Wired has a very interesting piece on the financial challenges brought up by public radio’s embrace of podcasting. It’s sort of encapsulated by this quote, one listener’s response to a local station pledge drive:
“Why would I sit through all of that if I can get what I like for free online, listen to it on my own time and not be guilted for weeks into giving money?” says Michaels, a real estate agent who says her husband donates to the station on behalf of her family. “I’ve even found a whole bunch of NPR shows online that aren’t on NPR here, which is so great.”
Many local NPR stations have basically been run as NPR (and PRI, and APM) conduits for the past ten or fifteen years, and they’re now realizing that in the 21st century, radio stations no longer have exclusive license to audio content distribution. No longer does being “Your NPR News Source in the Tri-County Area” mean that listeners must turn to your station if they want interesting and informative news audio.
I’m a big advocate of podcasting, and of public broadcasting (as you might imagine, me being a podcasting public broadcaster). Everything’s very much in the air, but this is how I think (hope?) things will shake out:
- As NPR’s non-station audience grows (naturally cannibalizing some local station audience), it must significantly cut the huge fees it charges stations for programming. Its online and sattelite presence will provide lots of underwriting revenue (that’s the stuff that’s like advertising, but isn’t) , and potentially lots of private and public revenue (like the huge Jean Kroc bequest) as well.
- Radio will remain a vital medium for many years to come, just as newspapers have. It’s ubiquity and ease-of-use will not go away, though that advantage will decrease over time.
- Stations will be forced to develop programming that means something to their audience, then distribute it through all the means at their disposal, if they want the audience to continue to care about them enough to give money.
- “Audience” may not continue to mean only “local audience,” as more stations will undertake the KPIG/KCRW model, by combining local community relevance with strong brands that promote broader (inter)national community relevance.
- Stations that produce their own high quality programming (like WNYC and KCRW) will thrive.
- Smaller independent program producers (that’s me!) will view the radio audience and radio stations as great promotion for their podcasts, raising money directly from underwriters and listeners. Currently, TSOYA charge a big fat nothing to the stations that carry the show or our specials.
One big question here is where the non-government, non-corporate money will come from and go to. What will people care enough about to make a contribution to?
In our TSOYA Census, about 60% of the respondents said they would be willing to give directly to The Sound of Young America. Consider, though, that only about 200 of the most enthusiastic listeners responded to the census — it’s a self-selecting group.
Personally, I’ve given directly to Chicago Public Radio to support webstreaming of This American Life before. I’ve thought recently about giving some to KCRW, since I love The Business and The Treatment so much. But if people do give to content producers, will that keep them from giving to their local stations?
Tod Maffin, a CBC broadcaster, points out that “traditional” public broadcasters (those, like the CBC or BBC, supported by government funding) are in a great position, since the podcasting revolution simply gives them expanded opportunities, with only a modest added financial burden.
Of course, all of this comes at a key juncture for The Sound of Young America, as I leave KZSC (where I was bound by university policy not to have any income from the show), so I’m very interested to hear your thoughts about what kind of listening you’ve done in the past, what you plan to do in the future, and what you think The Sound should do.
Anyway, this isn’t a manifesto, it’s more of a first draft, so thoughts are appreciated.