Working for a few hours a day, getting really decent pay, listening to music, plus all kinds of free stuff sounds good to a lot of people. This is what most people think radio consists of, but you would be wrong. Most things that conform to the digital era gain popularity, but with radio, it is a different story entirely. Due to all factors radio is dying out. Now that every high school and college student in the nation have the ability to make and play a playlist of their own, there is slowly less and less of a need for radio.
Being the disc jockey (DJ) of a radio station was once considered an art form by insiders, and local celebrities for the musical atmosphere. The radio DJ became a close personal friend. The masses would build almost a terrestrial relationship with the on-air personality and the radio station. For the average person, radio was the first way to get, obviously, new artists and new songs, but also the first reliable way to get up to minute news events, traffic details, weather, entertainment, and more.
Technology benefits are our lives more and more each year. YouTube and local news websites have made it faster and easier than ever to get up to date news and events. IPod’s and mp3 players along with all of the different types of media players, such as iTunes and Rhapsody, make it easier than ever to quickly get music and hear comparable artists. Cellular telephones have become more and more advanced and can access all of these different features with the click of a button. So the question is, is radio a relic of the past?
According to the Occupation Handbook, radio nationwide is in a slow to moderate decline and estimating that there will be only 15,500 job openings within the next few years. With computers being able to pretty much run the station by itself the art of slip cueing a record and playing commercials by carts without a single flaw has dwindled out and the personality parts of the shows have become the superior edge. Being able to record a whole four hour show has made its way to the table. What it’s missing though, is your input. There are pretty much no more call-ins, requests, and speaking your mind.
But what do you have to say? Upon asking the question “Is radio dying” to one of my classes here at Salt Lake Community College most people said or nodded their heads “yes!” One student in the class, Brian S. said, “What will people listen to in their cars, how will they be entertained?” Even the teacher chimed in with, “No it is not dead yet, but it is slowly dying out.” One of the radio insider’s, who didn’t want to be mentioned said, “Radio has been slowly dying for years because it has become a business. Most take stuff from LA and New York City and try to fit it in to our different style of radio and it doesn’t work at all. I am just glad to have had an exceptional thirty year career here.”
Most critics and insiders think radio will be dead in 15 to 20 years. There are many factors that contribute to this notion including podcasting and internet radio, but the biggest has to be commercials. Commercials are annoying and ruin everything about everything; however, it’s where TV and radio get their funding. Now that information is in front of you, the question “is radio becoming extinct?” can be answered.