4
Broadcast Programming

This chapter treats the programming of radio and television stations and examines the

Commercial radio and television stations air thousands of hours of programs each year. Individual programs may be produced by the station itself or obtained from another source. They may be designed chiefly to entertain, inform, or educate. They may be sponsored or sustaining. They may attract audiences numbering a few hundred or many thousands.

Despite the differences, the programming of all stations is determined by four influences:

Much is said and written about broadcast programming. However, it would be unwise to identify any one influence for praise or condemnation. The programming we hear and see results from the interaction of all four forces. In this chapter, we shall consider the audience and the broadcaster. The advertiser and the regulator will be treated later.

THE AUDIENCE

More than 98 percent of U.S. households have radio and television receivers. The programs they carry attract males and females of all ages and from all socioeconomic categories and ethnic groups.

The pervasiveness and appeal of radio are indicated by the following facts:

The reach of television and the extent of its use are no less significant:

The size and composition of the audience for the two media fluctuate. The weekday radio listenership peaks at 7:00 A.M. It holds fairly steady from 9:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M., then begins to drop. On weekends, listenership is at its highest between 9:00 A.M. and 3:00 P.M.⁵ Men listen more than women, with men aged 35 to 44 listening most. They are followed by men 45 to 49 and 50 to 54.⁶

The television audience grows throughout the day and reaches a peak between 9:00 and 9:30 P.M. (ET). People spend more time viewing during the winter than the summer. Sunday evening attracts the largest number of viewers, and Friday evening the smallest.⁷ Women watch TV more than men, and older men and women more than younger adults. Teenagers and children aged 2 to 11 watch least.⁸ Larger households and those with children view more than smaller households and those without children. There is more use of television in pay-cable households than in those with basic cable or no cable at all. Differences among income classifications are not great, but households with an annual income of less than $30,000 view more than those with income exceeding that amount.⁹

THE PROGRAM DEPARTMENT

Of all the factors that determine the financial success of a radio or television station, none is more important than programming. It is programming that brings listeners or viewers to the station. If the number of listeners or viewers is large, and if they possess the characteristics sought by advertisers, the station will attract advertising dollars. Accordingly, the station’s revenues and potential profits are influenced largely by its programming. Responsibility for programming is entrusted to a program department.

Functions

The major functions of the program department are

Organization

The program department is headed by a program manager or program director, who reports directly to the general manager. In some stations, programming and production are combined in one department under an operations manager.

The number of people who report to the program manager, their titles, and their responsibilities vary. In addition, the titles and responsibilities of the program personnel in a radio station differ from those in a television station. We shall examine the two media separately.

Radio

The program department staff in a radio station with a music format generally includes the following:

Music Director

The music director is responsible for

Announcers

Announcers frequently are called disc jockeys or deejays. Their major responsibility is an air shift, which includes

In addition, announcers may

In many stations, continuity or creative services and traffic staff report to the sales manager. In others, their activities are supervised jointly by the program manager and the head of the sales department. Continuity writers often are responsible for a variety of copy, including commercials and public service and promotional announcements. They also check copy for compliance with the station’s program and advertising standards. Traffic personnel place on the schedule details of all program and commercial content to be aired.

At news-format stations, the program manager is, in essence, a news director. The staff consists of editors, anchors, reporters, writers, and desk assistants.

The staff of news/talk stations comprises personnel responsible for news, such as anchors and reporters, and for talk, including producers, hosts, and telephone screeners.

Television

In many television stations, the program “department” may consist of only a program director (PD), whose major responsibility is the development of program schedules. As noted later, the PD also works with the general manager and others on the acquisition of syndicated programs.

THE PROGRAM MANAGER

Responsibilities

Program managers in small and medium markets are involved in a broader range of activities than their counterparts in large markets. Obviously, there are differences between programming a radio station and a television station. In addition, in television, the amount of time spent on programming responsibilities is influenced greatly by the station’s status as a network affiliate or independent. However, all program managers engage in four basic tasks: the planning, acquisition, execution, and control of programs.

Program Planning

Program planning involves the development of short-, medium-, and long-range plans to permit the station to attain its programming and financial objectives.

As we shall see later in the chapter, the principal focus in radio is on the selection of a format and other program content to attract and satisfy the needs of particular demographics. Planning also includes the hiring of announcers or hosts whose personality and style are compatible with the station’s format.

In television, planning is directed toward the selection and scheduling of programs to appeal to the largest number of people among the available audience. Affiliated stations also must consider which network programs they will broadcast and which they will reject or delay.

Since programming is the essential ingredient in attracting audiences, and since some audiences are sought more than others by advertisers, planning usually is done by the program manager in consultation with the head of the sales department and the general manager.

Program Acquisition

The program manager implements program plans by having programs produced by the station itself or by obtaining them from other sources. The major sources of radio and television programs are described later in the chapter. Again, the head of the sales department and the general manager are involved.

Program Execution

Execution involves the airing of programs in accordance with the plans. The strategies of both radio and television program execution are described later.

The program manager coordinates the scheduling of content with traffic personnel, and its promotion with the promotion and marketing director.

Program Control

The program manager often is called the “protector” of the station’s license because of the responsibility for ensuring that the station’s programming complies with the terms of its license.

As protector, the program manager

The program manager also controls

Qualities

The program manager should be knowledgeable and should possess administrative and professional skills and certain personal qualities.

Knowledge

The program manager should have knowledge of

Skills

The program manager must possess administrative and professional skills, among them the ability to

Personal Qualities

Audiences and station staff have strong feelings about the programming of radio and television stations and are not hesitant to express them. Accordingly, the program manager must be

Influences

The program manager’s decisions and actions are influenced by many factors. A model developed by The Arbitron Company (Figure 4.1) identifies 21 factors that comprise the decision-making environment in a radio station with a music format. Obviously, the station can control all the internal factors listed, such as the performance of announcers, the quality of on-air production, and the music rotation. However, only one of the external factors—external station promotions—is within the station’s control. The station has no control over such influences as the availability of new music in its format, the activities of competing stations or other media, and changing lifestyles that may affect audience habits and tastes.

Figure 4.1 Music-format decision-making environment.

(Source: The Arbitron Company. Reprinted with permission.)

J. David Lewis used responses from 301 stations in the United States to determine influences in television station programming. He developed eight categories, in no particular order of priority:

RADIO STATION PROGRAMMING

The programming of most radio stations is dominated by one principal content element or sound, known as a format. It is designed to appeal to a particular subgroup of the population, usually identified by age, socioeconomic characteristics, or ethnicity.

In reality, few listeners probably know or care what name is used to describe the format of their favorite station. However, the selection of a name is important to management and the sales staff in projecting the station’s image and in positioning the station for advertisers.

Formats

There are dozens of formats, but all can be placed in one of the following categories: music, information, and specialty.

Music

The music format is the most common among commercial radio stations. Describing the format of a particular station in one or two words has become increasingly difficult with the fragmentation of formats and the appeal of some artists in more than one format. In addition, stations use different names to characterize similar sounds. Arbitron identifies the following as America’s favorite music formats:¹¹

Adult Contemporary (AC)

AC and its variants—soft/light AC, hot AC, mainstream AC, full-service AC, and adult rock—have a basic format that consists of well-known rock hits and pop standards. Women constitute about two-thirds of the formats’ audience. More than half of all listeners are aged 25 to 49.

