Thomas Toscano, the “Maestro.”
At our small and impoverished community radio station, we don’t have marketing surveys or Nielsen ratings, we have to figure things out ourselves.
How are we doing? Very well, I think, but it’s just a guess.
I was once the Executive Producer of the CBS Morning News, and I understand the importance of chemistry and the need for an audience in media, community radio or CNN. We knew exactly who was watching, for how long and when.
With my broadcast “Talking To Animals,” we are having fun but flying blind. I suppose that is the fun part of it. We are just winging it, but coming up with some creative ideas to grow the show.
The corporate media know exactly who is listening and watching, and Thomas Toscano and I really have no idea. If you judge the show by e-mail messages and the steadily increasingly flow of live calls, there is some evidence we might be catching fire.
We are getting calls from all over the country, they are getting through the station’s medieval telephone system. People are e-mailing me (and calling) from every part of the country. Most are blog followers, but not all.
Their questions are very good and relevant to the lives of animals. Five people signed up for our new “support an hour” program, at $25 each, we made more than $200. At WBTN, that is big money.
In the first weeks, calls were few and far between, today they came steadily, like planes waiting to land in a busy airport. The callers are almost unfailingly intelligent, courteous and interesting.
As a former producer, I know the importance of “chemistry” in any media pairing, radio or TV. Thomas and I have it, we bounce off one another in just the right ways at just the right time.
He is very much a pro, and I like to think I am as well, I’ve done an awful lot of radio shows.
Chemistry is critical.
The show has a nice balance to it. Me and Thomas talking and sparking off of one another, calls coming in regularly and at sane intervals, my e-mails surprising and very timely, our discussions revealing and interesting.
The calls came in from California, Virginia, Ohio and Illinois. The word is getting out.
We are a safe place, shy people feel safe enough to call. The stories of the callers are fascinating to me.
We are launching a new “supporter” plan where by anyone can buy or “sponsor” an hour of the show by sending $25 to the station online or by mail. Five people signed up right away today, Thomas was in shock. We made $225 for the station.
You don’t have to be General Motors to have a voice on our show. This is the people’s media, a thrill ride every step of the way.
Thomas and I like each other, and I suspect that shows. That chemistry is essential over a two-hour period, I noticed today that when my voice got tired or hoarse, Thomas would just take over until I could get a drink of water.
This show was the best from my vantage point it felt the best and I am told it sounded solid. Next week, we pick it up again, Wednesday from one to 3 p.m.
The number is 866 406 9286, or, if you are local, 802 442 1010. You can e-mail me with your questions anytime, [email protected].
Today, the show was just what I had been hoping for. I will work hard to keep it going, I have this feeling we are just getting started. Our conversation about dogs and diets is just getting underway.