newsleader media consultancy

My Big Annoucement

2010-08-11T04:50:00.000-07:00

Well, for the past six weeks or so I have had an incredible time heading up Bauer Radio's news services in the north east of England where I'm based.

I've been backed by a great management team including an MD and Programme Directors who understand the value of news and who're giving me the freedom to create new content.

I've been working alongside a collection of hard working and talented young journalists who proved themselves to me within hours of my joining Bauer in their response to the Raoul Moat story. I'm already very proud of them.

Together I believe we all have the potential to create a unique news product for commercial radio in UK. Already I feel we've made some progress in achieving this.

So, with all these positives in mind, I'm delighted to say that I have agreed to take on the role full time.

It of course ends some relationships with clients of my business. I want to take this opportunity to sincerely and wholeheartedly thank the radio and other organisations that have hired me. It's been an incredible 18 months travelling the UK and Europe meeting so many different people but such a rich role close to home is hard to turn down.

I will continue to tweet as my adventure in north east England continues.

Inside Metro Radio - Episode 3

2010-07-19T08:46:00.000-07:00

Inside Metro Radio News - Episode 2

2010-07-10T01:30:00.000-07:00

What a Week

2010-07-07T13:56:00.000-07:00

What a week to start at a local radio station as 'Britain's most wanted man' is being hunted in your area.

For those of you out of the UK, this is the story of Raoul Moat who's wanted on suspicion of a triple shooting. Yesterday it forced police to effectively lock down a small rural village.

I've just started three months overseeing the news team at Metro Radio in Newcastle.

The journalists have risen to the challenge of covering this story amazingly well. They're putting in hard work and extra hours to produce some outstanding coverage. But more than anything, they've shown they really care about doing the best job.

Its one of those situations local radio simply has to deliver on and I think we're doing that.

A couple of the team have even appeared on Sky News. Here are their appearances.

So, a big congratulations to the entire team at Metro. Keep it going guys!

I am currently hiring new journalists to join the team: a Regional Head of News (great job) and two Broadcast Journalists. Details here. Email me if you'd like more details or a chat.

Theatre of the Mind

2010-06-29T03:08:00.001-07:00

As regular readers will know I'm a big Twitter fan.

Yesterday while I was writing a radio news workshop, I wondered about the origins of the expression: 'The Theatre of the Mind' (TOTM).

I couldn't immediately find the answer on the net, and so I threw it out to the Twitterverse...

I'm delighted to say @simonontheradio from Wave 105 on the south coast came up with the answer - I think.

American Stan Freberg is a real multi-media worker. Wikipedia describes him as a writer, recording artist, cartoon voiceover, comedian, radio star, puppeteer, and advertising creative director!

He's still working today at the age of 83.

Known for his creativity and inventiveness, he presented a satircal show on CBS Radio taking over from the famous Jack Benny in 1957.

What followed you might say was an early attempt at radio podcasting. He released a version of his programme on an album which he called 'pay radio'.

Here's how Wikipedia describes part of this show:

"...through the magic of sound effects, Freberg drained Lake Michigan and refilled it with hot chocolate and a mountain of whipped cream while a giant maraschino cherry was dropped like a bomb by the Royal Canadian Air Force to the cheers of 25,000 extras viewing from the shoreline. That bit became a commercial for advertising on radio."

You can hear it here.

Freberg referred to this way of using radio to visualise something,'Theater (corr) of the Mind'.

If you want to hear more, click here and thanks to Simon Clarke on this one!

@BexLindsay suggested Orson Wells might be the man to credit for TOTM. You know what happened of course - when the martian invasion drama War of the Worlds was broadcast in 1938, presented as news bulletins, listener assumed it was for real.

I can't find a reference to Wells referring to Theatre of the Mind but I stand to be corrected on this. Its certainly a great example of TOTM in action!!

Inside Metro Radio News - Episode 1

2010-06-28T07:37:00.000-07:00

So, starting next week I begin 3 months as Acting News Editor at Bauer Media's radio stations in north east England.

I'm setting out with the team to bring a new, distinctive sound to radio news here and you'll be able to check our progress on You Tube.

The journalists and I will be recording our experiences on a channel called Inside Metro Radio News. Its a way of sharing knowledge and learning and it's in the spirit of today's open media.

Episode 1 has just been published. Have a look and stay tuned!

Summertime at Metro Radio

2010-06-19T12:15:00.000-07:00

I'm very excited about a summer assignment which will involve me working for Bauer Radio for the first time ever.

As you can read here I've been hired to interim manage and develop news at CFM (Cumbria), Metro Radio (Newcastle) and TFM (Teesside).

I can't wait and I've got some new ideas which I'll be sharing with you on this blog in the weeks ahead.

An Absolutely Great Use of Twitter

2010-06-13T12:45:00.000-07:00

I wanted to share a really nice example of tweeting from @absoluteradio

A podcast listener tweeted this...

@absoluteradio's response...

So, what does this innocent little tweet prove:

1. @absoluteradio is monitoring its Twitter account effectively.
2. It acts on listener feedback and is seen to be doing so.
3. In @willbowie now has an ambassador for life!

Good work I'd say.

Tips for Owning An Event

2010-05-27T11:10:00.000-07:00

There have been some huge events making news here in the UK in 2010. Two of them just weeks apart from each other - the General Election of course and the impending World Cup.

Absolute Radio Owning the World Cup with Baddiel and Skinner

They're the sorts of stories your audience will be talking about, so as a radio station you need to be completely on top of them. I talk about owning an event - giving the listener the perception that your station is the station to hear the best coverage. But how can you achieve this?

Today I've sent some tips via my Twitter account (with the help of some of you) and here is a compilation of the advice:

Plan ahead – crucially important - identify the events you want to ‘own’ 6-12 months in advance and start work!

Remember accreditation applications for some events need to be in mths ahead.

A planning example from @davidelstone "We've kept an eye out for football stars locally & now have WC audio inc G Hurst & P Shilton."

Field your strongest possible team. In other words, try to ensure core talent aren't on holiday during the event period.

For events that will be reported widely think: “What will make us standout?” Be bold. Be different!

For national/world events, look for unique local angles but they must be compelling and meaningful.

Be ambitious. With mths to go, bid for ‘dreamteam’ interviewees. They can only say 'no' (altho' hopefully they won't).

RT @AndrewStuart on aiming high for guests "I bid 4 Sir Patrick Moore 4 moon landing 40th annivers'. Didnt think id get him but did!"

RT @niknewsradio on World Cup prep - work stats to ur advantage, extensive research of previous fixtures/results/players/clubs everyone loves a stat, quirkier the better!

RT @niknewsradio track down local england fans who are going to south africa before they go, set up contact for the 'real fans focus'

Remember popular guests/experts may be booked up months in advance. It’s that planning thing again!

Brainstorm ideas with the team – challenge them in advance to propose 2-3 ideas.

RT @smartin if you can't truly own a big event, better to own a small event and make it bigger < agreed. Or create your own event!

News teams - plan big event coverage in full partnership with your colleagues in programming (and vica versa).

Do you need new production/promos to sell your coverage?

Does the event offer commercial opportunities for the station? Remember big events have strict restrictions in this area.

Set up a dedicated Twitter feed for the event with caution. What will your followers experience after the event?

Perhaps better to use event coverage to build followers on your core Twitter account/s but set Twitter lists that are event relevant.

Can listeners hear or watch the event on yr website? Consider adding Facebook Live as forum for discussion/marketing for yr station.

Make the most of your best coverage. Replay compelling content across the day. Ensure as many listeners as possible hear it.

For evening events, re-live/replay what happened on the breakfast show. Don’t regard it as ‘old news’.

RT @jamesstodd Use listeners, players & reaction in promos & imaging to create buzz. Red Dragon owned Rugby W Cup 99 with no rights.

RT @jameswest involve listeners in coverage. Let them win tickets/access to event then get them to report back what they saw on prog.

Showcase the best coverage on-line, distribute through social networks.

Once the event’s over remind the listener of the good job you did with ‘best of’ promo spots

Anything to add, please leave your own tips in the comments section. Thanks!

Radio news 'most trusted' and social media explosion

2010-05-18T14:11:00.000-07:00

Radio is the most trusted news source and the amount of internet users who’ve got a social networking account has doubled in the last two years.

These are just a few of the findings of an interesting research study carried out on behalf of the UK’s broadcasting regulator, OFCOM. More than 1,800 people over the age of 16 were surveyed for this in 2009.

Of these 66% said they tended to trust radio news. On-line beat television’s score for the first time scoring 58% and 54% respectively while newspapers trailed on 34%.

This high trust rating is great news for all of us who work in radio news but I don’t think it should be a surprise. I think it’s down to the special relationship listeners have with radio stations. It is intimate and personal (what other media wakes you up and follows you into the car?) and bonds grow between radio broadcasters and their audience.

Also when times are hard - like the terrible winter we had this year - radio’s localness, reactivity and interactivity mean it remains a powerful proposition.

SOCIAL NETWORKING

Any decent research on the usage of social networking is very welcome as this area is continuing to grow at light speed. I have to change my slides for the social media course I teach for the EBU every month because of developments.

To sum up the findings from the study for OFCOM – four in ten internet users have a social networking profile. This compares to a figure of two in ten two years ago.