Adult Standards

Characterized by pre-rock era music, this classification includes easy listening, middle-of-the-road, nostalgia, and variety. Half the listeners are 65 and older. No other format has such a large share of its audience in a single age group.

Alternative

The format includes stations identifying themselves as album alternative and new rock. Men account for almost two-thirds of the audience, nearly 85 percent of which is made up of persons aged 44 or younger.

Classical

This format consists chiefly of recorded classical music and live performances of symphonies, opera, and chamber music. Many stations program short music selections during the day and concerts in the evening. Its greatest appeal is to middle-aged (35–54) and older (55+) listeners, who constitute 90 percent of the audience. It attracts more college graduates (64 percent) than any other format. Listeners are relatively affluent, also, with 40 percent earning more than $75,000 a year.

Contemporary Hit Radio (CHR)

This format includes stations specializing in pop CHR and rhythmic CHR. Basically, the format is characterized by a tightly controlled playlist of top-selling rock singles, selected new recordings that are on their way up, and occasional oldies. It attracts the largest share of teens (26 percent) of all formats. About three-quarters of the audience are 34 or younger.

Country

This format embraces both traditional and modern country music. The format has broad appeal to men and women in all age ranges. However, those aged 35 to 44 are the most frequent listeners.

New AC/Smooth Jazz

This format includes jazz, new age, and new adult contemporary formats. The format consists of instrumentals, with some compatible vocals. Adults aged 35 and over make up the core audience.

Oldies

The focus is on rock-era oldies and includes 1970s hits and rhythmic oldies. The format appeals equally to men and women and draws more than half its audience from those aged 35 to 54.

Rock

This format is rock-based music from the mid-1970s to the present, including album rock and classic rock. The music has huge appeal to men. They constitute more than 70 percent of the audience, the largest adult male share of any format. Adults aged 25 to 44 make up more than half the listenership.

Urban

This format includes urban AC and urban oldies. The basic format specializes in contemporary rhythm and blues music. African Americans make up more than 80 percent of the audience. Listeners tend to be young—about one-third are aged 12 to 24.

While music is the dominant element in music-format stations, a variety of other program content is aired. The kind, amount, and frequency of such content are determined by a number of factors, such as format, the composition of the audience, and the size and location of the community. Examples of nonmusic content include

Information

There are two basic information formats, all news and all talk. A third consists of a combination of the two, and is called news/talk. Some stations restrict their news and talk content to sports and combine it with live coverage of sporting events in an all-sports format.

All News

The all-news format consists of news (local, regional, national, and international), information and service features, analysis, commentary, and editorials. It appeals mostly to adults aged 35+, especially bettereducated males.

Stations assume that the audience will tune in only for short periods of time to catch up on the latest developments. Accordingly, they program the format in cycles of 20 or 30 minutes, with frequent repetition of the top stories. This characteristic often is used in promotion, with slogans such as “Give us 20 minutes and we’ll give you the world.”

The format requires a large staff of anchors, writers, reporters, editors, desk assistants, and stringers, as well as mobile units and numerous news services. As a result, it is expensive and tends to be successful financially only in large markets.

All Talk

Interviews and audience call-ins form the basis of the all-talk format. The subject matter varies greatly. Interview guests may generate discussion of their personal or professional lives. A call-in may focus on a timely or controversial topic. Many stations have hosts with expertise as psychologists, marriage counselors, and sex therapists, and callers use the program to expound on their personal problems.

Adults aged 35 to 65+ are the most consistent listeners. Most often, they are persons in search of companionship or a forum for their views.¹²

Each hour or daypart is programmed to appeal to key available demographics. Success is tied closely to the skills of the host, who must be knowledgeable on a wide range of topics, easy in conversation, and perceptive. Good judgment and the ability to maintain control of the conversation are other desirable attributes.

The format also requires producers who have a keen awareness of local and national issues, and the ability to schedule guests who are informed, eloquent, and provocative. Screeners are used to rank incoming calls for relevance and to screen out crank calls.

News/Talk

This combination of the all-news and all-talk formats takes different forms. Typically, it consists of news in morning and afternoon drive times, with talk during the remainder of the broadcast day. Some stations air play-by-play sports on evenings and weekends. The format’s chief demographic appeal is to persons aged 35 to 65+.

Specialty

There are many specialty formats. However, the following are the most common:

Ethnic

Ethnic formats are targeted toward ethnic groups or people united by a language other than English. African Americans constitute a major ethnic group in many large markets and in towns of various sizes in the South. Stations targeting this group often combine disco and hip-hop music with information of interest to the African-American community.

Spanish-language stations program music and information for Cuban Americans, Mexican Americans, Puerto Ricans, and others whose primary language is Spanish. In addition, many stations broadcast a variety of content in one or more foreign languages, including French, Polish, Japanese, and Greek.

Religion

This format is characterized by hymns and other religious music, sermons, religious services, talks, interviews, and discussions. The particular program makeup is influenced heavily by the type of licensee. Some stations are licensed to churches and religious organizations that are more interested in spreading their message than in the size or composition of the audience. However, ratings and demographics are of major concern to a second type of licensee, the conventional entrepreneur, who sells blocks of time to churches and religious organizations and spots to advertisers.

Variety

The variety format exists chiefly in one-station markets or where other formats do not meet the music or information needs of several desirable demographics. In a one-station market, for example, the format may include music for all age groups, news, weather, sports, and public affairs. Features would be selected for their appeal to the makeup of the community.

The format is programmed to satisfy the available audience. During the morning hours, music may be suited to adults at home. In the afternoon and evening, the sound may become more contemporary for teenagers and young adults.

Program Sources

Radio stations use three major sources of programs: local, syndicated, and network.

Local

Local programming is the principal source for most stations. For stations with a music format, it includes both music and information content.

Recording companies are anxious to have their product played on radio stations, since air play is an important determinant of sales. Accordingly, they provide most stations with free, promotional copies. To ensure good service, the station must nurture close relationships with the companies. That can be done by maintaining regular contact, sending them copies of the playlist, and keeping them informed of success in reaching those demographics to which the recordings appeal.

Some stations obtain recordings from local stores under a trade-out arrangement. Stations in many small markets do not receive promotional copies and subscribe to a recording service for current releases.

Examples of locally produced information content on a music-format station include news, sports, and public affairs. Stations with an information format rely heavily on local production for news, talk, features, sports, and public affairs.

Radio stations also engage in remotes from retail stores, malls, and other business locations. Such broadcasts can be a useful promotional tool. Indeed, some stations have bought fiberglass or inflatable studios in the shape of giant radio receivers to increase their visibility on such occasions. However, remotes must be selected with care, since they may interrupt the regular flow of programming. They must also be planned in close cooperation with the sales department.

Syndicated

Syndicators provide stations with programs and with complete music formats.

Programs

Syndicated offerings range from 60- or 90-second features on health, finance, politics, and assorted other subjects, to programs of several hours’ duration.

Long-form programming featuring nationally known talk personalities like Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity offers stations quality and cost-efficient content. Such is the appeal of syndicated product that it has even taken over the traditionally locally produced morning drive period on many stations and replaced station hosts with the likes of Don Imus and Howard Stern. Regional morning team programs are also available, especially in the South.

