Eric Nuzum says public radio isn’t interested in saving itself. He’s actually quoting somebody else, but saying there’s a case. Specifically,
When I hear public media leaders talk about the state of audience, ratings, and legacy platforms, I hear a very strong decline-centered narrative, with one station CEO infamously saying that “radio is dead.” Really?
When you look at audience behavior—and the attitudinal markers in dozens of qualitative studies—a somewhat different story emerges.
Public radio isn’t dead to them (though, arguably, public radio is pretty much the last radio they listen to any more). Public radio is a part of their lives, still. It and its mission are still deeply important to them.
Do they listen less? Yes. But that’s more because public radio has been stagnant–largely unchanged in any meaningful way–for a generation, not because the audience are no longer interested in listening.
Radio isn’t dead, it is evolving. But public radio, in real and meaningful ways, isn’t.
So why did I stop writing about public radio? I stopped writing about this not because it’s hopeless—but because the answer hasn’t changed. Yet that doesn’t mean the opportunity is gone.
I wasn’t being flip when I mentioned that what I’ve written still holds. If you are reading this and wondering, “Okay, well, what should we do then?” Read. The. Linked. Posts. Above. It’s all there, the entire playbook–from national organizations all the way down to production assistants at local stations.
The links go (in chronological order) to here, here, and here. All good stuff.
Meanwhile, let’s look at the ratings for public stations in the top ten markets:
- WNYC and WQXR in New York.
- KPCC and KCRW in Los Angeles.
- WBEZ in Chicago.
- KQED (#1) in San Francisco.
- KERA in Dallas.
- KUHF in Houston.
- WABE in Atlanta.
- WAMU in Washington (strong #2).
- WHYY in Philadelphia.
- WBUR and WGBH in Boston.
They are all holding steady or going up.
Looking down the market list, I see—
KNOW is #1 in Minneapolis.
KPBS is #1 in San Diego.
KUT is always #1 or #2 in Austin.
WUNC rules in Raleigh-Durham.
In Santa Barbara, public radio (including classical stations) collectively gets around a 25 share, which is enormous—as it has been for years.
What’s the problem?
Alas, radio itself. Listening is moving from narrow-purpose instruments called radios to universal instruments called phones. Last night at a party, I asked a bunch of people what radio stations, if any, they listen to. All of them said they listen to podcasts and streams, some from public radio sources (shows more than stations). And most of these people were retired or close. (One was 20. To her, podcasts and streams are radio, like Netflix and TikTok are TV.)
My point is that public radio has a growing wedge of a shrinking pie, and it’s a pie that tastes like death. But of broadcast. AM is in hospice. Over-the-air TV is on death row. FM is terminal, but in denial. (Give it time. I’d say about a decade.)
The only hope for statons is with engagement. People, digital tech, and the Internet are perfect for that. AI and transmitters are not.
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