Minutes” Controversies
5. Trump’s Anti-DEI Actions
The most discussed stories yesterday (4/22) on news/talk radio and related talk media according to TALKERS research:
1. Trump’s Trade War/Powell Status
2. Pope Francis Death
3. Hegseth Criticism
4. State Dept. Reorganization
5. “60 Minutes” Boss Quits
The most discussed stories yesterday (4/21) on news/talk radio and related talk media according to TALKERS research:
1. Pope Francis Dies
2. Tariffs/U.S.-China Trade War
3. Trump vs Fed / The Economy
4. Pete Hegseth Signal Controversies
5. Google Anti-Trust Ruling
The most discussed stories over the weekend on news/talk radio and related talk media according to TALKERS research:
1. Abrego Garcia Deportation Case
2. Google Anti-Trust Ruling
3. Hegseth Signal Chat Controversy
4. Tariffs / U.S.-China Trade War
5. Financial Markets Activity
Here are the most talked about stories of the past week (4/14-18) on news/talk radio and related talk media according to TALKERS:
Stories
1. Abrego Garcia Deportation Case/Judge Threatens Contempt Charges
2. Trump vs Harvard
3. Tariffs / U.S.-China Trade War / Powell Speech
4. Meta Anti-Trust Case
5. FCC’s Carr Threatens Comcast / Trump’s 60 Minutes Criticism
6. DOGE
7. U.S. – Iran Nuclear Talks
8. Russia – Ukraine War / Israel-Gaza War
9. Bernie Sanders-AOC Rallies
10.RFK Jr Promises Autism Cause
People
1. Donald Trump
2. Kilmar Abrego Garcia/Nayib Bukele
3. Alan Garber
4. Pam Bondi
5. Jerome Powell / Xi Jinping
6. Mark Zuckerberg / Elon Musk
7. Brendan Carr
8. Vladimir Putin / Volodymyr Zelensky
9. Bernie Sanders / AOC
10.RFK Jr
To see the full TALKERS Stories, Topics, and People Charts, please click HERE.
The most discussed stories yesterday (4/16) on news/talk radio and related talk media according to TALKERS research:
1. Trump vs Harvard
2. Abrego Garcia Deportation Case/Judge Threaten Contempt Charges
3. Trump Tariffs/Jerome Powell Speech
4. FCC Chair Attacks Comcast Over News Coverage
5. RFK Jr. Promises Autism Cause