Barter is the primary method of syndicated program acquisition. Other programs are offered on a cash basis, the price determined by factors such as market size, the appeal of the program, and competition for it. Still other programs are available to the station without charge.

Formats

The entire music programming of some stations is provided by format syndicators.

Stations receive from the syndicator, typically via satellite, music in the desired format and then insert commercials, promotional, public service, and ID announcements, and other nonmusic content.

Syndicated formats are found mostly in fully automated stations. However, many formats may be used in semi-automated and live-operated stations.

Some formats are sold to stations and others are leased. Cost is determined mostly by the type of format and size of the market.

In addition to providing music, many format syndicators offer their services to stations as consultants on programming, promotion, and research.

Network

The programming of most national networks is designed for specific demographics or formats. The staples are music, news, and talk. Other programs vary according to the interests of the targeted audiences.

Many stations also receive news and other informational programming from regional or state networks. Ad-hoc networks are organized in many parts of the country for the coverage of special events and sports.

Strategies

Selection of a format is the first and most important step in the development of a station’s programming strategy. It is also the most difficult. In most markets, music formats with the greatest appeal to the most-sought demographics (persons aged 25 to 54) already have been taken. AM stations experience particular problems, as evidenced by their movement away from music formats and toward news, talk, or a combination. With the increasing fragmentation of formats, FM stations also face difficulties in trying to position themselves in a way that sets them apart from stations with similar formats. “Niche programming” has become the key.

Among the factors that influence the format selection are

Stations that opt for a music format also must decide on other content elements to include in their programming.

Next, the station decides how to execute the programming to attract and retain the target audience. The decision must take into account the needs and expectations of the listeners.

People turn to a music-format station chiefly for entertainment or relaxation, to an all-news station for information, and to an all-talk station for a variety of reasons, including information, opinion, and companionship. They expect to hear a familiar sound, one with which they feel comfortable. The format, therefore, must be executed with consistency.

The most common tool to obtain consistency is the format wheel or format clock, which identifies the mix and sequence of program elements in a onehour period. Figure 4.2 shows a format wheel for a contemporary hit station in morning drive time.

Figure 4.2 Morning drive format wheel: contemporary hit radio station. Hot: chart position 1–10; A Current: 11–20; B Current: 21–30; C Current: 31–40.

The particular composition of an audience, its needs, moods, and the activities in which it engages change during the day. Stations attempt to respond to those changes through dayparting. On weekdays, the dayparts are

All-news stations broadcast their content in cycles, with a certain time elapsing before each element is repeated. Figure 4.3 shows a format wheel for such a station.

Figure 4.3 Format wheel: all-news station.

Audience size is computed by quarter hour, and so stations strive to attract the maximum possible audience in each quarter-hour period. However, audience members do not have to listen continuously for 15 minutes to be counted. Audience measurement companies credit a station with a listener if a person is tuned in for five or more minutes in any quarter hour. One technique to retain listeners from one quarter hour to the next is to schedule a music sweep (i.e., uninterrupted music) over each quarter-hour mark. Nonmusic content, which often prompts dial-switching, is placed within the quarter hour. Another is a tease or bumper. Here, the disc jockey or talk host previews what is coming up in the next segment.

A station’s success in maintaining audience may be judged by the amount of time a person listens during a specific daypart. This is known as time spent listening, or TSL. It is calculated by multiplying the number of quarter hours in a daypart by the average quarter-hour audience and dividing the result by the cumulative audience. For example, a station has an average audience of 5,700 and a cumulative audience of 25,500 among persons aged 25 to 49 during morning drive Monday through Friday. The TSL is 80 (number of quarter hours) times 5,700 (average audience) divided by 25,500 (cumulative audience), or 17.9 quarter hours. To determine audience turnover, or the number of times an audience changes during a time period, the cumulative audience is divided by the average audience. In this example, it is 4.5.

Essentially the same music is available to all stations in a market with a particular format. An important strategic consideration, therefore, is the selection of recordings for the playlist and their rotation. The playlist is the listing of recordings played over the course of a period of time, usually a week. Rotation refers to the frequency with which each is played.

Stations rely on several sources in deciding what to keep on the playlist and what to add and delete. Among those used most often are trade magazines, such as Billboard and R&R (Radio & Records), tip sheets, and newsletters. They reflect the popularity of recordings in different formats across the nation. To determine local appeal, stations check on sales with area music stores.

To increase their information base, many stations engage in continuing efforts to obtain listener feedback to the music being played or contemplated for addition to the playlist. The most common method is call-out research. The station plays over the telephone short excerpts (called “hooks”) of music selections and asks respondents for their reactions. The results are tabulated and assist in tracking the popularity of recordings and making decisions on playlist content. Such research is relatively inexpensive, but only a limited number of hooks can be played before participants grow tired.

Another method is auditorium testing. Several dozen people are invited to a large room or auditorium and asked to rate as many as 400 hooks. They are paid and, generally, are chosen from the age group targeted by the station. They may be regular listeners, those who favor a competing station, or a combination. Auditorium testing is more expensive than call-out research and usually is attempted only periodically. That prevents close monitoring of changing music preferences and regular refinement of the playlist.

In an attempt to ensure that programming is tuned to the needs of the target audience, stations are paying increased attention to nonmusic research. Many are building databases to develop listener profiles. Income, lifestyle, product usage, and leisure activity are examples of information that is collected and stored. Images of the station, its programming, personalities, and other elements are obtained through focus groups, which bring together 10 to 12 people for a controlled discussion led by a moderator. Often, the results provide ideas for more extensive research. Market perceptual studies are conducted by telephone interview or mail survey among targeted listeners to identify perceptions of a station’s position in the market and its various characteristics. Telephone interviews also are used in format searches, attempts to ascertain if there is a need or place for various formats or elements within a format.

In some formats and on some stations, primary emphasis is given to the music or information content. The personality of the announcer is secondary. However, since the announcer is the link between the station and the audience, many stations encourage announcers to project their personality with the expectation that it will provide another competitive weapon. In either situation, announcers are important in the creation of a station’s image and are chosen to reflect that image. If personality is emphasized, announcers are scheduled during those dayparts when their personality suits the mood of the audience.

Strategy considerations also may involve the possible use of automation. The station must decide whether its benefits outweigh its shortcomings and whether it may be used advantageously over the entire broadcast day or in certain dayparts. Automation offers the advantages of a consistent, professional sound, eliminates personnel problems, and may result in cost savings. However, it removes the element of personality and deprives the station of spontaneity and flexibility.

Programming must be promoted constantly to retain the existing audience and to attract new listeners. The role of promotion is discussed in Chapter 6, “Broadcast Promotion and Marketing.” It should be noted here that stations seek to gain competitive advantage through on-air and off-air promotion of image, programming, and personalities. They hope that the result will be a clear public perception of what the station does and how it can satisfy audience needs.

A final and most important strategic consideration is the station’s commercial policy. Most listeners to music-format stations have little tolerance for interruptions in music and may seek out another station when commercials air. Commercial policy usually sets forth the commercial load (i.e., the number of commercials allowed per hour) and the frequency of breaks for com-mercials and other nonmusic content. Commercial policy is discussed further in Chapter 5, “Broadcast Sales.”