This chart breaks the figures down. Note that almost one in three 45-55 year olds said they have a profile. Social media is not just for the kids!

Click on the chart to see it enlarged.

Source: OFCOM UK Adults’ Media Literacy, May 2010

Facebook’s dominance is shown in these figures.

Source: OFCOM UK Adults’ Media Literacy, May 2010

For anyone who watches social media closely the broad findings of this study may not be surprising. Although the research does confirm the explosion in take up of social networking, across all areas of the population. So, for broadcasters trying to convince executives of the value in investing in it, here are some statistics you may wish to leave on their desks.

You can look at the full report here.

newsleader on You Tube

2010-05-18T03:10:00.000-07:00

You Tube has announced that its smashed through the 2 billion video views per day mark.

It's an incredible figure and strange to think that we hadn't heard of it just FIVE years ago.

You may not have seen my You Tube debut. Filmed at the EBU's Training Assembly, I talk about the talents needed to go from working in radio to multi-platform.

It's not a bad presentation but I'm not sure about the screen grab!

Stop, Listen and Learn with the Sonys Update

2010-05-14T02:24:00.001-07:00

You may have read my post from earlier this week about the benefits of making Sony Awards audio available to those of us working in radio.

Well, here's an update of sorts courtesy of the newly crowned UK Station of the Year, BBC Radio 5 live.

For the first time ever it has made its award entry public here.

Excellent idea!

Stop, Listen and Learn With The Sonys

2010-05-11T13:28:00.000-07:00

So the UK's Sony Radio Awards are over for another year.

Sony night fun: L-R Producer James Stodd, GTN's Will Jackson and me

It is an amazing night of bonding for nominated teams who get an opportunity to cheer, whoop and bang the table in support of their station (GMG and Global Radios seemed very good at this last night). It is a night for them to celebrate their hard work and get recognised for it. This is brilliant and long may it continue.

But as special as it is, many people in the Ballroom of the Park Lane Hotel last night or watching via the web will never hear the winning radio and that is a huge shame.

I'm in a privileged position as a judge - an honour that has been bestowed upon me four times - in that I listen to maybe upwards of 30 entries a year. This year the quality was the highest yet and in chats last night I learnt that I'm not alone in thinking this. Many entries that didn't make the top 5 were outstanding and I'm sure would inspire peers.

So, how to make some of this compelling content available to the radio community to hear? In this way the Sonys would fulfil an educational function in helping develop and feed the minds of presenters, producers and so on. I think it would be particularly useful in showcasing the ideas and talent in smaller stations that might be heard rarely by our wider industry.

It was a point raised initially by 'Jane' during my live blogging of this year's Sony nominations as you can see below...

Well, as I promised that night I fed Jane's point back to Tim Blackmore, the Chairman of the Sonys. He supports the idea which is clearly good news. As I understand it there have been on-going discussions about trying to make it happen.

Unfortunately I don't think it's going to be easy. There will be legal issues of copyright and royalities as well as practical considerations e.g. who would be responsible for uploading, curating and promoting the content?

So let's see how this one develops but wouldn't it be fabulous if the Sony Awards become even more significant to the UK radio industry in this on-going way?

Would you listen to Sony 'approved' audio? Perhaps you work in a country where already you have the chance to hear award nominated or award winning material? Has it helped inspire you or your colleagues. I'd be interested to hear how useful you think access to the audio would be to you, as I'm sure Tim would too.

newsleader Update May 2010

2010-05-11T13:18:00.000-07:00

Its been a while since I posted an update on what I'm doing, so here it is!

Its been a very busy first quarter - at one point I had 3 separate trips to European cities and another in the UK within 10 days. When you start to recognise cabin crew on different flights across a week you realise you're doing a lot of air miles!! Lots going on in the months to come too.

June sees me lead my fourth master class in news and social media for the European Broadcasting Union. On my website I've listed the TV and radio broadcasters who've participated so far and it is pretty impressive. It's been great to enable different broadcasters to share experiences and ideas.

At the last master class in April, I was delighted that Channel 4 News' Chief Correspondent Alex Thomson attended from the UK as guest speaker. He talked about how Channel 4 use social media and about his recent tweeting from the front line in Afghanistan. Alex seemed to enjoy the master class. Here's a tweet he sent:

You can watch a clip of Alex here.

There are likely to be more news and social media assignments for me in the summer. I think a small article I wrote about social media for Esquire magazine should be published in June too.

I'm chuffed to be doing more training with GMG Radio's news teams in the UK, planned for July and August.

They're a great bunch of journalists deservedly rewarded with Arqiva and Sony Award nominations this year. The Group Head of News James Rea and myself are currently discussing what form the training will take, aiming to do something different and memorable for participants.

Otherwise, I may be travelling to the Middle East on a training project currently being discussed and closer to home there's an imminent assignment at the University of Sunderland.

I'm always happy to discuss ideas for projects so please feel free to get in touch. Whether you're in the UK or abroad it'd be good to talk!

Election 2010 - Radio's Best Bits

2010-05-08T12:25:00.000-07:00

Well, what an election! For as unremarkable the campaigning may have been (except for Bigot-gate perhaps), the fallout has been both fascinating and gripping.

The uncertainty of a hung parliament meant a very intense period of continuous coverage for many radio journalists. 13 or 14 hour shifts seemed pretty common. I spotted one head of news mention a 36 hour run in a tweet!

So, congratulations to all my colleagues. I have to admit I felt pretty guilty sitting in front of the TV awaiting David Dimbleby last Thursday night although I did have a lap top by my side providing a commentary of sorts via Twitter.

All the talk was of an election defined by social media. I think this is true to a certain extent. Social media coverage was certainly one of the differences between this and other elections. It extended awareness of and enabled a live discussion of the big broadcast debates between the leaders.

Some journalists used Twitter as a reporting tool, giving a continuous narration to their stories. Not enough in my view. In my experience of training broadcast editors and reporters in using social media, many are still learning its benefits and potential and it may not be until the next election (perhaps sooner rather than later) that this will be more fully realised.

But if we widen the topics of social media to talk about interactivity on-line there were two impressive examples during the election.

Firstly, BBC Radio 5 live’s Election Story. This very clever tool on the 5 live website is still live at the time of writing. It enables you to search for election content on the station by key words e.g. crime, immigration or personalities or you can search by dates. Users can listen again to interviews and listener debates and read texts and emails etc sent to programmes.

It’s a user friendly and very good looking way to aggregate the best of what 5 live has had to offer during the election. Not only a good way for more people to use the content but an impressive introduction to the station for potential new listeners. Congratulations to Brett Spencer and his interactive team.

One of 5 live’s rivals, London’s LBC 97.3 also impressed me with its interactive coverage on-line. For example, there was the LBC Election Computer. This was a game in which the user answered questions to give opinions on issues and was told which party best matched her views. It was simple but a good fit for ‘London’s Biggest Conversation’ and I think it had a potential viral quality.

LBC also unveiled its interactive election map , again still live on-line at the time of writing this blog. Just click on an area of London to get all the voting facts and figures. It is really encouraging to see commercial radio investing in good quality on-line content like this.

Of course interactivity isn’t all about flashy gadgets on your website. It is also about quality debate and speaking to the people who really matter – your audience. Both BBC Radio 5 live and LBC got out of the studio during the campaign.

5 live’s audience debates around the UK gave listeners the chance to have their say. At least one of these was simulcast on the BBC News Channel. LBC had its battle bus with this year’s radio awards darling Nick Ferrari at its helm.

But LBC wasn’t the only London station to dust down a Routemaster and get out and about. In fact the idea is nothing new for my old station BBC London 94.9 which has broadcast from a converted bus for a number of years.

Here, Assistant Editor Gareth Roberts explained to me the thinking behind bus broadcasts for the election:

“We wanted to make it clear that we were covering a London election not just a Westminster one, so sent the "Battle for London Bus" out to 7 different far flung locations around the capital during the campaign. We spent the whole day, from 6am to 7pm broadcasting inserts from each of the locations giving our reporters the chance not only to interview the candidates but also spend time meeting local voters and campaign groups to get good stories on local issues. The Bus also worked well from a marketing point of view by making sure we were highly visible with plenty of branding and merchandise to hand out in busy areas, some of which we rarely go to. The exercise was also an election campaign for the radio station too.”

So, which London talk station would your vote go to? RAJAR figures for this period will be the judge I guess and with the drama beyond May 5 speech stations may have good reason to be optimistic.

I also want to mention BBC Radio 1 Newsbeat. It allowed young members of its audience to put their questions to the leaders and if those leaders thought this would be a breeze how wrong they would be.

This was an example of the importance of doing your research. Newsbeat found participants who not only had good, relevant questions but also a Paxman-esque bent – really pressing the leaders for answers. In fact one of the broadsheets acclaimed the interviews as the toughest suffered by the leaders during the campaign.

I have always encouraged news teams to be creative but Radio 1 provided a lesson that sometimes the most impactful news content can be the simple idea done brilliantly. It's worth remembering.

So, congratulations to all those mentioned above but what stations do you think did a good job of covering the election on-air or on-line? Please feel free to honour them below.

(Westminister pic by Adam Hickmott and courtesy of freedigitalphotos.net)

Now The Dust Has Settled

2010-04-26T08:05:00.000-07:00

Well, it’s been an interesting week!

