Political Ads on Pandora

Based on musical tastes you might be asked to send your email information to a political candidate. That's what happened to Crystal Norris while listening to Garth Brooks on Pandora. She was outraged.

Seems like pretty nifty marketing. Eliot Van Buskirk has an interesting perspective on this in his Huffington Post posting.

Why Shouldn't Mitt Romney Advertise on Pandora?

There's nothing wrong with marketing on Pandora. Somebody has got to pay for this 'free' service.

I'm guessing Crystal Norris may have been outraged because the ad seemed to invade a personal moment. But then, it may be pretty hard to have anything that approaches a private moment on the web. Somebody is collecting all our clicks and comments in the name of marketing.

Jacobs Media’s All-Format Techsurvey8 Results

Jacobs Media’s All-Format Techsurvey8 Results
Jacobs media is sharing the initial results and info-graphics from their eighth annual tech survey. After all these years...companionship is still one of the main emotional triggers to listen to radio. Local personalities and favorite songs are still the main reasons to tune-in.   Could compelling local content keep listeners tuning in?

There are survey results from the Media Audit that suggests  Pandora is the number one radio station in Los Angeles. The method used to retrieve the data is a bit wonky. They use phone surveys once every two years. According to the Tech 8 survey, Pandora is now used by 18% of radio listeners. 43% of radio users consider Pandora to be radio.

The Power Of Song

Interfaith Conversations: The Power Of Song - Courant.com

At a recent PRPD conference there was a lot of discussion about how to bring public radio music programming to life. The fear is that downloading and services like Pandora will make music on Public Radio obsolete. Some of the discussion has been about picking the right music. More of the discussion has been about how to engage the audience. After all, a public radio service depends on listener support to sustain itself. The music service must be engaging enough to motivate listeners to support the programming. That means not only a consistently appealing selection of music, but hosts that can connect the music to the listener.

Susan Campbell's column in the Hartford Courant brought this into focus. In music, there are shared moments that can reach the soul. During the presentation by the Interfaith Amigos, a Rabbi, a Christian Minister and a sheik, they talked about their continuing dialog. They're bringing their message of love for one another that is a big part of the three Abrahamic faiths. Campbell wrote in her column, "And then? Something happened. The audience joined in, and back in the sinners' section where I sat, they even swayed to the music, and that's not just people who were alive when that 1933 song was big. These were kids, too. People looked at one another like they couldn't believe they were sitting in a Hartford church singing an old song, and then? They opened their mouths and belted out the chorus." "Mackenzie and his friends are onto something. You sing together, it's hard to hate."

Public radio programming, when done well, can tap into that sense of community. Well thought out topical connections can put the music into context, and at times reach something in all of us. A musical jukebox like Pandora can't go there. Public radio music programmers, producers and hosts can pick all the right stuff but, by putting the music in the right context we can create moments when the music can mean something more.