TELEVISION STATION PROGRAMMING

Programming a commercial television station differs markedly from programming a radio station. While the radio programmer identifies a specific audience and broadcasts to it throughout the day, the television programmer targets a general audience and attempts to respond to the preferences of those persons who are available to view.

A radio station competes for audience primarily against the other radio stations in the market that seek to attract similar demographics. A television station is in competition against all other television stations in the market and against cable and direct broadcast satellite. Additional competition for the viewers’ time comes from videocassette recorders, DVD players, and the Internet.

Network programming occupies only a minor place in the schedule of most radio stations. It is a dominant force in television, providing a major part of the schedule for stations affiliated with the three original networks—ABC, CBS, and NBC. It plays a lesser, though still very important, role in the offerings of affiliates of Fox, The WB, and UPN. (At the time of writing, the future of PAX TV was uncertain. Accordingly, it will not be considered here.)

Programming success in television rests heavily on the ability to produce or buy programs with audience appeal, air them at times when they can be seen by the audience to which they appeal, and build individual programs into a schedule that encourages viewers to tune to the station and remain with it from one program to another.

Program Sources

Television stations affiliated with a network rely on three principal sources of programs: the network, program syndicators, and local production. Independent stations (i.e., those not affiliated with a permanent network) use syndicated and local production and receive sports and specials from ad-hoc networks.

Network

ABC, CBS, and NBC provide affiliates with the bulk of their programming. Weekday daytime hours consist of news magazines, soap operas, a game show, and network news. In prime time, entertainment, news magazines, and some sports are broadcast. Talk-variety, news interviews, and news characterize the late night and overnight periods.

On weekends, they schedule news magazines and programs for children and teenagers on Saturday mornings, sports in the afternoon, and entertainment in prime time. Daytime on Sundays includes news-magazine and newsinterview programs and sports, followed by prime-time entertainment.

The networks produce their news and sports broadcasts and a growing number of their prime-time entertainment programs. However, they continue to purchase a significant amount of entertainment from independent production companies.

Fox, The WB, and UPN supply fewer hours for their affiliates than the original networks. Weekdays, Fox programs two hours of entertainment in prime time. On Saturday, children’s programs are aired in the morning, sports in the afternoon, and entertainment in prime time, followed by more entertainment. A morning news-interview program, afternoon sports, and three hours of prime-time entertainment make up the Sunday schedule.

The WB airs a two-hour, young-adult entertainment block weekday afternoons and two hours of entertainment in prime time. Five hours of morning children’s programming are the network’s only offerings on Saturday. The network’s Sunday schedule consists of two hours of primetime entertainment.

UPN programs two hours of entertainment in prime time Monday through Friday and a movie on Saturday afternoons.

Program Syndicators

Syndicated programs are used by networkaffiliated stations to fill many of the periods during which the network does not provide programming. Independent stations rely heavily on such programs during all dayparts.

There are two major categories of syndicated programs:¹³

Feature films and cartoons also are distributed by syndicators. Decisions on syndicated program acquisitions are based on program availability, cost, and audience appeal.

As noted later in the chapter, the station rep company is an important source of information on available programs. Many stations use additional sources, such as the annual Television Programming Source Books, published by BiB Channels. This three-volume series contains information on films and film packages, and lists short-and long-form TV film and tape series, with details of program length, number of episodes, story line, distributor, and distribution terms. Product is available to a station only if it has not already been obtained by another station in the market.

Even though stations often announce that they have bought a syndicated program, what they have bought, in fact, are the exclusive rights to broadcast a program over a specific period of time. The rights are contained in a license agreement between the syndicator and the station. It details, among other items, the series title, license term, number of programs, license fee, method of delivery, and payment terms. The fee is based on a number of factors, including the size of the market, competition for the program from stations in the market, the age of the program, and the time period during which it will be broadcast. The negotiating skills of the person representing the station also may be influential. In the case of feature films, market size, competition, and the age of the films are taken into account, as well as the success they achieved during their showing in movie theaters or on a network.

The dramatic increase in the cost of syndicated product, combined with the emergence and growth of barter programming (discussed below), have led to an important change in the program manager’s traditional role in syndicated program purchasing. Today, because of the increased emphasis on the bottom line, the programmer is likely to be only one of several key station personnel involved in purchasing decisions. Others include the general manager, sales manager, and business manager. In many stations, the general manager has primary responsibility, while the program manager merely administers decisions.

In determining what to buy and how much to pay, the station should give particular attention to the ratings potential and projected revenues of syndicated programs. Their appeal may be ascertained by studying their performance in other markets, particularly those with a similar population makeup. Nielsen’s Report on Syndicated Programs provides detailed information on the size and demographic composition of the audiences for syndicated programs in all markets, in different dayparts, and against different program competition. Clues to the appeal of off-network programs may be gleaned from their performance in the market when they aired on a network.

Calculating revenue potential requires consideration of (1) spot inventory, or the number of 30-second spots available in each program; (2) the average selling price in the daypart in which the program will be broadcast; and (3) the selling level, that is, the percentage of spots likely to be sold. Multiplying the selling price by the number of spots available produces the gross revenue. The gross is reduced by 15 percent to allow for commissions paid by the station to account executives, reps, and advertising agencies, producing the net. That figure is reduced further by the projected selling level (most stations use 80 percent) to give what is known as the net net.

Assume that a network-affiliated station is contemplating the purchase of a half-hour, off-network series. Six commercial minutes are available and the average selling price in the daypart for a 30-second spot is $400. The calculation would be as follows:

The projected revenue of $3,264 for each episode applies only to the first year. Projections for subsequent years will take into account possible changes in the spot rate. For example, rates in the daypart may increase to keep pace with inflation. A decrease might result if the program were moved to a less costly daypart.

Having calculated the net net revenue potential of each episode over the life of the contract, the station must then consider how much it can afford to pay per episode. The actual price will be determined through negotiations between the syndicator and the station.¹⁴

When the contract is signed, the station usually makes a down payment and pays the balance in installments. As noted in Chapter 2, “Financial Management,” costs are assigned according to an amortization schedule for accounting purposes. The station may select the straight line method, which means that an equal value is placed on each broadcast of each episode. Alternatively, it may opt for accelerated amortization or the declining value method, which assumes that the value of each episode decreases with each broadcast. Accordingly, the station assigns to each broadcast a declining percentage of total cost. A program with six runs may be expensed as follows: run 1—40 percent; 2—30 percent; 3—15 percent; 4—10 percent; 5—5 percent; 6—0 percent.

It is becoming increasingly difficult for stations to buy attractive syndicated programs for cash. Some are available only through barter.

In a barter transaction, the syndicator provides the program at no cost but, in return, retains for sale some of the commercial inventory. In a 30-minute program, for example, two minutes may be retained, leaving four minutes for sale by the station. More common is the cash + barter arrangement, whereby the station pays a fee for the program and also surrenders time to the syndicator.

At its inception, barter was viewed as a means whereby stations could control soaring program costs. Syndicators emphasized that the value of the commercial time surrendered would represent a much lower cost to the station than if the program were bought on a straight cash basis. Furthermore, the small amount of inventory retained by the syndicator probably would not hurt profits, since 10 to 15 percent of commercial time generally remains unsold.