It takes some story to knock an impending General Election off from the top of the news but the volcanic ash cloud achieved it. Wide scale travel stories are good fare at the best of times but add a volcano into the mix and you’ve got a fabulous story. Not so fabulous if you’re caught up in the chaos though.

If you follow me on Twitter @newsleader, you’ll have read that I was stranded in Tenerife. My family and I were due to fly back on Sunday and we ended up arriving home on Thursday evening.

On the upside, it meant more time in the sun and the kids loved it but on the negative side it meant lost work and lots, LOTS of inconvenience. The biggest frustration was the uncertainty of not knowing when or indeed how we were going to get home. This was shared by many of the holiday makers in the package hotel where we were staying.

Anger boiled over at one point when a meeting chaired by our (brilliant) holiday rep had to be abandoned.

In our world of new technologies and social media, it taught me a journalistic lesson – never be without the means to record and publish.

As I listened to stories from fellow holiday makers from around the UK of missed exams, jury service and even a family who missed their rescue flight home, I of course realised the high value of these tales to the media. All areas of the country were represented within one single room.

If I’d have been a broadcast journalist stranded and missing work, I actually could’ve produced some unique, embedded content from the hotel.

So, can I suggest that today's smart journalist should never be without a smart phone with its cameras and voice recorders? Net books and small laptops too now make it possible for us to be connected and able to publish where ever we go. The TV news channels made a lot of use of Skype-d two-ways I noticed.

I know a holiday should be just that – a holiday but the ash cloud reminded me that news can happen at any time and we can end up in the right position to tell the story.

So, if you’re going away this summer and a similar thing were to happen, have you got the means to be able to report back? Best review that packing list!

Tips for Talk Radio

2010-04-07T06:04:00.000-07:00

This morning I tweeted a collection of tips for compelling talk radio.

I'm delighted to say many of you joined in too and, as always, thank you for that.

It's not too late to share your golden tips of course. Just add to the comments section below.

Remember listening patterns = at breakfast cover the main stories every 20 mins.

Local stations get a good balance - go all local and risk the listener going elsewhere for national/world news.

Re-cycle the best content to ensure it’s heard by the largest numbers of listeners.

Replay on air and post on-line, enabling you to share your best bits via Facebook, twitter etc.

RT @journotutor Talk to one, not to many

Effective use of social media can help you expose your content to non-listeners.

Use compelling clips in imaging and trails though refresh regularly.

Breakfast shows - do not disregard stories from last night. Your audience may not have heard them.

RT @emmagilliam Brek stories: remember to give the story a 'today' hook so previous listeners get s/thing new too

RT @UCFJourno: Compelling talk radio @newsleader Know your audience, converse don't lecture, get them involved, think and act multimedia

Don't just throw out to audience with general Qs eg "Tell me what you think about this"...

Be specific .. give suggestions eg "has it happened to you..what would you do..how would you feel if it happened to your family?"

RT @davidelstone If you're getting a certain demographic on the phones, balance by getting out and voxing

RT @emmagilliam You're a presenter? Remember - life happens to you and yr family too! Listeners want reality.

Listeners stories make rich content - often far stronger than opinion.

Listen to your callers - don't talk all over them. They've called you so let them have their say.

Meet the listeners face to face, find out what makes them tick.

Get reporters out as much as possible and use them in bulletins as well as programmes.

Be heard to be the station that's always out in the community - work hard to win that perception.

Health check your content - is every item today relevant or highly relevant to the listener?

What items will the listener tell her friends about? It’s a good test for strong, relevant content.

Aim for content likely to get a reaction - horror, surprise, laughter etc. Move the listener.

RT @brettsr the strongest way of making any of your digital content work is a call to action from the presenter on air

Talent scout using social media - identify good story tellers with large followings - can you hear them on Audioboo?

Create a consistent one station approach to the day - ie what are the big stories for the station, not for each show.

This enables successful topics to develop through the day and encourages shows to refer to other shows.

RT @ShanaBP Treat your callers like they're co-hosting the show. Quality is better than quantity.

Log your talk topics - helps you check when you last covered topics and inspires you on quieter days.

RT @journotutor Respect your audience: assume intelligence but not necessarily knowledge

Photo: freedigitalphotos.net

Read newsleader's live blog on Sony Nominations night

2010-04-04T05:57:00.000-07:00

From 7pm on Wednesday April 7, Jamie Theakston of Heart 106.2 Breakfast will announce the 2010 Sony Academy Award nominations.

I'll be live blogging here, so if you can't be at the annoucements do yourself, check this live blog for my reaction and those of your colleagues.

I'll be monitoring the Twitter hashtag #sonys.

Sony Academy Awards Nominations

Tips for Radio Teams Using Social Media

2010-03-19T15:26:00.000-07:00

Ok, here's the presentation I gave at the EBU's Multimedia Meets Radio conference. There's an audio commentary as well as the slides. Please feel free to share with your colleagues etc.

Crowdsourced: The Top Ten Tips For Using Social Media in Radio

View more presentations from newsleader media consultancy.

Postcard from the Netherlands

2010-03-19T13:37:00.000-07:00

I’m writing this in the dining area at Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam (right) after a great time at the EBU’s Multimedia Meets Radio conference – listening to some inspiring presentations and meeting interesting new colleagues.

I’m going to share some of the notes I made during workshops on social media and user generated content.

The event was held at an amazing building. The Netherlands Institute for Sound and Vision is in the town of Hilversum (20km from Amsterdam) which is where broadcasting first started in the Netherlands. It is an archive and museum for broadcasting and it seems to be popular if the excited schoolchildren I saw were anything to go by. It is on a Media Park where many broadcasters are based.

Ok then, the first session discussed social media and radio. It seemed to be recognised by most people as an important tool for radio stations to use but experiences vary greatly from those who’re well advanced to those really yet to start.

Danish Radio’s P3 is a station which falls in the former category. Its Editor in Chief for Communities, Kasper Tostesen – who joined from MSN – explained how this youth stations provides content wherever its listener is i.e. on radio, on-line, on Facebook etc. It has created a ‘live' widget aggregating what P3 content the listener can access at any one time. So, it might include details of the song on the radio, the latest comment on Facebook or video posted to the website. It is simple but smart. P3 is clearly a station which understands the need for radio to be truly multi-platform.

Andrea Borgnino from Rai in Italy spoke about a version of Fantasy Football supported by social media content. Crucially, real football players and managers cast votes to influence the competition. I have to be honest – I wasn’t clear exactly how it worked but it was definitely an interesting concept. Unsurprisingly in the football loving Italy it has been hugely popular – the demand even caused a computer server to crash. For me it underlined the critical importance of the content itself. Social media are tools to reach new listeners or enhance a listening experience but they are tools and, as it has always been, content still needs to compel and engage.

The Editor in Chief of Radio Netherlands International, Rik Rensen advised social media should be used with caution by international broadcasters as, for example, there was not a wide use of Facebook in Africa. To demonstrate his point of digital differences he showed this news report on poor broadband in South Africa:

Neat story eh? Not everyone shared the Editor’s view and his session simulated debate over the morning coffee break.

Rik also showed these TV spots for a US diner encouraging customers to fan/follow it on social media - brilliant!

(Picture on the right by @foodiesarah)

I spoke about practical tips to help radio use social media more effectively. I shortly will post the entire presentation with an audio commentary.

I advised delegates not to broadcast but to interact with users on social media but Jan Hoek, the Director General of Radio Netherlands Worldwide asked me how this was possible if you had thousands of followers?

Well, a good question. Not all of them are likely to interact directly with you but a decent number may well tweet you. I said this was a big issue for broadcasters who’re encouraging their listeners to use social media. I think it is an issue to address when looking at the work flow within your broadcaster or programme.

An open and honest policy may be an option i.e. from time to time, thanks people for their tweets and apologising for not being able to answer them all. You may decide to concentrate on answering tweets which will benefit a wider audience. The honest answer is that broadcasters are still feeling their way on this but, yes, it is an issue. (How are you coping with Facebook messages and tweets? Let me know your own way of working on this.)

A workshop on user generated content was to follow. Freelance radio and multimedia journalist, Kate Arkless Grey (@radiokate) talked about the BBC Save Our Sounds project she spearheaded. It relied upon listeners to the BBC World Service contributing recordings of endangered sounds where ever they should be. Clearly a good radio project but the crowdsourcing of content also made it a perfect vehicle for social media engagement. As with the Rai example, the content is a very strong proposition.

The session I found most useful was from the Guardian’s Local Editor, Sarah Hartley(@foodiesarah). She explained the UK newspaper and multi-media company’s policy on UGC. She said it was no longer a case of content is king but context is king. She said within the Guardian there is a term used called Mutualisation describing how the audience has become part of the news gathering process.

Sarah showed this chart of the production process of a newspaper from its writing to consumption – everything below the line was how the reader USED to be involved..

Then, she showed how the reader is NOW involved...

These were the five tips for successful use of audience generated content...

Not only was it good to finally meet @foodiesarah and @radiokate properly but @markrock – the CEO of Audioboo – was at the conference too. He did a live demo of his audio microblogging tool which I’ve been supporting for a while. It proved to be very popular with delegates too. A number of who told me they were interested in finding out more.

