Happy short work-week! I think that should become more of a thing. Long weekend. Short work-week. I’ll get in touch with Hallmark and see if we can’t get some cards made up. But I digress. …
The Voice Down the Hallway Read More »
Radio has given me a voice. It’s been loyal to me even when I wasn’t loyal to it. It’s forgiven me when I was a jerk (and there were times when I was a jerk!) and afforded me opportunities I wouldn’t have found anywhere else. Radio introduced me to some of the most wonderful people in the world, and some of the most famous. They’re not always the same thing. It legitimized me to strangers and gave me confidence until I built some of my own. …
Thankful Thursday – Radio Days Read More »
I’ve signed the contract with Hibbert & Stiles . The manuscript has been edited. My fifth book is in production to come out as both a book-book and an eBook. Be Our Guest (working title) will be spineless, not in tone but it physical nature. It’s a quick read meant for publicists, talent managers and anyone at all who has an interest in radio and in getting a guest spot on the air. …
Birthing Another Book Read More »
The “progressive” part of the Ontario Progressive Conservatives was removed from their name on the weekend. What a mess. The Liberals were the real winners of the PC leadership debacle that elected Doug Ford. …
A Ford, A Woman and a Tulip Read More »
Picture it: 1984. Or was it ’85. No matter. I was working as a “swing” host at all-hit-radio CKSL. Think CFTR but in London, Ontario. Swing means my shifts swung around the clock. There were a couple of overnights, an evening, an afternoon and fill-in shifts when necessary. The promotions department asked me to accompany a couple of contest winners to Detroit via limo, to see the Four Tops and The Temptations perform. …
Throwback Thursday – Giving Into Temptations Read More »
Some people have stacks of concert tickets from their teen years. I can count on one hand the number of concerts I saw when I was young. Growing up in rural Ontario, traveling to a live show wasn’t a top priority. Let’s see, there was Triumph, Frank Zappa – I’m already stumped. Apparently I only needed peter pointer and a thumb on one hand. …
Throwback Thursday – Def Jam Read More »
I’ve written and set aside at least a half-dozen columns about the #metoo movement. Most of what’s worth saying has already been said. Then I considered my own experiences and realized I had an unusual one, long ago, that might serve as a cautionary tale. It became my final column before Our London closed its pages for good. I was also invited to talk about it this week on News 95.7 in Halifax. …
Judge With Caution Read More »
Back in September, I posted a blog about what potential radio guests should know before they pitch an idea. (Want to Attract the Media? Follow These Tips!) It was shared several times on social media and some people messaged me privately to say that these things never occurred to them. I know! That’s why I wrote it. 🙂 …
According to New York financial services expert Jack Kelly, they’ve all been fired. …
Where are the Older People at Work? Read More »
It’s been three years since Derek left his last radio job. Or, more accurately, since he was fired. (A rite of passage in our industry.) He decided then and there that he was done with radio and worked for one year in trailer sales before launching his own business: Derek Botten Media. …
Throwback Thursday – Radio Days Read More »
Oh, the texts we receive. From picking apart the tiniest of phrases and attempting to twist them, to just foolish and naive thoughts and ideas, we get ’em all. And just like our Mean Texts video series, I can’t possibly show you the worst of the worst because they’re either full of spewing vitriol, vulgar language or racist and sexist slurs. Here’s a recent sample. Spelling and grammar errors and any crimes against punctuation have not been altered. …
Radio co-hosts in Sydney, Australia are getting a lot of attention because the woman discovered she made a lot less money than the man, and he did something about it. Dave and Kate were a team, equal in their contribution to the show and he decided it wasn’t right that she was paid less, which it wasn’t. …
Not Quite Cause for Celebration…Yet Read More »
Dear PR professionals and those who wish to be,
Every day we in the media are deluged with emails, social media posts, phone calls and other messages from you. Sometimes, what you have to offer is of value to us. Other times it is not. Regardless, if you want to develop a working relationship with us, here are some blunt and handy tips to follow: …
Want to Attract the Media? Follow These Tips! Read More »
And now, more excerpts from the listener text file. …
Text-ament to the Innermost Thoughts of Some ListenersRead More »
Text-ament to the Innermost Thoughts of Some Listeners Read More »
My first two full-time on-air radio jobs found me in country music radio, first in Red Deer, Alberta and then in Prince George, BC. I had some earlier experience with what was then called country & western, through my Mom and Dad and my cousin Wayne’s country band. But my exposure was limited and carefully curated. I grew to love Waylon Jennings and appreciate Conway Twitty. But some of the nasally, twangy stuff made me climb the walls. John Anderson’s Swingin’, anyone? …
Throwback Thursday – The Beautiful Simplicity of the Gentle GiantRead More »
Throwback Thursday – The Beautiful Simplicity of the Gentle Giant Read More »
Does everyone get the Sunday Night Blues? Generally, I just get on with it, but sometimes I feel a bit of dread about Monday. I enjoy my job, really I do, but the longer I do it, the more concern I have about peoples’ states of mind. …
The Vocal Minority Read More »
Ken and I are shooting a TV commercial this morning. It’s not just for our Morning Show on CJBK; afternoon drive host Andy Oudman is also in it and although the script is a closely guarded secret, I gather we are taking part in a mock debate, so it sounds like it will be fun. I will post it here once it’s finished and on the air. …
Starsky & Hutch, Turner & Hootch, Ken & Lisa Read More »
When Ken’s away, I’ll do whatever it takes to not be boring.  Our morning show – a talk show, may I remind you – eats up so much more content when there’s just one person at the helm. Without Ken there to keep the conversation going, there’s only so much I can do alone that’s interesting. Oh, I could prattle on incessantly if I loved the sound of my own voice a bit more! But “interesting” is the key! …
Slings and Arrows of Outrageous Misfortune Read More »