Barter does permit stations to obtain competitive product without putting out large amounts of cash, and to exchange time that might not be used for lower overall program costs. However, it has become such a dominant force that stations that would be willing to pay cash do not have that option. In addition, program costs have continued to escalate and stations have been left with less inventory to recoup their programming investment. Furthermore, barter now places stations in direct competition with syndicators for the sale of time to national advertisers in the same program.

Local Production

The focus of local production is on local newscasts and public affairs programs, chiefly face-to-face interviews. Other local productions may include magazine, music video, exercise, sports, and children’s programs, and occasional documentaries.

Programming Factors

The TV program manager weighs many factors in making program acquisition and scheduling decisions. Among the more important are these:

Scheduling Strategies

Consideration of the above factors will suggest program scheduling strategies suited to the competitive situation in which the station finds itself. The following strategies are among those used most commonly:

Feature films pose a special scheduling challenge. Film packages contain both good and not-so-good movies, and not all have similar audience appeal. Many stations try to surmount the problem by airing films under an umbrella series title and identifying an element for promotional emphasis. If the movie has won awards, for example, the award-winning elements lend themselves to such an approach.

Three decades ago, Philip F. von Ladau, vice president and general manager of Marketron, Inc., set forth ten basic programming principles. Despite changes in audience habits resulting from the massive growth in the number of viewing options and the impact of the remote-control pad, judicious application of the principles can still lead to successful scheduling. They are

PROGRAMMING THE NETWORK AFFILIATE

Even though stations affiliated with the Fox, The WB, and UPN networks are “network affiliates,” their networks’ schedules are much more limited than those of ABC, CBS, and NBC. As a result, they operate like independent stations much of the time. For that reason, they will be considered with the independents later in the chapter.

Affiliation with one of the three original networks offers many advantages. It has been noted that the network fills a significant part of an affiliate’s program schedule, mostly at no direct cost.

Many network programs attract large audiences, thus increasing the value of the time the station sells in and around them. Skillful scheduling and promotion also permit the station to attract audiences to locally scheduled programs before, between, and after network offerings. Similar assistance in boosting audiences is afforded through the network’s publicity and promotion.

However, the affiliate programmer’s job is not without challenge. Cable and DBS allow viewers to select from dozens of channels, which offer stiff competition and which have cut deeply into the affiliates’ audiences.

Network-Affiliate Relations

The relationship between a network and an affiliated station is governed by an affiliation contract. Specific contracts differ from network to network and are undergoing some changes, particularly on the terms of compensation that networks traditionally have paid to their affiliates. Generally, however, they contain the following clauses:

Network Programming

The original networks provide their affiliates with programs in most dayparts.

Weekday early-morning network programming consists of news magazines. A woman’s magazine program (ABC) and game show (CBS) fill part of the morning, followed by an afternoon block of soap operas and news in early evening on all three networks. Network prime time comprises a variety of programs: reality, situation comedies, dramas, feature films and made-for-TV movies, news magazines, specials, and sports. Late night is made up of newsinterview and talk-variety programs. ABC and CBS air news during all or part of the overnight daypart.

The networks’ weekend lineup varies, chiefly as a result of sports coverage on Saturday and Sunday afternoons. News magazines, cartoons, and other child- and teen-appeal programs are aired on Saturday mornings. Sports characterize Saturday afternoons, usually followed by the network news. Network prime time consists of entertainment. NBC is the only network that programs the late-night slot, with “Saturday Night Live.”

News magazines and news interviews are aired on Sunday mornings, and sports during the afternoons. Network news precedes prime-time programming, which starts at 7:00 P.M.

Scheduling

Since a network fills the major part of an affiliated station’s broadcast day, the program manager’s chief scheduling responsibility is for those periods during which the network is not feeding programs. Of course, if the station determines that it will not clear or will delay broadcast of a network program, additional scheduling decisions must be made. Programming possibilities on weekdays include the following:

Early Morning (6:00 A.M. to 9:00 A.M.)

Many affiliates start the daypart with local news and/or news-magazine programs, and most join the networks at 7:00 A.M. for their respective news magazines. Children and teenagers are not being served. Locally produced children’s programs, syndicated cartoons, and off-network sitcoms or drama-adventure series offer alternatives for part or all of the period.

Morning (9:00 A.M. to Noon)

Homemakers are a principal target in this daypart. During the first two hours, the networks are not providing programs. Options include local or syndicated talk, discussion, or magazine programs oriented toward women, and game shows. Off-network situation comedies starring children or with slapstick elements may bring children as well as adults to the set. ABC and CBS return at 11:00 A.M. and most affiliates clear network programming through the end of the period. Syndicated talk is the choice of many NBC affiliates.

Afternoon (Noon to 4:00 P.M.)

Between noon and 12:30, many affiliates opt for local news or a news magazine, both of which provide an opportunity to promote later newscasts. Syndicated entertainment, such as quiz or game shows and situation comedies, is an alternative. From 12:30 P.M. (CBS) or 1:00 P.M. (ABC and NBC), affiliates generally carry the network soap opera block. It runs until 4:00 P.M. on ABC and CBS. NBC affiliates have an opportunity to counter-program starting at 3:00 P.M. The alternatives include syndicated talk with strong appeal to women, or cartoons and situation comedies with teenage and child appeal to target returning schoolchildren and teenagers.

Early Fringe (4:00 P.M. to 6:00 P.M.)

This is the start of the longest period for which an affiliate has programming responsibility. At the same time, it offers a station the opportunity to generate significant advertising revenues and build the adult audience for its local news.

The growth in audience size and diversity allows stations to engage successfully in counter-programming. Thirty-minute and one-hour off-network and first-run syndicated content fit easily into the period, and many stations have discovered that audiences respond well to blocks of programs of the same genre.

Placement of local news is a major strategic factor. Airing it at 5:00 P.M. or 5:30 P.M. rules out the possibility of back-to-back hour-long programs. However, a succession of two or three off-network situation comedies with increasingly older appeal can bring youngsters to the set first, followed by teenagers and adults. An hour-long syndicated talk program attracts the adult demographics desired for news at 5:00 P.M. Movies may be considered by stations that do not air local news until 6:00 P.M., but their appeal varies. They also pose some scheduling problems because of their varying lengths. Made-for-television movies are consistent in length, but have proven less appealing than feature films.

Early Evening (6:00 P.M. to 7:00 P.M.)

The length of the local newscast and the periods selected both for local and network news influence the schedule in this daypart. The 30-minute network newscast may be preceded or followed by a 30-minute local newscast. An hour-long local news program may be followed by network news in the first half hour of prime access, or a 90-minute news block may start with 30 minutes of local news, followed by network news, and a final 30 minutes of local news. In most major markets, longer news blocks are common.

Prime Access (7:00 P.M. to 8:00 P.M.)

The Prime-Time Access Rule restricting what could be shown by some network affiliates formerly influenced program choices in this daypart. With the rule’s termination in 1996, stations in all markets are free to air whatever they please. Most stations have filled the time slot with syndicated programs. Quiz and game shows, as well as offnetwork situation comedies, have proved very strong in this period. News magazine programs enable stations to inherit adults from the preceding newscasts.

Network Prime Time (8:00 P.M. to 11:00 P.M.)

Most affiliates carry network programming during this entire daypart. If a network program is not competitive, or if most of the network’s schedule on a given night is faring poorly, the station may consider preempting and substituting its own programming. Syndicated entertainment programs can fill a 30- or 60-minute period, while movies may produce the desired audience for periods of 90 minutes or two hours.