But you need to be careful when you’re around Mark because I discovered he could be audiobooing at anytime! Here’s an example recorded over lunch with @radiokate...

Listen!

(As you can see I take pictures of slides as well!!)

So, good times with existing colleagues, great to meet new ones and some inspiring sessions. I also loved a Twitter world cloud which appeared on the conference big screen from time to time, morphing into the latest tweets on the sessions. This was definitely a hit and raised a smile from time to time!

Congratulations to Michael and Matthew and all at the EBU for organising a successful event. I’d love to be asked back next year ;)

UPDATE: @foodiesarah has blogged her thoughts on the conference.
I've uploaded some more pictures of my trip on Flickr.

Compelling reporting from Afganistan

2010-03-15T14:45:00.000-07:00

Just watched this compelling report from Channel 4 News' Alex Thomson in Afganistan.

Highly recommended.

When you see the troops come under fire, Alex also tweeted a dramatic commentary although it was published with a time delay for security reasons.

Have a read of these tweets and others from Afganistan(you'll need to scroll down to March 11, 12 and 13).

Brand Obama

2010-03-03T14:05:00.000-08:00

I'm currently working on a project about radio branding and I've just come across this fabulous presentation about what brands can learn from Barack Obama.

With thanks to Absolute Radio which originally posted this on its unique One Golden Square blog.

Anyway, take a look. There's a lot of good stuff in just a few slides...

Brands Obama

View more presentations from carriewallder.

BBC Strategy Review on Radio

2010-03-02T04:17:00.000-08:00

Well, it is finally out and while the decision to axe 6 Music and the Asian Network makes the headlines, if you read the document there are proposals affecting many people working on BBC radio.

I recommend you read the whole document, which I admit I've just had time to scan this morning, but here is a snapshot of some of the points regarding radio:

- Radio 1 "should increase its commitment to UK music, new music and live performance as well as social action programming, specialist music and cross-platform initiatives."

- Radio 2 to commit to "at least 50% speech during daytime".

- "The BBC will...review how some of 6 Music’s most distinctive programmes can be successfully transferred to other BBC radio stations, and how its support for new and specialist music can be sustained across the BBC."

- The strategy recognises "the lead role that commercial radio plays in serving popular music to 30-50 year old audiences, through the proposed closure of 6 Music and the refocusing of Radio 1 and Radio 2."

- Regarding the Asian Network, an option is "to replace it with a network of five part-time local services with some syndicated national Asian programmes...serving areas with the largest British Asian communities."

Here's the section on Local Radio:

"BBC local radio is of great value and importance to audiences up and down the country. It provides a vital space for debate and a key source of reliable, independent news. The BBC’s public purpose to serve communities could not be fulfilled without it. However, it can nonetheless improve in its quality and originality, and this strategy therefore proposes reforming local radio in England to achieve just that. Specifically, investing in better quality local journalism
within the core listening hours at breakfast, mid-morning and drivetime will be enabled through the sharing of some content across services in non-peak hours...A new ‘contract for local’ will define a series of BBC commitments and limits, including a commitment to never becoming any more local in England—that is, never to
increase the BBC’s number of local services on television, radio and online or to make any existing services more local."

The First All-Tweeting General Election

2010-02-25T04:52:00.000-08:00

Here's a piece published this week in the e-radio newsletter...

So, how would your station cover the election of Prime Minister Cameron?

We may or may not get a new government but one thing I know for sure is that general election planning has been underway for months for many editors.

You can expect some bold ideas – I have a preview of some of them here - because landmark stories like these give a station the chance to prove what it is made of. (There has already been one example in 2010 with the weather.)

For the first time, listeners will get to hear the three party leaders debate the big issues as they have agreed in principle to three, live televised face offs. I understand that two of these three, on the BBC and Sky News, will be made available to radio to simulcast.

Of course, this does not prevent a single radio station trying to secure its own exclusive debate.

I would be surprised, for example, if LBC 97.3 has not put in a bid in an attempt to mimic the candidates’ debates broadcast during the last London Mayoral Election LBC’s Programme Director and Group News Editor for Global Radio, Jonathan Richards is keeping his plans in the file marked ‘Top Secret’ for the time being.

BBC Radio 1 Newsbeat and GMG Radio have revealed a little of what they have in store though.

They of course target different audiences but their plans have something in common – to put listeners at the centre of their coverage.

GMG’s Head of News, James Rea told me his teams are currently busy plotting where reporters need to be heading:

“The Real Radio stations are working out their swing seats and crunch counts where, across the campaign, we’ll be talking to ‘real’ people to get instant on the ground reaction to all the twists and turns.”

I think hearing listeners interpret events helps hugely in making a story like this relevant to the listeners back home and I like Newsbeat’s plan to engage the youth audience.

Tom Bateman is heading up the election coverage:

“BBC Radio 1's Newsbeat and 1Xtra News will be taking their inflatable election sofa around the UK and sitting their listeners down to talk about the issues that matter to them. We'll be finding out what first time voters are thinking and saying, and we'll be putting listener interaction and social media at the heart of our coverage.”

I find the social media angle to this election particularly exciting. This is the first General Election in the twitter age and it provides radio the chance to offer a new, inclusive commentary.

A successful example happened last year when CNN teamed up with facebook to cover President Obama’s big inauguration event.

facebook users were able to log on via the CNN website. A live, rolling feed of their comments then appeared next to live video coverage of the event. (This is part of the facebook Connect service.) An average of 8,500 remarks was posted every minute during Obama’s speech, providing ‘real’ commentary of the historic event.

Again, this was an attempt to put the audience at the centre of coverage.

Don’t get me wrong. Listeners still need good quality radio journalism, hopefully making sense of what is happening and what it means to the listener. For example, Steve Hothersall, News Editor at Radio City, and his colleague John Pickford, News Editor at Key 103 tell me their focus is on providing local cover for breakfast bulletins the morning after the election.

However, anything new - like social media - gives broadcast journalists and producers the chance to think differently and I am all for that.

Picture: freedigitalphotos.net

Thoughts on Social Media and News

2010-02-16T06:16:00.000-08:00

Listen to delegates on the News and Social Media Master Class that I ran for the European Broadcasting Union.

Listen!

Recommended Listening

2010-02-16T03:12:00.000-08:00

I've posted about interviewing and how best to do it on this blog previously and here is an example that I recommed you listen to.

It is an interview in which the presenter says very little - her questions are concise and without emotion, allowing the interviewee to tell his story. This is done is a very powerful way.

Listen here.

With thanks to @RadioKate who tweeted a link to the audio this morning.

If you are in the UK, the TV documentary in which Ray Gosling makes his confession can be watched for the next seven days here.

Talk Radio for Women – a Missed Opportunity?

2010-02-13T17:06:00.000-08:00

We have little talk radio in the UK and, in our markets awash with Hearts, Magics, Reals and Smooths, we have no talk radio targeting women.

When you first start in radio, researchers are keen to stress the importance of the female listener who, we’re told, tends to decide what station’s on the set.

So, how do you think a talk station aimed at these very important people would do? Depending on where you are in the world, you may already have one on-air.

As far as I can remember there has only been one station in the UK that clearly stated that it was for women and that was called Viva. Remember that? It later became Liberty.

Neither lasted but, before you scoff that it kills off the suggestion, these stations were on AM and Liberty’s breakfast presenter was a certain Toby Antsis, now networked across the UK every morning on the hugely successful Heart network.

As I say, talk radio for women does exist elsewhere in the world.

For example, my Talk 107.1 has just relaunched in the Minneapolis and St. Paul’s market of the US.

I really like the concept with a Richard and Judy type morning show, the Shop Girls on a Saturday morning and Katie K-9 with advice for your pet pooch.

The aim is to appeal to women but without alienating men. This is nothing new of course.

How’s my Talk doing? I’m sending a copy of this blog post to its Program Director, so we may find out soon (I’ve been unable to source the Arbitron listening figures on-line so far) but it certainly has an active facebook community.

Speaking of which, isn’t social media proving again how we ALL love to talk? (Facebook confirms its huge 350 million users are split pretty evenly between males and females.)

It seems to me for every arguement against talk radio for women – “These stations are traditionally more popular with men” – there is a counter – “Ok, well, how about a little show on BBC Radio 4 called ‘Woman’s Hour’”.

What do you think?

What are YOUR tips for social media?

2010-02-13T14:17:00.000-08:00

At the European Broadcasting Union's Multimedia Meets Radio conference, I want to showcase your tips for effectively using social media for radio.

I have some crackers so far but I need more please, particuarly from radio folk outside the UK. What's worked well for you?

e.g. from twitter RT @jiminthemorning Be as you are on air. Converse, don't broadcast. Respond. Share. RT. Shed light, don't generate heat. Be a friend

Who knew you could say (learn) so much in less than 140 characters!

Go on, share! Thanks x

Great US Snow Promos

2010-02-07T12:08:00.000-08:00

No-one sells news like the Americans.

I love the bold approach taken across the Atlantic.

We all know that snow is big local news and NBC 4 in New York has used this cute and memorable way to promote its school closure coverage.

You can imagine how this TV spot could be adapted for radio, right?

KCTV in Kansas City made a similar promo and two spins offs - the last which was made to air during the Superbowl.

