Talk radio failing? Think again.

Well, there's buzz on the 'net again that talk radio is failing.  Ratings are declining, and people are explaining it away with every idea from conservative talk being a one-trick pony to the "no one listens to AM radio anymore" argument (which doesn't really work, because FM talkers keep popping up here and there).  Here's my explanation, and I don't think I have to tell you that it's the right one.

 

A) Some people say talk radio is too conservative.  And it is.  The problem, though, lies in the fact that liberal talk radio is both late in coming to the party and, for the most part, totally lacking in entertainment value.  Oh, there are a select few out there on the left who put on a good show, but the majority of liberal talkers are vitriolic Bush-bashers who have nothing better to do with their three-hour show than whine and complain about how they think Bush is ruining this country.  I'm not saying the right doesn't have their own problems with vitriolic morons ( i.e. Michael Savage and his ilk), but they aren't anywhere near as popular as the big guys like Rush, Sean and... oh, just for a third name... Laura Ingraham.  Instead, fringe liberal talkers like Al Franken and Randi Rhodes are the big names on their side of the aisle, and the majority of Democrats (who I tend to believe are middle-of-the-road type people whether they think so or not) don't identify with them at all.

B) As I said above, liberal talkers are coming late to the party, but I wouldn't say the party's winding down.  The problem they're facing is the already-established conservative base.  More and more stations are realizing that there are many liberals out there that would love to have their own voice on the air, and I'm glad to see it happening, but it's going to take time.  This isn't going to be an overnight deal.  Conservative talk was so quick to catch on because of the fact that, without it, most AM stations would have failed.  It was either flip from your music format or fail and let the company who bought you out do it for you.  Liberal talkers don't have an advantageous situation like that to spur their growth.  They're making inroads, but again, it's going to take time.

C) Talk radio follows the election cycle.  The years have shown that to be true.  I find it surprising, though, that with all the progress liberal talk radio has made these past few years, liberals are quick to say that talk radio as a whole is failing because of a post-election decline in listenership.  I'd think that, now that they too are in the fray, they'd be the first to agree with the industry-veteran conservatives and say, "yeah, our listenership is declining, but that's only because the election is over.  Watch in 2008... we'll be right back up there again."  Instead, since the most of them think they're attacking conservative talkers, they portray talk radio as a whole as a Viking death ship.  I, for one, find that pretty indicative of the kind of people most liberal talk hosts are these days.

As for a fourth argument, the idea about "lifestyle talk" being the savior of talk radio... you know, like CKLW? I think that's total bull. Personally, I don't want my local news/talker sounding like Canadian AM stations. If people can't voice their political opinions on talk radio, the format will die. To anyone on either side of the aisle: do you want your favorite talk station to run Garden Talk 24/7? I didn't think so.

All in all, talk radio is just facing it's normal post-election dropoff. I'm sure both liberals and conservatives will be more than happy to tune in again in the months leading up to the '08 election.

The Top 25

Because 24 would leave you wanting for one more.

