Rules And Regs

7/28/1995

Every gray cloud has a silver lining.  That statement was never more true than when applied to last week’s Editorial.  In an embarrassing column about nothing, I mentioned the KFRC playbook a couple of times.  I was surprised at the number of calls I received (I was really stunned that anyone actually got through it).  Many of you expressed interest in knowing more about the playbook.

I was fortunate in my career to program more than my share of great radio stations in many different markets.  The resumé of my programming journeys can certainly be described as a long and winding road.  WRBC Jackson, WFUN Miami, WMFJ Daytona Beach, KTLK Denver, KRIZ Phoenix, WRKO Boston, WOR-FM New York, KHJ Los Angeles, KYA San Francisco, KCBQ San Diego, KFRC San Francisco, WAPP New York, B95 and KCMO Kansas City, Y106 and  Q96 Orlando, WSHE Miami and KWOD Sacramento.  Not included in this litany are the stations I consulted along the way.

The first few things that come to mind when you see this list are that I programmed a lot of stations, I traveled a lot and I couldn’t hold a job for very long! All of which are true.

I enjoyed every station I programmed.  It was invigorating to take over a radio station, put format adjustments in place, dream up promotions and work with the air staff.  There was a down side, however.  I found myself teaching the same elemental formatics to each new group of personalities.  Often, I would forget things.  Because I had given the speech before, I assumed the new staff knew what I knew.  They didn’t.

So, early on, I began compiling what I called a playbook.  It was everything I knew about programming.  It wasn’t as simple as handing out the book and having everything be perfect.  Changes had to be made to accommodate particular idiosyncrasies at each station.  But at least the basics were covered.

Having a programming playbook solved a lot of problems.  No matter how many meetings you have, no matter how many elements you cover, good air talent can always find ways to do something outside the guidelines of your format.  The talent can always fall back on that old adage, “You never told me that.”  With a playbook, they can’t use that excuse.  Over the years, I came up with a specific rule for every excuse I heard.  After a while, there were no excuses.

A well-designed playbook can give your air staff a feeling of security.  There are no mysteries.  It’s all there in black and white.  If there are any questions about formatics, they can find the answer.  A jock doesn’t always know what a PD wants.  The playbook lays it out perfectly.

It’s not enough, however, just to have the book.  It has to be used.  Let’s face it: Most jocks, by their very nature, tend to be lazy.  It is up to us as programmers to stimulate them past their level of comfort.  If you’re going to have a playbook, it has to be used…daily.  It may sound juvenile, but it’s a good idea to give tests on the playbook.  If you don’t make it important to the air staff, it won’t be important.  Having the staff answer written and oral questions on the basics of different elements of the format in every staff meeting will keep them on their toes when they are on the air.  I required jocks to leave their playbooks at the station.  Occasionally, I would tape a $50 bill or a message to one of the pages.  Later, I would call the jock on the air and ask if the playbook had been read before the shift began.  When they lied and said they had read it, I would ask them to check a particular page number and call me back.

We all know that a good jock must transcend the format.  A good jock must use personality to become special and different to the listeners.  But they must showcase their personalities within the framework of the format.  They can’t be allowed just to do as they please.  They shouldn’t view formatic rules as stumbling blocks impeding their progress, but as tools to help them achieve greater heights.

Execution, without a plan, is ultimately worthless.  You can practice hitting golf balls every day, but if you don’t know the correct swing, you won’t get any better.  Planning, without execution, is just a worthless.  Those who spend too much time on the drawing board will never see their creation come to life.

I tried hard to do both.  I’m a big believer in weekly air check sessions.  It’s all right, and quite necessary, to have rules, but making sure the jocks know how to implement the rules through their own personalities is imperative.

After several false starts, I managed to put down my programming thoughts in the form of a playbook.  Paul Drew, head of programming for the RKO chain, liked the idea and we used the concept at most of our stations.

I make no false claims that these ideas are original.  Different elements were “borrowed” from many of the great programmers I worked with.  Since the playbook was written over the course of years, some influences are easy to spot—particularly the philosophy behind the rules.  It is the direct result of working late into many nights with Buzz Bennett.  Formatic specifics were a direct result of working with Drew.  The playbook is a combination of those ideas, as well as my own, and other unknowing contributors who taught me things along the way.

As the playbook was always a work in progress, some of the specific rules could be conceived as contradictory.  Each has a different level of importance.  Different stations had somewhat different needs.  The rules were always bent to accommodate the needs of individual stations.

And the playbook was always subject to challenge.  If any jock could convince me that his idea was better than what was in the playbook, the rule would be changed.

The concept of a playbook is to make sure that your ideas are shared by your staff.  It also serves as an important tool to help you know exactly what your position is.  Furthermore, it helps you to grow as you add and subtract specifics with each new challenge.

Anyhow, so many of you asked for a copy of the playbook, we’ve reprinted it in this issue beginning on page 10.  You might not agree with all of the guidelines, but I’m sure you’ll agree that the idea of a playbook might be a good one.

Feel free to steal what you need.  I did.