I'm not sure who loaded these spots onto You Tube but it sounds like its the promo guy from KCTV (his family and friends star in the spots). He wrote:

"I can easily say that I've never gotten such response from viewers and co-workers over a set of spots. I've had tons of emails and even viewers calling me on my office line to tell me how much they love the spots. It's kind of crazy."

Promos that viewers will relate to and tell their friends about. Good stuff, eh?

Commercial Talk Radio Celebrates RAJAR

2010-02-04T02:29:00.000-08:00

Another bumper set of RAJAR listening figures for speech radio in the UK.

The few commercial talk stations are celebrating.

National Talk Sport has an all time high share and almost 2.5 million listeners.

Scott Taunton, Chief Executive of Talk's owner UTV told Radio Today: “This is a fantastic result, ending what has been a great year for talkSPORT. More people are listening, they’re listening longer and we have grown market share to a record figure in the face of increased competition."

In London, LBC is second placed in the highly competitive market place on its share.

It stands at a record 5.7% for Global Radio.

BBC Radios 4 and 5 each delivered healthy books with figures comparable with year on year.

So, good news for anyone who, like me, loves speech radio!

Making Your Radio News Stand Out

2010-02-03T03:37:00.001-08:00

I am in the process of preparing content for The Broadcast Journalism Weekender in April. There is one thing I plan to talk about which I wish more broadcasters would spend time thinking about...

How to make your radio news unique.

Before you head to the comments box below, I know this is a consideration for some editors and programmers but not enough as far as I'm concerned.

Radio news has many. many traditions and a bulletin on one station can often sound the same as a bully a few places up on the pre-set.

So, I definitely want to inspire those participants who focus on radio at The Broadcast Journalism Weekender to consider, how can you make your news bulletins sound original and stand out?

I have some ideas and I will share them during the course but many of these ideas would require a leap of faith from your Ed.

Some of them might be absolutely brilliant but, then again, in reality they might need to go back to the drawing board.

But that is the nature of creativity and striving to do something different - there is usually an element of risk.

However, if you do not take calculated risks from time to time, how are you going to stand out from the competition?

How Radio's Helping in Haiti

2010-01-26T02:28:00.000-08:00

Yes twitter and other social media have played a part in Haiti but radio has been identified as the main way to get information to the people.

The military has been handing out solar powered and wind up radios to Haitians left homeless by the quake, as CNN reports...

The Broadcast Journalism Weekender

2010-01-25T02:50:00.000-08:00

Today I've announced what I think is an exciting new training opportunity in broadcast journalism.

It sees me team up with the international broadcast news agency, Feature Story News.

Our joint venture, The Broadcast Journalism Weekender offers a pretty unique proposition to students and trainees and also exisiting journalists wanting to learn or develop skills in TV and / or radio.

I think it is unique because:
* The weekend is rooted in 'real life'. We want participants to walk away with tangible benefits.
* Everyone will produce content for their demo.
* Everyone will get feedback on their CV.
* Everyone will get advice on marketing themselves.

Uniquely we also bring experience of multi-media broadcast journalism from not only the UK but internationally too. My fellow trainer, Olly Barratt has been a Washington correspondent and now counts many international broadcasters as clients.

The weekender will be based at FSN's Central London headquarters.

So, if you know someone who you think would benefit from a weekend of training, hands on experience, coaching and meeting new peers, please pass on the website details.

http://journalismweekender.moonfruit.com/

Listen!

Carel Pedre - Haiti's One Man Social Media Machine

2010-01-19T03:02:00.000-08:00

There have been various articles about the use of social media to report the aftermath of the earthquake in Haiti.

One name that I keep seeing is Carel Pedre.

On twitter, Carel describes himself as one of the best and most popular radio & TV hosts in Haiti.

If you take a look at his twitter feed, he has regularly been posting appeals for help and updates.

I have not seen a comment from an official agency on the contribution Carel and twitterers like him are making. However you may be able to see on the screengrab above that a number of people (108 at the time of writing, in fact) have nominated him for a twitter award for his work.

Carel is also using Skype to send news to the outside world. Below is an interview Carel recorded with CBS News...

Watch CBS News Videos Online

I do not want to distract Carel from his work but I will get in touch with him in the coming days.

Are there any questions you would want to ask him about how he is using social media in Haiti?

UPDATE: On twitter @SpyDrMedia makes the point that many people are using twitter to help victims in Haiti. Absolutely and I've since adjusted my post to recognise this. I am highlighting just one example here. Thanks for the comment and for your own contribution.

UK Radio Aid 2 Update

2010-01-18T09:38:00.000-08:00

This morning as I read that Dutch broadcasters are preparing a simulcast fundraiser for victims of the earthquake in Haiti, it made me think back to UK Radio Aid.

This was when the UK commercial radio industry united following the Asian Tsunami.

That broadcast was exactly five years ago today.

So, I wrote a short piece for the Radio Today website, talking about that positive experience and asking today's commercial radio chiefs whether they should consider UK Radio Aid, 2.

Well, it seems that Global Radio has given it some thought today because this evening I received this email from Jonathan Richards who is the Group News Editor and Programme Director of LBC:

"Whilst we appreciate the sentiment of your Radio Today article the idea is not something we feel is appropriate at this time. All Global Radio brands are proud to be playing a full role in supporting the DEC appeal, and, in our view this is the correct way to proceed in terms of co-ordinating the fund raising efforts of UK commercial radio stations. Our news bulletins have covered the Haiti story extensively (and continue to do so). In line with other UK commercial radio stations Global brands including LBC 97.3 and 95.8 Capital FM are broadcasting the DEC appeal commercials. As you are probably aware the DEC campaign is already the most successful since their tsunami appeal five years ago."

Thanks to Global for a swift response to the article. I definately thought the idea was worth putting out there and from the emails and tweets I received today, a number of you agreed, so thank you too.

As Jonathan suggests, continue to get behind the DEC campaign. Perhaps find your local heroes who're doing their bit and follow the story through their eyes. Finally, back anno. as much of your coverage as possible with a reminder of how to donate.

Speaking of which......

The Essential Skills of a Multi-Media Journalist

2010-01-15T13:41:00.000-08:00

Here's a presentation I gave at the news rewired conference in London yesterday about multi-media journalism.

Flick through the slides or, if you have 10 minutes or so, listen to me give commentary.

news rewired 2010 presentation

View more presentations from newsleader media consultancy.

Audioboo for travel news

2010-01-13T02:06:00.000-08:00

Thanks to @106jackfm for sharing a listeners' travel report recorded via Audioboo.

Another fab use for the audio microblogging service as long as it is "safe and legal" to report, as those traffic presenters say!

Listen for the bump too. I hope everyone was ok.

Listen!

"What Will I Listen To On A Saturday Morning?"

2010-01-07T12:05:00.000-08:00

Twitter has an indispensible use for celebrities hitting the headlines – it is a non-stop wire feed of public reaction.

I’ve just been checking through some of the tweets about @wossy and he should be well pleased. Mostly, the folk of twitter world are upset the TV and radio star has quit the BBC and wish him well. (For the full story, click here.)

Here are a few of the tweets:

@192harrington Can't believe Wossy is leaving...What will I listen to on a Saturday morning???

@gazuky Wouldn't it be tragic if @Wossy took the piano with him? 'Four Poofs and a Stool' doesn't quite have the same ring..

@victorcook keep up the great tv work perhaps somewhere where your artistic freedom is not stifled

@Tweedlejim main thing is that you are happy with your decisions mate, don't worry about pleasing anyone other than those who matter the most!

@STE131GONE What do you reckon people? @wossy is going so #FridayNightWithChrisMoyles

@Hanxx now that Wossy has left i think its time for Friday Night With David Tennant ;)

@hail2thequeen So sorry to see @wossy go ...can we guess who's going to replace him? I hear the Daily Mail are campaigning for it to be Russell Brand ...

@chilitechris at least @Wossy leaving the BBC should lead to a reduction in the license fee!!! ;)

@aloe54 @wossy you can take Jay Leno's spot here in the states. Your show is ten times better and a hell of a lot funnier.

@riot2 @Wossy will be dearly missed by all, you made our Friday Nights great. :) x

@louisepepper oh for god's sake Jonathan Ross hasn't bloody died.

So, what will JR do next? Click here for an article I have written for the radio today website asking just that.

Good luck Wossy!

Free Tips on Social Media and Broadcast News

2010-01-06T04:27:00.001-08:00

I have just tweeted the first free tips of 2010.

As a warm up for next week's news rewired conference discussing multi-media journalism, I have sent a collection of tips for using social media in broadcast news.

As usual, many fellow tweeters joined in by contributing their own advice. A big thank you to each of them.

It is not too late to add your own tips - please feel free to share in the comments section below.

Big picture stuff first. Understand why you’re using social media in your news room. You need a focus, so know the strategy.

Users go to facebook to say something – albeit briefly – be friendly, encourage conversation and the exchange of views.

Use facebook to generate fast leads. See Radio 1 Newsbeat’s fb page for good examples

RT @paul_a_smith If you use Twitter and Facebook, maintain a dialogue with your followers. Don't just broadcast headlines...

RT paul_a_smith ...or use it only when you want something. Converse and answer questions. They'll trust you more, and come to you with stories.