LW

TW

Artist - Title

1	1	Mariah Carey - We Belong Together Please, God, make it stop!!!
3	2	D.H.T. - Listen To Your Heart Number two this week! While I was hoping that "Hazel Eyes" would have enough momentum to bump Pariah out of the #1 spot this week, D.H.T. doing it next week would be even better! CALL IN YOUR REQUESTS NOW!
2	3	Kelly Clarkson - Behind These Hazel Eyes Ah, Kelly. You tried so hard to make it happen. Oh well.
4	4	Pussycat Dolls f/Busta Rhymes - Don't Cha I'm surprised to see this one didn't drop this week. It seems to be getting less airplay... which isn't really surprising to me, it doesn't seem to be the type of track you'd expect to stay within the Top 5 very long. Guess we'll have to see what happens with it next week.
5	5	Rihanna - Pon De Replay So Rihanna's leveling off too, huh? At least she made it to the Top 5. I'm glad... I was afraid this was going to be another one of those tracks that deserved to be in the upper echelons, but never made it. Glad I was wrong!
6	6	Lifehouse - You And Me Okay, guys, seriously, you're driving me crazy now. That 3/4-6/8 ambiguous time signature thing is really getting old, and the six chord thing is just as bad.
7	7	Fat Joe f/Nelly - Get It Poppin' Good Lord, it's growing on me. Someone throw me a rope... I'm sinking into deep Rhythmic nothingness.
10	8	Missy Elliott - Lose Control Still climbing! This one is hot, and I wouldn't be a real radio guy if I didn't say that it's refreshing to hear so much 80's-style stuff on the radio again. What?! STOP LAUGHING!
8	9	Black Eyed Peas - Don't Phunk With My Heart It's falling, but I expected that by now. It didn't have enough momentum to carry for very long, and I expected that. Frankly, I'm looking forward to "My Hump" hitting it big. And I think it will. It's too catchy not to. If it doesn't, it'll be another one of those disappointments over not getting enough airplay.
11	10	Gwen Stefani - Cool Ah, the 80's. Radio was still cool, MTV actually ran music videos... hell, MTV actually knew what music was back then. And on February 7th, 1985, yours truly was born. What a magical decade :-)
9	11	Papa Roach - Scars Bleah. It's getting old fast. The drop from 9 to 11 shows that.
12	12	Weezer - Beverly Hills This is one I had wished would have broken the Top 5. Unfortunately, it never did. But at least it showed up here.
16	13	Bow Wow f/Omarion - Let Me Hold You Gag me.
13	14	Natasha Bedingfield - These Words Again, I was hoping to see it grace the Top 5, but it didn't. But, again (again), I thought this was going to be another good one that wouldn't have enough momentum to get above 25.
18	15	Mariah Carey - Shake It Off Another one. When will this madness end?!
14	16	Frankie J. - How To Deal Eh.
19	17	3 Doors Down - Let Me Go So far, I've been right. No major impact yet. Which, frankly, I'm glad to see. It's an okay song, but it's too slow for my taste. CHR needs to be upbeat...
15	18	Green Day - Holiday ...like this song! It's upbeat, and despite the slightly depressing minor chords, it's a great track! It started it's downward slide last week, moving from 13 to 15, and now to 18 this week. However, I don't think it will leave the Top 25 too soon. It still has a lot of momentum.
21	19	Black Eyed Peas - Don't Lie Another good track from B.E.P.! It's a slower tempo, but change is good every once in a while, and it's still fast enough to meet the requirements of my tastes.
17	20	Will Smith - Switch Still clappin' and spinnin'! But don't download, go out and buy the record. Wait... did I just say that? I must be sick. Someone get me the rectal thermometer!
22	21	Ludacris - Pimpin' All Over The World Hot, hot hot!!! It's a bigger hit on the Rhythmic charts I think, but I'd still watch this one. I think it'll be a slow climber, but it'll continue to grow on listeners.
26	22	Click Five - Just The Girl This song reminds me of a girl I knew back in middle school. Her name was Sara. She always knew how to crush my spirits at the wrong time, and yet I still was crazy about her. Although my song for her was always "Sarah" by Starship. Hmm... you know... the synth solo from "Sarah" might fit in well with the bridge of "Just The Girl". Hmm... gimme a couple of days working in Audition, I might be able to come up with something there...
25	23	Backstreet Boys - Just Want You To Know Oh God, another one? In the name of all that is good and right, WHY?!
23	24	Ciara f/Ludacris - Oh Take the added percussion from the dance mix, add it to the original without changing anything else, and this would be better. There, is that descriptive enough to explain why I think it could be better?
24	25	Coldplay - Speed Of Sound This one's been hovering back and forth between 24 and 25 for the past three weeks, giving me no indication of whether it's going to continue to do so, or if it's going to dip back down below 25 again. I like the song, I don't like the uncertainty.

And that'll do it this week. Join me next week for my live webcast, when I'll pipe porn sounds into the production studio and screw with the interns' minds.

Back despite popular demand, it's...

The Top 25!

Why 25? Because 26 would just be too much work.

And since we're halfway through the week, there will not be another Top 25 until next week. That way I'll be doing it on Friday again, and we'll be back on track. That and I'm just too lazy to do it twice a week.

