Stormy

Let me tell you a secret about the radio business, the way it used to be when the DJs were live around the clock...if a station found someone who would show up every night without fail to do the overnight show (back then, they called it the "all-night" show) that person could get away with anything short of murder, as long as they continued to show up night after night. No boss wanted to get a call at 10 PM from an overnight guy calling out sick, and no evening guy was ready to stay on for another six hours, so it became a scramble. Find someone who will show up with an IV running or in traction or running a 104° fever and trembling, and don't worry about what he's doing in that studio all night long.

I bring all this up because radio is changing - a lot. Ask any young person what station they listen to, and receive a free blank stare. They get music from their phones or YouTube or Spotify or any of a hundred sources. They don't care about hearing the news or sports.

So, what's radio to do?  They're coming up with all sorts of things to broadcast, and I'm there for most of them. I like this one a lot. WOEZ radio, also known as Easy 93.7 FM in Burton/Beaufort Hilton Head, South Carolina, has revealed what they call a "new programming initiative" which will begin this week. Saga Communications Chairman/CEO/President Ed Christian says "WOEZ will begin airing sounds of rain and thunder in the background to help listeners fall asleep from either 11pm or 12am until 5am."

He goes on and explains that his company owns four stations in the area, and that overnight is not such a big moneymaker for them, so why not try something else? He even says, "If we strike out, we strike out on something and we invent something else and have to have the forward momentum."

I like that kind of thinking. Try something, see if it works, don't stick with it for 6 years just because you won't admit it's not working. Who knows? This could be the biggest thing to hit radio since call-in talk shows.

Of course, it's still a business, and Christian says they will "monetize" the deal by having short commercials twice an hour for mattress stores and other sleepy businesses. 

Again, who knows? This could be a great deal. I wonder if, on nights that thunderstorms are going on, they will just stick a live microphone out the window and broadcast real live weather in progress.

Let's find out! Listen live at this link: https://easyfmlive.com/