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New Members -- How did you find this forum?
- Thread starter radiojomo
- Start date
I discovered the RadioDiscussions website during the beginning part of the Covid pandemic when I was up late one night, unable to leave the house due to the curfew that had been implemented, and did a Google search for one of the stations I once worked for and one of the jocks who I knew had moved on to major markets, but was unsure if he was still around. Once that Google search brought me here, I found a lot of topics that I found interesting.
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An interesting topic, and one I am quite certain I know what prompted you to start it.
My unvarnished truth? I was told about this site years ago by a friend when rumors were swirling that a radio station I once worked for was going to be sold.
Once I arrived here, I lurked for several years, never bothering to create an account because frankly, the content was not that interesting to me. More often than not, the content didn't read like radio people freely talking but rather like one boring college lecture after another.
I observed one particular moderator who, rather than "moderating" and keeping the conversations on track, seemed to always feel the need to deconstruct any post made by others. I'm not saying a moderator shouldn't be a contributor, but there is a huge difference between contributing, and lecturing/talking down to other members. That continues to this day and it's one of the things I find most off-putting frankly. It's a shame honestly, because I do believe that if I were to meet this particular person and have opportunity to forge a friendship, we could be great friends.
Eventually (Nov. 2020) I created an account and have tried to make meaningful posts to contribute to the content. But in all honesty, my interest in contributing here runs hot and cold. There is a certain elitist attitude that runs through this site from many, and it's a bit on the nauseating side at times. I don't pretend to have all the answers, but I really resent those who, by their attitude and nature of their posts seem to think they do. I keep a sign in my office: "Be open, be teachable. You aren't always right." Some here could use a little introspection.
My unvarnished truth? I was told about this site years ago by a friend when rumors were swirling that a radio station I once worked for was going to be sold.
Once I arrived here, I lurked for several years, never bothering to create an account because frankly, the content was not that interesting to me. More often than not, the content didn't read like radio people freely talking but rather like one boring college lecture after another.
I observed one particular moderator who, rather than "moderating" and keeping the conversations on track, seemed to always feel the need to deconstruct any post made by others. I'm not saying a moderator shouldn't be a contributor, but there is a huge difference between contributing, and lecturing/talking down to other members. That continues to this day and it's one of the things I find most off-putting frankly. It's a shame honestly, because I do believe that if I were to meet this particular person and have opportunity to forge a friendship, we could be great friends.
Eventually (Nov. 2020) I created an account and have tried to make meaningful posts to contribute to the content. But in all honesty, my interest in contributing here runs hot and cold. There is a certain elitist attitude that runs through this site from many, and it's a bit on the nauseating side at times. I don't pretend to have all the answers, but I really resent those who, by their attitude and nature of their posts seem to think they do. I keep a sign in my office: "Be open, be teachable. You aren't always right." Some here could use a little introspection.
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Honestly, I was more surprised about a new member joining rather than the content of the conversation!
There is a real tendency here by "the old guard" to be immediately dismissive of anyone who is new to the site, even though they may have decades in the industry. It's sad really.
As Moderators, we try to be welcoming to everyone. New members have every bit as much right to share their opinions as "the old guard." More than once, I have stepped in to enforce that right. On the top of every page you will see:
"A reminder ...
Keep your posts professional and respectful."
"A reminder ...
Keep your posts professional and respectful."
It has nothing to do with this site, but in many ways the industry and the world as a whole. When I started this site in 1997, most of the regular posters were young kids (I was 18 at the time) passionate about the industry and wanting radio to try new things. As it grew, in came the influx of the "old-timers" wishing things were still done how it was in their day and belittling us as the "kiddies".
Eventually most of the younger posters were driven away, but many of them have gone on to big things in the industry. A fellow teenaged poster in those days now is a multi-station owner, a kid who started posting when he was 12 is now an established programmer and teaches collegiate media courses.
That is appreciated. Just sharing my observations and experience.
I think the topics here are really interesting. I think I found the place while looking for info on a radio station. I have been lurking for years, but never got the courage to make an account to post.
We're happy to have you aboard!
It was likely about 12 or 13 years ago when I was in the process of changing clients on the station I managed. Our prior client had been stringing me along paying a miserable amount each week for the station's airtime and making me drive across Houston (about a 4 or 5 hour round trip) to collect a check. They had not paid for about 4 weeks and I had a new client lined up, so I told them I had to have a check that day or I was cutting them off. They called my bluff and the station went silent.
About 4 or 5 days later the new client was on the air but there were posts here saying we have been silent well over a week and had not filed for an STA. I asked the post to be removed and when told no, I said I needed to respond to it. That's when I became a member and found a wealth of information.
As a guy that has run stations for owners, the only frustrating part is some posters who have never been in such a position slamming you when you try to explain why things are not that easy and clear-cut as they make it. Simply put, if their idea is not being used already, there's a reason for that. In fact I had to learn all that myself, sometimes the hard way.
About 4 or 5 days later the new client was on the air but there were posts here saying we have been silent well over a week and had not filed for an STA. I asked the post to be removed and when told no, I said I needed to respond to it. That's when I became a member and found a wealth of information.
As a guy that has run stations for owners, the only frustrating part is some posters who have never been in such a position slamming you when you try to explain why things are not that easy and clear-cut as they make it. Simply put, if their idea is not being used already, there's a reason for that. In fact I had to learn all that myself, sometimes the hard way.