Posting your content on facebook exposes it to people who may not visit your web site or indeed listen to you.

RT @brettsr make sure the social media output is reflected in the on air output. It shouldn't live in isolation.

RT @brettsr 5 live now is bringing social media closer to radio news. Also gets us links from News Onlline, all helps get new ears

RT @brettsr get the talent to engage make sure they know its a conversation not one way traffic

On-Air talent - use twitter as a way to reveal your personality to followers.

British talk radio presenter @richardpbacon says twitter provides the DVD extras to his show i.e. behind the scenes access etc.

More on @richardpbacon talking twitter etc. http://bit.ly/EhGtr (via @jemstone)

RT @brettsr make sure the talent sounds natural. It shouldn't sound like a foreign language when they talk about it.

RT @UCFJourno Be transparent, share process. Use Twitter as communications tool within newsroom + between newsroom / roving news teams

Any 'real' relationship has laughter and tears (!), so provide light and shade in your tweets. Don’t be one dimensional.

RT @UCFJourno sound conversational - spoken not written word #newsrw

Can you use your picture rather than a logo on your avatar? = more personal = users more likely to connect with you.

RT @tomkingham use twitter/facebook often but don't bombard people's feeds

Search hashtags to pick up leads e.g. #snow. See this blog post for more.

RT @soofuk Although it's easier to link twitter feed to facebook - people can get annoyed if you tweet a lot

To add to that, twitter shortcode can confuse non-tweeter facebook users.

RT @brettsr feed your social media activity into your own website to bring it all together

Blogs enable the audience to read the story behind the story. Explain how you found a story or the editorial dilemma you faced.

Blogs and other social media require you to be open and personal but guard your credibility and impartiality.

Link to other blogs and encourage like mind bloggers to link to you.

RT @chatters79 I use Google Reader and Byline on the iPhone for monitoring & sharing feeds. Byline is great and caches for offline use.

Provide ways to subscribe and share with other social media sites.

RT @brettsr clever aggregation can push people around your networks. Check out this example..

Produce a page on-line outlining the social media tools the audience can use to contribute to your show or station.

RT @journotutor Social media another tool in the newsgathering & publication kit. J'istic principles of impartiality, accuracy etc still apply

@UCFJourno agrees on accuracy and impartiality but says don’t let it prevent you sounding human.

In your breaking news planning, is there a role for a journalist to monitor and edit content from social media?

Investigate audioboo as a simple way to record & send quality audio on the move.

In 2010 I will be presenting Social Media and News Master Courses for the European Broadcasting Union. If you are interested in receiving more details, please email me, justin@newsleadermediaconsultancy.com

Snow tweets

2010-01-05T12:07:00.000-08:00

Don’t forget to use the power of twitter to report the snow.

I’ve just searched the hashtag snow and in less than five minutes found some great potential caller/story leads:

@mbosano Winchester to Cheltenham in 5hrs 30! Last 12miles took 4hrs #Cheltenham #snow

@binarylove Portsmouth is going crazy for the #snow . The city is at a standstill and I can't make any calls due to congestion! Scary

@JeremyHarpham Nearly 2 inches of #snow in an hour in #Hampshire with a revised forecast of up to 16 inches (40 cms) by the end of wednesday.

@Niecieden The snow just started in North London an hour earlier than forecast #snow

@ericdol No #snow in South #London so far. #UKsnow A lot of pavements had been gritted this morning, but for some reason the roads weren't.

And finally...

@failingtofollow my Ipod froze today. literally. When walking to work it fell below it's minimum operating tempeature #snow

@RichMyles Panic buying of cat litter occurring as it doubles up as an alternative to salt or grit! Handy if you have a cat too. #snow

You can also use twitterfall as a rolling feed of tweets containing key words such as snow.

Boo to 2010!

2010-01-04T11:42:00.000-08:00

I'm on Audioboo now and here is something I recorded earlier with various bits of newsleader news for the New Year.

Listen!

A Christmas Message

2009-12-21T05:31:00.000-08:00

Dear blog reader,

The first year of newsleader media consultancy is almost over. I cannot believe it has gone so fast.

A huge, sincere thank you to all the clients who have supported me this year. It has been hugely appreciated and very enjoyable working with you and your teams.

I also want to say a big thanks to my wife, Jill. As well as being a busy health consultant / trainer and a mum, she is also our company secretary and deals with all the numbers, Excel spreadsheets and associated things that fill me with dread! I have really appreciated that too x.

2010 starts as I hope it continues – busy.

In January, as well as a training job for the BBC, I am taking part in journalism.co.uk’s one day event in London news:rewired. It is aimed at sharing multimedia, social media and online skills. Read a Q&A with me ahead of the conference here.

In February, I will be fronting a masterclass in using social media within news for the European Broadcasting Union. I hope there will be some guest speakers and lots of examples of best practice from around the world. Please contact the EBU if you would like to attend this session in Geneva as it is open to all.

I will also be speaking at the EBU’s Multimedia Meets Radio conference in the Netherlands in March.

So, if we have not yet met, perhaps this will change in 2010 and a final thank you to you, for reading this blog. Please stay tuned, as they say, for more after the holidays.

Have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Warm wishes,

Justin.

Everyone likes free stuff!

2009-12-21T03:56:00.000-08:00

If you're a facebook fan of newsleader or you follow me on twitter, you will know that this month I have been revisiting some of this year's best free tips.

The advice has not just come from me but from those of you who are good enough to interact and share your own tips. Thank you!

I thought it might be useful to link to ALL of this year's free stuff. Please share with your colleagues! So, in no particular order...

General radio journalism tips

Tips for News Editors

Entertainment journalism tips

Tips for better radio interviews

Twitter tips

Original journalism tips

PS There will be more free tips in 2010. Let me know if you have any requests.

(Pic: freedigitalphotos.net)

Ladies and Gentleman........(drumroll).....THE TALKIES!

2009-12-17T12:21:00.000-08:00

Cue lights. Cue orchestra. Cue newsleader. Yes, it is the moment you have been waiting for. It is time for The Talkies 2010. Cue applause. (Shall I calm it down a bit?)

Many thanks to those of you who have sent me content to listen to and made your own suggestions of work worth honouring. I hope you, like me, enjoy hearing and watching our winners. There is some inspiring stuff and maybe even some ideas you can, er, borrow for next year!

First up, Best Radio News.

The great thing about your own awards is that you can bend the rules a bit. In this category, rather than one outright winner I want to congratulate a number of journalists who I think have had a year worth shouting about. So, in no particular order...

Radio City / City Talk news team

In what I suspect has been a challenging year for the news team at City (lots of change at City Talk), the journalists have produced engaging content beyond news bulletins. I have been impressed with how the team has spoken with people at the heart of major stories on Merseyside. For example, reporter Laura Harmes travelled to Spain with a local family fighting to get the body of their murdered son returned home. On the Radio City website this week, you can hear the family of a three year old killed in an arson attack on their home retell their story. I have also been impressed with the conversational manner in which these audio blogs were presented in Afganistan.

The journalists at GMG Radio

In the interests of disclosure I have to tell you that GMG are clients of mine but the journalists have been doing some stand out work. From developing a more informal but still credible style on Rock Radio news to producing an incredibly moving and compelling documentary marking the anniversary of the Hillsborough disaster to travelling to Copenhagen for special coverage of the Climate Conference. Here is an example of the impressive news presenting talent within the group. Kate Kopczyk who reads on Real in the NW with a creative treatment of an ‘and finally...’

I am a big supporter of a push at GMG to do news slightly differently. The death of Sir Bobby Robson was clearly a very significant story for the team in the NE. They considered how their coverage could really strike a chord with an audience passionate about football and even more passionate about this man. Real’s Football Phone In Legend Malcolm McDonald, a former colleague and a friend of Sir Bobby, was asked if he would read the main evening news on the day of his death. It makes for very powerful radio. Malcolm’s emotions connect with the listener in a way no standard treatment could.

Absolute Radio

I think Absolute is doing some of the most exciting things in radio at the moment - set to continue next year with Baddiel and Skinner at the World Cup. The news team has been aiming high in 2009 too. In this compilation you will hear breakfast news presenter and Head of News, Andrew Bailey live in Basra. He and journalist Tania Snuggs marked the anniversary of the Iraq war also filing pictures and videos. Absolute were also in Washington for President Obama's inauguration and you'll hear some impressive reporting during the G20 protests in London.

Jack FM

I got to learn about news on Jack FM through a presentation I wrote about Re-Inventing Radio News. What makes it special is that it is the only live content on the station after 10am. Bulletins are five minutes long, rare in commercial radio as you will agree, and often include other topical content. So, the team is making a significant contribution to the station and that team – nominated for 2 Sonys this year - is only 3 strong: Greg Burke, Ali Booker and Rosie Tratt.

Smartest Move

In BBC Radio Five Live’s schedule changes, all the attention went to Gaby Logan and Richard Bacon but his replacement was not reported so much – and it is very smart. Tony Livesey – former Daily Sport Editor and currently BBC Radio Lancashire’s breakfast host – will front night times on Five, from Manchester. Not only strategically clever to begin the move to the north but Livesey is a great presenter. I have heard him in the judging of various radio awards and he is smart, funny and a good interviewer. I suspect Tony will do well. Bummer for Lancashire though.

