Collaboration is key to healthy public radio

An interview series with station leaders

Part 1: Steve Williams, President and CEO, WBGO

…  the spirit of cooperation and collaboration … exists in public radio. Imagine 24 or so commercial stations (owned by different companies) pooling their research in an effort to make a greater contribution to their medium, not worried about any issues that might arise from sharing proprietary data with others … it could only happen in public radio. (Fred Jacobs)

This may be an obvious point, but it bears repeating: the world should be really thankful for public media. Setting aside the equally-essential national version for a second, local public radio, in its relative freedom to program without being beholden to larger corporate or commercial interests, maintain ties to local communities, and more, is a unique gift to listeners. 

Personally, I appreciate that gift constantly. Sure, almost anything is available on-demand now. But there’s something different about, say, driving in your car and having some gem of a song (that would never get airplay on modern commercial radio) just come on, almost magically. In my world, when a track from Aimee Mann’s brilliant, first solo record suddenly plays, I'm undoubtedly listening to WFUV. Or when Bill Evans’ “Minority” is suddenly and perfectly soundtracking a walk around the city, that’s definitely compliments of WBGO. 

But, just as obviously, that same independence that gives local public radio its magic also presents challenges. More competition for the world’s attention than ever (from the biggest digital audio services, streaming TV… not to mention big commercial radio), less institutional support for small stations, and more, have all fed a general decline in local radio listening since 2018 (source). 

Some of the challenges are equally about the way local stations operate – sometimes almost too independently. There is a scrappy, “go it alone” spirit that’s admirable and powerful. But, as Billy Bragg exclaimed in “There is Power in a Union'' (though he was talking about a literal union), collaboration can be even more powerful. Stations working together is fundamental to the future growth of public radio.

We asked some public radio leaders to weigh in on this and more. First up, WBGO President and CEO, Steve Williams.

SK: What's most surprising about what you’re seeing in public radio right now?

Steve Williams (WBGO): Knowing that BGO has been around for 45 years now, curating the greatest jazz for audiences around the world (thanks to streaming radio), it’s pretty incredible to me how a lot of folks – even jazz lovers – don’t know what BGO is. That “awareness gap” was punctuated by a study that Paragon did for us, finding that only half the people they surveyed, including many jazz fans, knew that BGO existed. So we’re always trying to come up with ways to bridge that gap.

SK: What are some ways you’re bridging the awareness gap?

SW: One is clearly embracing technology/other digital channels. Different people listen in different ways, and it’s always been a priority for us to try to reach everyone. Podcasting, for example, is very fundamental for us – we have a number of award-winning shows, like ”Conversation With Sydney”; “As We Speak w/David Sanborn.” 

We’re creating those shows because it’s incredible content, and we believe in the format, but also because it gives us an easy way to cross-promote everything. The first thing BGO does when it launches a podcast is put it on the broadcast side too, typically as a promotional clip. 

Here’s a related example. When we lost our afternoon anchor a couple years ago (due to cutbacks), we kept our NPR newsfeed but also knew it was critical to maintain some local news “adjacency” – that’s what we’re about. So we created a short arts and culture segment called “The Art of the Story.” But it did more than just maintain that local edge: it provided a place for us to promote a new podcast – in this case, As We Speak with David Sanborn, which became hugely popular. 

We do the same with social media (we have over 100k followers across platforms). In either case, the basic approach is always to unify our efforts as much as possible.

SK: What's an example of collective action that can help public stations?

SW: Well not every station is fully embracing a more holistic digital strategy. Simple knowledge sharing is one easy way to get them on board. If we’re finding digital expansion (podcasting, social, etc) fruitful, the onus is on us to show other stations how: introduce them to new technology that can help facilitate it, show them how we’re leveraging that tech and the success we’re seeing, etc. We’re all in the same boat with regard to the market challenges you mention – getting together and sharing what we all know is critical.

The same concept applies to audience. Public radio listeners all sort of travel together, and the stations they listen to all mirror similar values. You understand that intuitively, and then you go to the data and do the duplication analysis, and it bears that out – sometimes to the tune of 15-20% duplication across stations. 

So the strategy emerges from that: get the data and then work together to come up with ideas on how each station can capitalize on that overall audience. Joint events is one example that immediately comes to mind. 

SK: How much are you using data to help in your decision making?

SW: For us, it’s absolutely fundamental. How can you make solid decisions on things like programming changes, the best ways to market to particular audience segments, etc., without data to point you in the right direction? 

SK: Is that a common perception among local stations? 

SW: I think there’s a bit of a gap there too. Some stations perceive an emphasis on data as more for the commercial stations. Some pay lip service to it but don’t really leverage it. 

There are a lot of reasons for that. Data (both audience and strategic) might not be readily available to everyone, and even when it is, it can be complex. Sometimes it’s easier for stations, particularly the longstanding ones, to fall back on their legacy reputations – on their brands – than to try to back up every decision with data. 

SK: Can a collaborative approach help here?

SW: Absolutely. If a few stations have made analysis a central part of their workflow – built from reliable datasets and easy-to-understand dashboards – it’s not hard to share all of that with other stations. Some of this is about the numbers and trends themselves, but it’s also about merely introducing them to what's out there so they can access that information themselves. 

This also applies to things like DTS, which tracks listening in the car. We’re all well aware of the stats around how most people listen when they’re driving, that is, about 86% are predominantly listening to radio (source). Being able to really understand that means understanding the data, which means accessing tech like DTS. Public media is only just starting to understand this.

In part 2 of this series, we discuss these issues with KCRW's Nathalie Hill. Coming soon...