This week's All Access newsletter came about after I spoke to some folks who have been affected by the post-Imus jitters:
If I was the King of Radio, this is what I'd say to the FCC and Congress and the complainers:
"It's only radio.
"Turns out that what a radio host or disc jockey says doesn't change the world. Turns out that it's meant to be entertainment. Turns out that sometimes a host, like most people, sometimes reaches for humor and comes up short, and thus says or does something stupid and indefensible.
"It happens. And when it does, there's nothing wrong with someone pointing it out, and if it's sincere, there's no reason not to apologize.
"But it's not an earth-shaking thing. It's just someone saying something stupid on the radio. And when we make that something more- when it becomes an international incident- it makes the people in charge nervous, and that's when the creative people in the business, the people who are trying to do different and creative things and push past the boundaries of the art form (not the guy who said that stupid thing the other week, but others who will pay for his transgression), get told to play it safe and avoid anything that might be considered offensive or controversial or, ultimately, interesting.
"This is not good for the industry. It's not good for talent. It's not good for sales. It's not good for the public. Remove anything edgy or daring and you get dull radio and send listeners off to find something better on the Internet or satellite or their iPods.
"So we're going to let it rip. We're going to try new things, be innovative, take chances. And sometimes we're going to slip and say nasty things, or insult someone, or do something stupid. When we do, we will apologize when necessary and then continue to move forward. If someone wants to make a case out of it, we will fight, in court if necessary, for our right to free speech. And we'll increase the amount of talk programming and local programming so that more people from more diverse backgrounds have a chance to talk and push the limits and be creative in their own way. The answer to offensive speech is more speech, not retreat and surrender.
"Don't forget to tip your waitress. Thank you and good night."
But I'm not the King of Radio. I'm just a guy who thinks that any business that isn't moving forward, that keeps retreating to the past and playing things safe, is a business that isn't going to grow. But what do I know? I'm not the King of Radio.
But I am the King of Shameless Plugs, so here we go again: if you haven't donated to the Revlon Run/Walk to raise funds for research into women's cancers, now is the time. Go to https://www.revlonrunwalk.com/la/secure/MyWebPage.cfm?pID=365992 and look for the donation box and button- it's a great cause, and it's a tax deduction. Do it now: https://www.revlonrunwalk.com/la/secure/MyWebPage.cfm?pID=365992. Really, there's no excuse not to give: https://www.revlonrunwalk.com/la/secure/MyWebPage.cfm?pID=365992. Thank you.
More shameless plugs: Talk Topics at All Access News-Talk-Sports is the source for topic starters written by someone who actually knows what radio personalities need- that's me!- updated several times daily and including stuff like, so far this week, the arrival of inhalable Viagra, why that car with only one person in it just sped past you in the car pool lane, why you should have gone to driver's school rather than let your parents teach you to drive, why gentiles are flocking to Jdate, the latest techniques for effective shoplifting, a particularly pathetic trio of teen robbers, how the FCC plans to pummel violent TV into a bloody pulp, how not to go about getting off from jury duty, how being smart won't make you rich, the wonders of Wonder Bread, when angry British romantic comedy stars go bad and start flinging baked beans, much news from the Wide World of Pot, why they might exhume Tom Carvel (and, no, he wasn't frozen), how they may try to slip fake chocolate past you as real, and much more, plus "10 Questions With..." double-duty KTLK and KLAC/Los Angeles host Joe McDonnell and the rest of All Access with the industry's best/fastest/most complete news and message boards and Mediabase charts and the Industry Directory and all that other stuff I tell you about every week, all free.
Next week: I'll probably badger you again with https://www.revlonrunwalk.com/la/secure/MyWebPage.cfm?pID=365992. Might as well donate now so you can ignore it later.
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