The Beyond The Call of Duty Award - renamed The Multi Media Award!

I am going to redefine this category a little because I want to recognise some examples of impressive multi-media work.

Viking FM in Iraq

Back to Iraq, Adam Westbrook was sent there for Viking FM to cover the story of North Yorkshire soldiers serving out there. As well as filing radio pieces, he enhanced the experience for the audience by shooting video, nicely packaged, and producing a very effective audio slide show. It is a great example of what can be achieved within local commercial radio news.

Radio 1

Engaging a younger audience with politics is not easy but I liked what Radio 1 Newsbeat - another of my clients this year - did at conference season. On-line Politics Correspondent, Dave Howard set himself the challenge of explaining what it is all about in ninety seconds. A nice spin, lots of target listeners voices and good production. Start the clock...

Absolute Radio booing and twittering

Generally, Absolute Radio has had an impressive multi-media year. Although it is not news based, I must mention its twittersode of Dr Who. Listeners were asked to write a new episode 140 characters at a time using twitter. For me, this was a very clever and creative way of persuading the audience to interact using the tool. The finished script was then performed on-air by star David Tennant and it was filmed for listeners to watch and for it to be shared.

Absolute’s Head of News Andrew Bailey used Audioboo this year to instantly share back stage reports and interviews from the Isle of Wight Festival. Audioboo (click here if you are not sure what it is) clearly has a lot of potential for radio and radio news and all credit to Andrew for experimenting. He says:

“The whole point was for the Audioboos to compliment the on-air and on-line content with a third strand - social media. I was attempting to bring a "backstage behind the scenes" feel to the content. Nothing at all was scripted from anyone, so it was completely off the cuff and rough and ready. It was to appeal as much to those actually at the festival as those listening on their iphones elsewhere.It was the first time we've ever done it and repeated it again at the Hard Rock Calling Festival in Hyde Park later that month.”

Here are a selection of Andrew's boos:

Worth mentioning BBC London 94.9 too, journalist Steve Phillips has been using Audioboo to promote programmes via 60 second interviews with presenters.

Biggest Talk Radio Success

Although I ran news and programmes at its rival, BBC London for 2 years, you can be nothing but impressed by LBC 97.3’s performance this year. You can see from the graph below, its huge growth in reach and share (that share larger in RAJAR Q3 than its big sister, Heart London).

I think it has grown stronger in 2009 with the bedding in of James Whale at Drivetime. With Nick Ferrari at breakfast, here are two very strong talk radio presenters getting the listener to and from work. Similar in many ways, they send clear messages about what to expect from the station. Throughout the day, I think it is the repositioning of LBC 97.3 as a pure news and talk station which is now paying off. As we know, listeners like to know what they’re getting and the station consistently delivers on its strapline of “London’s Biggest Conversation”. Highly visable, iconic marketing in the branding of 300 London cabs was also impressive this year. Can LBC 97.3 continue its success in 2010 or will a new breakfast show at BBC London shake things up? It will be an interesting one to watch. In the meantime, congratulations to all involved in Leicester Square.

Blooper of The Year

Ok, the top three.

At 3, it’s that man again. Andrew Bailey gets it off his chest on Absolute Radio.

At 2, Be afraid Lancashire. Lancashire be very afraid. Five Live has a bombshell.

At 1, I challenge you not to giggle too, with a disclaimer that I think it is from his year but its a nice nod to Uncle Tel anyway!!

So, there you have it – The Talkies 2010. I don’t think those of us working in news and talk radio always get the recognition we deserve and I hope I have managed to correct that in a small way with this. I have definitely heard examples of work I wouldn’t have otherwise which I suspect will be the same for you. Thank you to those who got involved and provided content including Andrew Bailey, Paul Easton, Laura Harmes and Adam Westbrook. If you feel your work should have been mentioned, please post a link below. I would love to hear it. So, er, is there an after party?

The Talkies 2010

2009-12-11T05:47:00.000-08:00

Ok, here are the categories for my end of year salute to the best of the best – The Talkies 2010!

The judging panel – i.e. me! – will consider any recommendations if you would like to email justin@newsleadermediaconsultancy.com or even leave a comment below but remember, it’s just for fun.

BIGGEST TALK RADIO SUCCESS
What or who has been the success story of 2009.

BEST RADIO NEWS
Who’s producing compelling radio news then? This may be an individual or team.

SMARTEST MOVE
In the constant shift of schedules – and there are some biggies to come – what has been the shrewdest manoeuvre?

THE BEYOND THE CALL OF DUTY AWARD suggested by Andrew Bailey at Absolute.
Who are the multi-talented, multi-tasking heroes of news and talk radio. Email justin@newsleadermediaconsultancy.com if it’s you or your colleague.

NEWS AND TALK BLOOPER OF THE YEAR suggested by Adam on the newsleader blog.
I’ll need your help here. Please send in your contributions but importantly get the permission of your Editor or PD because I would like to share the best on-line. If I receive a blooper, I’ll assume your bosses have okayed the world to hear it!

There you go, a celebration of talent and a bit of fun! I'll reveal the winners next Friday 18 December, so please get involved.

And the award goes to....

2009-12-06T13:12:00.000-08:00

We always say this in radio but - what a year!

Lots of change as always but, most importantly (of course), some fabulous listening.

I was thinking about some of my personal highlights of the year and I thought it might be fun to do some newsleader awards for news and talk radio.

So, I need your help. What categories should be included?

Best talk station and presenter etc., yes but how about shrewdest signing or unsung hero etc.

Please let me know your ideas and I'll get cracking on a special gala blog post - no black tie required.

Pic courtesy of freedigitalphotos.net - hic!

What the Press Wants

2009-11-12T13:49:00.000-08:00

Today, I took part in a panel discussion on What the Press Wants at Marketing:TheArtOf conference in Gateshead.

Here I've merged some notes I wrote for the event guide with some extra tips.

The new ways that consumers are using media means the demands of journalists are changing hugely. Good communications workers need to keep up with this rapid movement. But there remain basic things you can do to satisfy journalists and so get the best possible coverage for your organisation:

The Press wants.......

Content relevant to their consumers...

Media products have very specific audiences, know them well. One specific angle to a story/press release probably will not fit all.

Give added value to a smaller number of media, rather than a mass press release mail out.

Other media could still pick up on the story.

Sound and pictures...

Avoid sending out a story without audio visuals, including a primed interviewee, ready to go. Broadly speaking, this will increase your chances of coverage.

Engaging spokespeople...

Always ask, is this the best possible person to offer for interview?

Identify great story tellers in your organisation.

Strike the balance between authority and engaging delivery.

If you intend to do a lot of radio, invest in an ISDN line which will enable you to do interviews in near studio quality.

Video...

All media now exists (thrive) on-line. Offer shareable video to all, including radio. You can also publish this yourself on You Tube etc.

And last, but absolutely critically, the Press Wants...

Great stories...

Does what you’ve got to say pass the "so what" test?

Why is your story relevant to the audience TODAY.

Will the story get a reaction in the listener? e.g. anger, emotion, shock etc.

Aim for stories that readers/the audience will want to tell their friends about.

If you require help in getting your message across more effectively in the media, please let me know. I'd be happy to discuss options. You can email me at justin@newsleadermediaconsultancy.com

(Pic: freedigitalphotos.net)

Inspirational

2009-11-12T13:28:00.000-08:00

Tim Smit, the co-creator and Chief Exec of the Eden Project has given one of the most inspirational speeches I've ever seen at a conference.

This was at Marketing: The Art Of in Gateshead.

He talked about the need to fulfill dreams (say "when" not "if") and revealed some of his 'rules' for team building.

Here they are, para-phrased. (They will be lost in the translation but I wanted to share.)

1. Before you start work, say good morning to 20 people. Well, maybe not 20 but don't just sit behind your PC. Get a coffee and chat with colleagues.

2. Read x 2 books - kinds which you would not normally read - every year and write a review for colleagues.

3. Do the same with films.

4. Do the same with plays.

5. Write a speech once a year about how you're still inspired to work for the Eden Project. Present to colleagues.

6. Prepare food for your team and sit down together to eat. By candlelight. Ideas come better by night (and a bottle of red).

7. Share your good fortune with others. Managers should perform guerilla goodwill deeds to people they don't know well and not let them know it was them!

8. Put extra pressure on execs at their busiest times. It allows up and coming stars to perform and creates a new 'supergang' within the organisation.

9. Samba drumming! People forget their individual inhibitions as part of a drumming group, find their rhythm and thrive as a team.

I expect Marketing: The Art Of will post his speech on-line soon but here are some extracts of Tim at the Institute of Directors Conference earlier this year.

If you get a chance to hear him speak - don't miss it!!

Conference fever

2009-10-29T03:32:00.000-07:00

Lots of exciting things happening in the radio conference world at the moment, so I thought I'd pull together some news for you.

Firstly, I've just spent a very enjoyable two days in Geneva at the European Broadcasting Union's Training Assembly.

Public service broadcasters from across Europe gathered to discuss the challenges and opportunities posed by our ever changing multi-platform industry.

You can click here to watch sessions, including a presentation by me on examples of local tri-media reporting and effective use of twitter in radio.

As always its great to meet new contacts, share experiences and even more importantly ideas and learning.