LW

TW

Artist - Title

1	1	Mariah Carey - We Belong Together Eugh! It's still here?! For the love of all that is good and right, why?! WHY?!?!
2	2	Kelly Clarkson - Behind These Hazel Eyes I'd like to see a Celebrity Death Match between Kelly and Carrie Underwood. Wouldn't you?
4	3	D.H.T. - Listen To Your Heart Well, we apparently have our breakout Summer dance hit. And yet there are still so many stations playing the ballad mix. Grow a pair and play the original dance mix, ya pansies! I said last time around that this song could easily make the Top 5 if more stations did, and I apparently was right. No surprise there :-)
5	4	Pussycat Dolls f/Busta Rhymes - Don't Cha I'm glad to see this one's broken the Top 5 Barrier instead of, say, "Incomplete" by The Backstreet Boys. Sorry, guys, but I'm much more of a complete man when I don't listen to your music.
6	5	Rihanna - Pon De Replay Inside the Top 5! Welcome to the top of the mountain!
3	6	Black Eyed Peas - Don't Phunk With My Heart It's falling, but not far just yet. I don't see it leaving the Top 10 for at least another two weeks.
7	7	Lifehouse - You And Me Well I'm glad to see at least someone is still loving the 1999 soft rock sound. It has it's place, but I still think Lifehouse needs to update their style a bit.
8	8	Papa Roach - Scars Eh. When I first heard this song, my reaction was "this is supposed to be good music?" That reaction, of course, came after a local station ran a "good music" themed liner. It may be above #10, but I don't see it going above #5.
9	9	Fat Joe f/Nelly - Get It Poppin' I seemed kinda down on this one the past couple of updates. I still don't think too much of it. However, I will say this: it does have a catchy instrumental track, and Nelly makes a better singer than rapper.
12	10	Gwen Stefani - Cool Soooooo 1986. I love it!
17	11	Missy Elliott - Lose Control Another throwback to the '80s! Good stuff!
10	12	Will Smith - Switch Still running strong like the Summer hit that it is!
13	13	Green Day - Holiday The tune gets you a little depressed after hearing it twice every hour for the past two months, but it's a good track.
15	14	Frankie J. - How To Deal Eh. This one isn't really even worth mentioning. It's on-air filler.
16	15	Natasha Bedingfield - These Words It's climbed since the last Top 25 post, and I'm glad to see that it has. It's a solid song, and I've been hearing more and more requests for it lately. Again, it's a 1997 R&B throwback, and that's an era that's very close to my heart for various reasons, so naturally I think the world of this song.
11	16	Gwen Stefani - Hollaback Girl Give it three or four weeks... that spike is coming, I'm telling you.
21	17	Weezer - Beverly Hills That's where I want to be! This is a great little jam, and that SoCal Rock flavor just flows from it. I'm even thinking of adding it to the playlist for basketball season... I think the kids in the stands will go for it.
14	18	3 Doors Down - Let Me Go It's okay... I don't really think it'll make a huge impact as the weeks pass, but it's decent.
23	19	Bow Wow f/Omarion - Let Me Hold You Another one of those "oh, they're playing this one again" songs. Like "How To Deal", it's on-air filler.
26	20	Mariah Carey - Shake It Off She just never goes away, does she? Geez...
18	21	Ciara f/Ludacris - Oh Again, give it more percussion to speed it up, and I'd think a lot more of it. It's a good song, though, and Luda's bars are creative (as always).
19	22	Pretty Ricky - Grind With Me Summer slow jam. I still don't think it's all that great (I usually don't think much of most slow jams), but it's still in the Top 25, so I have to write something about it :-)
22	23	Baby Bash - Baby I'm Back Catchy. Not very original, but catchy.
20	24	50 Cent - Just A Lil' Bit Eh. I'm surprised it's still here. Like I said, it was a bigger hit on the Rhythmic charts, but enough Mainstream listeners apparently like it enough to keep it within the Top 25 thus far.
24	25	Coldplay - Speed Of Sound I like this song a lot, but Coldplay is starting to sound like Lifehouse in that it's the same style on every single they release to radio. In both cases, it's not a bad style, and I like it, but do something new for goodness sake. This is part of what's driving people away from local radio: lack of original product.

That's it for now. Join me next week when my girlfriend edits everything I write to make sure there are no comments about how hot Kelly Clarkson is or how Fergi turns me on.

Washington Technology Know-It-Alls

And no, I'm not referring to Redmond.  We're talking the District here.  From AllAccess:

 

If file-swapping software companies don't crack down on piracy, Sen. TED STEVENS (R-AK) warned in a hearing THURSDAY (7/28), Congress will do it for them.

 

Oh really?  And just how do they plan on doing that?  Raiding our houses and stealing our computers at random?  I just dare them to try it.

STEVENS told P2P UNITED Exec. Dir. ADAM EISGRAU that "I hope you're listening," and Sen. BARBARA BOXER (D-CA) added that "if you don't move to protect copyright, if you don't move to protect our children, it's not going to sit well" with Congress.

 

"...move to protect our children"?  P2P file sharing is somehow harming our children?  Good Lord... these people really don't have a clue as to what they're talking about, do they?  Do they not remember the Betamax case?  This clearly and precisely falls within that realm... the verdict effectively denied Sony any copy protection rights.  If these senators vote against that precidence, they're going to have a really tough time getting re-elected.  A good majority of us P2P users are of voting age now.  Again, I just dare them to try it.

 

STEVENS, Chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee, and BOXER did not indicate how the software companies should technically go about discriminating between legal and illegal files...

 

Wanna know why?  BECAUSE THEY'RE FRICKIN' SENATORS!!!  They don't have any idea how to set such a thing up, because not only are they not programmers, the average age in the Senate indicates that most of our senators probably still don't know how to set the clock on their VCR, and the invention of the microwave oven still amazes them!

...but STEVENS noted that if he and BOXER, political opponents, agree on the issue, the file-sharing companies should "watch out."

 

Ah hell... the American public is just going to ignore any ruling or law made against file sharing.  We have so far, so why start acknowledging these acts now?  What's the Senate going to do when the entire Internet-using population of the country willingly participates in an ongoing act of civil disobedience?  Is P2P file sharing going to become our new marijuana?  Are our elected officials going to declare, like the "war on drugs", a "war on online 'piracy'"?  If so, it'll never work.  Ladies and gentlemen of the Senate, let me tell you this: you're gonna lose big time if you keep pushing it.  We, the people you supposedly represent, are not in agreement with you on this issue, and we're not happy about it.  Keep it up.  You won't be in office much longer if you do, and we, as as your employers and signers of your paychecks, can make sure you never work in Washington again.