Late Fringe (11:00 P.M. to 11:35 P.M.)

Affiliated stations usually air their late local news in this time slot.

Late Night (11:35 P.M. to 2:05 A.M.)

NBC provides affiliates with programming for the entire period, and CBS programs all but 30 minutes. ABC fills only the 11:35 P.M. to 1:05 A.M. slot. Options for CBS and ABC affiliates include off-network situation comedies and, for ABC affiliates, syndicated talk or entertainment-based programs and off-network dramatic series.

Overnight (2:05 A.M. to 6:00 A.M.)

Affiliates that remain on the air usually carry news fed by the network during part or all of the period.

Weekend scheduling is influenced by network sports programming, which varies from season to season. On Saturday afternoons, the station may have to program a period of two or more hours. Syndicated entertainment and feature films are among the most popular options. Many stations air a 30-minute local newscast at 6:00 P.M. and follow network news with a one-hour or two 30-minute syndicated entertainment programs from 7:00 to 8:00 P.M. Local late news follows network prime time on many affiliated stations. ABC and CBS affiliates do not receive network programming during late night and often run movies, syndicated talk, off-network drama series, or situation comedies in the time periods.

Many affiliates carry religion, public affairs, or children’s programs on Sunday mornings before joining the network for news-magazine and newsinterview broadcasts. Depending on the season, the station may have to schedule afternoon programs before or after network sports. Again, syndicated entertainment and feature films are common choices, with local and network news between 6:00 and 7:00 P.M. After network prime time, most affiliates air a 30-minute local newscast. Movies, syndicated entertainment, and religion are among the alternatives for the late-night period.

PROGRAMMING THE INDEPENDENT STATION

Programming an independent television station is a most challenging job. The challenge is less difficult for stations affiliated with Fox, The WB, and UPN, which receive varying amounts of programming from their networks. However, programmers still are left with many hours to fill each day, and independents cannot rely to the same degree as competing affiliates on network programs to encourage the flow of viewers into locally scheduled time periods, thus enhancing not only audience size but also the value of time the station sells to advertisers.

By definition, the true independent does not have access to programs on any permanent network, many of which attract large audiences to the affiliates with which it competes. It does not benefit from network promotion and publicity, which draw viewers to the affiliates. Unlike the affiliate, the true independent must provide all the programs it airs, a task that has been aggravated by the increased competition for attractive off-network syndicated programs and by their growing cost.

The independent does not enjoy the comparatively high rates that affiliates can charge advertisers for time in and around network programs. Further, the independent often has to contend with a negative attitude on the part of time buyers.

The challenge is difficult but not impossible. In large measure, independents’ achievements have been based on the wisdom of their program selection, the imagination of their promotion efforts and, above all, on the effectiveness of their program scheduling.

For the most part, the programming weapons of independents have been movies, syndicated talk, off-network entertainment programs—especially situation comedies and action-drama series—syndicated or local children’s programs, and live sports. Many independents also carry specials and, occasionally, programs rejected by affiliates.

Network promotion has aided Fox affiliates in positioning themselves, while station promotion has enabled true independents to benefit from their image as a source of alternative programming or as the station to watch for movies or sports. However, positioning the independent is becoming more difficult with the increase in both alternative and specialized program offerings on cable and DBS.

At the heart of the strategy of many independents is the realization that it is unrealistic to try to beat affiliates in all time periods. Rather, they have identified dayparts in which they can compete and have programmed accordingly. Generally, the dayparts have been those in which all affiliates seek similar audiences or in which parts of the available audience have been unserved or underserved. Their strategy has been based chiefly on counter-programming.

The success of their counter-programming points to one of the few programming advantages enjoyed by true independent stations: flexibility in scheduling. Affiliates are expected to carry most of the programming of their networks. The network schedule also determines the amount and times of locally programmed periods. The independent, on the other hand, is free to develop its own schedule and to take advantage of the opportunities to attract audiences whose interests are not being satisfied. Among the best opportunities for counter-programming on weekdays are the following:

Most other periods do not offer significant advantages to independent stations, though effective counter-programming still is possible.

During the morning hours when affiliates are not receiving network programs, the independent is on an equal footing. Homemakers constitute a significant part of the available audience and are the principal target of advertisers. With their appeal to women in the 25 to 54 age group, movies could offer strong competition to the affiliates’ offerings. Alternatives include syndicated talk and off-network situation comedies and dramatic series with strong female appeal. Similar programs may be the most effective way of competing against the network soap operas before the return of children in midafternoon.

Prime time poses a difficult problem for the true independent. The networks’ lineup of entertainment programs attracts large audiences during this period. Movies, off-network dramatic series, and specials offer the best opportunities to attract audiences. From 10:00 to 10:30 or 11:00 P.M., the independent can counter entertainment on the affiliates with local news.

In the late-night daypart, syndicated talk-variety, off-network situation comedies and adventure dramas, or movies are effective competition against network programming.

Weekends provide true independent stations with several opportunities to counter-program. While affiliates are carrying network cartoons or other child- or teen-appeal programs on Saturday mornings, the independent may target adults and older teenagers with movies or sports, such as wrestling. Syndicated popular music, adventure drama, and movies offer alternatives to network sports during the afternoons.

As noted earlier, affiliate programming on Sunday mornings consists primarily of religion, public affairs, and network news magazines and news interviews. The independent station can attract children with cartoons, and young viewers and adults with situation comedies and adventure dramas. Movies are another vehicle to bring adults to the set. Popular-music programs and movies are among the most attractive alternatives to network sports on Sunday afternoons, though some independents go head-to-head against affiliates with regional or minor sports.

PROGRAMMING AND THE STATION REPRESENTATIVE

The traditional role of the station representative firm, or station rep, has been to sell time on client stations to national spot advertisers. However, in the increasingly competitive environment in which television stations operate, reps have assumed an important role in local station programming. Today, rep firms have departments that are experienced in advising stations on the purchasing, scheduling, and promotion of programs.

The move is not surprising. After all, the more attractive the station’s programming, the easier it is to sell time. Competitive programming requires sound information and advice on which to base program purchase and scheduling decisions. The rep can provide such services.

The rep has access to a wealth of information that can be used to strengthen the station’s position. Details of the current performance of network offerings and network program plans, including specials, can provide the station with useful insights for its own planning.

The rep knows which syndicated programs are available or are about to become available. Additionally, the rep is privy to a wide range of information on such programs, including the track records of those that have been broadcast, how they fared in other markets or geographic areas similar to that of the client station, their strength against different kinds of competing programs and among different demographics, and, with off-network programs, how they performed when they were broadcast originally in the market. Using this and other information, the rep can recommend desirable program purchases and realistic purchase prices.

With a proposed new program, the challenge is more difficult. An important consideration is whether it will actually make it to the air. The rep firm programming department can evaluate the program’s prospects before the station commits to it. If a commitment is made, the rep can suggest likely demographic appeal and possible time periods.

The rep programmer also has information on the availability of feature film packages and the performance of individual films in movie theater and network showings.

It has been emphasized that a station’s programming success derives not only from individual programs, but the way in which they are assembled in a schedule. Here, again, the rep’s expertise can be valuable.

