My Jerry Maguire Moment

This is my Jerry Maguire moment ... a mission statement that will probably make me a pariah in my industry. But I think that's okay, because in a way, I'm switching industries.

I believe radio is show business. But I've seen it morph into its own strange kind of show business: one that doesn't want or value entertainers.

I love technology. In many industries, technology means people lose their jobs. The machines do it better and cheaper. So I expected jobs to be lost in radio. What I didn't expect was for a bulk of those jobs to be the entertainers, the intellectual capital that created the actual product.

Machines don't write, aren't funny, can't make listeners think or cry, don't live the same lives as the audience, and can't instinctively know which topics would compel them. Can you do show business without creatives? Our industry's brand of show business thinks so.

The plan is to mean something to somebody with just music, the same music the competition and other platforms play. With no human entertainment element, radio's a mere utility. Music comes out of the speaker like water comes out of a tap. People use it, they're glad it's there, but they don't think much about it.

With the exception of Talk, where the personality IS the inescapable product, it's as if radio just isn't interested anymore. The energy and effort has gone from fostering, developing and discovering talent to figuring out how to not have to deal with them.

If you're experienced, have a winning record, know how to do a show and win, and are used to getting paid, you're the worst thing you can be. You'll compete for very few opportunities. Those will be for "shifts," not "shows," and you'll be paid significantly less, because frankly, your salary's a burden.

Think what you do is respected in the industry? Afternoon drive is no longer considered a full-time job; that person now also has to be the Production, Music, and Asst. Promotions Director. "Music-intensive mornings" is the steadily creeping strategy. Morning show jobs are now going to "Radio Idol" contest winners. Yes, it's new talent, but do contest winners expect the salaries pros do? What a coincidence ... no. And the above is happening in major markets, not small.

Many saw the writing on the wall. The rest have a nagging feeling in their gut that things are not playing out in talents' favor. The industry's just not giving back what it once did in terms of providing a stage on which to perform. Has this plan for terrestrial radio been a success if gifted people no longer see it as a viable career? The answer is ... the people controlling the industry couldn't possibly care less what you think.

So where does that leave you? That's where the mission statement comes in: If an industry sends you a message, in deeds or words, that they put little value in what you do, get to where content creators ARE valued!

Wishing things would go back to the way they were ain't gonna cut it. Waiting for radio to realize it made a mistake is a fool's errand. Being frustrated or angry is a waste of time. Remember, you're free to "fire" anyone who demands you stifle your God-given gifts.

Most of radio's current stars found a way around the people who didn't believe in them. And now, more than ever, the gatekeeper system is falling. You no longer have to beg, grovel, trick, sell or convince big media to "give you a shot." You can take it straight to your audience and give yourself a shot.

How? Write columns for print and web, blog, stick a toe in Internet radio, put up your own podcast, provide features to numerous media clients, write your great American novel or screenplay, get into theatre, act, host, be a creative hired gun for production companies and agencies ... just a few things to jog your thinking in new directions.

Find the people who are like you, the creatives, and hang out with them. They'll encourage the real you, not hold you back. Think you deserve fame? Then get out there and make yourself famous. Stop waiting for a radio station to do it. Make radio a client, not an employer. Our kind don't do very well as "employees," anyway. We're free spirits.

I hear the reservations -- the health insurance (it's slipping away as a corporate benefit), the security (it doesn't exist). The real risk is not being in control of your own fate. If you're truly the talent you believe you are, the opportunities will come; the money will add up. Even if it doesn't match what you got from an employer right away, every dollar is so much sweeter because it's on your terms, you won't care that much.

If you're someone who can create something out of nothing, nothing can exist without you. Take pride in being the creative that you are. Don't let anybody talk or intimidate your value down. Don't get trapped thinking one industry and one outlet is all there is for you. Show us all what you've got, and use EVERY avenue to do it. Quit trying to save radio, and save yourself first.

That's my Jerry Maguire moment. Now the fish and Renee Zelwegger are going with me.