Over 20 years ago I was made aware of a Radio Discussion board by a few industry pals on Long Island, and found it fascinating. Everything radio was discussed there .... music, DX, nostalgia, ratings, flame-wars, some real good chuckles ..... but all of its non-business / bottom line content has been shuttled elsewhere nowadays.
Yett I really don't know how I discovered THIS site. That realization came subsequently. Happenstcually, and just in recent times, I've been deposited here after looking up station histories. No doubt others have found the same path, eh ?
I've found myself surfing to and responding to a lot of topics and markets here. The 'favourites' file now takes noticeably longer to scroll through, hi. I've tried to make others faimiliar with it -- radio buddies and engineers and even normal civilian people.
Radio-Discussions has become a wonderful place both to live in and visit.
Thanks for all the great work, folks!
Yett I really don't know how I discovered THIS site. That realization came subsequently. Happenstcually, and just in recent times, I've been deposited here after looking up station histories. No doubt others have found the same path, eh ?
I've found myself surfing to and responding to a lot of topics and markets here. The 'favourites' file now takes noticeably longer to scroll through, hi. I've tried to make others faimiliar with it -- radio buddies and engineers and even normal civilian people.
Radio-Discussions has become a wonderful place both to live in and visit.
Thanks for all the great work, folks!
I found this site in May of 2022 after doing a google search on the name of a guy I worked with in radio back in the 1980’s in the West Palm Beach market Dave Michaels. Since joining I’ve seen a few comments by another guy I worked with there, Mike Sheridan. I used a few names at the stations I worked at there but at WINGS 92 I was Kenny Davies.
I've drifted away from discussion forums (not just this one, but several radio-related and others) quite a bit over recent months, particularly as Covid lockdowns have been removed and I've been able to spend more time with friends and family. I just got tired of the atmosphere - personally, I always feel like I'm treading on eggshells.
I'm happy to be corrected in a friendly way when something I post is perhaps a little wide of the mark, but the number of rude people who seem to sit on messageboards all day going "No. Wrong. You're wrong." when someone makes a minor mistake makes it a negative and exhausting experience. We're all here for fun, none of us are here because it's our job to be here, so why not make it a bit more fun and light-hearted and a bit less like sitting your finals on the minutiae of radio, knowing someone is ready to pounce with their big red Sharpie to cross out your errors?
I couldn't agree more. That's why I put this message at the top of every page:
A reminder ...
Keep your posts professional and respectful.
It's okay to disagree. It's not okay to insult each other or post inflammatory or untrue statements.
Ditto. Some other boards do something similar to help keep peace on the forums. Someone once told me some forums are like a living room - a place to shoot the bull and talk shop!
Yes! Radio, after all, is entertainment. It's something that helps us on a long car journey, or keeps us sane while we're working from home alone all day. We're not discussing global politics or medical science here. An old boss of mine used to have a saying - "it's only radio, nobody dies". It is a livelihood for some people - it used to be mine, but I do something a lot more stable and predictable now - and a lot of the more agitated posters seem at pains to point this out whenever anyone makes a point about what a station is doing. But we've heard that point now, and don't need to hear it over, and over, and over.
All forums, whether radio-related or not, seem to have two or three people who have apparently made it their full-time job to be on the forum and make sure nobody posts anything that doesn't meet their exacting standards. I just wish people would chill a bit - this is meant to be fun, and nothing anybody posts here matters one bit.
A few months ago, there was a poster who was continually "bumping" old threads to the top of the page, so you'd quite often open up an ancient topic by mistake and it was remarkable how much more pleasant the discussions were in those old threads. There were more participants, there was less aggressive posting, and more interesting information and anecdotes being shared. It does seem like it's declined, there are very few of us here now and a lot more ill-tempered "these are the facts, I am correct, end of discussion." type posts.
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I don't even remember how I found this place. I was searching for some information and this is what came up in whatever search engine I was using.
I needed a place to rant about how I didn't like what was happening in radio and also get information about changes taking place, since the sources I used to use weren't providing the information. Eventually this became a place where it was explained why radio couldn't be what I wanted it to be, and by this time I had Internet access at home and, while it wasn't fast enough to stream to begin with, I later learned how I could hear the music I liked online.
And I used this name several years before I first found this place because my favorite radio station made some changes, hoping to attract younger listeners, that upset a lot of people, with a music mix that made no more sense than if a chimp was picking out the songs, so I sent them a sarcastic email in which I made a typo on the subject line, realizing "This could be my name." A month later the person in charge said, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." Ironically, the way that station sounded for a month is just how one radio station I listen to online sounds all these years later.
I needed a place to rant about how I didn't like what was happening in radio and also get information about changes taking place, since the sources I used to use weren't providing the information. Eventually this became a place where it was explained why radio couldn't be what I wanted it to be, and by this time I had Internet access at home and, while it wasn't fast enough to stream to begin with, I later learned how I could hear the music I liked online.
And I used this name several years before I first found this place because my favorite radio station made some changes, hoping to attract younger listeners, that upset a lot of people, with a music mix that made no more sense than if a chimp was picking out the songs, so I sent them a sarcastic email in which I made a typo on the subject line, realizing "This could be my name." A month later the person in charge said, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." Ironically, the way that station sounded for a month is just how one radio station I listen to online sounds all these years later.
Don’t remember. However, I think most find it with links to other sites that then link to RD.