Through a close study of the market and competing stations, the rep can identify strengths and weaknesses in the station’s current schedule and propose appropriate changes. It is unlikely that the rep will recommend program purchases in isolation. Generally, such purchases are proposed with an eye to strengthening a daypart, not just a time period.

The rep firm can help the station decide on expanding or contracting the amount of local news programming. For example, the station may be considering adding a half-hour to its early news, starting a Saturday morning newscast, or supplying a newscast to the local independent station. The rep can analyze what has happened in other markets under similar circumstances and can assist the station in making intelligent forecasts in its own market. To achieve the strongest possible lead-in for early news, the rep routinely aids the station in programming the early-fringe time period.

PROGRAMMING FOR CHILDREN

Television stations have wide discretion in selecting the programs they broadcast. Children’s programming is a notable exception.

In accordance with the terms of the Children’s Television Act (CTA) of 1990 and the FCC rules adopted under the act, commercial and noncommercial licensees are required to serve the educational and informational needs of children through their programming. Nonbroadcast efforts that enhance the value of such programming, and efforts to produce or support programming by another station in the market, also may contribute to meeting the requirements.

Children’s programming constitutes an important part of the licensing process. To receive FCC staff-level approval of the CTA portion of its license renewal application, a licensee must demonstrate that it has aired at least three hours per week of core programming, averaged over a six-month period.¹⁷ The FCC characterizes such programming as that which meets the following criteria:

A station that airs “somewhat less” than an average of three hours per week of such programming may still receive staff approval. However, it must show that it has broadcast a package of programming that demonstrates a commitment at least equivalent to airing three hours a week of core programming.

If a station fails to meet either the core or equivalent requirements, its license renewal application is reviewed by the FCC. At that time, the licensee has an opportunity to demonstrate attempts at compliance through non-broadcast efforts and/or support for programming on another station.

FCC Form 398 (Figure 4.5) provides the means by which a commercial station may document its efforts to satisfy the children’s programming requirements. It asks for details of both core and noncore educational and informational programming aired in the preceding calendar quarter, core programming planned for airing in the next quarter, and core programming sponsored by the licensee and aired on any other station in the market. The form must be filed quarterly with the FCC and a copy placed in the station’s public inspection file. Noncommercial stations are exempt from filing the form. However, they must meet the programming obligations.

Figure 4.5 Children’s Television Programming Report (FCC 398).

Television broadcasters also are required to alert parents and others to the content of programs through use of a ratings system for all programs except news and sports. That obligation is in response to a mandate in the Telecommunications Act of 1996 and follows an FCC-approved agreement adopted jointly by the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB), the National Cable Television Association (NCTA), and the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), and titled TV Parental Guidelines.

The guidelines apply to programs designed solely for children and to those designed for the entire audience, including children. They consist of seven categories of programs, with additional content indicators for sexual situations, violence, language, and dialogue (see Appendix A, “TV Parental Guidelines”).

PROGRAMMING AND THE COMMUNITY

The Communications Act imposes on broadcasters the obligation to serve the public interest, convenience, and necessity. Programming is the principal tool used to satisfy that requirement.

Entertainment dominates the programming of most commercial television stations and music-format radio stations. Information is included in the schedule of most stations and is the sole element for many radio stations.

Problems confronting the community of license must not be overlooked in programming. Every three months, licensees must place in their public file a quarterly list reflecting the station’s “most significant programming treatment of community issues.”

To help determine the issues of concern, the program manager and others in managerial capacities must develop a personal involvement with the community. Riding the bus to work and speaking with other passengers, and talking with garage attendants, laborers on construction projects, and others outside the broadcast workplace may result in some valuable insights. Membership in service clubs and nonprofit organizations can be useful, too.

The public interest is served best, however, when the station demonstrates a sincere commitment to community service. Many stations render off-air service through participation in, and sponsorship of, selected events. Opportunities through use of the station’s air time are numerous. They include the following:

Such methods of serving the public interest can go far toward stilling criticisms that broadcast stations are merely vendors of entertainment. In addition, they can lead to improved ratings and increased business by enhancing the station’s image in the community.

Active participation in the community, and service to it, are valuable tools for forestalling threats from citizen groups and fending off challenges to license renewal. They also permit the station to show that it is living up to its responsibility as a public trustee.

The discharge of that responsibility has become even more important in this era of deregulation. Instead of dictating standards, the FCC has entrusted to listeners and viewers the task of deciding the public’s interest. However, the FCC retains its responsibility to ensure that broadcasters remain responsive to the needs, interests, and tastes of their audiences.

WHAT’S AHEAD?

Broadcast programmers will have to respond to the realization that the nation is growing older. The Census Bureau reported that, in 2004, the median age was 36, up from 33 in 1990 and 30 in 1980.²⁰ And it will continue to increase through 2035.

A dominant factor in this phenomenon is the almost 78 million babies born between 1946 and 1964, the so-called “baby boom” generation. Today, boomers account for about 28 percent of the population and about 48 percent of families.²¹

The aging of the United States offers opportunities for radio and television stations. To capitalize on the trend, they will have to be responsive to the needs of older audiences and their unprecedented buying power with relevant entertainment, news, and information content. However, the challenge may be more difficult than it appears. Account executives will be faced with the task of selling a greater number of persons aged 54+ to advertising agencies enamored with the 18- to 49-year-old demographic.

Programming for another element of the population will find greater favor with the advertising community: ethnics, especially Hispanics and Asians. Their numbers are going up more rapidly than those of any other audience segment. And their presence is not limited to certain markets. Indeed, in the 1990s, both groups registered increases in almost every state. Particularly appealing to advertisers is their significant economic clout. No less impressive is the fact that—with African Americans and other nonwhite ethnics—they constitute almost half of the under-24-year-old population.²²

Nonetheless, attracting and retaining those and other audiences will not be easy for stations confronting fierce competition. The array of available entertainment and information choices is rendering consumers much more selective in their choice of medium and allocation of time. Finding the content that best suits their needs, and delivering it in a way that fits their lifestyle, will be difficult challenges.

More and more audiophiles are being attracted to the commercial-free music and other content of satellite radio. The number of subscribers to XM Satellite Radio more than doubled in 2004, to more than three million. Sirius Satellite Radio experienced a virtual quadrupling in its number, to over one million.²³ Even though satellite broadcasters’ penetration of the radio market is relatively modest so far, it will continue to increase and to drain audience from terrestrial stations. A logical weapon for local broadcasters—one that their satellite competitors cannot match—is their localness, a characteristic that they must employ to their advantage in the struggle for audience.

Television stations have been grappling with the problem of declining audience shares for years. They, too, can benefit from identifying themselves closely with their market. However, one of their best hopes of reversing the flow of viewers to cable and DBS may lie in their utilization of their digital channel allocation.

Initially, most stations were simply using their expanded bandwidth to simulcast their analog feed. However, that was likely to change as the major networks developed their news and weather broadband services for affiliates. Additional impetus for multicasting was expected to result from station contemplation of the appeal of other kinds of content, especially that with pay or subscription potential.

Assistance may come from an unlikely quarter—telephone companies. Such an alliance could lead to a dramatic transformation in stations’ traditional business model. A significant boost to a station–telephone company partnership already has come from the chairman of Verizon, a telco striving to compete with cable and DBS in the delivery of television programs. He told broadcasters that his company would be willing to distribute stations’ multicast channels over cellphones and its planned Fios TV service.²⁴ The move could permit broadcasters to profit from an income stream of which they could only dream thus far—subscriber revenues.