With this in mind, I am delighted that a new radio conference for Europe, organised by the European radio industry, has just been launched.

Click here for all the details on Radiodays Europe.

I'm delighted to be on a panel of all sorts of radio people that's been discussing the content and speakers that would go down well.

BUT, the organisers want to hear your ideas. Via the website, you can follow the conference on twitter or become a friend on facebook and I would encourage you to make your own suggestions. These will be hugely appreciated, as the organisers want to make this an interactive experience throughout and, of course, a big success.

Finally, the Radio Academy's 'Radio At The Edge' is getting closer. Its on Monday November 9th in London.

Sessions include 'Radio with Pictures' discussing visualised radio; 'Spotify: Friend or Foe' with speakers including Radio 2's Music Supremo Jeff Smith; 'What would Google Do' if they owned radio in the UK and, perhaps the biggest radio presenters in the social media scene, Tony Blackburn in conversation with Richard Bacon (worth going for alone I reckon).

So, a number of opportunities coming up to learn, share and make new friends - good, eh?

Cloudy With a Chance of Creativity

2009-10-18T13:49:00.000-07:00

We all know the local weather is one of the most important pieces of information you can tell the listener, right? But is there any value in selling it? You bet there is.

Ok, this campaign comes from TV news in Los Angeles but no reason why a news/talk radio station anywhere in the world couldn't produce a similar campaign.

The forecaster here, Fritz Coleman also plays the role brilliantly. So, its part a sell on weather and part a sell on a NBC4 personality.

Creative, memorable and likely to put a smile on the viewers' face - I really like these. See what you think.

Original Journalism Twitter Tips

2009-10-16T03:29:00.000-07:00

Original journalism is one of the ways your bulletins and programmes can stand out from the rest. BUT, with tight resources at many stations how do you uncover exclusives? Here are twenty tips posted via @newsleader on Twitter which may help. As always, your own tips are very welcome. So, please post any contributions or comments below.

1. Original journalism is content your listener won’t hear anywhere else. Make this clear on-air! e.g. "Next, a story you'll only hear on station name this morning...."

2. What do you notice about where you live? What are the issues your friends and neighbours are talking about? Everyday life is a great source of potential stories.

3. In a regional patch, ask journalists to represent where they live. i.e. monitor the local papers/websites, bring in leaflets etc.

4. Visit local on-line forums to discover what people are debating or to find useful contacts.

5. Use twitterfall.com – it’s a feed of tweets based on searchable key words and a great source for tip-offs.

6. In seeing/hearing other stories in other media, look for the untold story or missing angles that deserve further investigation.

7. RT @ollybarratt Do a contacts ringaround - someone might have a great story they haven't put out yet or just a titbit you can develop.

8. How often do you invite your listeners to contribute story ideas? Repeat the invitation regularly to ensure the message is received.

9. Credit listeners on the radio when their stories make it to air. Follow up with a reminder of how to contribute.

10. Further encourage listeners who regularly contribute ideas by inviting them in for summer or Christmas drinks and a thank you.

11. Slim resources? A probing interview can be one of the simplest ways of finding original stories.

12. Don’t just ask questions which will get the basic facts, delve deeper, ask why and what if...

13. Ensure you’re following up news worthy calls into talk shows. Are producers passing leads quickly to the newsroom?

14. Set a target for reporters to find an amount of original stories this month. Reward those who meet the target with a prize.

15. Don’t 'punish' those who don’t meet the target. Find out the techniques they used (or didn't) and coach them.

16. Talk to people! Use opportunities like riding on public transport or getting your hair cut to find out what locals care about and know.

17. As an Editor, understand original journalism can take time. Are you able to take reporters off rota even for a day to work on projects?

18. Make the most of your investment in original journalism. Trail significant stories and run across a day or even days.

19. Ensure coverage is carried across platforms – on-line version with pics, extended audio, video possible? Promote via social networking.

20. Get press coverage for your original journalism – send to other media to use on the condition your station’s credited.

(Picture courtesy of freedigitalphotos.net)

Tweeting for Radio

2009-10-11T01:45:00.000-07:00

There's no doubt that Twitter has been the in-thing in 2009. In fact, it's now such a part of people's lives that it seems incredible that many of those people hadn't even heard of it a year ago!

I believe Twitter has a huge amount to give radio. I think it is radio's long lost cousin. They share many characteristics: intimate but still broadcast, fast, responsive, easy to use and concise.

Many stations are using Twitter, with varying degrees of success, and this article is aimed at sharing some of the best practice I've learned in the past twelve months or so. As always, if you have your own tips, please share at the end of the piece.

1. Ok, for those of you who are Twitter newbies, you're going to have to understand how it works and the etiquette. There are many articles on-line that can bring you up to speed quickly. e.g. The newbies-guide-to-twitter.

2. Ask why should my listener follow me on Twitter? You need to offer content (albeit 140 characters at a time) that she won't find anyway else. You may decide to make exclusive announcements, Twitter only contests, forward links to great content on-line, behind the scenes gossip or pictures and videos. In the photo below, @richardpbacon gives the engineer's eye view of a recent Radio 2 show he presented (use applications such as twitpic or yfrog). @tonyblackburn regularly posts videos (TwitVid).

3. Twitter is great at allowing the listener to get closer to your presenters. Presenters, Twitter is great at allowing you to reveal more of your personality. Don't just tweet when you're on-air, send updates out of hours. Give the listeners a peak at what you do when you're not in front of the mic.

4. Who's account is it anyway? This is to say, a conversation needs to be had about whether the presenter's account is personal or 'belongs' to the station. Let me give you a few examples... Presenter, Mike could start @mikeontalkfm and build a following of 2,000 but if he leaves talk fm that account is useless. When he joins rival station chat fm he's going to have to start from scratch. Bummer. On the other hand, if I am the PD of talk fm and @mikeonair builds 2,000 followers (many of them my listeners), I'm likely to be very upset if Mike uses @mikeonair in his new role at rival, chat fm. Its a tricky area which James Cridland first highlighted. WARNING even if the presenter's account is personal, he/she still has some responsibility to the station he's on at any time. So, I suggest an agreement has to be made stating what can and can't be discussed, particularly no political comments.

4. Use Twitter as a new source of information. Follow people and groups that will become useful contacts. Use Twitterfall for a feed of tweets containing searchable key words. A really useful way of finding out what people are thinking about certain issues. News teams - this is a great way of finding out what is happening in key places in your tsa.

5. Use Twitter to flag up unmissable content coming up on the station. 'Pls RT' means you're asking the recipients to forward the message to their followers. Be careful here, junk tweets aren't allowed on Twitter and will end up losing you followers anyway!

6. Use Twitter to generate on air content even if followers (and non-followers) aren't listening to the radio! Ask for contributions or ask specific questions at any time.

7. Make it clear if this is not an account always personally updated by the presenter. i.e. the production team may send tweets from time to time on behalf of the presenter. The introduction of the producer etc. can actually be attractive as one of those behind the scenes peaks.

8. Follow @newsleader for the latest on my business and free news/talk tips from time to time! (ED: no, junk tweets remember!)

newsleader Oct-Dec 2009

2009-10-09T11:38:00.000-07:00

I thought I'd let you know what I'm up to between now and Christmas - and its busy!

SPEAKING

There are a couple of chances to hear me speak coming up.

Firstly at the European Broadcasting Union's Training Assembly in Geneva on Oct 27 and 28.

I will be taking part in a panel discussion exploring the talents needed to go from radio to multi-platform. I'll also be facilitating workshops focusing on career development within radio.

Please let me know if you're attending, so I can say hi!

Then, I'm speaking much closer to home, at the incredible Sage Centre in Gateshead.

'Marketing: The Art Of' attracted big name speakers including Max Clifford in its first year. Now, the conference is back on November 12 and I will be taking part in a panel discussion about 'What The Media Wants'.

I've also been asked to write a piece for the programme that delegates will receive. Again, email, facebook message or tweet me if you're going.

I'm on facebook at facebook.com/newsleader which is a new page and tweeting at twitter.com/newsleader

FREEBIES

The benefits of using Twitter are still being realised for some stations.

Recently, I found myself sitting with a radio producer and taking her through the basics. Although it seems like Twitter has always been here, I have to remind myself its explosion only happened about a year ago (e.g. @stephenfry sent his first tweet on Oct 09 2008).

So, I hope to do a free piece on best practice for using Twitter on radio. Keep following me for updates.

I've also pledged to do a day of free advice on Twitter about creating original journalism and I'm planning an on-line advent calendar sharing the very best tips of 2009!

BBC/GMG

All this, plus I'm back at Real, Rock and Smooth Radios in Manchester. I also return to BBC London 94.9 to train reporters. Myself and Assistant Editor, Gareth Roberts are planning something memorable for these sessions. It should be exciting, and good fun, for those taking part.

Finally, Tony Cowell will be reporting for Real Radio from 'The X Factor' live shows in the coming weeks. I'm an executive producer on this project helping give Real an X-clusive edge to its coverage. I'm currently developing similar ideas for next year. Again, please follow me for the latest news.

So, busy, busy, busy! There is some availability in December if you require any festive coaching, consultancy or training and I'm booking now for 2010.

As always, any feedback or questions are welcome.

Thanks for your continued support,

Justin.