Others with video distribution ambitions may also come knocking on TV station doors. One, Crown Castle International, has announced plans for a Digital Video Broadcasting-Handheld (DVB-H) service, capable of delivering to cellphones at least eight television channels in a market. It offers an additional inducement to broadcasters: it would pay retransmission fees to stations providing content.

Another emerging technology that could enhance broadcasters’ efforts to reach on-the-go consumers—and generate new revenues—is the iPod. Product sales have been brisk and have attracted the attention of both stations and advertisers. The audio-only digital device is well suited to the delivery of a range of radio station content. However, it may be attractive to TV stations, too. Some already have been willing to surrender their distinguishing video feature to offer “podcasts,” sound-only versions of their newscasts.

Other TV stations are launching customized online newscasts or re-running edited versions of newscasts online. That practice is expected to grow.

These trends underline what is becoming a crucial programming goal: to attain the widest possible distribution and to mine as many advertiser and consumer dollars as possible.

SUMMARY

Radio and television station programming reaches virtually every household in the United States. It is influenced by the interests of the audience, the broadcaster, the advertiser, and the regulator.

Entertainment is the dominant program element both in radio and television, with the exception of information-format radio stations. However, most stations broadcast a variety of other programs.

Responsibility for a station’s programming rests with the program department, headed by a program manager or program director. In a music-format radio station, department staff generally includes a music director and announcers. In a station with an information format, editors, producers, hosts, anchors, reporters, writers, and desk assistants constitute the majority of the staff. In many television stations, the program department comprises only of a program director. The principal duties of the head of the program department are to plan, acquire, execute, and control the station’s programming. To carry out those duties effectively requires knowledge, administrative and professional skills, and certain personal qualities.

The programming of most radio stations revolves around one principal content element, called a format. Usually it is designed to appeal to a particular subgroup of the population, identified by age, ethnicity, or socioeconomic status. Music is the most common format. Other format categories are information and specialty.

The major sources of radio station programs are the station itself, syndicators who distribute both programs and entire music formats, and networks.

In developing a programming strategy, a radio station selects a format and decides how to execute it. Consistency of sound is a major consideration, and stations seek to attain it through use of a format wheel or clock. The wheel identifies the combination of content elements in a one-hour period and the sequence in which each element is aired. All-news stations broadcast their content in cycles, with a period of time elapsing before each element is repeated. Other important strategic considerations include dayparting, playlist selection, music rotation, and the frequency and length of commercial interruptions.

Television station programming is quite different from radio station programming. In radio, a major goal is to identify a segment of the population and broadcast to it throughout the day. In television, the programmer seeks to attract and retain those persons who are available to view.

Network affiliates use three major program sources: the network, program and feature film syndicators, and the station itself. Independent stations rely on syndicators, station productions, and ad-hoc networks.

In acquiring and scheduling programs, the television station program manager considers many factors. Chief among them are the programming of competing stations, the potential audience, and the station’s program budget. Attention is also paid to the possibility of building audience flow and habit. The basic scheduling strategies are head-to-head, counter, strip, checker-board, and block.

The three original networks—ABC, CBS, and NBC—fill a large part of their affiliates’ schedules. Fox, The WB, and UPN provide considerably less programming to their affiliates. Independent stations must program all time periods themselves.

Despite the challenge, many independents have achieved profitability by concentrating on dayparts in which they can compete effectively. Counter-programming has played an important part in their success.

Many television stations seek program information from their rep company, which is aware of the availability and performance of all syndicated programming. Additionally, the rep can offer advice on scheduling and promoting programs.

Television stations are required to air programming that meets the educational and informational needs of children and to use a ratings system for all content, except news and sports.

Programming is the chief method whereby stations carry out their obligation to serve the public interest. They are required to treat community issues and can use their airtime in a variety of ways to demonstrate a commitment to public service. Service also can be rendered by station involvement in community activities.

Increasingly, broadcast station programmers will have to respond to the needs of audiences that are older and ethnically more diverse. One tool for staving off the intense competition they face is their localness. Partnerships with telephone companies offer the promise of wider program distribution and additional revenue streams for TV stations.

CASE STUDY: RADIO

You are program director of an FM station with an oldies format in a medium market in the Southwest.

The station adopted the format 15 years ago and has faced no format competition.

The total audience numbers have remained fairly consistent. Regularly, you place among the top ten stations in the 20-station market among persons aged 12+.

However, your audience has been aging. And that is having a negative impact on your appeal to ad agencies, whose primary demo is persons aged 25 to 54.

That demo dropped from 71 percent of your audience in 1998 to 68 percent in 2001. Today, it is down to just 60 percent and will continue to fall. Simultaneously, your aged 55+ audience is increasing. It has gone from 21 percent in 1998 to 32 percent and will keep on growing.

General manager Dan Smith has called you to a meeting. General sales manager Mary Reece also will attend. Dan is reacting to an inquiry from your group’s regional manager, who is concerned about the decline in agency buys on the station. Mary has a similar concern. The goal of the meeting is to develop a plan of action.

Dan has concluded that there are three options: (1) change the format to appeal to a younger demo already targeted by one or more stations in the market; (2) adjust the current format to try to retain current listeners and attract new listeners from a younger demo; (3) try to sell your older demos to agencies.

EXERCISES

CASE STUDY: TELEVISION

You are program director of a CBS affiliate in a top-100 market in the Southeast. The market is also served by affiliates of ABC, Fox, NBC, The WB, and PBS. There is no UPN affiliate. Comcast provides cable services.

Your general manager has just returned from a meeting of the company’s board of directors. There, a decision was taken that all stations in the group—including yours—must explore options of using their digital allocation for multicast services.

The board will be meeting again in four weeks. At that time, your general manager will be required to submit a report and the station’s recommendations. The GM has asked for your thoughts on the following questions.

EXERCISES

NOTES

ADDITIONAL READINGS

Broadcasting & Cable Yearbook. New Providence, NJ: R.R. Bowker, published annually.

Eastman, Susan Tyler, and Douglas A. Ferguson. Media Programming: Strategies and Practices, 7th ed. Belmont, CA: Thomson Wadsworth, 2006.

Hausman, Carl, Philip Benoit, Frank Messere, and Lewis O’Donnell. Modern Radio Production: Production, Programming, and Performance, 6th ed. Belmont, CA: Thomson Wadsworth, 2004.

Lynch, Joanna R., and Greg Gillispie. Process and Practice of Radio Programming. Lanham, MD: University Press of America, 1998.

MacFarland, David T. Future Radio Programming Strategies: Cultivating Listenership in the Digital Age, 2nd ed. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum, 1997.

Miles, Peggy. Internet World Guide to Webcasting: The Complete Guide to Broadcasting on the Web. New York: John Wiley, 1998.

Norberg, Eric G. Radio Programming: Tactics and Strategy. Boston: Focal Press, 1996.

Perebinossoff, Philippe, Brian Gross, and Lynne S. Gross. Programming for TV, Radio and the Internet: Strategy, Development, and Evaluation, 2nd ed. Boston: Focal Press, 2005.

Warren, Steve. Radio: The Book, 4th ed. Boston: Focal Press, 2004.